Chapter 55

The divine battle opened with the sounds of sword clashes and punches. The former belonged to the Azure Knight, the latter to the Moon Wolf.

The Azure Knight's weapon was a broadsword. However, the one he wielded with one hand was so heavy that it would be difficult to handle with both hands. The azure-silver blade, adorned with intricate decorations, defied its weight by creating numerous slash shadows in the air.

In contrast, the Moon Wolf's weapon was a red gauntlet. The punches delivered by Reive, a Fist Saint, surpassed the power of an Alkyma-made city-busting mace. A left jab aimed to feint, delivered with only the movement of the wrist and upper arm, had the destructive power to penetrate the frontal armor of a modern main battle tank.

They collided.

The sword flash was deflected by a punch, and the punch was deflected by the blade.

In an instant, they had exchanged twenty-eight blows.

Each strike shook the air, and on the twenty-ninth exchange, they were repelled in opposite directions.

A moment later, the shockwave of the impact raged.

The shockwave turned into a violent storm, destroying several stone pillars around them.

The remains of the stone pillars, sliced into pieces, were the result of the Azure Knight's sword flashing, while the remains of the stone pillars, reduced to powder, were the result of the red gauntlet's strikes.

After the initial contact, both parties remained unscathed.

Reive had not a single cut on her body, and the Azure Knight's armor had no marks of impact.

If there was any change from before the contact, it was only that the dust on the Azure Knight's armor had scattered like phosphorus.

--Monsters.

If there had been an audience to witness this, they would have undoubtedly thought the same.

Even though it was just a preliminary exchange, both had already shown movements beyond human capability.

In fact, if there had been an audience, they would not have been able to see the battle at all. At best, they could only infer that some kind of destructive phenomenon had occurred from the delayed impact sounds and the damage to the surrounding stone pillars.

--This is why they are myth-level threats. This is why it is a divine battle.

Monsters is too mild a term. From the beginning, both were beyond human. Comparing them to frail humans is fundamentally incorrect.

Neither of them exists within the realm of human perception; they are both transcendent beings whose might is sung in myths. It is presumptuous for powerless others to try to gauge their strength. The scene unfolding before them is a mythic duel between myth-level threats.

However, there was one person watching the battle.

No.

There was a weak individual in the midst of the battle.

"Tactical Virtual Window: Multi-layer Unlock. Modification Form: Single Combat."

Helian used voice commands to unlock multiple <Virtual Windows>.

She called up <Records>, <Character Information>, and <Maps> optimized for single combat using pre-customized settings.

The swarm of <Virtual Windows> she summoned surrounded her field of vision at 140 degrees.

In particular, the <Records> were set to extract the most necessary information for analyzing and investigating the battle situation, based on years of experience. The information required varied depending on the situation, so the <Virtual Windows> for the <Records> she called up were the most numerous, totaling six.

The <Virtual Windows> she deployed in front of her were carefully adjusted for transparency, allowing her to read them while observing the battle. Helian grasped the battle situation, which would be impossible for a normal person to understand, by using numerous <Virtual Windows>.

"――――!"

The sound of another collision. The second exchange began.

It seemed that the preliminary phase was over, as the sword flashes that tore through the air and the punches that pierced were sharper and stronger than before. The immense power that could blow away a city wall when unleashed recklessly was now concentrated in the sword and fist, optimized to slay the enemy before them, sometimes even bending the laws of physics.

The Azure Knight, prioritizing his own attack over evasion or defense, invaded Reive's guard with a deeper step than before.

Reive immediately countered with a punch. It hit, though not a direct hit, gouging a large chunk out of the right shoulder armor. In exchange for this damage, the Azure Knight launched a swing from close range.

The sword aimed to decapitate. Reive dodged the sword flash by leaning back, but a shield thrust came at her exposed abdomen. It hit. The Seventh Legion's custom battle gear reduced the impact, but the force was so great that her feet, which should have been firmly planted, were lifted off the ground.

However, Reive ignored the damage and kicked the Azure Knight's left elbow with her right foot, which was lifted. The tip of her foot, aimed at the thin joint armor, was slightly off target, but it inflicted enough damage to almost make the Azure Knight drop his shield.

A particularly strong collision sound.

