343. A Witch? Who Are You Talking About?
343. A Witch? Who Are You Talking About?
***
As the sword blade, steeped in deep blue light, flashed sharply, Yujeong barely managed to deflect it aside and kicked off the ground to put a large distance between them.
Even so, as she narrowly parried the swords attacking from all directions... she slowly caught sight of a female knight steadying her sword.
Even while looking at the female knight, Yujeong couldn't help but feel disbelief.
'She's not even the target, and yet there's a knight like this?'
The objective of this Phase 3 was clearly to kill the knight called Zernati.
Right, that had to be it.
If so, how was she supposed to explain this female knight standing in front of her?
*
————
【Melia of Great Strength】
【Title: Giant's Strength】
【Grade: A+】
【Class: Knight】
【Category: ???】
...
————
*
Even just from what the hologram showed, everything was riddled with questions, and a category shrouded in mystery was something she had never seen before either.
From the start, she once again felt the insane difficulty of an A+ grade knight appearing as a mere supporting character, but she calmed herself down.
'Facing her head-on is dangerous.'
Right now I was in the middle of the battlefield, this wasn't even a pure 1:1 situation, and in my current state I couldn't even use my Awakening Skill. Due to all these restrictions, defeating this female knight was practically impossible.
In the end, holding out was the best option. The moment that thought crossed my mind, the whole situation felt absurd.
Just yesterday I had become a thrall, and my stats had risen dramatically through Craving for True Blood. So I had thought that most opponents wouldn't be a match for me.
But now, as if mocking that very thought, monsters of that caliber were appearing one after another.
"Surrender quietly."
When Melia spoke in a calm tone, Yujeong let out a short laugh and shook off the blood beading on her nails.
Splat!
Even as the blood splattered down forcefully, Yujeong, as if deliberately putting on an air of composure, brought her blood-smeared hand to the corner of her mouth.
"Surrender, huh... So what happens if I surrender?"
When she asked in an odd tone, as if tempted by the offer, Melia's eyes lit up with interest.
"Along with a simple identity check, your power will be restrained, and you will be taken in as a prisoner of war. I give you my word. If you surrender here, no harm will come to you."
At the sight of the female knight speaking in a calm, composed tone, Yujeong's gaze was drawn to her without realizing it.
Even though she knew this wasn't reality. Every time she looked at a being speaking to her like that, she felt a sense of dissonance.
As if it were alive. As if this were reality.
With such thoughts, Yujeong slowly nodded.
"So you can guarantee my safety?"
She spoke casually, turning her gaze just slightly.
The place where Plea had thrown herself, the place where Rin had drawn so much attention.
Near there, bursts of multicolored light kept erupting, signaling the urgency of the battlefield.
"I swear on my name. If you surrender, your safety will be guaranteed. And a being of your caliber is far too valuable to waste on that witch."
As Melia continued speaking calmly, Yujeong nodded absently, but at the end, a question arose.
"A witch? Who are you talking about?"
Why would a witch suddenly come up? As Yujeong thought this and looked at her, Melia frowned as if the mere thought made her blood boil, and nodded.
"You know who. Rin. It's her. The more someone like you lends strength to that witch... the greater the chaos that will arise in this empire."
As Melia conveyed her intent with clear hostility, Yujeong blinked for a moment, unable to comprehend the situation.
"Rin is a witch..."
She wondered if Rin had some connection to the rebels, but the phrasing was a bit funny.
'What in the world do you have to do to be called a witch?'
She figured she'd have to ask Rin directly later to find out.
"Enough talk. I can't give you any more time. I'll ask one last time. If you surrender now, press your body to the ground and raise both hands."
When Melia finished speaking in a resolute tone, Yujeong slowly lowered her upper body to the ground as if she understood.
Then, as Yujeong even shrank her prominently extended nails back to their original size, demonstrating through action that she had no hostile intent, Melia smiled slightly, as if relieved.
"You've made a wise choice."
Then she gave a small signal to the nearby knights. They picked up restraints and headed toward her.
During the few seconds it took for them to approach Yujeong.
Yujeong slowly waited for her chance.
'I can't finish off that knight called Melia.'
But I could still damage the other knights. Cause a small disruption.
I figured my role right now was simply to keep this female knight from joining the battlefield where Plea and Rin were.
'Anyway, those two can handle it.'
I believed that Plea and Rin, the two of them, would be enough to deal with Zernati.
The moment the knights fully approached Yujeong. She activated her skill.
