Bang!
“Ugh!”
“You’ve grown dull. Can you take it?”
Kartra asked with a sardonic smile. Clenching his teeth, he let his fist drop and countered the following attack with his rapier.
Ignoring the pain, akin to the ringing in his arm, he continued the assault.
Kaga-Kach…
Sparks flew as the fist and rapier collided. It was baffling how much strength could be generated with bare fists alone.
If that was all, I could have easily countered him; the problem is every time he gets injured, he simply regenerates it using aura.
To top it all off, his sudden kicks and punches are highly threatening.
[Left!]
Pang!
“Phew!”
With a sharp cracking sound, I narrowly dodged his incoming attack. Kartra continued to grin as if amused and pressed on with the assault.
“You’re fast on the uptake.”
There’s no way I can keep up with his speed. I barely dodge thanks to Sibley’s instinctive warnings; otherwise, I’d have been hit long ago.
Even with my body’s current enhanced abilities, boosted by the power of the wind, I can only barely keep pace with him.
‘How much time is left?’
[Three minutes, damn it. He’s too strong!]
There’s only about three minutes left. After that, I won’t be able to maintain this state properly.
It’s an impossible situation to waste time in. After all, the one in a hurry is me, not him.
It’s clear that Kartra has plenty of time to spare since he’s taking his time facing me.
If this continues, Yurph’s memories will completely fade away.
Not only the memories of her conversations and discoveries with me, but all the memories she has ever had.
“Thank you for the advice, Id.”
I’ll never get to see that smile from before ever again.
Clenching my teeth, I felt a cold sweat break out over my body. My heart began to race progressively faster.
Breathing out a hot breath, I felt like my chest was burning.
I will not allow this to happen.
The enlightenment she painfully gained, the memories and experiences she accumulated, I will not just let them vanish.
Kaang!
The sensations in my body began to heighten.
A violent gust of azure wind whipped between Kartra and me, swirling fiercely. Simultaneously, a sensation that I couldn’t comprehend until now overwhelmed me.
The wind became utterly clear.
The breath of Kartra and myself, the wind generated as the fist splits the air, and the chaotic wind swirling around as I swing my rapier.
Literally, the wind has become my sixth sense, covering my entire body in this sensation.
The overwhelming amount of information flooding my brain caused a trickle of blood to stream from my nose.
Kartra’s frown deepened, sensing my slight disorientation.
“Hmm?”
Bang!
The wind was moving as if it were my own limbs, effortlessly deflecting his punch and stepping back.
While Kartra was distracted by his fist hitting the ground, I swung my rapier towards him.
I could keenly feel the movement of every muscle in my body. I began to recognize just how inefficient my own movement was.
I could barely follow the sword techniques taught by Arin, and everything else was far from adequate.
I understood why Sibley sighed so frequently during the early stages of training. Was I really wielding the rapier so awkwardly all this time?
[…Could it be, Contractor, that you’ve awakened the ability?]
‘So this is the world you see.’
The union of the elemental perception.
An ability that awakens when you’re extremely synchronized with your spirit. Does that mean the anger I feel closely resonates with Sibley’s spirit?
Arin mentioned that unless one faces death, it’s difficult to awaken this ability.
Indeed, this situation is akin to confronting death.
“You’ve changed.”
Kartra’s face stretched into a smile after regenerating the cut on his arm from the rapier.
Amidst that eerie grin, I perceived his arm’s muscle movement clearly.
I could see exactly how his fist would reach me and how his other fist would retaliate if I evaded the first punch.
Kwaang!
His punch collided with my abdominal wall while my rapier simultaneously cut across Kartra’s body.
Even as blood gushed from his wounds, his smile never faded.
The previous strike was highly efficient and clean, leaving me with no room for inefficiencies. Kartra internally marveled and looked approvingly at me.
“You’ve improved, haven’t you? You’re quite the interesting one.”
A red aura began to flare like a blazing fire. It felt as though some blockage in my mind abruptly shattered.
Relying on that sensation, I raised my rapier.
“Let me show you something real then.”
Red aura swirled around Kartra’s arm, forming gauntlets.
I could feel the tremendous amount of condensed aura emanating from the glowing red gauntlets.
I clenched my teeth and infused the rapier with the wind’s power.
