Flames erupted around Ariella as a violent swell of purple energy burst out and surrounded me, wrapping around me as my rage surged immensely, overwhelming me.

My vision went white as my mind blanked, before a sense of calm set in as the surging emotions stilled, a slow exhale escaping my lips as I turned my gaze towards Ariella, the air around her shimmering intensely from the heat generated from her body.

"Woah, so that's what Enrage looks like, huh? Your hair's all spiky and your eyes are glowing, plus that purple energy around you looks really cool.

It looks a bit different to your Aura in color, I thought it'd look more similar since your Aura's purple too.

Oh, that's right, you're supposed to be really ruthless in this state. Well, come on! Let's see it!" She grinned eagerly, a burst of heat erupting out as she slammed her fists together.

Hm...

"Let's end this quickly. I would prefer not to hurt you too severely," I remarked, a look of surprise appearing in her eyes.

"Huh? And why's that?" She inquired with a confused tilt of her head.

"Because you're important to me. And I find you very cute and endearing, so there's no logical reason to hurt you unnecessarily."

"H-Huh?" She blurted out, looking caught off-guard as the glow of heat around her cheeks intensified.

<Huh?>

What is it, Ai? You sound confused.

<I-...never mind, we can address it after the match>

I see. Very well, then.

"Now, let's continue," I stated, as I shot forward.

"W-Wait...! Crap!" She exclaimed, before stomping on the floor as I closed in on her, an intense blast of flames erupting out upon impact, the force of the blast pushing me back, the heat stinging my skin.

She took a deep breath before charging at me, rushing forward and leaping towards me as she closed in.

I swiftly leapt off to my right and chanted to manifest Ravage, sending to shooting out towards her.

She ducked as the jaws snapped at her head, evading it before driving her fist towards my knees.

Her fist whizzed below the soles of my boots as I sprang up to evade her strike, before unfurling a rapid downward slash at her with my blade.

She sprang back, the tip of my blade striking her left shoulder and starting to cut through, before a fierce explosion suddenly erupted as my blade began to cut through, blowing my arm back.

A trickle of blood began to run down her shoulder, before evaporating into steam from the heat emanating around her skin.

Suddenly, flames erupted around her right arm, swirling and intensifying around her arm as it began to take a long, narrow shape, a smirk spreading out across her lips as the air around the flames shimmered violently.

"I can only use this move while Blaze Ignition is active...you should try and dodge it!" She exclaimed as she fired out pressurized bursts of flames from her heels, launching herself towards me before chanting as she drew back her arm, "[Flame Lance]!"

I twisted my body across as she drove her arm forward, the concentrated flames around her arm grazing my right side, burning through my armor and searing my skin.

As the flames around her arm began to fade, I swiftly reached out and grabbed her forearm with my right hand, the heat generated around her skin burning my palm before I drove my blade towards the side of her neck.

Suddenly, she swung her right leg up and slammed her foot onto my waist, triggering an intense eruption of heat upon impact and blowing me away, a shallow cut appearing across the front of her neck as the edge of my blade nicked through her skin, before I lost my grasp over her right arm as I got sent hurtling back through the air.

I twisted my body across to regain my balance, before jamming my blade into the floor to bringing myself to an abrupt halt, before coughing out blood as the spot she'd struck and the area around it throbbed with pain.

Those explosive flames are a problem.

Not only do they make her attacks stronger, but they weaken my attacks too.

I can't land my hits properly since any spot I strike explodes upon impact, blowing my strikes back before they can properly hit her.

And my debuffs are useless against her. Hm, this won't be easy.

I shot forward as she began to race in towards me, before she leapt forward and slammed her feet onto the floor as we began to close in on each other, triggering an intense, fiery explosion, a shockwave of heat erupting upon impact.

I stumbled back as the shockwave hit me with a stifling wave of heat, the floor of the arena around the spot she'd stomped on was charred, deep cracks spreading out from the point of impact before she rushed forward as I began to regain my balance.

I swiftly shuffled across to my left as she drove her right fist towards me, feeling the heat around her arm against my right side as I narrowly evaded her strike, before chanting to manifest Ravage, the jaws shooting out towards her.

She sprang off to her left, avoiding the jaws before her eyes widened as I suddenly split Ravage back into Devour and Drain, before expanding the jaws of Drain and snapping them at her while she was still in mid-air.

She twisted her body across as the jaws snapped shut, grazing the side of her right bicep, the fiery glow around that spot disappearing.

I lunged forward as fast as I could, rushing past her as I whipped my blade across, inflicting a deep gash across her right bicep before she could react, before spinning around as I slipped behind her.

No explosion that time. Looks like Drain is an effective counter against her explosive defense. The glow has already returned to that spot, but there's a window of about a second and a half.

As she spun around and swung her left fist out, I unfurled a rapid slash of my blade, an intense explosion erupting as my blade collided against her fist, the blast sending me flying back before my feet skidded across the arena as they hit the floor.

A thin cut appeared across her knuckles, trickles of blood running out before promptly evaporating, my left arm trembling slightly.

Thanks to the boost to my Vitality, I'm not sustaining as much damage as I otherwise would, but the bones in both my forearms are definitely fractured.

However, the pain in my right arm eased a bit when I slashed her bicep, the fractured bones were able to partially heal through the health and Mana transfer effect of Desecrator.

Seems she can't move her right arm as freely thanks to that deep gash I inflicted, and based on the red steam steadily billowing out around that spot, the wound is bleeding fairly profusely.

"Alright...now, that's what I'm talking about! Come at me, because I'm far from done!" She exclaimed gleefully, the flaming hair on her head briefly intensifying.

"Very well, then. Here I come," I remarked, as I tossed my blade back to my right hand and took a step towards her...

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