"Get a grip, men! We can't afford to panic now. We need to regroup and come up with a new plan of action," the commanding officer barked, trying to rally his disheartened troops. The soldiers nodded, snapping out of their daze and quickly gathering their wits, determined to find a way to counter Reiko's unprecedented strength.

As long as the aetherial tower, the power source that fueled their aether wands, was up and running, they could still have a fighting chance against Reiko. With that in mind, the only thing the soldiers had to do was pin down Reiko long enough for reinforcements to arrive.

I have to target that guy... On the other hand, Reiko set her eyes on the commanding officer, recognizing that taking him out would greatly disrupt the soldiers' coordination and morale. She knew that by eliminating their leader, she could easily dismantle their resistance and secure her victory.

"Lurking Shadow Arts, Shadow Dive"

Reiko whispered an Art under her breath as she dove into the shadows, disappearing from sight. The soldiers were left panicking, unsure of where their enemy had gone.

The next moment, Reiko popped out from behind the commanding officer, her Sly Fox in the form of a kunai glinting in the moonlight. With a swift and precise strike, she stabbed him in the back, instantly incapacitating him. As his body fell to the ground, the soldiers' morale crumbled, realizing their leader had been taken out so effortlessly.

With Reiko inside their ranks, the soldiers cannot raise another Holy Barrier Arts: Blessed Sanctuary since they have to chant the incantation in unison. Reiko's presence disrupted their synchronization, leaving them vulnerable and unable to perform the powerful defensive spell.

Furthermore, the soldiers couldn't use offensive aether arts carelessly either, as those arts contain dense amounts of energy that would be too risky to use in close proximity with their allies' lest they accidentally harm their own comrades. The only offensive aether arts they could safely use were Holy Light Arts, Blessed Arrows.

These Holy Light Arts were not as potent as their other offensive spells, but they still provided a means of defense against the enemy. However, without a powerful defensive barrier to protect themselves, the soldiers were vulnerable to counterattacks from the enemy.

If not for the principality's soldiers arrogance and overconfidence in their barrier's strength, they wouldn’t be in this mess at all. The lack of a deadly spear on top of a robust shield in their earlier exchange allowed Reiko to destroy their barrier and infiltrate their ranks with ease. As a result, the soldiers found themselves scrambling to regroup and defend against the unexpected attack, realizing too late the importance of not underestimating their adversaries.

““Holy Light Arts, Blessed Arrows!””

*swish-swish-swish-swish-swish*

Letting loose Blessed Arrows repeatedly from their wands, the soldiers desperately tried to regain control of the situation. However, Reiko's swift movements made it nearly impossible for them to land a hit.

And whenever a Blessed Arrow would come close to hitting her, she would use Shadow Dive to effortlessly evade it. To make matters worse, every time Reiko reappeared from Shadow Dive, she would kill the leaders who tried to rally their troops, further demoralizing the soldiers. Her lethal precision and agility left the adversaries in a state of disarray, unable to devise a counter-strategy.

Once again, another Blessed Arrow whizzed through the air towards Reiko, and its accuracy was impeccable. She had to use Shadow Dive once more to narrowly escape its deadly trajectory. But Reiko had another idea.

I'll give it a shot and use my kunai to deflect it, Reiko thought, and using the blade in her hands, she tried to deflect the arrow of light.

"Mou, this thing is so seriously heavy!" Reiko exclaimed as she struggled to redirect the powerful force of the Blessed Arrow. Even if Blessed Arrow is a beginner-rank art, it's still a Holy Light Art that uses aether. It contains dense amounts of blessed energy that make it difficult to control for normal humans, if not for the aether wands they use to channel and manipulate aether.

"Tch." She clicked her tongue in frustration, realizing that she couldn't deflect the arrow completely. Her hands trembled as she desperately tried to maintain her grip on her kunai, but the force of the Blessed Arrow was too much for her.

With no other choice, Reiko made Sly Fox vanish into thin air as she used Shadow Dive to escape the path of the oncoming arrow. She reappeared a safe distance away, catching her breath and assessing the situation.

Looks like this mommy totally underestimated how strong their Blessed Arrows and aether arts are, she thought to herself. She knew she had to go all out—without using her cheat skills, of course—if she didn't want scars to mar her perfect porcelain skin.

"Let's do this," Reiko muttered under her breath, determination burning in her eyes.

"Mountain Boar Arts, Rampaging Swine!"

As the chant left her lips, Reiko raised her leg, clad in earth-element-infused ki, and brought it down with a powerful stomp, causing the ground to shake. A shockwave rippled through the air, sending debris flying in all directions. The force of her attack was enough to knock back her opponents, momentarily stunning them.

