410 Chapter 410: Paladin (2/2)
Eliza's confident smile widened. Even with my Celestial Guardians still around me, I couldn't help but feel a chill. Despite being confronted by at least three gigantic monsters, Eliza showed no fear. No, rather than anxiety, she seemed extremely confident.
That meant she had a way of dealing with my Celestial Guardians. Then again, that was the Paladin's role. They were meant to extermiate monsters. Saint Teresa Academy had dedicated its curriculum to training its students – especially the top, elite students among its ranks – to slaying monsters.
My Celestial Guardians were mere obstacles to them, nothing more. It could be said that this was an extremely bad matchup for me. Paladin skills and techniques specialized in dealing with monsters, and my Constellation spirits were no exception.
Kureha had made the right choice in sending Eliza forward to finish me off as soon as possible. She would undoubtedly need to expend quite a bit of mana, so as long as I did my job and exhaust her, even if I didn't win, I would ensure that my friends wouldn't have to face a figure as powerful and skilled as Eliza in the team match.
\”The second coming, was it?\” I murmured to myself, recalling the data I read last night. Eliza Franklin, while still not on the same level as Kureha the Sword Saint, was recognized as one of the top students in Saint Teresa Academy. She was the Sword Saint's Second, their ace or trump card. The second in command who would take charge and lead the team should Kureha fall in battle (like the last time when I defeated Cain and the whole Adorno Academy fell apart during the team match because they didn't have a proper second).
If she was allowed to participate in the team match, our chances of winning would be drastically reduced. In fact, Harrison had anticipated Kureha sending her out, and because he didn't want to risk losing a member against her, he kept me in the ring. Of course, if I failed to wear her down, Kureha would keep Eliza in the stage and it would become a difficult battle of attrition. It would be Harrison's turn to wear Eliza down and ensure her chances of participating in the team match were as minimal as possible.
Of course I would prefer to do my job.
The both of us took up positions on either side of the arena and waited for a moment. The commentator watched us, and was giving a general overview of Eliza before he finally returned to the main event.
\”All right, match begin!\”
Eliza surged forward immediately, swinging her massive broadsword down upon me. Vermillion Phoenix soared up high and unleashed a torrent of flames, but the Paladin darted across the arena, evading the fiery projectiles effortlessly.
\”They really are a well-rounded class,\” I mused to myself. Not only was her defense sturdy – I saw her cleave through a fiery feather and weathered the explosion without taking any damage – her speed was also incredible. Eliza was practically a blue blur that streaked across the ring, not only evading the hail of fire from above, but also dodging the earth spikes that Golden Kirin launched from below. Zigzagging across the arena, she surged toward me, her massive broadsword raised above her head for a killing blow.
Fortunately, Black Tortoise stepped forward and conjured a sturdy water sphere around me. Eliza's broadsword clanged against the barrier and she was forced to bounce back. Staggering a few steps, she then threw herself to the side to dodge another volley of earth spikes, and rolled to escape the hellish fire from above.
\”She's good,\” I acknowledged. Even in the face of so many monsters, she continued to attack aggressively, undaunted by the odds. Spinning about to cleave a gigantic fireball from Vermillion Phoenix, she then kicked off the ground and charged at Golden Kirin, who conjured a massive wall of earth spikes to impale her.
In one blow, she obliterated the earth wall and spikes.
\”!!\”
\”If I can't get to the summoner, then I'll start by eliminating his Soul Beasts one by one.\”
In a single slash, she cleaved Golden Kirin in half, causing the Celestial Guardian to split apart and dissipate into golden orbs of mana. Without missing a beat, she shot upward at Vermillion Phoenix, who just barely managed to dodge her strike by diving to the side. Swinging around in midair, Vermillion Phoenix retaliated with a ferocious bombardment of fireball, which the plummeting Eliza couldn't dodge.
She didn't bother to. Instead, she cast a spell and blessed herself, her body wreathed in glowing golden mana. The flames slammed into her and exploded, but she crashed out of the inferno and rolled to her feet, smoking but otherwise unscathed.
\”You've got to be kidding me,\” I muttered. There was no way she could have survived a bombardment straight-on from Vermillion Phoenix and get away with nothing more than a few smudges and smoke. Not unless…
\”Blessing,\” Eliza explained somewhat smugly. \”A unique ability of Paladins that allow us to heal ourselves, and boost our defense, which is why a single Paladin can enhance the combat power of an entire unit by so much.\”
She then swung about and launched herself at Black Tortoise, who conjured a wall of water to deflect her. However, her blade actually managed to penetrate the watery veil and stop just a few centimeters away from the great Celestial Guardian.
\”It doesn't just boost our defense, though. It also amplifies our attack power.\”
With a yell, Eliza cleaved the barrier of water apart, causing Black Tortoise to tumble away helplessly from the sheer power of her blow.
\”I'm sorry,\” she sneered as she walked through the mist of water that was left over after she destroyed Black Tortoise's water barrier. \”Blame the bad matchup if you have to…blame the fact that my Paladin abilities completely counter your Summoning skills…but this is my win.\”