Chapter 17: A genius fighter 2

Phantom blade was a powerful technique but it had some limitations. The first was you couldn't move, controlling a mana zone while moving was hard as mana dispersed when it gets out into the air which made controlling mana difficult, at least to non sorcerers. The second was it was a one strike attack, it wasn't good for taking down multiple opponents it was created mainly for one on one duels. At least this was the limit to phantom blade.

Arthur on the other hand had by passed all the restrictions and mixed flash step with phantom blade. What Arthur wasn't aware of was back in the castle, when he had his first vision, he didn't notice it but the power emanating from the sword had entered his body, this wasn't the swords actual power but just the remnants, the energy that sipped out from it. This energy had entered Arthur's body and since he was weak at the time it filled him up quickly, he was like a glass filled with water, really condensed water. Luckily Arthur never noticed this power so he never tried using it otherwise his body would have exploded with power.

Because of his weak body he couldn't draw out this power, the only sign that something had changed was with his senses as they had become sharper, when Arthur started his training his body became more conducive and naturally drew out the power inside him, his senses where pushed to the limit and after three months of training he could sense it. Mana, the mystical energy that flowed in this world, the force that gave living things the ability to perform magic. It was strange at first as he felt like a fogg of smoke was around him, one he couldn't see but after another month of training he could feel it better and after meditating he could also feel not just mana but the power inside him and he could draw it out.

With this new found revelation Arthur's growth exploded allowing him to push past his limits and learn any skill he saw, he was already smart for his age so deciphering they're moves wasn't a problem all he needed was the body to perform it and now he had it.

phantom blade

Arthur swung his sword but Armin stepped back at just the right time, he had dodged the attack but his academy uniform was sliced in half.

you all trained just to get stronger or make your family proud or whatever, that's not a strong enough reason to push yourself, I have a goal I'm running towards and unlike you lots I'm desperately enough to do whatever it takes to achieve it Arthur said as he stared as Armin like a predator who was starving and just found it's prey.

Did he just try to use the phantom zone?

not only that but he did it after performing a flash step

the students where in disbelief but one group was shocked more than them. it was the instructors, all of them where watching the matches intently and the more it went on the more they're fear and curiosity grew. The fear of Arthur growing stronger after each fight but the curiosity of a teacher's instinct in them to see how much talent a student possessed and where his limit lays.

This kid, earlier when he dodged the phantom blade he didn't just dodge it, he jumped above the area of attack, when he landed he immediately flash stepped putting a distance between them and now he's even trying to perform the phantom blade while adding in the flash step, to do all this takes years of training, it isn't something anyone can do even among the graduates so how is this kid doing it so easily, his opponent is an undiscovered gem, a protege in the making and yet he surpassed him after watching him do it once? Arthur's instructor thought to himself, he couldn't believe how much talent Arthur had hidden away. maybe the sword didn't choose wrongly after all.

You, how did you do that Armin asked

flash step mixed in with your phantom blade, it's tricky since it's the first time I'm doing the phantom blade and adding the flash step made it even trickier but with time I'll get the hang of it he said

b..but you need to able to use mana to do that unless that means...

mana? I have no idea what your talking about Arthur denied, all I'm doing is copying your movements.

This statement shocked the students and puzzled the instructors. To the students Arthur's statement ment that he did the phantom blade with pure speed and strength alone but the instructors knew otherwise, they sensed his magical power when he did it so that wasn't true, did he really do it within realizing what he did? they thought.

Arthur walked towards Armin with a sinister smile making a chill run down his spine, before he felt he could finish this in one go with the phantom blade, it took him some months to perfect that but this guy did it after watching him do it once, this fact frightened Armin, his will to fight was fading. He took a defensive stance and Arthur stopped wondering why he wasn't attacking anymore, the next second Arthur appeared behind Armin, he swung his sword as he felt Arthur's presence behind him but Arthur grabbed his hand and slammed him to the ground face first. he then pointed his blade at his neck winning the match, that made 12 student he had defeated now and 18 more to go.

It was still a lot but Arthur wasn't planning on loosing, he had learned so much and this didn't feel like a match or fight, no it felt like training, the actual training he should have gotten from the start. Meanwhile the other contestants where a bit shaken, so far Arthur had won all matches with minimal effort. He had barely been pushed back so the thought of him going all out frightened them, at least some of them, there where still some nobles who still had pride in they're skills and others who liked the challenge but this was a different case for the instructors.

If he keeps going like this he might learn everything we've been holding him out on, we need to stop this now.