Chapter 188: The Sixth Wave

Chapter 188: Chapter 188: The Sixth Wave

Seraphina Sinclair flicked her wrist, bringing the longsword horizontal before her. The filth on the blade slid down the fuller, gathering at the tip before dripping off.

She didn’t attack rashly. Instead, she moved lightly, circling the three Clean Executioners, searching for the weakness her Insight had revealed.

The three suits of Armor stood as if fused with the ground, perfectly still. Only the blue light within their helmet slits shifted slightly to follow her movements, the icy sensation of being locked on trailing her like a shadow.

Just as Seraphina Sinclair was about to make the first move, the suit of Armor directly in front of her suddenly lurched into action!

Its movements were completely without warning. Its heavy metal boots stomped on the bloody marsh, yet produced only a single, muffled THUD. What looked like a cumbersome body moved with shocking Speed!

The seemingly clumsy giant axe in its hand let out a shriek as it tore through the air, cleaving straight down!

Seraphina Sinclair’s pupils contracted. She sidestepped the blow and instinctively raised her longsword to parry the axe handle.

CLANG!

The ear-piercing screech of metal on metal exploded outward, sending sparks flying.

A tremendous force traveled up the Blade. The webbing of Seraphina Sinclair’s thumb went numb, and her entire arm trembled from the impact. She had to slide back half a step to disperse the momentum.

Yet her opponent’s giant axe was only slightly deflected, its attack barely hindered.

A chill ran through her.

Looking closely again, she saw a crack on her longsword.

Seraphina Sinclair: "..."

’What?’

’This is a little strange, isn’t it?’

’My longsword is a D-level Weapon, after all! How could it be cracked by an E-level monster’s axe?’

’Weird. This is too weird.’

Before Seraphina Sinclair could think it over, the other two suits of Armor also moved.

They moved in perfect concert, one to her left and one to her right, using their longswords to seal off her escape. Before the blades even arrived, the chilling sharpness pricked at her skin.

A three-pronged encirclement!

The spectators erupted in excited howls. "Yes! Just like that! Tear her apart!"

"Show her the power of The Coliseum!"

"Number one, don’t you dare actually die on me! Stay alive and earn me some Black Fog Coins!"

Seraphina Sinclair was oblivious to the commotion in the stands. Her gaze was steady, her mind calm. After dodging the attack, she even used the brief opening to take a serious look at the crack on her longsword.

The crack had deepened. It looked like it would snap on the very next impact.

’This is too strange.’

’The material of a D-level Weapon is tough. Even against immense Strength, the Blade should get nicked or dented, not develop a clean crack that nearly runs through its entire length!’

’What the hell is going on? Is my weapon about to break?’

’Or... is this just an illusion?’

Seraphina Sinclair straightened up, panting slightly, and raised a hand to gently brush the earring she wore.

The effect of [Water Stopping] activated instantly. Seraphina Sinclair’s mind cleared, and she flicked the longsword in her hand. The crack flew off as if it were a speck of dirt.

Seraphina Sinclair: "???"

’What in the world was that?’

It hadn’t disappeared. After sliding off the longsword, it drifted toward the monster on the wind like a mote of dust.

When the wind changed, it simply came to life, swimming through the air toward the monster.

Seraphina Sinclair froze, then instantly realized what she had to do. Whatever this thing was, she couldn’t let it reach its goal. Her eyes narrowed. With a sharp twist of her wrist, her longsword carved a silver arc, striking precisely at the strange "crack" as it tried to escape.

Before the Blade could reach it, the gray shadow seemed to shrink as if alive, then suddenly accelerated, shooting like a viper toward the Clean Executioner with the giant axe!

"Trying to run? Not a chance!"

Seraphina Sinclair let out a low cry. Ignoring the longswords attacking from her flanks, she pushed off the ground and shot forward, aiming straight for the axe-wielding Executioner.

She had timed it perfectly. Her longsword, though swung later, arrived first, striking the gray shadow just as it was about to touch the Armor!

HISS—!

A faint sound, like something being singed.

The gray shadow, sliced apart by the flash of the Blade, instantly twisted, evaporated, and vanished without a trace.

And at that very moment, something unexpected happened!

The axe-wielding Executioner in front of her suddenly froze. The blue light in its helmet slits flickered violently, like a faulty lightbulb, and its raised-axe stance faltered for an instant. Not only that, but on its originally flawless, mirror-like silver breastplate, a faint crack appeared out of thin air—identical to the one that had been on her longsword!

’Oho?’

’Whatever that thing was, this is too good an opportunity to pass up! Only a fool wouldn’t attack now!’

The crowd in the stands had seen everything, and the more impatient spectators were already starting to boo.

"How did she see through it?!"

"Did you see that thing on her ear?! That has to be Legendary Equipment! This human already has Legendary Equipment!"

"So that’s it. No wonder. If she has Legendary Equipment, it’s not surprising she saw through the Symbiotic Vermin’s disguise."

"The Clean Executioner’s Symbiotic Vermin is too much of a gimmick! An enemy with a slightly stronger will can tell something is wrong. Plus, once it’s killed, the Clean Executioner is severely weakened! This fight is already over."

"Heh! Without that thing, how could the Clean Executioner possibly be only E-level? Don’t forget, it’s already one of the stronger E-level monsters!"

"It’s not that our monster is too weak. It’s that this human is too strong."

Just as the spectators predicted, Seraphina Sinclair finished the battle with ease.

Sixth wave, cleared!

She raised her head, her calm gaze sweeping over the deathly silent stands before finally landing on the president in the front row.

’Even though I couldn’t hear what they were saying, the earlier commotion from the stands and this clearly overtuned monster must be the handiwork of this person who suddenly stood up to take control.’

Seraphina Sinclair raised a hand and gently wiped a smear of bloody filth from her cheek. She looked toward the stands—specifically, at the president—and gave a faint but clearly defiant smile.

The smile seemed to say: ’Whatever else you’ve got, bring it on.’

The silence was broken. The stands erupted into a frenzy more feverish than any before. But this time, the uproar wasn’t just filled with greed and mockery, but also a hint of... terror and disbelief.

"P-President... this..."

"That look in her eyes! Is she provoking us?!"

"Such an arrogant human! She needs to be taught a lesson!"

"Does she think the Clean Executioners are the strongest things we have? As long as we’re willing to spend the points! Does she really think she’ll get out of this alive?"

The president slowly rose. For the first time, the calm composure on its human-female face was gone, replaced by an extreme coldness and... intense interest.

It stared across the vast distance, its gaze meeting that of the human woman standing in the arena, leaning on her sword.

Then, it raised its hands and began to clap softly.

Clap... clap... clap...