Chapter 28

As cherry blossoms danced in the wind, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of promise written there.

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Ardis blocked the continuous magical attacks launched by the woman with barriers, or deflected them, and dodged the dagger thrusts that came in between.

Ardis also launched a series of fireballs, rocks, wind slashes, and ice blocks at the woman, but none of these attacks were effective.

This was merely a mutual probing.

Due to the presence of onlookers, Ardis had not resorted to sword magic and was limiting the spells he cast to those with low power.

It seemed the woman was doing the same, launching small-scale attacks as if to gauge his strength. Apart from once showing a shining spear of light, all her attacks remained basic.

"Why don't you get serious? ... Ah, I see."

The woman, who had stopped her hands and asked, glanced sideways at the mercenaries watching and seemed to understand on her own.

Ardis did not want to stand out too much by using sword magic.

While he did not mind attracting attention as a strong individual, he believed that drawing attention as someone with special abilities would only lead to trouble.

Whenever possible, he chanted before using magic and had warned those to whom he had shown sword magic, like Gresha and Michelle, to keep it a secret.

Of course, since it was only a request, he was prepared for the knowledge to spread eventually.

The woman's understanding seemed to stem from sensing Ardis's inner thoughts. She raised one hand above her head and said in a low voice,

"Then, let's try to drive them away."

A light ball began to form at the palm of the woman's raised hand.

The light ball rapidly grew in size, eventually reaching about fifty centimeters before being launched at Ardis.

Ardis dodged the impact point and simultaneously deployed a magical barrier.

The light ball, upon colliding with the ground, exploded.

The power of this attack, far greater than the previous probing, put considerable strain on Ardis's barrier.

The woman's attack and Ardis's magical barrier struggled against each other, and the magic power leaked out as a bluish-white light.

"Hmm. You're not fazed by it?"

When the explosion subsided, Ardis was standing there unharmed.

To Ardis, this level of attack was not a threat. However, it was different for the mercenaries watching.

The explosion covered the surrounding area with heat and shock waves, affecting the onlookers.

Of course, it was not a direct attack, but the original power was significant.

The shock waves alone were strong enough to blow small individuals several meters away and make everyone else stagger.

"Whoa, the shock wave reached this far...!"

"Th... This isn't funny!"

The woman raised her hands above her head again, this time with both hands.

"Let's see how you handle this."

With a smug smile, the woman began to form another light ball at the tips of her palms.

"Hey, isn't that dangerous?"

"How big will it get?"

"Given the power of the last one...?"

The light ball grew larger than the previous one, expanding to over three meters in front of the many mercenaries who were watching.

"Maybe we should run...?"

One mercenary's words triggered a mass exodus, with everyone hastily turning their backs on Ardis and fleeing.

Even the merchants who had been leisurely conducting business before Ardis arrived began to flee, some even leaving their goods behind.

As if waiting for the area to clear, the woman brought down both arms toward Ardis.

In front of the dazzling light ball, Ardis deployed a triple-layered magical barrier.

"Triple-layered magical barrier."

The first layer, shaped like a sharp blade, sliced the light ball into pieces. The second layer, a cotton-like barrier with a mesh structure, reduced its power. The third layer, a solid barrier, prevented any penetration.

"The onlookers are gone. Now, will you get serious?"

Despite blocking a spell powerful enough to make experienced mercenaries flee, the woman showed no signs of panic.

Ardis, too, had a calm expression.

He understood that the purpose of the previous light ball was to clear the area of onlookers.

"Whether I get serious or not depends on you... Before that, are you willing to listen calmly now?"

"Fool. At this point, are you still asking such things? If you want to speak to me, make me want to listen first!"

As the woman's arms moved, a fierce gale erupted.

It resembled a storm at sea, swirling like a living creature and attacking Ardis.

The earth was gouged, and the rocks that flew up were shattered, burying Ardis in debris.

Ardis countered by spreading a shock wave in all directions, freeing his two short swords from his waist and drawing a broadsword with his right hand.

Seeing the floating short swords, the woman's sky-colored eyes sparkled.

"I see. So this is your fighting style?"

"If you want to see me get serious, I'll show you, but give me a moment."

With a smug smile, Ardis readied his broadsword.

Ardis manipulated short daggers and small swords from the merchants' abandoned goods, deploying them around the floating short swords.

In total, there were eighteen.

The eighteen blades, with their tips pointed at the woman, floated around Ardis, who was holding his broadsword.

"Let's go."

With Ardis's command, the eighteen blades attacked the woman.

Simultaneously, three colorless shock waves struck her from the side.

The woman instantly produced seven concentrated beams of light and launched them at the floating blades.

The smell of molten metal spread as the light pierced the blades.

She reduced the three shock waves with a barrier and dodged to the rear.

Eleven blades followed, attacking her from behind.

The woman, wielding a dagger in each hand, met the eleven blades.

She defended against the eleven simultaneous attacks with her daggers and a physical barrier.

After deflecting three with ice blocks, she launched a counterattack.

"Let's see how you handle this."

A loud explosion occurred a short distance away, and from the dust and smoke that rose, countless rocks rained down on Ardis and the eleven blades.

Rocks of various sizes, moving at the speed of arrows, attacked Ardis and the eleven blades.

Ardis deployed barriers only at the points of direct impact.

Despite the ground being pockmarked by the accelerated rocks, Ardis did not cease his attack.

The eleven blades, which had been slashing at the woman, were all knocked down by the rocks, some bent and others dulled.

The woman herself was unharmed and was already preparing her next spell.

This time, seven light balls appeared around the woman, briefly contracting before releasing seven concentrated beams of light at Ardis.

These beams were even stronger than the ones that had melted the floating blades.

Ardis also instantly produced seven light balls.

His light balls were identical to the woman's, but slightly larger.

Seven concentrated beams of light emerged from Ardis's light balls and collided head-on with the woman's.

The impact produced a thunderous sound, a blinding white flash, and an explosion far more powerful than before.

The ground in the surrounding area was torn up, and a vast amount of soil was thrown into the air.

In the completely obscured vision, Ardis, holding his broadsword, charged at the woman.

His sword was deflected by the woman's dagger, producing a high-pitched metallic sound.

The woman used the wind to clear the dust.

While the obscured vision did not affect Ardis, it seemed to hinder the woman.

Ardis launched relentless attacks, not giving the woman a chance to counterattack, and steadily cornered her.

His sword strikes were sharp.

"Are you a swordsman!?"

"Correct!"

The speed and weight of Ardis's sword were such that the woman could barely defend with her daggers.

At such close range, she could not use attack magic. Even with precise control, there was a risk of hitting herself.

She needed to create some distance, but Ardis would not allow it.

Under the relentless assault, the woman's defenses finally broke.

Ardis knocked the dagger from her left hand and grabbed her right hand.

At that moment, the battle was decided. The tip of Ardis's broadsword was at the woman's throat.

"Are you convinced now?"

In response to Ardis's glare, the woman narrowed her sky-colored eyes and answered with satisfaction.

"Absolutely. My lord."