Chapter 14:

The Fastest Esper (8)

Podzemgrad


"-Deactivate."

Takagi and Aurora muttered the word at almost the same time. They faded their own weapons, which were at the hands of their adversary. Nobody wanted to have the searing modes be used against them.

Both of them could not see anything but the faint reflection surrounding them and the contrast from the white edge of the blades they held. While it could reveal their position, neither could afford to drop their weapons.

Aurora knew Takagi could use his power to draw his knife back into his hand.

Takagi knew Aurora could snatch the katana using her speed, and unlike Nightshade, her powers could create a momentum that would easily break through Takagi's grip even if he used his powers.

No one could lower their guards.

Just a few seconds ago, she had swung her sword twice at an incredible speed despite Takagi's telekinesis trying to halt it down. He could stop one of such strikes just because the momentum was not enough to pierce Takagi's power. The draw distance was too short to generate enough power.

However, she had gained some distance, and they were in an open space. The ideal environment for her, but not without merit to Takagi as well. He was the one who was at a disadvantage, but it still provided him with a better chance to cope with Aurora. A closed, tight environment would be preferable, but not in the middle of darkness.

The only thing Takagi had was her katana which he possessed at the moment. Yet, it did not mean he had the upper hand. It just made the situation not go worse than it should be.

Her use of swordsmanship was deadly, and even with the knife in her hand, she was more capable of striking Takagi down in many ways.

There was a reason why she still calmed despite losing her weapon.

Meeting Aurora in the first place was already one of the worst scenarios that could happen to him for many reasons. One of them was that he could never run away from her. Outrunning her was a task that no man in the world could do, which was why the only solution then was to fight through her.

Takagi had used her power to hold her down. It would not be enough to stop her once she moved, but at least it would slow her speed and help him to react better against her strikes.

Indeed, Aurora did not even bother about the gripping force that held his entire body. She felt like the air was pressing her from every direction, but she had no doubt that she would not be held back.

And she did not hold back herself.

As soon as Takagi stepped onto the asphalt, Aurora blasted forward without hesitation.

It was a reminiscence similar to what Talia did to Takagi several minutes ago. However, this time Takagi was not able to stop it. He could not. She still had tremendous speed despite Takagi's effort to slow her down using his powers.

Takagi was not without a countermeasure of his own. Despite the momentum that Aurora could muster from such a distance, it had given Takagi a split amount of time to react, albeit barely.

The first clang of their blades quickly escalated into a flurry of exchanges of thrust and parry between both.

Takagi was losing ground quickly, but his superior range from the katana minimised Aurora's attacking options. It was blindingly dark, and they could only rely on the visual trails from their opponents' blades provided by the white edges.

It was impossible for normal humans, but both of them were not normal at all. They were espers.

Takagi was slower than Aurora, but it did not mean he did not have a speed that could inspire awe. Combined with his reflexes, he carefully parried Aurora's attacks while sending some counters to strike her down. Aurora used her superior agility to dodge and evade his attacks easily, pressing Takagi as he stormed Takagi with relentless assault.

It then became a combination display of precision, speed, and fury.

Both did not hold back using their powers to their absolutes. Each of the strikes produced a powerful repulsive force which battered the buildings surrounding them.

In a short time, two nearby buildings had collapsed. The ground rumbled with constant tremors. The asphalt below them was cracked and torn up.

Both screamed and shouted as they threw their might into their strikes.

Takagi felt as if he was fighting three people at the same time. His swordsmanship was limited, so he could not maximise his range advantage–and his martial arts could not be used against someone like Aurora.

Aurora felt as if she wore heavy shackles on her four limbs, fighting a man who could see into the future, predicting every strike.

She felt she would get a sure hit in some of her attacks, but somehow her opponent could barely deflect and parry it. It was no longer an anomaly since it was not their first encounter, but frustration grew inside her mind as Takagi somehow was able to defend himself. She could do better with her sword, she thought.

However, she undoubtedly got the upper hand as Takagi kept losing ground as he was pushed eastward.

Takagi tried to drag the battle inside a building, but Aurora manoeuvred and coordinated her attacks to keep him away.

Both of them started panting, but neither had the intention to back down. Not until one of them gained a clear advantage. Both also exerted themselves by using their powers continuously for too long.

Yet Takagi decided to push his limits even further in a bid to overturn the onslaught. He first took a glance around him in a quick fashion. Realising an idea, he expanded his senses and switched to a one-handed style. 

For a moment, Aurora felt he was about to deliver first blood since Takagi's defence became poor with the new stance. Still, rocks and pebbles from destroyed buildings started to fling towards Aurora from every direction at incredible speed. Once she felt pain from a hit on his back, she quickly broke away from Takagi to deal with the incoming projectiles first.

With Aurora distracted for a second, Takagi took the chance to rush inside a large storehouse without a second thought, halting his attacks of a sudden. Realising the intention, Aurora tried to prevent it. However, she would not be in time to enforce him, so she decided to chase him and went inside.

She was caught in a trap.

All of a sudden, Takagi stormed toward her with an overhead attack. He never had any intention to hide or evade. He timed his attack well after some calculations. He just needed to predict when she would land and step right near the frame door, and he got that right.

He tried to hold her down using his powers as he delivered his strike.

Aurora could not move for a split second, but she eventually overpowered Takagi as she sidestepped and aimed the knife toward Takagi's side. Surprised, Takagi awkwardly turned his body as he diverted his attack to block her.

It was a lucky hit as it successfully parried and even disarmed Aurora, as the force from the swing was too strong to cope. However, he had sacrificed his balance. Aurora had not lost her footing and simply hit Takagi's stomach using her fist in force.

The sudden pain and shock loosened Takagi's grip on the katana as it escaped from his hands. Only a fraction of a second passed as Aurora grabbed the loose katana and reclaimed it. In just one motion, she quickly swung it towards Takagi, who was about to fall to the ground.

However, Takagi used his power one more time in desperation.

This time, Aurora was stopped in her tracks, and she was astounded.

She tried to break free using brute force, but she could not do it.

However, it would not last for long. Takagi just used the little amount of time he had to recover briefly.

"Alright, stop," he said as he gasped for breath. "I'll yield."

WALKER
icon-reaction-1