Bang!
“Ugh!”
“Getting slow. Think you can hold on?”
Katra grinned wickedly as he asked. Gritting my teeth, I released my fist and countered the incoming attack with my rapier.
Ignoring the pain that made my arm feel like it was ringing, I continued my assault.
Ka-ching…
Fists and rapier clashed, sparks flying in all directions. It was absurd how much power could come from just a bare fist.
If that were all, I could manage. The problem was that every time he got injured, he simply healed with aura.
And not to mention his surprise kicks or punches were incredibly threatening.
[Left!]
Bang!
“Huff!”
I barely dodged the incoming strike with a sound like a cannon. Katra laughed as if enjoying the show and pressed on with his attacks.
“Your reaction speed is impressive.”
This speed was beyond my capability to follow. Thanks to Silphy’s instinctive shout, I was just managing to dodge; if it weren’t for that, I would’ve been hit long ago.
Even now, my physical abilities were enhanced by the power of the wind.
Even in that state, it was barely a fair match.
‘How much time is left?’
[3 minutes, damn it! He’s too strong!]
I had only about 3 minutes left before I couldn’t maintain this state any longer.
Of course, stalling for time was impossible. The urgency was on my side, not his.
Just by the fact that he was choosing to deal with me while having plenty of time, it was clear Katra was relaxed.
If time passed like this, Yurph’s memories would completely vanish.
Not just the memories of her speaking to herself and finding enlightenment, but all of her memories.
“Thanks for the advice, Id unnie.”
That smile I saw then would be one I’d never see again.
Grr.
As that thought crossed my mind, my head felt cold. The pounding of my heart began to quicken.
My chest felt like it was igniting, and I exhaled a hot breath.
I would never let that happen. I wouldn’t just stand by and watch as her hard-won enlightenment and all those gathered memories vanished.
Kaang!
The senses in my entire body started sharpening.
The blue wind began swirling violently between Katra and me. At the same time, a feeling I couldn’t comprehend surged over me.
The wind was palpable.
The breath Katra and I were exhaling, the fists cutting through the air, the chaotic wind stirred up by my swinging rapier.
Literally, it felt like the wind had become my sixth sense.
An overwhelming amount of information flooded my brain, causing a single trickle of blood to flow from my nose.
Perhaps surprised by that sight, Katra’s brows furrowed slightly.
“Huh?”
Bang!
The wind began moving just like my hands and feet. I easily avoided his punch and took a step back.
While Katra was stunned by his own fist hitting the ground, I swung my rapier at him.
I soon felt my muscles moving as one. At the same time, I realized how inefficient my movements were.
I could barely keep up with the swordsmanship Arin had taught me, but everything else was terrible.
Now I understood why Silphy sighed so much at the beginning of training.
I had been swinging my rapier so awkwardly.
[..Could it be that the contractor has awakened that?]
‘So this is the world you see.’
The harmonization with the spirit’s senses.
The ability that awakens when one’s wavelength aligns closely with that of the spirit. This meant the rage I felt was akin to Silphy’s wavelength.
According to Arin, this was an ability difficult to awaken unless faced with death.
Certainly, this situation was one of confronting death.
“Things have changed.”
A smile spread across Katra’s face as wounds he sustained healed with his aura.
With that terrifying smile, I noticed the movement of his arm muscles.
I could see how that punch would reach me, and how, if I dodged it, another punch would follow in quick succession.
Boom!
His fist collided with my ribcage at the same instant my rapier slashed through Katra’s body.
Despite blood gushing from him, his smile never wavered.
That last strike. It was a clean series of attacks without a hint of inefficiency. Katra looked impressed.
“Have you grown in that time? You’re an interesting one.”
A red aura began to rise like flames. It felt as if something trapped in my head had finally broken free.
Relying on that sensation, I raised my rapier.
“Then, let me show you something good too.”
Katra’s arm was enveloped in red aura, morphing into the shape of a gauntlet.
I could feel an enormous amount of aura being concentrated in that glowing gauntlet.
Gritting my teeth, I wrapped the power of the wind around my rapier.
