MChapter 32
9/17 9:49 (Summer, Day, Nord Lowrar)
Two identical swords clashed rapidly once, twice, thrice and then more in a single second, each being skillfully and precisely deflected by the one in Luna's hands.
"No, no, no. You leave too many openings with every single attack." Luna's blade hooked on the other's, dragging it away and opening Amber up for the following swing, stopping just before this last one would be cut. "Not only that but you are not using your Unique Arma properly. Unique Armas are indestructible and even if they could be broken they could be repaired at any time and at no cost. You should redirect all the force of my hits and deflections on the sword itself."
As Amber swung her blade, Luna demonstrated such by simply raising her left hand and taking the swing calmly on the back of the hand, her glove recieving no damage from it and Luna barely needing to make a step back to handle the knockback before stepping forward and slashing precisely at the guard to open the other to the following attack.
Attack that Amber was barely able to block, being forced to retreat before entering in a pose for the second time ever in combat, flames condensing around her new sword.
Luna, upon seeing the analysis from Vision, scowled.
"No, you are not understanding how to use a Unique Arma correctly."
Her blade vanished back as she moved in a more confortable position for punching the incoming attack.
"[Blazing Fang Slash]!"
As Amber's attack, a long line of white flames that caused the air itself to superheat into plasma to increase its destructive power even further, approached Luna this last one made no move to dodge or even offset it, watching the incoming attack with a small but present scowl.
"Don't just stand there! Dodge it!" At seeing such, the shorter one panicked as this attack was made only with the purpouse of making the taller one move in a more advantagious position for her.
"Naive. Naive and inexperienced despite your age." This solemn declaration was the thought that Luna had about most individuals belonging to long lived Races and their tendencies to train little and without the desperation that shorter living Races feel.
And so this is a result, an imprecise and predictable attack that squandered an immense amount of Energy and whose only good point is that the other was a Phoenix and as such an increase in temperature was an advantage and nothing else.
A waste of an attack made by someone that had no experience for the sweet taste of growth that shattering someone's own limitations was.
A taste that Luna decided for the sake of her own pride, she would force the other to truly savour.
The necessary action she then needed to undertake was simple.
Amber watched horrified as her Sight was overwhelmed thanks to the heat and the light released by her attack before seeing a black spot, an absence of all heat, that exploded in a wave of force, instantly erasing all the flames she created.
"[Annhilation Point]."
*Luna Converts the Ability Skills "Unharmed Technique" C and "Weapon Mastery" D into Ability Skill "True Calamity Eterrnal Mastery" E.
Luna nodded to herself once at the Skill she finally was able to reaquire, born when she was still Scarlet, the mark of someone approaching the top of B-Class, the ability to manifest someone's own Unique Skill into a combat style unique to them, however her expression was still grave once Amber met her eyes.
She was not satisfied by the other's attack, at all, nor from her standing there, mystified by her attack's failure to even inconvenience her.
But the most immediate thing right now was for Amber to understand the Durability of her own Arma.
Amber found herself flying back because of the shockwave of Luna's attack she blocked by crossing both her arms and wings before her only for her flight to be stopped as this last one appeared behind her, grabbing her by one of her shoulder before with her other hand grabbing her blade hard.
"The way you use this Art is completely wrong.
"I suppose the way in which you used to do it originally was by first making a Sword through "Blaze Forging", Enhancing its Durability, Enhancing its Sharpness, Condensing your flames around it and finally swinging it, your usage of Energy in units should be around 10:30:20:20:20. This makes sense, I suppose, considering the Efficiency of Enhancing an Item varies depending on the Base.
"However…" This word was enough for Ember to stiffen considering the dangerous light within Luna's eyes. "You maintained an use of Vital Energy and Mana equivalent to 0:34:22:22:22, thing that wasted an enormous quantity of Energy.
"You have no need to reinforce your Arma's Durability and so the optimal rate of Energy used should have been 0:0:25:35:40 for maximum amount of destructive power."
Quickly Luna took Amber's Arma from her and threw it lightly before moving in position.
Her Vital Mana quickly surged around her together with her Aura, concentrating around her fist before she punched forward, all the force condensing in a single point.
"[Annhilation Point]."
The Art was Casted again and now Amber could admire its profound and horrible might.
At the moment of impact with her Arma, the Energy and force was Converted directly into pure destruction, a blast that Converted every Matter and Energy within its Range into rampaging Energy, as shown by the fact that even Heat Sight could no longer see any heat.
Following such, a shockwave was released and she could finally observe, her eyes wide open, the reason for such a demonstration.
Her Arma was sent flying away by the shockwave, sure, but was completely unharmed by the attack that would have without a doubt graviously injure, if not kill her outright.
