Chapter 187: Fears and the reason to fight (1)
"Well, hello there, Mr. Deputy of the third-rate guild," Alfred looked at me askance with a displeased smirk. "I see you don't value the attention of the audience much if you allow yourself to be so late."
"Oh, come on, I just don't value your attention that much," I retorted rudely, brushing off the inquisitor.
"Tsk, that's exactly why I don't like you," Alfred spread his arms demonstratively. "People like you never know their place. You should be sitting in your little village, marrying some simple girl, maybe the miller's daughter. Yes, yes, I did a little background check on you. Then you could live a dull and aimless life, and die of fever or in a drunken brawl. But no, people like you can't sit still; they are drawn to adventures, great deeds, and rescuing damsels in distress."
"I don't see anything wrong with that," Alfred tried to offend me, but I'll stuff those foolish words of his right back down his throat with my fists.
"Exactly, you don't see it, but you should. Look at your surroundings," Alfred pointed to our balcony. "Nobles, princesses, even warriors, and those from well-known military families. Don't you think you stand out a bit among them? You're like dirt stuck to a perfect diamond - our princess. And people like you need to be eliminated before they ruin her beauty."
Of all the people he had fought with, I was evidently the most repugnant to him.
"Unlike you, I'm actually helping Katrina achieve something in life. And if we follow your logic, locking her up in a tower and using her only for the future heir's birth is the best option," I replied in the same disdainful tone to the temple acolyte.
"She's a princess! And you're just an obstacle stumbling under her feet. But don't worry, today I will free her from the burden of having to deal with you," he retorted.
"I was actually thinking of offering her the same. But what are you planning to do?" I inquired.
"It's a shame they canceled the old good deathmatches, but even so, I can incapacitate you for the next couple of years," he said with a hint of menace.
"How unfortunate that you won't succeed," I snorted with satisfaction, "because today, I'll turn you into a mess on the ground."
"Hoo, such confidence for a mere waste. And what will you do about my defense?" he taunted.
"I won't reveal all my secrets, but three attacks will be enough to decide the outcome of this battle," I assured him.
"If you're so sure, I'll give you an advantage. You can attack me with anything you want three times, and then I'll obliterate you," Alfred responded, performing his signature gesture. Crossing his two fingers, he touched his left shoulder, then right shoulder, forehead, and finally his waist. I always found this gesture distasteful, and up close, it looked even more suspicious.
"Or perhaps we could make the fight more interesting?" I suggested.
"Ladies and gentlemen, forgive the delay. I got a bit carried away chatting with my comrades from the team. But it gave you more time to place your bets on the next match. Just look at them! If looks could kill, we would witness a horrific bloody massacre. Class enemies and just mutual haters, Krito and Alfred!!! Will Krito be able to break the inquisitor's defense, or will he remain invincible? I know many have already decided that Alfred will win, but trust me, in this young man's mind, a cunning plan always lurks, waiting for its moment. I don't know about you, but I'll bet on Krito, not just because I don't like Alfred, but because I believe in our hero."
"As always, she doesn't know when to shut up," Alfred cast an annoyed glance at the stands.
"Hey, inquisitor, don't you want to make a little wager on victory?" I decided to catch Alfred on his pride.
"Hmm, I doubt you have anything to offer me," he replied.
"Who knows, maybe I do," I smirked suspiciously, "For example, I can offer myself as a stake. If you win, I'll leave the Academy and won't bother any of my acquaintances again."
"You're clearly overestimating your worth. I can make you leave anyway," he retorted.
"That's doubtful," I narrowed my eyes, showing him my seriousness, "If you think that losing to you means I'll give up, then you're gravely mistaken. And do you really think that Katrina will reject me just because I end up in a hospital bed?"
"Tch, that's why I can't stand people like you. But since you offered, why not. But then, before leaving, you'll have to have a quarrel with the princess, so she thinks you left because of her," Alfred said.
"Hoo, you're not that much of a fool. Well, then, for victory," I examined the temple acolyte closely. He was wearing the Saint Magic Academy uniform, white with gold trim. Over it, he had a white cloak to emphasize his affiliation with the church. Additionally, he had a golden embroidered cross on the Academy cloak, a gilded staff in his hands, and a round golden plaque with a large cross in the center on his waist. I wouldn't be surprised if all these decorations were made of real gold, to further emphasize his family's wealth. Any one of these items could cost thousands of gold coins: "For victory... hmmm, I'll take something from your attire as a trophy. It will hang next to the Hydra's head in our mansion as a sign of triumph."
With a mocking smile, I sneered, and Alfred clenched his teeth maliciously.
"You're asking for it. I hope you can still talk after the battle," Alfred planted his staff into the ground and waved his hand at me. "Come on, as promised, I'll give you a little head start."
The signal sounded, and I leisurely drew my blades from their sheaths. The ground around us was scorched by lightning and decay magic, not quite dust, but not lush greenery either. The dry and highly flammable dust suited me perfectly. I gathered the wind mana in my blades, more than I could afford, the remnants of what they absorbed when I fought Algo. Focusing on a single attack, I made a swift lunge forward.
