Chapter 627 - I Will End Your Sinful Existence!
"I will give you one last chance," Ephemera said as she looked at the silver-haired teenager whom she had pushed to the edge of the arena.
The moment their fight started, Ephemera had unleashed her power and clashed with Kenneth numerous times.
With each collision, Kenneth felt a searing pain in his shoulders. If possible, he didn't want to have a head-on confrontation with the beautiful lady from the Gunner Federation. However, he was left with very little choice because his opponent had outclassed him in both speed, and power.
"Just jump off the arena," Ephemera stated as the golden blade in her hand buzzed with power. "There is no shame in losing against me. You didn't have any chance from the beginning."
Kenneth looked calmly at the warrior in front of him. He firmly gripped the hilt of his short sword as his eyes scanned a way for any blindspots that he could take advantage of, in order to return to the center of the arena.
Just like Ephemera had said, he was at the very edge of the arena. Just a step was enough for him to fall off completely.
'I guess I have no choice but to go all out,' Kenneth thought. 'It is really difficult to deal with one of the Seven Virtues.'
Kenneth's eyes glowed in a subtle manner as he prepared for Ephemera's strike.
Seeing that her opponent didn't have any wish to surrender, Ephemera nodded her head in appreciation. In truth, he admired Kenneth because the latter had reached the Semifinals with the meager ability he had.
Ephemera thought that the Silver-haired Elf just got lucky with his opponents. She firmly believed that the moment Kenneth's path crossed with hers, his luck had all run out.
"In respect to your bravery, I will try my best to not kill you," Ephemera declared. "However, since I plan to go all out, I can't guarantee your safety. This is my final warning. Concede now, or get seriously injured. What is your choice?"
"Thank you for the offer," Kenneth replied. "But, I'll have to pass. This tournament is important to me."
"Is that your final answer?"
"Yes."
The golden blade on Ephemera's rapier radiated with power. Kenneth had no way out, so all she needed to do was unleash one last attack to end the battle.
Although she looked carefree, the lady that hailed from the Gunnar Federation was not stupid. She could tell that Kenneth hasn't given up hope, which only meant one thing.
'He still has a trump card,' Ephemera thought as she prepared to unleash her attack. 'No matter. I'd like to see what you can do in this situation!'
"Explosion Infernale!" Ephemera shouted as she slashed sideways, leaving no room for Kenneth to maneuver.
(A/N: Excuse my French.)
A powerful explosion took place that shattered the two barriers that were a few meters away from the arena. Fortunately, there were five barriers in place, so the blast didn't spread too wide.
Ephemera narrowed her gaze because she believed that Kenneth wouldn't be able to survive her attack. However, just as she was about to drop her guard, a silhouette passed through the wall flames and headed in her direction.
The people exclaimed when they saw the silver-haired teenager survived Ephemera's powerful attack.
Princess Sidonie who was seated in the VIP Room with the other members of the Kraetor Royal Family couldn't believe what she saw.
'N-No, this can't be happening.' Princess Sidonie's eyes widened in shock.
Morgana also looked at Kenneth in disbelief. She never expected that William's Ex-Roommate had hidden his identity deeply. Princess Sidonie and Morgana had approached Keneth a few times in the past, but neither of them had detected anything unusual about him.
Both girls understood now why the latter refused to concede to Ephemera's suggestion earlier.
Kenneth ran towards Ephemera, while his long-silver hair fluttered in the air like a living creature. With a glance, one could estimate that it was at least three meters long.
Ephemera gritted her teeth as she brandished her weapon to strike her opponent, who for some reason, had unleashed a power that was equal to her own.
Kenneth's hair wrapped itself around Ephemera's weapon, preventing her from continuing her attack. When he arrived at striking distance, he immediately unleashed a palm strike that hit his opponent squarely on the chest.
Ephemera had channeled her magical power on her chest to cushion Kenneth's strike. However it was still powerful enough to send her flying a few meters in the air.
"So this is your true form!" Ephemera said hatefully as she landed on the ground. "You are one of those b*tches!"
Kenneth ignored her as he stood with his hair fluttering in the wind.
"Concede," Kenneth said. "I am returning the favor that you gave me earlier."
His voice was calm and the intonation he used was neutral. Clearly, he didn't want to offend the Virtue of Justice. Even so, Ephemera found his words condescending, so she ignored him and unleashed the full power of her Divinity.
"I will end you and your sinful existence!" Ephemera shouted as a pair of golden wings sprouted behind her back. She flew into the air and channeled the power of her Divinity into her weapon.
"Frappe Du Dragon Radieux!" Ephemera roared and a blinding explosion reverberated in the arena.
This was her strongest attack which was meant to obliterate everything in its path. This was a concentrated version of Soleil's full-powered attack.
Although its range could only encompass the entire arena, it was more than enough for Emperor Leonidas and the Grand Archmage Evexius to work hand in hand to erect, and strengthen the barriers that protected everyone inside the arena.
"That was a strong attack. Unfortunately, it was still too slow."
A voice that was as soft as silk whispered from behind Ephemera.
A moment later, a pair of delicate hands pressed down on her shoulders.
"Sorry. I need to win this battle," Kenneth whispered in Ephemera's ears. "No hard feelings."
Before the justice-minded lady could even reply to Kenneth's words, she felt that the world around her was starting to slow down at an alarming pace. Within that slow moving world, Kenneth moved normally and pushed Ephemera away.
The beautiful lady could feel her body falling to the ground, and yet, she could do nothing about it. Her brain functions had slowed down drastically. Even though she wanted to move and prevent her fall, her body wasn't responding fast enough to execute her thoughts.
Her actions were half a snail's pace, so no matter what she did, she couldn't stop the inevitable.
The moment her body hit the ground, Ephemera knew that she had lost. Kenneth was kind enough to not push her into the bottomless pit that the lady from the Gunner Federation had made after unleashing her strongest attack.
Kenneth hovered above the arena with his hair flapping in the air like the wings of a bird.
'Not good,' Kenneth thought. 'I am feeling sleepy.'
He then glanced at the room where Ashe and Princess Sidonie were seated. Without any hesitation, he flew towards their location.
As soon as Kenneth landed beside Ashe, he collapsed on the floor, asleep. His long hair shortened until it returned to its normal length.
However, before he closed his eyes to sleep, he managed to pass a message to Ashe. He knew that Princess Sidonie didn't like him, so he decided to pin his hope on William's lover.
Kenneth already knew Ian's true form, so he decided to take a gamble and ask for her help. He couldn't trust anyone else to look after him, while he was unconscious.
Ashe looked at William's Ex-Roomate with a complicated gaze before sighing internally.
After hearing Kenneth's words, Ashe was duty bound to keep him safe. After all, the message that he had passed to her telepathically were the words.
"I bear a message from William's mother. Keep me safe, so that I can pass this important message to her son."
Ashe would be lying if she said that she wasn't interested in hearing the message that came from William's mother. The Half-Elf had shared a few stories of his mother with her.
The mermaid had long wanted to meet her future mother-in-law and wanted to know what she was like.. Since Kenneth was her messenger, she had no choice but to protect him from the Princess beside her, who was half-tempted to kill the silver-haired Elf while he slept.