363 God Of War [2]
Tumultuous winds raged – a clear sign of the brewing storm. Soon, a single drop of water fell from the gray clouds shrouding the night sky above.
Following that, one after another, more drops of water cascaded down, and the city was immediately engulfed in a deluge of storming rain.
In the drenching rainstorm, it became difficult to see more than a few feet ahead. Thankfully the darkness was illuminated by the thunderous lightning flashes in the sky from time to time.
Nero silently looked at the police officer lying lifeless at his feet with a hollow gaze – his pale face devoid of any discernible emotions.
His black eyes resembled two pools of utter darkness, as deep as an abyss and just as empty.
Crimson blood gushed from the gaping wound in Raymond's chest, washed away by the pouring rain.
Nero stood there silently for a moment, gazing deep into Raymond's glassy eyes, now empty of life.
This man... he had known Nero for only a couple of days. Yet, he had sacrificed his life for him.
Didn't he have an elderly mother? Who would break this news to her? Who would take care of her?
"...No," finally, something stirred in Nero's hollow eyes as a surge of emotion erupted in his gaze, ranging from desperation and regret to agony and hopelessness. He let out an audible gasp, "...Please, no!"
But his pleas were in vain. Raymond was already gone. He was dead because he had saved Nero.
Soon, his tangled mess of emotions transformed into a violent rage. Nero flicked his head around, casting a hostile gaze on the cloaked man.
Leo exhaled softly beneath his mask.
Two down, two to go.
Honestly, he couldn't believe how long Nero and Anastasia had managed to survive against him. Even though he wasn't using even a fraction of his true strength, he was going for the kill.
He was actually trying to kill them with no hesitation.
No first-year cadet should have been able to endure for so long against him, not even while he was holding back as he was now.
'Absurd... This is absurd.'
Perhaps this was what true heaven-defying talent looked like.
Observing Anastasia and Nero, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy.
If he had even a fraction of the talent that both of them had in his childhood, how much stronger would he be today?
Heaven and Earth truly were unfair. Ah well, he had always known that fact.
He genuinely felt a sense of pity as he prepared to snuff out the lives of such extraordinary cadets, but he had to do what he had to do.
Besides, he needed to retrieve that ring from Nero. Not only did it contain the relics he was sent to recover, but the ring also served as a direct link to their organization.
He couldn't leave such valuable evidence behind.
Unbeknownst to Leo's thoughts, all Nero could think about at that moment was tearing out the heart of the man who had killed his friend.
Tightening his grip on his bastard sword, Nero growled in a dangerously low tone, "Anastasia... Go all out."
Anastasia was kneeling by Chase's side. She heard her friend call out to her and rose with clenched fists, a similar violent rage as Nero's stirring within her eyes.
This was because of Chase's condition – he had a chunk of his lower jaw ripped out by the cloaked man's kick.
Currently, he was unconscious from the pain. Had Chase not intervened when he did, Anastasia's head would have been severed.
He was in this state because of her, so naturally, she was seething with fury toward the man responsible.
Nero didn't need to tell her to go all out… She was already planning on it!
Amidst the torrent of rainfall blocking the visibility like a thick curtain, Leo noticed a pair of bright golden eyes to his right.
It was Anastasia. Her crystal-like golden eyes were gleaming brilliantly, almost resembling a pair of illuminating suns adorning her visage.
Azure mana swirled around her fists, gradually turning golden, as if she held the radiance of the sun within her hands.
Meanwhile, to his left, Leo saw a cascade of radiant light particles encircling Nero like a dazzling white ribbon.
The light particles spun around the length of his sword, trapping it in a radiant glow akin to a solitary star in the darkest of nights.
As Anastasia raised her hands and Nero drew back his sword, an inexplicable sensation washed over Leo.
What kind of martial arts were these?
Leo knew hundreds of weapons and combat arts. Most of the martial arts were built on the same foundation so all of them resembled one or the other to some extent.
However, he had never seen anything like the techniques Anastasia and Nero were using right now.
For some unknown reason, he couldn't help but suddenly remember that strange Morningstar's secret weapon art.
But he had no more time to dwell on his thoughts as a streak of incandescent lightning arced across the darkened sky, illuminating everything beneath it.
A resounding thunderclap drowned out the world soon after, and as if on cue, both Nero and Anastasia charged forward toward their enemy.
Nero was the first to close in on Leo.
As soon as he stepped within the striking range, he initiated his attack without any hesitation, pulling out all breaks.
[16-Movement Sword Saint Style: Longsword Of Light]
[Second Form: Tracing Horizon]
Swoosh—!!
A brilliant white light flashed in the surroundings as Nero's sword moved at a speed that far surpassed normal human capabilities.
But Leo was already on the move. He had crouched just in time, letting the glowing blade slice through the air above him.
Nero's eyes widened in astonishment.
That slash was executed nearly at the speed of light itself! It was the fastest attack he or any other human could deliver!
How did this cloaked man dodge it?
There was no time for Nero to continue thinking about it as Leo thrust his palm toward his solar plexus, aiming to shatter his mana core.
Sensing the danger, Nero sidestepped in a swift motion and raised his sword over his head.
[16-Movement Sword Saint Style: Longsword Of Light]
[Third Form: Splitting Horizon]
Fwoosh—!!
