65 Chapter 65 - Holding Back?

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[Adam C. POV]

Artemis snarled and her hands waved through the air, summoning several silver-like swords, from out of nowhere, before launching them towards me as I was rushing in at her, stopping only for a half second as a shimmering blade slashed across my path inches away from my face.

This is getting dangerous.

I guess I couldn't expect anything less from a Goddess.

Smiling, I continued pushing forward, dodging and weaving under the shower of silver swords, reaching the Goddess.

Seeing this, Artemis tugs her hand back, recalling the blades she had thrown my way, which she then uses to continually block my strikes with Zanryuzuki.

As our blades crossed, the sound of metal clashing echoed throughout the forest, creating shockwaves that expanded like waves on a calm sea.

Leaving nothing behind, I pushed with all my might, trying to get the upper hand in our clash, however, no matter how hard I tried, or how fast I moved, the Goddess was able to anticipate my every move and counterattack with ease.

"Uchuryu no Kiba!" I roared, bringing my sword down on her with one powerful swing, releasing a massive wave of energy that ripped through the air with tremendous force.

Unfazed by this, Artemis lifted her hand and pointed a pale finger at me. "Moonlight; Sonata." Instantly, a brilliant beam of silvery-white light shot from her fingertip, piercing through my attack before encompassing me in its warmth, pushing back.

Her attack had dispelled mine...

Well, that's going to be problematic.

Gripping my blade tight, I stood my ground, cutting through her attack before performing a second charge, this time moving behind her, bringing my blade down on her.

However, as I was about to strike her, one of Artemis blade's blocked my attack, before another pushed me back again, making her flip backward in midair before landing to block the next few blows from her swords.

"You can't win," Artemis said, a hint of amusement in her voice. "I am a Goddess, and you are but a mortal. Do you not see how futile this is?"

I gritted my teeth, refusing to back down. "Fuck off, I may be mortal, but I will never give up. I will keep fighting until I have nothing left to lose!"

Artemis chuckled, the wounds she had suffered from my earlier Hado, already gone. "Very well, little prey. If that is your choice, then I shall continue to play with you for a little while."

With a flick of her wrist, she sent a flurry of silver blades my way, each one coming at me from a different angle. I dodged and weaved, barely avoiding each blade as it sliced through the air.

As I continued to dodge and block her relentless barrage of attacks, I noticed something, the forest was... smaller than before, it seemed that the more she attacked, the less mana she had to sustain the terrain she had made.

I grinned.

If what was happening was what I thought was happening. All I needed to do to win was to hold out a little longer and wait for the right moment to turn the tables on her.

"Moonlight; Crescendo," Artemis said, raising her hand and sending a wave of light toward me.

I stood my ground, focusing my energy on my sword before bringing it down on the wave, cutting her attack in half.

First, her attack dissipates mine, and now... it doesn't?

Before I could ponder on that thought for much longer, the silver blades surrounding me began to glow, growing brighter and brighter with each passing second.

"Moonlight; Execution," Artemis muttered, a cold smile spreading across her face, as she unleashed a powerful blast of silver light toward me.

I moved, blurring out of sight, dodging her attack.

This attack, despite being similar to the ones she had shown already, felt fundamentally different, it felt... dangerous, it felt as if I were to be hit by it, I would die.

As I landed on the ground, I felt a sharp pain in my left, making me realize that I had been hit by another arrow while dodging her previous attack.

"I have to admit, you're quicker than I thought," Artemis said, her confident tone betraying a hint of frustration. "But it won't matter in the end. You will die, as all before you have."

"I know you want to kill me, but goodness gracious, spare me the monologue," I grinned, trying to catch my breath. "Let's just get on with it already."

At this rate, I was going to lose.

If her previous arrows were anything to go by, it wouldn't be long before my left arm was transformed.

Not only that, if her words were true, a single arrow would eventually turn me into a deer, it was safe to assume two would do just that but quicker.

In short, I was running out of time.

Artemis growled, her eyes glinting in the moonlight. "It seems it's time to finally show you what your place in this world truly is."

Glaring at me, Artemis summoned a massive silver bow that seemed to hum with power. Without a word, she notched an arrow and drew back the string, taking aim at me.