“Try to block this strike.”
Bang!
With a sound like the air tearing, the red gauntlet rushed towards my face.
I lifted my rapier to deflect it, but the rapier couldn’t withstand the force and broke instead.
Before I could even register my shock, successive punches flew towards me.
‘Ah, I’m going to die.’
In an instant, the sight of the oncoming red aura filled my vision, and the sensation of death washed over me.
With that thought, my consciousness faded away.
§
Bang!
A loud roar reverberated within. The fist I had swung with all my strength had suddenly been halted by something.
Katra frowned, glaring at Adele.
The attack he had thrown with his all was easily blocked by her palm.
Just moments ago, she had struggled to contend with him.
“What is this…”
The spirit that had been buzzing around her like a fly also froze in shock.
“You’re a bother.”
An eerie voice rang in my ears.
“Cough!”
Bang!
I crossed my arms just in time to barely block the attack. Not from a rapier but a fist. The shockwave from that tiny fist sent Katra flying back.
When he lifted his head, a menacing pair of red eyes were fixed on him.
Those red eyes radiated a different atmosphere from the blue ones before, causing Katra to involuntarily flinch.
What in the world is that? He was bewildered by the powerful strike that couldn’t come from such a small body.
It was already a mystery how she could block his strike with that body.
“Don’t interfere.”
Whoosh.
A red wind began to wrap around her. It felt like a sticky malice, unlike her aura.
The red eyes slitted like a reptile, and a cracking sound echoed through the air.
Bang!
Fists collided. She continued her assault, leaving the broken rapier to the side.
Katra was stunned by her physical capabilities, which were on a whole other level compared to before.
‘Is this the same girl as before?’
The difference was staggering. Her punches, wrapped in aura, were as strong as his own.
But instead of being shocked, Katra felt exhilarated by that realization.
“Hah, ha ha ha!”
Even as he was slowly finding himself on the defensive, he couldn’t stop the laughter. No, it was precisely because of that he couldn’t stop laughing.
The thrill of battle, something he had yearned for throughout his life.
“Come! Let’s see how long you can hold out in that body!”
“Enough with the noise.”
With a chilling voice, the red wind began to sweep around them.
It was a power that seemed to be mixed with something other than spirits, unlike before.
Bang!
A kick came flying in. Katra bent forward to avoid it before immediately aiming a punch at her stomach.
She caught his arm and jumped into the air to evade the attack.
‘Her combat sense is impressive.’
She wasn’t simply losing her mind.
Whether it was instinct or a bit of reasoning still intact, her judgment was at a significant level.
Bang!
Katra crossed his arms to block the incoming punch. But she didn’t stop there; she began her series of strikes.
Quick and powerful.
A fighting style different from his own.
But because of that, he could see just how much effort had gone into those attacks. The determination for strength was glaringly obvious.
“Haha!”
How long had he wished for this sensation since his fight with Abel?
Though another battle with Abel was out of reach now, he was more than satisfied with this fight.
“Let’s go all the way!”
“There’s no time for that.”
Whoosh…
The red wind brushed against her body. With the sensation of something big approaching, Katra’s lips curled into a wild grin.
The sensation of death he had felt on the battlefield overtook him.
And that’s why he laughed.
A singular stream of energy was flying straight towards him. He could have dodged, but he didn’t choose to. He only prepared to counter with all his might.
That was Katra’s pride and honor.
Bang!
A massive sound erupted.
The sheer shockwave felt through the punch began to shatter his body.
The red aura struggled to keep pace with the speed of destruction as he attempted to regenerate.
Finally, her body came to a standstill.
Watching that, Katra retracted his own punch. It would take time, but his broken body would return.
But what about her, after executing that attack?
“It’s over.”
Crack.
A sensation like a seal breaking at the back of his neck. In that brief moment, had she interfered with the seal? Perhaps that was why Katra’s body no longer responded to his commands.
Had she attacked with the intention of disabling him with the seal? That meant she must know the structure and flaws of the seal well.
What in the world was her identity to pull something like this off?
With that final question, Katra collapsed.
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