The explosion rocked the sanctuary, hurling white stones into the cavern beyond.

Dust and smoke swirled around us, black and crimson tendrils weaving through the air as we scanned for any sign of our foe.

"Did we get him?" Carlo squinted through the haze, tension evident in his voice.

"Nope." Iris shook her head, crossing her daggers as smoky darkness swirled around her and her eyes glowed blue.

A slight movement in the smoke caught my eyes, and my instincts screamed at me.

"CARLO! BLOCK!" I shouted, watching the huge longsword hurtle toward him, its speed breaking the sound barrier.

His abyssal black eyes widened, and he raised his claymore just in time to block at the last second.

That was a terrible idea.

The sheer power sent him hurtling into the inner area, crashing into the pillars.

But we didn't have time to worry about him.

Transcendence saved my life.

Isaac Zierhart materialized before me, his powerful haymaker aimed at my head.

I tilted my body to the side, and the ardor-laden punch missed my head by a hair's breadth.

A powerful shockwave shattered the ground beneath us, and I seized the opportunity to dart beneath his exposed side.

I went for a counterattack from behind.

Iris appeared beside the paladin, her daggers coated in black flames.

Blood swirled and darkness roared as we attacked Isaac on two sides.

Isaac shifted his weight, narrowly evading Iris's strike as she sailed overhead. In a swift motion, he lashed out with a backward kick aimed squarely at me.

With little time to react, I raised my sword to block, channeling my blood to reinforce the defense.

The impact reverberated through my body as his armored boot struck the flat of my blade, hurling me toward the sanctuary doors like a human cannonball.

Ah, shit.

Instantly, my blood tentacles reacted and cushioned the impact as I slammed into the unforgiving stone.

Bones cracked, pain exploding throughout my body.

Incarni! That bloody hurts!

As I collapsed to the ground, Apollo caught me, his expression a mix of concern and determination.

"By the Incarni!" he exclaimed. "What was that? One second you were ready to give him the hurt, and the next second you are pasted to the doors!"

"Thanks for the motivation." I coughed out, trying to recover the breath that got knocked out of me.

Grimacing, I pushed through the pain, my strand already working to heal my injuries. My arms throbbed, my body aching from the brutal assault.

That was just insane.

What a monster.

I observed the current situation.

Good news: Isaac isn't focused on me or the rookies anymore.

Bad news: he's trying to kill Iris.

Iris moved with lightning speed, her daggers flashing as she attacked Isaac.

Her Tenebris strand swirled around her, adding power to her strikes aimed at the paladin's weak points.

Isaac skillfully countered her moves, wielding his daggers with precision. His blades, gleaming with white light, emitted smoke that matched the aura of his armor.

Their relentless clashes generated shockwaves that shook the chamber and rained down debris from above.

I was just blown away by his skills, each calculated and dealt with a finesse that matched his position as a paladin.

But the most amazing one is Iris.

She is holding out against an S-ranked being who could decimate her in a matter of minutes by herself, disappearing into shadows and reappearing instantly in the blind spot of the paladin.

Like me, she formed jagged tentacles with her strand, both protecting and attacking as she fought Isaac with the same graceful ferocity as fighting a daemon.

But she won't last for long. Even from here, I can hear her heavy breathing as exhaustion and damage accumulated on her body.

I gripped my sword and readied myself.

I used my special breathing technique to enhance Transcendence. I increased blood acceleration, and ardor flowed over my body.

The world slowed down to an almost standstill, and I can now see the paladin's attacks.

In our brief clash, I glimpsed his swordsmanship—a marvel of precision and power.

But mine, despite being from an archaic world, is better.

I exhaled, and blood swirled around my sword, making it deadlier along with the coating of ardor on the white blade.

I summoned eight blood tentacles, their crystallized tips quivering as they unfurled behind me.

I relaxed my sword arm and leaned forward.

"Here I go."

Releasing a burst of ardor, I shot forward like a bullet toward Isaac.

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With a flick of my wrist, I slashed upward, targeting the paladin's left shoulder.

In a swift response, Isaac knocked Iris aside with his dagger and swiftly moved to block my attack.

Our blades clashed with a shower of sparks, sending shockwaves rippling through the air.

"Glad to see you back, young Pendragon." Isaac greeted me before pushing me away with his formidable strength.

I staggered back and quickly regained my footing.

"Likewise." I responded.

My tentacles surged forward, attacking him from all sides.

Isaac quickly slashed them into crimson mist, his daggers a glowing blur.

Seizing the moment, I focused my control over my blood, gathering it at the green edge of my blade.

With a surge of ardor and Haema, I executed a horizontal slash, propelling a crescent blade of ardor covered in blood toward the paladin.

Isaac extended his hand behind him, and his longsword flew into his grasp.

With lightning reflexes, he intercepted my attack, blocking it with the flat of his sword.

The paladin wasted no time.

Lunging forward, he unleashed a furious onslaught upon me.

A storm of swords surged forth, each strike calculated, precise, and brimming with power.

I calmed my mind and met his attacks head-on, my sword moving with fluid grace as I deflected and parried his blows.

Every clash sent a shockwave rippling through the sanctuary, each burst of ardor crackling in the air and adding to the intensity of our battle.

And boy do they hurt!

