novelraw Chapter 118 - 117 – The Counter
Chapter 118 - 117 – The Counter
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Two hours passed... during which three matches ended...
The first match was for that frail warrior... against the bull...
It was not a strong match... but it carried steps and ideas...
To be strong and intelligent is a great solution... that was what the bull had in facing an opponent with a powerful and incomprehensible fighting movement...
In the second match... it was a duel between two masters of second-rank strength...
It was a fast battle despite both masters being equal in strength...
But luck was an important factor as always...
To face poison while you have nothing to protect you from it...
Makes you a very easy prey... and that was the case for one of the two masters...
In the third match... it was the most beautiful battle so far...
A master of second-rank strength... was facing... a tree...
Yes... a tree...
The battle lasted for more than an hour...
Then...
The master fell with no accumulation...
The roots of the tree, which absorb their energy from the ground... were more resilient than the accumulation of a second-rank master...
Well... to speak honestly... that tree’s level was higher than a second-rank master... but...
That master... was also stupid hahaha
As for now...
My eyes turned toward a master using a physical combat style... facing a master with a long sword...
For several minutes now...
The hands of the physical-style master were completely covered in water...
Blocking strong and fast strikes...
Suddenly...
He got closer to the long-sword master...
The master directed his sword toward the physical-style master...
Swoooosh...
The sword struck and penetrated the water defense surrounding the other master’s hands...
Suddenly...
The movement of the long sword stopped...
It got stuck inside the water...
The master pulled it... it did not move...
It was stuck...
A loud laugh burst from the physical-style master...
Suddenly...
His feet filled with water, surrounding them like a wide flowing shield...
Then...
He raised his foot...
Swoosh...
He brought it down violently toward the head of the sword master...
At the moment before impact...
The water around his foot turned into solid ice...
BOOOOM...
The strike exploded violently on the master’s head...
In an instant...
The master fell unconscious... blood pouring like a fountain...
Medical teams rushed in...
And from afar... with great speed... a third-rank master rushed in...
He was wearing a white vest like those worn by medics...
Suddenly he stood near the bleeding master...
He extended his hands, and a large green energy burst forth, surrounding the master...
Suddenly...
The bleeding stopped...
Then...
The master stepped back several meters...
His energy still surrounding the injured man...
"Sir," a voice sounded near me...
I turned... it was one of the assistants...
"It’s time for your match... follow me please," he said...
I stood... the old man stood with me as well...
His grandchildren tried to stand... but the attendant stopped them... only the companion was allowed to go with the master...
In the waiting room...
The old man’s eyes were tense...
"Sir," he muttered...
"Yes," I said...
"Don’t be afraid... you are strong," he said...
Without thinking... a loud laugh escaped my lips...
That old man... despite his tension and anxiety...
Was trying to comfort me...
Well... I will make this match worth watching...
Everyone is looking for a show... and here I am to give them one...
It took a large amount of accumulation from me... and I must recover it...
In every match you win... you gain 20,000 accumulation points...
If you win five matches in a row... you gain 50,000 accumulation points as a reward... and also...
You advance in the match ladder to the second stage...
If you win four and lose one... you still have to start over to achieve a streak of five...
If you lose ten matches... you are automatically excluded and must pay again and start from the beginning...
In the past days... I was thinking of a suitable plan...
Today... all I thought of... is winning four matches and gaining 80,000 accumulation points...
Then...
Thinking about what to decide regarding the fifth match...
I need massive accumulation points... to pay them to the weapon furnace...
And there is no solution except using these methods to profit...
Deception... is the right path...
Stealth and hunting weaker fighters... will be inevitable...
Not moral?
Hahahaha...
Don’t make me laugh... in this miserable world... there is nothing moral except advancement... in my path of revenge...
Everything... is justified... everything is executable...
If it requires me to crush the dreams of the weak... I will do it...
In my previous world... it was clear before my eyes... I was a fool...
I did not clearly see the truth...
I moved... and still thought the path of righteousness was right...