“Try blocking this strike.”
Pang!
With a sharp tearing sound of air, the red gauntlet was inches away from my face.
I tried deflecting the blow with the rapier, but it shattered under the pressure.
Before I could even panic, his next punch was flying towards me.
‘Ah, I’m going to die.’
The overwhelming sight of the red aura consumed my vision, bringing forth the sensation of death.
I lost consciousness with the certainty that there was no way I could block that.
—
Kwaang!
With a thunderous explosion, something stopped the attack. The punch that I had put all my strength behind now seemed obstructed by some unknown power.
Kartra frowned, glaring at Adelle.
The attack he had poured his heart into was being effortlessly held back by her palm.
Just moments before, she had struggled to keep up. Now she was effortlessly blocking him.
“What.. is this..?”
The floating spirit beside her seemed equally shocked, suddenly halting mid-flight.
“It’s annoying.”
A chilling voice echoed by his ear.
“Kk..!”
Bang!
Crossing his arms, he barely blocked the attack. Without the rapier, it was his fists blocking the force; the shock wave from her small fists pushed Kartra back.
Upon raising his head, he was confronted by fiercely glowing red eyes.
Unlike the gentle blue eyes from earlier, the intensity of these eyes made Kartra instinctively flinch.
Just what was this presence? The overwhelming power emanating from her petite frame left him bewildered.
The fact that she blocked his attack with her body itself was miraculous.
“Stop hindering me.”
Hooong.
A crimson wind swirled around her, one that felt sticky with malice, distinct from his own aura.
The slit pupils of her red eyes resembled a reptile’s, and the sharp hissing sound resounded through the air.
Kwaang!
Fist met fist. She had discarded her broken rapier, continuing her relentless assault.
Kartra was taken aback by the difference in her physical prowess from earlier.
‘Is this the same person?’
It was incomparably heavier. Matching the power of his aura-coated fists.
Though shocked, Kartra felt more exhilarated than ever.
“Ke, Kehehehe!”
Even as he was increasingly on the defensive, he couldn’t help but laugh. Indeed, the more this way, the more his laughter couldn’t be controlled.
Because the exhilaration he had long sought came from life-risking battles.
“Come at me! Let’s see how long you can last with that body!”
“Shut up.”
Chilling winds began to sweep from her direction.
This time, it felt different—not purely the spirit’s force but another distinct energy blended within.
Kwaang!
A kick flew at him. Kartra ducked to avoid it and swiftly fired a punch toward her abdomen.
She grabbed his arm and leapt into the air, evading the attack.
‘Her combat sense is quite remarkable.’
She had not lost all reason. Whether by instinct or because some shred of rationality lingered, her judgment was impressive.
Bang!
Kartra countered her incoming punch with crossed arms. Not content with this, she unleashed a barrage of strikes.
Swift and powerful.
A different style of combat compared to himself.
Yet precisely because it was different, he could better appreciate the effort behind her attacks. It was clear she had persistently pursued strength.
“Kehehe!”
How long had he yearned to feel this sensation since battling Abel?
Although a rematch with Abel remained unlikely, this current battle was already satisfying enough.
“Let’s see this through!”
“There’s no time for that.”
Hooiying…
Crimson wind enveloped her entire body. Kartra’s lips curled with anticipation, sensing a massive strike coming.
The sensation of imminent death that only arises on the battlefield engulfed him.
Hence, the laughter.
A single streak of punches flying toward him. He could have dodged, but he didn’t. He simply met the blow with all his strength.
It was his pride and honor as Kartra.
Kwaang!
A thunderous sound echoed.
Through the massive shockwave beyond his fist, his entire body began to break apart.
Even with red aura regenerating him, it was impossible to keep up with the destruction.
Finally, her figure halted.
Watching, Kartra retracted his punch. Though it might take longer, his broken body would eventually heal.
But could her body, who delivered that strike, remain unscathed?
“Over.”
Crack.
The sensation of the rune on his neck breaking. Did she interfere with it in that short span? As a result, Kartra’s body no longer obeyed his commands.
Did she purposefully use that attack to render him powerless through the rune? That means she knows the structure and vulnerabilities of the rune well.
Just who is she to be able to do all this?
With that question, Kartra collapsed.
[!– Slider main container –]
