Chapter 203: Challenge III

Rufus's technique wasn't perfect yet but he has a good grasp for the right timing of his strike… 

Haa!

The stab contained about 20% of his power. He didn't want to pour too much strength in this as it might hamper the speed of his sword…

Hmph!

Diether has expected the attack based on his opponent's form…

In truth, he's also quite fond of this technique and he frequently targets his opponent's throat whenever he has a chance. However, Calliope decided to do the same against him. Not only was she practicing the Praetorian Sword Art but she was also learning Kendo by watching Diether practice every day.

Due to this, he had no choice but to fight against a familiar sword art whenever Calliope asks him to be her training partner.

This is how he learned how to deal with Kendo Technique whether it is Shikake Waza or Oji Waza. 

Just like now, Diether noticed that Rufus's movements have similarities with Calliope before… 

'He's really just a beginner…'

Diether assessed him in his thoughts as he stepped back swiftly to avoid the Tsuki. This will overextend Rufus's arm and he's not planning to let him get away with that…

He swiftly tilted his upper body to avoid the shinai and stepped forward to strike Rufus with 3 quick sword slash…

It is Okuri-Ashi followed by Debana Waza!

Rufus knows that Diether's strikes were heavy and couldn't be underestimated. So he was not planning to parry it completely as he decided to put his Spiritual Energy on his legs and jumped away!

Pah! Pah! Pah!

Rufus still received Diether's strikes but instead of taking the force alone, he decided to minimize the impact by jumping back… 

It threw him away but that was enough.

It lessened the force behind Diether's strike and he no longer felt numb on his hands…

'Tsk… I thought that I would have a chance to counter if he dodged… but he's too quick.' Rufus realized that his opponent wasn't just strong but also has good reflex and body coordination.

He also noticed that Diether's strike wasn't just from his arm strength but from the lower body to the upper body… 

'Those Ashisabaki, was it? I must learn them as quickly as possible…' Rufus mused as he looked at his opponent. 

This is not going to be easy. However, he trusts Lexi and Nika with their skills. They might even defeat the two without his help.

'Alright… Let's do it once more…'

Rufus then charges towards the young man and this time, he tried to use the momentum in his run to deal a heavy strike…

Baam!

Their sword clashed again and Diether seem to be telling him that he doesn't have to dodge his weak strikes!

"Hmph!"

Rufus felt that their gap was big but he can't admit it… 

He tried to strike him multiple times but it is always being defended and Diether wasn't even budging from where he was standing!

As Rufus was about to try something else, his master spoke in his mind. 

It is their Sense Link activated.

'Calm down… He's using his equipment-type Arcana to defend against your strikes… It's subtle but it's being activated whenever you get near him…' Reiji reminded his student. 

'Eh? Is that so?'

'Of course… Why do you think he's not budging from your heavy strikes?'

Reiji's words gave hope to the despairing Rufus… He really thought that his strikes were weak!

This lightens up his mood as he stared at Diether and sighed.

"Haa~ Senior Diether… How long did it take you to master the Hanging Woods?"

Rufus suddenly asked which flustered the young man a little… The question came out of nowhere!

Aside from that, being called Senior was also something new to him… He thought that he wouldn't ever hear something like that!

"Ah... Eh? I forgot… Maybe 2 or 3 weeks?" Diether replied. He wasn't counting the days that time or perhaps he forgot but he can recall that it took him quite some time and ended up with bruises on his head every night.

"I see… So it didn't take a month, huh… I'll work hard…" Rufus said as he gripped the shinai tightly. 

Diether heard him and smiled at his junior. It's quite pleasant to fight someone like him. It seems that he can now understand Rufus's personality and why he was chosen by Master Reiji.

Rufus, on the other hand, spoke to his master using their Sense Link.

'Master, don't you want to test your first student about his current progress with his Kendo?' 

Rufus asked his master. This kid is full of random thoughts. 

Reiji was amused by this as he replied with a chuckle…

'Haha… You want me to Take Over and fight him?'

'Well, I just asked since it might be a good bonding between the two of you. You haven't met each other for years, right?' 

Rufus really has a way with his words. He might be a good merchant if he changes his profession.

'Are you giving up already?'

'Not really… But he might be at 8th Dan already... He also has equipment type Arcana… I do have Magic Items but none of them can help against that…'

'Haha. It's impossible for him to reach the 8th Dan in such a short time… Maybe 20 or 30 more years…'

'Eh? That difficult?'

'Yes… Some people couldn't even reach that stage in their entire life… But anyway, I think you should focus on the opponent in front of you… I'll Take Over if Lexi and Nika are in danger…'

'Yes, Master!'

Rufus replied as he decided to just buy some time instead of defeating Diether…

***

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Nika shot three of her bullets to Calliope and the other three to Terrence… 

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Although they are unable to block as perfectly as Rufus's sword swings, they can compensate for their lacking skills through their Magic Items.

As expected, they were completely prepared for this match…

Calliope approaches them with a frontal strike while Terrence would always follow up… It is such an annoying tactic.

They have a good rhythm as they time their attacks whenever she needed to reload.

However…

Booom!!

Lexi's battle-axe was scary… The ground is slicing up from her every swing and it feels like the enemy's weapon would break whenever they clashed…

The only problem with her weapon was its terrible accuracy because of its center of balance. She'll probably require years of training on that axe before she can accurately aim instead of just swinging it everywhere.

Nika then glanced at Rufus and noticed that he wasn't performing very well!

It is completely different from the Rufus that can slice his bullets!

'Is he not feeling well? Did he ate expire food or something?' 

The young man's strikes were still filled with power but his movement seems to be stiff… It wasn't like before where there were almost no wasted movements with his minimal but effective combat style…

Instead, it seems that it was Diether who was performing something like that…

'Urgh… I don't have time to think about this… But let me help you a little…' Nika thought as she pointed her gun at Diether and shot him with his mana bullet…

Bang!

The bullet was fast but Calliope was actually waiting for this opportunity! 

'Hmph! You dare to ignore me?!'

Hazy Flash Step!

Calliope had finally used the signature move of their Knights Order.

Her body turned hazy and turned into a fire for a split second as it vanished from everyone's sight… Only a smoke was left behind from her previous position.

Boom! 

A weak and subtle fire explosion occurred behind Lexi as Calliope's body reformed there!

Haa!

Calliope, with her dual swords, did not hesitate and strikes at them…

This is their plan all along!

They know that if they isolated Rufus with their own sword expert, Nika would surely try to aim at the latter to help her teammate.

But this will give her enough time to use the Sun Fire Essence that she spread in the surroundings earlier and use her Hazy Flash Steps.

That's right, the secret for their signature ability is the Sun Fire Essence… They can't just move instantly everywhere!

On the other hand, Diether heard the gunshot and also felt the movement of the Sun Fire Essence in the surroundings… This means that he's the one being targeted… He stayed on his ground and activated his Arcana to its fullest…

Bam!

He managed to successfully defend but unfortunately, he can't use the same skill again for the next 6 hours… 

'Tsk… I should request Oliver to have my Arcana awakened.' Diether thought as he looked at the opponent in front of him…

He knows that Calliope will deal with the other two so he just needs to defeat this guy in front of him.

However, he suddenly felt the changes in the man's aura… His stance, his dominating presence, the sword intent, and his gaze, it has all suddenly changed…

But instead of being afraid of the seemingly possessed guy, Diether smiled like he was crazy!

He can longer use his Arcana for a moment but he was not worried at all! In fact, he's trembling with excitement!

"Come!" Diether shouted as he returned to his stance.

Jodan No Kamae!