Chapter 69: Finals,Vs Arthur, the Sword Saint (3)

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Arthur swung his sword, cutting through the air while his afterimage follows up as well. Red not wanting to take any damage, took guarded the attack firmly while lying on the ground. Unfortunately, it doesn't work as the weight behind each swing increases, making it hard for him to guard with his weapon, almost killing him.

 

He proceeded to kick against the ground, forcing to widen the distance between himself and Arthur. Arthur however just bolts towards Red, prepared to throw another thrusting attack.

However, in that short period, Red had already planted his feet on the ground for stability and was ready for the monster. In a hanging right stance, the moment Arthur stepped in Red's range, he swung his sword up vertically. Arthur saw his attack through perfectly and stopped midway, calculating that it was just enough for the sword to pass by his face. He thought to himself, what was the point of swinging such an obvious swing and wasting your energy? However. midway through the swing, Arthur suddenly realised what Red's intention was. He tried dodging but it was already too late.

[*Fang Form change*]

[Greatsword]

The long sword Instantly changed into a greatsword. No matter how much of a monster someone was, it was impossible to dodge an attack like this at such close range. 

But Arthur was different, he is the Sword Saint. Covering his left hand with Aura, he shot his hand out the moment the greatsword came in contact with his body and grabbed the giant blade with one arm. 

Returning the attack, he raised his shoulders to aim for Red's chest and with full power, drive the sword upon Red's chest. Red was also not any pushover, with his quick insight due to the training he had with Ryong, he could also sort of predict what was Arthur's next move. Pulling out from his inventory, he dragged Naga to his face and parried against his strike.

[*Naga* Equipped]

The curved blade helped kept Arthur's sword away from cutting Red's face due to its edges.

With both of them stuck to each other, Red made his move first, jumping in the air and drop-kicking Arthur in his chest.

Arthur caught by surprise, brought both his hand together to guard against the attack, breaking free from each other's clutches.

The situation however wasn't looking favourable for Red due to the loss of blood while Arthur was still looking very confident, sweeping the dust off his clothes.

With no choice, he cast [Heal], even though the consumption of mana was fairly high this time around due to how badly he was injured.

Breathing heavily under his mask, he held both swords standing at a lower position.

Arthur however with cold blue eyes stared at him and slowly walked towards him, fiddling around his sword that was resting on his shoulder. 

"Tell me masked stranger, why continue? You have no chance of winning." 

Red stayed still, recharging his stamina, not replying a single word. 

"..."

"You still chose to be silent even though you realise how futile this match is?"

Red, with his mask equipped, continues looking at Arthur while still insistent on not talking. 

"You are stubborn, that I can agree on." Arthur preached, this time dragging his sword with the blade facing the ground.

"But I will pull that mask out of you before I leave these grounds," Arthur warned as he approaches Red at an approximate distance of 50 meters.

His sword shines faintly as he took a smaller step forward. With every step he takes, an afterimage can still be seen, following his every month. It was like seeing 2 or 3 clones of him. 

Arthur placed his foot in a specific position, keeping his posture steady. His foot is placed an arm's length apart with his right leg forward and left leg backwards. His centre of gravity lowered giving him balanced and allowing him to draw power into each swing. Arthur held his sword below his waist, preparing for the next step.

"Is that what I think it is?" King Albert asked.

"Yes, the last remnant of that swordsmanship left behind by his mother," Archer replied, staring silently at what was about to unveil.

Arthur's current footwork consisted of 5 to 7 steps of motion, moving forward.

However, because it was extremely simple to follow these steps, it was hard to master them. These steps were also the key to unleashing the ultimate swordsmanship. As the footwork increase, so does the difficulty of mastering it increases. Because of this, any practitioner of this swordsmanship who tried mastering this footwork and technique will end up facing limitations and eventually give up.

Arthur on the other hand was one with no limitations. He managed to perform all 24 Techniques of this swordsmanship, learning it on his own. Even his master who at the time was his mother only managed to successfully learn 11 of the recorded techniques from her predecessor. King Darius himself fought against Arthur's mother and came out of the battle all bloodied. Arthur watched his mother at a young age that continuously swung her sword in the same manner, who even until her last moments on her deathbed, never stopped talking about how this swordsmanship was her proudest achievement, just like how Arthur was her biggest joy in the world.

