Hello guys, long time no see you...
Life has been hard, and I have been busy. Even so, I'm trying again to rescue Fourth Prince and Science/Magic. I think it's the last time I'll try. If I can't this time, I will stop writing them.
Wish me luck...
...
'Fast!' Bloed's eyes opened wide.
His mind turned blank. Seeing Nathan's sword approaching his forehead, his back was filled with cold sweat.
It was such a fast sword that he only noticed it when it was about to cut him.
But–
'Not fast enough!'
With a roar, his psychic energy surged out, and his bright blue eyes lit up violently.
In that instant, it was as though the world around Bloed slowed down. The sword, which was approaching him at a blinding speed, seemed to slow down to a crawl.
No, it was not that the sword slowed down, but that his thoughts became so fast that the world around him seemed slow.
Then, his body moved following the orders of his mind.
Twisting his body, he moved his forehead out of the path of the sword. Then, he raised his saber and slashed towards Nathan's waist.
Bloed's could see Nathan's eyes opening slightly wide. Most likely, he was surprised that Bloed's managed to react to his attack.
But even so, his expression remained completely calm. Touching the ground with his feet, he gathered mana on his legs, detonating it.
Immediately, his body changed directions, evading Bloed's saber before thrusting his sword towards Bloed again.
Surprisingly, he was even faster than during the last attack!
Moreover, Bloed found out that he seemed unable to evade this sword!
Even though he could see it clearly thanks to his eyes, Nathan was so fast that Bloed's body could not react in time.
'Fuck!' Bloed cursed in his mind. Once more, he was dragged down by his weak body.
Just through this exchange, Bleod was sure that if they competed just in close combat, he would lose in less than five exchanges.
Fortunately, Bloed's combat style was much more than just close combat.
Before Nathan's sword could reach him, Leto's turned into a storm of metallic sand that wrapped around Bloed. Then, the metallic sand turned into a barrier that stopped Nathan's attack.
Nathan frowned, but he still remained calm. Twisting his wrist, he pulled back his sword to prepare for another thrust.
But immediately, his expression changed.
'Damn!'
He could feel the metallic sand wrapping around his sword, slowly swallowing it as it advanced towards his arm.
Moreover, arcs of electricity surged from the metallic sand, running through his sword and invading his body.
"Ugh!" Nathan grunted in pain. However, his reaction was immediate. With a shout, he filled his sword with mana and detonated it, blowing the metallic sand away and eliminating the traces of electricity.
Then, he jumped away and looked at Bloed and the metallic sand with a wary expression.
Only then did the people in the surroundings managed to react.
"So fast…" Liu Ying said with an astonished expression.
She was not the only one. All the other people in this hall besides Eres and Regina were looking at Nathan in surprise and astonishment.
"As expected of Academy City's Fastest Sword." Prince Calisto spoke up at that moment.
"What do you mean?" Liu Ying asked. At the same time, Aya, Gina, Sara, Princess Elwha, and the others, looked at him.
"It's Nathan's nickname." Prince Calisto replied. "The Fastest Sword. He is publicly recognized as the fastest student in the city. In terms of speed alone, he is second to none."
The girls' expression turned serious.
They saw it just now. In just an instant, he had managed to attack Bloed twice, almost ending the duel right then.
At the same time, Bloed's expression was just as serious.
Although he did not know about Nathan's nickname, after experiencing his speed twice, he realized why he was so confident about his victory.
In the same rank, Nathan's speed was unequaled.
'Is it his legs?' Bloed frowned and looked to Nathan's legs. Through his eyes, he could see the flow of mana in his legs.
In fact, the secret of Nathan's speed was simple. He just gathered mana in his legs, detonating it every time that he stepped in the ground and granting him his monstrous speed.
But although it was simple, it was not easy.
Just the control required to detonate the mana without hurting his legs, plus the ability to control those burst of mana to control his movements freely were something that required a genius mind and tens of years of practice to realize.
It was a skill worthy of being the trademark of the sixth strongest student in the city.
Just like Bloed was observing Nathan, Nathan was also observing him.
"... Your golem is amazing, Mr. bloed. Moreover, the way that you control it is just as amazing. As expected, Academy City is a place full of geniuses."
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me." Nathan shook his head. "Certainly, your golem is amazing. It's at the top when it comes to defense. But…
It's useless against me…
In an instant, Nathan's figure flickered.
Bloeds expression turned grave. Without hesitation, he ordered Leto to create a barrier at his right.
*Clang!*
The sword hit the metallic sand, but before Leto could trap Nathan, Nathan smiled.
Then, his figure flickered again.
Immediately–
*Clang!* *Clang!* *Clang!* *Clang!* *Clang!* *Clang!*
In an instant, his sword his against Leto's barrier repeatedly.
Bloed's expression changed. Through his eyes, he could see Nathan's speed increasing with each clang.
Moreover, he detected something else.
Every time that his sword collided with Leto, it released a burst of mana that blew part of Leto's metallic sand away.
The sand quickly returned to Leto, but Nathan was attacking so quickly that the sand did not manage to return before his next attack.
By the seventh attack, a third of Leto's metallic sand had been dispersed.
Just then, Nathan's lips curved up.
"Now."
He whispered.
A great amount of mana flowed into his sword. Immediately, his sword lit up, then, it collided with Leto's barrier.
Bloed's expression changed. Without hesitation, he jumped back.
Then–
*BOOM!!!*
A terrifying explosion resounded in the training hall, blowing a great part of Leto's away.
The metallic wolf tried to recover quickly, but Nathan was faster.
As soon as the hole in Leto's defenses appeared, he rushed through it, arriving in front of Bloed in an instant.
Then, his sword lit up again as it descended towards Bloed.
"Darling!"
"Bloed!"
"My hero!"
Bloed heard Liu Ying, Aya, and Gina's voices of concerns, but he ignored it. At this moment, only Nathan's sword was in his eyes.
He looked at the sword descending towards him calmly. In his slowly moving vision, the sword was advancing towards him, slowly but unavoidably, aiming to the center of his eyebrows.
He could see Nathan's confident smile, as though he was sure that victory was his, and he could see the people observing the duel, looking at him in worry and concern.
In the middle of all of that, Bloed's mind was completely calm.
Just when the sword was about to touch him, he let out a word.
"Now."
Immediately, Oculus lit up.
The magic runes inscribed on it activated, and the energy that Bloed supplied to it turned into mana.
Then, a magic spell was released in Nathan's direction.
[Suppressive Gravity Field].
As soon as the spell was activated, Nathan's eyes opened wide.
His body turned heavier, and the sword that he was swinging slowed down.
It was just slightly slower, but it was enough for Bloed.
Calmly, he swung his saber for the second time today, aiming towards Nathan's sword.
Then, the sword was cut into two.