Daneel was already tired of this stalemate, but he held it up as he knew that Elanev needed time where his efforts wouldn't be obstructed by anyone else. Among all the remaining Fighters present in the battlefield, the one in front of him was supposed to be the most powerful, so holding him up was the best thing that he could do at the moment.
Yet, suddenly, a chill passed through his mind as if some sort of deadly beast had laid its eyes on him for the briefest of moments, like a tiger which eyed its prey before sneakily creeping up on it.
Daneel knew that no one in this battlefield would be able to give him this kind of feeling, so he immediately asked both Drakos and the system whether there was anyone else watching them.
Both of them took a little bit of time, but then answered that nothing regarding the situation had changed.
However, Daneel trusted this instinct that had been honed through multiple years of living through incredibly difficult situations that would have resulted in anyone else turning into dust.
Something was wrong, and the fact that he couldn't place his finger on exactly what was behind it irritated him to no end, but he calmed himself down knowing that if some threat of this magnitude really was eyeing this location, it would definitely not be easy for it to attack him as there were multiple Heroes and Champions waiting to intercept it.
Daneel also had a vague feeling that it was from quite far away, and that was all he could understand about it. So, he placed it in the back of his mind, even though each and every instinct of his told him not to ignore it.
He did think about it a bit. There were two possibilities - either there was a Hero that, for some reason, had a grudge against him and was targeting him, or it was the Church which was targeting this location as it would be a dream to attack a place where the most prominent seeds of the continent were gathered.
The latter possibility did not seem to have much chance of being true, as it must definitely be something that was already thought of by the Chief, who had proven himself repeatedly to be quite smart. According to Daneel's estimations, even though he couldn't scan past the Hero-level formation that was covering the entire battlefield, it was very possible that there were multiple ones clouding this entire area which included the place from which all the gathered Champions, Heroes and Warriors were watching.
However, he did not completely disregard the possibility either, as he knew that it was best to be prepared for every eventuality.
Still, it was the truth that he could do nothing about it at the moment. He even went through all of his accumulated knowledge, but realized that there was nothing he could do especially with his Mageroot caged in the way it was right now. If he had access to it, he could have tried some very effective scouting spells created by the Emperor himself, but that was sadly not an option.
So, all he could do was trust in the Big 4 for once, and continue what he was doing while keeping an eye out and taking care to not let his guard down.
Asking the system for an update again, Daneel saw that there were only two Fighters left, so he decided that he should start to bring an end to this fight.
So, putting away the smile on his face, he said, "Enough of this. You must already know that it is futile. Still, I was allowing you to fly around because I was hoping that you can at least put up some sort of fight after realizing that your current method is ineffective. Sadly, it looks like this is all that a top seed of the Fortress is capable of. I don't know why I got my expectations up, but I must say that I'm pretty disappointed. Well, I shouldn't complain, as it means that I can easily achieve what I announced that day. Oh, after you're done, come over to my cottage, I left out a few curses that day that I would love to impart onto you."
Being so cocky did feel good, but Daneel wasn't just doing it for kicks - he had realized that the most effective method to deal with these arrogant snowflakes who had never been outside of the sect was to infuriate them in this manner, as they would never be able to believe that someone could take that tone and that stance with them. It had been working ever since this battle had started, as Xander was looking more and more frustrated as the seconds passed.
Yet, surprisingly, at this moment, calmness appeared on his face, wiping away all of those extreme emotions and replacing them with one that would remind anyone of a calm, peaceful lake.
"Very well. Even I was tiring of that charade, and I only held back because my master told me never to use this unless my life was in danger, at least before I got to the Champion stage. However, I believe that my life IS in danger, because if I lose to you now after you've said so much, I doubt that I will ever be able to meditate and train properly without remembering your face. A true Angel… Is not one that is defeated so easily."
