*Sigh...*
In the noisy, chaotic Combat Hall, at this tense, critical moment of battle, Sonia suddenly heard a lingering sigh.
Then, her field of vision split in two.
On one side were the faces of the other students in the hall—some sneering, some expectant, some envious, displaying all the varied attitudes of the world.
On the other side, she saw a woman... who looked strikingly like herself.
Though the woman closely resembled her, Sonia was certain she wasn't herself.
The woman stood upon a moonlit lake when suddenly, a gigantic horned monster charged toward her from the distance. As it charged, the beast stirred a tempestuous torrent of darkness, storming forward with earth-shattering fury. When it drew near, it even blocked out the moonlight, like the very darkness collapsing inward!
Compared to it, how tiny and fragile the woman seemed!
Yet she didn't dodge in the slightest. Standing right where she was, she summoned a sorcery spirit, and then—
A single sword strike!
The darkness was torn in half, and moonlight poured through the rift in the beast, illuminating her fierce yet elegant sword posture!
Sonia couldn't clearly see her movements, nor could she make out what sorcery spirit had been summoned, but for some reason, Sonia felt that she could imitate it.
The urge to imitate was so strong that Sonia's body moved on its own!
*Not dropping the sword...?*
Flitting through the air, Leonie saw that Sonia wasn't showing any sign of giving up, and she couldn't help giving her junior a high score in her heart. Surrendering in an unwinnable fight was the rational choice, but only stubborn persistence gave miracles a chance to be born.
If one lacked even the courage to challenge the strong in such a safe environment, how could one ever forge a sorcerer's resilient heart to face danger in the real world?
As expected of the Hidden Hand Sword Saint; she'd taken in a fine apprentice...
Though full of praise in her heart, Leonie had no intention of going easy on her.
Not only was she defending the Rhythm Sword Saint's prestige, but giving it her all was the greatest respect one could show a sword sorcerer!
*Miracle: Rhythm Melody: Third Movement!*
Just as Leonie launched her attack, she noticed Sonia suddenly make a strange move—she sheathed her sword.
At the same time, numerous moonlight threads appeared around Sonia, each connected to her body, as though she were turning herself into a trap.
*A trap?*
*Mutual destruction?*
Many thoughts flashed through Leonie's mind, but she still slashed forward—when facing an unfamiliar change, a sword sorcerer had only ever had one response: cut through all obstacles with the sword!
*Forward, forward, forward, keep pressing forward!*
That was a sword sorcerer's way of life!
Golden sword light illuminated the hall once more. Yet the moment the sword light touched the moonlight threads, Leonie instantly sensed something was wrong—Rhythm Melody couldn't cut through the threads!
No, they weren't just moonlight threads!
Looking closely, currents of water flowed along each thread. The flowing water not only absorbed the impact, but also endowed the moonlight threads with peerless resilience!
No, the water wasn't just absorbing the impact!
Leonie's eyes widened. She realized that as the sword light pulled on the threads, all the energy surged along them toward Sonia in her sheathed-sword stance. The threads and Sonia formed a spring mechanism; upon taking an external impact, Sonia, linked to the threads, would unleash the swiftest counterattack!
*Flowing water... moonlight threads... and Wave Sword...*
*This is a counter miracle!*
*Clang!*
As Sonia swung her blade, unleashing an afterimage-like slash of wave sword energy, Leonie finally reappeared. Her feather robe became visible, and her hands were empty.
*Clack, clack.*
When the snapped training wooden sword fell to the floor, the crowd in the Combat Hall still hadn't processed what had happened.
"Leonie... lost?"
The speaker's voice trembled, as if terrified of fabricating facts, spreading rumors, and having to bear responsibility.
"She lost... The Orange Dancer lost..."
"Leonie lost to Sonia!"
"What move was that? I've never seen such a miracle... Is it a new miracle?!"
"Sonia, who just became a sorcerer a few days ago, beat Leonie, a fully realized Silver Sorcerer!"
"A first-year just took down a fourth-year!"
"Heavens, am I witnessing the rise of a new Sword Saint?!"
Amidst the shouts, cheers, and gasps of countless onlookers, Leonie looked at Sonia, who was drenched in sweat and barely able to stand. Smiling, she asked, "What is the name of this miracle?"
In Sonia's eyes, the image of that woman dancing with her sword under the moonlight by the lake seemed to surface again. Without thinking, the name slipped straight out of her mouth:
"Water Moon."
At this moment, her heart pounding and face flushed red from watching the duel, Ingrid suddenly raised her right fist and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Sonia!"
