Kite focused his full attention on Pitou.
'In the next exchange...'
'I had to make use of the hammer's functionality to meet the conditions for dismissing it.'
'But wielding the hammer with one hand clearly wasn't suitable for an offensive approach. It seemed I could only seek opportunities during defensive counters.'
Pitou didn't know what Kite was thinking, and decided to drop the matter since Kite wasn't willing to answer.
The battle continues-!
Pitou pushed off the ground, her body shooting toward Kite like lightning.
Her combat experience was still a blank slate, so she could only rely on her animal instincts to fight.
And the most natural attack methods for animals are pouncing and clawing.
In contrast, Kite is an experienced Beast Hunter who has a very clear understanding of the 'hunting style' of various creatures.
With this knowledge and his extensive combat experience, even though Pitou's speed was immense, Kite could still rely on his experience to anticipate her attack trajectory.
If nothing else, simply paying attention to the flow of Aura around Pitou's body allowed him to gather a lot of information in an instant.
Experience-
This is Kite's capital to narrow the hardware gap between them and prolong the battle.
Facing Pitou's lightning-fast pounce, Kite leaped back, swinging his arm to lift the hammer and position it in the path of Pitou's attack.
Pitou's palm stretched straight forward and struck the thick hammerhead.
Clang!
Sparks flew where the two made contact.
Although Kite blocked in time, Pitou's sheer Manifested Aura and physical strength were overwhelming, so the impact of her pounce sent the heavy hammer flying upward.
With the hammer no longer shielding him, Kite was suddenly left wide open.
But this situation was within Kite's expectations.
The moment the hammer was struck, he consciously adjusted the angle of his arm and at the same time, he released the Aura he had been using to increase his footing.
As a result, when the hammer was sent flying, it also pulled his body backward, creating some distance between him and Pitou.
Pitou took this scene in, and then, driven by instinct, he pushed off the ground with one foot and chased Kite, who was left wide open.
But at that very moment, Kite, who was still gliding backward, suddenly straightened his legs and planted them firmly on the ground.
Immediately-
He twisted his torso, using the angle he had adjusted earlier during the block, and swung the sledgehammer in a wide arc, smashing it directly into Pitou's chest as she closed in.
Boom!
A visible jellyfish-like shockwave erupted from Pitou's chest. Under the force of this devastating blow, she was sent flying without any resistance, crashing through several trees along the way.
Kite, having landed his strike, immediately released the hammer's handle, which was being pulled by centrifugal force.
Whoosh-
The hammer shot into the air like an arrow.
Kite focused his mind and dismissed the ability.
The hammer, which had nearly caused him major trouble, instantly dissolved into Aura and quickly returned to his body.
"Durururu..."
The Crazy Slots conjured once again above Kite's palm.
"You can't have such bad luck every time, right? Ahahaha!"
Amid Crazy Slots's noisy chatter, the number wheel settled on 8.
[No. 8: Longsword]
With the familiar sound effect of a game, a longsword appeared in Kite's hand, which he immediately gripped in a reverse hold.
Like the carbine, hammer, scythe, and boomerang, this longsword was twice the size of the normal longsword.
The blade alone was an astonishing 1.5 meters long.
Crazy Slots's head, which fused with the weapon, appeared on the sword's guard, adding a touch of absurdity to what should have been an imposing weapon.
Kite held the longsword horizontally in front of him, his eyes infused with Aura, gazing in the direction where Pitou had been sent flying.
From his position, he could clearly see the outline of Pitou's Aura, which was still surging with power.
'Still... no effect?'
Judging by the state of Pitou's Aura, Kite realized that the heavy blow he had just landed still hadn't achieved any meaningful result.
'Her defense was absurdly strong...'
'She didn't even need to use Ken to effortlessly withstand his repeated attacks.'
'If I couldn't even break through her defense, how could I possibly defeat such a monster?'
Kite exhaled softly, held the sword in his hand, and waited with concentration.
Where the trees had fallen…
Pitou stood up, but she did not rush to attack. Instead, she habitually raised her finger to her chin, her eyes filled with contemplation.
"It seems like he can 'read' my thoughts."
After several exchanges, Pitou had always been the one on the receiving end.
Compared to the negligible damage, Pitou was more interested in the counterattacking skills Kite had displayed during the battle.
"Are my movements really that obvious? And the real-time changes in his life force..."
Pitou replayed the previous exchanges in her mind and gradually understood the key to it all.
Then, excitement and eagerness once again took over her thoughts.
"You better... keep me entertained for a while longer."
Pitou's Aura suddenly surged, reflecting her current excitement.
Kite, who was on high alert, sensed the change in Pitou's Aura and felt a chill in his heart.
"She's coming!"
As his pupils shrank slightly, Kite suddenly took a step forward and swung his longsword forward, releasing a sharp crescent-shaped blade of light.
The blade of light shot toward Pitou, who was charging through the.
Ssssh!
A few shreds of fabric scattered into the air.
Pitou passed through the blade of light and landed more than ten meters behind Kite.
A tear had appeared in her clothing, running from her left chest to her shoulder.
Through the tear, a faint red mark could be seen on her skin beneath the fabric.
'I see.'
Pitou had tested Kite's technique by taking the hit and determined the trick that allowed Kite to lock on to her attack trajectory.
When she attacked, she would unconsciously channel her life force.
And the dynamic changes in life force could reveal certain information.
Additionally, she could enhance her offensive and defensive power by concentrating her life force.
"How interesting."
Pitou's lips curled into a smile, though she had no intention of using this information to trick Kite.
She wanted to play longer, like a cat toying with a mouse...
Kite's gaze swept over the tear in Pitou's clothing, and his brow furrowed subconsciously.
'Even a well-timed slash hadn't truly broken through this monster's defense.'
'Was the chance of winning that I thought of at first too naive?'
"Huh?"
Suddenly, Kite noticed that the flow of Pitou's Aura was changing, and its sensitivity had increased significantly.
'This monster…'
'Is growing stronger during the battle!'
Kite's heart sank.
The slim chance of victory he had seen earlier was now fading at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Despair.
This would be Kite's current psychological state.
His defeat was only a matter of time.