Chapter 50: Strengthening the Body with Magic Power

Chapter 50: Strengthening the Body with Magic Power

But for Axi, this was still no big deal.

In no time, Airael clenched her teeth even harder.

She retracted her sword and swung down on Axi once more with all her might.

However, this time, Axi had no intention of defending anymore.

He sidestepped to dodge Airael’s downward strike and quickly moved to her side, aiming to bring the sword he held to Airael’s neck.

But he didn’t succeed.

Just as he was about to attack Airael, her sharp eyes had already caught his movement, and she reacted before him.

With a quick sidestep, she avoided him.

Looking at the ducking Airael, surprise filled Axi’s eyes.

In his expectation, Airael should have been unable to dodge.

With both hands gripping her sword, Airael’s mood improved immensely as she observed Axi’s astonished expression.

Then she proudly declared, “I’m not so easy to defeat!”

In response, Axi replied, “Your strength might not be very great, but your reactions are indeed quite sharp.”

“I know.”

Airael shrugged, acknowledging it.

“In that case, you shouldn’t be using a two-handed sword. You should opt for a one-handed sword or a rapier; those weapons are more suitable for women than a two-handed sword.”

“Hey, are you looking down on women?”

Airael snapped back in anger.

Axi was caught off guard by Airael’s sudden question.

How did he come to belittle women?

“Just because my strength is a bit weaker doesn’t mean I can’t use a two-handed sword.”

Without missing a beat, Airael continued.

Initially, she had considered choosing a one-handed sword or a rapier, which were indeed more suited for women.

But after careful thought, she chose the two-handed sword.

Because swinging this sword exuded a more commanding aura.

As a queen, it was only natural to carry a bit of that majestic presence; only then could she intimidate those beneath her.

Of course, part of her reasoning stemmed from influences from her past life, believing she should choose a more masculine two-handed sword.

“You’re not wrong, but it’s also an objective fact that you’re not suited for a two-handed sword.”

“Say that after you’ve had a proper duel with me!”

Airael said somewhat angrily.

She didn’t think her choice was a mistake.

Certainly, she didn’t blame Axi too much.

She was just annoyed that he made such judgments without knowing anything about her.

With those words, Airael’s fighting spirit surged, and she looked like a completely different person compared to before.

Axi’s eyes showed surprise again.

Then his expression slowly became serious.

“Axi, today I want to tell you that a woman’s strength should not be underestimated.”

With those words, Airael charged forward at Axi.

The tip of her sword pointed downwards, held diagonally with both hands to her right side.

This time, she exploded forth with a speed much greater than before.

And unlike before, she infused herself with magic power this time.

Though the effect seemed similar to Potential Activation, both enabling a person to unleash stronger capabilities, they were still quite different.

What Airael was doing was not awakening her inner potential but merely enhancing herself to a certain degree with the magic power within her.

This effect, of course, could not compare to Potential Activation, but had the added benefit of fewer side effects.

Faced with Airael’s sudden burst, Axi felt quite surprised.

It turned out that Airael hadn’t been using her full power before.

If she was like this now, then he had to admit, Airael did have her merits.

To measure just how strong Airael’s blow was, Axi chose not to dodge this time and, like the first time, raised his sword in front to block Airael’s swing.

With a thunderous clash as the two blades collided, Axi was immediately propelled backward a few steps, barely stabilizing himself afterward.

“How’s that, now you know my strength, right?”

Airael didn’t pursue him; instead, she stopped and grinned at Axi.

Though she took a hit, Axi didn’t feel unhappy and returned her smile, saying, “Sorry, Ailia, I take back what I said earlier; you absolutely qualify for wielding a two-handed sword.”

With that, Axi’s expression turned serious.

In that moment, he finally regarded Airael as a true opponent in his mind.

Seeing this, Airael’s smile broadened, “Then let’s have a proper match!”

After her words, Airael charged at Axi once more.

Like before, she enhanced her body with magic power to bolster her attacks.

But Axi, now serious, unleashed his true skills against Airael.

Although Airael had magic helping her cheat, there remained an absolute skill gap between her and Axi in terms of martial prowess.

As a result, their battle extended for quite some time, and Airael still hadn’t achieved victory.

Axi had no intention of hastily ending the fight either.

He hadn’t forgotten he was serving as her sparring partner.

If Airael didn’t call it off, then he wouldn’t either.

Moreover, the longer the battle continued, the more issues would arise.

These issues could still be corrected now; waiting until they were on the battlefield would be way too late.

In the end, Airael was defeated by Axi’s endurance.

Though her recovery ability was astonishing, she couldn’t withstand such prolonged engagement.

The dual exhaustion of magic power and stamina was pushing her body to its limits.

And constantly using magic to enhance her body wasn’t easy on her either.

“Whew… no… whew… I’m done… fighting.”

Gazing at Axi, who was merely lightly breathing, Airael replied, panting heavily.

Then she looked up at the sky, “The time… whew… isn’t early anymore; we… whew… should go have lunch.”

Counting it up, she realized she had been battling Axi for most of the morning.

Now she truly felt both tired and hungry.

Even with her impressive recovery ability, it couldn’t compete with an empty stomach!

That powerful recovery didn’t come for free; it surely required some consumption.

Axi nodded slightly in agreement.

Now that he thought about it, he was getting a bit hungry too.

After the battle concluded, Airael used the little amount of magic power she had left to cast a Cleaning Spell on them both.

Instantly, they both felt significantly lighter all over.

After fighting for so long, both of them were drenched in sweat.