Delfer’s dagger and longsword glimmered, translucent mana swirling around them. He stepped forward with eerie calm, shifting his weight in a seamless flow. Almond and Lily spread out, both keenly aware that this was only the beginning of a far more challenging duel.
Delfer’s longsword swept out in a sideways arc, releasing a razor-sharp crescent of pale green energy.
Almond raised his heavy sword, lightning crackling along its broad surface. Steel met mana in a thunderous clash, sparks flying off in all directions.
The impact shook Almond’s shoulders as he felt a surge of strange shock from Delfer’s technique. Even with his Mana-infused body, blocking such a strike left his arms momentarily numb as the impact seemed to purposely spread onto his arms.
Almond’s eyes glinted as he made sure to remember everything about that attack because that technique of dispersing Mana upon clash in that vibrating way to numb the target’s arms was awesome!
If he was alone, he would’ve received a followed-up kick or attack, and he would’ve been forced to use his legs to kick and create distance, but there was Lily, who darted in from Delfer’s flank, her dark-tinged dagger aimed at the avatar’s ribs.
Quick as a whip, Delfer pivoted. The dagger in his left hand ignited with crackling mana. He unleashed a stabbing thrust that morphed into a wide slash mid-motion. A swirl of ghostly shapes—a lunging tiger’s claw, faintly visible in the greenish aura—ripped across the air between him and Lily.
Lily’s eyes widened. She twisted her torso just in time, the projected tiger claw brushing past her with enough force to carve out a chunk of the floor. The shockwave rattled her stance. She skidded back, heart hammering.
Weapon Art—one of the categories of Combat Arts.
It was to actively control Mana through their weapon, giving them shapes and formations to unleash devastating and flexible attacks.
“Lily, keep weaving around him!” Almond barked, focusing on steadying his trembling arms.
Lily nodded. Darkness flickered on her blade as she rushed at Delfer again, feinting high and then cutting low. Almond used that diversion to dash from the other side. His sword thrummed with golden lightning, arcs dancing in rapid pulses.
Delfer’s mouth quirked into the faintest smile. He flung his dagger overhead, swirling mana around the longsword.
This time, the energy blossomed into a serpentine silhouette: a wingless dragon’s head formed from swirling emerald light. As he slashed horizontally, the dragon’s jaws snapped open, releasing a ferocious roar that manifested as a shockwave of raw mana.
A blast of force erupted out in a conical arc, forcing both Almond and Lily to brace themselves. Almond planted his heavy sword on the ground, sparks of lightning blazing around its surface to anchor him.
Lily crouched low, dagger held diagonally, wreathed in shadows. Even so, both slid backward several feet under the dragon’s roar. Dust and debris whipped up around them.
‘Darling, this guy has so many weapon arts!’
‘Yeah, they are our biggest challenges, but also a source of inspiration for us. We are evenly matched, so let’s continue and finish this off with our own weapon art!’
‘We’ll finish this battle with our own weapon art during this battle. Let our mind and body drown in the thrill of this fight and do it!’ Almond’s eyes glinted along with his maniac smile that stretched across his face.
He dashed forward while swinging heavily and crouched midway as he slid, his sword aiming to cut Delfer in half from his waist.
Delfer jumped, turning upside down with the momentum of swinging his sword vertically downward to cut Almond, but Almond arched his sword-held hand upward, causing the sword’s point to stab into the ground. The sudden halt in momentum lurched him upward as well, but he was low on the ground while Delfer was high.
Delfer’s attack failed while the heel of Almond’s feet aimed at the avatar’s head, forcing him to change his sword’s attack.
Precisely at that moment, Lily swooped in from Delfer’s flank, launching herself off the ground while thrusting her dagger.
Delfer’s eyes glinted. He loosened the strength he exerted in his hand that held the sword and used Almond’s kick’s power that struck his sword to let himself spin and deflect Lily’s dagger while dodging it.
But this time, Lily was prepared and was expecting her attack to fail. Without hesitation, she used her other hand to grab Delfer’s neck before he could get away, as it was within her reach.
This battle was tough for her as she took time to adapt after losing her Phantom’s Sixth Sense—her primary class’s passive skill, but now she was fully adapted!
