Alythia

"Alright then. Let's begin." The magician took a few steps back, putting some distance between us, and raised his staff, preparing to fight.

Taking a deep breath, I circulated my mana throughout my body, buffing my physical capabilities, and raised my wand as well. I started by launching a simple ice block towards the magician.

He quickly raised his staff, deflecting the ice block with a swift motion and a small gust of wind. Not missing a beat, he followed up with an attack of his own, launching a fireball in my direction.

I jumped away to dodge the attack, feeling the heat from the fireball as it whizzed past me. 

We continued to exchange spells, each one more advanced than the last. I formed a protective earth barrier to block a series of water blasts, while the magician used a wind barrier to deflect my barrage of fireballs. The onlookers watched with interest, occasionally murmuring among themselves. I noticed the flow of mana around his staff whenever he prepared a spell. By observing the patterns of mana around him, I could predict approximately when his next attack would come.

I twisted and turned my body, relying on my enhanced speed and agility to avoid his attacks, my adrenaline pumping through me as I narrowly dodged a gust of wind that threatened to knock me off my feet. I continued to circle the magician, hoping to take advantage of his preference for being stationary to get behind him or find a blind spot. I hesitate to rush him and duel it out as his staff could probably easily outmatch my wand in close combat.

Realizing my strategy, the magician attempted to stop me from moving around by casting small localized earthquakes, causing the ground beneath my feet to tremble and break apart. However, I just barely managed to maintain my footing and continue my advance by leaping from one stable spot to another and unpredictably changing directions.

Inspired by his tactic, I decided to use some crowd control magic against him. I cast some magic that created a slippery patch of ice beneath his feet, and then unleashed a strong gust of wind. The combined effects momentarily threw him off balance and forced him to struggle to regain his footing. Taking advantage of this opening, I hurriedly launched a barrage of fireballs. All of which were unfortunately blocked by a semi spherical earth wall surrounding the magician.

After recovering from my ice and wind combination, the magician became more cautious. To avoid falling for a similar trap, he began to levitate slightly above the ground, ensuring that any ground-based crowd control spells would be less effective against him.

As I observed the magician levitating, I noticed the mana gathering around and mostly underneath him, providing lift. I guess the principle is the same as lifting everything else with magic, just on a slightly larger scale, and on yourself. Intrigued, I tried to imitate his technique, attempting to levitate myself. However, I found it difficult to maintain stability and balance, wobbling in mid-air.

The magician seized the opportunity and launched a swift strike at me while I was off-balance. I barely managed to evade it, feeling the wind from his attack brush past my face. Realizing that devoting too much to R&D midfight was too risky, I decided to abandon the tactic for now.

We continued our magical duel, with the magician launching more attacks at me and me dodging them while also trying to land a hit of my own. Unfortunately, he managed to block almost every spell I launched at him, with the few hits that did land having negligible effects. Sweat dripped down my forehead as my heart pounded loudly in my chest.

Then, I had a eureka moment. I decided to try interfering with the flow of mana around the magician by projecting my own mana towards him. Instead of trying to fly myself, I could just bring him back down. 

After seeing some minor effect from the wave of mana I sent out mid exchange, I decided this was a tactic worth pursuing. After running closer towards him and buying some time with a large barrage of magic, I began pouring out all the mana I could. I finally understood what they meant by the wand is limiting me, for I was feeling it now. I wanted to exert more mana, faster, but the wand just wouldn't keep up. 

Thankfully, it was enough for me to disrupt the magician’s levitation enough for him to lose balance and eventually fall. He was surprisingly agile for how he looked. As he fell, he adjusted his body into a roll, landing gracefully and immediately getting back up. Before I could follow up with another attack, he raised his hand and called the end of the match, panting slightly.

"Alright, I've seen enough," he said, clearly impressed. "You have a good grasp of magic and demonstrate control beyond your age. I believe you're qualified to start at the Gold rank."

What was actually a short 10 minute fight felt almost like an hour. As my adrenaline rush began to fade, my heart still pounding, I realized just how rewarding the experience of actual combat could be. A mix of exhaustion and satisfaction washed over me, knowing that I was deemed to be capable enough to start a few ranks ahead. 

"That was an impressive display, especially for someone so young. You have a natural talent for magic, and your adaptability in combat will serve you well as an adventurer."

I nodded, grateful for his praise but also aware that there was much more for me to learn. The magician continued, offering some valuable advice. 

"However, I noticed that your offensive power could use some improvement. With stronger spells, you'll be able to take down opponents more efficiently. Additionally, you might want to consider upgrading your wand or even switching to a staff for better control and power output."

I nodded, grateful for his praise but also aware that there was much more for me to learn. 

"Thank you”

Taking the magician's advice to heart, I realized that my wand was indeed holding me back, as I had struggled to channel the mana needed for more powerful spells. I made a mental note to look into better wands or even consider using a staff once my financial situation improved. Additionally, I also needed some new magic. If this was a real fight, it never would've ended from my continuous weak attacks. 

I made my way back with the receptionist, who updated my records with my new rank and handed me a gold Adventurer's Guild emblem with my name and fingerprint engraved on the back.

"Congratulations on your new rank, try not to lose this.” she said, her eyes wide with admiration. "You can now take on Gold-ranked requests and start your journey as an adventurer."

With my newfound status, I eagerly scanned the posting boards, excited to take on my first request, and make some money.