The Academy’s Ankle Reaper

Hulan confirmed that my attacks weren’t working and immediately went on the offensive.

Realizing that the opponent’s attacks couldn’t inflict any damage on him, Hulan’s assault became even rougher and bolder.

Dodging the nails that nearly grazed my face, I thrust my sword into his abdomen once more.

“Ugh!”

– Thud!

But the sword merely made a dull sound again.

There was a slight tear in the skin of his abdomen due to the shallow dragon scale, but it hadn’t pierced through.

How unfair can you get?

That’s the very rule Hulan gained upon becoming a Master.

While using that rule, his incredibly trained body remains unbreakable.

No matter how much you slash, punch, or try to destroy it, it doesn’t budge or change.

From the perspective of an investigator, it feels like I’m just using an invincibility cheat.

Getting killed and reviving has its own thrill, but Hulan’s rule turns the very exchange rate of that thought into something futile.

“I was still curious if the Master could effortlessly block my attack, but it looks like I’m still a bit skilled too!!!”

The ultimate technique of the Master’s Aura Blade counts what’s uncuttable, and he’s blocking it with a rule he set himself.

I wondered what kind of enlightenment the Master must have gained for that to be possible.

I originally knew about that rule.

According to the author, inflicting damage on Hulan using that rule is impossible, but he’s not completely invincible.

That doesn’t mean I can pierce through it, though.

His rule doesn’t activate automatically; it requires a will to trigger.

He must be aware of an incoming attack and think, “I need to defend,” before it activates.

In other words, against attacks he doesn’t even recognize, he can’t do anything and must take them.

The Master’s… the Dragon Beastman’s superior senses compared to regular Masters make me curious about who could evade his attacks, although I’m not sure about any other demerits.

Not that it really matters.

“It’s not like you crying about it is any different!!”

Just as Hulan doesn’t take damage from my attacks, I’m also completely unharmed by his.

By mixing the rule of bending space into my movement, I avoided Hulan’s relentless assault without a scratch.

Thus continued the bizarre stalemate between an absolutely unbreakable shield and the two of us absolutely dodging each other.

Students hardly realized that the Special Arena had been activated.

The Principal must have secretly set it up to avoid stirring unnecessary commotion.

However, a small group, who knew in advance, started gathering in the VIP Room where they could witness the inside of the Special Arena.

Among them were professors and students, but Carmel, who had been enjoying a date with Atlas in the Academy building just moments ago, was also present.

‘What do you mean they suddenly decided to fight instead of discussing??’

‘That’s just how it turned out.’

I was surprised when they announced an impromptu sparring session.

Though they asked for help to guide them in the summit, the condition being to spar still baffled her; she still didn’t quite understand how men thought.

She didn’t show it, but she felt quite displeased that their prior engagement was interrupted.

Yet Atlas needed to do what he had to do and fulfill his request, so she had to understand that.

Inside the otherworldly space created by the Academy’s Special Arena, the two were fiercely battling.

Hulan charged in, ignoring all of Atlas’s attacks, while Atlas evaded every one of Hulan’s strikes with bizarre movements.

At first glance, it might seem trivial, but it didn’t take long to realize just how terrifying their fight truly was.

Hulan’s attacks, which Atlas dodged, left deep scars in the terrain. And the aftermath of Atlas’s strikes left the rocky walls crumbling.

They had started on a craggy mountain of solid rock, and already, at least two giant boulders they used as stepping stones had been shattered as they continued changing positions during their battle.

However, every time they repositioned, Atlas would seize the firm ground first and unleash his attacks at an unprotected Hulan.

Thus, Hulan would take Atlas’s blows without a base, yet he remained completely unscathed.

I might not be fluent in fighting, but it was clear enough to see the high level of their duel.

“As long as both don’t get seriously injured… I can heal them with the Holy Relic, but please try not to hurt too much.”

Carmel could only pray that neither would suffer any major injuries before their discussion.

