The last participants finally fell under the harpy’s claws. One of my stalkers and the guy who suggested forming a group were the last to fall. Both are very talented and strong; they’re on the same level as Shawu or Humyr—outstanding talents.

  Now they’re all in some kind of shelter at the side of the arena. They have to stay there until the mini-game ends. I can see a curtain of smoke protecting them from any possible attack. They’re all sitting down, watching me and the monster that caused their quick defeat.

  I stretch my body. I need to warm up if I’m going to face a monster this powerful. The harpy rises a little higher into the air and forms two dozen spears of wind. I answer with the same number of constructs.

  My speed shaping mana with Imra is fairly fast, and adding everything necessary to enhance my swords is quick too, but the harpy is even a little faster. The only difference is that her Imra isn’t woven; instead, it coats the edges of every spear.

  Our constructs fly straight into each other. Most collide and destroy one another, while others head directly toward us. Both the monster and I have to move to dodge.

  The next round comes immediately. Even while we’re moving to avoid being hit, we’re already building more attacks to keep the bombardment going. The monster increases the number of wind spears she produces, leaving some floating around her to block any incoming strikes.

  I have to move from side to side constantly, avoiding everything I can. Wind affinity is one of the fastest. My movements must be precise. A single hit could stop my momentum and force me to reveal other cards up my sleeve.

  I can certainly fight people or monsters a rank above me. That’s one of the benefits of being a limit breaker—my constructs hit far above my level. But at the end of the day, I’m still just someone in the sapphire rank.

  My mental strain is far greater compared to someone a grade or rank above me. I can’t create higher-tier attacks as easily as they can. Usually that’s not a big problem for me… but today it is. This harpy is, by far, the strongest grade 4 monster I’ve ever seen.

  The anomaly is a different case entirely. They learn fast and are born to dominate. The monster in front of me must have become this strong through pure effort. They’re completely different. I’m sure the anomaly, when I first met it, would’ve lost to this harpy. This flying monster wouldn’t show any mercy.

  My feet feel like they’re barely touching the ground. The moment I step on a rock, I have to move again or risk being pierced by a spear. I hadn’t noticed it before because her Imra sealed every leak in her constructs, but now it’s clearer—the harpy has an affinity for death.

  The rock behind me explodes from a heavy impact. I never stop creating Joyeuse. I keep blocking most of her spears with my own ice blades, and whenever I manage to slip through her attacks, the spears she left in reserve intercept me.

  The monster’s smile has disappeared. She’s been trying to hunt me down for the last five minutes without any progress. Neither of us has taken any real damage. That must have wiped that creepy smile off her face.

  The harpy forms more and more wind spears around her. The massive constructs split into smaller ones. There must be hundreds of thin needles, about forty centimeters long, surrounding her. They all shoot toward where I’m moving. The area covered by this attack is enormous. I don’t have enough time to escape just by running.

  Electric snakes begin dancing around me. Gravity expands in all directions, and my armor is reinforced to its limit. Gravity deflects some of the needles, the snakes destroy several more, and I intercept as many as I can with my Thundersnow Fangs.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Even giving everything I have to defend myself, some of the needles slip through. They hit my armor. Since she split the attacks, the power dropped; the smaller constructs can’t fully pierce my armor.

  That doesn’t mean I’m unharmed. Four of them penetrate deep enough to reach my body. Bones crack and get pierced. It’s nothing life-threatening, though. I’m fascinated by the power of that attack. I was forced to use every defensive method I have and still got hurt. Truly wonderful.

  My death mana and Imra annihilate the remaining wind spikes. I heal my body while my armor reconstructs itself. No one should have noticed that I healed beneath the ice armor.

  The monster smiles again. At the same time, hundreds of small wind spikes appear around her once more.

  I feel like a lab rat, constantly moving while focusing everything on dodging, trying to avoid getting hurt. The second round went much better. No internal damage. On the third, I only took two hits that forced me to heal.

  We keep going like that for several minutes, until her smile disappears again. The mana consumption of these attacks must be insane, yet she doesn’t seem to be running out of fuel. Her mana pool must be as big as mine—or bigger.

  The harpy stays still for a second, watching me. She’s analyzing me. I don’t sense even a hint of fear. Only confusion or curiosity.

  “Don’t think you’re the only one who can fly. You’re not safe in the air.” I don’t know if she can understand me.

  I slowly lift my body into the sky. Now the harpy becomes much more cautious. She watches me closely. We’re dozens of meters apart, facing each other.

  I’m not showing the other reason I can be considered a limit breaker—my swordsmanship. I always make the difference against opponents a rank above me thanks to my talent and experience in close combat.

  Her wings are coated in a powerful layer of wind mana, turning razor-sharp and deadly. The same happens with her claws. I can feel a couple of Laws within those constructs. One, in particular, catches my attention—a Law of Sharpness. And that’s not all. Several dozen spikes appear around her.

  “Just under ten minutes…” That’s all I have left in this mini-game.

  Should I go all out and try to kill her for better rewards? Or just stall for time and keep some cards hidden for later?

  “To hell with it.” I’ll go all out. I don’t know when I’ll get another chance to fight a monster this powerful. In this tournament, it doesn’t matter if the others learn my abilities. They’re not easy to counter anyway.

  I release everything at once.

  The harpy’s face looks even more surprised. Her expressions are almost human when she’s not smiling like a nightmare. My eyes widen. This monster can suppress gravity around her fairly well.

  Is that a pseudo-jurisdiction? Most likely. It’s not affecting me directly, just protecting her. She’s suppressing any mana or Imra around her. It’s not perfect enough to completely nullify my abilities, but it’s countering them enough that she doesn’t feel the full impact.

  If she’s already forming a jurisdiction, then she’s extremely close to reaching grade 5. A smile spreads across my face. This is going to be fun.

  I swing my swords and, in an instant, disappear from her sight. I reappear at her side, blade already slashing toward her stomach, intending to split her in half—or at least leave her severely wounded. But things don’t go as planned. The air mana around her pushes her back just in time.

  My sword only leaves a cut across her abdomen. Blue blood drips out. That’s it. No serious damage.

  Still, I learned something. My swords can pierce her defenses if I don’t hold back my Imra and mana.

  I rush her again without giving her time to think. My next strike clashes with her wing coated in wind mana. This time I can’t penetrate her defenses, but I’m not repelled either. Her wings are much tougher. Her claws must be the same.

  I dodge one of her legs aimed at my chest. With a spin in midair, I try to slice her neck, but one of her wings blocks me. Her other leg shoots forward, trying to pierce my legs, and I use my second sword to block.

  I teleport behind her to avoid dozens of spikes trying to skewer me and attempt to stab her head. Somehow she detects me the moment I move and dodges my killing blow.

  A danger-sensing skill? Sensory ability? Space affinity? Something else? Since I can’t know, I just keep attacking—until I’m forced to stop. Two huge spears and a dozen spikes are launched straight at me.

  I deflect the big spears with my blades. I try to stop the smaller ones but can’t. Some break through my electric snakes and two stab into my body—one in my abdomen, the other in my thigh.

  I eliminate them easily and heal. We stare at each other. “You know… you’re a real pain.” My words don’t match the wide grin on my face.