Chapter 154: There shouldn’t have been a middle-class martial artist! From the signal flare a little while ago rescue rushed over!

Kazui came out from the rock shade and dashed toward Viper.

Using Aura Speeder, a distance of about a hundred meters he could close in no time.

Right after turning both palms toward the adventurer to release Aura Shot, at Viper’s left rear Kazui kicked the ground.

Like a rocket with the right toe tip in the lead, Kazui released an intense low-altitude jump kick and kicked away around Viper’s left flank.

Scattering a large amount of white Aura light like sparks, while raising a suffering groan, Viper’s huge body was blown away.

Kazui and Viper both had Aura Mail activating, so both’s Aura light scattered.

Most of the scattering Aura light was Viper’s Aura.

Aura Mail was a skill that strengthened not only defense but also strikes... attack power, an attack-defense integrated skill, but the attack side consumed far less Aura than defense.

The Aura of the side that released the attack also decreased somewhat, but the degree of Aura consumption of the side that received the attack was far higher.

Practically, when ones with Aura Mail activating exchanged strikes, the side struck had Aura defense shaved one-sidedly and consumed.

Aura Mail until broken prevented damage, but one felt pain, so Viper was tormented by pain.

And there was no ability to fix the body so as not to move, so if one ate an intense strike the body was also blown away.

Kazui’s surprise hit splendidly, Viper had considerable Aura Mail defense shaved all at once, and after being blown about ten meters ended up falling.

Aura Mail was not broken, so no damage to the body, so Viper immediately tried to right his posture.

Just before finishing righting his posture, to Kazui who rapidly approached again, several punches and kicks Viper ate.

But this was not power to the degree of the first jump kick, so Viper did not fall and started counterattacking.

Kazui and Viper’s close combat, an intense exchange of striking techniques started.

Both in succession released punches and kicks and tried to beat the opponent.

Both had Aura Mail activating, so every time a strike hit, white Aura light scattered to the surroundings like fireworks.

The amount of light scattered, in other words the amount of Aura shaved, at present was even.

Comparing Kazui not using Leonization and Viper, in level and ability Viper was far above.

Even so it became an even exchange of strikes.

Viper who panicked from the surprise and had pain remaining from the received attack had his mind disordered.

That was reflected in movement too, a state of not being able to put out original ability.

"There shouldn’t have been a middle-class martial artist! From the signal flare a little while ago rescue rushed over!"

At a break in the exchange, Viper spat words regrettably.

(I’m lower-class, but he’s mistaking me for middle-class.)

That it was rescue that rushed from the signal flare was correct, but the judgment of Kazui’s class as an adventurer was off.

Since becoming able to use Replication not quite two months had passed, and Kazui’s level was rising rapidly, but level-wise still lower-class.

But Kazui being mistaken for middle-class had recently stopped being rare.

To that degree Kazui’s ability as a martial artist was showing a rapid rise.

But as Viper’s mind disorder settled and he recovered his true condition, Kazui gradually started being pushed.

In original ability Viper was several ranks above, so when entering a situation of exerting ability, the one pushed was Kazui’s side.

Clearly the Aura light Kazui scattered became more.

Eating painful strikes, the number of times Kazui groaned suffering increased.

(Bad, this guy.... If proper ability, several ranks above me.)

At this rate Kazui might be pushed through by Viper and done in.

Kazui used footwork and dodged Viper’s punches and kicks, but could not dodge completely and ate an intense front kick to the abdomen.

While scattering white Aura light, blown a distance of nearly ten meters, Kazui rolled on the ground.

Tormented by intense pain, the bones of the whole body creaked.

Kazui immediately got up and righted his posture.

Confirming the body’s state, that Aura Mail was not yet broken, Kazui was relieved.

The form of Viper charging appeared in Kazui’s eyes.

The thought of relying on Leonization flickered in Kazui’s head.

(No, not yet! There are other hands!)

Kazui’s whole body released a white flash.

To activate a skill that consumed a large amount of Aura, Kazui generated Aura.

Sensing activation of a new skill, Viper stopped the charge.

Activation of a counter skill, Viper was wary.

Among adventurers there were also ones who possessed counter skills such as skills that bounced attacks back at the opponent.

Before, in a similar situation, he had experience of receiving a painful counterattack by a counter skill, so Viper was wary.

But what Kazui activated was not a counter skill.

Suddenly Kazui’s body, as if splitting, split into two.

By the two Kazui, Viper was sandwiched.

"A clone!"

He raised a surprised voice, but combat experience with opponents who possessed clone-type skills, Viper had.

Viper immediately released a kick by the long-reach right leg at the enemy visible on the right side from himself.

The kick had response... rather, foot response.

Aura Mail shaved, white Aura light scattering, Viper visually confirmed.

The sense of the foot surely catching the enemy and the scattered Aura, Viper was convinced the enemy visible on the right was not the clone but the enemy’s main body.

In the case of ordinary clones, even hitting strikes with limbs there was no hand response or foot response, and defense Aura did not scatter.

Viper turned right and slammed punches and kicks like a rain at the enemy right after hitting the attack.

The strikes had sure hand response and foot response, and the white Aura light of the side that ate the strikes scattered to the surroundings.

But here an unbelievable thing happened to Viper.

Suddenly from behind an intense strike, Viper ate.

While scattering a large amount of white Aura spray, Viper almost fell forward but desperately stopped his steps.

Further from the rear, while having strikes by punches and kicks slammed in succession, Viper somehow turned and took a stance and confirmed the situation.

While scattering Aura spray and tormented by intense pain, what Viper saw was the enemy launching a rush attack at himself... Kazui’s form.

Judging it a clone and turning his back to the enemy, Viper had received an attack from behind.

"Impossible! It should have been a clone!"

Normally clones did not possess substance, so even hitting strikes there was no hand response or foot response.

Viper who felt foot response on the side he kicked with the right leg judging the right-side Kazui was the main body could basically be called a common-sense judgment.

But the clone-type skill Kazui used was not an ordinary skill.

Treated as a rare skill, able to create clones that possessed substance, it was Assault Mirage.

The one Viper thought was the main body was the clone, and the one he judged a clone and turned his back to was Kazui’s main body.

(Won the bet!)

If Viper had attacked his own main body from the start, Kazui might have been defeated.

Kazui who had not yet mastered Assault Mirage could not control the clone well, and could only put out the clone for a short time.

Even if the clone took Viper’s rear, the possibility of not being able to hit numerous strikes like main-body Kazui was high.

Moreover Assault Mirage consumed a large amount of Aura, so if used Kazui’s combat continuation time shortened considerably.

In a situation of already being pushed by Viper from the ability gap, if he consumed a large amount of Aura Kazui would fall into a state of strong losing color.

Naturally he would have no choice but to rely on Leonization that could be called the last means.

But Viper attacked the clone, so Kazui was able to slam numerous strikes into Viper from behind.

That was why "won the bet," Kazui took a guts pose in his heart.

"Shit! What’s going on?"