"Do you understand now?" Luna.
"Yes. But how could you…" Amber.
"Hah, how inexperienced. What I did was manifest my Unique Skill into an Art. Oh, don't worry. I should be able and intend to force you to make your own even without an Awakened Unique Skill thanks to your Arma. Now take it back." Amber made to move towards it only for Luna to move before her and stopping her, an eyebrow higher then the other as challenge and a stern expression on her face.
Amber moved left and Luna did the same, barring her way again.
Amber moved right and the scene repeated again and again, Luna blocking her way with a merciless attitude.
"Didn't you ear me? Take it back."
"I see, so you want me to take it back by force, don't you?"
Amber without hesitation attacked again as Luna neither agreed nor disagreed with it.
Whether Amber understood what Luna really wanted her to do or not, didn't matter.
If she realized she could recall her Arma at any time or she could force her way to it, Luna would be satisfied all the same.
Amber and Edgar, the old Vampire, both of them were incapable of bringing the maximum combat potential out of their Armas, both because of inexperience as one was too new to actual fights to the death as a pratical immortal and the other a researcher at heart.
The Demon Phoenix attacked, her flames forming claws around her hands, as Luna deflected each blow precisely before striking back with a furious flurry of slashes, each precise and deadly, forcibly creating opening in the other's guard and then ruthlessly targetting them.
Amber quickly found herself retreating as cuts, deep and not, formed all over her body even with her clothes made out of solid flames before healing.
All the same the reason only this much damage was inflicted was because the other stopped her blade at just that to force her to learn.
Some Reincarnated individuals from more peaceful or at least less actively in a constant conflict may wonder at the harshness of the training but this was nothing special for the habitants of this World that were aiming to become high Class melee based fighters and, considering how the one recieving this training was a centuries old Demon Phoenix, most of the dedicated melee fighters of this World would find this training to be excessively gentle.
After all Luna finds no particular joy in other's pain despite what it looks like, especially not in People she wants to be her own.
Through a combination of "Pyrokinesis" and "Blaze Forging", Amber made a copy of her own Arma to fight with, causing Luna to nod in acceptance.
The battle restarted with Amber trying to first imitate and then adapt Luna's movements to her own body and abilities.
"You know, I had always a question in mind." Amber.
"Hoh? There is no need for you to fear making any." Luna.
"Very well." The two blades collided again and again, Amber bettering her technique to the point that only light stratches formed briefly on her skin.
"In that case, I always wondered whether you are "hot but psycho" or "psycho but hot"." This tentative to umbalance the other fell completely flat as Luna calmly assessed the question finding it to be a correct one to ask.
"Why don't you explain to me what you see as the distinction between the two options?"
"Well," the swords crossed again, flames exploding from Amber's sword as she used her wings to quickly reposition herself above Luna and launching a thrust straight to Luna's head in a two pronged assault. "The second adjective outshines the first, with as they say, either the psycho part overshadows the hot part or other wise."
"I see." Luna's sword clad in her Aura rose to cut in half the explosion before meeting the other's sword and cutting it in half too. "The question is incorrect in the first place. The most correct definition is hot and psycho." The half sword flying away quickly combusted in a mass of fire that rained on her while the other half held firmly in Amber's hand restored itself with a flash of "Pyrokinesis", her wings flapping slightly but with enough force to readjust her for a second precise swing.
Luna without any hesitation dropped her blade from her right hand, took it with her left and swung, her Aura exploding before the fire, quickly creating an area free of any air to extinguish the fire "[Vacuum Wall]" as the air was concentrated into a single point and exploded before Amber's eyes, leaving her completely undamaged thanks to "Fire Absorption" but blinding her and so opening her up for a ruthless blow from the back of the other's blade.
"This is cheating!" Amber complained childishly at the unfairly powerfull Skill but Luna merely responded with laugher.
"You are right, I love this Skill, it renders using my Arts so much easier and manipulating or releasing it doesn't cost anything but concentration. But not to worry, I will make sure you will learn how to use it." Luna attacked, her sword sending out a crescent made out of concentrated Aura, her latest Art invented right here and right now, [Reaping Moon].
Hurriedly Amber rose her blade only for it to be shattered by another projectile sent in advance to shatter it.
She was weaponless and the incoming attack was too near for her to react as imbalanced as she was at the moment.
Her hand closed around something that wasn't there before, an hilt, the hilt of her Arma that appeared out of nowhere cutting what was in all reality an extremely weakened version of the attack made only to scare her enough to summon her Blade.
"Do you undertand now? The Unique Arma is not an object, it's one of your Skills, a part of you made manifest. You don't need to worry about it being lost or stolen, you will always be able to recall it back to you. Now, let's continue where we left off."
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