Chapter 22 - 22: What do you think of Erik?
Seeing her own spell reflected back at her, Liliana reacted quickly, hastily creating a light barrier to intercept the attack. Although she managed to stop it, the clash between the 'light cuts' and her barrier produced a bright flash that overloaded her senses, disorienting her for a moment.
By the time Liliana recovered, the first thing she noticed was that she was surrounded by flying cuts and invisible arrows coming from all directions. Without wasting a single second, she quickly conjured a new, much larger spherical barrier composed of multiple layers. While frustration surged back like a tidal wave, making her feel like a turtle in a bottle, only able to defend herself.
Liliana's layered barrier successfully stopped the attacks but was destroyed in the process, revealing her in a state of shock. Meanwhile, Erik was now standing right next to her, pointing his machete at her neck with a calm and composed expression, without a drop of sweat on his body.
"Erik really read her like a book, guiding her step by step from the beginning, inducing a mistake which he then exploited to win. It's a very effective way to win against someone stronger but quite difficult to achieve.
He must have faced countless situations where he was the weaker one. You really can see the difference in experience despite the vast age gap" Sigrún analyzed with a satisfied smile as she looked at her disciple with delight.
"How can a child his age have such combat experience, Master Eldurdóttir?" Desmond asked in a dignified and elegant manner, though he couldn't hide the surprise and curiosity in his tone.
"Hehehe, well, he just had to survive for years on an island completely alone, surrounded by hundreds of magical animals stronger than him. Believe it or not, you learn a trick or two in that situation," Sigrún boasted proudly of her disciple's achievements, to which Eleonora added, equally surprised.
"You really didn't exaggerate his abilities. That exquisite mana control and that refined mystical confluence are truly a beautiful spectacle to witness in someone so young... and for him to truly master communion with the Myst is on another level."
"Hehehe, he is my first disciple after all. Something like this is the minimum requirement."
Desmond looked somewhat puzzled at the Masters talking about advanced and master-level techniques, things neither of the two combatants should be able to master. To clear his doubts, Desmond decided to ask his master in his typical serious tone.
"Master, could I ask what you mean?"