Healing System-Chapter 287: Fighting Celeste

Celeste lunged at him, her rapier ready and aimed for his neck.

But like a professional, Michael tilted his head at an angle where the rapier merely traveled past him.

She was surprised for a moment, and Michael took advantage of that by delivering a kick straight to her abdomen.

It all happened so fast, and she recoiled backward, clutching her abdomen as she gazed at him.

"You're a bit better at fighting than I thought," Celeste remarked with a sigh.

And like before, she dashed in—just this time, her thrust was more accurate—meaning he had no choice but to block using the arrow, as opposed to dodging.

Nocking it, Michael shot an arrow, yet she dodged.

But that didn't matter much, as in the next moment, he shot another arrow, and then another.

That left her with no choice but to close in.

However, that was exactly what he was aiming for, as the moment she got close and confident, Michael took a few steps back, baiting her.

Then, he kicked off the ground explosively and headbutted her, making her fall flat on her ass.

He held back a fair deal, even infusing his healing magic into the attack so it wouldn't hurt as much.

Nonetheless, her arms were still trembling from the impact as she began scrambling back on her feet.

I feel bad. But I don't want to hold back either, Michael thought with a sigh.

It was complicated—he felt complicated.

But he had a gut feeling that if he were to hold back, she would come to hate him.

And from the smile that was on her face, he knew he was right.

"Celeste, we can take a time-out if you want," Michael suggested.

However, she merely shook her head, wiping the blood that was dripping from her mouth.

"I don't want any freebies, Michael. Just fight me like you want to kill me. We can't die anyway."

His brow twitched hearing that.

"I'm not killing you even if you can revive yourself."

"Well, then I'll beat you," Celeste stated confidently, and to Michael's surprise, he felt a sharp pain in his chest—right where his heart was supposed to be.

In the very next moment, the Celeste who had been standing in front of him vanished, followed by a tap on his shoulder.

"Tricked you... hehe." She giggled in happiness.

But he merely sighed as he performed a leg sweep, knocking her down.

Then, he simply pulled the rapier out from his heart and threw it to the side.

The wound wasn't big, as she didn't know how to fight properly with the rapier yet, so it healed in the blink of an eye.

And of course, his heart was left unscathed.

How could a mere blade pierce it, after all?

"Ouch..." Celeste said, rubbing her ass, which had plopped down to the ground for the umpteenth time by now.

"Ouch? Aren't I supposed to be the one saying that?" Michael snickered. "After all, you're the one who stabbed me in the heart."

"Yeah?" Celeste tilted her head, bringing her rapier forward. "Is that why the end of my blade is bent?"

"...I have a strong heart," Michael replied with a chuckle.

Nonetheless, their little playfighting was done, and it was time to get to the real stuff.

So he held out his arm and helped her stand up before walking back several meters and getting ready.

After all, this next clash would determine whether he would take Celeste seriously or not.

She took a deep breath, holding her rapier right in front of her face.

Then, she did the same thing as earlier.

It was a concept similar to his Mirage of Light, but instead of constructs, she used her entire body.

Nonetheless, he was able to detect it now, and just as she was about to slip behind him, Michael sent a full-power kick toward her.

Celeste narrowly managed to dodge it, nearly tumbling on the ground in the process.

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But Michael took advantage of that weakness and shot a couple of arrows downward, until eventually, she was a fair distance away from him.

The mirage faded, revealing her conflicted look.

"You know... that's my family's secret technique. Who knew you'd be able to see through it so fast?" Celeste commented, rubbing her wrist, which was a tad bit red.

"I'm just built differently," Michael said cockily and decided to recreate what she had just done.

He stood in place and concentrated just enough mana to leave behind an afterimage.

Then, he simply blended in with the light that was shining down from the sky and began walking toward her.

It seemed like she hadn't taken notice of him—or more like, chose not to believe it was possible to copy her skill.

Nonetheless, Michael was now right behind her.

