Ronan saw Brutas stagger after the soul attack.
Since his Soul Sense ability was activated, he could clearly see the outline of Brutas's soul. It wrapped around his body like a faint second skin. Before the attack, it had looked strong, vibrant, tightly formed. Now it wavered. Thin and unsteady.
Ronan pushed himself up from the ground.
His body hurt.
His bruises hurt.
His cuts hurt.
His forearm was damaged from Brutas's earlier attack, but most of his bones were still intact.
His ribs were not broken.
His legs still worked.
His body was moving almost normally.
Steel Bone Armament was stronger than he expected.
It did not stop pain. It did not stop his flesh from tearing. But it kept the structure of his body from collapsing, and that was more than enough.
The artifact Brutas used had been annoying and unexpected.
A Rank 3 artifact in a duel like this was excessive, but not unbeatable. Brutas got cocky after using it.
