The Golden Knight's Desperate Gamble
The flat, straightforward strikes from my blade left Nadan visibly shaken. Watching her reaction, I allowed a faint smile to tug at the corner of my lips beneath my helmet—though no one could see it. 'Sorry, but even if I don't look like much, I'm strong enough to defeat even the Demon King herself. No matter how much damage I take, there's no way I'll lose.'
Her magic that utilized explosive dust particles was certainly impressive. The fact that it could deliver a surprise blow without the opponent noticing was one thing, and its destructive power was enough to reduce dozens of people to dust in an instant if concentrated properly. From a purely strategic standpoint, it was an incredibly versatile ability with uses in many situations.
However, separate from how impressive the ability was, after taking her surprise attack head-on, I had come to one clear realization: for someone like me, whose defensive stats were already near their absolute peak, Nadan's attacks were something I could afford to take once or twice without much issue.
In reality, even after receiving an attack carrying more force than her first strike, I had suffered almost no damage aside from some wear to my armor. Of course, the fact that it could inflict this much damage on the top-grade equipment the Demon King had prepared for me meant her attacks were not to be taken lightly.
'Just two hits and my armor's already in tatters. If I keep taking them thoughtlessly, it'll start to hurt for real. Not that I have any intention of letting it get that far.'
Honestly, from the very first clash of our blades, I could have taken her down the moment I decided to get serious. It might not have been in a single blow, but if I had simply hammered her relentlessly with my full power so she couldn't pull any tricks, I would have secured victory quite easily.
Nevertheless, I had deliberately allowed her attacks for two reasons: to gauge exactly how powerful this magic of hers was and what weaknesses it might have. Additionally, if I was going to seize victory anyway, I figured it would be far better to do so by displaying overwhelming strength.
'Even taking all that into account, this girl really isn't ordinary. I thought that last strike would finish it, but she managed to defend against it...'
While beating me was nearly impossible, Nadan's combat ability was certainly not something to dismiss. The fact that she had pushed me this far and somehow blocked that previous strike was more than enough to prove her strength was genuinely impressive.
To be completely honest, my current combat power was at the level where a single serious swing of my sword could send two hundred weak enemies flying. Just the fact that she had defended against an attack carrying such monstrous force was enough for me to acknowledge her prowess.
The only real problem was that I, her opponent, was simply too strong.
'She doesn't have any special attack methods like that explosive dust of hers, but her raw stats are already ridiculous even without them... Anyway, shall we wrap this up soon?'
Continuing to eat her explosive attacks would be reckless, so I decided to finish things without holding back any longer.
*
The hero, whose mere sword swings displayed utterly terrifying power. In response, Nadan had no choice but to focus entirely on evading his attacks with all her might.
-KWAANG!!!
With every swing of his blade, the ground exploded. Even the mere shockwaves from attacks that didn't hit her directly were enough to send stinging pain through Nadan's entire body. What was even more shocking was that despite unleashing such brutal attacks, the hero's movement speed was still a step above hers.
'Damn it! What kind of monster is this guy...? Doesn't he ever get tired? I'd heard the rumors, but this is way worse than I imagined!'
Nadan began to feel a deep sense of regret in her heart for having underestimated her opponent so severely. However, regardless of that emotion, she still refused to give up in this moment.
The hero's relentless assault was fierce. Even now, she was barely dodging his strikes by a hair's breadth, or when that wasn't possible, enduring the pain to block them with her crescent blade. Each impact brought horrible agony, and her arms were gradually being destroyed. Her muscles had already torn, and the bones in her heavily burdened right arm were cracked. If she tried to block his sword even once or twice more, her arm would likely break first.
Yet even so, through the tattered remains of his armor, Nadan had realized something. If she could just land one of her explosions on him in this state, she would still have a chance.
However, unlike before, striking him now that he was moving at such terrifying speed was no easy task. Her dust explosion required preparation in advance, which meant she needed to restrain her opponent to some degree. Normal attacks simply couldn't reach him.
'But... it's not like there are no options at all. Though it might end up dragging me down with him.'