Daneel wasn't surprised by this speech of his, as he had been expecting it from the get-go. It was obvious that this guy was hiding something, and it was now clear why he had been doing so. When he actually thought about it, he also realized that he was being pretty unfair, as typical Warriors would usually be undefeated in their class if they had the kind of power that had been displayed by this 'Angel' Inheritance. After all, being able to drive down from the sky like lightning and strike one's opponent at a speed that was difficult to gauge was pretty overpowered.
Alas, Xander was up against someone who was equipped with both a method to instantaneously slow down time and to instantaneously increase his strength to perfectly counter any opponent's moves effortlessly.
That had been the reason behind the Emperor choosing to save this technique for his personal corps, too. Here, it had only been outed because Daneel had been displaying power that was really disproportionate to that of a Warrior. However, a typical Champion could use this kind of instantaneous power surge along with a few distractions, such as some kind of flashy activation in order to fool enemies into thinking that they were using up their trump card so that they could burst out in that way with their full strength. And then, when the opponent was least expecting it, the same thing would repeat, and the opponent would be dead, unable to give away the secret that the personal corps of the Emperor were not as simple as everyone thought they were.
This technique was perfect for Daneel due to different reasons. He had chosen it both because it synced with the Basilisk's Breath, and because it was something that could be explained away by the Chief who was watching so that the others would not feel too suspicious about him. There were other options, too, but those were definitely lost, and him using them would be the biggest giveaway that he was in possession of knowledge from the time of the Empire.
Putting these thoughts aside, the King looked forward to seeing what this 'Angel' Inheritance was worth. Although he had the option of asking the system and finding out everything about it, he wanted to witness it for himself and see whether he was capable enough of countering against it with his own strength instead of depending on the system or the Ancient Dragon.
With that same calm expression on his face, Xander remained in the air and adopted a pose where both of his palms were joined together, while his head was slightly lowered.
Daneel was just going to once again use that cocky tone to say that no opponent would allow him to have such a moment of respite during a fight in order to throw him off, but he paused when he felt a sudden rush of Energy from the surroundings.
Typically, Mages would be able to accomplish this when they cast high-level spells, so it was pretty astonishing to see it caused by a Warrior.
Soon, it became clear why that was the case.
As Daneel had no access to his Elementary Vision, he couldn't see exactly what changes the elementary particles were going through, but it wasn't needed as he saw shining light cover Xander completely from head to toe just like silver armor that had been crafted so expertly that it reflected the sun and made one appear like a shining knight.
No… a shining Angel.
Including the wings, his entire body was now completely covered in that intense white light, and when he outstretched his hands and legs as if he was reveling in this feeling of power, only his eyes became exposed to the world, and even the pupils looked like twin white flames.
The wings behind his back were actually the ones glowing the brightest, and they even looked like they were comprised of sharp blades.
All in all, this transformation… was pretty awesome.
Impressed, Daneel finally went ahead and asked the system what he was witnessing.
[Acquired High-Tier Champion Path - 'Angel'. At the Warrior level, the Inheritance part of this Path allows one to form wings that can be used for maneuverability. Requires one to connect with the essence of fairness/calmness in oneself, and is suited for Warriors who are pure of heart and just wish to become as powerful as possible. According to the Emperor, it is most suited to those who pursue power for its own sake, instead of for some end. If one has already begun on the process of resonance, they can use this to temporarily elevate themselves to a state that is close to the Champion level. It is termed 'Pseudo-Champion Level, or 'Half-step Champion Level'. If one can achieve this, then it is guaranteed that they can definitely use this technique to become a Champion, and all that is required is time. However, the backlash from forcefully elevating themselves will cause them to have to use even more time, so this method is not used unless in life or death situations.]
Well, this guy's master was right. It was dumb to use this technique when he wasn't at risk of dying.
Yet, Daneel understood Xander's previous words, and he now actually didn't think so bad about this guy who apparently only wanted power, and didn't want to abuse it. Now that he looked back on their interactions, the reason behind his disinterest in all of the proceedings became clear.
