novelraw Chapter 131 : Full-Power Throw (2)
Chapter 131 : Full-Power Throw (2)
Chapter 131: Full-Power Throw (2)
Eugene Carter, already exhausted to the limit, and Francia Brida, who had joined late yet had also reached her physical limits.
Behind them, Gustav, the Master of the Magic Tower, and the agents were providing full support from the rear.
A change occurred in the movements of Karen Rosefield, who had effectively been facing all of them alone.
It was a strange phenomenon that even she herself had not noticed.
“……”
“……”
To confirm it, the two of us charged at her simultaneously.
First, from the front—a straightforward diagonal slash. It was Francia Brida’s most confident sword path.
Naturally, she would try to counter using the blood spheres, but since we already knew that, we could respond.
And in that gap, Lukezax’s slash would strike.
Neither the spheres nor the aura defense were perfect. If she used them to block a slash, an instant blind spot would inevitably appear.
We would dig into that opening in one breath and deliver a decisive blow.
There was no need to exchange opinions or run simulations. What little coordination we lacked would be filled with experience and instinct.
With that resolve, the two of us rushed at Karen—
And what we saw was completely unexpected.
Karen Rosefield… retreated over ten meters instead of facing us head-on.
“…Instructor.”
“She’s… on guard.”
Watching her humiliated expression, I fell into brief thought.
For Karen, Illusion Swordsmanship was an unknown ability. It was only natural to be cautious about something she didn’t understand.
Until now, she had assumed she could simply endure it with her body and had continued using the same tactics.
But through her clash with Francia, she must have instinctively realized—
That she was facing the true successor of this ability.
And what it meant… that such a person had only now appeared.
‘That must be humiliating, no doubt.’
She was conducting a probing battle—something she wouldn’t even do against top-tier beasts—against just two humans.
“We can’t let her stay like that.”
I couldn’t think of Karen Rosefield as some mindless brute obsessed only with judgment.
She might not match those who specialized in analysis, but the moment she succeeded in analyzing us…
Our chances would drop to absolute zero.
We had to land a critical blow before that.
Only then would we even stand on the starting line.
I glanced at my disciple and aimed Lukezax again.
“Let’s see how long you can hold out.”
---
After an hour of collision, she finally took a defensive stance for the first time—and as if she had been waiting, the enemy began reorganizing.
As if to say, “Still not coming?”
Explosions rang out continuously from the opposite side, and even nearby, the shouts of two forces clashing echoed.
I tightly wrapped a bandage around my bleeding wrist and shouted.
“For us, dragging this out is great. We’re more exhausted anyway, and you’re not.”
Honestly, I didn’t want to keep fighting a lunatic like you any longer either.
“So just stay right there. Like you are now.”
I even wiped the blood off my sword.
“……”
Karen averted her gaze and slowly exhaled.
A cheap provocation.
She knew it well.
If I truly wanted to stall, there would be no reason to provoke her like that.
I wanted her to come at us again.
The reason was simple. I had clearly prepared a trump card.
Right now, without fully understanding that alien swordsmanship, the optimal strategy for her was interception from mid-to-long range. She just needed to advance while preventing us from closing in.
Unless both of us blocked her together, no one here could stop her.
“…It seems that won’t be possible.”
But she couldn’t.
Even if she understood it logically, her body rejected it.
It was anger toward the enemy, a sense of duty to her orders, and at the same time… curiosity.
The instinct of a pure battle maniac, wanting to identify the source of her first humiliation.
‘If you even predicted that I’d act like this…’
Then I’ll admit it honestly, Eugene Carter.
That you are my equal.
Pshhk!
Karen sliced near her artery, spilling more blood onto the ground. The blood spheres that consumed it grew even larger.
The red aura coating her entire body deepened further in response.
Concentrating a massive amount of mana into the halberd’s blade, she charged at us again.
“You won’t reach the Instructor!”
Francia blocked her from the front.
At some point, Karen’s upper body had been tightly sealed by a pillar-like wall of blood.
‘There’s… no opening.’
Even if continuous and simultaneous use had become possible, Aura Blade was fundamentally a one-hit kill technique.
If we exposed it even once, the plan would fall apart.
If attacking wasn’t possible, the only options left were evasion or defense.
Reluctantly, Francia deployed a double Barrier Blade and focused on defense.
Ignoring her completely, Karen simply charged forward.
“Ugh…!”
Even though it was just a collision of walls, a powerful shock surged through my entire body via the tip of the sword.
Right.
Her strength ultimately came from her overwhelming physical ability.
Even Illusion Swordsmanship, being swordsmanship, had a limited effective range.
At most, just a few centimeters beyond the blade’s length.
Both Francia and Karen knew that all too well.
“A sword that cannot reach… needs no preparation.”
“You…!”
KWAANG!
With a thunderous crash, Karen blew Francia away in an instant and charged at me again.
With the threatening opponent gone, there was no longer any need to use the spheres defensively.
She expanded them into countless spikes, pressing me toward a wall.
Crunch! Crunch!
Each time the spikes pierced the terrain, sparks and smoke burst out simultaneously.
