His Noble Art should only be Absolute Speed. Hoshiharu could only be faster than his opponent and could not cross the field of her swords. Could it be that Absolute Speed can also be used to harden his body?
However, during the battle, there was no room for Kanata to think.
Although she couldn't believe her eyes, Kanata reluctantly accepted reality and reacted quickly.
She had to shrink the surrounding sword fragments and gather the remaining swords to protect herself.
Diamond Storm was her trump card. According to the League's assessment, the technique had B-level attack power. However, to perform this technique, she needed to gather almost half of her blades.
And if nearly half of her blades were fired from thirty meters away, they could not be recovered in a short time.
Hoshiharu broke through the field of swords from thirty meters away.
Judging by his speed, he could cover this distance in at most three seconds.
In such a situation, Kanata had to gather all the remaining swords scattered around her to block his attack.
Otherwise, it would be the end if he approached her with a sword.
'Let's decide the outcome.'
Kanata thought silently in her heart.
Although the other party used an unknown method to cross the mountain of swords, she was still very confident.
Her Diamond Dust was not only strong in attack but also impenetrable in defense!
Kanata's judgment was quick and accurate.
—Three full seconds later.
Hoshiharu finally crossed the mountain of swords and approached her with Nameless Sword raised.
His expression was fierce, and his eyes widened as if his whole body was enduring immense pain.
The usual sense of stability and propriety was gone from him at this moment. He looked as fierce as an eagle, as if he would do anything to win.
"—Flickering Light and Passing Shadows!"
In a tense second, they finally faced each other.
Hoshiharu held Nameless Sword at his side and approached Kanata with a stabbing posture. With a swing of Nameless Sword, he used the technique that had once defeated Bishou.
In an instant, Kanata seemed mesmerized.
There was no doubt that she was hit, and her consciousness was affected by the sword, leaving her momentarily dazed.
Hoshiharu stabbed with Nameless Sword relentlessly.
This was a technique that was supposed to be fatal!
After this sword attack, the tip of the sword mercilessly stabbed into her chest—or it should have.
*CLANK*
As the sword tip was stabbed, it suddenly remained in the air, unable to move forward.
Upon closer inspection, there was an almost transparent round shield placed in front of Kanata, emitting a light like shining stars.
The shield looked fragile as if it could be broken at will, but it was made with most of the remaining blades and infused with B-level magic power, making its defensive strength reach C-level.
The sword tip kept stabbing into the center of the shield, producing a loud clanging sound.
This also meant that Hoshiharu's attack had returned in vain.
That was not all—
"Pfft!"
Suddenly, a flower of blood bloomed.
On Hoshiharu's body, scars appeared densely like a honeycomb.
Soon after, the skin wounds burst open without warning, and a large amount of red blood emerged from the subcutaneous tissue, almost dyeing his entire body red and even blurring his vision.
"UGH!"
Hoshiharu couldn't help but let out a dull groan under the severe pain.
"...It seems this is the end."
Kanata was stunned for a moment and then slightly enlightened.
There were dense scars all over Hoshiharu's body, and most of the skin on his body was scraped off, as if he had been tortured.
There was no doubt that these were wounds caused by the sword fragments as he passed through the mountain of swords.
"Although I don't know what method you used to delay the onset of the wounds, it is clear that you have reached your limit. If my guess is correct, it must be because you have exhausted your magic power, right?"
Kanata continued to release magic power to support the existence of the shield.
However, her eyes had lost the fighting spirit.
The result had been decided.
A swordsman who had exhausted his magic power couldn't even use his sword skills. It was impossible to break her magic defense with just a sword.
Not to mention, Hoshiharu looked so injured that all the strength in his body was drained by the pain.
"After all, you failed to overcome your destiny."
Kanata's eyes dimmed slightly.
The unreasonable thing was that even though she was about to win the competition, she felt a sense of loss in her heart.
Why?
It was extraordinary.
Perhaps, deep in her heart, she actually expected a different result.
"Oh! Is this the end? Nangou Hoshiharu's attack was blocked with all his strength! He clearly crossed the impossible mountain of swords, but will he fall here?! Hurry up and cheer! Get up, where are you?"
"What will you do, Junior Brother…"
"Right! Nangou-san, keep it up!"
"Just a little bit closer, I'm sure you won't lose!"
Not only the commentators but the audience also cheered.
A weak person trying his best to fight a strong one could resonate with many people.
Not to mention the handsome boy who was initially covered in blood in order to win. The tragic figure, like an angel with broken wings, made people even more unbearable.
"...You just determine your destiny... It's really annoying."
"!"
Kanata looked at Hoshiharu in surprise.
The young man who should have long since lost all resistance and even fainted from the severe pain was now looking at her with impatient eyes.
Those eyes, though stained with thick blood, were still as bright as stars.
"Yes, I lost—anyone would think so..."
Hoshiharu gritted his teeth and smiled slyly.
"—But I had anticipated this situation from the beginning!"
This battle had been practiced countless times in Hoshiharu's mind.
But no matter how he practiced, at his current level, he would definitely exhaust his magic power after crossing the mountain of swords, making it impossible to break Kanata's magic defense.
If his abilities were too restrained, injuries were inevitable.
So—
"AHHH--!!"
Hoshiharu's eyes suddenly widened, and a thick red light appeared in his eyes.
At the same time, the severe pain radiating from his body became his fuel, stimulating more potential within his body and allowing him to squeeze out more power from the depths of his soul!
"What technique is this-!?"
Ikki in the audience suddenly stood up.
There was shock and astonishment on his face as he recognized Hoshiharu's incredible move.
"Actively destroy the survival instinct and extract power that was initially unavailable from the body!"
That's right.
It had been more than ten days since Hoshiharu had seen Ittou Shura.
In the past ten days, Hoshiharu had mastered the technique of "actively destroying the survival instinct" based on his extremely strong control of his body.
Because he did not have a Body Strengthening System type Noble Art, what he gained after destroying his survival instinct was not ten times like Ikki's, but only about twice.
—But that was enough.
"If I'm at zero distance, I don't have to worry about not having enough power!"
Under Kanata's stunned gaze, Hoshiharu showed a fierce smile.
He released the sword hilt, turning his grip into a thrust, aiming the sword tip, and then pouring all the magic power squeezed from the depths of his soul into it!