The moment the fight began, Nero moved first, launching a fireball straight at Nemsus before dashing left. Delilah mirrored his movement, veering right. Their strategy was simple: force Nemsus into the middle and pressure him from both sides.
But Nemsus only grinned.
A flicker of light. A second figure appeared beside him, an identical copy.
Illusions.
The real Nemsus vanished from the fireball’s path, reappearing in front of Nero in the blink of an eye. Fast. Too fast.
At the same time, his illusion lunged at Delilah.
She didn’t flinch.
Nero reacted instantly, swinging his sword as Nemsus closed the distance, but Nemsus caught the attack mid-air, redirecting the force with a flick of his wrist. Effortless.
A smirk tugged at his lips. The difference is clear.
Nero’s eyes sharpened. Good. Let’s see how far that gap goes.
He struck again, same result. Nemsus blocked, then countered with a blindingly fast kick aimed at Nero’s head.
Nero barely raised his arm in time, but the impact sent him flying backward. He twisted mid-air, landing in a crouch.
“Hah,” Nemsus chuckled, rolling his shoulders. “That all you got?”
But as he turned his gaze toward Delilah, he felt it.
A whisper of cold steel.
His body dropped instinctively, just in time to dodge her blade as it sliced through the air where his throat had been.
She was waiting.
Her sword was still in motion, and he was on the ground. She spun with the momentum, launching a kick at his face.
He caught it but too late.
Her lips curled ever so slightly.
A trap.
Nero!
Nemsus sensed him before he saw him.
Nero was coming from behind.
He had Two choices:
To Defend against Nero and get slashed by Delilah or to Close the distance with Delilah to limit her swordplay.
He chose the latter.
He surged forward, pressing so close to Delilah that her blade became useless. Then, just as Nero’s fireball came hurtling toward him, he twisted blocking it with a surge of lightning at the last second.
The explosion sent sparks flying, but Nemsus was already moving, his palm striking Delilah’s ribs, forcing her back.
She stumbled but her stance remained steady.
Hé wasn''t able to strike correctly
Nemsus clicked his tongue. They’re not giving him any room to breathe.
Fine.
A burst of electricity crackled through his veins. Lightning erupted from his body, arcing across the battlefield, forcing them to retreat.
And then he went on the offensive.
Delilah and Nero lunged from both sides—again but this time, Nemsus moved first.
He abandoned Delilah and shot toward Nero, creating two more illusions in the process. The clones blurred, attacking from three different angles.
Nero played along, feigning confusion.
The first illusion struck from the left, the second from the right. The real Nemsus advanced dead center.
Nero barely spared the first a glance—lunging straight at the second instead.
Nemsus’s eyes narrowed. He knew.
Before he could react, Nero’s form flickered. Not vanished just… slipped.
His presence wavered like a mirage.
Nemsus gritted his teeth. That spell.
It didn’t make an opponent invisible, but it made them feel nonexistent, an unnatural absence in the battlefield, impossible to track by instinct alone.
Nemsus reacted instantly, lunging ten meters to the left, dodging what he was sure would be a sneak attack
only to find Delilah waiting.
Her blade came down.
His instincts screamed, his sword lashed out before his mind could even process it.
He barely managed to parry, but in that brief exchange, she saw it.
She saw his momentary panic.
She saw through him.
Nemsus clenched his jaw. Tch.
He pivoted, ignoring her for half a second just enough to strike at the open space on his right.
Nero was there.
Their swords clashed
And then lightning exploded.
A sharp jolt tore through Nero’s body. His muscles locked. His vision blurred.
Nemsus grinned. “You forgot something, Nero” he twisted his blade, sending another pulse of lightning surging through the metal, “never fight a lightning user with a blade empty of mana.”
Nero’s eyes widened. Damn it.
Nemsus chuckled, watching him convulse. “And you know what’s worse?” His smirk deepened. “I know exactly how much mana that absence spell burns. I’ve counted every second you have left.”
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Nero’s grip faltered. His body gave out. He collapsed.
Nemsus barely had time to smirk before
Shhk!
A glint of ice.
He twisted dodging a jagged spear of it just in time.
His gaze snapped to Delilah, who stood poised, her hand still outstretched.
She wasn’t done.
His foot hit the ground
And slid.
What!?
Ice.
The terrain beneath him had frozen solid.
He barely had time to react before two more ice spears came hurtling toward him. He threw himself right to avoid them, only to halt abruptly, his breath catching.
Delilah’s blade was at his throat.
Checkmate
For the first time in the fight, Nemsus’s smirk faded.
Delilah, still cold and expressionless, tilted her head slightly.
She had seen through everything from the start. Played along. Waited. Used her brother as a distraction.
A bitter grimace crossed Nemsus’s face.
Damn it…
He could’ve ended this fight earlier. He could’ve drowned them in illusions, used stronger spells, overwhelmed them.
Instead, he let his pride drag it out. He wasted time trying to humiliate Nero with swordplay, flexing a half-mastered technique.
And he forgot one undeniable truth.
Delilah was smarter than both of them combined.
A weak, raspy sound broke the silence.
“Hhhh.”
Nero was laughing. Even with his face pressed into the dirt, body paralyzed, he was still laughing.
Mocking him.
Nemsus clenched his jaw. His gaze flicked to Delilah. She barely looked tired. She barely used any mana.
And yet, she won.
"Fuck this," he muttered, stepping back. "I’ll be at the orphanage."
Without another word, he turned and walked off.
He couldn’t face Nero like this.
Not after that.
....
Delilah knelt beside her brother. She placed a hand on his back, a soft glow spreading from her fingertips as healing energy seeped into his body.
"Nice plan."
Nero was still grinning. His voice was hoarse but amused.
"After all these years of never beating me as a mage, he really thought he could win just hours after ascending?" He let out another chuckle, shaking his head. " tt tt tt, Of course he was gonna make mistakes."
As he pushed himself up, his body still twitched slightly from the lingering effects of the lightning. He rolled his shoulders, exhaling sharply.
"Let’s go," Delilah said, offering him a hand. "The others are waiting."
Nero took it.
And together, they walked back home.
....
As they arrived, the orphanage stood before them—a sturdy, timeworn building that had seen years of laughter, struggles, and growth. Its white walls, though simple, held warmth, and the structure itself gave a sense of quiet resilience. The wooden door creaked slightly as they stepped inside, a familiar sound that welcomed them home.
The scent of aged paper and faint traces of cooked meals lingered in the air, mingling with the crisp evening breeze that flowed through the open spaces. Despite its modest design, the orphanage was alive with quiet movement—muffled conversations, the sound of pages turning somewhere in the distance, and the faint clatter of dishes being put away.
They walked through the halls, the floorboards creaking softly beneath their steps, until they reached the heart of the orphanage—an open courtyard where life seemed to gather. Towering trees stood like silent guardians around a long wooden table, their leaves whispering in the wind. The setting sun cast golden hues over the gathered children, about eighteen in total, they were all younger then Nero, after all besides nemsus Nero and Delilah were the first children viser brought here.
As the kids looked at them, the voices stopped. A single vase sat at the center of the table, as it always did, a small yet constant piece of their shared space.
"You’re late," a voice called out.
"Sorry," Nero and Delilah responded in unison.
"Take your places."
They sat without another word. Nero’s gaze found Nemsus’s across the table. A knowing smirk played at his lips, but he didn’t say anything. After all, here, manners came first.
And so, they ate in silence, the rustling leaves above and the distant sounds of their home.