What would happen if a hand axe collided with human flesh?
The outcome was obvious. It was only natural for the human to be the one to suffer damage.
But what if that wasn’t the case?
In such a situation, one premise had to be questioned.
Was the opponent truly human?
The unmarred back of the woman’s hand spoke volumes about the strength of that body.
Indeed, Ceria’s mother.
Her durability was beyond imagination. It couldn’t be determined if she was surpassing Ceria, but it was reasonable to conclude that ordinary attacks wouldn’t affect her.
I immediately shouted at Senior Elsi.
“Please take care of the Imperial Princess!”
“Are you telling me to fight while carrying a burden?!”
“But I have Ceria with me!”
Ceria had just recently come out of her rampage.
In her current state, where she hadn’t fully regained her rationality, there was no way she would be able to draw a weapon against her mother. I carefully set Ceria down and said,
“Ceria, escape as far as you can. I’ll hold this place somehow…”
“Excuse me, but I don’t recall allowing such a thing.”
A sudden waft of blood scent touched my nostrils.
In the blink of an eye, the shadow of the woman had drawn near to me. I hadn’t even felt a hint of her movement.
Ceria’s mother, now close to me, exuded a transformed aura.
Her silver-tinged eyes glowed with an abnormal intensity, shrouded by a mist. Along with this, her developed fangs and claws hinted at something sinister.
Rather than being pretty, it was clear.
She looked dangerously beautiful. I desperately tried to hide Ceria, but before that, the woman had already raised her claws.
“Just bear it for a bit… Guh?!”
Of course, I had my own plans, but—
Ceria’s mother suddenly screamed and staggered. The hand axe that had been thrown from behind struck her neck.
The beauty of stillness in motion.
Though it had become a well-known technique that now no one among my opponents was unfamiliar with, Ceria’s mother had become estranged from the mundane after her disappearance.
It even seemed she had been acting separately from the ‘vampire.’
So, it wasn’t surprising she didn’t know this technique.
The gap in information quickly led to an opening; all Ceria’s mother could do was lean her upper body forward, exposing a short vulnerability.
Even then, it was a moment too brief to calculate in seconds.
If she had not been a martial artist who had reached a high level, I too would not have been able to effectively utilize this opportunity.
I threw Ceria far away and drew my sword. Just then, the woman’s claws swooped toward me, but as long as I had a sword, I had no problem defending against her.
With a clang, a burst of sparks erupted.
The hardness of her claws, like blades, was terrifying. The flowing aura of blood testified to her prowess.
At the very least, she was above Expert rank.
Given their hardness, she might even reach High Expert level.
Moreover, she had two hands. In other words, even if her reach was short, once in close proximity, I would undoubtedly find myself at a disadvantage.
Clang, clang, clang!
The sword was scraped by a myriad of claws, producing an unpleasant sound of friction. Though I was protected by aura, the horrifying speed of the scraping could only damage my blade.
Had I known it would come to this, I should have secured a better sword.
As I exchanged blows and began to retreat, Ceria’s mother elegantly spun and slashed with her claws.
Eventually, she extended her legs.
It was a movement akin to dance, but considering the force contained within that moment, it was hardly the time to enjoy the spectacle.
“…Cough!”
Even though I had managed to block with the sword, the heavy impact rattled my organs.
As I was pushed back a couple of steps, the initiative was entirely seized by the woman. She took a step forward, trying to drive into my arms.
The shorter the gap, the more advantageous it was for her.
But I was not alone in this place.
“Inferno.”
It was a brief activation phrase.
The chant was so fast that I couldn’t even feel the prelude of the mana, yet the power was unmistakable.
As soon as the sound of fire was heard—
The silver-haired woman leaped into the air, tracing an elegant parabola as she landed behind me. What filled the space she left was a pillar of high-temperature flames.
Boom!
As the explosion erupted, I slammed my feet down hard behind me.
From now on, it was time for counterattack.
“Thunderfire.”
With another activation phrase resonating, fire and lightning intertwined like threads from the sky, dashing towards me. Seeing the serpentine fire and the spear of lightning approaching, the silver-haired woman clicked her tongue.
And then, a flash.
With a rustle, the mana-formed lightning was split in half and scattered. I had witnessed this scene before when facing Ceria.
An aura that materializes all phenomena.
I had never suspected it to be hereditary.
I thought this as I slammed the ground, and soon, another activation phrase burst forth.
“Celestial Bow.”
Three consecutive activations, each holding immeasurable power. Had the power been less than a certain threshold, the vampire might have ignored it and simply endured it.
However, the magic that Senior Elsi cast was not only swift, but its power was also ample.
So much so that the sturdy descendant of the vampire had to carefully evade it.
What’s more, the last activated spell was exceedingly difficult to dodge.
From the sky rained arrows of lightning, a total of eight.
At first glance, they didn’t seem that powerful, but the speed was truly terrifying. By the time one noticed, only the trajectory of gold was left behind.
No matter how much of the vampire’s lineage she was, she could not block the light.
Though she managed to deflect more than half of the eight arrows, the woman had no choice but to spew some blood from her limbs.
Still, her fierce aura did not diminish in the slightest.
That was why I was charging forward.
The sword resembling the Milky Way descended like a cliff.
Clang!
Ceria’s mother crossed her two claws to barely block my strike. She bent her knees slightly but somehow seemed to not give way despite her trembling arms.
She even wore a faint smile.
“Do you think you can stop me with this?”
