Chapter 161

Hooong!

It was a simple punch, but it was rather powerful when the punch was being made by a saucepan-sized fist with a great force behind it.

Slam.

The sound of metal clashing against metal could be heard when the fist collided with Ulabis’ sword. It was a sound that didn’t make sense, but it truly sounded like that.

Ulabis frowned his hand holding his sword had gone numb from the collision.

“Formidable, indeed…”

Before he could say more, he gasped upon sensing danger. In response, he swung his sword at the fist coming from his left flank.

Boom!

Unlike the previous sound, the noise created by the collision was even louder. The explosive noise came as a result of a collision between his Aura Blade and Akshuller’s transparent-looking Aura Fist.

Ulabis took advantage of the repulsion to gracefully make a somersault in the air and retreat as he chuckled. “What a ridiculous weapon you got there. It actually warps mana.”

“You got anything that can compare to my weapon?” Akshuller smirked fiercely.

Ulabis’ crimson Aura Blade could be seen enveloping his sword, but Akshuller’s mana couldn’t be seen at all. It was one of the unique traits of Abudaham’s Knuckles. It had the ability to conceal the user’s mana and distort it to deceive the enemy.

“One should train their other senses to detect mana, not just the eyes…” Ulabis muttered under his breath.

“What are you thinking about?”

?

Akshuller shot forward like a rocket, fast enough that the only way to see where he was heading was through the afterimages he was leaving in his wake.

'I can’t let him get any closer…'?

Ulabis made a decision. He made sure to maintain a certain gap between them. It was all because he knew that fistfighters would have the advantage against swordsmen if fistfighters managed to get close enough.

Fistfighters could take advantage of awkward angles and even blind spots. As such, Ulabis knew that he would be in a better position if he maintained the gap between them so that he could take full advantage of his sword’s better reach.

Ulabis deduced Akshuller’s next move, and he made a decision to swing his sword and see how it would go. Anyway, he still had to figure out Akshuller’s thought process as well as Akshuller’s habits in battle.

Ulabis slashed diagonally at Akshuller. He abandoned any complicated movement and decided to use a straightforward attack. This way, if something went wrong, he could easily dodge his opponent’s counterattack.

After all, fists would always be at a disadvantage against swords.

“...!”

However, Ulabis’ eyes widened when he saw how his opponent decided to continue attacking. His sword would definitely land first because it had a better reach than Akshuller’s fists, so why was it that Akshuller wasn’t retreating?

It was then that alarm bells started ringing in Ulabis’ head.

‘I’m in trouble!’

Ulabis decided to trust his guts and hastily turned his head to the side.

Swoosh!

A narrow line was drawn across Ulabis’ cheeks, it seemed that he didn’t manage to completely avoid Akshuller’s attack. However, the line wasn’t drawn by Akshuller’s fists.

“What a shame.”

“A Bladed Gauntlet?” Ulabis grimaced. A blade was sticking out of Akshuller’s knuckles. Akshuller had concealed the blade all this while, and it managed to fool Ulabis, cutting a line across his cheek. “I had no idea that someone like you would be fond of such tricks.”

“That’s a stereotype, and you’re discriminating against me. Haaah. I’ll let it go. I can’t really blame you for your upbringing.”Akshuller stared into Ulabis’ eyes and continued speaking, “I grew up in a place where not the strong survive, but those who survive are the strongest. How pointless would it be to die on a random battlefield where you’ll be quickly forgotten? We’re not knights. Mercenaries value money over honor, so don’t judge us by your standards.

“I see…” Ulabis nodded at that. He looked as if he had come to a realization. It had been ridiculous of him to cling to concepts like honor in a life-or-death battle in the first place. Let others judge him if they wanted—he just had to do his best.

“I apologize for my imprudent remarks, and I will now use everything I have against you.”

“Good.” Akshuller smiled at that. “Gambling is addictive. It’s twice the fun and none of the sadness. I’m hoping that you’ll enjoy this battle as much as I do.”

Akshuller’s voice was vigor, and his underlying message seemed to be telling Ulabis not to think of giving up midway.

“If it’s as exciting as you say, I want to try it, too..” Ulabis smiled. Afterward, he lifted his delicate red sword and hurled it at the floor. The sword lodged itself into the ground, and Ulabis muttered, “Flame Emperor: Wolves.”

The stage in the middle of the huge coliseum was immediately engulfed in a scorching heat. Joshua’s eyes widened at the sight.

‘I’ve seen that before…’?

Joshua muttered. A scene popped up in his mind.

Duke Altsma of Swallow…

Ulabis used that technique to subdue Duke Altsma, which led to the latter’s demise and subsequent transformation into a Death Knight.

- That’s gotta be that big fiery crimson column back then, right? He’s gonna have a bad time with that—Oh, the stage is already scorching hot. If that thief-looking man were here, then it would’ve been a sight to see. Wasn’t that the technique that forced him to kneel?

