Roland didn't give her time to recover.

The mist swirled with his steps, every movement light but heavy with intent. His daggers gleamed with the edge of the wind, humming like they could cut through silence itself.

Her whip coiled protectively around her arm, dripping and restless. Her lungs ached, but she steadied them. If she faltered now, Roland would carve her apart without hesitation.

He lunged again.

The air rippled with his speed— no longer just movement, his speed borderd on the distortion of space. His braid whipped around his face as he vanished into another gust.

She braced herself for the imminent collision, but his overwhelming speed was too much for her.

He appeared on her left— dagger thrust forward.

Crack!

She blocked with her whip, pressure colliding against his blade. The recoil shook her arm, bones ringing from the clash.

Roland twisted, his second dagger slicing toward her throat.

She dropped low, water surging beneath her feet.

Aquarium— Twin Pressure Tide!

Her whip surged with pulling currents, dragging his attack wide. For a moment, she saw his body strain against the force— his movements caught.

She pulled harder. The whip yanked like the weight of the ocean itself.

Roland exhaled sharply, breaking free with a sudden twist of air. His breath hit her cheek like a storm wind, carrying blades of pressure that stung her skin.

He was smiling.

She hated that smile because it indicated something.

'He's still holding back.'

Her mind raced. Her second Art— Exploding Clones— was risky at this distance. The third, Waterfall, had already failed against his storm.

She could already discern the attribute of his third art. Due to the way it dismantled her attacks to become mare rain.

She knew his third art carried the attribute of dismantle.

But she had no choice, she had to attack if she wanted to not only survive but have enough strength to resist the figure hidden in the trees.

Then a plan formed on her mind.

She split her whip into three strands, the water writhing in the air like serpents. They lashed out from different angles, circling Roland.

Roland spun.

His body blurred again— Stromboli— Wormhole.

The wind swallowed him whole, making her lose sight of him completely. But her instincts screamed for her to dodge forward.

But it was too late, as the air behind her trembled.

Roland dagger traced across her back, cutting through the Wrimmsteel armor. Pain flared bright, hot. She staggered forward, blood seeping through the cracks.

She hissed through her teeth, whipping her hand backward, causing one of the serpents to detonate.

Boom!

The explosion of water forced Roland to slide back, droplets raining around him. His coat was damp now, his braid dripping, but his grin only widened.

"Still standing?". He said lightly, twirling his blades. "Good. I'd be disappointed otherwise."

Her chest heaved. She could taste iron on her tongue.

This was bad. Too bad.

Her whip trembled— not from weakness, but from the strain of keeping up with him. The Shadow-armor's Merchant Mark pulsed faintly, trying to heal the cut on her back, but it wasn't enough.

She needed to turn the fight.

Before she could strike again, Roland lifted one dagger and pointed at her chest.

The air pressure shifted, causing her stomach to drop in panic.

'Not that one'.

He was gathering far too much wind. His second Art alone had nearly broken her ribs— if he used the third now…

'No— he can't be serious—'

The the air had visibly thicken to mist, it parted violently.

Stromboli— Unnerving Gale.

The tornado swelled again, larger than before, ripping branches free from the colossal tree. Bark splintered, leaves shredded into nothing, the ground beneath her trembling like a dying beast.

She staggered back, whip raised defensively, but she knew it was useless.

This was no spar.

If that gale touched her directly, it would shred her body to ribbons.

And Roland knew it.

His single glowing eye locked onto hers through the whipping storm.

"Let's see how you would survive this."

But due to the wind, Roland failed to acknowledge the smirk that formed on her face.

****

Far away, sitting on another branch, Zephyr watched silently, his scythe resting against his shoulder.

His eyes flickered faintly from under the hood of the armor, as it picked up the clash of water and wind, the vibrations thrumming through the colossal tree.

His eyes narrowed.

'Where did she go?'. Before he could get the answer he felt something touch his back.

"Don't move".

'Damn'.

The voice behind him was low, steady, and close. Too close for him to react, any wrong move and his head would ascend through the sky.

Zephyr body froze, the scythe in his hand felt heavier, like the weight of the world had suddenly pressed down on it.

The sharp edge of something cold and wet touched the back of his neck— maybe a blade soaked in blood, or water.

"…Who?" Zephyr muttered, not moving. His mind already forming thoughts on who it was.

The forest around them shook under Roland's tornado, branches groaning, leaves ripped into shreds.

Then a thought wormed it's way into his heart.

'Fool you have spatial awareness'. Zephyr almost wanted to smack his head upside down, he not only had an omniscience point of view.

But also his second art allowed him to escape at any point in time.

The figure behind him could sense Zephyr's body relaxing, despite the pressure of her blade tight against his neck.

'Did he figure something out'. Sasha thought before applying pressure on the blade that rested in his neck.

Only for she to lose her balance.

"Yelp".

With a short shout, she stumbled forward, passing through the body of the individual in front of her like he was a phantom.

Turning around she brandished her water blade at him. Seeing the annoyed look on his face, she had a feeling he was looking down on her.

'The hell wrong with me'. Zephyr scolded himself, he couldn't believe that for a moment he almost forgot about his abilities.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.