The fight had already pushed Vastarael far beyond what he considered a reasonable challenge, and Ferris's relentless assault was only growing fiercer.
Her blackened greatsword was a blur of destruction, slashing through the air with a power and precision that kept him on the defensive. Vastarael's golden eyes darted between her strikes, calculating his options.
Rune Drawing? No. Absolutely not. He'd have to stand still for at least a full second to draw anything usable, leaving himself wide open. And against Ferris? One second of vulnerability would mean instant death. His focus narrowed as he decided to stick with what was working; his sapphire-based combat abilities and his double bladed glaive, Calimostria.
Ferris advanced with the ferocity of a storm, her strikes coming faster and heavier. Each swing of her greatsword threatened to overwhelm him. He ducked under a horizontal slash, feeling the wind of the blade graze his hair, and immediately countered with a sharp thrust of his glaive. Ferris deflected the blow with a sharp upward sweep of her sword, her strength sending Vastarael stumbling back.
She stepped forward and unleashed a devastating downward strike. Vastarael barely managed to sidestep, but Ferris twisted her blade mid-swing, the edge catching his left arm in a brutal slash. He hissed in pain as blood spattered the ground.
His arm was gone.
Ferris smirked, confident she had gained the upper hand.
"You're good, but not good enough—"
But her smug expression faltered the moment she saw what happened next.
Vastarael gritted his teeth, forcing himself to focus. Without hesitation, he channeled his essence, his golden eyes glowing faintly. In a matter of seconds, his arm began to regenerate, flesh knitting itself back together in a spectacle that made Ferris's eyes widen in shock. The room was silent except for the faint hum of energy as his arm fully healed.
"What...?" Ferris's voice betrayed her disbelief. "Regeneration? That fast?"
"Yeah. Guess you're not the only freak in this room."
Not wasting a moment, he coated his freshly healed arm in sapphire armor. Then, with a wave of his hand, he summoned a powerful blast of water from thin air, the torrent surging toward Ferris with the force of a tidal wave.
Ferris barely had time to raise her greatsword in defense. The water slammed into her, driving her back several steps. Her feet dug into the ground as she struggled to maintain her balance. The edges of her armor dripped with water as she finally managed to stabilize herself.
"You're full of surprises," Ferris admitted, her voice strained. "But that won't—"
She didn't get to finish her sentence.
Vastarael seized the opportunity. With a flick of his wrist, he dissolved Calimostria's blade, reshaping it into a massive sapphire mallet. The weapon materialized in his hands, its weight perfectly balanced as he swung it with all his might. The mallet smashed into Ferris's side before she could react, sending her hurtling across the room.
The impact was deafening.
Ferris's armored body tumbled across the floor, crashing and rolling several times before finally coming to a stop. The ground bore the scars of her violent collision, chunks of obsidian stone scattered around her. For a moment, she lay still, the sheer force of the blow leaving even her stunned.
Vastarael stood where he was, panting heavily, the sapphire mallet still in his hands. His eyes never left her as he tried to catch his breath.
"Didn't see that coming, huh?"
He muttered under his breath, a faint smirk tugging at his lips despite the exhaustion setting in.
Ferris slowly rose to her feet. She pressed a gauntleted hand to her side, where the mallet had struck her. Though her armor had absorbed most of the impact, the force was enough to leave a visible dent in the blackened metal. Her eyes fixed on Vastarael and for the first time, her expression betrayed something other than confidence.
Genuine shock.
"You... you managed to knock me down."
"Yeah," Vastarael said, twirling the mallet in his hands. "And I can do it again if you're not careful."
Ferris's lips pressed into a thin line, her grip tightening on her greatsword. Her pride as a knight was clearly wounded, but there was also a flicker of respect in her gaze.
You're stronger than you look. But do not get cocky. I'm not done yet."
"Good," Vastarael replied, shifting his stance. The mallet dissolved back into its original glaive form, the sapphire blade gleaming as he readied himself for her next move. "Because neither am I."
The air between them grew tense as they squared off once more, both of them aware that the battle was far from over. But now, Ferris knew she wasn't dealing with just any opponent. And Vastarael, for all his bravado, understood that he couldn't afford even a single mistake.
She lunged forward, her armored boots pounding against the stone floor as she closed the distance with frightening speed.
Vastarael barely had time to brace himself before her blade came crashing down. He raised his glaive horizontally to block, the clash of sapphire and blackened steel ringing out like a thunderclap. The sheer force of her attack sent shockwaves through his arms as his knees buckled slightly under the strain.
