Chapter 152: Loki vs. Johanna 4
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 152: Loki vs. Johanna 4
Loki jerked the strings tied to his fingers, and the dozens of daggers Johanna had just parried swarmed her once again.
But this time was different.
Before, the daggers had flown in from a single direction. Now, they converged on her from every angle—above, below, side, front, and back—all at once.
The sheer number of blades striking simultaneously was overwhelming. If she swung her sword to block one, another would surely plunge into her back in that split second.
A swordsman must always remain calm.
If the heart wavers, the sword wavers.
Recalling the words Duke Freya often repeated like a mantra, Johanna did not lose her composure.
Clear Mirror, Still Water.
It was a state where the mind is as serene as a frozen lake, undisturbed by even the slightest ripple. This was the realm Duke Freya had reached upon becoming a Sword Master—a realm Johanna had now attained in the heat of her duel with Loki.
Johanna took a single step forward.
It was impossible to swing her sword and intercept every dagger already at her throat. Instead, she parried the daggers coming from the front, letting them slide off her blade. By dealing with the frontal assault a fraction of a second early, she bought herself the window needed to handle the daggers closing in from behind.
Her movements were fluid. She didn't think of it as swinging her sword to strike the daggers down, but rather as letting them flow past her like water.
One step—no, half a step is enough.
Johanna didn't dodge the encroaching daggers. She simply held her sword upright and let them glide away. Even in a situation where a single slip-up could result in a grievous wound, a faint smile played on her lips.
She knew that through this duel with Loki, she was growing at an incredible pace. She had no interest in simply becoming "stronger"; she just wanted to be one with the sword.
At this rate, she could parry every single dagger without issue. As long as she watched out for another surprise attack like Loki’s earlier stunt, she would win.
Just as Johanna raised her sword to deflect the next incoming dagger—
Swish.
The dagger, which had been flying in a straight line, suddenly curved in mid-air and grazed her shoulder.
Johanna saw it then. Loki wasn't hiding to launch a surprise attack; he was standing right where he had been, his fingers moving incessantly. The trajectories of the daggers, already coming from all directions, began to change unpredictably.
With ten fingers, he was meticulously controlling dozens of daggers. It was a level of finesse that transcended mere technique.
Having seen Loki throw daggers many times before, Johanna realized something: she wasn't the only one growing through this duel. Loki was also evolving at a rapid speed.
No matter how hard Johanna tried to parry them all, it was impossible to deflect every blade when their trajectories shifted constantly.
Swish, slash, flick, zing.
As time passed, the number of daggers grazing Johanna’s body increased, and her wounds multiplied. If she stayed on the defensive, she would lose—and then this enjoyable time would come to an end.
I have to cut the strings.
But a normal sword swing wouldn't be enough to sever those reinforced threads. Moreover, if she committed to a large swing to cut them, the other daggers would seize the opening to impale her all at once.
I have to cut all the strings at once.
Johanna’s sword began to glow, gradually enveloped in the platinum mana that symbolized the Freya family. Loki had seen this before when he sparred with Johanna’s older sister, Askal. It was a technique that only those of the Freya direct line could learn.
Johanna swung her sword in a wide semi-circle. A platinum shockwave erupted from the blade, obliterating both the daggers and the strings Loki was controlling.
Calling that "cutting" is an understatement. It’s more like "annihilation."
Seeing that the daggers were gone, Johanna charged toward Loki. She knew that if she let the distance grow, there was no telling what other tricks he might pull.
To stop her advance, Loki threw the last remaining bomb from his Pocket Dimension.
KABOOM!!!
The explosion didn't damage Johanna, but it succeeded in forcing her back and widening the gap again.
Well, I’m out of flashbangs, bombs, and daggers.
All he had left was his handsome face.
He’d have to buy some materials and craft more before heading back to the dormitory. It was a relief today was the weekend. Usually, he kept a large stock so he’d never run out during a fight, but he hadn't had much time to craft lately because he’d been busy helping Sepia with her special training. He’d also used a fair few during his fight with Katsudo.
Johanna kicked off the ground and charged at Loki once more. Then, she saw seven daggers flying toward her.
