Throughout the fight, Rui had wondered.
How hadn’t they lost yet?
She was a Martial Squire, was she not?
What exactly was happening?
Based on the power and speed she had displayed the first time when she had missed, she should have been able to mangle them with just a few attacks, if not one.
Yet when she fought the second time, she was noticeably inferior.
Rui had been able to dodge her attack, as had Kane. Nel had been able to withstand her attack without losing consciousness the first time, although he did the second time.
It was only after a few exchanges that Rui understood.𝔬𝒱xt.𝑐𝗈𝑀
(‘She’s given up on using techniques entirely.’)
Her proficiency with her body was sub-optimal, adding on top of that incompatible Apprentice-level techniques and these two elements sabotaged her accuracy too much.
She could not fix the proficiency with her body on the spot, that would require a lot of time, experience, and training. But she could get rid of the incompatible techniques sabotaging her accuracy.
But only if she stopped using them entirely.
It was a tough choice. But ultimately, she chose control over raw power, as a good Martial Artist would.
Once she stopped using incompatible techniques, her power dipped well below the Squire Realm, but her accuracy and precision had risen.
Once Rui realized this, he realized that maybe, just maybe, victory wasn’t too far-fetched.
But only if they used everything they had. Throughout the fight, he watched her like a hawk. He documented everything about her.
Every twitch.
Every shift.
Every attack.
Every block.
All of it.
Large volumes of information entered his Mind Palace as he watched her toying with his friends with gritted teeth.
Watching his friends suffer to prolong the battle for his sake made him feel unparalleled rage.
He was almost there.
So close.
He closed his eyes.
“Don’t wish to look death in the eyes?” She had asked. “Understandable.”
Just then, he heard a click in his mind.
The final piece had finally fallen in place.
He was ready.
(‘Straight right blitz punch; 100%’)
WHOOSH
BAM!
Rui executed the most accurate and perfect counter to the maneuver as he adapted to her attack with the help of the adaptive evolution model.
She was struck with effectively both of their power combined, yet she didn’t suffer more than a graze.
It was then that Rui recalled she was a defensive Martial Artist. The reason she was fighting aggressively was that there was a huge gap in physical parameters between her and them individually. If she was fighting against an equal, she would likely revert to her defensive style.
On paper, it should have been easy for her to win.
Yet, some time had passed since the fight began and for some reason, none of them were dead yet.
Rui could feel that Nel, Fae, and Hever were still alive through their seismic signatures. Yet their conditions angered him.
He intended to vent it out on her.
“You… You need to die.” She glowered at him.
Rui didn’t even bother exchanging words.
The very air contorted under the weight of his bloodlust. It was almost as if his desire to kill her was warping the environment itself. She widened her eyes as she experienced a mental pressure that exceeded that of anything she had ever felt of a Martial Apprentice.
She felt fear for the first time since stepping into the Squire Realm.
And then she felt shame.
How dare a mere Martial Apprentice humiliate her?
“You… You will die.”
The very land beneath them shook as she mangled it, pushing it back as she propelled herself forward at a speed that beggared the imagination.
The atmosphere wailed woefully as she tore it apart with every movement.
Yet.
WHOOSH
Rui avoided.
It took a combination of the prediction and adaptive models the VOID algorithm, Primordial Instinct, and five Apprentice-level techniques.
But he avoided it nonetheless.
BAM!!
His elbow crashed into her chest with a titanic collision fueled by both their power.
Yet, she didn’t so much as blink. She unfurled a flurry of strikes at him, the power of each strike was beyond even Fae, even what Squire Kyrie had struck him with, even beyond what the blond bandit had hit him with.
Yet, they crashed into empty air as Rui feinted away.
He could tell that an aggressive offense was not something she was comfortable with. On top of that, she was still not accustomed to her new body.
Her movements had flaws and inefficiencies you would not normally see in a Martial Artist. These flaws made it easier for Rui to predict her. It was part of the reason he was coping well.
Yet he was doing merely just that; coping.
Winning was still a herculean task with abysmal difficulty. His attacks did not faze her, she was a defensive Martial Artist. Even Fae’s Whirlpool attack had only managed to bruise her, despite the fact that the Squire wasn’t using any techniques. Her raw durability and constitution were above Fae’s lethality.
That alone meant none of Rui’s attacks could really hurt her. He doubted even the Stinger would put more than a scratch on her flesh.
Even a Stinger to the eyes likely wouldn’t threaten her life.
He alone couldn’t defeat her.
He could feel it.
The VOID algorithm wasn’t omnipotent. It allowed him to cope by predicting his opponent beforehand instead of reacting after and allowed him to respond with just the counter that increased his probability of winning the most.
But it wasn’t enough.
The VOID algorithm allowed him to cope, but it could not do more for him. Its existing shortcomings and flaws in addition to Rui’s own limitations were too shackling.
Time passed as the disadvantages snowballed. His inferior speed, power, stamina as well as health. They all worked against him.
Every attack she occasionally managed to land hurt him significantly. Every attack he landed bounced off of her. A quasi-Squire level defense was beyond even his capabilities, he was an all-rounder, not an offensive specialist.
THUD
He fell to one knee.
He was bleeding profusely.
The world spun as he felt momentary dizziness.
STEP
She arrived, pausing.
She savored the moment. She stretched her right arm back, drawing vast amounts of power from her core.
Rui knew he wouldn’t be able to survive that attack.
He couldn’t defeat her.
“Goodbye, little Apprentice.”
Her eyes narrowed.
It was time.
The very world mourned as she unleashed her attack.
BOOM!