'Wait a minute, I've been in the air for far too long. Don't tell me....'
Well, it took Kox long enough, but he finally realized that the time magic she just used is the spell to slow him down, and now she is coming at him, walking calmly.
*Clack* *Clack* *Clack*
Her footsteps reverberated on the platform and beyond, making the entire audience dead silent.
Halting abruptly, Erin poised herself, fixing an unwavering gaze upon the suspended Kox.
Making a fist, Erin swung it at Kox right in the guts. Kox's whole body was sent a distance away the moment her fist collided.
Paw!
Kox's body skidded on the ground before it came to an abrupt halt.
'Damn, so much strength from a lady's punch,' he cursed while he got up as fast as he could, only to see the sight that nearly traumatized him. As soon as he got back to his feet, a fist blocked his vision, and then...
'Not again!'
Paw!!!
A power-packed punch landed on his face, sending him skidding backwards again, and this time, nearly half of his body left the platform.
"Damn," Kox panicked as he quickly got back to his feet. "She isn't even coming hastily towards me; she is simply walking, and yet she has me on the receiving end."
Running towards the center of the platforms, Kox quickly picked up his kantana that had fallen moments ago and took his stance.
Raising her hands to her chest level, Erin chanted again calmly.
*TIME MAGIC ACTIVATION*
*TIME ALTERATIONS: SLOW*
"Why the hell is she saying it again? I thought she already activated it earlier," Kox wondered as he felt the rippling effect it caused in the air.
Rushing forward again, the same thing that happened earlier repeated: Kox's whole body started moving in slow motion.
'Damn, although my body did slow down, my brain didn't, which is making it frustrating.'
Paw!!!
Another power-packed punch sent Kox skidding backwards.
"Arrrrrghhhhhh!!!" he screamed in frustration to the air, while Erin, who was standing at Kox's previous location, chanted again.
*TIME MAGIC ACTIVATION*
*TIME ALTERATIONS: SLOW*
A ripple was sent again, causing Kox's eyes to widen in shock—not because she was sending out an attack again, I mean, he didn't expect her to stand doing nothing, but because of a sudden realization.
'She cannot hold her time magic for long. It keeps deactivating itself. Which means after every attack, there is a moment of rest for me where I won't move in slow motion.'
Paw!!!
Another heavy punch landed on his torso, causing him to cough out blood; it was heavier than the previous punch.
'And from my perspective, she walks towards me not to look cold or because she is overconfident, but because holding such a spell for a given time, even if just short, requires great concentration for a mage of her rank, so she has to move slowly to keep the spell ongoing.'
Paw!!! Kox's vision blurred for a short moment after receiving another punch, but then he quickly braced himself.
'The way her face scrunches up during every punch is clearly displaying that she is putting all her efforts into the punch,' Kox observed.
Paw!!!
'And this nervous sweat on her forehead could only mean she is running out of magical energy; she is running out of core energy. So if I can get a grip on the short moment her magic deactivates, then it will be my time to strike.'
Paw!!!
'No, no, my vision is going blurry. I won't be able to win if things keep going like this.'
Paw!!!
"Ahhhhhhhh!!!"
Paw!!!
"I didn't want to win like this, but you leave me no choice," Kox's tone went cold as he spoke out.
Paw!!!
The moment the punch from Erin collided with Kox, he wasted no time grabbing the hammer hanging at the right side of his waist.
Raising the hammer in a way that it was pointing at Erin, he then waited.
Casting her magic again, Erin chanted.
*TIME ALTERATIONS: SLOW*
As soon as she finished, Kox activated his hammer magic skills.
***
The hammer wielded by Kox is an extraordinary weapon, even in the mage world.
It is a hammer crafted from the crystal of a beast. At the heart of every beast lies a crystal that constantly supplies a continuous stream of energy throughout the beast, and it is what makes them beasts—and one of the reasons that differentiate them from animals. When beasts die, the crystal from their body is collected from the center of their chest for many different purposes.
The main purpose the crystal is known for in the Tier Eight city is that it is used as a ticket that can make traveling from one city to another possible.
Crafting weapons with beast crystals has been proven impossible by various legends and blacksmiths.
The weapon Kox had on him all this while is something crafted from seemingly impossible means; that is why it never drew attention toward him. No one thought it was possible, and it truly is impossible, but Kox did have his way of obtaining the weapon.
The hammer has the power of attraction. All the wielder needs to do is point the hammer at the opponent and activate the skill. In an instant, the hammer will travel with blinding speed towards the opponent.
Just as it can be used to take an offensive move, it can also be used for quick and unpredictable movement to flee and dodge attacks.
***
*Force Of Ultimate Attraction*
Bursting forward with intense speed, Kox's hammer launched towards Erin.
"What the hell? How is this thing moving at such speed under my time spell?" Erin panicked as she could only watch the hammer coming towards her with incredible speed, Kox holding onto the hilt of the hammer and traveling through the air with it.
Colliding right into her ribs with the block head of the hammer, a sound that made most squint reverberated through the entire ground.
Crack!!!
In an instant after the collision, all her ribs on her right side broke, forcing her to deactivate her magic.
'This is my chance!' Kox screamed inwardly, and he could see himself getting close to Erin. For the first time, he was getting his sure chance to strike without any interruption from her time magic.
Grabbing onto the hilt of his kantana hanging by his waist, Kox swung his blade without a second thought at the foggy trail created by his aura right at the moment.
While already in the middle of the action Kox realized. 'Damn! It's heading for her neck.'
Although, he is aware of the spell that had been imbued onto them all in case of death, he still couldn't bring himself to kill her. Quickly redirecting his sword, Erin's left hand was sliced instead.
Blood splashed as she squints in pain.
"You magic can only go as far as freezing time on surface level and not deeper up to the brain all thanks to you being a low ranking mage." Kox spoke while staring at the helpless Erin who was on the ground and single handedly clenching onto her body in pain. With her left hand gone, it's not like she can double-handedly do it now that she has a right hand.
I mean, even after you freeze time around this platform, I could still see and think using actual time, only my body was responding slowly. If it could do better than that, then you winning would have been a guaranteed outcome.
Raising the kantana blade to her neck, Kox asked coldly. Do you give up or should I finish the job!!!