The girl calmly said a name.
Gazef’s pupils contracted.
He was very familiar with this name. The man who had disrupted the Imperial Competition and defeated him was also called Astraea. The Sword Master of the Empire, the family with the title of the strongest swordsman, were they planning to strike at the Kingdom again like they did back then? Gazef drew his sword and stared at the girl opposite him with a serious expression. Since the Empire was planning to do this, he absolutely could not lose to the Sword Master again this time!
If he remembered correctly, the girl in front of him should be the daughter of that man back then. She is only 16 years old this year. Even if the other party has a monstrous talent, at most she has just stepped into that field. He is not without any chance of winning!
"It seems that you are ready." The black-haired girl saw him draw his sword and turned back to the adventurer and said, "Hanta, lend me your weapon."
"Oh well."
The adventurer excitedly handed his sword to the girl. Gazef couldn't help but frowning when he saw this. He noticed that the sword the girl carried didn't seem to be an ordinary weapon, so he relaxed his brows. Although the other party seemed to be looking down on him, he didn't think that doing so was a humiliation to himself. Rather, it was an opportunity for him!
“Let me ask you this: what will be the consequences if I don’t agree to compete with you?” Gazef was actually holding back some anger. The Empire’s despicable tactics were really annoying. Of course, he also understood that this was the right attitude to take when dealing with a hostile country. If the Kingdom could also use such tactics, he believed that the Kingdom would make the same choice.
The girl thought for a while after hearing his question before answering, "I haven't thought about the consequences yet, because I don't think you will refuse."
lie.
They both said in their hearts at the same time.
Gazef felt that the other party would definitely use whatever means necessary. He glanced at the abnormally quiet streets around him. Since they had resorted to such means, they would definitely not give him a chance to refuse. He said that he had not yet made up his mind, but he just knew that he would not be able to refuse.
The other side was thinking.
If she was rejected, she couldn't force him, right? She didn't have that idea.
Although the Empire and the Kingdom are in a hostile relationship, she does not want to start a massacre in the Kingdom. Doing so will not benefit her at all. And who knows if the Kingdom has any secret killer weapons. She does not want to test this possibility at all.
Holding Hanta's sword, Si said to Gazef, "You can attack now."
Because if she attacked first, Gazef would not be able to
This was her chance to attack. She wanted to see Gazef's strength, so she naturally wouldn't attack first.
Gazef nodded.
"Then I'm welcome."
Although he looks very bold and unrestrained, he is actually not a scheming person, and he does not have the pedantic standards of the nobles. The most important thing for him right now is to win this competition and thwart the conspiracy of the empire. Naturally, he will take advantage of any advantage he can and does not feel embarrassed at all.
Gazef rushed towards Astraea.
Its movements are extremely agile.
Alice watched this scene with boredom. Hanta was the only one present who thought that Gazef's strength was amazing.
Looking at Gazef's attack, Si, who had originally planned to use a sword, even had the leisure to tilt his head and think for a while, then gently raised his right hand, stretched out two fingers, and pinched Gazef's sword just right. The interest in his eyes instantly dropped a lot.
Gazef's attack was blocked. While he was still in shock, he heard the girl say unhappily, "Don't use this kind of testing method. Show me the strength you just showed in the arena and use your martial arts. Are you looking down on me?"
The girl let go of the sword and flicked her fingers lightly on the blade. Gazef immediately felt a terrifying force and was pushed back. Even though he tried his best to cover the weapon, it still slipped out of his hand and fell to the ground. He looked at his shaking hands and fell into a deep silence. He found that he had greatly underestimated the strength of his opponent.
Seeing Gazef distracted, Si couldn't help but frown. Could it be that this guy was really making fun of him?
[Chapter 25: Not a Dimension]
Gazef picked up his weapon again and looked at his opponent who was confidently waiting for him to adjust his condition.