Only… It was once again sad that even this wasn't enough to face up against someone who was equipped with something that was treasured by even the Emperor, himself.
True, it was a High-tier technique, but could it compare to something like that?
Nope.
[Only one Fighter remaining in the battlefield. Target is approaching that Fighter.]
Getting this notification, Daneel sighed, as even though he slightly wanted to test out just how powerful this 'Angel' thing was, he knew that he should probably conserve more power for the fight against his elder brother.
So, Daneel simply said, "Don't be discouraged by this. And don't listen to what they say about me later on. Just keep working on your Path, no matter how you feel."
Xander had been expecting more dialogues like the ones that he had had to endure so far.
Hence, when he heard these words spoken in extreme seriousness from the King, he was surprised, but he knew that he shouldn't be distracted as he didn't have much time in this state.
Condensing all the power into his wings, he took off with a shockwave to end this battle.
He turned into a blur, but the hammer still reacted perfectly- raising it from his shoulder, the King swung it down.
However, having been through this multiple times already, he knew what to expect.
Right before he was going to be 'swatted', he redirected the Energy that he was using to propel himself in order to abruptly change his direction of flight.
Mid-air, that burst of Energy in a different direction allowed him to pass that hammer with such a close margin that he even felt the wind in its wake.
Then, he was home free.
Redirecting that energy again, he prepared to plunge the two swords made of light that had appeared in his hands into the King.
Only…when he saw the solemn expression on his face, he realized that something was wrong.
Xander was already moving with speed that couldn't even be conceived by normal humans.
Yet, at that moment, the King moved even faster.
He let go of the hammer, and punched.
Seeing this, the watching spectators stood up and held their breath, wondering how the f*ck the King was capable of such an incredible reaction speed…unless he had one more Inheritance.
If so, how could one guy have found so many?!
As this question once again went through their minds, they realized that the King's punch would directly kill Xander if he kept moving because of his sheer speed.
Xander realized this too, so he hastily turned to the side in order to evade that punch.
However, he made sure that the twin swords in his hands were still going for the King, who actually…smiled when he saw this.
That moment of hesitation was all that he had needed.
The punch had been a feint.
Pulling his fist back, he caught the hammer again, which hadn't reached the ground.
Exerting strength, he simply…swung it up this time, and in its path was the fly that had evaded it for so long.
THHHHWUP!
"AAAAAAARGGHHHH!"
With a scream, Xander was sent flying into the air.
His armor was shattered in some places, as even it couldn't handle the impact from a hammer that weighed a ton.
The truth was that the armor was secondary in his Path: it was the speed that mattered, and that speed had been bested by the King by simply using a smart tactic.
Simple?
If Xander heard that word, he would have coughed out even more blood than he was already coughing.
The kind of patience, confidence, and skill required to wait for the perfect opportunity, and then to utilize it in this way for that moment when Xander had been still in the air in order to 'swat' him was something that no one in the Warrior realm was supposed to be capable of.
Yet…the King had proven that wrong, and he stood alone on the battlefield while Xander lost consciousness and fell to the ground.
"Flyswatting…successful."
Saying this under his breath, Daneel heaved a sigh of relief. That had been close, and if he hadn't used almost all the techniques he had, victory might not have been possible.
"Nooo! I WAS GOING TO WIN-!:
However, it was time for the true battle to commence.
As this scream echoed from somewhere nearby, Elanev walked out into the clearing and faced his younger brother.
Only a single word was needed.
"Ready?", he asked, and as he saw the King nod wordlessly, Elanev began to unwrap the bindings that he had placed all over his body.
In this fight…he couldn't hold back.
…
Meanwhile, in the Pavilion, the Chief was equally shocked as all the others when he saw the King beat Xander in that way.
Many questions were still present in his mind, but he suddenly sniffed something that reminded him of a sour memory.
Furrowing his eyebrows, he said to the Head, "Brace yourself. We have guests. And they aren't friendly."