That young boy inherited her mother's will and evolved swordsmanship himself, achieving enlightenment and earning the title of Sword Saint.

All because of the swordsmanship her mother left behind.

The Moon-styled Swordsmanship.

Arthur starts his movement slowly, generally swinging his sword everywhere while maintaining proper footwork and posture. Every swipe he made swinging, always ends in a crescent-shaped at the end of every swing, with his afterimages following every one of his movements. The swings all piled up and what was left was the shape of the moon with every precise strike. However, none of the strikes was aimed at Red as he struggled to even move. Every time the sword swung it always ends in the same position as the start, a hanging right stance with the sword pointed parallel with the direction of the user's eyes. 

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Even so, Arthur continues swinging his sword around as if he was performing techniques or entertainment. No, it would be more accurate to call a dance. Every swing Arthur did have a very beautiful flow and movement to it. The aura that was produced in this 'dance' can be visibly seen as blue energy circled Arthur's range of motion, accompanying his every movement like his dance partner. 

Tear starts forming in Arthurs's Father, Archer's eyes as he remembers his dearly departed wife.

"Elise...Arthur has achieved the peak using your swordsmanship...You can rest in peace now knowing that your son is your successor now...."

[Sword Dance...]

Ryong stared at this situation in silence. Never mind winning the competition, he was calculating how can Red get out of this situation unscathed. The opponent in front of him is stronger than anything Red ever handled before. Initially, he evaluated Arthur as someone who was just a little bit below King Darius in terms of strength. But what he lacks, he compensates with speed, which puts his stats just a little below King Darius's combat abilities. But seeing the sword dance performed by Arthur, he scanned his eyes looking at King Darius. Nervous sweat can be seen dripping from his forehead along with his facial expression. Ryong knew immediately, Arthur had already surpassed King Darius a while ago and this was the proof.

[Red, forfeit the match.]

"What?"

[Thou can't win this at all. Forfeit it.]

"No. I can overcome this."

[Listen to me. Thy opponent has trained for years and is a genius. Thou on the other only trained for a month. Thou don't even know how footwork is used. Stop being stupid and give up.]

"Hell No. I'm going to be____"

[GIVE UP. THOU HAVE NO CHANCE OF WINNING. THOU HAVE NO TALENT AND IS STILL WEAK. EVEN THOU'S MASTER CAN'T BEAT HIM. FORFEIT THE MATCH OR I WILL.]

"...."

Red remained silent. His opponent ended his sword dance and was done with his preparation. Arthur looked at Red, asking him this question.

"Last Chance. You will die."

Red who was still wearing his mask, remained silent. There was no way Arthur could see what kind of expression he was making. But one thing was clear, he was angry. Red's hand clenches his weapon so hard that it starts to bleed. 

"There's no harm in losing, you did your best after all," Arthur said in what he thought was comforting for someone who tried his best coming so far.

The crowd starts whispering among themselves again.

- There's no way he can win right?

-No way, it's impossible.

- He came too far to quit but sadly there's no choice.

- Hey, just give it up!!

He turns and looked at his master, King Darius. The King gave a sympathetic look on his face as he looks at Rwd with recourse, closing his eyes and facing away.

[RED, FORFEIT NOW YOU WONT____]

Red took off his mask, exposing his bare face for once to everyone.

The crowd grew quiet and stared at who was under the mask that reached the finals.

"Brat..."

With his mask still in his hand, he threw it aside and summoned Stix on one hand and Fang on the other.

"Did you decide to give up already?" Arthur asked, looking into the eye of the person who was under the mask the entire time.

Ref ignored him and stared at his weapons.

"Looks like no one believes in me, other than you two huh," Red spoke while talking to both his weapon.

At the time, Red was not aware that by talking to his weapon, they started to bond with him due to the emotion he was sharing with them. Especially for Fang, since it managed to sense the fire in Red's heart that tried to beat his opponent. Stix on the other hand felt that it was his duty to look after his brother, Fang so that he won't cause too much trouble.

He closed his eyes, re-opening them and faced Arthur directly head-on.

With Fang in his right hand and Stix in his left hand, he proceed forward. Facing against Arthur yet again.

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