Ryan grinned as Zedart’s blade came down on Avale’s shield and shattered, Valee went for his legs in the middle of the swing and got a kick in the face for her troubles. Her hands still reached for his legs as he quickly snapped it back.

  At the same time his soulsword sliced to get a glancing blow on Zedart.

  The [Swordsman] used the pommel of his shattered sword to redirect the blow as Ryan tried to regain his footing. Zedart backed off instead of going for a followup.

  Ryan held back from throwing his knife.

  They were all exhausted, Valee especially. The orc woman mostly laid on the ground, except for the sudden moments where she leapt up and tried to grab any of Ryan’s exposed limbs. It would be a suicidal move in any other situation.

  But she knew Ryan wasn’t going to kill any of them.

  All three of them took a breath as Zedart stared at his broken sword in dismay. Ryan looked on in sympathy, having broken one of Zedart’s longswords himself.

  “Oof, hope that wasn’t meaningful to you or anything.”

  “No, it’s just another sword.”

  Zedart casually threw away the handle, then he unstrapped the sheathed sword on his back. The one he hadn’t used at all. Ryan held his breath… As Zedart unsheathed another plain looking longsword.

  It was almost a disappointment, until the light touched the blade and a darker green color reflected–

  Valee tried to jump at his leg again and ended up with his foot in her face. Her hands reached out even as her face met his boot, but Ryan was too quick on the withdraw for her to grab it.

  “Seriously, stay down Valee. You’re not helping at all.”

  “Shut up and stop dodging.”

  “I didn’t dodge, I kicked your face.”

  Valee stopped trying to argue as she laid on the ground, staring up at the sky. She sighed and closed her eyes instead. Ryan shook his head, knowing she’d jump him the moment she saw an opening.

  Then he turned to Zedart.

  “Anything special about that sword?”

  “A realm two [Smith] made it for durability and it’ll keep its edge for longer. No enchantments.”

  “Well that’s just disappointing.”

  “I wanted to win without it, but I guess that’s impossible with my skill.”

  Ryan scoffed, then charged in, Avale’s shield in his left and his soulsword in his right.

  He was going to enjoy beating the shit out of Zedart.

  Then it happened.

  Ryan stepped close and he–slipped. His eyes went wide as he fell backwards. Zedart didn’t take the free opening as he looked on in surprise at the [Rogue] who had slipped on solid ground.

  Ryan slammed his other foot on the ground to balance himself.

  Both of them turned towards the other [Rogue] lying on the ground. Valee had her eyes closed with her fingers tapping on the ground.

  She had a peaceful smile on her face.

  –

  The orc [Rogue] contemplated this as she kept tapping on the ground. In the simplest definition, it was just something that was the next rarity after Rare skills. In reality? It felt like it was even more than what her father had described.

  It was like a superstructure that she had really only touched the surface of.

  Valee had been practicing with her Epic from the moment she got it. Despite that she’d still suffered from backlash the moment it had come in contact with Artigan’s Epic. That had felt wrong, wrong and unfair. Both of their skills were Epics, she just needed to uncover more. Just like Artigan had done in the Trial.

  She sunk deeper, back into the feeling her Epic had given her when it had snapped.

  Valee felt the ground beneath her using her [Enhanced Senses], and she felt the Epic–shift.

  Now Artigan’s aura could be felt through the ground, it was No wonder she had broken when she’d tried to influence his surroundings. There hadn’t been any finesse and she’d tried to force her skill to hit such an enormous zone.

  Valee smiled as Artigan ran forward like an idiot, always charging in.

  Step, step–NOW.

  She targeted a small patch of ground for an instant, she shoved her entire Epic through the tiny footprint sized ground. Her mind strained at the effort. Her Epic went through her and into the ground, then it targeted the perfect spot.

  Valee smiled,

  The two idiots were staring at her in surprise.

  “Zedart, you can duel him once we beat the shit out of him first.”

  –

  Zedart nodded at Valee as he sliced down. He knew Artigan wasn’t taking him seriously. Even now, Artigan simply looked at Valee in surprise and not at him.

  His new longsword sliced down with all his might, right at Artigan’s shield

  [Desperation Stance: My Last Blow]

  The intricate kiteshield that had been impenetrable was cut in half. Artigan looked through the broken halves of his shield in surprise, then in annoyance. Artigan’s elvish features were different from the human he remembered.

  But the eyes were the same.

  Zedart met him with a stance from the first time they’d fought. A longpoint stance, point forward at Artigan’s chest.

  “Take this seriously.”

  “Fine.

  Zedart spun as a knife went flying at his own chest, he stabbed forward with the shortest distance to strike at the fingers. Artigan stepped forward, refusing to back off as he shattered the ground beneath his feet. Then launched himself forward into a close melee–It was too quick.

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  Artigan had been truly holding back.

  Even with [Desperation Stance] and [Sword School: Efficiency] Zedart was falling behind. The only reason he was able to survive was because Artigan had to keep smashing the ground beneath him to counter Valee’s Epic.

  Raw uncontrolled speed Zedart could handle, but Artigan’s reactions were clearly skill enhanced as well. It was like a wall in his mind. Despite the difference between the two’s skills he was going to lose again.

  It was more important than his own life.

  Zedart blinked as he dodged. His vision became sharper, Artigan’s next moves became easier to read. The desperate image of a desperate realm one adventurer had been messing with Zedart’s clear assessment of this much more competent, and much more dangerous realm three [Rogue].

  Step, back, point forward, watch for the reaction and see the possibilities. He won’t feint, Artigan no longer feels the need to.

