Elias slowly lifted his foot off the injured boy and stepped forward into the open space already cleared by the silent crowd.
"Very well. Since you are so eager to die, I will not deny you," he said, drawing his sword in a smooth, practiced motion.
Teresa recognized the blade's Tier at once, identifying it as a Star Sword, only a single Tier beneath her own.
She stepped forward in response, raising her sword into position, her gaze fixed on him without the slightest trace of hesitation.
The surrounding crowd widened the distance further, forming a rough circle. No one spoke. Every eye remained locked on the confrontation unfolding before them.
Elias moved first, without warning.
He closed the distance in a single motion and brought his blade down toward her shoulder in a precise and efficient strike, devoid of unnecessary movement.
Teresa met the attack directly and redirected it with controlled force, though the impact drove her back by a step. She followed immediately with a counterattack aimed at his side, refusing to yield momentum.
Elias had already shifted.
His body moved ahead of her timing, slipping past the strike before it could land. In the same motion, he returned an attack of his own, forcing Teresa to retreat once more and abandon her attempt.
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she steadied her stance.
The disparity in timing became evident within that first exchange.
Elias did not allow the distance to widen. He pressed forward again.
His blade moved in measured succession, each strike deliberate and calculated, forcing Teresa into a defensive rhythm and leaving her little opportunity to create an opening.
She adjusted her approach, introducing a feint. Her blade shifted midway, redirecting toward his lower body in an attempt to disrupt his pattern.
Elias had already anticipated it.
Before her motion fully resolved, he angled his sword downward, intercepting the strike and forcing her back once again.
A low murmur began to spread through the crowd, still restrained, yet growing as the imbalance in the duel became increasingly apparent.
"You are skilled, but far too predictable," Elias remarked.
Teresa offered no reply. Her gaze sharpened as she continued to study him, her mind dissecting each exchange while her body remained in a guarded stance.
'He is not reacting after I move… he is moving before I commit. Can he truly predict my attacks before I execute them?'
She surged forward once more, initiating another strike, altering its trajectory midway in an attempt to disrupt the pattern. Yet Elias had already adapted before the shift completed, forcing her backward yet again.
The pressure mounted.
Her footing began to falter under the relentless exchanges, while Elias maintained his rhythm without any visible strain.
'There is an opening. I simply need to find it.'
Teresa exhaled slowly and steadied herself. Her next movement came slower, less defined than before.
She adjusted her blade without committing to a clear direction.
Elias reacted instantly, moving to intercept before the strike could fully materialize.
Teresa halted midway and withdrew at once, forcing him to adjust to a path that no longer existed.
For a fleeting moment, the exchange fractured.
Her eyes narrowed as the pattern aligned within her thoughts.
'He is reading intent, not motion. He responds to what I am about to do, rather than what I actually do.'
Elias's patience began to wear thin. He raised his blade, preparing a decisive strike meant to bring the duel to an immediate end.
Teresa moved at the same time, though her motion carried no clear direction.
She shifted once, then again, without committing to any singular path.
Elias followed each movement.
His reactions grew sharper and more frequent, each adjustment arriving earlier than necessary as he attempted to counter what he perceived.
Teresa stepped in during that disruption and allowed her blade to fall toward one direction before shifting it at the final moment, forcing Elias to guard high while the true strike carved low across his side.
The first blow landed cleanly.
A ripple passed through the crowd as Elias staggered a step. His expression hardened with irritation as he reassessed her approach.
"You noticed…" he muttered.
Teresa pressed forward again, her movements continuing to lack a discernible pattern, forcing Elias into repeated premature reactions that steadily unraveled his rhythm.
Uncertainty crept in.
Then something shifted.
A faint change passed through his eyes, his stance stabilizing as his breathing evened out while he raised his blade once more.
Teresa caught it instantly.
Elias had activated a Stitche.
She had expected as much, knowing he was a Rookie.
Elias moved again.
This time, his response aligned perfectly with her actual strike rather than her intent. His blade met hers at the precise point of contact without delay.
Teresa's gaze sharpened as she stepped back.
'He has added something new.'
Elias advanced again.
"I can now see what your attacks are meant to do. There is no escape for you now."
Teresa blocked and redirected the strike.
The pressure returned as his movements regained their earlier precision, forcing her to adapt once more.
She retreated a step and steadied her breathing, her grip tightening slightly as she reconsidered her approach.
'He can now perceive the purpose behind each strike, but that does not mean he can respond to all of them.'
Teresa attacked again, increasing the tempo of her strikes. Her blade moved in rapid succession while maintaining the same ambiguity of intent, forcing Elias to process multiple possibilities at once.
He responded to each, yet strain began to show as his defense struggled under the escalating pressure.
Teresa closed the distance further, her attacks growing more aggressive as she confined his movement, limiting his ability to reposition.
Elias attempted to counter.
His footing faltered, his control slipping beneath the relentless barrage.
Teresa shifted her blade once more, forcing him to raise his guard high before redirecting at the final moment, her edge slicing across his arm and weakening his grip.
She did not relent.
Another strike followed instantly, forcing him to block again. His stance fractured under the sustained pressure, his defense collapsing further.
Teresa stepped in one final time and raised her blade toward his neck.
He moved to intercept with the last of his strength.
She altered the angle at the final moment.
The blade cut through cleanly.
His head separated from his body without resistance.
Silence engulfed the center of the palace. The crowd stood frozen, unable to comprehend what had just occurred. Elias had been decapitated by a newcomer.
What should have been impossible had become reality.
Teresa lowered her blade slightly.
Her gaze remained steady as the crowd remained immobilized, still processing the outcome before them.
'So, the man who captured Oliver is dead. One task completed.'
Unbeknownst to her, Oliver stood among the crowd.
He had witnessed the entire duel, his surprise evident, yet there was a quiet satisfaction beneath it.
'Well… that was unexpected.'
He watched as she moved forward to assist the injured boy.
From a short distance away, Rook suddenly caught the scent of its master. It moved silently through the crowd, and Effie remained unaware of when it had slipped from its side.
Panic spread through it immediately, as though realizing it had failed the one task it was meant to uphold at all costs. It began to search frantically, afraid its master would discover its absence.
Just then, a man in a flowing white robe appeared directly in front of Teresa.
The entire crowd fell silent at once, struggling to comprehend who had stepped into the open space. A faint, glassy distortion like a shifting veil of darkness obscured his face, preventing any clear recognition of his features.
Oliver's eyes widened instantly.
'…Is that Glassy!?'
His gaze snapped toward Teresa from within the crowd.
"Teresa! Move! Get out of the way now!"
***
If you're enjoying the story so far, please support. 50 Golden Tickets, +2 bonus chapters; 100 Golden Tickets, +4 bonus chapters; 50 Power Stones, +1 bonus chapter; 100 Power Stones, +2 bonus chapters.