Swoosh—!
The bowstring vibrated, and the light arrow left the string!
The speed of this arrow was beyond the limit of the naked eye, like a daylight meteor tearing through the night sky, accurately penetrating the gaps between the dancing paper doll shikigami.
Those pale paper pieces attempting to intercept were pierced by the immense force attached the moment they touched the light arrow, exploding into sky-filling debris!
The relaxed smile on Ivan's face froze instantly, turning into extreme shock.
He never expected that after displaying superb swordsmanship and peculiar flames, the opponent actually hid such a terrifying long-range attack method!
In the rush, he could only instinctively gather Magic Power in front of him to form a defense while trying his best to turn sideways.
Splurt!
The light arrow pierced through his body!
Although avoiding vital points, the arrow still solidly pierced through the left side of his waist and abdomen.
Different from the shallow graze on Shane's waist, Ivan's wound was torn open, bright red blood gushing out, instantly staining his robes red.
"Ugh—! Brat!!" Intense pain and unbelievable humiliation made Ivan let out a roar of shock and anger.
He wanted to maintain the calmness of a superior and end this game elegantly, but was injured by the ant in his eyes instead.
"This is a return gift." Shane's tone was flat, but the movements of his hands didn't stop at all.
Since he seized the initiative, he naturally wouldn't forgive.
He drew the bowstring fully again, fingers plucking continuously!
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Several light arrows shot out like a barrage, drawing tricky trajectories, attacking Ivan from different angles.
Ivan was both shocked and angry, only able to endure the pain, dodging and blocking in a wretched state.
The sky-filling paper doll shikigami constantly gathered in front of him, only to be constantly pierced and destroyed by arrows. The sound of explosions and flying paper scraps was incessant.
After completely pulling away the distance, he fell into a state of passive defense, unable to organize an effective offense anymore.
For a time, a strange stalemate formed in the field.
Shane kept drawing the bow, arrows seemingly endless.
Ivan, relying on the profound Magic Power foundation and rich combat experience of an S-Class Mage, barely held on, but the increasing wounds on his body and the continuous consumption of Magic Power made it harder and harder for him.
Seeing that neither could do anything to the other, the irritability of failing to conquer for a long time and the humiliation of being forced to such a state by a brat finally completely ignited the accumulated anger in Ivan's chest.
It also made him thoroughly know that the brat in front of him was not some ant, but a venomous bee hiding a stinger.
"Have you made enough noise!!"
Ivan suddenly let out a roar, the dormant Magic Power in his body erupting with an unprecedented scale!
Powerful Magic Power pressure spread around like substantial shockwaves, blowing away all the surrounding paper scraps, even causing the ground to tremble slightly.
He no longer pursued skills and control, but wanted to rely on his abundant Magic Power as an S-Class Mage to crush with the purest power!
In this state, the paper doll shikigami released by Ivan were far superior to before in speed, strength, and hardness.
They gathered into a thicker, more violent pale torrent, rushing toward Shane wave after wave, the offensive fierce like a tsunami!
Under this pure Magic Power suppression, although Shane's arrows could still destroy the shikigami on the path, they could no longer interrupt Ivan's rhythm as effectively as before.
He had to move and dodge more, the situation momentarily reversed, falling into passivity.
Hiss!
A sharp paper edge grazed Shane's cheek, leaving a tiny blood mark.
Shane reached out to wipe the blood mark on his face and glanced at it.
He could be considered to have experienced the importance of Magic Power in battles in this world.
Attack, defense, speed, magic power—all could be improved through Magic Power.
Even if he had occupied absolute advantage, the opponent could still forcefully break the situation relying on excessive Magic Power.
"Sigh, really have to find a way to improve Magic Power."
Thinking of his pitiful E-rank Magic Power, Shane couldn't help sighing faintly.
As he spoke, the deep red ribbons and large bow symbolizing Arash on his body receded like a tide, revealing his original daily clothes.
Seeing this, Ivan showed a cold smile of "as expected" on his face, mocking, "Hmph, sure enough, I knew your strange transformation magic couldn't last long. Magic Power finally can't support it anymore? A brat daring to compete with me in Magic Power quantity, truly overestimating yourself!"
His tone was full of the pleasure of imminent victory.
But thinking that he was actually dragged by a brat to the point of having to rely on attrition warfare to win, that sense of humiliation burned his heart again.
Saying this, he was about to control the paper dolls to deliver the final blow.
However, the black-haired brat opposite suddenly shook his head slowly.
"Although I indeed can't maintain this magic for very long."
Shane's tone was as calm as a pool of water. That overly calm posture made Ivan inexplicably feel a trace of unease.
"But you got one point wrong. This is not me being unable to maintain it, but me—actively releasing it."
He raised his eyes, his gaze sharp as a knife, penetrating the sky full of flying pale shikigami, looking directly at Ivan.
"Because, I also don't want to play with you anymore. Facing an opponent like you, entangled for so long without taking you down, I'm disgraced enough."
Surprisingly, on the point of "feeling that dragging the battle too long is a shame," the two's thoughts were inexplicably consistent.
"Wha—?" Ivan was stunned.
Before he could think carefully, light rose around Shane again!
Scorching flames wrapped around his body like living things. Amidst the churning flames, the style of his daily clothes changed again, turning into Senji Muramasa's iconic single-sleeved red coat.
""
Seeing this scene, after a brief astonishment, Ivan couldn't help laughing mockingly: "Hahaha! At your wit's end already? Knowing this form can't break through my paper dolls to get close to me, you actually changed back! Planning to give up resistance?
Loss I thought you were hiding some trump card; almost got bluffed by you!"
In his view, Shane at this moment was completely confused at the end of his rope.
"Whether at my wit's end or not—" Shane slowly raised his hand, that familiar black blade manifesting in his palm again.
But this time, on the blade body, it was no longer restrained dim light, but wrapped with rich, almost substantial, constantly jumping and splashing crimson sparks!
A terrible aura began to permeate the air, anxious and seemingly able to ignite even the soul.
"Before answering this question, I want to ask clearly first—"
Shane pointed the burning blade edge at Ivan, the flames in those Eyes of Karma blazing unprecedentedly.
"Ivan, have you witnessed—true despair?"