"A surprising physical ability. I never thought you, the national kendo champion, would also have such amazing martial arts skills," Kayaba said, a look of surprise on his face as he watched Seiya run up the collapsing pillar. He hadn't expected Seiya to be so skilled physically.
With such excellent physical ability, Seiya didn't need to look so pathetic dealing with his attacks earlier. His previous performance was likely a deliberate move to deceive him. But Kayaba was a cautious man. He had long guessed that Seiya would try to get close to him for a final, desperate attack, especially after losing his shikigami. The reason was simple: in the world of SAO, there were very few long-range attacks. Facing an opponent with many crowd-control and long-range skills, Seiya would have no chance if he didn't close the distance.
Watching Seiya leap high into the air, ready to land the final blow, Kayaba slowly extended his other hand and conjured a shield from the void.
"Did you forget? My Unique Skill is Holy Sword, and unlike Dual Blades, I use a weapon in one hand and a shield in the other."
When they heard Kayaba's words, not only did Seiya's lips twitch, but the players at the Dragon's Nest began to curse at the top of their lungs.
"That bastard, Kayaba Akihiko, has no shame just to win! Isn't he the final boss? What boss uses a player's Unique Skill? If he's not going to play fair, he shouldn't have agreed to a PvP duel in the first place! There's no fairness in this at all!"
Kirito's face was grim, while Klein was fuming. If Kayaba were in front of him, he would have slapped him a few times. It was one thing to use a boss's stats for a PvP duel, as Kayaba was indeed the final boss. It was also understandable that Kayaba would act as the boss's AI and fight Seiya himself. But to use a player's unique skill? That was a new low. Was Kayaba a player or a monster? Was he a two-in-one version?
They had just seen a glimmer of hope, only for Kayaba to repeatedly shatter it!
"Clang!"
Seiya's sword struck Kayaba's shield and was immediately repelled by a powerful recoil. The damage from the recoil caused Seiya's HP to drop below 50% into the yellow zone. As his body was thrown back, Kayaba's Death Scythe skill's stun effect ended. He swung his crimson scythe at Seiya, who was suspended in midair with no footing. If Seiya were on the ground, his reflexes and physical ability would have given him a chance to react, but in the air, there was nowhere to dodge. The onlookers held their breath, some even closing their eyes, as they believed the end was near.
"Weapon Parry—!"
"Clang!"
As the huge crimson scythe approached Seiya, he saw that the cooldown for one of his skill icons was over. Without hesitation, he gripped his Dawnbringer and launched an attack. A shower of sparks erupted as the crimson scythe and the azure sword collided. Kayaba's huge body was pushed back, and Seiya was slammed into the ground.
Weapon Parry could ignore level and stats to parry an attack, but it couldn't negate fall damage. As a result, Seiya's HP, which was already in the yellow zone, plummeted to the red zone, below 10%. In a PvP duel, using items to recover HP was prohibited. Seeing Kayaba being pushed back, Seiya didn't hesitate and threw his Dawnbringer.
The skill Sword Throw was a basic, common skill, just like Weapon Parry. Many players didn't even learn it because it was weak, and throwing away your weapon left you defenseless. But Seiya had mastered it, and in this situation, it was the most effective skill to use. The thrown Dawnbringer flew like a streak of light toward Kayaba's head. The damage from Sword Throw was based on the user's and weapon's level. With a critical hit to the head, this attack could be enough to completely wipe out Kayaba's HP.
The onlookers' hopes were reignited when they saw Seiya throw his sword. But just as the sword was about to hit, Kayaba swung his scythe and knocked Seiya's sword away. Weapon Parry wasn't a skill that only Seiya could use.
However, in that same moment, as Kayaba watched Seiya's sword fly away and looked at him with a smirk, he realized Seiya had started running at high speed the moment he threw his sword! As Kayaba's attention was on the flying sword, Seiya closed the distance with incredible speed. Kayaba, who had just used Weapon Parry, was momentarily stunned by the action. Seiya leaped and began running up Kayaba's arm. As he did so, the Dawnbringer, which had been parried in the air, spun back and was caught by Seiya.
When he saw this, Kayaba finally realized that everything had been part of Seiya's plan. Everything he had done was to set up this final attack. Now, with his Unique Skill used, his long-range skills on cooldown, and even his Weapon Parry on cooldown, what could he use to defend against Seiya's all-out attack?
"Wenren Seiya, I never thought you'd have this much resolve, but I won't just stand here and let you win. Don't forget, this isn't a normal PvP duel. Even if it's a mutual kill and those players return to the real world, are you so sure you'll survive after your HP is depleted?"