Bellatrix stepped forward slowly, her wand spinning around her fingertips, her tone casual:
“I heard about you… beating Rodolphus, beating Alecto, and going around challenging people to duels?”
Isolde’s heartbeat suddenly accelerated, and she gripped her wand tightly:
“Yes.”
“Very well, then…” Bellatrix let out a light chuckle, though her eyes were not staring at the other person.
“Have a duel with me.”
A duel invitation.
Coming from the mouth of Bellatrix Black.
Isolde almost thought she had misheard.
She was stunned for a few seconds before reacting, a light instantly brightening in the depths of her eyes as she nodded without hesitation:
“Alright, I accept.”
This was a rare opportunity to have contact with her target of conquest!
A passing professor acted as the referee, and the venue was cleared, leaving only the two of them standing facing each other.
Sunlight filtered through the high windows of the Dueling Arena, falling upon the two of them, the air as tense as a taut bowstring about to snap.
With the professor’s command, the duel officially began.
Bellatrix didn’t probe at all; as soon as she made a move, it was a succession of spells, her offensive airtight.
Although they weren’t spells with particularly lethal moves, they excelled in fast attack speed and high spell hit rates.
If it were an ordinary student, they might have completely collapsed long ago.
Isolde did not dare hold back anything, displaying all the foundation she had painstakingly practiced this semester.
She precisely controlled her magic, dodging flexibly, defending, counterattacking, and containing all in one go.
Her spells connected smoothly, entirely unsuppressed by the opponent’s momentum.
The spells collided violently in the air, bursting into patches of dazzling light.
The more Bellatrix fought, the more surprised she became, and the interest in her grey eyes grew increasingly intense.
The Ravenclaw before her had solid magic, extremely fast reactions, and astonishing resilience.
Clearly slightly inferior in strength to her, she could always stabilize the situation at critical moments, forcefully enduring her offensive.
She had always been proud, never condescending to show mercy, and her attacks grew fiercer each time.
Isolde gritted her teeth and held on stubbornly.
Her arms ached unbearably, her magic was nearly overdrawn, and cold sweat covered her temples, yet she still did not take half a step back.
After the two of them fought fiercely for a long time, the light of the spell collisions gradually subsided.
In the end, Isolde narrowly blocked Bellatrix’s final attack.
Both stabilized their postures simultaneously, breathing slightly, neither completely subduing the other.
The entire Dueling Arena was dead silent.
No, Isolde’s magic had already been exhausted, but Bellatrix could still cast one more spell.
Isolde supported her knees, panting heavily, and looked up at the proud and dazzling girl before her.
There was no fear in the depths of her eyes, only boundless determination and radiance.
Bellatrix looked at her, the corners of her lips unconsciously curving up slightly, her stubborn mouth unable to hide her approval:
“You have some skills, but you still can’t compare to me.”
As soon as the voice fell, a long-absent, cold mechanical prompt suddenly sounded in Isolde’s mind.
[Beep!]
[Congratulations to the host for completing the hidden task: Having intimate contact with the target of conquest…]
[Ahem! How is fighting not considered intimate contact?]
[Now issuing reward: Talent Resonance degree +30%, please keep up the good work, host.]
The system, which had been dormant for a whole semester, finally came back to life.
Isolde was stunned at first, and then almost laughed out loud.
Intimate contact?
So fighting her desperately was considered intimate contact?
This system’s judgment criteria were simply too outrageous.
Fragments of magical light dissipated between their wands.
Isolde supported her slightly trembling knees, her chest rising and falling violently, every breath carrying a burning pain in her lungs.
The magic within her body was already near exhaustion, and cold sweat on her temples slid down her cheeks.
Bellatrix was right opposite her, her breathing slightly more hurried than usual, her cheeks stained with a faint blush, her grey eyes surging with intense interest and undisguised sharpness.
Everyone who wanted to become stronger would be bellicose.
Her hand holding the wand was steady, and the remaining magic inside her was minimal.
But as long as she was willing, a casual spell, even the very last one, could easily break the balance before her and completely win this duel.
The onlookers and the professor acting as referee all held their breaths, the whole scene so quiet that they could hear each other’s heartbeats.
Someone muttered inwardly: “Merlin, can this Ravenclaw fight this well?”
“The person opposite her is a Black!”
Bellatrix looked into Isolde’s eyes, which were filled with stubbornness and radiance, but the spell that had reached her lips was slow to be uttered.
The standoff lasted only a few seconds before Bellatrix slowly raised her wand, the magical light at her fingertips gradually receding.
She looked up at Isolde, her tone returning to its usual arrogant and cold self, carrying an unquestionable certainty:
No further attacks, no relentless pursuit; a simple four words declared the suspension of this duel.
Isolde let out a long breath, her tense nerves relaxing slightly.
But right at this moment, a strange warm current suddenly exploded in her mind.
Those spells that Bellatrix had cast just now, the trajectories of her magical circulation, and the rhythm of her spell release were uncontrollably replaying in her mind over and over again.
She was astonished to find that the defensive and containment spells she cast and Bellatrix’s offensive spells— on the underlying logic of magic circulation, actually had inexplicable similarities.
It was like two puzzle pieces that inherently fit together, quietly snapping together a corner during the fierce collision just now.
She could clearly perceive that the originally obscure and difficult spell techniques, those magic control methods that she couldn’t break through after practicing hard for a long time, suddenly became lucid at this moment.
It was as if an invisible hand had parted the fog before her eyes, allowing her to instantly grasp a bit of the spell essence belonging to Bellatrix.
That feeling of complete mastery was clear and real, but in contrast to it… was the completely bottomed-out magic within her body; even lifting her wand had become incomparably difficult.
Isolde knew clearly in her heart that this sudden realization of technique was simply not enough to support her in continuing the fight.
In her current state, let alone counterattacking, even the most basic defensive spell was difficult to cast stably.
If they kept stalemating, she would lose without any suspense.
Rather than reluctantly holding on, it was better to face it calmly.
She slowly straightened up, the hand holding the wand lowering slightly, no longer putting up a confrontational posture, actively releasing her tense magic.
Looking at the still proud and dazzling Bellatrix before her, her voice was slightly hoarse from panting, yet every word was clear:
“I lost.”
As the words fell, a low uproar came from the crowd of onlookers, and the referee also nodded slightly, obviously approving of this result.
Bellatrix raised an eyebrow, seemingly not expecting her to admit defeat so straightforwardly.
A trace of surprise flashed in her grey eyes, which was then covered by thick arrogance.
She gave a light hum, just as she wanted to say something, she heard Isolde speak again.
Isolde raised her eyes, her gaze looking straight at Bellatrix, with not a shred of frustration from defeat in the depths of her eyes.
“But this is only temporary.”
“Today I lost to you because my magic was insufficient and my technique was not yet proficient enough, but I will not give up because of this.”
She clenched the wand in her hand tightly, her knuckles turning slightly white, her tone full of obstinacy.
“When I practice my spells well and improve my magic, next time I will still come to find you for a duel, and I will definitely challenge you again.”
These words were spoken openhandedly and persistently, without a shred of cowardice, instead carrying an indomitable resilience.
Bellatrix looked at her and fell silent for a moment.
The Ravenclaw before her was indeed out of the ordinary.