There was some fear in his heart. It was an emotion that a living being instinctively felt towards death and the strong. He was not a saint who could turn a blind eye to death. Moreover, he had a mission that he had to complete and was unwilling to sacrifice before completing it. However -
There is nothing we can do about it.
This was a difficulty that he had to face, he convinced himself and adjusted his breathing.
Since the opponent wants to see his full strength, he should just use his full strength. There is no point in thinking about so many things now, because if he can't make it through this hurdle, he doesn't know whether he can survive. What he has to do is to try to satisfy the opponent, or take advantage of the opponent's carelessness to defeat the seemingly unbeatable opponent, and try his best to keep himself alive!
Si noticed that the aura of the man in front of her had changed slightly, and it seemed that he was finally going to get serious. So she entered the sword master state. Although she looked exactly the same as before, in fact, she was completely different now. Although Gazef seemed to think that there was a certain chance that he could defeat her, unfortunately, the probability was zero, there was no chance at all.
【Concentrated Fighting Spirit】
[Perception of Possibility]
【Water flow acceleration】
【Critical Scan】
Gazef’s momentum instantly increased.
Hanta, who was watching the fight, couldn't help but open his mouth wide: "You are kidding, you can actually use four kinds of martial arts at the same time?!"
Using martial arts will greatly consume the user's physical strength. Generally, no one will use multiple martial arts at the same time, but will use different martial arts in a combo. However, this is also a very difficult skill. Although it is not as burdensome as using multiple martial arts at the same time, it still consumes the user's physical strength. If you can't ensure victory, you will fall into a state of weakness for a period of time after the combo. Using multiple martial arts at the same time, not to mention the consumption after use, the body itself may not be able to withstand the effects of the martial arts and get injured. This is the first time he has seen someone use four martial arts at the same time.
“Is this amazing?”
Alice next to him expressed her confusion, because under her magic sensor, Gazef's combat power was only increased from 90 to 100.
This increase is not really that strong.
You know, when she uses a substitute, her own combat power can increase by 100+, but even if she uses all her strength, she can't hurt the master at all. The master's strength is so strong. She really can't understand why the master would pay attention to such a weak person. The other party is not worthy of her master's attention at all.
Hanta: “…”
He really wanted to answer that of course it was amazing.
But seeing the boredom and disdain on Alice's face, he thought of the rumor that Alice had defeated the Four Knights of the Empire, Lightning, and suddenly dared not speak. Perhaps he was really making a fuss. In the eyes of these two adults, this warrior chief might really be just a nobody. If the other party was not the warrior chief of the kingdom, I'm afraid that the Sword Saint would not even be interested in looking at this warrior chief.
Gazef heard their conversation.
Their conversation also made Gazef more clearly realize what kind of person he was competing with. The maid was not someone who was not good at martial arts. He knew this the first time he saw her. He believed in his intuition. Even the other party's servant looked down on the power he displayed. It can be seen how unfathomable the strength of the contemporary swordsman is.
But this is not a lament for the moment.
When the situation became serious, he clenched his weapon and used all his strength to attack his opponent. The speed was more than twice as fast as before. Hanta's eyes widened. He knew that if he faced this warrior leader, he would definitely not be his opponent. But the next moment he was stunned, because the sword master still did not prepare to draw his sword in the face of the warrior leader's full-strength attack. He just stretched out a finger, strengthened the finger with magic power, and then used this finger to block the warrior leader's attack.
In the blink of an eye, Gazef and Tsukasa had already exchanged more than a dozen moves. Gazef had already given it his all, but his opponent's attitude remained the same as before.
The only improvement he made was that his opponent did not wait until he had fully swung his sword before attacking. Instead, he found his weakness the moment he swung his sword and blocked his attack with minimal force, not giving him room to fully launch his attack. Although his opponent seemed to be more serious than before, which should be a cause for celebration, Gazef did not feel any joy at all, because his opponent had completely seen through his attacks, which meant that he could easily defeat him before each of his attacks.