  Somehow he could see it all.

  It wasn’t Artigan that had changed, it was himself…

  It turned out that he’d been losing his own mind to his Epic. He took stock as the surprised Artigan clashed with his blade and he parried the soulsword away. A knife flickered with a wrist snap as Zedart barely brought his pommel in time to parry it.

  This was not the realm one adventurer he had fought at all.

  Artigan had improved leaps and bounds and had embraced the adventurer style of fighting. He had adapted far better than Zedart had.

  It was time to fix that.

  –

  Ryan blinked as he took the first step back in the fight. His own Epic was still near its peak. It was like a self perpetuating thing, he’d won against an entire Guild and hundreds of monsters lay dead with the victory in his grasp.

  He was certain that he was stronger than any realm three adventurer in history.

  Yet here he was, being forced to smash the ground with all his strength before barely dodging the slash of another third realm.

  Something in the [Swordsman] had changed and suddenly his speed advantage was no longer putting Ryan ahead, every single movement of his was being read. Ryan was still faster but Zedart was reacting before he even moved.

  It started to remind him of their first deathmatch in the cave.

  Ryan sneered. He’d been simulating this fight in every single practice session since then. He went to pick three knives from his chest–

  Then the tempo changed.

  Zedart stepped forward and tried to bash him into a closer melee. Ryan flashed out a knife and tried to stab forward. His soulsword ready to parry the large blade.

  [Uncanny Parry]

  But neither blade moved. Unlike before, Ryan was stronger with his momentum in full. The skill struggled against his might as he contemptuously denied it. His other hand came down to stab–and Zedart shoulder tackled him.

  Ryan lost his footing, he’d tried to smash his foot on the ground but didn’t have the right leverage. Valee had taken that moment to snipe the ground. Zedart’s blade came down.

  [Instant Dodge]

  He flew backwards. Ryan’s first real active skill in this entire fight.

  Zedart charged forward. He was completely unlike the perfect [Swordsman] in his simulations. Ryan took another step back as Zedart advanced, the adventurer [Swordsman] struck down in a mighty kendo Men enhanced with a [Cleave] that Ryan had to sidestep.

  Zedart seamlessly switched to a defensive stance before Ryan could throw another knife.

  Then the bastard charged forward again, heedless of any high speed knife.

  They clashed in the middle, Ryan not bothering to throw another knife. He dug his feet in as he tried to really push his Epic in full. It did nothing to Zedart. Ryan had lost the momentum.

  It turned into a contest of strength between a [Swordsman] and a [Rogue].

  And Ryan lost.

  He jumped back and slid on the ground as he landed. He threw a knife at Valee’s body and she contemptuously rolled over to dodge it. It had been a half-hearted throw at her arm but the orc [Rogue] pumped her fist in the air and celebrated like it was a huge victory.

  She was fucking with his Epic and she knew it.

  Zedart stood there calm and composed as always. Ryan regretted dismissing the durable sword.

  Now that the [Swordsman] didn’t have to worry he was a completely different beast.

  The [Swordsman] blinked.

  “I gained another skill. [Sword Art: Barbarous Exchange].”

  Ryan spat, “of you did.”

  Then, , Zedart had the audacity to look at him expectantly, like he should have learned a brand new skill himself. That wasn’t fair.

  Ryan had to suffer and go through life and death challenges for each of his learned skills.

  Here these two were improving theirs in a bloodless match. He felt something shift under the ground again.

  Ryan turned to glare at Valee–then stopped himself as he saw her face.

  The orc [Rogue] was smiling as she kept tapping the ground with her fingers, enjoying her new skill. Ryan turned to Zedart and realized there was no arrogance from either of them.

  He was looking at him

  Ryan laughed.

  “Oh man. I really am stupid sometimes.”

  This was what he wanted wasn’t it? This was all according to his plan. Valee was someone he approved of. Zedart… well, there were still mixed feelings there.

  Both were

  Still, he didn’t want to lose like this. He brought up his own Epic, an unwieldy monstrosity. Ryan pulled up the skill description.

  Three sentences had been added. The skill now described qualitative and quantitative improvements in his aura along with a warning note at the end.

  It said nothing of control. It was time to change that.

  –

  A Tyrant and her daughter watched three budding adventurers fight with their new toys. They did not go for the kill or the win. The sword wielding boy had bridged speed with pure talent. The rascal jumped in at every opening, throwing feints and blows that stopped before a real clash could escalate.

  The Witch saw more than just the actions as she fell into her own memories.

  Xie Lihua watched Zedart take the shortest path to cut Ryan’s neck as the [Rogue]–slipped. The sword paused at the neck and drew back, then Zedart waited, expectant again.

  The rascal was frustrated at his skill and his own lack of talent. He grumbled but stood back up and took up a different stance.

  He focused inwards again.

  His eyes were in a trance, the same as hers.

  .

  …

  An old memory, forgotten history, superimposed itself with the current situation. Her own class was unable to help itself but pull on such raw emotions. She did not need her skill to see it all.

  The orc girl desperately tapping on the ground.

  She could see it in every strike of the [Swordsman].

  The [Rogue] replied back with his own actions.

  …It wasn’t quite the same, the rascal was like her nor her allies.

  History often did that, it liked to rhyme but was never the same.

  “Oh shit,” Gamielle muttered.

  Her daughter’s words broke her out of her reverie. She spotted the anomaly, a neglected snake eying the tired adventurers with greed in its eyes.

  The Witch Tyrant shook her head.

  “Foolish.”

  Reality was never that kind.

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