Mortal Combat VS Grave
Grave’s strength had increased even more compared to the last time I saw him.
Judging from the pressure that I could feel on my skin, he had surpassed a fellow rank 5 like Feld and approaching the level of people like Dalton or master.
「……You didn’t heal that left arm?」
Grave was waiting for me alone inside a vast room made of stone. When I asked him that, he raised his eyebrow slightly and moved his fingers while making artificial arm that was made from magic iron to creak to show it off.
「It would be a waste of time spending half a year or a year to regenerate my arm. You also think so right, Aria?」
「……True.」
We exchanged a light talk. I finished gathering the minimum information from conversation and stepped forward soundlessly. In contrast Grave started walking while making loud footstep intentionally.
「Now Aria, let me see your “way of life”.」
──*Dan!*
Grave and I kicked on the floor at the same time and leaped forward. We crossed each other midair.
I kicked on the air to move midair and dodged the sword that Grave swung with his flesh and blood arm. Even so I was unable to dodge it fully and a shallow cut was left on my shoulder.
Before Grave was using two swords. But why didn’t he use his left arm this time?
Was it because he couldn’t move his artificial arm well? ……No. That was because his left arm didn’t need “weapon” anymore.
Inside the world where only my thought was accelerating while both us were midair, Grave slowly turned his left arm toward me.
「Tsu!」
That bad premonition made me rotated the slashing pendulum that I left behind when leaping forward. The slash that came from the side was deflected by Grave with his artificial arm. I landed on the ground and took a distance from him once more.
「You’re being really careful. Where is your favorite poison? Show me your whole strength.」
「…………」
It was dangerous to fight an opponent who possessed an unknown trump card head on. Even so there was something that I learned from this short exchange. That magic iron arm was largely the reason of the increase in Grave’s combat strength.
Artificial limb wasn’t developed well in this world. Usually people would cure their loss of limb with Cure sorcery if they had a certain degree of wealth. Only those who didn’t have the money for six months long treatment chose to wear artificial limb.
But Grave’s artificial arm could move, even until the fingers. Originally the quality of equipment didn’t affect the combat strength in appraisal, but judging from the magic particles that my eyes were seeing, that artificial arm must be a very high performance magic tool. It even surpassed his original arm in hardness and strength. Most likely it contained some kind of gimmick just like my boots.
Observe it, then expose its ability. I could rival Grave only in speed and observational ability that I had trained.
「I’ll come to you if you won’t come!」
Grave repositioned the one-handed sword in his right hand and leaped forward. I too immediately swept aside my skirt and pulled out knife from thigh and threw it, but Grave struck it down with his left artificial arm without slowing down.
「──Dark Mist──」
「Useless!」
The mist of darkness that I casted was swept away with a swing of his artificial arm. From the start my magic wouldn’t have any great effect to Grave, but it seemed that artificial arm had the effect of dispersing mana to some degree like his previous magic sword.
「HAAAH!」
*Dogon!!*
I dodged. At the same time the sword that Grave swung broke the stone floor.
「What’s wrong Aria……have you only trained to run around!」
Grave repeatedly spoke obvious provocations.
Grave who was originally a light warrior type had switched to become a pure warrior type. He often got thought as a scout based on his responsibility in black ops, but originally his fundamentally fighting style was as a [warrior].
My fighting style wasn’t suited to get into head-on sword exchange against a knight. But, I had my own way of fighting even against a knight.
「──Shadow Snatch──」
「Nu!」
Grave raised his guard against my original dark magic. This guy was there when I used it against Nero, but he shouldn’t know about its effect too. But Grave cut down the darkness around him with his sword before stepping forward without hesitation.
I’m using my trump card that Grave didn’t know about effectively. I couldn’t waste even a single move. Grave’s sword clashed with my black blade. Sparks scattered while my light weight body got sent flying to the air.
Grave pulled his sword far behind his back in that moment.
「──Vorpal Blade──」
A level 5 Battle Skill that unleashed five consecutive attacks instantly attacked me.
But I was aiming for that moment. I fired the crossbow that I took out from my Storage. The arrow got absorbed into the shadow of my skirt and attacked Grave from right below him.
「Guh!」
Grave dodged it just barely. But the Battle Skill he executed didn’t stop. But with the Battle Skill’s timing shifted even for just a moment, even if other people wouldn’t be able to dodge it, I had this.
.
「──Iron Rose──」
.