Reive and the Azure Knight were once again pushed apart.

The damage from the recent exchange was negligible, and it seemed that their abilities were evenly matched in this battle so far.

It was not just because they were both myth-level threats that they were evenly matched.

Myth-level threats are a threat level given to all beings who exceed a certain level of combat power. In other words, anyone with "unfathomable strength" is recognized as a myth-level threat, a rank with no upper limit.

Therefore, it is not possible to compare combat power based on threat level alone, as is the case with G-Rank to S-Rank, which have defined upper and lower limits.

For example, a monster that barely reaches the level of a myth-level threat would have a 90% chance of losing if it challenged the Eighth Legion's commander.

Therefore, even if a myth-level threat is identified, it does not provide the king with the material to determine whether victory is possible.

After all, the enemy has "unfathomable strength."

The outcome of the battle cannot be determined until it is fought, and the existence of a myth-level threat introduces a significant variable into the strategic equation.

"Roar Ah Ah Ah Ah――!"

Perhaps deciding to end the exchange of blows, the Azure Knight took a large step back, fixed his shield to his folded arm, and charged forward with a roar. His stance, which involved pushing the shield over his shoulder, indicated a choice of pure brute force.

In response, Reive met the charge head-on. The two, who had achieved bullet-like acceleration over a short distance, collided, resulting in a stalemate. Their bodies did not fly in different directions but remained in place, maintaining a balance.

Reive gritted her teeth at this fact.

Her strength, enhanced by the "Blessing of the Red Moon," had reached the S+ level.

Reive, a Moon Wolf and a Fist Saint, had the second-highest strength among the Eight Legion Commanders, after Gardi, and she had expected to have a certain advantage in brute force.

However, the Azure Knight did not yield an inch in the straightforward push against Reive. This meant that their strength was almost equal.

"Grr...!"

Reive had already applied an enhancement spell to herself.

The effects of the Moon Wolf's roar were still active.

This brought her strength to a considerable level, but it was the limit of what could be achieved with normal skills.

She had reached the upper limit of the base combat ability set for her race.

Even as a High-Rank Race like the [Moon Wolf], no further enhancement of strength could be achieved, no matter how many skills were stacked.

--But there is a force here that can overturn that premise.

"Secret Art Activation Declaration: 'Scarlet Moon's Holy Mark'"

This battle was defined as a one-on-one combat, and the scale of the battle was limited to a single combat.

Reive's ultimate trump card, a secret art that requires a large-scale war to activate, was unusable, but she had mastered several other excellent secret arts, including the "Blessing of the Red Moon."

Secret arts are already difficult to obtain, and there is no guarantee that the ones obtained will be useful. Some are so impractical that they consume the king's "life storage" three times over and can even cause the king to lose all life with a single activation. Additionally, the requirement that they can only be activated in the presence of the king is a significant drawback.

However, as the most intensively trained subordinate and a constant presence at Helian's side, Reive's method of operation was essentially paired with the king. Therefore, she was given a training concept that was specialized for single combat while also being specialized for secret arts.

This power is now being fully utilized.

"――――!"

The "Scarlet Moon's Holy Mark" activated, and a particularly strong light settled on various parts of Reive's body, which was enveloped in a crimson aura from the "Blessing of the Red Moon."

The secret art naturally broke through the wall of the upper limit that could not be surpassed by skills.

The vivid scarlet light carved seals into Reive's arms and loaded new power into her fists.

The effect of this secret art is to enhance strength and grant a limited-use attack power amplification effect.

By consuming the seals, the instantaneous attack power increases explosively.

Moreover, since this support effect is brought about by a secret art rather than a skill, the multiplier is guaranteed.

The seals can be granted up to a maximum of eight, but only four were successfully granted.

It was enough, Reive judged.

She had no intention of dragging the battle into a prolonged conflict that would continue to drain her master's life.

Her goal from the beginning was a very short-term battle.

"Haah――!"

With strength that had broken through the limit, she pushed back the shield in one go.

Reive, who had gained a favorable position by leaning forward, used a close-range thrust to launch the Azure Knight's body, shield and all.

The Azure Knight stopped by scraping his heels on the ground, creating a hundred-meter gap between them.

