101 – Sovereignty of All Forests

"I know why she’s not getting injured," Yaline said confidently, her eyes fixed on Teresa.

Then, she pointed to the large bow on Teresa’s back. "Strictly speaking, it’s not that she’s uninjured. It’s that the bow behind her is absorbing the damage for her. That’s the effect of her Domain—redirecting the damage that should’ve struck her onto the wooden bow instead."

"The proof lies in the visible cracks and crystallization on the bow, while there’s nothing on her body."

"So that’s how it is. There’s a Domain like that?" Anna blinked her large eyes in amazement. This was the first time she’d heard of such a peculiar Domain.

"I imagine once the bow on her back shatters, her Domain will stop functioning," Yaline continued to analyze.

"She’s carrying two bows, but I’d guess the other one won’t be useful—at least not anytime soon. Similar Domains are listed in certain books, but without exception, once the Domain structure is broken, there’s a cooldown period. She can’t just swap bows on the fly."

"Nice job, Yaline," Felicia smiled as she listened to the analysis, her gaze never leaving Teresa.

"Just exercising a Divine Child’s standard observational prowess," Yaline adjusted her glasses. "Even without Divine Appraisal, I’m still a Divine Child."

Teresa remained silent. The others weren’t using Soul Communication and were openly discussing the secrets of her Domain right in front of her. Clearly, they were confident—convinced of their victory.

Knowing her chances in close combat against Felicia were slim, Teresa tossed aside her twin daggers and removed the longbow from her back. With the bow fully exposed, the three of them could see every inch of it.

"Just as I thought," Yaline smiled faintly. "Miss Teresa, looks like I was lucky enough to guess your Domain’s secret?"

"Miss Yaline, your insight is truly impressive. I’m humbled," Teresa replied with a flower-like smile. "But it’s a pity... your guess wasn’t completely correct."

"Oh? Not completely? Was it the Divine Authority you missed? Or the Domain?" Yaline asked with interest.

"I regret to say... both were incorrect."

"Oh?" Yaline furrowed her brow slightly. Teresa stood calmly, her graceful smile like a pear blossom in spring—completely unflustered, even after her secrets were supposedly exposed.

A mental game? I’m not falling for that.

"Not completely correct, huh? Still, I’d say I got seventy or eighty percent right," Yaline continued, carefully watching for any change in Teresa’s expression—but surprisingly, Teresa’s face remained serene.

"Seventy or eighty percent? I don’t think so. I’d say... you’re still missing that final piece," Teresa gestured delicately with her fingertips. "A word of advice, Miss Yaline—your understanding of my Domain’s function is only halfway there. In this situation, you’d do well not to act rashly."

"Are you trying to buy time and wait for some unpredictable change?" Yaline sneered.

"Unfortunately for you, your defeat is already sealed and beyond reversal."

"This little ploy won’t fool anyone."

"Your Domain is certainly intriguing, Teresa, but it’s not enough to keep my attention," Felicia licked her enticing lips, a teasing kitten ready to pounce. Gripping her massive sword with both hands, she added, "Your strength and swordplay still need work. Keep it up, okay? It feels a little abrupt to kick you out of the match like this... But we’ll probably see each other plenty at the academy, so there’s no rush."

With that, Felicia stomped the ground, her greatsword dragging along behind her, carving a vicious crack into the earth. The tremor that followed made it feel like the entire mountain was trembling in response.

Teresa’s response: she didn’t move at all.

Had she given up?

Felicia’s brow furrowed slightly in displeasure.

In her view, no matter what kind of opponent one faced, one should fight to the very end.

A battle filled with unyielding passion until the last second—that’s what truly thrilled her.

But what Felicia didn’t realize was, Teresa hadn’t given up. She simply felt that her current form—the first form—was ineffective. She hadn’t managed to hurt Felicia. It was time for a change...

Felicia’s massive sword was coated in sharp platinum crystal. She brought it down with her full strength, leveraging its weight. If that blow landed, Teresa would be instantly eliminated.

Everyone watching—from the audience and instructors to the two girls on the field—believed Teresa’s defeat was certain.

CRACK!

The wooden bow, struck with a Divine Authority-enhanced blow, was cleaved cleanly in two. Along with the bow’s destruction, her Domain visibly fractured.

Her pale sleeves were now reduced to just cuffs, exposing her delicate white wrists. One thigh-high stocking was torn to shreds, practically reduced to a sock—revealing her milky, smooth calves and feet. The other leg was relatively intact.

Her upper body wasn’t spared either. The strap across her chest teetered on the brink of falling off, her ample curves jiggling freely, threatening to spill out at any moment.

“…………”

Felicia quickly and subtly turned her gaze aside.

She had clearly aimed for the bow—so how did the clothes get shredded too??...

Such behavior was hardly becoming of a knight. For a moment, Felicia didn’t know where to look.

Teresa paid no mind to those details. In her view, everyone present was a girl. So what if they saw a bit?

As for the live broadcast in the square... that had been taken care of ahead of time.

“Ahhhhhhh!”

Back at the plaza, a wave of anguish swept the crowd. Especially the male students—wailing, stomping, clutching their heads in despair, like they had just lost a fortune.

Just as Teresa’s Domain shattered and all eyes turned her way, everything scandalous was conveniently censored behind that wretched mosaic...

"This is an outrage! Completely unfair! …Oh, I mean, Her Highness Felicia was a little too rough with her attack! Far too rough!" Some upperclassmen, eyes bulging, quickly corrected themselves mid-rant.

Everyone’s minds were clearly elsewhere.

The instructors, on the other hand, had entirely different concerns.

They’d long figured out that Teresa’s Divine Authority was tied to her bow—and that once it was destroyed, she’d lose all chance of winning.

And yet…

"What’s that??" one of the white-bearded instructors widened his eyes slightly.

In everyone’s view, Teresa’s longbow had just shattered. But in the next moment, the two broken halves transformed into pure wood-elemental energy and reassembled in Teresa’s hands.

A surge of deep green energy burst free from its shackles—piercing straight through Felicia’s chest.

"Huh??"

It happened so fast, even Felicia didn’t have time to react.

A Divine Authority attack?

She’d still held a trump card?

Not that it mattered. Her resistance to Divine Authority was currently at nine stars. Normal Divine attacks couldn’t hurt her.

But she was wrong. That attack wasn’t meant for her—it was targeting…

The vivid green energy, in the form of an ancient vine, passed through her body and split into two tendrils. From her back, they lashed out—striking Yaline and Anna!

Teresa lifted her eyes, the gleam in her jade-like gaze shining brightly.

Her third Divine Authority—[Sovereignty of All Forests].

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