Feeling the situation going awry, Delfer moved his wrist masterfully, throwing the dagger towards Lily’s head, forcing Lily to let go of his neck.
But Almond vanished from his radar.
Aura Cloak!
Almond used the second stage of Mana Shroud—Aura Cloak, which could hide his aura and presence from all senses, even within Focus Field, by integrating them into the surroundings, except for physical visuals provided by the naked eyes.
Delfer’s Focus Field couldn’t sense Almond at all, and his eyes couldn’t see him as he wasn’t facing Almond!
However, the instinctual danger he felt was enough to make him reach an instant decision in order to save himself from unexpected attacks. Delfer simply used his sword to strike downward while letting it go as his palm pushed the sword’s handle.
The force sent him upward as he dodged Almond’s sword slash without seeing or sensing it. He simply created a wide gap and removed himself from potential attacking angels by going several meters high!
Lily and Almond looked up and saw Delfer grinning as his hands materialized a hammer. Mana flared around it in a fiery orange aura as he spun mid-air once before slightly stretching his arms right when the hammer pointed downwards, masterfully creating a downward momentum.
He shot down like a rocket as his hammer struck the ground, causing a whirling force to shoot in all directions as he used another Weapon Art, pushing Lily and Almond away in the west and east, respectively!
‘Crazy!’ Lily’s eyes trembled, but excitement also surged in them as she witnessed and partook in such a high level of martial combat.
Delfer shortened his hammer while materializing a short sword in his other hand, clashing against Almond’s onslaught of smooth yet heavy and fast sword blows.
Lily occasionally swooped in while imagining and designing a weapon art in her mind to execute.
But they had to end it fast as their Mana was lowering, and one minute was about to end.
Almond managed to kick away Delfer’s sword and immediately followed up without stopping, his eyes crackling with golden lightning.
His figure blurred, and he used Sword Bending Motion, intending on dishing out a Weapon Art himself.
Almond didn’t think about failing or succeeding in executing this. He just did and moved with the intention of launching this art.
His sword slashed horizontally once with full power, unleashing a slash projectile crackling with golden lightning and spinning while moving his sword upward in a split second.
When he faced Delfer again after that swift spin, he did by using the principle of Sword Bending Motion to make it quick, his sword was already in a vertical position as he slashed, not once, not twice, but four times in quick succession with Sword Bending Motion, creating a “W” shaped projectile, covering a large area while it also faintly showed a wolf bearing its fangs in that shape.
Weapon Art: Wolven Maw Surge!
It was his first time attempting this weapon art that he just visualized and executed, and he succeeded as he was in the zone, absorbed in the battle!
Delfer had no way to completely dodge it at the speed at which Almond attacked. Delfer had just got up after his previous hammer swing, and his other hand was disarmed by Almond’s kick, thanks to Lily’s intervention.
As such, Delfer simply used the Weapon Art of his hammer for an AOE attack to clash against Almond’s Weapon Art, smashing the hammer downward.
However, Lily also made her move at the same time, whipping out a trail of darkness from Delfer’s own shadow, sly and slithering as it wrapped around Delfer’s hand, intending to prevent him from smashing the hammer or at least slowing or disorienting the execution!
But that was not all! Lily launched herself towards Delfer, her dagger glinting with darkness as she infused Mana, attempting to use a Weapon Art herself!
Delfer was already hampered by that whip of darkness, and sensing incoming Lily, as her dagger wrapped in a darkness that whirled around it like a drill, he had to do something to defend against both attacks.
Alas, that simply wasn’t possible as he could only brace himself by making minor adjustments, arching his body and putting weight on his upper body as he forcefully continued with the hammer strike by breaking Lily’s darkness whip while back kicking with his right leg like a horse to hit Lily with a longer reach than her dagger to attack her first before her dagger struck him.
But Lily’s eyes danced with excitement as she always kept in her mind that Delfer would fail her attack, and this weapon art also accepted that ideally.
It wasn’t a short-range drilling attack from her dagger! Instead, she let go of her dagger, and it launched like a rocket while maneuvering around, going straight toward the Avatar’s crotch area!
Almond’s Weapon Art and Delfer’s Weapon Art clashed, resulting in an explosion while Lily’s dagger pierced through Delfer and drilled out from his throat!
Delfer’s vitality zeroed in instantly as the clash ended.
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