▼Aria （Alicia） Race：Human ♀・Rank ４
【Magic Power：２３２／３００】【Stamina：２２１／２５０】
【Overall Combat Strength：１３３９（With Special Body Strengthening：２５２０）】
【Battle Skill：Iron Rose/ Limit 232 Second】
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My hair changed color into grey iron blue like a burning iron. Residues of light scattered. I dodged the slashes with a movement that made my body groaned while my thinking speed doubled up. Without stopping I kicked on the ceiling and slashed at Grave’s neck like a shooting arrow.
「OOOOOOO!?」
Grave let out an astonished yell. His eyes I made the light residues flapped like wings and held my blade in ready while approaching expressionlessly. My figure was reflected on his wide open eyes.
Grave couldn’t move because he had just executed a Battle Skill. But──
「Tsu!?」
His artificial left arm alone was moving unnaturally. Its armoring opened and “something” shot out to cut me.
「Kuh!」
I immediately twisted my body and avoided a lethal wound, even so I got several places cut up and I rolled on the ground while bleeding. Even so I immediately raised my knife and saw Grave staring at me with a warped smile.
「So that’s your true power, Aria-!」
「…………」
The wounds from the slashes themselves weren’t deep. But my stamina would run out first if I kept bleeding like this.
What was that attack just now? Was it the gimmick installed in that arm? I glared warily at that arm like a beast, but Grave didn’t continue attacking and held out his hand toward me.
「You’re interesting just as I thought. If it’s you then surely you will be able to understand my conviction and become the shield and blade to protect this country. I’ll say this one more time, Aria……take my hand!」
Grave saw me as a fellow “mad dog” like himself. That was why he was targeting me, and if I had the conviction that allowed me to survive even then, he was thinking that it would be natural for me to join hands with him.
「I refuse.」
Even so my answer had been decided. I’m your enemy. Certainly we might be similar in some parts. Even so, I had no “sympathy” for you.
Grave heard my words that were filled with that feeling. His eyes glared at me for just a moment and he pointed the sword in his hand toward me.
「……Very well. If that’s your will, proof it to me then, Aria. Try stopping me if you think you can stop me with your conviction!」
「……I don’t need you telling me that.」
I took a deep breath while also inhaling magic particles. I dyed my mana that was strengthened by Iron Rose with the magic stone in my heart, and stopped my blood from flowing out from my wounds.
「I’ll have you show me your seriousness. I see that technique has a time limit. Can you dodge my “string” in that state?」
String……? String huh! The moment I realized that, the artificial arm’s armoring opened once more and something unseen flew out.
「Tsu!」
I jumped to evade using only my instinct. Even so I couldn’t fully dodge the attack and my shoulders and arms got cut. But my blood showed the attack’s true shape just for a moment.
「……Sharp string huh.」
「Exactly. I investigated the weapon you used and learned <String Control> myself. This thing is called steel blade string and not something that can be handled with your bare hand, but it’s possible using this artificial arm.」
「…………」
Steel blade string……I think I once heard from master that it was a weapon that an assassin clan of the evil race was using.
It seemed that it couldn’t be used without a special technology but, Grave obtained it from the evil race and he could use it by installing it in his artificial arm. This was a weapon that was specialized for assassination and it wouldn’t be that much of a threat against an opponent that was wearing armor, but this was Grave’s trump card against me who wasn’t wearing armor.
How should I see through it? I was forming a countermeasure inside my head while getting into a glaring match with Grave, then I suddenly heard a sound from far away. Grave frowned.
「A nuisance is coming huh.」
*Bam!*
「Grave!!」
The door at the back opened and four vampires with scorched clothes rushed in. Grave knitted his eyebrows seeing the condition of the man at the forefront.
「……Gostoura. Why are you and your men in such state?」
「Gu……, we were attacked……by that traitorous sorcerer」
「Hoo……for you and your men of all people to receive such serious blow」
Grave muttered with an unamused look. His focus turned toward me just for a moment.
Was it Carla who did that? It wasn’t like Carla to slip up like this, but it was also just like her. Grave understood the true identity of the attacker from that expression that I made for a moment. He suddenly treated the vampires with a friendly attitude.
「Then this is convenient. This girl right here is the greatest obstacle of your plan that I mentioned before. If someone so skilled that can reduce you guys into this state is also here, that means there is nobody who can stop you guys at the target place. Isn’t that right?」
「…………」
The evil race vampire called Gostoura seemed to understand something from Grave’s words. He nodded with a look of determination.
