The green-haired girl's element was wind that much was certain. From the way she moved, I could tell she was going all out to hurt me but not to kill me.
was she trying to keep me alive to get information from me.
That could be certainly a possibility.
This could work to my advantage.
I thought that I could have wait for her to exhaust her energy before striking but thinking and reality were two very different things. I didn't know her true capacity. She could be Grade Seven… or even Grade One. Who knew?
Then, a faint whisper of movement.
Slash!
A blade tore through the air behind me. I narrowly avoided a second strike by pivoting downward. This attack was slower than the previous one.
She was everywhere at once, yet as time passed, her movements seemed just slightly slower. Still, her strikes were fluid and precise, like water flowing around rocks. I caught glimpses of green hair, but it wasn't enough to land a solid strike as a fail strike could leave my back exposed.
I didn't want to waste mana in this fight. After all, if I used all of it here, what would I have left for my battle with Hiro?
I drew another knife from my side, bringing both blades up near my face. The cold steel reflected my eyes back at me.
I was changing my fighting style.
I shifted from the Way of Marthind—the single-blade discipline—into the Style of Osthe.
Dual blades.
It sacrificed part of the body's defence for relentless, straightforward offense.
I tilted my body just as a blade lunged at me from the front, aimed straight for my chest
In a swift motion, I drove my knife into her hand.
"Ahh!"
She cried out in pain.
Pain flashed across her green eyes, but she didn't falter.
With her free hand, she swept across my face.
"Wind Gust!"
A sharp gust of wind erupted from her palm, slamming into me and sending me hurtling backward.
The force dislodged my knife from her hand, freeing her.
I hit the ground hard, the wind slamming into me like a battering ram. Dust and blood-slicked stone sprayed around me, but I didn't hesitate.
I rolled to my feet, dual blades raised, eyes locked on her.
She hovered a step away, wind still swirling around her, green hair whipping in the blast. Her stance was defensive, but I could see the strain in her arms.
I dashed forward.
The first strike came in a downward arc, aimed to pressure her guard. She twisted, deflecting with her short blade, sparks scattering from the clash.
I pivoted mid-swing, slashing low and high in a continuous rhythm. She countered with sharp stabs and bursts of wind, forcing me backward—but not far enough. My assault pressed on relentlessly, forcing her to expend as much energy as possible while I continued attacking, making her bleed slowly.
While I could heal, she could not.
Another gust sliced across my shoulder before it fully healed. I leaned into the attack, letting my blades ride the current of her wind, redirecting the force as I lunged.
Her green eyes widened. She hadn't expected me to use her element against her so directly.
I pressed forward, closing the distance. My dual blades were a blur, alternating strikes in rapid succession each aimed to test her defense, while forcing her to react without giving her at movement of rest.
Sweat and blood mingled on my face, as scent of dead filled my senses. I could feel her dead coming closer.
As a hideous smile formed on my face without me knowing as I inflected pain to the girl Infront of me.
The courtyard had become a storm of movement steel clashing, wind whipping, the air charged with deadly intent of fear.
She let out a sharp cry and jumped back, spinning to release another Wind Gust. I twisted my body, before making a final dash. I was inside her range now, where her wind attacks were weakest.
I could feel her. I could see the hesitation in her stance.
It was now or never.
With a blur of motion, I slashed low, forcing her to step back. She raised her blade to intercept but I pivoted mid-step, spinning upward with the second knife in a deadly arc.
Slash!
My blade cut across her shoulder, tearing through armour and drawing blood. Her eyes widened—not with fear, but shock. She stumbled backward, unbalanced.
I didn't give her time to recover. I closed the final distance, dual blades flashing in a synchronized storm of steel. One knife drove forward to pin her short blade aside; the other aimed straight for her midsection.
But before the second knife could connect, something hard struck my chest a powerful impact that sent me flying across the courtyard into the wall.
"Sophie! Are you alright?"
I heard a voice. My head whipped toward the sound, and I saw brown hair gently moving in the air, looking straight at me.
"Hiro…" I whispered, my voice trembling as I looked at him.
But before I could think further, my mind was consumed flooded with madness.