Chapter 118 118 – Trade-off

“You are a genius, sir.” Anja looked at my magic pond in amazement. “You used an object barely useful to non-magic users: the magic booster inside Yua’s body. So, Yua can activate the Illusion effect skill!”

I shrugged. “Unfortunately, the effect of that thing is only for a few seconds to increase one’s magic level.”

I asked Yua to activate a simple illusion: making Olga think the kunoichi was so close. In fact, Yua was still a few feet away from the red-haired woman.

“But, I think it’s very effective, sir!” Anja continued.

“Well, we’ll see. This Yua’s opponent is no ordinary woman.”

“It’s just getting more exciting, sir!” Anja sounded even more enthusiastic. “I’m sure Yua will win!”

***

The audience seemed to have forgotten their hatred for Yua. They cheered upon seeing the kunoichi’s continuous attacks, which were so fast and similar to a beautiful dance..

However, Yua just couldn’t believe what was happening. As time passed, her attacks did not hit her opponent, only passing a few millimeters above the red-haired woman’s skin.

And finally, Olga managed to catch Yua’s hand that was holding the wakizashi. With just a twist, the small sword slipped from the kunoichi. However, that does not mean that Yua immediately lost. She moved like a snake behind her opponent.

Just as the kunoichi was about to wrap her arms around Olga’s neck, her opponent gave an elbow strike to her stomach. Yua instantly froze because the elbow strike was so hard, even for her, who was wearing a magically enhanced belt.

With a whimper, Yua staggered backward.

“Referee.” Olga glanced at Anna Kozlov. “What will happen if I remove this protective belt?”

“Eh?” Anna Kozlov was silent with her mouth open, not expecting such a question. “Well…. I’ll count to ten for you to wear it again, but on the second offense, you’ll be disqualified.”

Yua knelt down and tried to catch her breath. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t recovered from the attack yet. The kunoichi felt like her insides were being squeezed hard.

And what happened next was something no one in the stadium had expected. Olga really unbuckled her belt, and Anna Kozlov started counting from one.

The red-haired woman struggled to clench her fists that were getting stiffer. Then, she hit herself in the face twice. Everyone gasped again, including Yua. Even Anna Kozlov stopped her count because of that.

With her left cheek turning blue, Olga wiggled her fingers. She showed no sign that her joints were stiff. “Referee, why did you stop the count? That’s unfair, right?”

“Eh?” It took Anna Kozlov a moment to come to her senses. She raised her hand again. “Four!!!”

Olga put the protective belt around her waist again while Yua forced herself to stand up.

“Don’t be affected by that, Yua.” Raymund tried to calm his servant. “She couldn’t possibly fully recover after doing that to herself. I’m sure she’s in trouble right now.”

So confused by what was happening in front of her, Yua couldn’t help but grin.

“You are great, Yua Nakagami.” Olga stepped closer to her opponent. “I didn’t expect you to survive my elbow strike… Or maybe it was because my attack effectiveness was reduced in my current state?”

The red-haired woman kicked the kunoichi in the face just as she finished speaking. Yua was able to dodge, but her opponent didn’t pause, directly giving her a fist.

“Don’t be intimidated by it!” Raymund shouted. “Your speed is equal now!”

Raymund’s words did not calm Yua, who kept on dodging Olga’s combination of punches and kicks. The kunoichi didn’t have the power to carry out such an explosive attack like her opponent. Yua felt that if she was hit by that punch or kick, the magic protection on her body would decrease drastically.

Speed, power, and technique. Olga has everything.

However, that doesn’t mean that Yua is overwhelmed. She is again waiting for the right moment.

The kunoichi ducked as Olga punched, about to catch the waffle seller’s legs. With adhesive bombs like the one she used in the match against Renee, Yua was sure that even Olga’s movements would be hampered.

However, Olga jumped up, something that was impossible considering the timing of Yua’s movements.

The waffle seller stomped on the back of Yua’s head, sending the kunoichi’s face hard into the ground.

The crowd’s screams erupted, and it was probably the loudest of all.

“Shit.” Olga backed away, clearly wanting to avoid her opponent’s trick.

Anna Kozlov started counting Yua, who was still face down.

“Huh?” Raymund realized something was wrong. “It seems that Olga is pushing her body too much to move like that. Now she is at her limit, Yua!”

Yes, the red-haired woman’s breath was ragged, and she was sweating buckets. The poison from Yua still had an effect on her.

The kunoichi got up on the count of seven because she wanted to rest her body for a while. She then took a fighting stance with a sharp gaze, trying to hold back the pain in her stomach and face.

And now, it was the kunoichi who took the initiative to attack. She did a combination of kicks to her enemy. Olga dodged and blocked the attacks and countered with a combined punch.

The trade-off of attacks was so rapid that the eyes could barely follow them. The audience became crazier and crazier to see this exhilarating spectacle. The two fighters managed to hit their opponent several times with their attacks, but there was no sign that either of them would lose.

Even so, they knew that the match would not last much longer. The magical barrier of their belts had been steadily decreasing, as was their stamina.

Yua managed to hit her opponent’s chin hard but had not managed to make a bloody wound. Olga replied with a kick to the kunoichi’s cheek. The attack also couldn’t make Yua bleed.

The kunoichi saw an opportunity. She shoots an adhesive bomb into her opponent’s face, but Olga dodges it. The waffle seller caught and lifted Yua’s body, much like what Oleg did to his opponents.

However, this time the red-haired woman turned Yua over, causing the kunoichi’s head to face downwards.