Chapter 168: Tactician

From a distance, the Priestess silently observed everything happening in the arena.

Without a doubt, this was a concise, covert, and extremely efficient tactic, with a very clear objective and specificity.

While the Blood Clan Duchess was dealing with the attendant girl, her opponent was not merely standing idle as it seemed.

The answer lay in the threads.

Invisible, transparent, yet exceptionally resilient threads had long been gradually woven, under the Mysterious Girl’s covert manipulation, spiderweb-like in nearly every corner around Afalyj Constans.

Perhaps to prevent the keen-sensed Blood Clan from noticing it at first, she deliberately kept all the threads floating more than two meters above Afalyj, just out of reach for both the Duchess and her enormous axe, as well as the recently departed attendant girl.

This girl had a profound understanding of Afalyj, or rather, the Blood Clan and easily grasped the latter’s pride as their Duchess, being certain that the opponent wouldn’t strike first. After her initial failure, she lay in wait, unperturbed by the taunts and derisions from her opponent, secretly laying out traps.

In addition, she took advantage of the Blood Clan’s innate reliance on their flying abilities as winged beings.

If Afalyj simply chose to use her enormous axe to battle on the ground, the traps positioned at least two or three meters above wouldn’t be able to function at all.

But obviously, just as she predicted, upon discovering the opponent’s use of incomprehensible means to evade her attack, even disappearing entirely, the flustered Blood Clan girl instinctively sought to soar high, using her aerial advantage to assess the situation.

And that perfectly fell into the meticulously set web.

The delicate threads, seemingly soft and fragile, could, under specific circumstances, become lethal blades just like water.

With the Duchess’ body equivalent to a legendary being crashing headlong into the web of threads, the taut filaments immediately embedded themselves deep into Afalyj’s tender skin, even constricting around bones and joints.

Countless blood gushed forth, turning the noble Blood Clan girl into a veritable human blood fountain.

“Ugh… what is this!? This isn’t even faith-based magic! Who the hell are you!?”

Those invisible filaments were clearly specialized weapons aimed at beings like the Blood Clan who possessed rapid regeneration abilities.

After crashing into the trap, Afalyj attempted to pull away, but the threads countered, coiling around her like serpents, clinging tightly. No matter how she struggled, it just tightened the entanglement, showering more crimson blood and inflicting more pain.

What sent chills down the Duchess’ spine was that the mysterious short-haired girl, who just moments ago seemed split in two by a blood blade, appeared again but at a different position, that dark weapon which had pierced her skull was once more silently aimed at her, now entangled in threads, struggling helplessly in the air.

“Bang!”

The mysterious girl did not hesitate, nor did she conceal the deafening sound that burst forth as she fired. The roaring flames tore through the shadows directly towards Afalyj’s head.

“Y-you vile thing!”

Though visibly resentful and angry, Afalyj seemed reluctant to face the mysterious girl’s shot head-on with her physical body. She transformed instantly into a swarm of crimson bats, soaring into the air and narrowly dodging the “bullet,” finally freeing herself from the web of threads that had been tormenting her for so long.

But unlike before, this time the blood-red bats did not dissipate; they quickly reformed on the ground, transforming back to her original form.

Having gone through the earlier embarrassment, the proud Blood Clan Duchess now appeared much more disheveled than at the start.

Although the numerous alarming cuts on her delicate skin were rapidly healing due to the Blood Clan’s formidable vitality, the massive loss of blood clearly had an impact; her complexion had turned significantly paler, and even her once imposing aura visibly weakened.

“Damn it, damn it, damn it! You despicable creature! Is this even a proper duel? What about your dignity as a strong one!?”

However, the only response to the Duchess was another “Bang!” from the gun.

Faced with this ruthless and taciturn opponent, Afalyj lost all her temper and hastily raised her enormous axe to block the incoming “bullet,” only to be sent staggering back several steps, slamming against the wall before she could stop.

Now, the roles of attacker and defender had flipped.

Vilyric, who had been an observer from the start, could clearly see that initially, the power balance leaned overwhelmingly in Afalyj’s favor, even taking into account the mysterious girl’s bizarre equipment, the enormous disparity in their attributes couldn’t likely be bridged.

After all, as a high-ranking Blood Clan, Afalyj wouldn’t be heading into battle without her own arsenal of formidable treasures.

Especially her enormous axe, which was clearly a powerful weapon, judging by its aura, likely surpassing that of a spirit-level item, completely unlike something a being of her rank could casually wield.

Perhaps that was the source of Afalyj’s confidence.

Previously, the mysterious girl did not block the Duchess’ strike with brute force. She might have had the capability to do so, but it would have been somewhat strained.

The body that had been cleaved was actually just a projection created with technology similar to “mirage.” Meanwhile, she had long since stealthily moved using optical camouflage to another place, waiting for the perfect moment to launch her attack.

Originally, such tactics would have seemed pointless against the Blood Clan, who were particularly sensitive to blood energy, but evidently, in this battle, Afalyj was unable to directly sense her opponent’s position through similar talents, leading her to be continuously outmaneuvered.

This was the mysterious girl’s advantage, but precisely recognizing this point and exploiting it to its fullest was the key to steering the battle toward victory.

From the initial confrontation, the mysterious girl’s hurried evasive maneuvers indicated she hadn’t expected this opponent to be so powerful, and those tactics were probably all improvised on the fly.

As I pondered, not far away, the two girls in the dark alley had already engaged in a fierce combat for over ten exchanges.

It seemed the mysterious girl was using optical projections to attract the opponent while she secretly made some moves during her hiding phase.

At first, she had deliberately silenced the sounds of shooting and flames. Even when retreating and crashing against the wall, she tried to absorb as much damage as possible to minimize noise, clearly not wishing to draw attention, but now she seemed completely oblivious to the cacophony of battle.

In fact, having fought for so long, no residents of the Holy City, nor Temple Knights had come to check the situation, which already proved many points.

Apart from the oddly shaped firearm, the mysterious girl seemed to possess even more bizarre weapons, such as the transparent threads used to create traps and assist in movement, a cylinder that could extend a blade-like light as sharp as a sword, and small gems hidden on her person, likely used for creating optical projections.

Even the suit she wore, seamlessly fitted from head to toe, appeared to have protective, optical camouflage, and shock-absorbing effects, being practically armed to the teeth.

Thus, after yet another series of “bang bang bang!” echoes, Afalyj, who clearly hadn’t anticipated this gun could fire in rapid succession, stumbled backward with three gaping blood holes punctured in her abdomen.

This hidden battle seemed to have finally determined its victor.

   

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