Besides, it is not right to say that the opponent is more serious than before, because in fact, it feels like the opponent just changed his way to undermine his confidence. Just like when the previous generation of swordsman secretly participated in the imperial competition, their ultimate goal was just to undermine the confidence of the kingdom, and they wanted more than just victory. Did they achieve their goal? Yes, they achieved their goal. The previous generation of swordsman won the championship in the imperial competition and became the nightmare of His Majesty the King. And now, the girl in front of him told him with absolutely invincible power that no matter how hard the kingdom tried, it would be useless because the kingdom would never win.
Not reconciled!
Gazef grasped the weapon with trembling hands.
Then, a flash of light appeared on the sword.
Martial arts!
【Six Light Slashes】——
The fifth martial art! Gazef’s ability had undoubtedly put him in the realm of a hero.
Tsukasa's eyes shone with divine light. She had already copied and analyzed all the martial arts used by Gazef.
But unfortunately, the Six Light Slash move that Gazef used as his trump card was too weak.
It is very different from the Goblin King's Asura's Wrath. The Goblin King's Asura's Wrath can be said to be a means of space slashing. Slashing from different spaces at the same time, it is a move that cannot be avoided by dodging. The Six Lights Slash is just a splicing attack like a combo, but because of the faster speed, it looks like it is swung at the same time. But in fact, it is a move of connecting one sword after another. The power between these two martial arts is simply a world of difference.
Facing Shura's Wrath, she had to activate Shadow Step to dodge, but facing Gejef's Six Lights Combo, she didn't even need to use any skills.
Her fingers glowed with the light of martial arts, and the next moment, under Gazef's shocked gaze, she used a faster six-light slash. In order to thank Gazef for the information he provided, she decided to teach him some martial arts.
But at this moment, Gazef no longer had the confidence to hold the sword. He looked as if he had suffered a physical and mental blow. The seeds left by the previous Sword Saint were finally detonated by Si, who inherited the title of Sword Saint.
The warrior captain's sword fell to the ground.
Si exited the Sword Master state, looked at the warrior leader who had lost his fighting spirit, and finally said nothing. He turned around and said to the two of them, "Let's go."
[Chapter 26: The Empire’s Conspiracy? ]
Afterwards, Gazef was found by patrolling soldiers while kneeling on the ground with a look of defeat.
Seeing that the warrior commander had consumed a lot of energy from using martial arts, the soldiers sent him to the temple for treatment. However, because the soldiers did not pay attention to concealing the warrior commander's appearance, the news that the warrior commander was attacked and injured soon spread throughout the entire capital.
The king left the palace and rushed to the temple as soon as he heard the news. The nobles also gathered together to ask if it was their people who did it. Naturally, no one admitted it, because it was indeed not their people who did it. Moreover, if they could invite such a strong man, how could they not take the life of the warrior leader after defeating Gazef? It was not until the end that they learned from Gazef that the person who had approached Gazef before was actually the sword master of the empire.
Just when the nobles heard the news and were thinking of some bad ideas, the president of the Adventurer's Guild suddenly ran over nervously and said in front of the old king and the nobles: "Your Majesty, ministers, the fine steel adventurer Astraea brought the certificate of killing the Goblin King to the Guild. After the appraisal results of our appraisers confirmed that it was indeed the body organ of the Demon King Goblin King. Do you think we should give that gentleman an accurate answer?"
The expressions of the king and the nobles changed.
The former feels a huge threat.
The other party first defeated his warrior captain, and then went to the union to mention the matter. In addition, the deadline for the war between the Empire and the Kingdom is approaching, so it is hard not to connect these things together.
He looked at Gazef.
Although Gazef was a little hesitant, he still said honestly, "She is very strong. I have never let her take it seriously from the beginning to the end. My advice is that it is best not to have any conflict with her here."
He actually wanted to say that the other party might be able to destroy the entire royal capital, but when he saw His Majesty's old and tired face, he still couldn't bear to say it out loud and hit His Majesty.