—Bloody Shadow.
Over her body pressed against the ground, a blood-red glow rose so faintly it was imperceptible. Immediately after, as if slowly melting away, she began to seep into the ground, but the knights carrying the restraints didn't notice the anomaly.
Among them, only one.
Only Melia, who had been watching Yujeong closely, noticed the shift in energy in that instant and shouted urgently.
"Get away from her right now!"
At that moment, as she shouted loudly, Yujeong suddenly emerged from the knights' shadows as if by magic.
And she did so by carving bright red lines of blood across their throats.
***
'Why do they follow the witch?'
They must have clearly heard the witch's absurd plan, so why would a being with this much power...
Even just the golden-haired female knight clashing with him right now—Zernati couldn't understand it.
He had never heard of a female knight of this caliber existing in the empire, and even her appearance was clearly someone he had never seen before.
Clang clang clang!
And the more their swords met, the deeper that question grew.
'How in the world is she parrying?'
——!!
The blue trajectory surging up from below accelerated once more at the end, reaching a speed approaching the speed of sound.
A silent attack that made no sound at all rushed toward the female knight like light.
Once again, he felt certain.
It would connect.
This couldn't help but connect.
No, it had to connect.
She wasn't in a stance to block it.
Clang!
But the result that unfolded continued to betray his expectations as if mocking him. The female knight's sword carried an incomprehensible speed and parried his sword without fail.
He quickly observed the female knight's demeanor—her expression had no composure, and her movements weren't very natural.
'How in the world is this possible?'
Every time Zernati clashed swords with force, Sua's body staggered like a candle before a massive typhoon, but she never backed down.
Rather, she kept her eyes on Zernati, burning with even greater determination as she put more strength into her sword. And so, in just a few minutes, they exchanged dozens of blows.
Zernati belatedly noticed the anomaly.
When he controlled his sword's speed and slowed it completely, his opponent's rapier slowed as before, then suddenly at the end surged past his sword at a bizarre speed to meet it.
All of it was far too unnatural.
'...It can't be magic. Then is it something like a secret art?'
He deliberately slowed the speed of his thrusts and even showed small openings, but his opponent didn't aim for those openings.
Rather, she seemed focused solely on meeting his sword.
Immediately after, Zernati's eyes widened as if he had realized something, and he opened his mouth.
"...This is ridiculous."
And without any warning, he kicked off the ground and launched himself backward.
Zernati no longer swung his sword at Sua. He lowered his blade and changed his target.
...
At the sight of Zernati suddenly stopping his sword swings and throwing himself through the air, Sua realized.
'He caught on too fast.'
He seemed to have noticed Counteroffensive sooner than she expected.
—Counteroffensive.
In theory, it was an Awakening Skill close to invincible, and considering the techniques that could chain from the accumulated energy into Raging Burst - Split, it boasted overwhelming performance even compared to other classes' Awakening Skills.
However, that was only when the opponent was a melee class and didn't know its characteristics.
Its effect was maximized only against melee types that could react and strike back. So against ranged types or opponents who didn't meet her blade, the gauge wouldn't accumulate, and she couldn't properly manifest Raging Burst - Split.
Right now, the gauge for using Raging Burst - Split was filled to just the minimum threshold. It wasn't a satisfactory amount, but it had accumulated enough to use the chain.
'It's ambiguous.'
Would this level of gauge work against Zernati? She wasn't sure.
As she thought this while watching him launch himself through the air, she gripped her rapier. At that moment, Zernati's attack pattern suddenly changed as he drew near.
He swung his sword and light together as if unleashing a massive force toward the ground. The blue aura burst brightly, exploding with tremendous force against the ground.
"...!"
She hurriedly blocked the front with her rapier and threw herself backward.
BOOM!!
But she was caught in the massive explosion and had no choice but to be sent flying helplessly.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The moment Sua, sent flying miserably by the explosion's aftermath, rolled across the ground, she urgently kicked off the ground and launched herself again.
"It won't work anymore."
Zernati, speaking with conviction, hardened his expression coldly and thrust his sword forward quickly, detonating his aura once more.
Counteroffensive no longer reacted, and Sua, caught in the explosion and sent flying far, bit her lip hard.
'No choice.'
She thrust her rapier toward Zernati, who was rushing at her rapidly. And released the condensed energy as it was.
—Raging Burst.
WHOOOOOSH!!
In that instant, an unbelievable golden storm surged from the rapier and rushed toward Zernati.
———!!