But once again... I lose...
And the price was the death of everyone who trusted me to protect them...
Today... there is no path but the path of evolution...
After a while...
"It’s time," the organizer said...
I went out... alone... walking with light balanced steps...
All that mattered... was hiding my aura... and I had succeeded in that long ago...
The credit goes to years of training in the training dimension...
It was difficult... but achieved... with unmatched effort...
Today... I only need a few concealment tools to make everyone see me as merely a second-rank fighter...
One step... then another...
The audience’s voices rose as I stepped...
At first... I was surprised that they were cheering for me...
In the next moment, that thought vanished completely...
The voices were rising for my opponent...
From the opposite side... my opponent’s steps began to appear... I did not look...
Instead, I moved my feet across the ground...
The battlefield floor was muddy and sandy at the same time...
"Come closer!" the referee shouted...
I raised my head... and moved slowly...
Before me... stood a man wearing full white armor... in his hand... two black scythes were raised...
"Are you ready?" said the referee...
"Yes," I said... and so did my long-haired opponent...
"End of accumulation, surrender, or death," said the referee... then added:
"These are the conditions for ending the battle... however... there is an exception...
If both opponents agree... the death condition can be ignored and the referees can decide the winner..."
"I have no problem with all three conditions without referee intervention," my opponent’s voice came smooth and mocking...
I turned to the referee... "Neither do I," I said...
"Then... no one will interfere in your battle... return to your positions... and wait for the bell," said the referee... then withdrew...
I stepped back... several steps...
I looked at my opponent... his armor was shiny... and looked expensive... as for his weapon, its nature could not be determined before the fight...
Suddenly... the warrior began to move...
He did not attack... but protected his body...
I looked up...
There was a large bell on one side... no one was near it... yet the sound rang suddenly...
Dong... Dong... Dong... Dong...
Suddenly...
The warrior rushed toward me...
His steps were fast...
As if he was not wearing armor...
He extended his arms to the sides... raising his scythes...
He smiled cunningly... then reached me...
He struck with his right...
I moved aside... avoided the strike...
His left came at me...
I moved again... step then turn...
I was behind him...
His reaction was fast... he turned toward me...
And struck in a turning stance...
I retreated further...
Then extended my hand toward my sword...
Before I could draw it... the warrior’s steps accelerated...
Then he struck—
Swoooosh...
His scythe came down violently toward me...
"Haaa!" I shouted...
I moved quickly...
Barely avoided it...
My foot hit the ground...
I rolled several meters...
The warrior stopped... laughed hysterically...
Suddenly...
Laughter spread in the stands... then increased...
"This is better," I whispered internally...
Then—
"You bastard... how do you wear such armor and still be this fast?" I scoffed...
He walked toward me... calm steps... but arrogance filled his face... then stopped and said:
"I know you... you are the adventurer who has a weapon that cuts accumulation... let me see how you will cut mine... come, attack me."
I stood... looked at him angrily...
"You bastard," I said...
Then moved...
My steps accelerated... I reached him...
I raised my sword... and struck...
My strike hit his armor—
BOOOOM...
The sound roared...
My lips parted in shock...
"How?" I said... "how does it not cut your accumulation?" I scoffed... then stepped back several meters...
Suddenly... the opponent rushed toward me...
He struck... I dodged...
He followed quickly...
Struck again... I raised my sword and blocked at the last moment...
The strikes kept coming one after another...
And suddenly... a new atmosphere appeared in the arena...
The balance was increasingly shifting in favor of the warrior...
"Not yet," I said internally...
So far... it was good training...
This opponent... aside from his arrogance... had good movement...
His strikes were strong and fast... his armor, as I expected, was high quality... which made it seem like he wore nothing...
On the other hand... even a sword like the accumulation cutter... could not cut it...
But... what about his weapon? So far, it seemed to have no properties...
"You fast bastard with endless strikes!" I shouted... then dodged another strike...
Suddenly... the fighter shouted:
"Come on... attack me, I’ll allow you one strike!"
