"It's blood!"
"After Scharlach Frau, Ikki Kurogane—the Another One—has also breached the absolute domain of the Calamity!"
...
"The Fourth Secret Sword combined with the Seventh Secret Sword—Shinkirou and Raikou."
'Sword techniques that create afterimages... And a technique for divine speed.'
'So that's how it works. He didn't create a decoy, he conjured an illusory sword path to misjudge the distance, then unleashed his fastest strike in an instant.'
'It was truly swift. Even my Elemental Perception couldn't capture his movements.'
Noah pinched the blood on his hand, watching the shallow wound on his neck mend at a visible pace as he manipulated the water element.
This medical technique, learned by analyzing the League's regeneration chamber data, proved more practical in combat than healing magic, requiring no incantation.
'I was careless.'
'No wonder Ikki got injured despite his speed. He was lured into a trap by my feigned strike. If not for the gravitational restraint, that blade would have already sliced through my neck.'
'Now, it's time to forge.'
Noah pressed his palm against the concrete ground.
The earth trembled, then split apart—not just the surface, but the very earth itself.
The earth shattered, transforming into rectangular blocks.
Instead of forging a sword, Noah had crafted something from the bone, tendons, and outer skin of the earth itself.
Through the [Enhancement] development ability, the originally fragile earth was refined and tempered, acquiring a dense metallic sheen.
A four-meter-tall mechanical figure emerged!
It resembled Western knight armor, its surface turned white by the smelting magic, giving it a weathered appearance.
As Noah channeled his magic power into the stone armor, spiral patterns of light illuminated in the eye sockets, like glowing eyes.
"This... this is!"
"What's happening?!"
"Competitor Noah... he's actually created a golem!"
"Isn't this something only Wire Pullers can do?!"
"The Calamity's Ability can even do this?!"
The commentary booth had lost all composure.
It was clear from the biased tone that Kagami, the commentator, was a die-hard fan of the Another One, her bias blindingly obvious!
Noah manipulated the Knight Golem.
The puppet raised its arms, and purple lightning erupted from the ground, coalescing into two enormous swords.
The Knight Golem brandished a colossal sword, nearly as tall as the puppet itself.
The sheer physical size of the golem, combined with the two massive blades, radiated an overwhelming presence.
"Charge!" Noah commanded, directing the golem to charge at Ikki.
By this time, Ikki had recovered from his earlier daze, but his movements were no longer as agile as before.
Faced with the Knight Golem's sweeping sword, he dared not meet it with a single hand.
Instead, he executed a mid-air flip, soaring over the sweeping blade.
But the second sword followed through in an arc.
Ikki had no choice but to clash blades with Intetsu.
To compensate for his weakened grip, he kicked the blade's spine, channeling his momentum into the strike.
Clang!
The steel clashed, deflecting the Knight Golem's sword slightly as it buried itself in the ground.
The tremendous kinetic force cracked the earth, sending fissures snaking toward the audience stands.
Seizing the opening, Ikki circled around the golem, aiming to strike at Noah himself.
But the Knight Golem toppled backward, nearly crushing Ikki beneath its bulk.
'Ugh, this attack style is far too chaotic.'
Ittou Shura was reaching its absolute limit.
A minute left—neither long nor short.
For experts, a minute could encompass hundreds of tactical exchanges, a hundred full rounds.
Yet a minute was also too short, ending just as the cheers began to rise.
"Not yet..." Ikki tightened his grip on Intetsu, gritting his teeth.
He couldn't collapse here!
If he lost here, his chances of winning the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival would become a pipe dream, let alone surpassing the Kurogane Clan!
Noah was undeniably formidable, but the festival would surely host even stronger opponents.
He had to overcome this hurdle!
He had to evolve!
If his physical strength was depleted, he would draw upon his mental fortitude!
With his nearly ruined left hand, Ikki tightened his grip on Intetsu with both hands, resuming his initial stance.
Ayatsuji Ittou-ryu: Ten'i Muhou!
The Knight Golem's greatsword was deflected.
Losing his balance, Ikki pierced through the chest by a swift, unhesitating thrust.
A gaping hole tore through the upper torso of the four-meter-tall Knight Golem, cracks radiating outward and spreading.
"He broke through!"
Ikki dared not waste this final opportunity, channeling every ounce of his remaining strength into the strike.
'The final blow!'
Noah recognized the Ten'i Muhou stance Ikki had adopted.
He knew the knight intended to charge forward in that stance.
In truth, Noah could have manipulated gravity to soar into the air and effortlessly evade this one-sided challenge.
He wasn't a swordsman, he didn't need to demonstrate unwavering conviction.
Victory was all that mattered.
'Wait...'
Ikki was using Perfect Vision to perceive him. He should have sensed his impending countermove.
Yet he still charged forward.
