"I Won't."

"I won't."

"BOOM!!!"

In the silent forest path, a roaring sound erupted without any warning, sending gusts of wind like explosions, carrying dust and sand that flew everywhere, a spectacular sight.

Amidst the blast, two figures streaked out, one after the other.

"Ha!"

Laisha streaked backward as if flying in reverse, her hand reaching forward as she flew. With a delicate shout, she unleashed her Magic Power.

That Magic Power directly transformed into tangible gravity waves, like an invisible undertow surging from a black hole, blasting towards Shien, who was also flying.

Shien, naturally, could not see the invisible gravity waves.

This was perhaps the tricky part of this Magic, making it impossible to defend against.

However, it didn't matter even if he couldn't see the gravity waves.

Because Shien still had his Evasion Skill in effect, combined with the combat intuition and instincts brought by his God of War Skill, Shien didn't need to do anything; his body naturally shifted to the side, dodging the invisible magic projectile.

"Bang!"

The powerful gravity wave narrowly missed Shien's body, hitting the ground and blasting that area into pieces.

Shien, riding the explosive shockwave, accelerated amidst the swirling dust kicked up, and dashed in front of Laisha.

The next moment, his broad-bladed sword fell like lightning, slashing a cold arc, and ruthlessly striking towards the girl in front of him.

"Clang!!!"

A loud impact, like the ringing of a bell, occurred between the man and woman locked in battle.

Shien's merciless strike was blocked by Laisha's slender and beautiful hand.

Laisha blocked Shien's slash with her bare hands, causing a loud, bell-like collision.

Shien felt as if his strike had hit a mass of soft water, unable to exert any force.

Upon closer inspection, before Laisha's raised palm, a circle of constantly rotating, fluctuating Magic Power had appeared.

That Magic Power also transformed into gravity, as if countless gravity waves were swirling chaotically, forming turbulent gravity currents.

Shien's strike wasn't hitting Laisha's hand, but rather the turbulent gravity currents. It was like a stone being constantly washed in an irregular torrent, unable to fall, unable to rise, unable to drift in any direction, only able to sway within it.

The bell-like ringing sound wasn't the sound of hitting a hard object, but merely the vibration sound produced by the broad-bladed sword's edge rapidly swaying within the turbulent gravity.

One could imagine how astonishing the Magic Laisha had used was.

However, she herself looked astonished.

"Are you really a novice adventurer who's only Level 10?" Laisha asked, extremely surprised. "How can you have this level of power without using the Sacred Sword?"

Hearing this, Shien replied with a smile devoid of any humor.

"Shouldn't that question be coming from me?" Shien said with a fake smile. "Don't you need to chant a long incantation to use Magic? How can you casually cast Magic just by moving your hands!?"

As he spoke, Shien didn't wait for Laisha's reply. He suddenly freed one hand, grabbed the bag slung over his shoulder, and used it as a blunt weapon, smashing it fiercely in Laisha's direction.

Laisha calmly withdrew the gravity currents. She herself, like a light, floating leaf, seemed to have altered the gravity around herself and her surroundings, flying away like a kite and creating distance.

"As long as your Chant Skill level is high enough, you can forgo the incantation to a certain extent and cast Magic directly," Laisha said with a smile. "Of course, even with a high Chant Skill level, you generally still need to chant the Magic's name to activate it. My situation is due to my Unique Skill, which allows me to skip even chanting the Magic's name. As long as I have sufficient Magic Power, I can successfully cast Magic with just a thought."

Meaning, as long as her Magic Power was sufficient, she could cast Magic infinitely and instantly?

"Well, these kinds of mechanics do appear frequently."

Shien slung his bag back over his shoulder, raised his broad-bladed sword with one hand, and pointed it at Laisha.

To this, Laisha still wore a light smile.

"Speaking of which, besides the Sacred Sword, the Hero also possesses extraordinary Unique Skills, right?" Laisha sized up Shien, her interest piqued. "If you're this strong at Level 10, is it the effect of a Unique Skill?"

Before this question could be answered, Laisha's expression turned serious, and she suddenly floated into the air.

"BOOM!!!"

A heavy broad-bladed sword immediately sliced through the air, striking hard at the spot Shien had been a moment before. It hit the ground, shattering the rock plate there, and embedded itself amidst the kicked-up gravel and dust, creating an explosive sound.

Shien had actually thrown his weapon, nearly hitting Laisha.

"Hey! That's dangerous!"

Laisha, floating in mid-air, yelled angrily at Shien, who was still in the throwing pose.

"Did you expect me to seriously explain my abilities during a fight like you do?" Shien looked at Laisha as if she were an idiot. "Don't you know it's better to act than to talk, and villains usually die because they talk too much?"

As he said this, Shien's brow suddenly twitched, and he darted to the side.

"BOOM!!!"

The same explosive sound as before echoed throughout the surroundings.

An invisible gravity wave blasted the spot where Shien had been, blowing away the dust there.

"So insidious!"

Shien, having darted to the side and dodged the attack, couldn't help but scold.

"No, you have the right to say that to me?"

In mid-air, Laisha couldn't help but retort.

The two acted as if they were playing, their conversation completely lacking tension.

However, while having such a conversation, they attacked each other without holding back.

"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!"

Amidst continuous explosions, countless gravity waves bombarded them like a bullet curtain, kicking up wave after wave of explosions, causing dust and blast winds to fly.

Facing this unceasing bombardment, Shien moved like a phantom, his figure darting rapidly. He managed to evade all of Laisha's attacks, successfully retrieved his broadsword, leaped up, and charged towards Laisha in mid-air, slashing at her like a meteor.

Laisha, relying on her manipulation of gravity through her gravity magic, also evaded Shien's slashes time and again. If she couldn't evade, she would create gravity turbulence, either disrupting Shien's movements and preventing him from getting close, or deflecting Shien's sword and neutralizing his slashes.

Thus, fluctuations of Magic Power raged, and the slashes of the broadsword brought forth bursts of sword light and shadow, appearing and disappearing rapidly.

The two fought fiercely but could not overcome each other.

"I told you, at your current level, you won't be able to deal with me without using the Sacred Sword," Laisha declared. "I didn't expect you to show this level of strength without the Sacred Sword, but it's not enough if you want to defeat me."

"Alright, draw the Sacred Sword."

"Let me see how strong the Hero is after a thousand years."

Hearing this, Shien replied.

"Do I look like the kind of righteous protagonist who just does as they're told?"

Use it just because you told me to?

Putting aside the issue of pride, the mere possibility of a trap or scheme was enough to make one hesitate.

Shien had always thought that protagonists who immediately did as they were told after being provoked or stimulated by their opponents had something wrong with their heads.

So...

"I won't!"