The first-years of the Swordsmanship Department cheered in unison: "Sonia! Sonia! Sonia!"
The Orange Dancer's supporters weren't about to be outdone: "Leonie! Leonie! Leonie!"
For a time, only two names echoed through the Combat Hall: Sonia and Leonie!
"After today, you'll become one of the most brilliant gems of Sword Flower University."
Leonie raised an eyebrow. "Just like me."
Sonia's lips twitched slightly. Unable to hold on any longer, her body tilted, and she was about to collapse.
Leonie reached out to steady her. Their eyes met, and they shared a smile, drawing another roar of applause from the crowd.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Felix and Loren, who had been locked in an exhausting, deadlocked fight, gradually stopped upon seeing this, as if all strength had drained from their bodies.
They exchanged a glance, wore matching bitter smiles, and shook their heads helplessly.
This fight had started because of them, yet they weren't the main characters in the end.
For natural-born prodigies accustomed to endless attention, nothing was more painful than being completely ignored.
Loren suddenly tossed his wooden sword aside. "Stand still and don't move. Let me punch you once."
Felix was taken aback, but Loren walked right up and punched him squarely in the face, sending him tumbling back.
"Remember this punch, Felix. Not every woman is someone you can mess with." Having said his piece, Loren turned and walked away.
Sitting on the floor, Felix looked at the two young women commanding everyone's gaze in the hall, sighing softly:
"Yeah, you're right."
At that moment.
Without Felix realizing, and without anyone else noticing, two shadowless visitors quietly appeared behind Felix.
Neither of them existed in the sight of anyone in the hall. When they spoke, all the surrounding commotion was automatically blocked out, as if only the two of them existed in the entire world.
"If I recall, losing to the 'Orange Flash' Leonie was supposed to be one of your few humiliating disgraces, wasn't it?"
Facing the Watcher's teasing, the Sword Princess remained calm. "Hardly. Once I beat her three years later, I stopped caring about it."
"You actually remembered it for three years..." the Watcher muttered. Turning to look at Felix sitting on the floor, he pulled a manual from inside his coat and flipped to a certain page.
"Still, who would've thought that the notorious Sinister Duke was once a swordsmanship prodigy? His manual never mentioned this part of his life."
"As a member of the Voslodar clan, it would be surprising if he weren't a swordsmanship prodigy."
"Could this learning experience be precisely how the Sinister Duke came to understand how to target and counter sword sorcerers, laying the foundation for his future achievement as the 'Sword Saint Gravedigger'?"
"Who knows? No one ever knows what kind of impact their present choices will have on their future selves. All sorcerers are the same kind of creature, using their hands to dig through the soil called fate for the future they desire, only to inadvertently excavate the very graves that will bury them... We are all fools digging our own graves."
"Why so sentimental all of a sudden? That doesn't sound like the Death Frenzy Sword Princess I know," the Watcher said with a smile. "Could merely making contact with the present Sonia cause such a big change in you?"
*Clink!*
A frosty blade kissed the Watcher's neck. The Sword Princess said coldly, "Don't play me for a fool like that silly girl. You're merely someone who lost under my sword. Watch your attitude."
The Watcher raised his hands in surrender. "My apologies, I overstepped. If you're truly angry, feel free to vent your temper on Yaxiu; I don't mind."
The Sword Princess gave a cold snort and withdrew her longsword.
"Speaking of which, the Water Moon miracle I saw before wasn't like this. Could it be that even in this state, you still have the leeway to refine miracles, Sword Princess?" the Watcher asked curiously. "I thought we were the same—only able to decay, unable to gain."
"You're mistaken. This isn't a brand-new improvement; it's expired residue."
The Sword Princess shook her head. "What you saw was the ultimate form, 'Mirror Flower Water Moon.' Before that, I created many different versions. The combination of 'Moon Silk' and 'Torrent' happened to be one of them. While its power isn't great, its speed isn't fast, and its defense isn't unyielding, it couldn't be more suitable for the current Sonia."
"Indeed." The Watcher nodded. "There are no best miracles, only the most timely ones. Heh, I'm looking forward more and more to seeing what a Sonia without deep-seated bitterness and hatred will look like."
"You'd be better off worrying about Yaxiu. Today is the day of his Blood Moon Trial."
"Why worry?"
The Watcher chuckled, but that cold, fake smile devoid of any warmth made the Sword Princess subconsciously tighten her grip on her hilt.
"The Four Pillar Gods are watching him, after all."
Chapter 48