Bab 23: Chapter 23: It's... Breathtaking
The hundred-meter-high wave surged with overwhelming force, making the humans in its path seem utterly insignificant.
Erza lifted her head, her long and elegant neck reminiscent of flawless jade, sculpted with care and devoid of imperfections.
"Just a casual strike, and it can create a tsunami?"
Even though she had heard of Nate's magic beforehand, being in its presence now left her stunned. The sheer pressure of the oncoming wave was suffocating.
With no time to think, Erza took a deep breath and called out:
"Requip!"
Her body became engulfed in a glowing aura, and when the light faded, she was clad in a majestic suit of silver armor.
"It's starting!"
The guild members watching from a distance shouted excitedly as they saw the giant wave approaching. They quickly retreated, not wanting to get caught in the chaos.
"Is that the Adamantine Armor?"
"Is she really going to block that monstrous wave with her body?"
"Even with defense-specialized armor, that seems impossible."
Noticing some people were still standing too close, Erza shot them a glance and shouted:
"What are you standing there for? Run! I can't block all of it!"
These fools were always a cause for concern.
Holding two silver shields in her hands, Erza faced the oncoming wave and slammed the shields together.
In the next moment, a massive green magic circle formed in front of her.
As the wave came crashing down, it collided violently with the magic circle.
The force of the impact made Erza's face tense, and her feet began to sink into the ground.
What a powerful strike!
She gritted her teeth, holding firm.
But her defensive range, compared to the size of the wave, was like a small leaf in the middle of the ocean.
Soon, the water overflowed around her, flooding a vast area behind the guild, turning it into a lake.
Thanks to Erza holding off the first wave, the others had time to retreat.
As the water began to spread and nearly reached them, Gray suddenly stopped and clenched his right hand, pressing his left palm against it.
"Ice-Make: Ice Wall!"
With a powerful release of magic, cold air flowed from Gray's hands as he crouched and slammed them into the ground.
In an instant, the oncoming water froze, forming a giant wall of ice.
"It won't hold! There's too much water. Keep moving!" Gray shouted, as the crowd scrambled to get further away, each using their magic to help them flee.
Among the flooded area, Nate stood untouched, the space around him somehow unaffected by the lake water.
"Did she block it?"
Nate wasn't surprised that Erza had managed to hold off the wave.
It was just a greeting, after all. He didn't expect to end the battle with one hit.
"Requip: Heaven's Wheel Armor!"
Suddenly, Erza changed into a different set of armor, bursting from the water with a sword in hand.
"No wonder it's super magic. The destructive power is incredible!" she praised as she closed in on Nate from behind, giving him a verbal warning while swinging her sword.
"Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!"
The sword strikes came as fast as lightning.
But it was as if Nate had eyes on the back of his head.
He moved his right foot slightly, tilting his body just enough to dodge the first strike.
Then, with a small step back, he dodged the second.
The third, fourth, and fifth strikes all narrowly missed.
With precise movements, Nate effortlessly dodged all of the sword strikes. By the time Erza finished her attack, he had turned around to face her, standing close.
"It's no use, Erza-senpai. This armor of yours won't even let you touch my clothes."
"Don't call me 'senpai,' just call me Erza!"
Erza shot up into the air, hovering ten meters above the ground. She raised her sword, forming a circle with it.
Dozens of magic swords materialized in a ring around her, poised to strike.
"Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!"
The magic swords were launched toward Nate, a flurry of blades raining down upon him.
With so many attacks coming at once, even with Six Eyes allowing him to see the trajectory of each sword, there was no way he could dodge them all.
Instead, he threw a punch.
"Airquake!"
The air cracked, and a fan-shaped shockwave spread out in front of him. The shockwave altered the trajectory of all the magic swords.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
The swords seemed to gain a life of their own, changing direction to avoid Nate, embedding themselves harmlessly into the ground around him.
Erza was stunned.
What… just happened?
For a moment, her mind went blank.
It wasn't that she couldn't comprehend what had just occurred. On the contrary, she understood immediately.
Nate had used vibrations to subtly alter the path of each sword, causing them to miss.
The shocking part was how quickly he had done it—making dozens of corrections in just a fraction of a second.
Such precise control over magic was beyond anything she had ever seen.
None of the mages she knew could pull off something like this.
Even the Guild Master Makarov, one of the Ten Wizard Saints, probably couldn't manage it!
"Is he even human?"
Erza couldn't help but question whether this was something a human could do.
Noticing her surprise, Nate smirked and waved to her.
"Better change your armor, Erza. This one isn't working."
"I'll give you a tip: my magic power is far below yours. As long as this turns into a battle of attrition, you'll win eventually."
Erza took his words seriously.
"This is just a sparring match, not a fight to the death. But you're right, Nate. Be careful. Requip…"
A golden light enveloped her body once again.
When the light faded, Erza had changed into her Black Wing Armor.
This time, her appearance shifted drastically.
While the Heaven's Wheel Armor made her look like an angelic warrior, the Black Wing Armor gave her a devilish look.
Her black, demon-like wings fluttered as she gripped a single sword, diving down at Nate from above.
With a mighty swing, she aimed the sword directly at him.
Nate sidestepped to the left, moving just enough for the blade to pass right by his face.
The missed strike cut a long fissure into the ground behind him.
"It's not over yet!"
Erza followed with an upward slash, but Nate leaned back, dodging once again.
As Erza's relentless swordsmanship continued, Nate evaded each attack while thinking of how to win the sparring match.
Would this be a little underhanded? Eh, as long as it works.
After dodging another strike, Nate moved in close, extending his hands and forming a frame with his fingers in the shape of the number 7.
As he peered through the frame, he locked his gaze on Erza's eyes.
"How about a smile, Erza?"
Erza instinctively looked into his framed gesture.
In that split second…
"Magic: Snapshot!"
Click!
A sound like a camera shutter echoed, and a blinding flash of light erupted from the center of the frame.
"Damn!"
Erza immediately sensed danger.
It was just basic photography magic, but in this moment, she fell for it.
The flash forced her left eye shut, and she quickly retreated into the air.
Her right eye, a prosthetic, wasn't as affected, but her vision was still blinded by the bright light.
Too late!
Nate didn't hold back. He gathered almost all his magic into his fist and struck at Erza.
What should I call this move? Nate thought, still amused, even as he launched the attack.
"It's… Breathtaking!"
Boom!!
A devastating shockwave exploded outward, engulfing Erza.
In an instant, the Black Wing Armor shattered into pieces.
The shockwave continued, splitting the lake in two, leaving a massive rift hundreds of meters long in its wake.
~~~
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