「……Yeah. We can leave her to you right, Grave?」
「That’s fine with me. I shall promise to take the task of holding back the one who attacked you guys in this place too.」
「……I’m counting on you.」
I got a bad premonition. The evil race’s plan? And I was a hindrance for that? I started moving based on that hunch to stop the vampires, but the steel string shot out toward me from Grave once more.
「Tsu!」
「Are you forgetting that I’m your opponent?」
Seeing Grave holding me back, Gostoura who was looking at me with displeasure let behind some words for harassment at the end before leaving.
「Grave. The wish of us and yours will come true with this. Just as promised, we will definitely take back the princess with us to our country.」
「Wha-……」
Princess? Elena was going to be taken to the evil race’s country? I turned my glare from the evil race that vanished into the darkness toward Grave. The guy then started talking with a disinterested look.
「It’s a long term plan of those guys who have lifespan of hundreds of years. They’re going to remove the capable princess and put the incompetent crown prince on the throne. And then after dozens of years passed, the national strength of this Claydale that’s in the way of the evil race will surely decline, but it’s not a problem. At that time I can just kill all the rotten apples while leaving the capable subordinates alone. You should learn from this. What a nation need is not a single wise king, but a suitable puppet for the wisemen.」
Certainly the possibility was high that the situation would turn to be like that with how the crown prince was right now. Even if the country became roughened up because of that, Grave was thinking that would still be better compared to if the country fell into chaos because of a conflict for the throne with Elena.
And then, even if the king was incompetent, there would be nothing wrong with that if there were capable subordinates to wield authority in his place. That was Grave’s declaration.
「The evil race was also panicking when the noble faction arbitrarily tried to kill the crown prince. Though thankfully you saved the crown prince.」
「What are they planning with Elena-」
「They will keep her alive. After all her bloodline might become necessary when the time come for a change of king. And she can also become hostage if it prove necessary, so the evil race too won’t treat her too badly. ……Now, what’re you going to do Aria? Without you at the princess’s side, there’s nobody in that completely relaxed academy who can stop the evil race you know?」
「…………」
I guessed, that their chance of success should be low. The vampires should also think the same. That was why they were increasing the number of minions that they could use.
But, the vampires who escaped Carla had received a serious blow and driven into corner. Because of that they chose to use a forceful measure of attacking the academy while Carla and I weren’t there.
「Come, show me the you when fighting seriously. You can only kill me and chase after them if you want to protect the princess.」
There were guards in the academy, and there were also the royal guards protecting the royalties there. It would be difficult for evil race that had different appearance from human to even arrive at the academy. But, if in the worst case they managed to enter into the academy, the average knights and soldiers wouldn’t be able to stop them.
Even if I wanted to chase after them, it would be necessary to defeat Grave who was holding me back as quickly as possible. But I was still unable to see through his steel string that was stopping me in place.
「……Got it.」
You told me to get serious didn’t you, Grave. I had already resolved myself since a long time ago. I had kept fighting until now in order to settle things with you but, if this was what you were doing, I would stop “fighting” you anymore.
「I’ll get “serious” solely just to “kill” you.」
「Interesting……well then, let me see this so called seriousness of yours!」
Was he enjoying fighting me when I was serious? Or perhaps he was just that confident of himself? Either way the corner of Grave’s mouth rose slightly hearing my words.
I dispelled Iron Rose and took out two porcelain bottles from the pouch on my waist. I suddenly threw one of them on Grave’s legs.
「Nu?」
Grave jumped back at the same time when I threw the bottle. The porcelain bottle broke when it hit the floor and some gooey liquid spread out.
「……What are you doing, Aria.」
「…………」
I had even stopped using my trump card Iron Rose and dumped light green liquid on the floor. It wasn’t water or even oil and it gave off no smell. It made Grave looked puzzled.
I didn’t answer that question and threw the other porcelain bottle on that liquid. The second bottle broke and the liquid that spilled out from there mixed with the first liquid. Then they started emitting a strange smell.
「This is……!」
Grave instantly noticed that it was [poison]. He covered his mouth and jumped even further back.
「Aria, you-」
「Grave……. I told you already that I’m getting to “kill” you.」
The thing that I used was the [corrosive poison] that I slathered on my arrow when sniping the orc soldier.
I mixed two different liquids that transformed into a deadly poison. Even a rank 4 orc soldier died instantly just from the small amount of it that I smeared on an arrow tip.
I kept it separate as two different liquids before because it would start evaporating the instant they got mixed. Even that vapor would become poison that gnawed on human body. The smell was horrible so when it was used inside a room, the target would notice and run away, but there would be no problem in this situation.
