Chapter 702: One move
Max stood tall, the wind fluttering his cloak as he smiled faintly behind his mask. "Your previous sword attacks didn’t carry any sword concept," he said evenly, his tone calm and unhurried. "That’s why it was easy for me to defend against them. If you want a real battle, you should use your full strength. Otherwise, my flames will burn you to ash."
Anya didn’t flinch. Her grip on the sword tightened slightly, and her stance straightened. "You are strong," she said, her voice as steady as ever, "but not strong enough to defeat me."
That caught Max’s attention. He tilted his head, just a little, a small gesture of curiosity. Her tone wasn’t arrogant—it was factual. As though she were stating something that didn’t need to be proven.
"Is that so?" he asked, a chuckle escaping his lips as he shook his head in amusement. "I could say the same. I also think you can’t defeat me."
The air around them thickened as their words clashed silently before the swords did. Anya’s eyes, now fully alive with the gleam of sharpened will, remained locked onto Max.
"Nobody can defeat me at my strength level," she said without a shred of doubt. "And you—at 1st level of Master Rank—you aren’t my opponent either."
And then it happened.
Her aura flared, and her body overflowed with a fierce pressure that cut through the air like unseen blades. The world around her began to shimmer, as if reality itself was struggling to remain whole.
From her body rose the clear and unmistakable presence of Level 2 Sword Concept. It wasn’t just sword energy—it was the embodiment of everything she had trained for, fought for, and bled for.