Epic Of The Demonic Sage

After the moment Lucius spoke, Viscountess Blackshield immediately dashed forward toward him at a speed greater than one could imagine.

At the same time, Viscountess Blackshield stretched her left hand as a black long shield materialized from it.

It was rather narrow, instead of a wide shield, which Lucius had expected.

'Bulwark? Is that really a kind of Bulwark? A bit strange.' Lucius thought before quickly moving aside and dodging the Viscountess's attack.

The Viscountess hammered down her mace at him, but Lucius moved aside swiftly and then dealt a counter-slash.

It struck hard against the shield, but its effects were barely there and the shield blocked his attack effectively.

'It's really strong.' Lucius thought. 'As expected from an Epic Rank Gift.'

The two of them quickly descended into an exchange of blows. Viscountess Blackshield hammered down the mace and blocked Lucius's slashes with ease, using her shield.

Meanwhile, Lucius was left to move hastily on his feet. The swing of Viscountess' mace caused quite an impact as it somehow even knocked some of the wind back by sheer force.

'I've already realized it before, but it's quite clear that getting hit by it will injure me. Maybe even enough to deal with me in one hit.' Lucius thought.

"Man, look at that strength. Do you think you can wield a mace like that just as effectively, Gellor?" Albus asked, entranced with the fight.

"Of course, he can with his gift, but the fact that the Viscountess can do it is a hallmark of her own accumulated strength," Barty said.

"How is she carrying both the shield and the mace evenly? One's obviously heavier than the other, and I can't tell which." Ian muttered to his fellow soldiers.

"She's moving the shield like it's mere paper," Alex said. "Look at that. Here and there. Even Nick with his Limber Body, wouldn't be able to get past that if she can move it that fast."

"What about you and your Dash Thrust, Alex?" Jay asked.

"That's…"

Captain Donald chuckled but mostly kept his eye on the battle going on between Young Lord Asher and the Viscountess.

'There's a lot more surprises coming the young lord's way.' He thought.

'The reason why she can move the shield is no doubt because it is an effect of her gift. But as long as I can get through that narrow shield, then I can hit an unprotected area.'

At the moment, the Viscountess used her narrow and long shield to thrust at him, forcing him back, but it left her a little slower.

'An opening over there!' Lucius spun and moved towards an unprotected area.

However, before he could land a strike, the Black Bulwark suddenly grew wider and blocked him from slashing through.

"That's…" Lucius's eyes widened, but he didn't finish his sentence before he found himself again on the defensive.

The shield changed shape again, turning it into a domed one to parry against Lucius, which he narrowly avoided.

Viscountess Blackshield grinned a visible delight in her eyes and not one word leaving her lips as she moved towards him.

Somehow, she resembled an insatiable beast, moving only to target him, and with both the mace and shield being used as weapons, it truly left the Young Lord Asher on the defensive.

"This… this doesn't really look good for Lord Asher," Rio said worriedly. "I think he will be tired out and the Viscountess will defeat him."

"Shhh, don't say that." Neta scolded him.

"Young Lord Asher has dealt with faster things than the Viscountess. I think he'll be able to hold up and get used to the pace of Viscountess. It's not easy using two weapons at the same time." Gellor said to his two members discreetly.

Not everyone was aware of what Young Lord Asher was capable of, and even less so when he went to Aisse Territory and dealt with a vicious pack of wolves.

"That's really strong!" Ian turned to Jay with widened eyes. "That's got to be a really rare gift. I've never seen anything quite like that before. She's impenetrable."

"But look, Young Lord Asher is already getting used to it. He's brilliant." Alex exclaimed.

While Lucius was initially surprised by the changing form of the shield, he was able to recognize what each shield was being used for.

'She uses the narrow and long one for thrusting, the wide shield for blocking, and the domed one to parry my attacks. The way she reacts is predictable to a certain degree. All I need to do is catch her off-guard…' Lucius thought.

Captain Donald observed it all in silence, but was also curious about how things would turn out.

'Even if Young Lord Asher keeps up with the Viscountess, it really is only a matter of time before he gets exhausted. Will he be able to land a decisive blow that will change the circumstances?'

Elsewhere on the training ground, Countess Lita and Count Gabriel were also observing the fight.

Countess Lita held her husband's arm tightly in a vice-like grip as she watched with unease. She was confident about her son's fighting ability, but also couldn't help but worry.

Meanwhile, Count Gabriel observed something that Asher hadn't been using for all this time.

'The Viscountess is readily using her gift now… but Asher still hasn't exactly used the Wind Scar sword at all. I don't think Viscountess Blackshield has noticed due to how much fun she's having.' Count Gabriel thought with a neutral expression.

It was true, Viscountess Blackshield was getting caught up in the spar and was becoming less worried about attacks from Asher.

She moved and ebbed within the training grounds with ease and a natural pattern, almost as if she was only dancing, and there was a great show of enjoyment in her eyes.

This was Asher's chance!

Lucius quickly activated the Wind Scar sword's ability in rapid succession and struck at various lengths. Terrible gusts of wind throwing everyone off.

Viscountess Blackshield's eyes widened, but she dodged where she could and blocked the others with her shield and was getting slightly sent back.

However, the majority of those attacks were merely a way to guide her to a specific location and get her shield in an awkward angle.

The last attack from Lucius went for the least protected side of Viscountess Blackshield!