“Why not?”
Just as the woman was about to let out a puffy laugh—
With a creak,
I suddenly shifted the center of gravity on my blade towards the handle. The silver-haired woman, momentarily distracted by our conversation, had no way to react to this sudden turn of events.
She could only look at me with a questioning gaze.
No answer was needed.
I took advantage of her claws as leverage and slipped into her embrace. One of my hands plunged into the nape of her neck.
When I regained my senses, the woman was flying through the air.
Just as I had experienced long ago.
Vision manipulation technique ‘Lunar Flip.’
The woman’s body twisted at right angles to the ground.
Boom!
As I collided with the rising dust and shattered rock fragments, I staggered away from the epicenter.
Originally, ‘Lunar Flip’ was a technique that redirected the opponent’s force against them.
But having used it forcibly, it was only natural that my own body would also bear a burden. My already aching bones and muscles were trembling and screaming in protest.
Enough already.
It was a wish that would not be realized.
Coughing and gaining some distance, I could only look at Senior Elsi.
My heart was screaming that I had to end the woman, but she was a being with a steel body that even blades could not penetrate, and above all, there was a problem that continuously stimulated my nerves.
The Imperial Princess.
No matter how much I spread my senses, the Imperial Princess showed no signs of fleeing.
Sadly, my suspicions were soon confirmed.
“No, Senior Elsi!”
The Imperial Princess was trembling behind Senior Elsi. On her palms, which had been spread out in confusion, lay a stone I had never seen before, likely given to her by Senior Elsi.
Then what about Senior Elsi?
Ignoring the princess, she was mumbling, focused on her chanting. Seeing her put on an annoyed face at my calling, she seemed quite engrossed.
“Why?!”
“I said to protect the Imperial Princess!”
“I’m not raising a burden!”
While saying this, Senior Elsi drew a massive circle in the air with her finger. The inner part of the light ring that arose along her index finger was being filled with incomprehensible patterns one after another.
“If you want to run, then run on your own, and if you want to fight, then fight on your own!”
“But, the Imperial Princess…!”
“Everyone has to start somewhere!”
Her tone was unexpectedly firm.
I was momentarily taken aback and lost my words. At this point, Senior Elsi glanced at the shivering Imperial Princess. The girl, having received that gaze, stiffened.
It was the stance of a veteran towards a recruit.
“If you were going to be a burden, you should have never even come! Figure it out yourself!”
“But…!”
“She’s coming! Prepare… Chains of Heaven!”
Sadly, Ceria’s mother didn’t allow me and Senior Elsi the luxury of bickering.
Boom, yet another explosion, I had lost count of how many it was.
Suddenly erupting energy tore the ground apart, obscuring my view. But a martial artist of my level could still sense the enemy’s presence, even without sight.
I raised my sword horizontally to block the oncoming beast.
Clang, clang, clang!
The crossed claws could grind against my sword like saw blades.
The silver-haired woman, encased in a white light, remained suspiciously suspended in the air for an extended time. The bright aura surrounding her began to take the shape of a bird-like creature with wings.
A bat.
Blood was glowing from where her eyes should have been. Thanks to the shape that floated behind her in place of a shadow, the silver-haired woman’s appearance had taken on a more beastly visage.
Her claws had grown longer, her fangs sharper, and her blue eyes glimmered with desire.
With each flap of the bat wings, the ground trembled as if it were being dug up. My already aching body let out an even more painful scream.
Just a bit more.
Rescue was right at hand.
With a swoosh, the released chains of light struck the woman’s limbs like artillery. Swept away by the flow of the chain, the woman was flung without a single scream.
Thick chains coiled tightly around her limbs. Yet even this would only be temporary.
The chains of light were already vibrating. Judging by the pained expression on Senior Elsi’s face, it seemed that even this magic was insufficient to restrain the monster.
Senior Elsi let out a suppressed groan and shouted.
“Quick, deliver the finishing blow!”
Kieeeek!
The woman, straddling the line between human and beast, let out a rending scream as she thrashed.
I could only click my tongue in frustration.
I didn’t want to waste this opportunity.
Boom, crack, crack.
The fissures that were spreading on the chains of light were growing uncontrollably. If I took a few more steps forward, the silver-haired woman would break free from her binds and start rampaging as she pleased.
She was a monster that showcased tremendous strength, even when she was still rational.
If that happened, it would be impossible to handle.
As I finally reached close to her—
“…Guh.”
A faint smile spread across the lips of the screaming woman.
A clear mockery.
There was no need to wait for the reason to be revealed.
With a thud!
The woman’s right arm broke free of her restraints. It seemed she had been waiting for this moment; the aura enveloping her claws was longer and more powerful than anything I had seen so far.
I understood her intentions.
I was left with two choices.
One was to offer my body to that claw while plunging my sword into her heart.
The other was to block that claw and give the woman time to fully escape her binds.
Either way, it would be a suicidal act.
Even if I wanted to choose the first, I still had the battle with the vampire ahead of me.
So, I decided not to choose either.
With a thunk, the sword clattered down to my left side.
When the woman saw my posture, her face turned pale for the first time. The madness that had momentarily lingered in her eyes was wiped away by sheer shock.
“How… can you…!”
It was only natural.
The silver-haired woman had once been a member of the Yuridina Clan.
Vision phase Golden Lionsword.
The lion’s claw, hidden only to the direct descendants of Yuridina, now revealed itself here and now.