He gave her a few extra moments to catch on, but she never did.

Therefore, he pulled his bowstring back and shot her directly in the shoulder.

She turned around in shock, but before she could swing her rapier, Michael kicked it clean out of her hand before shooting another arrow into her remaining shoulder.

The pain was nullified, but the damage was definitely there.

"It seems like you've lost, Celeste. Forfeit?" Michael suggested with a warm smile. "I don't want to see you getting hurt any further."

But it seemed like his consideration had the opposite effect, as instead of forfeiting, Celeste suddenly took a deep breath, and he began feeling cold all of a sudden.

The ground began freezing, his toes curling up from the sheer coldness.

"No surprise—I guess that white hair is not for show," Michael snickered as he surrounded himself in a light barrier.

It was pretty close.

If he had been right on top of her as she did whatever she just did, he might've actually been injured.

Nonetheless, Celeste got up from the ground, her white hair gently floating in the air.

Of course, her expression remained the same, meaning she hadn't lost control.

Instead, she just became much, much more powerful.

"You look pretty cute like that, hair all levitating and stuff," Michael remarked, causing her to halt as the temperature suddenly became warmer.

Noticing his teasing, she quickly brought herself back, and the temperature once again plummeted to below zero.

He decided it was time he reciprocated her strength. Therefore, Michael stretched out his white wings.

His power shot out, sending shivers down everyone's spine—as despite him being a full angel, the fact of the matter was, he had the power of both demons and the origin on his side last time.

If push came to shove, he seemed like a completely different entity to them now.

And the same case applied to Celeste, whom he could see slightly trembling despite her wielding frost.

"I'm ready if you are," Michael said with a cheeky smile, and before she could respond, he propelled himself toward her.

Due to his high proficiency in using wings, he was able to practically teleport and now was in front of Celeste, who had widened eyes.

She attempted to raise her arms, trying to do something.

However, the entire world felt like it was moving in slow motion.

Therefore, Michael calmly pulled back his bowstring and summoned a single arrow.

He waited for a few moments, making sure she could react in time.

Then, he simply released the bowstring.

The arrow flew at a speed that was boosted by his momentum, and before Celeste could dodge, it appeared in front of her face, threatening to blast it off at any moment.

But as she closed her eyes, waiting for the attack to hit, she realized nothing happened.

That was when she reopened her eyes and glanced toward Michael, who had a wide smile on his face.

"It was fun, Celeste. But I believe we should end things now," he said, clearing his throat as he glanced toward Arthur. "I forfeit."

"...H-Huh? What did you say?" Arthur asked, shocked. "Why would you do that, you brat!? You won!"

"Did I?" Michael tilted his head. "I believe she hasn't been eliminated yet, and as you can see, I'm way too tired to continue."

"Tired? You look perfectly fine," Arthur commented skeptically. "If anything, I believe you could fight again and again. You're like a heaven's soldier, just weaker."

"Thanks for the compliment, instructor, but as I said, I forfeit. I don't want to fight anymore. Unless you want to fight me yourself?" Michael offered with a grin.

But upon not receiving a response, he merely shrugged. "Thought so."

Turning to Celeste, he walked over to her and gently caressed her hair.

"Good job. You were amazing. You're probably one of the strongest people I've seen so far, so keep it up," Michael praised, watching as her cheeks reddened.

It seemed like she had something on her mind, so, with his other hand, he tilted her chin up, her eyes meeting his.

"What's wrong, Celeste?" he asked, worried. "Are there any injuries I forgot to heal?"

"It's not that..." She sheepishly shook her head, avoiding eye contact.

"Your offer earlier... I accept," she muttered.

"Oh? What was that? I couldn't hear—"

Michael's words were cut off when, all of a sudden, Celeste leaned in, planting a kiss on his lips in front of the entire class, and then swiftly stormed off, holding her hands over her red ears.

All the while, he was standing there, slightly shocked as he touched his own lips.

I guess I might not be as bad at flirting as I thought.