When mixing this poison, even when doing it slowly by mixing the liquids drip by drip required the mixer to cover their mouth with cloth and did the procedure with meticulous care so that the effect to their body could be kept at minimum. But, if the whole liquids got mixed into poison all at once──
「Even a room this big will get filled with poison gas in several minutes. I know the poison’s composition, have poison resistance, and am covering my mouth with a muffler that has been soaked in the antidote, even then I’ll still die in half an hour. I wonder how long you will be able to endure it? With how wary you look, the poison is not ineffective against you isn’t it?」
「…………」
Grave stayed quiet and glared at me with a sharp gaze to ascertain my real intention.
I faced him while he was like that and pointed back over my shoulder.
「The exit is over there. Defeat me if you want to survive. Your lungs will rot even if you kill me if you take your sweet time you know?」
Inside the dark room, only the sound of the corrosive poison eroding the stone floor could be heard. In such battlefield, Grave tied a towel over his mouth and quietly raised his one-handed sword.
「You are mad……. So your “seriousness” is not your strength or even your technique, but that mentality huh.」
「Don’t group me together with you and that girl.」
Grave knitted his eyebrows for an instant when I hinted at the existence of one other person.
Now, let’s bring this to an end.
*Clang!*
We kicked on the floor at the same time and closed the distance in an instant while avoiding the poisonous smoke. My black dagger and Grave’s sword produced sparks.
I was the one getting pushed back because of the difference in skill level and physical size. Even so I didn’t lose my balance and flipped in the air like an acrobat while throwing a knife. Grave who was about to continue attacking me stopped in place for a moment from that.
There were half an hour until I died. And if I fought with all my effort, perhaps my state would reach critical level in half that time.
Grave should understand that too. If he let me get away, I would heal myself using Treat and came to kill Grave once more while he was still poisoned. Even if Grave ran away, I would catch up in my treated state compared to his poisoned state and finished him off without fail.
In order to survive, he mustn’t give me any time to use Treat and kill me without fail in this place.
「……tsk」
Grave too judged that he would just waste time to have a clash of blade with me. He grimaced and opened a distance with me, then he turned his artificial arm toward me and opened the armoring.
「It looks like I have been overestimating you, Aria. No matter how strong you have become, you have allowed yourself to be reduced into a dog of the royal family who doesn’t hesitate to die here together with me. In the end you’re just a stray dog. You’re unable to reach the place where I’m standing huh……」
The unseen blade, steel blade string was let loose from the artificial arm’s gimmick.
「──Shield──」
This sorcery shield was originally intended to block sorcery itself, but it also had slight defensive power against physical attack like a glass.
*Praang!*
「Kuh」
I heard the hallucinatory sound of the magic shield breaking. The steel shield reacted with the magic shield’s mana and struck my arms and legs. But, there was also something that I found out from using magic shield even though I had to dispel Iron Rose for it.
The steel string wasn’t as flexible as my spider string. The string control skill also could control it only within a limited degree. It could be shot out with high speed despite not having any weight attached on it like my pendulum because the steel string was coiled like a spring. I couldn’t be fired unless it was compressed like that. And then from blocking it with the magic shield, I had also grasped the amount of mana covering the steel string.
The bad smell of the corrosive poison had gotten thicker. I was starting to feel slight pain in my eyes and throat. Moving a lot caused me to inhale more air into my lungs, which shortened my life in turn.
Grave seemed to be feeling it too. He pressed his sleeve on his mouth to shorten his breath while turning his left arm toward me.
「This is the end, Aria!」
Grave fired the steel blade string once more.
Grave, you said that I was aiming to take you down at the cost of my life. That I had been degraded into a dog who risked my life for the royal family. But you’re wrong. I spread poison in order to kill you without fail…….
And also……to corner myself.
「──Iron Rose──」
My pink hair changed color again into ashen iron blue color like a burning iron. Residues of light scattered away from my whole body and flapped like silver wings as though to represent my fighting spirit.
I dodged the string with a speed that was three times faster than ordinary person, even so I couldn’t completely dodge the invisible string and my shoulder was cut.
「I already saw that technique!」
In that moment, I felt the mana that was released from Grave’s artificial arm spreading out. Most likely it was to make the steel blade string that was fired straightforwardly to split into several paths before surrounding me from all directions.
But, Grave……the technique that you saw wasn’t the “real” one.