——————————

Neither quickly exhausted their stamina nor lost focus, allowing the similar situation to extend for a long time.

Occasional changes arose when the terrain collapsed under their overwhelming attacks, but all of those were in my favor.

With my ability to create platforms at will, I was free to unleash my attacks regardless of the mountain I stood on crumbling away.

Though Hulan, as a Dragon Beastman, could fly, there was still a difference in response time, and stepping on air differed significantly from taking off into the sky.

Yet, my attacks still didn’t seem to hit.

It seemed it was almost time to break the balance.

Not just another close-quarters exchange of Aura Blades, I prepared for a substantial attack.

“Haah!!”

– Bang!!

Hulan’s claws clashed against my Squirette.

When the two Aura Blades collided, a shockwave so powerful it cleared away clouds rang out, creating a massive earthquake that shook the platform.

Unlike Hulan, who was rocked violently, I stood firmly upon the stable platform I had created in mid-air and gathered my aura.

That was when the rocky mountain crumbled once again.

Taking advantage of the situation where my footing was unstable, I pressed the attack.

Seizing the opportunity, I aimed a decisive blow at Hulan’s ankle, but damned if my strike didn’t sever it.

While I couldn’t take off his ankle, what I wouldn’t have predicted was that I could cut through something entirely unexpected.

“Gah?!”

The space of the Special Arena tore apart.

A black scar appeared in the void where I had drawn my sword path.

No matter how simply it was created, it was still otherworldly space.

Such a thing couldn’t tear so easily.

Creating a new world is one of the pinnacle feats of magic.

The designer of the Special Arena’s otherworldly space probably didn’t expect a clash between Masters would happen inside.

As the two of us fought relentlessly, the Aura Blades manifested with such intensity that they affected space itself, and it seemed the temporarily created otherworldly space couldn’t withstand the pressure.

I knew this was a possibility, but I assumed there would be no clashes between Masters given that it was being installed at the Academy, or maybe they truly didn’t realize it.

It didn’t really matter either way.

What mattered now was the fact that the stage we could freely play on had been destroyed.

The sparring session was forcibly concluded.

“Ugh… Should we end it like this?”

“I don’t mind; do you want to continue?”

I casually suggested to Hulan, who looked disappointed that the fun had ended, but the Principal’s expression watching from the VIP Room had turned ominously serious.

It looked like a plea for us to stop here, but I certainly wasn’t about to interfere.

Well, what can you do when two Masters want to spar?

It wasn’t long ago that a dimension had been torn, but what can you do? Sometimes you just gotta endure.

I was fully willing to continue if Hulan wanted, but he shook his head.

“No, I think I’m good. Though it ended with a bit of a letdown, it feels nice to have sweated a bit after a long time.”

Hulan laughed as he looked around at the ruins of the otherworldly space.

Had this been a real fight at the Academy, it could have turned into a terrifying incident.

“Ugh, now there’s really nothing to do here; it’s not like there’s anything else to do for a while anyway, so I guess I’ll participate. If you want, I can agree to share my opinions.”

“That was something I could have ignored, but thanks for doing it.”

“No, it was a great experience after a long time. Now that I’m getting used to your techniques, things will be different next time.”

He seemed to be reminiscing about each moment of our sparring session.

This was also my first time fighting against Hulan like this.

How could I have done better? His rules seem invincible at a glance, but nothing in this world is flawless.

There must be a way to counter them.

I had previously only thought about the strategy against the Great Demon, but after the Sword Master’s case, I should consider the fights between Masters as well.

“So… is this the invitation?”

After the sparring concluded, Hulan received the invitation I handed him.

“Yeah, if you tear this, you can teleport immediately…”

– Rip!

As soon as Hulan took the invitation, I heard the paper tearing.

“Did you tear it?”

“Uh… Is it not okay to do that now?”

The invitation that had been intact just moments ago was now in two pieces.

With a surprised expression, Hulan stared at me.

“Wait!!”

In front of me, Hulan enveloped in light disappeared.