Chapter 149: Stark contrast

Miss Calliope knew Eren had been in a coma for ten years. Not only that, but he had awoken barely a month ago.

Yet now, he was showing this kind of talent and skill? It seemed preposterous. Impossible, even. Not even her fellow Proctors could so confidently say that they could have done what Eren had just shown them just now.

Not only that, but he did it with such confidence too. It was as if he knew that he’d be safe from the attack, despite not being able to see anything.

It was such a stark contrast.

The Eren that she knew was a scrawny little kid who needed a lot more help than the other children. She treated him as special because she felt sorry for him and his circumstances.

Yet now, the Eren that she knew was completely gone. It was now replaced by this confident and skilled man.

Too much had changed with Eren. Not even a ten year coma could have explained this much of a difference.

"Eren... what happened with you."

...

...

...

Meanwhile, Kaiser looked down at the duel. His gray left eye focused on Eren specifically. Despite being half-blind, he could see a lot more things than a normal Awakener.

And he could definitely see that there was something special with Eren. But he just couldn’t explain it.

From the unexplainable power in his Primal Strike, to his near prescient dodging skills, to now the vision-less defensive Reinforcement... it felt like Eren was a head above the other examinees.

Talents like Magnus and Dantes and Ku’Vara were achievable. One could say that they were basically just a few years ahead of their peers.

Yet, Eren’s talent was completely different. It was as if he was playing a completely different game than the rest of the examinees. It was something that was probably even ahead of experienced examinees.

And this was just his fighting skills.

Kaiser was more interested in his Array Formations. Many of the Proctors and Sponsors here would probably attribute their group’s technical skills to Delia and her group.

But Kaiser knew Delia’s talents. He knew their limits. They were good,but they weren’t transcendent.

It was only when they became Eren’s allies did they seem like they improved by a hundred steps in a single go.

Eren must have taught them. Therefore, it was safe to assume that Eren could create those Array Formations himself.

This was just a theory before. But now that Eren’s group had shown new talent, this had basically proven the fact that Eren single-handedly brought them up from obscurity.

"What more are you hiding...," Kaiser muttered to himself as he watched Eren.

...

...

...

Meanwhile, back in the Pitted Cavern, Eren lost vision of Carter again.

But in comparison, it was actually Carter who was nervous. He truly didn’t expect Eren to be able to dodge his attack, much less use a counter-attack.

So, despite having the advantage, despite Eren being ’blinded’, Carter was a lot more cautious as he planned his next move.

Carter became anxious, with myriads of thoughts running through his head, which only exacerbated his dwindling mentality.

How was he able to react to my attack? Could he see me? Is he reading my thoughts?!

This kind of rumination caused Carter to remain at a defensive position. He thought that as long as he didn’t make a move, Eren wouldn’t be able to make an attack.

But in truth, this had only made him more predictable.

He’s not attacking me. He’s afraid. This means that he’s just standing his ground as he tries to understand how I defended against his attack.

And so, Eren made a bet. He lunged forwards, with a Primal Strike ready and loaded.

Somehow, his punch was headed straight towards Carter.

This made Carter completely spiral down. He immediately began to think that Eren could actually see him!

And so, Carter dashed away from Eren’s punch.

But this time, Carter didn’t even try to obscure his steps. He just wanted to avoid Eren’s Primal Strike, which had left his hands shaking the first time he clashed against it.

Eren inwardly smiled. Using that sound cue, Eren chased after Carter.

With a side-step, he mirrored Carter’s movements.

Even without seeing him, he could see Carter starting to panic. And at that point, Eren could easily ’see’ him in his mind’s eye as if he had his vision.

Eren unleashed Primal Strike after Primal Strike. Each one getting exponentially closer towards Carter.

Of course, having the advantage of perfect vision, Carter was able to use his skills to dodge away. He weaved left and right, basically running away with his tail tucked under him.

"Wow... Carter is absolutely getting hunted down."

"That’s the advantage of using the Foundational Moveset. The Psion usage of that technique is basically nothing. Meanwhile, Carter has to be very cheap in using his own techniques."

"But why does that guy’s punch land so strong? There’s no way that that’s just a simple Primal Strike."

More time passed. And Erent started to feel his vision returning to his eyes. The effects of the poison were starting to wear off.

And Carter knew this. He knew that if he left Eren alone for a few more seconds, the advantage he had coming into this fight would be completely nulled.

So, Carter knew he had to use an all-out attack.

He raised both of his axes and made space. Then, he looked at his hands, imbuing it with Reinforcement.

Ice began to form at the tips of his blades. Then, Carter performed a few stances. He swung his blade rigidly, like a mountain snowcap pelting the air with hail.

Soon enough, Carter’s axes began to grow more and more ice in its blade.

Then, Carter swung his axes.

It created a visible cone of hail towards Eren. Anything it touched immediately turned into ice: the ground, the air... everything.

"Mystic Hail of the Twin Axes!"

This was a Martial Manual rated at an 8-star talent!!