'Damn, I was too careless'
Kein who was pinned down by Ben's threads, thought to himself.
He could feel the threads squeezing him tighter and tighter and sinking into his flesh.
"Let's finish this."
Ben said in his emotionless monotone voice as he pulled a dagger from his waist.
Woosh-
"Hmm?"
But as he got ready to stab Kein he stopped as he heard something.
Woosh-
"What is that sound?"
It sounded like the wind moving, but that was weird, there wasn't a single breeze and the leaves of the trees weren't moving, it also sounded very close to him.
Turning his head he looked at Kein who had his head down with his hair covering his expression, but when he paid a little more attention he noticed it.
Woosh-
The sound came from Kein, or more precisely, from his breathing.
Kein was inhaling a large amount of air, with a pressure that could not be exerted by normal lungs.
Press-
The threads that trapped Kein began to tighten more and more, however, this was not something that Ben was doing, Kein's muscles began to tense and press the threads, tensing them to their maximum until...
Swoosh-!
They snapped
Clank-!
The instant Kein managed to free himself from the threads that imprisoned him he launched an attack against Ben, which he managed to block with the dagger he was holding but was sent flying several meters before stopping when he crashed into a tree
'It got stronger?'
Despite the heavy hit and starting to bleed, Ben still had an expressionless look on his face as he slowly got to his feet
"Oh?"
When he tried to lift his arm he noticed that it was twisted the opposite way.
Crack-! Crack-!
But without worrying about it he returned it to its place without releasing a single noise. After making sure everything was in place, he looked back at Kein who was walking towards him slowly.
'What was that before? some kind of technique?'
Voosh-!
"Eh?"
His thoughts were cut off when Kein who was walking towards him suddenly disappeared, turning to the side he could see Kein crouched down in an attacking position
Swoosh-!
Thanks to his reflexes, Ben was able to dodge Kein's sword that was heading towards his head and quickly countered.
He placed one of his hands on the ground and threw a paw at the now vulnerable Kein.
Voosh-!
However, before his kick could even graze him, Kein had already disappeared.
Bam-!
Ben quickly spun around trying to locate Kein, however, a fist landed on his face sending him flying again.
'He's fast'
Ben quickly pulled himself together and threw two daggers at Kein.
Clank-! Clank-!
But he effortlessly blocked them and charged towards Ben.
Swoosh-! Swoosh-!
Ben threw two more daggers at Kein but history repeated itself when Kein blocked them without the slightest difficulty.
'I guess there's no choice now'.
Wielding two daggers in each hand, Ben charged towards Kein, apparently opting for a direct confrontation.
Clank-!
Their weapons clashed and to Kein's mild surprise, Ben did not back down.
Clank-! Clank-! Clank-!
They continued to exchange hits but Kein had the clear advantage inflicting several slashes on Ben's body.
"Haaa~!"
Kein began to exhale a large amount of air and the water on his sword softened
Clank-! Clank-! Clank-!
With smooth, fluid movements he blocked and deflected Ben's attacks, looking for the perfect opportunity to end the fight in one hit
'Now!'
Clank-!
With a strong hit he managed to break Ben's guard, leaving him vulnerable.
Swoosh-!
Kein made a thrust with the aim of ending the fight. His sword pierced perfectly through Ben's abdomen just as he expected, believing that the fight was over he relaxed his stance, but something happened that he did not expect.
"Gotcha"
Ben charged towards Kein with the sword still in his abdomen, Kein's sword sank even deeper into Ben's body but Ben didn't seem to mind as he moved in and drove one of his daggers into Kein's ribs.
"Uack!"
Feeling the metal piercing his flesh, Kein let out a groan of pain as blood began to rise in his throat.
'I have to back off!'
With that thought Kein tried to back away from Ben, but when he tried to draw his sword it wouldn't move
"Eh?"
He tried again but this time with more force, however the sword still wouldn't move, as if it was stuck
"Don't bother, I won't let it come out."
His attempts gave way when he heard Ben's monotone voice.
"I have what could be called perfect control over my body, every muscle, tendon, vein and even some of my organs are perfectly controlled by me. Your sword won't come out because it's being pressed by my muscles, I also made sure it didn't damage any vital areas, however you have severe internal bleeding."
All this he explained as if it was perfectly normal, leaving Kein surprised and speechless.
"In short, you're finished."
"But you're not in the best condition either, it doesn't matter that I didn't damage a vital point, my sword went all the way through your abdomen, it's a matter of time until you either pass out from blood loss or are transported to the safe zone by the armband"
"Sigh~ are you an idiot?"
Sigh Ben as he looked at Kein like he was an idiot.
"What?!"
Kein annoyed at how I was looking at him asked angrily.
"Do you know what perfect body control means? This wound might look serious, even deadly, but it's not too hard for me to stop the bleeding by moving some veins and muscles, and even if that's only a temporary solution I have enough knowledge to treat a wound of this level"
Splut-!
"Ack!"
Ben pulled out the dagger that was stuck in Kein's ribs and the blood began to flow.
"Huf...Huf!
Kein used one of his hands to cover the wound but the blood continued to flow without stopping.
He could feel his body slowly losing its strength and his vision started to blur as well
"Hahaha..."
But in this precarious situation, instead of despairing or giving up Kein started laughing
"Have you gone crazy?"
Ben who didn't understand Kein's behavior asked him genuinely confused.
"You think...you're the only one with tricks?"
He said with a smile and the next moment a familiar sound reached Ben's ears.
Woosh-
Kein began to inhale a large amount of air and when Ben realized this he tried to stab him with his dagger again.
Slash-!
