The Alven Founding Anniversary Tournament: Main Event (3)
Clang—!
A violent shower of sparks erupted as steel met steel.
“Urgh!”
“Grrr….”
The two figures were pushed back simultaneously, splitting the arena in two.
‘This is definitely not going to be easy.’
Yuna’s strength lay in her bizarre swordplay and movements, driven by razor-sharp instincts. It was a talent that defied explanation, and it was at its most effective when she was trading blows in close quarters.
However, the Spearman’s specialty was perfect distance control and rock-solid stability. His spear technique, as impenetrable as a fortress gate, was completely sealing off every path Yuna tried to take.
‘Not that Yuna is losing, though.’
The spearhead, having blocked her entry, lunged rapidly toward Yuna’s chest. She twisted her body to dodge the attack, and when the spear shaft swung at her from the side, she blocked it with her blade.
“Ugh! Grrr…!”
Struggling as she was pushed back, Yuna clawed at her throat and glared at the Spearman.
Neither was willing to surrender the initiative, yet neither could seize it either. The duel between these two warriors, who possessed diametrically opposed styles, was maintaining a precarious balance on a tightrope.
Click.
I glanced to the side and saw Chae-rin biting her nails. She was glaring at the arena with her brow furrowed; she looked incredibly anxious.
‘Well, that’s understandable.’
What was happening between those two right now was a classic battle of attrition. If this situation dragged on into a long-term fight, the one who would tire first wasn’t the defensive Spearman, but the aggressive Yuna.
In other words, as time passed, the advantage would shift not to Yuna, but to the Spearman. If she wanted to break this pattern, she had to pierce his defense—or force him to move even more.
“Grrr….”
A red aura flowed over Yuna’s body. As her momentum grew increasingly savage, the Spearman raised his own.
“Arrr….”
“....”
Yuna, preparing to pounce like a beast, and the Spearman, bracing his stance. The moment a brief, fleeting silence fell between them:
“RAAAH!”
With her eyes dyed an even deeper red, Yuna charged at the Spearman.
Clang—!
Before the sound of the clashing steel had even faded, Yuna swung her blades again. Two swords, glowing with a crimson heat, rushed toward the Spearman.
Flame Blade
“Hmm…!”
The Spearman let out a short grunt as he parried the ensuing barrage, capturing the attention of everyone in the arena.
Clack-clack-clack!
Clang!
Yuna desperately searched for an opening amidst the swinging spearhead. The Spearman blocked every incoming strike, sealing off her path. The nerve-wracking, split-second battle between them continued without end.
Clang—!
Sparks exploded as they forced each other apart. Despite the recoil, the two warriors locked weapons again, their eyes burning with intense fervor.
“Go, Yuna! You can do it!!!!”
At the sound of Chae-rin’s voice erupting from the cheers, I turned my gaze toward Yuna.
“Go, Yuna! You can do it!!!!”
“Pfft….”
‘She’s really enjoying this, isn’t she?’
Thinking that, I turned my gaze back to the arena.
“Are you enjoying yourself?”
“…!”
At that moment, a familiar voice drifted from beside me.
“…You.”
“Your eyes are quite sharp. And I haven’t even done anything yet.”
“What are you here for this time?”
“I have no particular intentions. I simply came to converse. There is something you must be told.”
“…?”
“Look at the sky.”
“…!”
A red moon had risen in the clear, cloudless sky. The moonlight, pouring down regardless of day or night, foretold an approaching catastrophe.
“It’s been a while since we’ve seen a Night of the Witches, hasn’t it?”
“What on earth is this….”
“Instead of panicking, look over there.”
Clang—!
With a clear sound, Yuna’s body was pushed back.
“Grrr….”
Her momentum was growing, and it was ominous.
“…Huh?”
A red aura erupted around the startled Yuna. The burst of energy began to sharpen like a blade, rushing out in all directions.
It was clearly different from the aura I had seen until now. The decisive factor that made the difference sent my senses into overdrive.
‘Bloodlust.’
It was a great evil that no human should harbor, a filth that stained the blade.
“Ah. Ahh. AAAAAAAH!!!!”
And it was a deadly poison that drove an innocent child to death.
“Ki….”
“....”
“Ki…ll….”
“....”
“Ki,ll. …I’ll kill you!!!!”
“Yuna!!!”