I braced myself preparing my all to dodge her attack, knowing that there was no way I could block an arrow of that size and power. But just as she was about to release the arrow, the forest around us shuddered with power, and the ground beneath her feet gave way.

I blinked.

I knew this power.

There was no doubt about it, this power belonged to the first God I ever met.

Artemis stumbled and fell as the ground beneath her crumbled, revealing a deep pit filled with jagged rocks and sharp branches.

"You dare to interfere! Odin?!" Artemis shouted, her voice carrying a mixture of anger and surprise as she struggled to regain her footing.

Odin? Wait, that wasn't his name...

What am I doing? Questions for later, press forward now!

Wasting no time, I took the opportunity this sudden interruption had given me, in order to attack, darting forward at full speed with my sword raised high.

But before I could land a single blow, I felt the familiar sensation of Artemis' silver blades whizzing past me, each one slicing into the air with deadly accuracy.

I dodged and blocked as best I could, but with each passing moment the number of blades I had to block continued to increase until there was nothing but silver flying around me, and before I knew I was starting to find myself becoming overwhelmed.

"Well, little huntress, it seems only fair that I do so," I turned to see Apedemak... or in this case, Odin standing at the edge of a mountain behind Artemis, leaning on his knee.

Based on what I could see... it was without a doubt the God I had encountered that time.

Artemis snarled, frustration evident on her face. "You will pay for this."

"Perhaps," Odin replied, an amused glint in his eye. "But I doubt it will be today."

With a wave of his hand, a bright light enveloped the area, blinding both me and Artemis. When it faded, the swords were gone, leaving nothing but forest, and us.

Artemis growled in frustration.

"Long time no see, brave one, you have grown strong since I last saw you, maybe strong enough to spar with your old pal here," Odin said, a small smile forming on his face.

"You have no right to interfere with my hunt, this is not your domain," Artemis spat, her bow still drawn and pointed in Odin's direction.

"God... you're boring," Odin said with an exaggerated yawn. "Do I look like I care?"

Ok, I officially can say I like this guy.

"Not that I'm ungrateful, but... what are you doing here?" I asked, still trying to catch my breath.

Odin shrugged. "Just felt like helping out an old friend. And besides, it seems like you could use a bit of help."

I frowned, sure Artemis had... a slight upper hand, but I would figure something out eventually. "I don't need your help to win."

Odin chuckled, slapping one of his legs. "Of course, you don't. But it's always good to have friends in high places, don't you think?"

Artemis scowled at Odin. "What is it that you want, Odin?"

"I... I think... I think I made it clear already... right?" Odin muttered, blinking in confusion. "I just felt like helping, and I did."

"This is my domain, you can't interfere with my affairs, you know the rules," Artemis hissed, her power rippling out in waves as her anger grew.

Odin replied, his smile now widening. "I do, but rules are meant to be broken, are they not?"

Artemis narrowed her eyes, sensing that he was holding something back.

"What are you not telling me?" she demanded.

Odin chuckled, shaking his head as he stood upright. "That's between me, and him." At this, he pointed at me.

I blinked.

Who, what, how?

I don't recall having anything with him, we barely even interacted, we fought for a bit if you can even call that a fight, seeing I didn't land a single blow, and that was it.

"If a fight is what you want, I shall oblige---" Artemis began, but was stopped midway through her sentence by Odin, who shushed her.

"Shhhh," Odin said, putting a finger to his lips, silencing Artemis who was about to explode in anger, before turning his gaze on me. "Brave one, I won't interfere in your fight any longer, I just came to tell you that you have more than enough power to overcome this challenge, just stop... holding back."

Holding back?

Does he think I'm a fucking masochist? if I had any more power to give I would've done so already!

Sure, I enjoy a good fight, and the thrill I feel when facing a strong opponent, but I won't endure unnecessary pain for the sake of having a good fight, pain has to be a byproduct of fighting someone on the same level as me, not a byproduct of my stupidity.

"Tell your partner that you need more power," Odin smiled knowingly, giving me a wink before vanishing into thin air.

I was left alone with Artemis, who was still seething in anger.

As for me, I was still processing the fact that he knew my blade was more than it met the eye.