As far as I was concerned, this was no longer an assessment. He had gone for my heart, whether he expected me to avoid it or not. It was as though he wanted to kill me.
What if people like him, my father, my uncle, and the great warriors and mages of this world were alive in my previous life? I wasn't sure; perhaps we could've saved many lives and defeated the Demon king sooner.
Aside from thinking about my past, it was fascinating that in this life, the fighting style in this world is completely different, with unique styles to understand. Their fighting style, powerful and compromising both offense and defense, involved various elements like the quality of weaponry, long-range mana manipulation, and physical upgrades that surpassed the powers in my previous world, excluding the Divine spirit bestowed by the gods.
As I took a moment to charge for his next strike, Leonard unleashed two more thrusts and piercings, but I was prepared.
Leonard, a wind mana user like me, knew how to wield his powers effectively. He shot sharp bullets of wind, nearly imperceptible, but not impossible to avoid. I estimated the spell's pace by comparing the timing of the thrust to when it reached my arm from his last attack.
The spell traveled in a straight line dependent on the direction of his strike, so while the spell's speed was terrifying, there were exploitable gaps.
"Oof."
I ducked beneath the first gust of wind as it brushed against my hair. I diverted his spell by parrying the second bullet with the flat of my blade. I instantly willed mana into my legs and dashed toward Leonard.
Closing the gap between us was crucial now that I knew he had a long-range spell, but I knew it would be a tough fight even in melee combat.
Physically, I could probably match him, but his mana-enhanced physique was a level higher than my experience in reinforcing my body with mana.
But, mana wasn't my only weapon.
Leonard was a formidable fighter, deserving of being a daring adventurer. The only edge I had was that Leonard had no idea what I was planning.
I quickly took out my dagger and changed my stance, sheathing the dagger at my waist as I ran my fingers along the blade of my sword, imbuing it with fire. As I approached him, I swung down, releasing a searing red arc.
"Incantation-less magic?"
I could see Leonard's focus as he willed more mana into his rapier until it glowed white once more. He stoked the flames with a forceful pierce, leaving a slight gap for me to exploit.
I sculpted the magic into the proper form by gathering mana in the sole of my left foot.
Thud!
A series of scorching explosions burst beneath my foot, propelling me right next to Leonard.
"Huh! Wha—"
He was caught off guard, his mouth gaping, his spear still in place from his defense against my earlier attack, which I had employed as a feint.
"Huh! An incantation-less mage and properly trained swordsman, eh? That's something else, Mr. Shorty. Now I know what you have been doing in the Magic Guild!" Leonard exclaimed with a surprised smile while fighting.
I smiled back, aware my position wasn't ideal; I had propelled myself a foot further than I had wanted to, but it was enough. I fortified my body with mana as I thrust my blade forward because I didn't have enough time to prepare a complete spell.
Despite the shrinking space between my blade and Leonard, I could clearly hear the words he was chanting. He appeared to be reciting some incantations.
"Tempest Storm!"
An explosive swirl of air-stream shot out from Leonard, enveloping him in a protective twister. I barely managed to withdraw my attack and jump away.
The magic was broken, revealing Leonard sweating and panting, his spear-wielding arms curled close to his side, his left arm stretched out palms openly aimed squarely at me. As the tip of his spear began to glow even brighter in white, he was plainly chanting.
"Oh, great Wind! Obey my will and pierce those who oppose me!"
He roared as his spear disappeared into a blur of countless thrusts.
"Tempest Mirage."
Wasn't this simply a test? Was he attempting to murder me?
I quickly channeled the rest of my remaining mana deep into my body's sensory and motor neurons.
"Hmph."
Suddenly, the speed of Leonard's magic spells slowed, and the speed of his attacks was going in a slow manner than the speed we were fighting before.
"This is my Aura, Mr. S-Ranked!" I smiled as I enhanced the elemental affinity of my mana to extraordinary degrees using my aura exploding from deep within.
The feeling to move like water, and attack like thunder as well as defend like a mountain. My body delivered pain impulses to my brain at such a high rate that I felt something in the Nano-second. At this level, my mana core started to compress almost every single ounce of mana within my body if not controlled, sharpening my reflexes to superhuman levels even for this world.
This technique is called Aura Amplification. I created this technique while experimenting with my body with aura and aura manipulation.
Using this technique, I reduced my reaction time to around significance level for a short period.
My pupils constricted as the fire mana exploded, exhibiting lightning that caused electric currents, making the hairs on my skin stand on end. I could hear the keen whispers of the air bullets that formed from his spear's tip, coming at me as I prepared to dodge them.
As soon as I evaded all the attacks, I gradually released the contradictions as the time started to become normal from my amplified state. It was only for a second of slowing down, but it was enough for me to evade the death blows of my opponent.
"Push!" yelled Leonard.