Chapter 225 The Smart Decision

—

After witnessing the last bits of Kieran's previous fight once the walls dropped, Azahara understood that Kieran wasn't an opponent to be taken lightly. She would only be fooling herself if she considered him an inferior opponent due to the lack of aura.

Azahara knew that a reined-in aura was a sign of exceptional control, meaning one had obtained a primary mastery over their power. Therefore, Azahara unleashed her Mana Manifestation from the beginning of the battle.

"Mana Manifestation: Tempestuous Storm Bird!" Azahara cried out in a solemn tone.

Kieran extended his hand and materialized Crimson Ashrune in his grasp.

During that time, he watched as the Mana surrounding Azahara roiled and flickered with fierce winds interspersed with subtle lightning crackles and water droplets.

'Triple Elements, is it? She's quite the talent if that's the case,' Kieran thought.

At a glance, Kieran could feel a connection between Azahara's elements and understood why she earned her title as the Rampaging Storm. Her three elements fused exceptionally well.

In fact, Kieran felt she could chance upon a tremendous power if she managed to complete the fusion and arrive at a unique combination.

However, that took time and practice, so it was beyond her current years and experience.

Once General Zeig's voice filled the arena, Azahara wasted no time dashing toward Kieran at breakneck speeds.

Both the Lightning and Wind Elements were known to enhance the user's speed, so Kieran understood it was her forte even without suffering a direct attack.

Kieran followed the trail of blue lightning with a hint of purple hidden within and glanced to his right before swinging Crimson Ashrune in a subtle arc.

Clang!

Kieran's greatsword met one of Azahara's twin swords, but something strange occurred. Rather than inflicting damage or making contact with a solid surface, Kieran felt as if his blade were dipped into a bucket of water, meeting little to no resistance.

Azahara's fluid movements flowed through Kieran's attack while her other hand whipped toward Kieran's leg, planning to inflict severe damage.

'Oh? My, my. Azahara is a ruthless little girl,' Kieran inwardly remarked.

Kieran knew at first blush that Azahara's attack was meant to interfere with his mobility as she felt it was more dangerous than his destructive force.

After all, could a force be dangerous if it couldn't hit its target?

However, Azahara underestimated Kieran's combat knowledge honed throughout thousands of battles. He had gone against countless people that shared a mindset similar to Azahara's.

Kieran swiftly pushed back on his left foot and retreated until his back touched the wall. Then, he braced one foot against it and smirked slightly.

"Grand Stomp!"

Bang!

Kieran charged toward Azahara, taking advantage of the propulsion effect that surfaced when Grand Stomp was activated without first creating distance between the surface and Kieran's foot.

While Grand Stomp's primary purpose was unleashing a tremendous amount of damage through a severe stomp, it possessed some auxiliary effects like the one Kieran revealed.

If activated against a surface that the user was incapable of destroying, the force would rebound through the user's body and act as makeshift propulsion to give the user an insane burst of velocity.

Kieran wasn't sure if the skill possessed additional utility due to its vague wording, but he did understand that its effects would improve based on his Strength. Unlike his other skills, the ability focused strictly on his Strength, ignoring his Attack Power.

Because of this, Kieran felt it was a skill with more value than some of his vital skills. That, and because the skill possessed five charged uses before entering a 60-second cooldown period.

Azahara was startled by Kieran's incoming rush, but she spun and manifested a surge of her element-imbued Mana.

"Storm's Path: Forward Rampage!"

A surge of Mana in the form of a storm advanced toward Kieran, but it wasn't as straight as the skill's name implied.

While it traveled in a forward path, the initial storm burst split into three sections. One section bounced across the ground, somewhat electrifying it, while the other rippled above Kieran's head.

Despite the incoming attack, however, Kieran rushed toward the center while extending his hand.

"Wrath Eruption!"

After familiarizing himself with this skill, Kieran was no longer limited to ground usage. He could control the distance of the eruption within a specific range, or he could unleash it through his hand.

Depending on his position at the time, the skill was liable to create blowback due to its immense force. But Kieran drove his foot into the ground the moment the skill activated and burst through the dismaying gush of blood.