Once again, a dazzling flash of light washed over the area as Nero's radiant blade descended toward Leo's neck, intent on severing his head like a vegetable on a chopping board.
Yet, once more, Nero's fervent blade met nothing but air. Leo had already stopped his forward momentum and rolled to the side.
This time, Nero managed to see it!
The cloaked man had moved a fraction of a second before Nero had even initiated his downward slash – before Nero had even attacked!
No matter how fast Nero's strikes were, the cloaked man was reacting just a split second faster!
...But it was fine.
Because at this moment, the cloaked man was exactly where Nero had wanted him to be – his eyes focused on him and his back facing Anastasia!
Obviously, Leo was also aware of this.
No matter how strong he was, Leo was only human. He only had two eyes and two arms. He simply couldn't defend himself from two opposing directions.
...Or could he?
As soon as Leo rolled away from Nero and sprang to his feet in a single fluid motion, Anastasia pounced at him from behind.
[13-Steps Sun-Moon Martial Priest: Eclipse Bringer]
[First Form: Moon Shattering Fist]
She channeled all her momentum into her arm, launching a straight punch toward the cloaked man.
Sensing the incoming attack, Leo swiftly spun around and tilted his upper torso sideways.
THWOOOM—!!!
Even beneath his cloak and mask, Leo could feel the wind whip past him as Anastasia's glowing fist surged forward, leaving behind a golden flash.
In fact, her punch broke the sound barrier, resulting in an annihilating shockwave emanating from her strike.
Leo's eyes widened behind his mask. If he had been struck by that, he would have surely broken more than just a few bones.
What monstrous strength this slender girl possessed! Just what kind of a freak was she?!
From the side, Leo thrust his palm toward Anastasia, aiming to strike at her exposed ribs. However, the golden-eyed beauty was quick to react.
She dropped to her knees into a crouching position and lashed her leg forward in a sweeping motion.
Leo hopped in the air, evading the low sweep. Yet in that moment, he sensed someone behind him.
It was Nero.
He was waiting for this very moment! His sword was enveloped in a blinding light as he prepared to unleash a deadly horizontal slash at the cloaked man, aiming to take his head off.
Leo was currently in mid-air. He had no foothold so he couldn't move to evade the attack, and to make matters worse, his back was turned to the swordsman.
It was a very dreadful position to be in a life-or-death fight. Knowing this, Nero did not waste any time to carry out his swift horizontal slash.
However, Leo had faced situations like this countless times before.
He quickly twisted his body mid-air and thrust his right leg forward, immediately stopping Nero's attack by kicking his sword arm's elbow.
Thwack—!!
Using the momentum, Leo twisted his body once more, extending out his other leg and delivering a forceful blow across Nero's face before landing a single step away from him.
Nero staggered sideways and slightly swayed, eyes widened as he kept struggling to maintain his balance.
But before Leo could capitalize on this opening, Anastasia lunged at him from behind. This time, Leo was prepared.
Quickly spinning around, he seized Anastasia's arm, deftly utilizing her own momentum against her, and flung her forward – straight in Nero's direction.
"....?!" Anastasia nimbly landed on the ground, rolling like a cat before facing Leo with a look of shock.
Things had just gone from bad to worse.
Now, both Nero and Anastasia were facing the cloaked man from the same direction.
They had lost their advantage as Leo no longer needed to worry about his back. His full attention was focused solely on them.
But before Leo could attack, Anastasia launched toward him with dizzying speed, a net of cracks appearing on the ground wherever she stepped.
Leo's eyes widened at her display of speed as Anastasia appeared in front of him in the blink of an eye.
Wasting no time, she threw a punch at Leo, her fist looking like a golden flash of light. The God of War was forced to take a step back, narrowly evading a direct hit.
THWOOM—!!!
But once again, Anastasia's punch shattered the sound barrier.
The wind raged from the force of her attack, conjuring a storm that seemed to push back the deluge of rainfall in front of her, momentarily clearing the storm.
A crushing shockwave rolled forth, hitting Leo and sending him flying several meters backward with no resistance.
After crashing into the concrete road, Leo skidded for a few seconds before coming to a halt and jumping to his feet instantly.
'What the hell?!' Leo's thoughts raced.
He wasn't even hit directly, yet the mere echo of Anastasia's attack had sent him flying?!
What sort of martial technique was this? What kind of formidable power was she using?
Leo didn't have time to think about this any further as he saw a radiant beam of light stretching toward the heavens in the distance.
It was, once again, Nero.
He was holding his sword over his head, a pillar of brilliant white light erupting forth from it, stretching toward the thunderous clouds in the sky like an extension of his blade.
[16-Movement Sword Saint Style: Longsword Of Light]
[Fourth Form: Heaven Piercing Sword]
It looked like a single, radiant pillar trying to hold up the heavens – or a cruel obelisk ruthlessly trying to pierce them – burning with the ferocity of vaporizing the falling raindrops.
Leo grumbled, "Ah, fuck it."
He half-closed his eyes in sheer frustration as Nero brought down his sword, and the radiant column of light began to descend toward him.
As the pillar plummeted in a sweeping curve, for a moment it looked as if Nero's blade was cutting the raging storm in half.
Exasperated, Leo crossed his arms over his head, bracing himself for the incoming blow.
KABOOOM—!!
The pillar of white light crashed down on the road, instantly pulverizing everything it fell on.
