Mythshaper

Chapter 76: Demonstration

Despite coming down, I did not cease using the levitation boots in the duel, much to Priam's dismay.

Although I wasn't as good at utilising the boots on the ground as I was in the air, I had improved tremendously under Father's tutelage over the last few weeks. The main problem was that the boots were not made for running on the ground. It didn’t help that I hadn’t made the additional gears to circumvent that.

Father and I had worked together to find a way to address the issue. Essentially, it involved moving in large strides; the more my feet could be off the ground, the better. While I chose the direction, the boots would lead me there.

It was still difficult for me to move precisely in third gear, let alone while using haste. However, when it came to first and second gear, I had almost full control over my body, as long as I concentrated hard enough. If only second gear was enough to beat Priam at his own game.

Say what you would about Priam—pompous, prideful, and perhaps not a prick yet, but he was surely racing towards becoming one—but you simply could not deny that he was painstakingly diligent.

He had trained his gift to the point that scald marks had appeared on his body, and he had to take medication and receive timely healing for over a season to recover completely. His sword forms were also not half-arsed. Complemented by his terrifying speed, he was a nightmare to fight against for most of us.

Whenever Priam channelled Celerity to the limit and struck at me, I had to shift to third gear to evade his blow. If we kept on going like this for a few more minutes, he would certainly fall into exhaustion.

But I was still too displeased to keep on evading the confrontation.

With the unrelenting stance of Whispering Gale and Tidal Wave, my duelling cane hurled at him threateningly. The high speed caused my swordplay to become more erratic, unpredictable. Priam’s eyeballs darted about, tracing the line of my sword, blocking every one of my strikes.

My eyes shone glaringly, a fierceness overtook my sword as I struck more forcefully. Priam’s perfect defence only pushed me to do better.

My stances shifted from the sublime Tidal Wave to the audacious Walking Mountain, finding my opponent on the defensive. It was primarily a defensive form, but in her duel against Magus Serene, Father had shown it could be utilised as an unrelenting force as well.