"Seriously? Without giving me a chance to prepare or anything?" My body was already moving as I spoke, when she suddenly appeared in front of me, forcing me to retreat. I activated all my skills with mana and Imra, pushing them to their limits and reinforcing them with my Laws.

She pressed me constantly, not just with her flaming swords. Spells flew around me from every direction, walls of fire tried to block my path, and different kinds of fire magic attempted to burn me to ashes. I ducked just in time to dodge a massive spear and finally managed to unleash all the abilities I needed.

I thanked Gase in silence for restraining herself to only using the "power" of a Sapphire grade at the moment. If she were using her full strength, this fight would've ended the very instant she moved. Two blades of ice clashed against two blades of fire over and over, countless cuts drawn with our hands as we tried to strike each other.

Her affinity had a certain advantage over mine, and on top of that, her constructions were sturdier thanks to her experience and mastery of Laws. My blades needed to be reforged every few strikes or else I would end up fighting with Joyeuse in their worst possible state.

I ducked beneath one swing, blocked another that aimed for my right arm with my left sword, and seized the chance to counter with my right. But just when I thought I had her in a bad position, a massive crimson column stopped my strike cold, and I was forced to use my movement skill to escape a rain of fiery spikes.

I grimaced at my own failure to land a hit. Her magic was almost instantaneous—it didn't feel like Sapphire rank at all. Only the quantity and raw power matched that level. Her swordsmanship, too, was on another plane compared to any opponent I'd faced before; she could match my pace effortlessly.

I conjured nearly a dozen Joyeuse blades around me, sending them flying to pierce her body. With the grace of a dancer, she swung her fiery swords, destroying four of them, while the rest were stopped by her fire constructs. I held back from using my Crushing Zone—it would be the move that could finally land a hit.

She dashed toward me at incredible speed, seeming to float above the ground with fire magic bursting from her feet. With sharp bursts of energy, she weaved left and right, dodging my constructions. Realizing that I couldn't land a blow with just my magic control, I charged straight at her for a direct sword clash.

I was trying to infuse my new Law of Space into my movement skill, adding a bit of mana of the same affinity. For now, I couldn't reach the level I wanted, but I did notice a slight boost in speed—as if my body was being pulled closer to where I wanted to be.

Face-to-face, a smile formed on my lips. The thrill of fighting someone who could push me beyond my limits filled me with joy.

"Let's see who has the better swordsmanship."

My comment seemed to spark something in her. She abandoned her little tricks with constructions at my back or sides and focused solely on her fiery swords.

Gase's Point of View

Who is this brat? Even though he's my size… that doesn't matter. How did he become this strong? He's only twelve, yet he can keep up with me. Sure, I'm holding myself back to an advanced Sapphire level in many respects, but that should be more than enough to corner any Emerald rank.

Yet he hasn't yielded once. He reacts to my constructions as quickly as any Sapphire, his strikes carry the weight of someone a rank above, and what's most dangerous is his ridiculous mana pool that allows him to maintain it—and his swordsmanship, which is absurd for his age. How can he have such sharp fighting instincts? Has he been training with swords since birth? Or is he just a natural-born genius?

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"Let's see who has the better swordsmanship."

Who does this kid think he is? So full of confidence. I played along, setting aside my constructions to focus solely on swordplay. Every one of his strikes carried intent—trying to destabilize me, to force an opening he could exploit.

But I didn't fall for it, countering as best as I could. Every slash high or low was blocked by him. We had reached a deadlock, where the slightest imbalance could give one of us the chance to land a devastating blow. Both of us poured our full weight into every strike and movement.

We moved side to side, carefully avoiding the terrain while never losing sight of the other's blade. That sensory skill—or domain—of his was a real nuisance. I'd met others with similar abilities, but his was on another level. I couldn't be certain, but I felt like Maki could fight this way even with his eyes closed.

And I wasn't even giving my all in swordsmanship—I was limiting myself to the level I had at advanced Ruby rank, about five years ago, when I already had eighteen years of experience with the blade. How can he keep pace with that stupid grin on his face?

My emotions threatened to spiral out of control. I was on an emotional carousel—having fun, furious I couldn't land a blow, and constantly surprised with every move.

Minutes passed, and his stamina hadn't dropped at all. Neither of us had slowed, and our swords clashed several times each second. His mana seemed limitless for his rank, and even when his blades wore down, he repaired them instantly the moment he had the chance.

A horizontal slash came for my left shoulder—I blocked it perfectly, while my own right arm thrust toward his left knee. He stepped back just in time to dodge by mere centimeters. Spotting my chance, I lunged forward. He looked cornered, and finally, his footwork faltered—a tiny mistake, almost imperceptible, but not to me.

I poured my full weight into the thrust aimed at his stomach. Got you, brat. But just then, something shifted—a pressure fell over me, slowing my movements for an instant, weighing me down in a fraction of a second.

Gravity magic? That's new. I didn't expect that. He had been hiding this card. The delay was only milliseconds, but enough for Maki to slip away from my strike and bring his sword down vertically toward my outstretched arm. It connected, but bounced off. My natural defenses were far too strong to be pierced by an Emerald rank.

The unexpected outcome left him stunned, his defense wide open. That brief distraction gave me the chance to reposition and drive my blade toward his stomach.

My sword met resistance against his armor—stuffed with ridiculous amounts of mana, reinforced by Imra, and tied to his Laws. But it was useless against my strength. My sword pierced through, sinking into his abdomen.

Maki's Point of View

Did my sword just bounce off? It felt like striking concrete with a steel pipe—my arm nearly went numb from the impact, leaving me wide open. Her blade pierced through my armor like paper, and I felt the fire sear my abdomen as her sword tried to push deeper.

With a desperate backward step, I avoided the worst of it, but I could already sense her other blade aimed for my right arm. Shocked by her resilience and the pain of being burned alive, I had no time to react. My right arm was severed clean off.

I vanished with my movement skill, reappearing some distance away to heal and regroup. But then I realized—she wasn't pursuing me. She just stood still, letting her swords fall. They disintegrated into ashes before touching the ground.

"Let's take a break. Heal yourself." Her voice didn't sound as harsh as her words—it carried a tone of joy, of excitement.

My Joyeuse blades vanished, and I walked toward her, channeling life mana into my wounds along the way. I had to fight against her Laws and Imra first—they wouldn't let me heal until they were purged. Once I cleared them, I poured more life mana, rebuilding my arm and closing the hole in my abdomen.

The healing felt soothing. By the time I stood before her, my body was whole again, though my clothes bore a massive hole at the center.

"You caught me off guard with that strange affinity of yours." She must've meant my gravity affinity. I'd used it at the perfect moment to land a strike, though in the end, I was the one who got hurt.

"It was pointless." I shrugged. "I'm the one who ended up paying for it." Losing control for a few milliseconds meant death against a Herald.

"Not at all. My natural defenses are as solid as steel. If it had been anyone else, they'd have lost an arm when your sword came down with such force." She was probably telling the truth. It was just hard to read her voice or expressions beneath the hood.

"You're playing in a different league, Maki. You're a true Limit Breaker—not like those other kids they call that just because they killed a monster one rank above them." A true Limit Breaker? What was the difference?

"What's the difference?" I asked sincerely. It had to be some new term I hadn't heard before.

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