“You know there are people from Hubalt here, right? If you make a mistake again…”

“Uh, yes? What did you say?" Iceline stared at him curiously.

Joshua was talking to Lugia, so he shook his head at Iceline and said, “Nothing.”

- By the way, why did you send the death knight away? It is powerful, sure, but the farther it is from the summoner, the weaker it becomes.

“...” Joshua wasn’t even responding anymore, but Lugia kept on talking.

- Master, look at him. He’s handsome, but he’s a dumbass. An idiot—

Joshua finally severed his connection with Lugia, and at the same time, a column of fire rose from the stage in the middle of the huge coliseum.

“

Ugh…?

What incredible heat!”

“It’s too hot!”

The audience members sitting in the front row started groaning from the unbearable heat. The clear skies also became tinged with scarlet. The scorching flames looked like they would melt the massive coliseum where the battle was taking place.

The scorching flames were so hot it distorted even the air itself, which made it hard for people to distinguish which among the two figures were Akshuller and Ulabis.

“Ice Protection.”

Joshua shifted upon sensing a soft wave of mana and coldness washing over his body.

“I want to help, even at times like this,” Iceline said.

However, when she realized that Joshua was still looking at her, her face flushed, and she stammered out. “I-I mean, a-aren’t we friends?”

Joshua noticed the redness on Iceline’s cheeks, and he responded, “Thank you.”

“It was nothing…” Iceline hurriedly turned her head away after replying.

For some reason, Iceline was having trouble maintaining eye contact with Joshua since last night.

‘Seriously, what’s going on with me?’?

Iceline sighed at her tumultuous emotions. What exactly was it? Everyone else was excited about the fight, but she felt rather ill.

“Subspace,” Joshua muttered.

-...

𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

However, Lugia remained silent like a lie.

***

While the battle between Akshuller and Ulabis was in full swing, a man approached Marquis Moreland and Count Ford, seated in the Hubalt Empire’s seats on the other side of the huge coliseum.

“High Priest Herald has sent a message.”

The high temperature was starting to annoy Count Ford, but he ignored that and responded to the messenger, “Speak.”

“It is impossible for Sir Christian to recover in time. High Priest Herald is planning on informing the organizers of Sir Christian’s withdrawal from the Masters’ Battle.”

“Goddamned it…” Marquis Moreland sighed in distress.

“This is bullshit!” Count Ford gnashed his teeth. “What a mess. Avalon and Swallow already have one Master each; even the non-imperials are acting big. Why should the knights of the great Hubalt Empire surrender without a real fight?!”

Count Ford slammed his hand into his chest in rage. “No, we can’t just let it end like this We can’t return to the empire like this. What are we supposed to tell His Majesty Emperor? What a disgrace!”

“

Haaa.

” Marquis Moreland sighed once more.

“Marquis Moreland! Are you really going to just let it end like this?”

“What do you want me to do? It’s not like we can forcefully awaken Sir Christian. This must be Hermes’ will.”

“Hmph.” Count Ford snorted and laughed upon the mention of Hermes. “We can’t let it end just like this.”

Marquis Moreland tilted his head at Count Ford’s grim-sounding voice. “What do you think we should do, Count Ford?”

“Unless something changes, we will have to find an excuse before we can return. High Priest Herald and Sir Modrian said they’d do something about it, but His Majesty and the other nobles would never be convinced with half-assed excuses,” said Count Ford.

“So, what do you suppose we do?” asked Marquis Moreland, intrigued.

Count Ford said with bright eyes,

“Have you forgotten about what they said about Sir Christian? Sir Christian got tainted by demonic power while he was in Avalon—a nation hostile to us.”

“Are you saying that we find a scapegoat?”

“It’s not that complicated. The young man present at the scene is all we need.”

“You mean Baron Joshua Sanders?” Marquis Moreland shook his head and said, “If you act without proof, it could quickly spiral into an international issue. Now that he’s grown so much, we can’t easily deal with him..”

At that, Count Ford revealed smiled slyly. “That Joshua Sanders has just become a Master, which makes our job easier.”

“What do you mean?”

“I was planning on investigating him more thoroughly, but we’re pressed for time, so I’m going to execute my plan as-is.” Count Ford then whispered into Marquis Moreland’s ears.

After a while, Marquis Moreland abruptly stood up with wide eyes.

“That is such a baseless accu—”

However, Count Ford interrupted him by saying, “It doesn’t matter whether it’s true or not. Humans have always been creatures who only believe what they wish to believe.”

“That’s true, but…”

“Don’t underestimate the jealousy of humans. We just need a little spark to ignite it.”

With that, silence descended.

While Marquis Moreland was struggling with the morality of the plan, Count Ford's smile deepened.