[Kiba Side]
Step by step, the man carrying the replica of Excalibur advanced toward us.
It was just a single opponent.
However, the pressure emanating from his approach was far greater than when the group of warriors attacked all at once.
Just facing him like this made cold sweat break out all over my body.
Dulio-san spoke with a half-smile.
"...Kiba-kyun, I'm sure you know this, but Cristaldi-sensei is a former user of Excalibur. And what he's holding now is a replica. It's inferior to the real thing, but it possesses all seven abilities. I want you to be prepared for something four levels above the strongest Holy Sword user you can imagine."
"So, a swordsman far exceeding our assumed range, is he?"
"Exactly."
Four levels above the strongest Holy Sword user, huh...
He wasn't a Holy Sword user, but the strongest swordsman I know is that Knight Captain I met in the other world.
I had him train me, but my sword couldn't even graze him until the very end.
How would he fight the swordsman before me?
Well, his fighting style and ability are completely different from mine, though.
Former President Sona spoke through the comms.
[We Sitri retainers and the 'Brave Saints' members will continue dealing with the warriors. For Ewald Cristaldi, I would like Dulio Gesualdo-san to take point, with Irina-san, Griselda-san, and Kiba-kun engaging him.]
" " " "Understood." " " "
Dulio-san, Sister Griselda, Irina-san, and I faced off against Ewald Cristaldi.
The three reincarnated Angels spread their pure white wings, the symbol of Angels, while I readied my Holy Demonic Sword.
As Ewald Cristaldi slowly approached——he suddenly manifested countless clones!
This was what Freed used to use... No, he created them without any preparatory movement, so I don't know how he did it.
Was it through the high-speed movement of Rapidly, or the power of Nightmare?
The first among us to move was Sister Griselda.
"Cristaldi-sensei! Here I come!"
Creating particles of light in her hands, she manifested multiple spheres of light.
Each shot was filled with dense light power; if a Devil were to take a hit, they would suffer massive damage!
The fired spheres of light pierced the clones, causing them to lose shape and vanish.
However, among them, there was one who deflected the sphere of light with his sword and charged straight at us!
The clones just now were from Nightmare!
Is the one charging in the real one?!
Irina-san and I moved to intercept, but Dulio-san shouted from behind.
"That's a Mimic!"
Reacting to his report, I leaped sideways, but Irina-san used her momentum to swing Hauteclere down!
The clone cut by Hauteclere lost its form and transformed into a rope-like shape!
Following the rope, we saw Ewald Cristaldi emerging from within the illusions scattered by Griselda-san's light spheres.
In his hand, the rope-like shape reconstructed itself, returning to the form of a single sword—the Excalibur Replica.
So the clones earlier were a mix of Nightmare power and Mimic!
Moreover, the man himself had hidden his figure using the ability of Transparency.
To think he would naturally use three abilities—Nightmare, Mimic, and Transparency—within such a short skirmish...!
Ewald Cristaldi slashed at Irina-san, who had just cut the Mimic clone.
Irina-san must have seen through the mimicry as well, as she caught the strike from the revealed Ewald Cristaldi with her blade.
I thought she had blocked it perfectly.
However, Irina-san, who caught the blow, fell to one knee, and a small crater formed at her feet!
Was that a strike from Destruction?!
Even though she blocked it, blood trickled from the corner of Irina-san's mouth from the impact of Destruction.
Still, Irina-san showed a fearless smile.
"...Sensei, if it's just destructive power, I think Xenovia is superior."
"Ah, I know that. But do not speak of Excalibur based on Destruction alone."
Ewald Cristaldi smiled, then pulled multiple crosses from his robe and tossed them into the sky.
The moment he willed something, the crosses scattered in the air and stabbed into the ground, surrounding us.
Then, a massive holy wave was generated from the crosses, forming a barrier of crosses that encircled us!
Ewald Cristaldi spoke.
"I am boosting the power of the cross barrier with the Blessing attribute. No one can approach for a while. Also, even Angels cannot easily break this barrier. It means escaping at high speed or flying away is impossible."
...Using the power of Blessing, he sealed my legs and the reincarnated Angels' flight.
Furthermore, it's a barrier that forbids assistance from the Sitri team.
Having recovered from the damage, Irina-san forcefully pushed back her mentor's sword.
As Ewald Cristaldi leaped back, he fired off layer upon layer of holy waves!
Irina-san and I swung our swords to cancel out the holy waves——but there was no resistance.
No, there were some waves that had substance.
In other words, he was mixing real waves with illusory waves created by Nightmare.
The illusory waves felt exactly like the real ones, making instant judgment difficult!
With defense like Issei-kun's, taking a hit wouldn't be a problem, but in my case, dodging is the best option.
Thinking that, I avoided the incoming holy waves to let them pass——but the holy waves changed trajectory behind me and attacked us again!
"Although it didn't exist in my time, Ruler is quite usable."
Meaning he can freely control the fired waves with the Ruler attribute!
Even if we dodge, they change course and chase us!
There is nothing more troublesome than this!
I instinctively created seven swords in the air and slammed them into the holy waves!
I have swords I can control freely too!
"Naïve, swordsman of the Holy Demonic Sword."
Ewald Cristaldi fired even more holy waves!
Due to the Nightmare attribute, the number of holy waves seemed infinite, and seven swords were no longer enough to cancel them out!
I tried to evade them somehow, but they closed in on me!
"——I'm here too, you know."
At that moment, the holy waves closing in on me were blown away by a lightning strike fired by Dulio-san.
Not only that, but his rear support canceled out all the holy waves that were tormenting Irina-san and me.
Thanks to his support, Irina-san and I escaped the crisis, but...
Can he control the replica Excalibur this freely?
In a single attack, he mixes at least two attributes.
Moreover, his timing is too perfect.
We are keeping our distance now, but I'm starting to doubt if the Excalibur user before our eyes is even real.
Is it Mimic? Or Nightmare?
This exchange made it very clear.
If this continues, it will be a one-sided battle.
Even with Dulio-san and Sister Griselda supporting from the rear, Irina-san and I, clashing swords in the vanguard, will continue to be danced around by his tactics.
——I have no choice but to use it.
I held the Holy Demonic Sword at my chest, tip pointing to the heavens.
White and black auras overflowed from the blade, gradually enveloping my body.
When the aura subsided, I stood there wearing a black coat, gripping the Holy Demonic Sword which had taken the shape of a katana.
Balance Breaker Second Stage——Blade Knight of Two Heavenly Soarings (Paladin of Betrayer).
Although the duration has increased thanks to training with Issei-kun and the others, the consumption is still immense.
That's why I didn't want to use it until the very last moment, but this exchange made me realize this isn't the time for such naïve thoughts.
"Then, with my full power!"
I slashed at Ewald Cristaldi with the highest speed I could muster.
The man before me caught my sword head-on!
This sensation—it's not a clone, but the real thing!
While blocking my sword, Ewald Cristaldi narrowed his eyes.
"So this is the realm beyond the Balance Breaker, considered an irregularity? To think speed could increase this much."
As expected, information about this irregular power has reached the coup faction.
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