If I fully retreated, I could survive—but she knew I wouldn’t choose that.
“You’re the same as me, Eugene Carter. You can’t live outside the battlefield.”
“……”
“So keep challenging me to the end! Only the result will prove who’s right!”
In just three minutes of relentless assault, she drove me all the way to the thick outer wall of Duel Mallet.
There was nowhere left to retreat.
She created a semicircular boundary with the spheres, blocking escape to the sides and above, then readjusted her grip on the halberd.
Meanwhile, I held my sword with only my right hand.
“…Are you underestimating me?”
“As if. This is the best stance I can manage.”
“You bastard…!”
Enraged, Karen closed the distance instantly and thrust her weapon.
I took a deep breath and gently slashed downward.
She was a combat weapon just like me. Even unconsciously, she accounted for variables.
To guard against even the slightest chance of a counter using Illusion Swordsmanship, she deliberately attacked from two steps away.
That made this possible.
Just before the spear tip fully gathered power, I struck it, twisting its trajectory.
And—
Karen perfectly read even that subtle difference in sensation created by my technique.
She had already committed to the thrust. Even if she realized it, it was impossible to alter the attack range without extraordinary physical ability.
But—
Because she possessed that very physical ability, she was the Empire’s strongest berserker.
She advanced the timing of her force, deflecting even my downward strike.
Tiiing!
As the blade recoiled from her counter, even my right hand holding the sword was momentarily disabled.
‘Only my left hand remains…!’
With that trajectory, I couldn’t even transfer the sword. This is my win.
Karen stepped in further, aiming for my heart.
At that very moment—
My left hand shot out at a bizarre speed and caught the spear blade.
Thud!
A clash that lasted only an instant.
After an intense exchange of calculations, the clean hit was, as expected, hers—
Yet ironically, the one shaken… was her.
“How…!”
“…Enchant.”
After becoming a contributor to Eric Halenber’s growth, the skill equipped in my second Copy Slot.
A magic used to imbue attributes like elements or enhance physical abilities.
Though the reproduction rate was low, if focused on just one hand instead of the whole body, it could produce astonishing reaction speed.
I used Enchant Magic on agility, not durability. I had to accept some damage.
So I expended a significant portion of my remaining mana to deploy Mana Armor around my heart.
As a result—
The spear blade was pushed away by my hand, and the axe blade only pierced through my upper shoulder.
“Checkmate, Karen Rosefield.”
And that was the extent of the trump card both of us had prepared.
I grabbed the halberd’s shaft with both hands—
And behind Karen, who had momentarily lost her judgment in confusion, Francia was charging in.
---
I had hoped she’d panic a bit longer, but her agitation didn’t last.
“It’s not over yet!”
Facing Francia charging head-on with her sword, Karen dropped her weapon for the first time.
Then she infused part of the blood spheres into both fists, forming knuckle-like weapons.
A force capable of delivering two strikes at once.
Impressive—but swords had durability limits.
Eugene Carter’s single-edged sword was clearly Lukezax. Even if it was a demonic sword, it was still a high-grade artifact—it wouldn’t break from something like this.
But the small girl’s sword was already worn down after several clashes. One more impact would shatter it completely.
Without a sword, swordsmanship cannot exist.
A broken blade cannot execute any technique.
“The end of a swordsman without a sword… is death!”
Crack, crunch!
Clang!
With a simple straight punch, the blade snapped in two.
Even so, Francia didn’t hesitate and threw herself forward.
Karen immediately adjusted her stance.
Naturally, the opponent would try to form a barrier and counterattack—but with a shattered sword, she couldn’t even scratch her body.
KWA-A-A-AANG!
At the final collision, thick dust rose like smoke, obscuring the two of them.
Only faint silhouettes intertwined within it.
Creak, creak…!
By a hair’s breadth—barely—Francia managed to block Karen’s right hand.
But Karen still had her left.
If she deployed a double Barrier Blade like before, she could defend.
But—
The war was still ongoing, and she had already become completely exhausted in that short time.
At moments of absolute crisis, the path forward was always straight ahead.
Attack was the best defense she had.
“Ghhh…!”
Grinding her teeth, she activated the third form of Illusion Swordsmanship.
At the same time—
A blade that shouldn’t exist began to form over the broken sword.
“This… power…?”
Using Illusion Swordsmanship Third Form, Severing Phantom Blade, while simultaneously weaving an Aura Blade.
“—?!”
Faced with overwhelming killing intent and a massive surge of mana, Karen’s body instinctively tilted.
But her fully committed punch allowed her to retreat only a single step despite her desperate evasion.
The red aura surrounding her body gathered toward her chest, resisting the killing intent—
But the mana saw that tore through everything pierced straight through it.
Slice!
With the sound of something being cut cleanly in half, a sudden southern wind blew.
As the dust cleared, the girl and the woman each stepped back three paces.
Step, step, step…
Blood dripped from both of Francia Brida’s arms.
Overcome by sudden exhaustion, she collapsed on the spot.
“……”
Karen silently looked down at the right side of her chest.
Blood poured out along a large gash.
On the ground lay cleanly severed flesh, bone fragments, and part of her breastplate.