"open
What a joke! The demon king is a legendary creature. You want us to believe that a girl under 20 years old defeated an opponent that even heroes might not be able to defeat? Even if she started practicing swordsmanship since her mother's womb, she couldn't kill the demon king!" said a nobleman nonchalantly, not believing that this was true.
The union president wiped his sweat and said, "So is this how I reply to that gentleman?"
Gazef frowned and looked at the guild leader.
He noticed that the president's expression was a little strange. It was obvious that the people in the union had already determined the truth. The pointless resistance of these nobles was just a joke to them. After all, if the union could not confirm this matter, it would not allow the sword master to be promoted to the highest level of fine steel adventurer. If he had not had a clear concept of the demon king before, and did not know how powerful the sword master was, he would have advised His Majesty to stop these nobles from the beginning.
But now it's too late, but we can't let these nobles continue to commit suicide.
Because the Sword Saint is in the royal capital right now.
With the opponent's strength, it is enough to break through the royal guards of the capital, break into the palace and kill His Majesty.
“Your Majesty!” Gazef knew that only His Majesty could make the decision at the moment. However, his behavior was enough for the king to discover some clues.
The king sighed silently in his heart and accepted the kindness of the warrior leader. In front of all the nobles, under the disappointed gaze of the president, he said: "Okay, as the king of the Kingdom of Re-Estize, I acknowledge the merit of the Imperial Sword Master in defeating the Demon King."
Although most of the nobles looked very dissatisfied.
But after the king announced this, they were tactful enough not to object.
The president put away his disappointed expression.
He originally thought that this confused old king would fight to the end like these nobles, and then the Sword Master and the kingdom might both suffer losses.
He said with regret: "Then I will take this news back to report to that master."
The old king noticed the president's performance.
I feel a little sad.
The Empire is not the only external threat to the Kingdom.
But the inside looks like this.
There is absolutely no hope.
Just when the old king thought that the matter was over, a noble suddenly said, "A spy at the front line sent back news that it seems that traces of the imperial army were found near the Great Forest."
The old king didn't react for a moment.
Gazef, who was still lying on the hospital bed, heard this and suddenly got up and said, "This is a serious matter. Your Majesty, please allow me to lead the army to the Dob Forest to confirm the truth of this information!"
"Warrior Captain, you."
The old king was somewhat reluctant to agree to this matter. His intuition told him that this matter was not that simple.
But Gazef glanced at the nobles.
He knew he had to go.
"Hey, Captain, this is probably a trap set by the Empire." A noble said at this time, "There is nothing worth protecting near the forest. If you must take the risk, please bring your troops with you. We will not send troops, and you cannot take the kingdom's treasures with you."
After hearing what the nobles said, Gazef just looked at His Majesty in silence. The king was about to speak up for Gazef, but at this time another noble said, "Yes, Warrior Captain, you have just been defeated by the Empire's Sword Saint. Maybe the Empire's goal this time is our kingdom's secret treasure. Since you think you are no match for that Sword Saint, then of course we can't let you take the secret treasure out. It doesn't matter if you get into trouble, but the secret treasure is related to the lifeblood of the kingdom."
king:"......"
Although he felt that there was something wrong with this matter.
But what the noble said this time made sense, and he did not want the warrior captain to go out and deal with this matter.
I feel sorry for the people living nearby, but the life of the Warrior Captain and the secret treasure are more important.
But facing Gazef's trusting eyes, he couldn't say such cruel words. Because Gazef was only loyal to his beliefs, and it was precisely because of this belief that he was able to gain Gazef's loyalty. Was he going to betray his warrior-captain?
The old king seemed to have aged a lot in an instant, and his complexion became even more decrepit. He was already very weak and looked like he would die at any moment. He asked Gazef, "Do you still want to go?"
"Yes, Your Majesty, please grant me your blessing!"
How could Gazef not know that this was a dangerous situation?
But he couldn't turn a blind eye to this kind of thing.
Whether for His Majesty or for the country, he must confirm the authenticity of this information!
