Chapter 359: Final Contestants [1]

Chapter 359: Final Contestants [1]



Leon didn't waste the chance that was presented before his eyes.

How could he...?!

The moment blood started to leak out from Aoife's mouth, he pressed his foot forward, the stars within his eyes disappearing. His figure blurred forward, and in less than a second he appeared before Aoife.

"........!"

Her expression changed, hastily flicking her hand and forcing Leon's body to come to a halt.

Normally, she would've directed the sword in Leon's direction to produce some distance between the two of them, but it was clear that she was not in the right state to do so as her expression twitched and she stomped her foot down, pressing forward.

Leon remained calm under Aoife's approach.

'Short range, good...'

This was his domain.

The stars in his eyes faded, making his eyes completely void.

Power surged through him as if he were at the center of the universe. Raising his fist, he punched down.

Xiuuuu-

The air exploded with a thunderous roar as his fist cut through it, a vivid crimson shade enveloping his hand like a fallen star igniting the night sky.

The intense energy radiated outward, painting the scene in a fiery hue and leaving a trail of pulsating light in its wake.

"Ah."

It was a sight that left the audience breathless.

Aoife's eyes constricted at the sight presented before her as she stopped, taking in the situation before gritting her teeth. Her eyes changed, turning blue as water crept up from the cracks beneath the stage and forming a bubble around it.

Her actions were quick, and by the time Leon's fist came down, the bubble had already formed.

Booom!

A terrifying explosion ensued the moment Leon's fist came into contact with the bubble, shattering it into millions of pieces.

"Ha!"

"Oh no!"

Many shouted at the sight, worried that something wrong had happened, but by the time the situation settled, Aoife was nowhere near in sight.

Leon's expression turned serious as he looked around.

Where is she...? Where did she go?

Wiggle~

"....!"

Leon's head flicked to the right where he saw one of the numerous puddles that formed as a result of the attack wiggle. He didn't hesitate to draw up his sword and slashed in its direction.

Swoosh!

The puddle remained intact.

Wiggle~

And then...

Every single puddle wiggled before moving around and slowly combining, forming the

outline of an aqueous figure that appeared to be Aoife.

At first glance, she looked relatively unharmed, but...

"Cough! Cough...!"

She started coughing shortly after forming.

"Ukh!"

Pressing her chest, she stumbled back several steps as her face grew pale.

"Cough...!?"

"...."

Leon watched all of this in silence before closing his eyes.

'Looks like it's over.'

He could feel it. She was on her last leg. This was a last struggle. A struggle that demanded him to finish.

"Hoo."

Taking a deep breath, Leon raised his sword before him as his back straightened and his legs pressed together. One hand behind his back, the sword's body touched the tip of his nose as he looked ahead with indifference.

'...I still need Julien to tell me how he figured out the steps, but let's try it.'

His eyes closed and opened right after.

The world grew quiet.

"Cough!"

As if sensing the changes in her surroundings, Aoife turned around, meeting Leon's eyes as

her body froze.

"N-no."

Her eyes started to fluctuate, but there was no resisting.

Leon nodded calmly, and the eyes fluctuated once more. This time, he could see a change

occur as confusion appeared within the gaze.

"W-what? Where..."

The real Aoife was starting to come back.

Leon smiled and pressed his foot forward. Then, lowering the sword forward and pointing it

at Aoife, he mumbled inside of his mind,

'First movement of the forgotten art; Unseeing Stab.'

He stabbed one inch forward.

Just one inch...

But that was enough as Aoife's entire body froze.

The audience watched in shock while several people stood up, unable to contain their shock as

their hands came pressing down against the rails.

Even Delilah's expression changed as she placed her diary down.

"Pffttt!"

-...Leon Ellert of the Nurs Ancifa Empire!

Karl and Johanna only snapped out of it when the announcement was fully made and the

audience stood up from their seats, their claps thunderously roaring throughout the entire

Colosseum.

Leon's figure appeared in the broadcast, breathing heavily as he basked in the afterglow of his

victory.

He looked exhausted, but at the same time, proud of his victory.

"It was a great victory."

Karl mumbled, his eyes never leaving Leon's. He could still recall the last moments and his

last move. Even when fighting Amell he hadn't used it...

What suddenly gave? 'Was he holding back...?'

Karl liked his strangely dry lips. There was no use in him trying to make sense of the situation.

He had a certain expert with him for that.

"Johanna, what do you- "

Karl's voice stopped as his eyes fell on Johanna who was staring at Leon with an unbelievable

serious expression. He had never seen her behave like that before, and while she previously

was impressed by Leon, things were a little different now.

She almost seemed...

Scared?

'No, that doesn't sound quite right.'

"Johanna?"

"Hm?"

Calling her out, she finally snapped out of it as she turned her head to look at Karl who was

looking at her with a worried

"Is everything alright?"

"Oh, yeah."

look.

She half-heartedly nodded her head.

Though she tried to act fine, she was anything but fine. That last movement and positioning...

It was...

'Flawless.'

As a powerful Tier 7 Knight, Johanna had seen many things. She had wielded many weapons

and seen many movements.

But never in her life had she witnessed such a flawless movement.

There were no imperfections, all actions ending toward the tip of the sword. She didn't know

what swordsmanship this was, but it was flawless.

To the point where she felt inferior.

'No, it can't be said to be flawless.'

There were actually two flaws. One, Leon himself. He was too weak. She could still trace his

movements, making this his first flaw.

The second flow... 'Something about his step felt off.'

Recalling the scene, all movements connected, conjoining toward the tip of the sword with

the exception of his right foot. There was a little flaw on that side that made the sword

imperfect.

'...It's incomplete.'

Johanna felt a little bit of pity upon realizing this but was able to quickly quell her disappointment down as she took a deep breath and focused her attention back on the recording devices.

"It was a phenomenal fight."

"You think so too?"

Karl, an expert in this, was able to immediately create a conversation between the two that

lasted for several minutes before he finally popped the questions,

"The finals, Julien versus Leon. Who do you have winning?"

"Who?"

Johanna was just about to answer 'Julien' without much thought but suddenly realized that

her mouth wasn't moving.

'Julien...'

She tried to say, but the name never came out.

The image of Leon's swordsmanship flashed in her mind once more, and her expression

turned strange.

'Leon?'

She opened her mouth, trying to mumble his name, but...

||||

She was still unable to get the words out.

The image of Julien's overwhelming emotive magic flashed in her mind, her expression

contorting further.

"Ah."

And that was when she realized.

"I..."

She could see either side destroying each other.

Simply put,

"...I don't know."