Ferris didn't let up. She spun on her heel, bringing her greatsword around in a wide arc. Vastarael ducked just in time, the blade slicing through the air above him with a menacing whistle. He retaliated with a quick thrust of his glaive, aiming for her exposed side, but Ferris sidestepped the attack with inhuman agility. Before he could recover, she slammed the hilt of her greatsword into his chest, sending him skidding backward.
His breath came in ragged gasps as he steadied himself. Her strikes were heavier, more precise, each one aimed to break through his defenses. Vastarael was no stranger to battle, but Ferris was unlike anyone he had ever faced. Her sheer ferocity left him no room to think, let alone strategize.
Ferris pressed her advantage, raining down blow after blow. Vastarael parried and dodged as best he could, his movements growing more frantic as his stamina waned. His arms burned from the repeated impact of her strikes as the floor beneath them cracked with the weight of their battle. Every missed block, every stumble left him dangerously close to being overwhelmed.
In one particularly brutal exchange, Ferris feinted a downward slash, then pivoted to deliver a crushing horizontal strike. Vastarael twisted his body to avoid the blade, but her attack caught his shoulder, cleaving through his sapphire coating and slicing deep into his flesh. He cried out in pain, stumbling back as blood poured from the wound.
"Stay down," Ferris growled. "You're only delaying the inevitable."
But Vastarael wasn't about to give up. Clutching his glaive with his uninjured arm, he poured essence into his body. His golden eyes glowed brighter as his regeneration ability kicked in, the gaping wound on his shoulder beginning to close. The process was agonizing, his muscles spasming as they mended themselves. Worse still, the effort drained his stamina further, leaving him feeling like he'd run a marathon with no end in sight.
"Not a chance," he said through gritted teeth, forcing himself back to his feet.
Ferris's eyes narrowed as she watched his wound heal.
"You're persistent, I'll give you that. But how long can you keep this up? Every time you regenerate, you're only wearing yourself down."
Vastarael didn't respond. Instead, he slammed the base of his glaive into the ground, summoning a wave of sapphire spikes that erupted from the floor in Ferris's direction. She leaped back, narrowly avoiding the crystals as they tore through the stone. Vastarael took the opportunity to enhance his physical capabilities with essence, his muscles surging with newfound strength and speed.
He dashed forward, his glaive swinging in a wide arc. Ferris blocked the attack with her greatsword but this time, the impact forced her to take a step back. Vastarael didn't let up, following up with a flurry of strikes that pushed her onto the defensive. He aimed for her legs, her arms, any weak spot he could find, but Ferris's defense was impenetrable.
"You're getting desperate," Ferris taunted, parrying his glaive and countering with a powerful overhead strike.
Vastarael sidestepped but the blade grazed his side, tearing through his armor and leaving a shallow cut. He winced but didn't falter, retaliating with a sweeping kick that knocked her slightly off balance.
Ferris's patience snapped. With a furious roar, she unleashed a devastating combo.
Vastarael barely managed to keep up, his glaive spinning and twirling in a desperate attempt to block her relentless assault. His enhanced speed and strength helped him hold his ground but every swing of her blade chipped away at his resolve.
Ferris slammed her greatsword into the ground, creating a shockwave that sent Vastarael flying backward. He crashed into the wall, the impact rattling his bones. Blood dripped from his mouth as he staggered to his feet, his vision swimming.
"Is that all you've got?"
Vastarael wiped the blood from his lips.
"Not even close."
He summoned a torrent of water that spiraled around his glaive. He hurled the glaive like a javelin. Ferris deflected it with her greatsword but the force of the impact sent her skidding back.
Before she could recover, Vastarael materialized the glaive back into his hands and reshaped it into a massive sapphire mallet. He charged forward, slamming the mallet into her with all his might. The blow sent her tumbling across the floor, her armored body crashing into the wall with a resounding thud.
Vastarael smirked, though his body screamed in protest. His stamina was dangerously low, his muscles aching from the constant regeneration and enhanced combat. But he refused to back down.
"First Technique..."
Vastarael's instincts instantly spiked the second those words came out the Grand Cross's lips. Ferris was in a stance, the runes on her armor and greatsword glowing even brighter.
He instantly coated his entire body with sapphire and poured part of his essence around it.
But it was not enough.
"Radiant Threads."