Large fissures appeared on the ground and walls, and the entire palace shook intensely, unable to bear the power of the two heroes.
If Giacomo’s technique [Absolute Stillness] resembled a deadly form of art, then Reinhardt’s [Holy Blade Arts] was sothing beyond that.
It was a state of Divine.
Every movent he made seed perfectly placed within the flow of battle. Every counterattack arrived at the exact mont Giacomo’s defense opened.
If one had to put it in words, he was simply deconstructing Giacomo’s sword art from the very foundation and pointing out the subtle, almost negligible weaknesses.
It was a duel alright, but a duel with a winner already decided.
In terms of pure swordsmanship and sword mastery, he was not a match for Reinhardt.
Seemingly coming to the sa realization, Giacomo barely blocked the strike. However, the impact still sent him sliding backward several ters.
His boots carved deep trenches across the marble floor before he finally ca to a stop.
Giacomo inspected the several wounds opened on his body and smiled.
To an observant eye, his smile looked different. As if he was relieved, as if a great burden was lifted from his shoulders.
What was going on?
"I see... You have surpassed ."
Giacomo stared directly at Reinhardt’s eyes.
"I can tell that you are holding back. You had many opportunities in that fight to end . But since you didn’t, shall I take it as your wish to indulge ? Is it a form of paying respect to a fallen hero perhaps?"
Indeed, Reinhardt was holding back; he had yet to make any serious move.
Just like the other party said, he had several windows of opportunity to end the fight. However, he did not do so because he wanted answers and also a form of showing his respect to a hero before ending them.
Giacomo had seen through his intention and laughed carefreely.
"Indeed, with that level of power that even I can’t see through, you are entitled to hold such arrogance. I’m truly glad I t you here. This way, I can fight as a knight and die without regret."
The last of his words was spoken in a whisper so that only he could hear it.
"Since swordsmanship alone won’t work, then let’s raise the stakes. I’m sure you are all ward up too."
Warm up? This much power, and all of it was still just a warm up for them?
Listening in to their conversation from the side, Cecilia couldn’t help but feel astonished.
Unbothered by her shock, the two knights faced each other.
.
Their duel had changed sowhat.
If previously it was a battle of pure swordsmanship, then now it has beco a war of power. The one with better stats and higher attainnt in martial prowess would win.
Giacomo exhaled deeply and made a stance. His poise as well as his aura was refined and perfected to the extre.
"Let’s go further."
At this mont, the world around him suddenly slowed down to a crawl as the knight pushed his power beyond human limits.
Then Giacomo moved. He executed the techniques of [Absolute Stillness] with a speed that defied all understanding.
However, it was not just pure swordsmanship. Layered upon that terrifying sword art were his skills, abilities, and years of experience.
What he was executing was no longer just re sword techniques, but absolute destructive power given shape.
Giacomo began stacking the skills of his class, each one reinforcing the other like the gears of an unstoppable machine.
"[Heroic Cleave]."
The blade tore through the air like a falling mountain.
"[Skybreaker Thrust]."
The attack twisted mid-swing, transforming into a piercing strike capable of splitting fortress walls.
"[Titan’s Severance]!"
Each skill layered seamlessly into the next.
Each technique amplified the destructive power of his swordsmanship.
If one looked carefully at Giacomo’s blade, they would be able to notice that wherever his sword moved, a thin black line lingered behind in the air.
That alone was the telltale sign of the might of his power.
His blade was not only distorting space, it was actually cutting through it.
The sword slicing through space arrived before Reinhardt.
To any observing eye, the attack would seem unavoidable. However, Reinhardt reacted as if it was not a problem at all.
He raised his Solar Edge and countered using the Third Light of the [Holy Blade Arts]- [Radiant Cascade].
The sword moved with effortless grace.
BOOM...
The mont the two swords collided, the palace exploded. Shockwaves ripped through the hall, disintegrating everything and anything in its path.
From the outside, it looked like the palace had suddenly blown up. Chunks of debris and dust rose hundreds of ters in the air before raining down upon the capital.
The shockwave from that clash managed to tear through everything. However, it did not stop the knights.
Giacomo pressed forward relentlessly. His blade flashed again.
"[Heavenfall Execution]!"
A downward strike carrying enough power to cleave through a mountain.
"[Exalted Strike]."
Reinhardt answered, executing his own skills.
He held back just enough not to kill the knight in one blow.
Exalted Strike-Description: A single, overwhelming attack imbued with divine wrath.
Destroys anything in its path, including magical barriers, cursed objects, and even space itself. The strike leaves a scar of holy energy that lingers, preventing enemies from entering the area.
BOOOM!!
When the two attacks t, the impact created a pillar of light that blasted through everything.
Buildings collapsed, ground buckled. The power behind the two attacks was so great that the topography in the surroundings could no longer hold on.
Within seconds, the royal palace of Lunaris, along with its surroundings, completely ceased to exist.
All that remained now was dusty ruins and broken splendors of a once opulent kingdom.
And in the midst of it were two knights.
They continued fighting in the open ruins as their attacks spread destruction across the surrounding city.
Each clash of their swords created shockwaves that flattened streets.
Buildings shattered like sandcastles, and entire sections of the capital were reduced to rubble as the aftershocks tore through the nest infested city.
Ironically, the destruction wiped out countless lesser and mid ranking demons spawned by the nest and caused irreversible damage to the nest itself.
Sounds of its cry could be heard all around the city.
In fury, the Abyss Nest retaliated by attacking with fleshy tendrils and swarms of flesh demons and giants.
Thousands and thousands surrounded them.
Yet in the face of the two heroes who were fighting seriously, they were nothing more than collateral damage. Erased by the stray shockwaves of two heroes fighting at full power.
That being said, amidst the wreckage and destruction, one life still remained alive and free of harm.
That life was none other than Cecilia.
At this mont, she was standing at the ruins of the palace, looking at the duel of the two knights in a daze.
Although she was covered in dirt, there was not a single scratch on her person. Sothing that shouldn’t be possible, especially when everything around her was destroyed.
It was just her and the part of the ground she was standing on that remained relatively safe.
The reason behind that was above her head. The halo Reinhardt had given her.
Earlier, when the palace collapsed, she was certain that she would die. As she was closest to the battlefield, naturally the shockwaves reached her first.
However, at the split mont the explosion reached her, the halo suddenly shone with a warm brilliance, enveloping her in a golden barrier.
When the destruction and debris hit, they were unable to touch her the slightest.
The protective light absorbed everything.
From this, one could see how ridiculous the defensive capability of this thing was.
Even as the terrifying pressure of the two knights encompassed her, the barrier did not waver the slightest.
"What... is this thing?"
Earlier, she was too shocked by the performance of the two knights and afraid to get caught in the middle of their battle.
However, now that she was still sohow alive, she couldn’t help but look at everything objectively. More importantly, her situation and the halo floating above her.
"Could it be an artifact from ancient tis?"
The halo floating above her head looked gentle, harmless even. But that assumption could not be further from the truth.
What Cecilia didn’t know was that the halo was one of the only three items he received from Dioanax.
As one of the three items that were given to him, how could it be ordinary?
Just look at the other two items.
Divine Sword Solar Edge, a blade said to have been forged directly from the core of a newborn star.
Its tal carried the condensed radiance of stellar fire, hamred and shaped by the God of Light himself.
The second item was Celestial Vanguard.
Forged from the rarest god tal known to the universe, the armor was made with the purpose of being nearly indestructible.
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