Not wasting time, she summoned her Sly Fox and morphed it into a scythe, its gleaming blade reflecting the moonlight.

"Flaming Serpent Arts, Exploding Strikes; Wind Weasel Arts, Kamaitachi; Sea Dragon Arts, Liquid Cutter; Mountain Boar Arts, Dusty Blade"

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

To further enhance the lethality and range of her attacks, Reiko infused her scythe with ki, which contains the power of the four elements. Every time she used her scythe, it emitted blade emissions containing fire, wind, water, and earth. The wind and fire enchantments increased the speed of the blade's emissions, while the water and earth enchantments boosted its cutting power. The combination of these elemental enhancements allowed Reiko to swiftly strike her opponents from a distance, leaving them little time to react.

Drops of blood and limbs flew through the air as the blade emissions from Reiko's scythe sliced through her enemies with ease. Grunts of pain and cries of anguish filled the battlefield as Reiko's swift strikes left her opponents incapacitated. Seeing such devastation, fear and panic spread among the remaining enemies, causing them to hesitate and question their chances of victory.

"I don't want to die," murmured one of the principality soldiers as he clutched his wand tightly, his eyes filled with fear and uncertainty.

However, while Reiko had mastered ki-manipulation, her adversaries had wands to control aether. Using the principality's wands, aether could be channeled, and arts could be cast when its name was spoken. Although her adversaries weren't able to control the blessed energy for casting arts, body strengthening, and weapon enchantment themselves, they were equipped with wands that allowed them to do so.

Probably due to self-preservation instincts, the soldier remembered that the wand in his hands had been imbued with arts to enhance his physical abilities. Since the top brass expected the soldiers to only fight enemies below master-level, or Level 5, they never thought that the Holy Barrier Arts: Blessed Sanctuary would be broken, leaving the soldiers vulnerable to stronger opponents. However, the soldiers' immediate superiors were kind enough to teach them some of the wands' beginner-rank arts.

"H-h-holy Warrior Arts, Guardian's Armor," the soldier stammered, casting one of the self-strengthening arts in the wand he held. As he spoke the incantation, a shimmering aura enveloped his whole body, providing him with enhanced protection and resilience against enemy attacks.

And when one of Reiko's blade emissions headed his way, the soldier wasn't able to react, but his Guardian's Armor provided him with enough defense to withstand the blow without sustaining any serious injuries. However, the impact of the attack still sent him stumbling backward, momentarily disorienting him.

"I-I'm alive!" he stammered, his heart pounding in his chest. The soldier patted several parts of his body to check for any signs of injury, relieved to find himself unharmed.

"U-use the strengthening arts in the wands!" he shouted to the other soldiers, his voice filled with urgency. Hearing him shout, the other soldiers found hope in this desperate situation as they quickly chanted the incantations, activating the arts in their wands.

"Holy Warrior Arts, Clypeus' Shield; Holy Warrior Arts, Asta's Spear." As the soldiers chanted the incantations, their wands glowed, and two magic circles formed from the wand tips. On their non-dominant hand, a translucent shield materialized, shimmering with blessed energy. While their wands were enveloped in light to form a spear in their dominant hand, crackling with aether. The soldiers now possessed both an impenetrable defense and a formidable weapon, ready to unleash their holy fury upon any adversary.

"Attack—" the words died on their lips as their eyes widened in confusion, for nothing stood before them. The lilac-haired samurai that had been making quick work of their fellow soldiers was nowhere to be found. The soldiers exchanged puzzled glances, searching the area for any sign of their elusive opponent.

"There she is!" a soldier shouted, pointing towards an alleyway in the military compound, as he caught sight of a fleeting glimpse of lilac hair disappearing into the shadows. The soldiers wasted no time and sprinted towards the alleyway, determined to capture or eliminate their elusive adversary before she could slip away again.

"After her!" another one yelled, leading the charge as they pursued the samurai through the narrow alley. Their adrenaline surged as they closed in, knowing that with the strengthening arts they cast, they could easily overpower her.

***

On the other hand, Reiko... She ran away—no, she did a tactical retreat—as soon as one of the soldiers didn’t suffer so much as a scratch when hit with her scythe’s blade emissions. The goblin mommy was too much of a battle junkie to back down from a fight, but even she knew when she was outmatched.

Of course, after destroying the barrier they created, she knew that a strike concentrated on a limited area was the best approach. However, she had already learned from trying to deflect the arrow of light that it was futile to directly oppose their blessed energy. If so, Reiko needs a method of attack with pinpoint precision and force that could bypass their defenses. And she also had to be outside of their immediate reach to avoid getting overwhelmed.