Battle Skill [Iron Rose] wasn’t such a simple technique. I couldn’t dodge the steel blade string and you thinking that you could kill me with that, those were all because I was unable to use Iron Rose correctly.
When I fought Gilgan of the assassin guild in the eastern forest, I sought speed that rivaled Iron Rose and reproduced Iron Rose’s mana flow just for a moment.
It resulted in my legs getting badly damaged, but it made me wondered if that action could also be used for controlling the Battle Skill.
.
▼Aria (Alicia) Race：Human♀・Rank ４
【Magic Power：１６３／３００】【Stamina：１４４／２５０】
【Strength：10（22）】【Endurance：10（22）】【Speed：17（36）】【Dexterity：９（10）】
【Overall Combat Strength：１３３９（During Special Body Strengthening：２５２０）】
【Battle Skill：Iron Rose/ Limit 163 Second】
.
I filled my legs with the strength of my whole body and dodged the approaching blades by relying on the killing intent enveloping them. Even so my arms and flanks got shallowly slashed.
Get serious. Drive yourself until the corner with no way out. You’ll die if you lose here. Then nobody will save Elena. It’s still not enough. Faster. Strain your eyes. Focus. The strength to fight is already inside yourself.
The faint mana that was inside the steel blade string. The killing intent that wanted to end my life. And then the mana of my blood that was stuck on the dozen or so steel strings after slashing me so many times, approaching from all direction. They all showed me the strings’ position just for an instant.
I tore away the muffler that was covering my mouth and took a deep breath without regard of the poison in order to exert my full strength. Then I yelled a word in spirit language.
「A Re-!」
.
▼Aria (Alicia) Race：Human♀・Rank ４
【Magic Power：１59／３2０】【Stamina：113／２５０】
【Strength：10（14）】▽8DOWN【Endurance：10（14）】▽8DOWN
【Speed：17（52）】△16UP【Dexterity：９（10）】
【Overall Combat Strength：１３３９（During Special Body Strengthening：２５２０）】
【Battle Skill：Iron Rose/ Limit 159 Second】
.
In that moment, my field of vision turned grey just like in the battle at that forest. While the scenery was moving slowly as though we were inside molasses, I slipped through the trajectory of the blades that I saw just for an instant and closed the distance to Grave. I passed him as his eyes slowly widened and tore his throat with my black knife at the same time.
Blood sprayed everywhere. Meanwhile I noticed how my whole body was screaming in pain and immediately dispelled Iron Rose while siding on the ground. Grave turned around with an aghast look and I met his dark red eyes.
「……Guo」
Grave tried to say something, but blood spilled out from his mouth instead.
「Cough……」
I also spat out blood because of the poison that I inhaled. I didn’t wipe it away and raised my black knife at the ready.
There wasn’t any difference with our “way of life”. But, at the last moment, when you became “aware” of death, you stopped moving and relied on your artificial arm, while I struggled to overcome death.
「「…………」」
We stared at each other without moving at all. Grave’s right arm stabbed his sword into the ground, while his artificial left arm also stopped moving as though it had lost its function.
Even so I kept my knife raised in vigilance. I received Grave’s eyes that were filled with ghastly glint with a cold gaze.
「I’ll watch you until you die……」
「…………」
I didn’t let my guard down for even a moment. Was it anger or despair that rose into Grave’s head when he heard my words?
The blood that was flowing out from Grave’s neck was eroding his life. Just like when I killed a bandit leader as my first experience, I continued to stare at him with my knife at the ready until all spirits and light vanished from those eyes and he lost his life.
「Grave……as I thought, you and I can’t understand each other.」
.
▼ Aria (Alicia) Race : Human♀ – Rank 4
【Magic Power : 121/320】△20UP【Stamina : 75/250】
【Strength : 10 (14)】【Endurance : 10 (14)】【Agility : 17 (24)】【Dexterity : 9】
《Short Sword Skill Level 4》《Martial Art Level 4》
《Throwing Level 4》《Archery Level 2》《Defense Level 4》《String Control Level 4》
《Light Magic Level 3》《Darkness Magic Level 4》《Non-Elemental Magic Level 4》
《Daily Life Magic×６》《Magic Power Control Level 5》△1Up《Pressure Level 4》
《Stealth Level 4》《Night Vision Level 2》《Search Level 4》
《Poison Resistance Level 3》《Abnormal Status Resistance Level 1》
《Simple Appraisal》
【Overall Combat Strength : 1428 (With Body Strengthening : 1774)】△ 89 UP
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