Then suddenly...
The armor covering his chest disappeared... leaving him unprotected...
"You will regret it," I said... then rushed at him...
I reached him...
He still extended his arms... not attempting to defend...
I raised my sword... and swung—
Swoooosh...
Suddenly—
BOOOOM...
A fast movement... faster than any he showed before...
He placed his scythes before my sword... before it could land...
He blocked it...
Suddenly—
{ 10% of your accumulation has been cut }
The notification sounded violently...
"Haaaa!" I shouted... stepping back several steps...
"Is this his weapon’s ability?" I whispered...
"The Counter," the warrior said aloud... "it reflects the opponent’s property back at them... when you were cutting my accumulation... it turned on you."
"The Counter..." I whispered internally...
What a terrifying ability...
But—
"If I don’t attack... I won’t lose accumulation... simple," I said...
The opponent rushed toward me...
"Do you consider not attacking something simple?" he mocked...
He approached... raised his scythes and struck—
I tracked the movement quickly...
Raised my sword... blocked—
Then—
{ 10% of your accumulation has been cut }
"Haaa?!" I shouted in shock...
"How?!"
Before I understood—
Another strike—
Blocked—
Another 10% gone...
I stepped back...
He followed quickly...
Another strike... then another...
I dodged repeatedly...
But his attacks accelerated... more and more... without slowing...
Once... twice... three times...
I was hit...
In moments...
I lost more than 60% of my accumulation...
I slammed the ground hard...
Retreated far...
He did not follow...
I stood... breathing heavily...
He was tired too... but adapted quickly...
After all... he wasn’t the one who lost half his accumulation...
"What a dilemma..." I whispered...
"If I attack... I lose... if I defend... I lose... the only solution is to run..."
"With his increasing speed... he can trap me and land small hits... whether I get hit or block... I take damage..."
After a few moments... he prepared to attack again...
He moved... then lunged—
Behind me... only the wall...
No escape—
Swoosh—
A decisive strike—
My eyes saw it descending toward my head... slowly... like a cinematic scene...
Half a motion—
I tilted—
Half a step—
Turn—
Then I was at his side—
I drew the accumulation cutter—
Then—
Swoooosh—
The black blade passed between the armor gaps near the armpit—
Suddenly—
The warrior stepped back several steps...
Looked worried—
{ 10% of opponent’s accumulation has been cut }
The system notification sounded...
"The analysis is complete," I said... exhaled... smiled... then added:
"You have a weapon that reflects properties... but it requires receiving a direct hit first... after that... even a block becomes a property..."
I raised my sword... looked at him...
"That’s why your attacks always target my weapon... to create contact... as for your armor..." I whispered, then laughed lightly...
"It is not linked to you... if it were... you would have lost accumulation at the start... because my sword treats linked armor as the body itself..."
"And since it’s not linked... it becomes normal armor... not covering the whole body... no matter how high quality..."
"So..."
I moved... step by step toward him...
His eyes shone with disbelief...
I rushed him... faster than before...
"So all I have to do..."
I reached him... raised my sword—
He moved to block—
My blade neared his scythes... then deviated—
"Is not to hit your weapon," I said...
He saw my smile—
Swoooosh—
Another cut—
He turned and struck—
I dodged narrowly—
Swoosh—
Another cut—
He retreated—
"No escape," I said...
"You damn you!" he shouted—
Another cut landed—
He struck—
I dodged—
Struck—
Cut—
Fear filled his heart—
He retreated—
I didn’t stop—
The chase continued...
Minutes passed—
Then—
Half turn—
Raised blade—
Full swing—
Swoooosh—
The last of his accumulation was cut—
He fell—
Unable to move—
"You have three seconds to surrender," I said... standing over him...
"1"
"2"
"I surrender..." he said hoarsely...
Silence fell over the arena...
I looked at the stands...
Turned—
A full glance—
Then—
A smile—
"What a feeling..." I whispered...
"Defeating the crowd’s favorite... truly a wonderful feeling."