Rise of the Harem King-Chapter 141: Fire against fire

Ember’s fiery hair whipped around her face as she stood her ground, the massive tornado of flames surrounding both siblings casting an otherworldly glow across the arena. The spectators shielded their eyes from the intensity, yet couldn’t look away from the spectacular duel unfolding before them.

With a practiced motion, Ember’s fingers tightened around the hilt of her sword. She knew she needed to be more aggressive and take the risk to get a win.

"What’s this? A mage using a sword?" Rowan’s mocking voice carried through the inferno between them. His eyes narrowed with contempt as he observed his sister’s stance. "You’re pathetic, sister."

Ember didn’t waste breath on a response. Words were meaningless in battle, she would prove herself by defeating that arrogant bastard.

With a sudden burst of speed that surprised even Rowan, Ember charged forward. She channeled her fire and used it as propolent, almost like a louching rocket.

It was funny to see, but also deadly fast.

In an instant, she was close enough to strike her brother with a kick. However, she wasn’t nearly as skilled in martial arts as Davi. And Rowan wasn’t as hopeless in close combat as he used to be.

Because of that, he managed to block her second attack and quickly stepped aside, putting some distance between them. He knew that if he could just maintain a safe range, victory would be inevitable.

Rowan’s eyes narrowed, and a twisted smile crept across his lips. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"I’m going to crush you, my little stupid sister," he hissed, unleashing a barrage of concentrated fireballs toward her as she advanced.

Ember’s blade moved in precise arcs, slicing through each fireball. Where magic met her blade, there was a sound like thunder, small shockwaves rippling across the arena floor.

From across the arena, Davi spared a glance toward the siblings’ battle, momentarily distracted from his own confrontation with one of Sophia’s teammates. A smile of pride touched his lips as he watched Ember execute the technique they had practiced countless times in training sessions.

"Focus on your own opponent," Alexia reminded him sharply, deflecting a magical projectile that had been aimed at his momentary vulnerability.

Back in the heart of the flame tornado, Ember closed the distance between herself and Rowan, and was forced to take multiple steps back.

He was sure it would be easy to keep his sister away, but she was persistent, and surprisingly way more skilled than he expected.

"Don’t come any closer!" Rowan screamed with anger, and fire erupted around him.

He conjured two massive fire tornadoes and launched them forward, hoping to keep his sister away. He simply couldn’t accept the idea of losing to that little brat. He was superior, he had to be. That was the natural order of things. Anything else was unacceptable.

However, Ember would not fall so easily. In fact, she was even a little disappointed. Her brother... wasn’t much of a threat anymore.

She used to fear him deeply. But now, even as the towering whirlwinds of flame came barreling toward her, her eyes remained steady, her mind calm. She could see it all: the mana flowing through the air like invisible threads.

Activating the basic technique <Mana Manipulation>, Ember poured energy into her blade. Then, using <Advanced Fire Manipulation>, she wove flames around the edge of her sword, making them dance like living spirits. Thanks to her <Perception>, the flow of mana was as clear to her as sunlight.

She inhaled slowly. Time itself seemed to stretch. Every detail, every flicker of flame, every ripple of pressure became vivid. And even before she consciously thought to act, her body was already moving, effortlessly.

Her movements were fluid like water, precise and elegant, the kind of control that only came from countless hours of training.

Twisting her blade, Ember didn’t aim to harm her brother... not yet.

Instead, she targeted the flow of his magic. Her sword became a conduit, an anchor, disrupting the delicate structure of his fire tornado. By interfering with the core of his control, she severed his link to the raging spell.

This wouldn’t have worked against other elements, fire was her specialty. And even then, it took immense precision and perfect timing. Trying to control too much of his fire would’ve drained her mana too fast.

But she didn’t need to take it all, just enough to make that oversized tornado vanish. And she did. Just like Alexia had done earlier, Ember cut the attack clean in half.

However, the real challenge came next.

As the skill faded, the borrowed flames around her began to dissipate. They were no longer under Rowan’s control, but the raw mana behind them still lingered, flowing endlessly.

"So much fuel ready to be burned," she said with a smile.

Ember intended to use every last drop of it.

Rowan gasped, panic creeping into his voice. "What... what are you doing?"

"Winning," Ember said simply.

The remaining fire around them collapsed inward, drawn to her blade like iron to a magnet. The sword began to glow, burning brighter until it shone like a miniature sun.

Then she launched her own attack straight at Rowan.

With no other options left, the man quickly summoned his flames once more. He lacked powerful defensive abilities, so his only choice was to meet fire with even greater fire.

The problem was, that strike carried a portion of his own power, as well as Ember’s own flames. A cold sweat trickled down the man’s neck as his body trembled at the sight of the devastating blow hurtling toward him.

Even so, with a desperate shout, he unleashed his <Flame Storm>, and a swirling inferno engulfed everything around him.

The two attacks collided, sending a blistering wave of heat rippling across the arena. And, at least in that brief clash, Rowan emerged victorious.

However, Rowan dropped to one knee, his magical reserves dangerously depleted after recklessly expending so much power in a single attack.

In the stands, Professor Morrigan gave an approving nod, a rare smile crossing her usually stern features. The sword she had forged, miraculously, still held strong, even after being used as a catalyst for such an insane outburst of power.

Not giving her brother even a second to recover, she moved forward and kicked his cuts, then forced him to the ground.

"Do you yield?" Ember asked, holding the blazing sword steady, its tip hovering inches from her brother’s chest.

Rowan’s face contorted with rage and humiliation. He had never imagined being defeated by his younger sister, the one he had always dismissed as the weaker sibling. His pride warred with the reality of his situation.

"I would never surrender to you," He shouted, trying to deny the obvious reality, he had been defeated.