Reive charged forward with a roar.

The distance between them was reduced to zero in an instant.

First, she consumed one of the seals on her right arm and launched a punch at the knight's sword, which he raised to counter.

Collision.

Then, an explosion.

Following the explosion, the sound of the sword breaking reached Reive's wolf ears.

The broad and thick blade was shattered halfway, and the tip flew through the air.

In exchange, a spray of fresh blood flew from Reive's right fist, but she paid it no mind.

Immediate counterattack.

She consumed one of the seals on her left arm and struck the kite shield the Azure Knight had raised.

Although the shield did not break due to its higher durability than the sword, the Azure Knight's left arm and the shield were deflected by the immense power.

An opening.

A perfect opportunity.

There was no way she could let it slip.

One seal remained on each of her arms.

She activated the seal on her left arm and dove into the Azure Knight's guard.

A hastily raised counterattack. The half-broken sword gouged Reive's abdomen.

--It's fine. This level of damage is not fatal.

Reive pressed forward without hesitation and delivered a direct hit with her left fist, which had gained explosive attack power.

"Yaa Ah Ah Ah Ah Ah――!?"

The Azure Knight let out a scream.

A steel-like cry, unlike any human voice, filled the battlefield with a mournful resonance.

But the Moon Wolf did not let up with her counterattack.

She activated the seal on her right arm.

The decisive blow.

The Moon Wolf lowered her right fist to her waist and launched it forward, using her entire body as a launch platform.

"Oooooo――!"

At the moment of impact, a sound of explosion was produced, as if the air itself was screaming from the sheer power of the attack.

The Azure Knight's death cry was drowned out by the explosion and the air's scream.

"Ugh... Ah Ah... --"

When the scattered air returned, the Azure Knight's abdominal armor, which could now only emit groans, had a large hole through which the scenery on the other side could be seen.

Eventually, the groans ceased, and the Azure Knight, who had completely stopped moving, swayed and fell to the ground. The remains of the knight, lying on the stone pavement, did not move again, and the victor and the vanquished were determined.

"――――"

In total, thirty-two seconds.

The opening was sudden, and so was the conclusion.

The battle between two beings in the realm of myth ended in a short-term battle as the Moon Wolf had planned.

--Or so it was supposed to be.

"――――!?"

It was not a coincidence but a necessity that she noticed.

The failure during the rebellion, which had become a trauma, flashed back.

The past regret loudly warned her.

The instinctive cry that nothing was over yet drove her body into action.

--A flash.

A knight's sword, which had been hidden from the side, swept through the space where Reive's head had been a moment ago.

Her hair, which had lagged behind the movement of her head, scattered in the air like silver threads.

The Azure Knight, who was supposed to be a corpse, was there.

"What...!?"

Her eyes widened in shock.

It was the same for her master.

The corpse that had been in front of the Moon Wolf disappeared, and the Azure Knight reappeared to her right.

"Roar Ah Ah Ah Ah――!"

"...Grr!"

She barely managed to evade the wildly unleashed sword strikes and put some distance between them.

What she saw was the Azure Knight, who had repaired the wound on his abdomen and even restored his destroyed weapon, swinging his knight's sword with renewed vigor.

Reive felt a sense of absurdity and shock at this sight--and immediately discarded those emotions.

She was accustomed to suppressing her emotions.

Since the hateful failure, she had been reliving the memory every night, and the expression of emotion as a disturbance was minimal. Her consciousness and body immediately returned to top gear.

If he had come back to life, she would just have to kill him again.

Reive came to this conclusion and launched a continuous barrage of attacks without pause.

The Azure Knight responded with a continuous barrage of sword strikes.

The speed of the exchange increased, and it soon transitioned into a high-speed mobile battle, with the two racing across the battlefield in all directions.

The explosion sounds from one side were left behind as the Azure sword and the red fist unleashed their might on the other.

The crimson aura from the "Blessing of the Red Moon" still enveloped the Moon Wolf's body, but the seals from the "Scarlet Moon's Holy Mark" had all been used. She was in a situation where she lacked a decisive move.

However, Reive, who did not approve of consuming more of her master's life, abandoned the idea of overwhelming with sheer attack power and chose a different approach.

"Divine Leather