My entire body screamed in pain every time my sword clashed with his, each strike getting stronger than the one before.

If I weren't an A rank with a body enhanced with layers of ardor, I would be blown into bloody bits by one impact of our clash.

Despite my best efforts, cuts marred my body as the sheer force of his strikes broke through my defenses, tearing through my tough Deathwalker uniform.

In my heightened state of Transcendence, I could see Isaac's sword paths shifting with each strike, making it increasingly difficult to predict them.

But I can predict them.

With each exchange, my reactions grew sharper and my parries more precise.

The paladin, however, became even faster and fiercer, his sword paths shifting unpredictably.

The next strike will be a horizontal slash at my abdomen.

His swordpath shifted, and I barely blocked a vertical slash at my chest.

The next one will be a thrust at my throat.

Again, it changed, and his blade grazed my thigh as I quickly shifted my body and deflected it desperately.

Shit!

He was overwhelming me at every turn!

As we darted across the chamber in this deadly dance of blades, fatigue ravaged my body, slowing me down.

Blood flowed from numerous wounds, my bones ached from the force of the blows, and my muscles burned like fire.

The relentless assault was taking its toll.

I could feel my blood acceleration slowing, and a terrible headache threatened to shut down Transcendence.

I gritted my teeth. It wouldn't be long before my body gave up and I stumbled.

And that would be my last act on Asteris.

Suddenly, I felt a tingle and a black wisp appeared in the corner of my eye.

Despite the furious onslaught bearing down on me and my many injuries, a smile escaped my lips.

I'm not alone.

Barely dodging a fatal strike to my face, I deflected a follow-up blow and shifted my stance.

In the blink of an eye, a black dagger, its edges tinged with bright purple, materialized in a swirl of darkness and hurtled toward the paladin's sword arm.

The blade sliced through the metal between his fingers, shearing off the clawed tip of his little finger with a satisfying clang.

Iris emerged from the shadows beside me, seamlessly integrating herself into our assault on Isaac.

Having her by my side filled me with renewed vigor, infusing my attacks with newfound speed and intensity.

A whirlwind of blood and darkness enveloped us as we unleashed a relentless barrage of strikes against the paladin.

Our movements synchronized effortlessly, Iris's daggers seamlessly complementing the slashes of my sword.

Whenever she launched a fierce assault, I instinctively stepped back, deploying my blood tentacles to shield her from counterattacks.

And when I surged forward with a barrage of deadly sword strikes, Iris was there to provide cover, deflecting blows and creating openings for me.

But despite two A-rankers going crazy on him, Isaac remained steadfast.

If anything, he seemed to grow even more relentless, pressing his assault with renewed ferocity, as if he still had more in the tank.

What a bloody monster!

S-rankers are truly on a whole other insane level!

Our barrage of ardor and strand-heavy attacks seemed to be taking its toll as Isaac abruptly halted his onslaught and took a step back.

Iris and I both surged forward, runes encircling our outstretched arms.

{Tenebris: Blackrose Snare}

Iris conjured forth black thorny vines of darkness from her palm, swiftly ensnaring Isaac in their thorny embrace.

Seizing the opportunity, I unleashed one of my favorite codes.

{Haema: Blood Grenade}

A powerful explosion of crimson engulfed Isaac as I hurled the grenade right into his face.

"That stung," Isaac's voice reverberated through the ruined sanctuary as he swept away the crimson smoke, holding the shredded remains of Iris's vines that dissipated into nothing.

He leaned forward to take a step toward us, only to freeze in place.

Literally.

"Huh?"

His glowing eyes darted down to his armored boots, which were frozen solid and stuck to the ground.

He attempted to shift his feet to shatter the ice, only to find himself unable to move. He couldn't even move his sword.

"HUH?"

That's when I noticed the thin black wire entangling his whole body, immobilizing him in place.

A Yoyo string.

"How's that for support?" Artemis chimed in, standing beside me and casually twirling the head of her Yoyo on her fingers.

"Having cold feet, Mr. Paladin?" Krystal added with a mischievous grin as she landed beside Iris.

There was a clinking of chains as a chained blade wrapped around Isaac's sword, and with a yank, tore it away from his grip.

"I'll take that," Apollo quipped from the other side of the chamber.

"Good thing you forgot about us!" Ava's voice rang out as she descended from above, her sharp claws enveloped in silver flames.

"Lunar flames. A trait unique to strands of pure-blooded Baskervilles," Iris remarked between breaths.

Ava slashed at the tattered cape of the paladin, immediately igniting it like a spirit-soaked cloth.

Silver flames erupted all over Isaac's body as the young Baskerville rolled on the ground and joined Apollo on the other side of the chamber.

"Impressive," Isaac remarked, despite the silver flames licking greedily at his armor. He then turned his gaze toward us individually. "You children are truly amazing. But is this all?"

"Not yet," a steely and determined voice spoke from the direction of the inner area.

My eyes widened to see Carlo Devereux, looking quite bloodied and covered in dust, glaring at the paladin.

He extended his arm, electric blue runes encircling it.

The air in the sanctuary crackled, and what appeared to be thunderclouds formed above Isaac Zierhart's head, crackling with red lightning and rumbling menacingly.

With a calm smile, Carlo snapped his fingers.

"Surprise, motherfucker."