"Now appearing is! The new star of the arena knights! The Shining Knight's sister! The destroyer of the arena! The King of Brawls! Her titles have recently appeared in most newspapers! Everyone must be very familiar with her by now! Let's all shout her name out loud! Xia Guang Knight! Maria Nearl! Let's look forward to Xia Guang Knight bringing us another exciting match!" Big Mouth Mobu worked hard to liven up the atmosphere, and Noah was a little stunned at this moment.
"When did she get so many titles?"
"Given by recent newspapers..." Kuro explained, "Mainly because of her excellent performance in brawls, plus... that sword strike that split the arena."
"...That's too exaggerated. Are the media promotions so shameless now?" Noah shook her head helplessly, "That time was clearly just an accident..."
"Whether it's an accident or not isn't important to the media; they just think this situation is good for hype. It's all about attracting attention anyway." Kuro seemed to understand the media's thinking and immediately complained, "They were like this back then."
"Back then? Kuro, were you like this when you competed?"
"...Much worse than this."
"...Alright." Noah probably underestimated the media's craving for trending topics, and Kuro was likely deeply affected back then. She probably also had to deal with gossip tabloids that paid particular attention to private lives... some rather speculative things, perhaps? Like the Wine Report, who knows how wild their imaginations had to be to write those reports.
Incidentally, the star of the Wine Report was clearly Candle Knight. Compared to other Knights, Candle Knight had the most rumors, and they were also what the audience loved to read most.
Even Noah, who didn't pay much attention to such things, had heard rumors about her having hundreds of male servants in her manor, bathing in expensive red wine, and having nightly parties... or that her sexual orientation was actually female.
Viviana herself denied the last one, and rightly so. She had known Viviana for so long and hadn't noticed any such tendencies in her. Their interactions had never crossed any lines; they didn't even have the hugs and hand-holding that close friends often shared, always maintaining a very social distance. Most of it must have been groundless rumors.
And while Noah was still thinking about various things, Rust Copper had already entered. His popularity was slightly lower than Maria's, which was evident from the audience's cheers. Although Rust Copper's fighting style was very popular, relatively, the audience was also very polarized. Either they hated Rust Copper and demanded severe punishment from the Knight Association, or they loved Rust Copper and believed that his battles were the "real" ones and should be vigorously promoted.
However, Rust Copper himself completely ignored the discussions in the stands. He stared intently at Maria Nearl, who looked radiant, had a beautiful face, and whose appearance was no less than that of idol knights, and showed a disdainful smile. Although this smile was hidden beneath the Knight's mask, it still exuded a chilling coldness, making Maria feel a chill run down her spine, as if she was being targeted by some monster.
"...I can't wait to tear your skin and see the blood gush out."
Rust Copper Ormer Englar, once a descendant of an ancient Knight family, but now he had completely become a bloodthirsty beast. His purpose in competing had become to completely tear his opponents apart. Many Knights would tremble in fear when facing him.
The information Noah found was like this: this axe-wielding Knight, though unassuming in appearance, had strength that should not be underestimated. Many people believed that Rust Copper must have used banned drugs, but every drug test he took passed safely. However, his attack methods and style were very violent. When Noah learned that Maria's opponent was Rust Copper, she even considered having Maria avoid the battle...
But since she had already decided to trust Maria, this time... she would also stand firmly by Maria's side.
Come on... Maria.
At this moment, Maria on the stage began to recall Zofia's pre-match analysis of Rust Copper. In summary... Rust Copper's style was wide and open, basically lacking in technique, relying entirely on brute force and that strange imposing aura to suppress his opponents. In front of him, one must never be afraid. Once one's momentum weakens, one will be suppressed from beginning to end, with no chance of recovery.
So... the most important thing... is momentum!
Maria Nearl took a deep breath, beginning to steady herself before the match started. As long as she wasn't overwhelmed by her opponent's aura, her stamina was definitely superior.
The Rust Copper's aggressive, wide-swinging fighting style was incredibly draining, and his matches never lasted more than twenty minutes. In other words, if she could just hold out for over twenty minutes, he would likely collapse first!
The match—begins!
With Big Mouth Mobu's command, the Rust Copper on the field burst forth like a tiger released from its cage, instantly closing the five-meter distance. He brought his large axe down from above, aiming for Maria Nearl. His momentum was fierce, and it was an overhead jump-slash. Combined with his brute strength, Maria Nearl immediately judged that this attack was absolutely not to be met. So, she turned and dodged, avoiding the axe. The axe slammed heavily into the ground, and even though Maria Nearl wasn't hit, she still felt a jolt—just how much force had he put into that blow?
The Rust Copper pulled his axe from the ground once more and charged towards Maria Nearl, shouting as he ran, "Face me! Is this all the Nearl Family family is capable of? The Shining Knight is probably just a coward too!"
"..."
Theoretically, she only needed to keep dodging... she could simply wait for the Rust Copper to exhaust his own stamina.
But after hearing those words, Maria Nearl's movements froze. She shifted from dodging to defending, intending to meet the next attack!
She was indeed probably the weakest among the Nearl Family family! But! She was still a member of Nearl Family!
He could mock her, but he could not mock the Nearl Family family, and he absolutely could not mock her sister! An unknown fire ignited within Maria Nearl. With the glow of her Stone source art, she raised her shield, directly facing the Rust Copper's axe blade—
But she might have overestimated her shield's durability... Maria Nearl felt a jolt of numbness in her left hand. Although the shield absorbed most of the force, the remaining impact was enough to make Maria Nearl feel the terror of that blow. A nasty crack also appeared on the shield, indicating it wouldn't withstand another hit. This commotion startled Sister Noah, who quickly grabbed Kuro's hand. "What happened?"
"Maria Nearl took a hit—nothing serious, she held on," Kuro explained concisely. "But she'll probably only be able to take that one; the shield's material isn't very good."
"...Which means..."
"What about the next hit...?"
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