Chapter 255: Are You Guys Trying to Tear Down My Academy?!
The crumbling earth, the flying rubble.
The explosive shockwave whipped up a violent hurricane.
Stella and the others, who had come to rendezvous with Luke, stared dumbfounded at the apocalyptic scene unfolding before them.
Boom—!
A violent roar exploded in their ears.
"...If, if I remember correctly... didn't Luke say this was supposed to be 'ordinary' physical training?"
Stella asked the others beside her stiffly.
"Uh... it, it seems so... right?"
Ikki, covered in cold sweat, already didn't know what to say at this point.
"So... this is 'ordinary' physical training?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Falling into silence, the group stood in place, somewhat at a loss for what to do.
After a long while, Stella finally whispered, "A-Are we... supposed to join in?"
Upon hearing her words, the others first looked at the ground that was gradually sinking as time passed, and then, without prior consultation, took a large step back and said in unison:
"We would obviously die, right?!"
...
Boom—!
The pitch-black blade of gravity ruthlessly blasted into the ground.
'Kokutou/Black Blade: Yatagarasu', this was one of Nene's Noble Arts.
The pure power of gravity, under the effect of magic, transformed into a blade that coiled around her Device.
Her Device, 'Beniiro Ageha', which originally had the appearance of an iron fan, had now transformed into a pitch-black aurora longsword exceeding one meter in length.
Of course, this was not her full strength.
Although she was in a state of extreme shame and indignation, Nene's attacks were still relatively 'measured'.
At the very least, she still subconsciously followed the rule of not using magic to enhance her body, preventing the 'training' from escalating into 'slaughter'.
Whoosh—!
Accompanied by the swinging of the gravity blade, everything in the surroundings was distorted by this terrifying power.
With unstoppable momentum, she slashed towards Luke once again.
Boom—!
Once again, it blasted into the ground.
Luke had no intention of clashing at all; the moment Nene slashed over, he slipped away, sliding out of the attack range.
The martial arts Nene used was a technique derived from performance arts.
To master the way of dance is to master the way of martial arts; a top-tier dancer could even leave a master swordsman with no openings to exploit.
'Yaksha Princess' Saikyo Nene created an original combat dance by combining the principles of this traditional Far East performance art with the essence of the swordsmanship taught to her by her master.
In this combat dance, or rather, sword dance, there were no specific moves or routines; she merely moved her body following intuition, swinging out flawlessly natural trajectories one after another.
Because there was no thinking involved in the swordsmanship, relying entirely on instinct, it was far swifter compared to ordinary swordsmanship.
If Luke's swordsmanship pursued the ultimate in technique, then Nene's sword dance, which fused her own outstanding combat intuition and instinct, was the ultimate in talent.
Holding the pitch-black blade of gravity, Nene fluttered her kimono's furisode lightly, dancing gracefully.
Sometimes elegant, sometimes fierce.
If one were to ignore the flush and indignant expression on her face, as well as the gradually crumbling earth around them, this scene would be an exquisitely beautiful painting.
Bang—!
Prana condensed on the Starfall Sword, blocking the gravity blade in Nene's hands.
However, at the exact moment their blades crossed...
Crack—!
A crisp shattering sound caused Luke's pupils to shrink abruptly; he immediately canceled the materialization of his Device and his entire body instantly left his original spot.
Boom—!
This was already the umpteenth time Nene had blasted the ground.
However, unlike before, what she shattered this time was not only the earth, but also the blue starlight that had originally condensed on the Starfall Sword.
"...What truly terrifying power."
This was the first time Luke had seen Prana in such a 'fragile' state.
Almost at the exact instant it touched the gravity blade, the Prana on the Starfall Sword was pulverized.
Not only that, if Luke hadn't decisively canceled his Device, perhaps even the Starfall Sword would have been pulverized in an instant.
Nene, highly dissatisfied after having several consecutive attacks evaded, shouted at the boy:
"What are you dodging for! Stand there obediently and let me slash you!"
"...I wouldn't be able to handle a slash from the current you."
Luke looked at Nene somewhat helplessly, while blue starlight continuously flickered around him.
That was the change produced as he used Prana to offset the magic released by Nene.
Ever since Nene had been thoroughly ogled by Luke, the gravity field released by her agitated emotions was no longer at a level where one could move freely relying solely on their physical body.
In order not to be suppressed in place by the gradually increasing gravity, Luke could only mobilize his Prana in response.
"By the way, weren't you the one who told me to yank it down..."
"You even specifically emphasized that 'it only counts if it's taken off the body'."
"I did as you said, yet you get angry instead, honestly..."
Luke's feigned innocent appearance instantly made Nene's teeth itch with anger.
With a flushed face, she glared viciously at the boy and said through gritted teeth:
"HOW! DARE! YOU! BRING! IT! UP!!!"
"Go die!"
Provoked by Luke to the point of somewhat losing her reason, Nene completely abandoned any intention of 'training'.
She stretched out her right hand, raising the iron fan 'Beniiro Ageha' in her grasp high towards the sky, while angrily shouting:
"Hadou Tensei!"
Extremely terrifying magic power began to rise. Stella and the others watching from afar could clearly comprehend the change in the situation.
That immense oppressive feeling was precisely the symbol of Saikyo Nene getting truly serious.
Facing this imminent slaughter, Luke smiled.
Feeling the sensation of the surrounding gravity crushing his body, feeling the continuous warnings coming from his heart, feeling the tension gradually forming along with Nene's movements, he smiled happily.
"I'm actually getting a bit impatient."
The re-materialized Starfall Sword was held horizontally behind his back.
Ser-Veresta, which he hadn't used once since coming to this world, was also taken from his waist and held diagonally behind his back.
The two swords were gripped by him in the shape of a crooked cross behind his back.
At the same time, a sky-piercing sword intent instantly burst forth from Luke's body.
Like a sharp sword ascending into the sky, the gravity field that originally enveloped the entire area dissipated in an instant, replaced by a violent sword aura that swept the surroundings!
The collision of Luke and Nene's auras directly blew away everything in the vicinity.
However, at this moment when a death match was on the verge of breaking out, time seemed as if it had been frozen.
Subsequently, a figure suddenly appeared between the two of them as if by teleportation.
The muzzles of the black and white twin guns were aimed at Luke and Nene's foreheads respectively; the sudden killing intent made the breathing of both of them stagnate simultaneously.
"Are you two trying to tear down my Academy?!"
(PS: Vote for more chapters this week. If this fanfic reaches 250 powerstones, I will upload 5 more chapters next. So, hurry up!)
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