Chapter 191: Fear (1)

I hid the gun Colt gave me in my chest and ran towards the Round Table area where the lightning explosion was echoing. As I ran, I watched the battle between Seiya and Leon.

I wondered if that lightning force was coming from Leon’s body that had been mechanized by Artema’s power. I noticed that five drones were floating and firing lightning strikes at Seiya.

Each one of those modern weapons moved freely and at high speed as if they had a will of their own, and they sent omnidirectional lightning strikes towards Seiya. Even so…

「Gyahhhhhhhhhhh!! Stop itttttttttttttt!! 」

The hardened Celseus ran in all directions and received all the lightning strikes aimed at Seiya.

Finally, when I ran close to him, Seiya pointed his hand at me as if to say, “Don’t come any closer.” I was startled and stopped running about ten meters away from him.

Leon was more impressed by Celseus, who was still standing in front of Seiya, despite getting burnt and emitting smoke.

「You’ve got great skills. What an incredible reaction speed. You took all of my Electro Bit attacks. Are you, as the God of Cakes, trying to make me let my guard down? 」

「No, you’re wrongggggg!! I’m moving against my willllllllll!! 」

Celseus’ anguished cry echoed around the area. 『In order to protect Seiya, Celseus’ hardened body will move automatically and become his shield』…That was the Daunting Pose skill that Ardama bestowed upon him in the Underworld. However, Leon didn’t know about that, and…

「I want your Artema after all. 」

He said this with amusement. Anyway, thanks to Celseus taking all of the lightning strikes, all of the Electro Bit attacks seemed to be temporarily recharged with new energy. Taking advantage of that opportunity, multiple Automatic Phoenixes were fired from Seiya’s body, which was burning with a fiery aura.

…He was planning to counter Leon with Automatic Phoenix!

Knowing Seiya, he probably didn’t think of it on the spot. He must had been simulating what would happen if the enemy used a mid-range lightning weapon. As soon as they were fired from Seiya’s body, the Automatic Phoenixes charged in, engulfing the Electro Bit strikes and causing them to self-destruct…

「So…So fast! 」

I couldn’t help but scream. The Electro Bit moved extremely fast between the round table like the Automatic Phoenixes at an unprecedented speed.

…Even at a glance, that was ten times faster than the Automatic Phoenixes! I couldn’t keep up with them…Wait, what?!

Then I realized. The Automatic Phoenixes were still emerging from Seiya’s body! Before I knew it, over a hundred Automatic Phoenixes were flying around the area!

The flock of Phoenixes, inferior in speed but superior in numbers, blocked Electro Bit’s path and surrounded them, self-destructing. The self-destruction of one Phoenix caused a chain reaction of the other Phoenixes, exploding and engulfing the Electro Bit.

Leon’s demeanor clearly changed after seeing all the Electro Bit strikes fall to the floor like ashes. Without professing a word, Leon picked up the cylindrical grip attached to his waist. There was a dull buzzing sound, and a blade emitting lightning appeared from his grip!

「 “Electro Blade” …the lightning power of the Thunder Beast Artema got transformed into a blade. 」

…It was ultra-modern technology as well! It looked like a lightsaber!

I swallowed hard. It seemed that Leon was planning to launch a close-quarters attack after the mid-range attack with the Electro Bit strikes. Seiya must had realized what I was thinking, as he glanced at Celseus, who was standing in front of him with the Daunting Pose.

「I don’t need you anymore. Get out of the way. 」

Seiya immediately removed the Daunting Pose and kicked Celseus away. Celseus flew towards me while screaming.

「Hmm…Are you okay? 」

「I’m not okay!! That bastard kicked me like crazy as soon as he removed the Daunting Pose!! That hurts, damn it!! 」

「But I think it was Seiya’s kindness to make you retreat from the close combat. I know from past experiences that Leon’s sword can kill us gods. 」

「It…It’s true that Leon said he wanted my Artema…Could it be that Mister Seiya was protecting me…? 」

「Well, I don’t know. 」

「…!? Then, don’t just say whatever you want!! 」

Celseus shouted angrily. However, I was concerned about the battle situation, so I ignored him.

As Leon prepared his Electro Blade, Seiya unsheathed the Egzation sword from his waist. Compared to the enemy’s modern weapons, Egzation looked like an antique sword. I had a bad feeling about it.

「Hey, hey, Celseus. Egzation is the strongest holy sword in Geabrande. But do you think it can withstand that laser-like blade? 」

Celseus was still the Swordsman God after all. As expected, he began to seriously watch the battle between the two.

「Let’s see. When their swords clash, Egzation will not withstand its force, and Mister Seiya will end up getting hit by the lightning blade. 」

「I…I thought so…」

Ignoring our worries, Leon pointed his Electro Blade forward and charged at Seiya with incredible speed.

「Seiya!! 」

I shouted in worry. Nonetheless…there was a loud snap of electricity! Seiya’s Egzation blocked the lightsaber of Electro Blade! Then, Seiya took a little distance from Leon after that brief contact.

「Ah, I’m relieved! 」

「He’s holding up well! 」

Perhaps Seiya heard our voices of relief, because he spoke without even turning around to face us.

「I tested it beforehand, obviously. Egzation can protect against materials that aren’t solid. 」

As he said this, Seiya tightened the grip of Egzation’s handle.

「In addition, I’m wearing five layers of rubber gloves to prevent electric shock. 」

「Rubber gloves!? And five layers!? 」

Looking more closely, I noticed that Seiya was wearing skin-colored gloves on both his hands. They had the same color as his skin. So that’s why I didn’t notice until he pointed it out even though I was the tense battle. Actually, Seiya was also far away from me.

…They looked like kitchen gloves, so they weren’t very cool, but…it would be terrible if he got electrocuted by the lightsaber, so fashion didn’t matter here!

I understood that, for now. Well, I didn’t think it was necessary to use five layers.

「Then I’ll go first. 」

Seiya declared those words while surrounded by a fiery aura. He immediately approached Leon with a fiery sword attack, moving at a speed that seemed to teleport him!

「Phoenix Drive Eternal Sword EX. 」

…Adenela’s technique with a fiery magic sword! And that was added to the holy sword Egzation!

The fiery aura was like a wall, rushing towards Leon…that was what I saw. Leon’s body was grazed by the fiery Egzation several times over, since he couldn’t defend himself with his Electro Blade. Leon was unable to fight back, and it seemed that he was only able to withstand Seiya’s attacks on the defensive.

Celseus muttered to himself.

「John Dae said he was a powerful Artemizer, but…Mister Seiya is overwhelmingly powerful as well. 」

I nodded at his words. Duke Leon was the reincarnation of the Grand Leon and the Artemizer of the Thunder Beast. However, I could clearly feel the difference in level between him and Seiya.

…This was Seiya’s attack power! It was due to the Egzation skill, “Full Haste”! All the training he had done so far plus the power of the holy sword! And even more! This was actually his second fight against Leon! Seiya had a perfect grasp of the Grand Leon’s attributes and had simulated the modern lightning weapon that got derived from it!

Before the battle began, Seiya said, “I’ll finish this fight in fifteen minutes.” It was a rare victorious declaration from Seiya himself, but he might had seen the difference in their ultimate strength.

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Sorry for this delay…but here it comes! Finally!

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