This wasn't a desperate gamble, but a challenge—one he knew Noah would accept.
To deliver a fatal blow to a swordsman wielding Ten'i Muhou, the strike must be executed with perfect precision: a flawless, unyielding slash, both blade and path aligned in absolute harmony.
Ikki didn't know the true identity of the Truth Seeker.
But based on intuition, he guessed that the Truth Seeker could discern the weakness of this move.
And indeed, that was the case.
During their brief exchange, the Truth Seeker had already deciphered all of Ikki's techniques, including the flaw in his Ten'i Muhou maneuver.
Noah felt Ikki's gaze seemed to be questioning his resolve.
'Unable to defeat me in other specialities, now you're trying to drag me into a swordsman's duel?'
Noah realized this.
Flowing magic power converged in his hand.
This wasn't a sword forged from elemental materials, but one purely crafted from concentrated magic power.
The blade had no conventional form, merely existing as a single, razor-sharp edge.
But that was enough.
A single strike would sever the magic power.
For Ikki, this would be a fatal, devastating slash.
He recalled how, when crafting custom gear for Bete in Orario, he had incorporated an Acceleration Spell to increase molecular motion.
When applied to equipment, the effect was manageable.
But if he applied it directly to his body, he wouldn't last even a second.
Yet, if he wanted to keep up with Ikki's movements, this was the only way.
The spell had long been engraved within Raven Feather.
This Raven Feather wasn't equipment or an external tool, it was the crystallization of his soul.
All he needed to do was channel Magic Power into it, and the Acceleration Spell would activate.
There was no need to hesitate.
However, a second was too long.
He only needed an instant.
Just one swing of his blade, and then he would immediately deactivate the Acceleration Spell!
"Acceleration Spell, concurrent."
At that moment, Noah felt everything around him almost freeze, and sound vanished.
In reality, this was due to the difference caused by his own molecules moving at an accelerated rate.
The molecules of everything else moved too slowly in comparison, making them appear completely still to him.
The same principle applied to sound. Sound travels at 340 meters per second, which is known as the speed of sound.
But to Noah in this state, even the speed of sound was too slow.
Too fast.
The only thing moving relatively quickly was the swordsman charging toward him.
Noah approached Ikki, who moved as if his actions were being played in slow motion.
Though it seemed slow, in reality, people still moving at their normal speed had completely lost track of him.
He moved too quickly!
Noah swung his magic-formed sword in a diagonal slash, the blade slicing into Ikki's left shoulder and cleaving down to his ribs!
The Acceleration Spell ended.
Whoosh!
The brilliance of magic flashed before everyone's eyes.
Ikki's figure tilted forward, slowly collapsing.
Time seemed to slow to a crawl.
All sound vanished, heightening the tension.
'Had the Another One lost?'
'Had he fallen?'
'Would he make a sound when he hit the ground?'
Just as all eyes were fixed on the fallen man, he suddenly moved.
The Device that had seemed to dissipate in his hand solidified again.
Intetsu, his innate weapon, underwent a physical transformation, manifesting in an unstable form!
The half-substantial, half-ethereal blade refused to disperse.
Silently, Ikki counterattacked, his brow furrowed in concentration.
He swung a slash.
'Impossible!' Noah instantly spin around.
In his perception, Ikki's magic power had been severed—his very fate cut short.
Moreover, the electrical signals indicated that the man had fallen into a coma, his consciousness completely extinguished.
'What exactly was driving his body?'
'Was it moving on its own?'
'Tsk.'
'The rebound of the Acceleration Spell... Damn it.'
As the blade closed in, Noah's expression twisted into a ferocious snarl.
He opened his palm and lunged to grab the swinging blade.
Slash!
Noah's hand was split in two by the blade, the cut slicing down his arm, cleaving both flesh and bone in half!
Pain.
A pain so intense he couldn't even scream.
"Appraisal."
[Instinctive Berserk State]
Description: Intense, pre-unconscious fixation triggers a massive release of neural signals throughout the body, awakening primal instincts and maintaining combat readiness even after losing consciousness.
'Hah.'
'What a joke.'
"You can't just throw your life away like this! You've gone too far, you fool!"
The students stood dumbfounded in the stands.
Stella shot to her feet, shouting, "Noah! Stop!"
Even as Ikki's still-moving body lunged to attack, two figures materialized before Noah in an instant.
One of them snapped shut the folding fan in their hand.
In that instant, the berserk Ikki was pinned immobile under dozens of times Earth's gravity.
The other figure drew their twin handguns and fired a time-stop bullet at Noah's severed, flailing arm.
"Chairwoman..."
"Nene-sensei."
....
The battle of plot armor end, was getting annoyed by this fight everytime mc got an edge ikki pull out bullshit out of nowhere and mc also pull another bullshit only to be hit by another bullshit from ikki 🤣