But before his dagger managed to pierce Kein's skin, the sword that was embedded in his abdomen was forcibly withdrawn, causing him to expel a large amount of blood.
Voosh-!
Kein quickly pulled away and began to breathe at a specific rhythm, after a few seconds the wound that just moments ago wouldn't stop bleeding seemed to stop its blood flow
'That again'
Ben slowly straightened up after his wound also stopped bleeding, though he was clearly in a worse condition than Kein, at this rate he would be the one to end up eliminated
"What was that?"
"Eh?"
"What was that? I mean what you just did now, you did the same thing when you escaped from my threads."
"Ah, this?"
Kein smiled at Ben's question and as he got into position he replied.
"It's the sword technique my grandfather taught me."
Silvania Sword Art, a technique that was passed down from generation to generation by the members of the Gryphos family.
"I see."
Ben reached into his hip pouch and pulled out a blue-colored herb which he then popped into his mouth and began to chew on
'Flowering arcanum?'
We learned it in one of the alchemy classes, Flowering Arcanum is an herb with potent medicinal properties, it is very characteristic for its striking blue color.
It is mostly used by soldiers on the frontiers, besides its potent medicinal properties it also calms hunger, sleep and gives more energy.
'But where on earth did you find a flowering Arcanum?'
They were very rare to find one, I doubted there were any in this forest, did he bring it?
Clank-!
His thoughts were cut off by the sudden dagger flying towards him.
"How many damn daggers do you have?!"
"Many"
Said Ben who now had his hair slicked back as he threw four more daggers.
Clank-! Clank-! Clank-! Clank-!
Kein easily blocked the four daggers that were headed his way.
"That trick doesn't work anymore!"
"Oh yeah?"
Before he knew it, Ben was in front of him wielding a dagger in his right hand, at the same time he wiggled the fingers of his left hand and the daggers that had been deflected by him changed direction
'This is it!'
Kein remembered the day of the test to get into the special class, Ben had performed the same trick to try and corner that guy they fought against
"Fuu~!"
Exhaling, Kein loosened his grip on his sword and his eyes focused.
'Silvania Style: Water Art'
With fluid movements, Kein swing his sword managing to block three of the four daggers that were headed towards him and lastly blocked Ben's attack. Unfortunately he failed to block one of the daggers and it stuck in his left arm.
"Pretty impressive."
"Thanks, you're pretty good too"
Clank-!
Walking away from each other they resumed their positions ready to attack again.
Woosh-!
Kein again inhaled a large amount of air and prepared to charge at Ben.
The Art of the Silvania Sword is a technique that uses breathing to accelerate the flow of blood through the body improving the physical capabilities of the user. This technique also has two styles or 'arts' that are used depending on the situation
The Art of Water is a style oriented in defense and counterattack, the muscles of the body are relaxed to allow greater mobility and flexibility, deflecting and redirecting the opponent's attacks to look for the perfect opportunity to attack, however it has few offensive techniques.
Then there is the
'Silvania Style: Art of Fire'.
Kein's muscles tensed and with great speed he charged towards Ben.
Clank-!
Their weapons clashed but Ben could barely withstand the hit as he staggered struggling not to fall and with his arms visibly numb.
The Art of Fire is the opposite of the Art of Water, the muscles are tensed to generate an explosive improvement in the strength and speed of the user, however it is a style that consumes much resistance and has few defensive techniques.
Crack-! Crack-!
'I have to finish this fast!'
Kein could feel his joints creaking from the enormous pressure they were enduring, if he didn't end the fight quickly then his body would collapse
Clank-! Clank-! Clank-!
Exchanging hits, Ben was suffering a lot trying to block Kein's attacks, it was as if a huge hammer was constantly hitting him, making his whole body tremble and go numb.
Swoosh-!
Ben ducked dodging Kein's sword and the next moment he put his hand on the ground and threw a kick.
Bam-!
Contrary to before the kick managed to connect with Kein's chin making him lose his balance.
'A chan-'
Bam-!
Ben's thoughts were interrupted when a hit hit his face crashing him to the floor.
Kein who had hit him back was breathing heavily and at the limit of his strength.
Bam-!
Another hit landed, but this time in Kein's face causing him to stumble and drop his sword.
Ben quickly pushed him off and positioned himself on top of him and began to hit him.
Bam-! Bam-! Bam-!
Kein's face began to swell and blood covered most of his face.
" You fucker...!"
Grabbing Ben's head with his hands, Kein proceeded to give him a powerful headbutt that caused Ben to lose his balance and fall to the ground
"Huf...Huf...Huf!"
"Ha...ha...ha...ha."
Breathing heavily they both lay on the ground motionless, or rather, unable to move.
They continued like that for a few minutes before they decided to stand up again.
Kein shuffled over to his sword that was on the ground and with a firm grip he turned to look at Ben
Ben also picked up his daggers from the floor, apparently that he still had a lot of them was a lie.
They were both in very bad condition and on the verge of collapse, but neither of them had any plans to lose.
Slowly they began to approach each other, walking heavily, then they increased the pace to a brisk walk, then they began to jog, until finally they began to run towards each other
"Auuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!"
But when they were only a few feet away from colliding they were stopped by the sudden howl that echoed through the forest
They both turned to look at the source of the sudden howl
On the top of a moonlit hill stood a wolf.
But not just any wolf
Its fur was a beautiful white color, its eyes glowed with a blue light, and its size easily reached 10 meters.
A Fenrir, an extremely powerful monster capable of wiping out small villages all by itself in a matter of minutes
"What the fuck..."
And a monster that definitely shouldn't be found in this forest.