But come on, that would be way too boring. This mommy is all about getting in there and throwing down up close and personal, you know? Launching long-range attacks from a safe distance just doesn't do it for this beautiful me.

When Reiko looked back at her pursuers, she couldn't help but smirk. She thrived on the thrill of close combat and the adrenaline rush that came with it. And she would exchange it for nothing less than an exhilarating battle, even if it meant putting herself at risk. Reiko knew that the satisfaction of engaging in close combat far outweighed any concerns for her safety. But she doesn't want to get reprimanded for her reckless behavior.

"Fire at will!" a soldier shouted, pointing his wand at Reiko.

"Holy Fire Arts, Fireball!" "Holy Water Arts, Icicle Spear!" "Holy Wind Arts, Wind Blades!" "Holy Earth Arts, Stone Javelin!" Balls of white fire, icy spears, razor-sharp wind blades, and stone javelins soared through the air towards Reiko. She deftly dodged and parried each attack, her adrenaline pumping as she reveled in the thrill of the battle.

"Lurking Shadow Arts, Shadow Dive." As the incantation left her lips, Reiko dived into the shadows, evading the incoming projectiles.

"Circular defense!" shouted one of the soldiers. "She can pop anywhere! Keep your eyes peeled and stay on guard!" The soldiers formed a defensive circle, their wands and shields at the ready, scanning the surroundings for any sign of Reiko's next move. With her ability to appear from any shadow, they knew they had to remain vigilant and prepared for her next attack.

"Hey darlings! Guess who's here? It's Reiko!" Her voice echoed in the middle of their defensive circle, causing the soldiers to spin around in confusion. Suddenly, a shadow behind them began to grow, and before they could react, Reiko emerged with a swift strike from her Sly Fox, currently in the form of two wakizashi, gleaming in the moonlight.

The soldiers' training kicked in as they quickly shot her with holy-elemental arts, but Reiko just disappeared into a cloud of smoke, leaving the soldiers bewildered. "Decoy!?" they exclaimed, realizing that Reiko had used her cunning and agility to outsmart them once again.

Like seriously, why the heck would I be all loud and obnoxious when I'm trying to catch someone off guard?

Lurking Shadow Arts, Shadow Bind. Reiko silently cast the technique's name into her mind, her lips barely moving. Instantly, the soldiers' shadows twisted and contorted, wrapping tightly around their bodies and immobilizing them completely.

"Lightning Wolf Arts, Vanishing Lightning Beast" , she whispered, her voice barely audible. As she reappeared from the shadows, crackling bolts of lightning surged through her body, empowering her with electrifying speed and agility. "Lightning Wolf Arts: Consecutive Piercing Thunder Strike" in a blink of an eye, the shadow-restrained soldiers fell like puppets whose strings were cut, their bodies collapsing to the ground in a lifeless heap.

"Onto the next one, I suppose," she muttered, a hint of satisfaction in her voice, as her body plunged forward into the shadows, disappearing from sight once again.

***

Reiko, for all intents and purposes, wasn't blessed in the thinking department. However, she had an uncannily sharp instinct when it came to battle situations. Her ability to assess and react quickly allowed her to anticipate her opponents' moves and strike with deadly precision. This made her a formidable force on the battlefield, despite her lack of intellectual prowess.

Coupled with her goblin body's adaptability to all kinds of energies, Reiko was able to harness Ki and manipulate it to either enhance her physical abilities or unleash elemental attacks. However, against those granted the ability to control blessed energy, or aether, Reiko would find herself at a disadvantage.

The only reason she could fight on an equal footing with opponents who possessed aether control was because her opponents were artificially controlling aether with their wands, which limited their mastery over it. Reiko's natural affinity for Ki gave her an advantage in combat, allowing her to exploit the weaknesses in her opponents' artificial control of aether. Her precise attacks on the smallest weaknesses in her opponents' aetheric defenses were almost always successful, giving her the upper hand in battles.

But if she were to face an opponent who possessed both aether control and a natural affinity for aether, Reiko would face a formidable challenge.

And the soldier from the Principality of Thawhanon, the country of human supremacists, the country with the technological and military advantage, was exactly that opponent. At this moment, Reiko was unaware of the imminent danger that awaited her on the battlefield. Little did Reiko know that the soldier from Thawhanon had undergone rigorous training in aether manipulation, surpassing even her own abilities. As the battle commenced, Reiko would soon come face-to-face with an adversary who could match her skill for skill, leaving her vulnerable and in grave peril.