Chapter 420: Luke vs. Sara!
"Thank you for waiting! Up next is the Block D match of the Seven Star Sword Art Festival's third round—and today's final quarterfinal!"
The commentator's excited cry ignited the entire venue.
Both previous matches, Touka versus Shizuku and Kuraudo versus Ikki, had been spectacular.
However, when it came to anticipation, Falling Star Sword Emperor Luke versus Bloodstained Da Vinci Sara Bloodlily surpassed them both.
Regardless of his opponent, Luke had crushed two powerful competitors in consecutive matches and accumulated enormous popularity.
Sara was the first to enter the arena.
Her heavy dark circles looked almost painted beneath her eyes, and her messy blonde hair remained completely unkempt.
At a glance, she seemed no different from usual.
Yet both the audience and commentator could clearly sense the difference created by her newly sharpened presence!
"Emerging from the blue gate is Akatsuki Academy first-year competitor Sara Bloodlily!"
"As the final remaining representative of this year's rising Akatsuki Academy, Sara's strength cannot be underestimated."
"Her kaleidoscopic ability manipulates the concepts of different colors to produce countless effects."
"She displayed terrifying power during her first two matches and won both with remarkable ease."
"No one knows the limits of her strength. Perhaps today we'll finally have the opportunity to witness—oh?"
"Has something changed about Sara's state of mind?"
Until now, even while standing on the battlefield, Sara had always seemed distracted and possessed no imposing presence whatsoever.
To put it bluntly, she looked bored and ready to fall asleep.
But the current Sara was different.
Anyone could sense the intense concentration and fighting spirit radiating from her body.
With a sharp and oppressive gaze, Sara stared toward the red gate on the opposite side.
"Sara appears remarkably serious."
"But that's understandable. Compared with her previous opponents, today's is on an entirely different level."
"Even the usually listless Sara cannot avoid feeling tense when facing him!"
"Please welcome our second competitor!"
"Hagun Academy first-year—Falling Star Sword Emperor Luke Ashburn!"
Following the commentator's announcement, every spectator focused on the red gate.
The instant Luke appeared, thunderous cheers erupted!
"Supreme swordsmanship, the monstrous physical ability of an immortal creature, and overwhelming victories against championship favorite Ouma and the power of fate itself!"
"If anyone currently stands closest to the throne of Seven Stars Sword King, it can only be him!"
"The title of Sword Emperor is no exaggeration!"
Amid the audience's cheers and the commentator's praise, Luke walked to the position opposite Sara.
Seeing the girl's blade-like gaze, he smiled.
"It looks like you're prepared."
Sara ignored his greeting and spoke with a stiff expression.
"You must keep our promise."
Polite conversation held no value to her.
The only important thing was the agreement she had made with Luke.
"I will defeat you."
At this moment, Sara's mind contained no distracting thoughts beyond victory.
She would win and then complete the painting her father had left behind.
For that purpose, Sara would fight with everything she possessed for the first time in her life.
Mana flashed, and her Device appeared within both hands.
The Brush of Demiurge—also known as the Brush That Creates All Things.
It consisted of a paintbrush and a palette.
Considering Sara's identity as the world's greatest painter, Luke was not surprised by the form of her Device.
Realizing she did not intend to continue talking, Luke also fell silent.
Unlike his matches against Ouma and Amane, this battle deserved his full attention.
Luke had no habit of wasting words during a genuine fight.
Sensing the soaring fighting spirit between them, the referee understood the situation.
Without further hesitation, he raised his right hand high and shouted,
"Begin!"
...
Swoosh—!
The instant the match began, Luke vanished.
Although he did not activate techniques such as Twin-Wings Sword Style, he pushed his speed to its absolute limit in a single instant.
Without question, this was Luke's full power in his normal state!
A streak of sword light flashed directly toward Sara without the slightest mercy!
Even under normal conditions, Luke's sword was too fast for an ordinary person to perceive.
However, Sara had prepared herself in advance.
She did not attempt to follow Luke's attack.
That was impossible, and she understood her own limitations.
The Brush of Demiurge in her right hand traced an unusual path across the palette in her left, then lightly scattered paint beside her feet.
Plop—!
With a faint sound like something sinking into water, Sara disappeared from the spot.
[Color Magic: Lake Surface Blue!]
Her movements flowed seamlessly and were not the slightest bit slower than Luke's sword!
Just as Luke had swung his sword every day for countless years, Sara had repeated the motion of her brush tens of millions of times.
Her body might be terribly weak, but Sara had elevated the act of moving a brush to the realm of perfect mastery.
With mana strengthening her movements, she could even rival the speed of Luke drawing his sword.
With his target gone, Luke's opening strike was about to miss.
However, he did not panic.
If someone praised by Edelweiss could not even withstand his opening greeting, Luke would have been deeply disappointed.
He had already expected the first attack to fail.
Besides, a human could not simply vanish without a reason!
A pool of blue paint tinged with faint green remained where Sara had disappeared.
Luke immediately understood that she had vanished by "sinking into water," or through some similar principle.
His sword changed direction midway through the strike.
Boom—!
Starfall Sword struck the floor and blasted open a small crater.
Luke had no time to wonder why today's stage seemed unusually durable.
The instant his attack missed, he swept his sword behind him.
Whoosh—!
Boom—!
Violent sword energy shattered the red paint attacking from behind.
Although it had merely been scattered from the tip of a brush, its volume resembled an entire bucket being poured at once.
The scattered droplets landed across the ground and erupted with flames like miniature volcanoes.
[Color Magic: Blazing Flame Red!]
At the same time, Sara emerged from another pool of blue paint on the opposite side, only to sink back into it immediately.
She continued swimming throughout the combat zone, seemingly determined to drag Luke into a prolonged battle of attrition.
…
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