I stood up, raising my voice at the sudden turn of events.
“Do not be startled, child. It is merely the germination of a seed that was already there.”
“What does that mean….”
“It means it is time for you to judge.”
“AAAAAAH!!!!”
The shimmering aura burning around Yuna began to take on a shape. A horn, hideously distorted as if made of hardened centipedes. Two eyeballs rolling about at will, glaring at their surroundings. And the lips beneath them, asserting their presence, were twisted in a disgustingly bizarre way.
“…!”
Sensing the ominous aura, the Spearman raised his mana. The blue mana rose, riding the fortress-like momentum and settling in like vines. At the same time, Yuna’s mana dyed the eyes of the Sal-gwi black.
‘Projection.’
Projection, the symbol of a warrior who has reached the Flowering stage, is a technique that uses mana and Simsang to alter the body. The transformed body is strengthened in a direction suited to the Simsang, sometimes manifesting new traits.
“Grrr….”
Yuna’s beast-like voice distorted even more eerily. Black claws grew from her fingertips as her pupils turned black and her veins bulged.
“....”
“Yuna…?”
The moment she took on a form that anyone would call a demon, the spectators—and even Chae-rin—froze.
“The prophecy ends here. From this point on, whether you save it or kill it is up to you, child.”
“What…?”
I turned around in confusion, but the woman who had been sitting there was gone.
“Do your best, child.”
“!?”
When I turned my gaze back to the sound of her voice from behind me, only a bewildered Chae-rin was sitting there.
At that moment.
——!!
Yuna tore through the air and lunged at the knight.
“…!!”
The spear was raised in a hurry to counter the sudden burst of speed. Just as Yuna’s head was about to be pierced by the spearhead, her speed accelerated once more, and she vaulted over the spear. At the same time, the Spearman lifted the shaft to block the swinging blade and thrust his spear toward Yuna, who was in mid-air.
Clang—!
As sparks flew from the tip of the spear, Yuna’s body soared high into the sky. The Spearman tracked her landing point with his eyes and lunged, sparks flying once more as his spearhead struck.
And so, Yuna’s acrobatics began.
Clang—!
Clack!!
Yuna’s offensive, rebounding from the parry and repeatedly diving down, rushed toward the Spearman.
Clang!
Red mana flowed into Yuna’s arm as she leaped up again at the end of the assault.
Rapid Strike
Four attacks imbued with magical power fell upon the Spearman’s head. The Spearman responded to the sharp barrage with a barrage of his own.
Clack-clack-clack!!
Following the four clashing sounds, Yuna spun half a turn and stomped on the spearhead as it thrust forward.
“!!”
The moment Yuna’s torn foot left a trail of blood along the spear shaft, she gripped her sword in a reverse hold and rotated her body forward. Her sword was still imbued with magical power.
The target was the Spearman’s back.
“Kuhk!!!”
The Spearman’s abdomen was pierced, and blood splattered. As Yuna landed and pulled her sword out, the Spearman’s blood drenched her hair. Soon, the two blades swung at the staggering Spearman once more.
Clang!
The spear shaft wedged between the sword paths, creating a clear, ringing sound. The Spearman thrust his spear into Yuna’s momentarily exposed abdomen.
“Kuhak!”
Yuna pulled back quickly, withdrawing the spear that had pierced her stomach.
“Yuna!!!”
Just as everyone was panicking at a situation that could no longer be called a sparring match:
“Ur…gh… Ah. AAAAAH!!!!!”
Yuna’s aura erupted once again, crushing the arena.
“AAAAAAH!!!!”
As Yuna clawed at her head, letting out a painful cry, a spearhead pointed toward her.
“You… are a monster, Hanazono Yuna….”
The Spearman, gripping his shaft as if to squeeze it, continued, his voice heavy with evil energy.
“A… kuhk…! A demon who has walked a path that no human should ever walk.”
“AAAAAAH…!”
A fierce wind wrapped around the straight-extended spear. The wind rotated rapidly around the shaft, growing in size. When that small flow had grown into a massive typhoon:
“…I will end it here.”
A single, sharp strike lunged toward the chest of the wailing Yuna.
——!!
The spearhead flew, tearing through the air. Just before it reached her, Yuna didn’t raise her sword, nor did she try to dodge the strike.
She simply….
“Mo…m….”
She whispered those small words and closed her eyes.