Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
Boom.
The battle continued in the arena. If the fight between Satoru and Eichi made the training ground feel like it had been hit by a natural disaster...
Then the clash between Suguru and Artoria had turned it into an actual battlefield.
At this moment, Artoria felt as though she had returned to the war-torn years of her past.
Arrows rained down from above in dense waves. On the ground, enemies surged forward right after the volleys.
Enemies were everywhere. Danger lurked from every direction.
But for Artoria, who had endured countless wars, this was nothing new.
She had fought through battlefields far more chaotic and brutal than this.
Seeing how easily Artoria handled his attacks, Suguru had no choice but to intensify the pressure.
A spider-shaped Cursed Spirit emerged.
Its countless eyes and revolting fur made anyone feel sick just by looking at it.
Hiss, hiss.
The spider's abdomen shot out threads of silk.
As soon as the silk left its body, it burst into sprawling webs.
While none of the webs managed to directly trap Artoria, they gradually limited her movement.
A massive worm-type Cursed Spirit burrowed into the ground and began launching attacks from below, attempting to swallow her whole.
The Rainbow Dragon also seized every opportunity to strike.
Soon, several flying Cursed Spirits joined the battlefield.
Even in the face of this onslaught, Artoria remained composed. Relying on her sharp perception and refined intuition, she weaved through the chaotic version of the Cursed Spirit version of Gate of Babylon, repeatedly counterattacking during the gaps in their coordination.
With one clean slash, she dealt a severe blow to the worm Cursed Spirit.
But new Cursed Spirits kept joining the fray.
While fighting, Artoria also thought about how to close the distance to Suguru in the air.
Over a dozen insect-type Cursed Spirits, glowing a bright crimson, approached her under the cover of others.
Brilliant red light radiated from their bodies.
An explosive blast instantly engulfed Artoria.
"Did I get her?"
Suguru stared at the smoke cloud from the explosion.
Suddenly, a figure shot upward from the ground.
It was Artoria, using Mana Burst.
The classic rule still applied: no one dies in smoke.
"Seriously? That explosion had already surpassed a full-power Grade 2 Cursed Spirit attack. It was almost at Grade 1. Why isn't she hurt?"
Then a detail flashed in Suguru's mind.
"Magic Resistance!"
He understood instantly.
Magic Resistance was an ability that nullifies magical attacks. The higher the rank, the stronger the resistance.
Artoria's Magic Resistance was so high that most modern mages couldn't even scratch her. She could even withstand a Command Spell.
In this world, her Magic Resistance was strong enough to nullify most attacks from Grade 1 sorcerers.
Under Suguru's command, a Special Grade Cursed Spirit emerged from the Cursed Spirit space. As long as it could stall Artoria, the flying Cursed Spirits would force her back to the ground.
But Artoria's combat experience ran deep.
As the Cursed Spirit suddenly appeared in her path, she shifted the tip of her sword slightly and began spinning in midair using Mana Burst.
Her spinning body resembled a jet fighter, swerving past the Special Grade Cursed Spirit's block.
Suguru had the pelican Cursed Spirit try to dodge.
But it was too late.
Artoria had already predicted Suguru's potential escape route and set her sights accordingly.
"Nowhere to run."
Suguru leapt back, using the pelican as a shield.
Then, a snake-type Cursed Spirit emerged and regurgitated his weapon, Playful Cloud.
Ever since obtaining Playful Cloud, Suguru had been searching for a storage-type Cursed Spirit to make carrying it more convenient.
Eventually, he found a snake-shaped Cursed Spirit with a unique ability related to swallowing.
As snakes in nature can devour prey many times their size, this Cursed Spirit was similarly capable of swallowing and storing objects.
Since then, Suguru had kept Playful Cloud inside its belly.
Artoria cleaved the pelican in two with a single strike.
Then, she raised her sword behind her and burst forward again.
Suguru also prepared for a direct confrontation.
Artoria swung her Holy Sword, and Suguru met the strike head-on with Playful Cloud.
Clang.
Boom.
Suguru was sent crashing into the ground by Artoria's blow.
Behind her, a few of the flying Cursed Spirits caught up while she paused.
First to arrive, Rainbow Dragon.
Artoria held its upper jaw with her sword and stomped on its lower jaw with her armored boot.
Though she stopped the bite, Rainbow Dragon still pushed her downward.
Before she hit the ground, Artoria punched Rainbow Dragon in the head with her gauntleted right hand.
The beast wailed in pain, and Artoria used the moment to free herself from its grip.
She landed. More Cursed Spirits surged toward her.
But without Suguru's command, their disorganized attacks were meaningless.
Hmm?
Artoria sensed danger behind her.
She stabbed her sword backward.
Suguru's ambush was blocked.
The two backed off and reset their positions.
Artoria's gaze flicked toward the crater where Suguru had landed earlier, spotting a ball-of-flesh Cursed Spirit lying limp at the impact point.
So that's how he survived the fall. He had used a Cursed Spirit as a cushion to absorb the impact.
At the same time, Suguru scanned the battlefield.
Every Cursed Spirit bore wounds.
Even Rainbow Dragon had an unhealed scar on its head.
Suguru waved his hand and dismissed all of them.
He knew Artoria was holding back. This was, after all, just a sparring match.
There was no need to go all out.
He tightened his grip on Playful Cloud and charged at her again.
Clang. Clang.
Suguru and Artoria clashed violently.
The three-section staff deflected by the Holy Sword, and the Sword Qi avoided by Suguru, left trails of damage across the battlefield.
At this moment, Suguru found himself facing the same issue that Diarmuid once had.
Artoria's Invisible Air made it difficult to judge the range of her attacks.
Even knowing Excalibur's length in theory, it was nearly impossible to determine its true reach in the midst of such a high-speed exchange.
In this kind of battle, even a single centimeter miscalculation could cost him.
Failing to block the Holy Sword would mean injury or even defeat.
(To be continued.)
It's a new week. Thanks for your support last week. Bonus is still for every 200 PS. Let's get it!
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)