The remaining arcs of weak lightning were directed elsewhere when Kieran swung his sword. Due to the archaic cloth ribbon wrapped around the hilt of his sword, Crimson Ashrune was an excellent conductor without harming Kieran.

At that moment, Kieran activated Crimson Ashrune's effect, Blood Boom, and swung his greatsword in an arc, discharging a large wave of condensed vitality with a rippling exterior.

"Sanguine Slashes!"

"Blood Wave!"

The Blood Wave was improved with Blood Strengthening and a hint of Fervor Augmentation, so its impact was more than Azahara expected.

Her arms ached after receiving the Blood Wave with a cross guard.

"Strong," Azahara muttered to herself after sliding back a few meters. However, the intention to back down never once appeared in her eyes.

Azahara swung her twin swords in a strange pattern and bizarre motion, creating an unusual seal before her body. The seal emitted properties of water, rippling subtly, properties of lightning—releasing strange crackles; and properties of winds, tousling her hair.

"Storm Seal: Aquatic Charge Burst!"

Pssh!

A massive burst of crudely mixed elements appeared before Kieran instantly, forcing him to block with Crimson Ashrune. The force of the attack pushed him back, making Kieran inwardly praise it.

'An attack backed by the force of lightning when it strikes, the raging momentum of fierce winds and unrelenting like the thunderous cascade of a large waterfall—truly an incredible attack. But…'

Kieran gradually applied additional power to his wrists, turning his blade until he could deflect some of the force. Once this happened, Kieran's body acted in one fluid motion, like a well-oiled machine, flowing in the direction opposite of his sword.

Whoosh!

Kieran executed a well-timed Accel Shift, moving away from Azahara's attack while suffering mild damage. Against such a powerful attack, suffering some damage was inevitable, no matter how well Kieran tried to avoid it.

"Vim Restoration."

Kieran controlled the inward burst of vitality and maintained it for his next strike.

Grand Stomp!

Used one charge of Grand Stomp to gain air and watch Azahara lift her gaze toward him with a deep frown. A sense of worry surfaced in her heart.

What did he intend to do? Would he give her the same treatment she gave Zerim?

Azahara's chest subconsciously tightened after thinking of this possibility. In the end, she understood Zerim was stronger than her.

Unlike Zerim, Azahara couldn't assimilate with her Source. The presence of multiple elements made it a difficult task.

Her understanding of the individual elements had to be up to par for her to assimilate successfully. Needless to say, they weren't.

"I wonder if this will work," Kieran muttered to himself. It was something he hadn't attempted to do, but it was worth trying.

A thin yet durable blood film appeared under his left foot as he leaned forward in line with Azahara's body below.

After a short instance of hesitation, Kieran activated another charge of Grand Stomp.

Bang! Crrrrck!

The film shattered as per Kieran's expectations, but not before rewarding a decent burst of momentum. While descending toward the ground, Kieran moved Crimson Ashrune in place to unleash an augmented attack.

"Wild Crash!"

BOOM!

Kieran's attack met Azahara's assertive defense, forcing her to the ground while creating a moderately sized crater compared to his final attack against Zerim.

However, the force of his attack made Azahara gasp for air with widened eyes.

"Would you be a dear and end this battle for me, Azahara? I have no desire to keep this going, but if I need to, I will decisively end this battle," Kieran said in a low tone.

Azahara's widened eyes regained their normal state, slightly narrowed and always defensive, as she looked at Kieran with an expression of consideration.

Kieran continued speaking when he noticed Azahara considering his suggestion. "You have already qualified. I suppose that was your motive for being here, no? You have proven yourself, so there is no reason to suffer injuries grave enough to interfere with your progress in the near future."

Azahara sighed after listening to the unassailable logic in Kieran's words.

If he could unleash any of those significant strikes from before, Azhara understood she'd be in a troublesome predicament. Judging by his current condition, Azhara understood Kieran was far from his limit in terms of Stamina.

"You're… a little monster. You know that, right?" Azahara pursed her lips until they formed an embittered frown.

"I've been called this once before—yes. Does that mean you'll take my advice?" Kieran questioned.

"Yes," Azahara sighed begrudgingly but ultimately nodded her head. "I concede."