The moment the commentator signaled the start of the match, Kureha Franklin wasted no time lunging forward. Her sword swept toward my neck, intending to decapitate me in a single stroke, but I parried it with both Hei Yue and Bai Ri.
We dueled fiercely across the arena, trading over a hundred blows in under a second. Kureha's fluid movements flowed like water, the silver flash of her sword the only proof that she was wielding metal. I struggled to keep up with her – fortunately, while my mana was near exhausted, I still had enough stamina to fight physically.
Even so, Kureha was the Sword Saint. Her superlative skill with the sword far surpassed mine – hell, she was superior to even Kuf Van Peer. Blood leaked from my hands, shoulders and chest when I found myself unable to completely deflect her swords. Huffing, I fought as best as I could, both of my swords weaving through the lethal pattern of strokes and figure-eights that Kureha carved.
"Ugh!"