A last resort that could even result in mutual destruction if things went wrong. Nevertheless, in this moment, Nadan had already steeled her resolve. If it had been a simple enemy, maybe not—but the man before her was a detestable being who had shaken the heart of the woman she loved, Elisa. If she could express her love by landing a solid blow on him, she thought that wouldn't be such a bad ending.
And then...
The moment she finished all her preparations.
-Whoosh!
The hero's sword came crashing down toward Nadan. She gathered every last ounce of her remaining strength and swung her crescent blade, deflecting his sword with a twist. An enormous wave of pain assaulted her in that instant. At the same time, Nadan released the crescent blade from her grip.
“Huh?”
For a brief moment, the hero lost his balance due to the sudden change in momentum. Nadan didn't miss the opening and charged straight in.
“!! W-what?”
“Got... you!”
Nadan wrapped her arms around the hero's body with all her might. A flash of bewilderment crossed the hero's face, while a deep smile formed on Nadan's lips.
And then—
“For Elisa...”
A massive blast erupted with her at the center. Its power far surpassed any previous explosion, and the entire arena was instantly engulfed in thick clouds of dust.
*
“Ugh...”
“Mmm...”
The sudden explosion had obscured their vision. Both Elisa and Shamyuel, who had been watching the match, instinctively furrowed their brows slightly.
“Is Nadan... going to be okay?”
“I don't know... it is what it is.”
The thick smoke and the lingering heat of the explosion that could still be felt. Watching it, Elisa began to worry that something might have happened to her friend.
Of course, she was somewhat concerned about the hero as well, but honestly, that worry wasn't nearly as great. After all, Elisa knew better than anyone just how absurdly monstrous the hero truly was.
And a short while later...
A scene exactly as Elisa had expected appeared clearly before her eyes.
“Khh... ugh...”
“Hoo.”
The sight that emerged once the smoke cleared was the hero standing tall, his armor reduced to little more than rags except for the helmet. And at his feet lay the collapsed form of Nadan.
“How... how is he fine after that...”
“To survive an explosion like that... I'd heard the rumors, but to be this strong...”
Standing amid the still-roaring flames like an immortal god, radiating an overwhelming sense of pressure—the demons felt something far heavier than simply watching the winner of a duel.
“Th-the winner is the Black Hero!”
With the announcer's declaration of victory, the hero left the arena. Immediately afterward, Elisa hurriedly jumped down from her seat and rushed over to Nadan, who lay collapsed on the arena floor.
“A-are you okay, Nadan?”
“...Cough... ugh... E-Elisa...”
Nadan weakly opened her eyes at her words and looked this way. Seeing her like that, Elisa realized that although her friend had suffered serious injuries, her life wasn't in danger, and she let out a small sigh of relief.
“Thank goodness... I was worried something might have happened to you.”
“Y-you... were worried... about me?”
At Elisa's words, Nadan's face began to flush red—perhaps from the aftereffects of her injuries. Looking at her, Elisa lifted her friend's body without hesitation. Even though Nadan was still wearing her extraordinarily heavy golden armor, it was a simple task for Elisa, whose strength had long since surpassed ordinary levels, to carry her in a princess hold.
“!... E-Elisa...”
“Stay still. I'll take you to the infirmary. Honestly... why would you push yourself like that? It's not like you. Did you really want to become the Narsil that badly?”
“...No... that's not... it...”
Nadan hung her head and couldn't say anything in response to Elisa's words. Looking at her, Elisa thought that this girl really needed her to look after her, and a light smile formed on her lips.
*
Elisa had left her seat for a moment to help her friend. Meanwhile, Shamyuel, who had been sitting beside her, immediately stood up and used magic to instantly arrive on the arena floor, which was already being rapidly repaired.
Both of Shamyuel's hands were equipped with the gauntlets she usually used as weapons. Right after that, her eyes caught sight of the newcomer who had passed the preliminaries—a figure wearing a reddish-brown robe. At the same time, with her usual ●△● face, she thought to herself:
'That is... a human?'