Chapter 80: Invisible attack
{TL: By Creed}
Fate, carrying Aisha on his back, stepped outside the venue.
"Just leave them alone for now,"
Receiving a glance that seemed to ask, "What should I do?" from his bodyguard Falz responded accordingly.
That gaze didn't stray from Sofia.
"Securing that brat is top priority... However, I can't afford to turn my back on this one here. Despite being a woman, she holds the title of Sword Saint."
"Because she's a woman, is that it? That's an outdated way of thinking, you know?"
Sofia laughed defiantly and drew her sword.
Not a holy sword, but one she regularly used.
"That's enough for you."
Though the provocation was evident, the bodyguard remained unresponsive.
Without anger, they poised themselves to calmly carry out the assigned task.
...A troublesome opponent.
Sofia made a bitter expression inwardly.
If it were an opponent who took the bait, she could have easily defeated them, but it seems it's not that simple.
"Kill her."
With Falz's command, the bodyguard moved.
Like a mirage, their figure vanished, swiftly maneuvering to flank Sofia with the speed of the wind.
However, their speed couldn't deceive Sofia's eyes.
Sofia pivoted on her left foot, rotating her body ninety degrees to face the bodyguard head-on.
She readied her sword and stepped forward.
Then, with a speed imperceptible to the naked eye, she charged...
"Huh!?"
Just as she was about to strike, Sofia felt a chilling sensation.
This won't do.
Following her instincts, she aborted the attack and jumped back further.
A sharp tingling sensation ran across her cheek.
While keeping her gaze forward, Sofia wiped her cheek with her fingertips.
Somewhere along the line, she had been cut, and blood was flowing.
"What exactly did you do?"
The bodyguard also poised their sword.
However, they hadn't closed the distance, and Sofia didn't recall being attacked from a distance.
"My attacks are invisible slashes..."
"Invisible?"
"You managed to evade it this time, but... I wonder how long your luck will hold?"
The bodyguard grinned confidently.
Seeing that, Sofia felt something was off.
Something wasn't right.
She felt this sense of unease but couldn't pinpoint the exact reason.
What could it be?
She felt puzzled.
But now wasn't the time to ponder deeply.
The bodyguard accelerated suddenly.
Closing the distance like the wind, they swung their sword sideways.
Fast.
An average adventurer would likely die without even understanding what had happened.
Even veteran adventurers would find it difficult to evade and would likely sustain some injuries.
However, for Sofia, it was just an ordinary strike.
She accurately discerned the trajectory of the sword, moved her body to a safe position, and evaded.
Then, she countered...
"Ugh...!?"
Once again, she felt that chilling sensation.
She interrupted the counter thrust, forcibly twisted her body, and jumped to the side.
It turned out to be fortunate.
She distinctly felt something passing through the spot where she had stood just moments ago.
With a sharp sound, the floor was marked with the trace of a sword strike.
It seemed the bodyguard's invisible slash had passed through.
Indeed, it was invisible.
Sofia accepted the fact calmly without losing her composure.
She halted her attack, focusing solely on evasion and thorough analysis.
As the bodyguard said, the sword was truly invisible.
The term "invisible slash" was accurate.
However, just because it's invisible doesn't mean it's invincible.
By sensing the faint sensation of the air being torn before an attack, evasion is possible.
The invisible slash isn't exceptionally fast.
It's about the same speed as the bodyguard's sword strikes.
Also, its range of attack remains unchanged.
So, despite being invisible, it's no different from a regular sword in other aspects.
While Sofia judges this, she hesitates on whether to attack.
She could roughly estimate the effective range of the invisible slash.
However, whether that estimation is accurate or not, she cannot yet determine.
To seize the perfect moment, the bodyguard might be holding back.
Or, this might just be the first stage, with second and third stage attacks yet to come.
With such thoughts, rash actions cannot be taken.
But...
"Merely thinking won't do."
While caution is necessary, sometimes bold action is required in battles where one cannot win by being overly cautious.
This time might be such a pattern.
"It's about time for my turn."
TL Note: Well my guess was wrong.
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