None of them are real. They’re all illusions.
Johanna ignored the incoming daggers and kept running toward Loki. Each time a dagger touched her, it vanished like dust. One hit her arm and disappeared; another struck her torso and vanished.
Just as she thought every dagger would fade away, one flew toward her leg. Johanna ignored this one as well.
Thwack!
“...!”
Startled by the heavy impact on her leg, Johanna looked down. There, lying on the ground, was a wooden sword.
A dagger turned into a wooden sword?
Johanna quickly realized what Loki had done. Knowing she would ignore the illusions, he had used an illusion to make a real wooden sword look like a dagger. Even if Johanna could distinguish between illusion and reality, she couldn't see through an illusion to what was hidden inside.
“How was that? No matter how well you distinguish illusions, it’s meaningless now. Why don't you just surrender and quietly call me 'Oppa'?”
“...That uses a lot of mana.”
Johanna was right. No matter how many elixirs he had consumed to increase his mana, he had used far too much since the start of the duel.
“Sigh, you’re way too sharp. Really. Couldn't you just get flustered and surrender in a moment like this? I just want to take a break and rest now.”
“There’s another way to rest.”
“Just so you know, I have no intention of surrendering.”
“...Then there isn't one.”
The two clashed once more in silence.
* * *
The balance of power began to tilt, and surprisingly, it wasn't due to a clever strategy or a fatal mistake.
It was stamina.
Johanna had held a sword since she was a child and had naturally trained her physical endurance alongside her swordsmanship. Loki had only been training his stamina seriously for six months. Even if he covered the gap with his mask and elixirs, it was impossible to catch up to the years Johanna had spent training.
Furthermore, his mana was nearly hitting rock bottom, so he had to end this match as quickly as possible. However, ending it quickly was difficult because Johanna knew Loki too well.
After being hit by the wooden sword, Johanna, who had been continuously wary of Loki’s illusions, spoke up.
“You’re out of daggers, aren't you?”
See? She’d already noticed.
Knowing he had no more means to keep her at bay, Johanna would now attack decisively without rushing. To win, he had to use a move Johanna knew nothing about.
I was planning to save this for those Death Heaven bastards.
There was no one around except Johanna. And the things he was about to use were things he hadn't even revealed during his fight with Professor Elicia.
“Senior, can you wait a moment while I pick up the daggers on the ground?”
“After the duel.”
“You’re cold. By the way, Senior, do you recognize what this is?”
First.
In Loki’s hand was a small iron bead. In the past, when Loki had visited the Freya estate, he had received it from their armory as a reward for defeating Johanna’s sister, Askal.
The moment Johanna scrutinized the bead—
Vroooooom—
With an eerie sound, the dozens of daggers scattered across the ground rose into the air.
Snap!
Loki flicked his fingers, and the daggers hovering in the air flew toward him, being sucked into his Pocket Dimension. Johanna’s expression stiffened. To anyone else, she would have looked as expressionless as ever, but Loki could tell.
If I stay like this, I’ll lose.
There was no guarantee that he could only retrieve the daggers once. If he kept throwing them and occasionally mixed in illusions, it would become incredibly difficult to handle.
I have to finish this in one blow.
And that was exactly the opening Loki, whose stamina and mana were depleted, was aiming for.
“Now then! Shall we start the show from the beginning?”
Loki threw dozens of daggers at Johanna once again. Johanna unleashed another platinum shockwave, shattering the daggers. Without stopping, she charged at Loki, her sword shrouded in platinum mana.
Everything in this one strike.
Squeezing out every last drop of her remaining mana, Johanna swung her sword with all her might. And in the middle of her swing, she saw it.
Loki was smiling.
Second.
The artifact he had aimed for first after being reincarnated. The one he wore at all times and never took off unless he was in a perfectly safe place.
The Red Cloak.
Loki swung his own sword against the overwhelming pressure of the platinum blade coming his way. Normally, Loki would have been sent flying, but the Red Cloak began to glow, and with a thunderous BOOM!, it was Johanna who was thrown back instead.
The true name of the Red Cloak was—
The Mobius Cloak.
Once a day, it could reflect an opponent's attack exactly as it was received.