"Blades of the Wind!" I swung my blades, and two intersecting streams of wind flew towards the target. However, before reaching Alfred, they collided with an invisible barrier and dissipated.
"One," Alfred casually bent his fingers, "so weak, I was expecting something more serious."
The wind blades didn't hit the temple acolyte, but they accomplished their task, tilling and swirling all the scorched grass around the mage. It was time to move to the second stage, like how Grain did, to feel the flow of dust particles and manipulate them as one entity. I started to compress the dust cloud around Alfred until it formed a dense black curtain.
"Planning a surprise attack? How foolish, but anyway, this is two," Alfred said without trying to break free from the curtain. Though his barrier didn't repel the dust, he paid no attention to it.
"In that case, consider this the third attack," I took out a small glass vial with black and red powder and threw it at Alfred. The vial collided with his shield and shattered into tiny pieces.
"And that's all? I thought you had something in mind. Well, never mind. Three attacks are up, and now it's my turn," I couldn't see the inquisitor's face, but he was probably grinning as he prepared to retaliate. Of course, he would immediately strike with his most powerful attack. "Firestorm!"
I only noticed how flames ignited at the top of Alfred's staff before the explosion thundered. In an instant, the black cloud engulfed the flames and threw the mage to the edge of the arena. I began to approach my target slowly.
"What was that?" Alfred was at the epicenter of the explosion, but he didn't suffer much damage. His clothes were torn in several places, and he had scratches on his arms and legs, but the flames barely touched him. Staggering, the inquisitor got back on his feet but nearly stumbled to the ground again. "Did you attack me again?"
"Well, noble and great inquisitor, I didn't attack you," I smirked with satisfaction. "You blew yourself up. I just set a few conditions for it to happen."
"I'll kill you!" Alfred conjured an enormous fireball in his hands and hurled it towards me. However, the spell didn't fly too fast and sometimes seemed like it might fall apart. I sidestepped half a step, and the fireball passed me by, even though it was large enough to engulf three people if desired. "What the hell!"
Alfred made a few thrusts, and dozens of fiery arrows flew in my direction. I didn't even attempt to dodge; half of them didn't reach me, and from the rest, only one arrow slightly scorched the edge of my cloak.
"Seems like I was right. Now you're completely useless, oh great inquisitor," I taunted, continuing to approach him. "Want to know why you can't hit me? Why you can barely see me? Why you can't even stand properly?"
With every word I spoke, the acolyte's face contorted in terror.
"You only just realized that something is wrong with your body? And you're not too quick," I smirked arrogantly, continuing to approach the mage. "Let me start by explaining how I came up with this idea. Your absolute defense is undoubtedly a powerful ability, but far from perfect. It consists of two shields: an outer shield, about a meter around your body, disperses magic and partially absorbs physical attacks; and an inner shield, enveloping your body with a dense aura, provides strong protection against physical attacks and stops any magic that passed the first barrier. I noticed this during your previous battles. The shields stop all attacks against you, but they don't stop things that pose no immediate threat upon impact, like Aileen's bombs that passed through your shield. However, their force wasn't enough to break through your inner barrier because you were prepared for it. Therefore, I needed to do something unexpected. Your inner barrier allows the passage of anything dissolved in the air, which you can still hear and breathe. So, I dissolved the trap in the air, but even then, you were ready. Hence, I had to provoke you to set off the trap yourself since your inner shield is only deactivated during an attack. Isn't that right?"
Alfred flinched; my deductions after only two of his battles exposed all his secrets.
"And the most critical point is that your shields and natural abilities still protect you from impact, heat, and flames. However, recently, I experienced something similar to what you're going through now. Aileen called it a shockwave, a dense stream of air that damages internal organs, especially the organ of balance. You were at the epicenter of the explosion, and since your shield lets air pass through, you bore the full brunt of the shockwave. You're in a state of severe concussion, feeling nauseous, dizzy, and experiencing double vision. You can't accurately determine my location or the distance to me. That's what frightens you now."
Alfred tried to take a step back but stumbled on flat ground and fell.
"What nonsense are you spouting?! I'm not afraid of you!!" the mage threw a couple of fire arrows, but they also missed their mark.
"You don't want to admit it because of your secret?" I sneered maliciously. "Your divine defense isn't real. It's an ability of an enchanted object that activates with your willpower. As long as you're confident of victory, the shield protects you from all enemies."
"I don't understand what you're talking about," Alfred staggered to his feet, but he stood there with his eyes closed, trying to collect himself.
"Most importantly, when you start to fear your enemy, your shield no longer protects you. And that was my main goal," I said. Alfred opened his eyes, and I stood right before him within his barrier. The mage tried to defend himself, but with a powerful uppercut, I sent him flying. After landing a few meters away from me, Alfred tried to get up again.
"You don't have to bother; I told you I'd decide the outcome of the battle with the first three attacks," I hid my blades in their sheaths and started approaching him again. "I could have made you admit defeat right now, but you never gave these girls such a chance."
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