Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest-Chapter 972 - 225.2 - Swordsgirl

But she saw it.

The way his left foot was angled, barely a centimeter off center. The way his breathing slowed-not from calm, but calculation. He was already planning the first three steps of the engagement.

Smart.

Good.

Instructor Verren's voice cracked across the platform like a whip. "-Begin!"

Julia's blade snapped up.

Her foot struck stone.

BOOM!

A golden blur exploded forward.

The moment the starting signal rang out, her suppression lifted-every restraint. peeled away in an instant. And all that hidden force surged.

Speed. Force. Precision.

Julia's body snapped into motion, boots slamming off the platform as she rocketed toward Astron.

Ten meters?

She closed half the distance in less than a second.

SWOOSH-!

Astron moved instantly, no hesitation. His bow came up fluidly, a silver arrow notched and drawn in one motion-his fingers barely visible as he loosed.

TWANG!-WHOOSH!

The arrow screamed through the air.

Julia's eyes locked onto it.

She didn't dodge sideways.

Instead-

Her body dropped, knees bending mid-stride into a sliding lean-her torso angled low, shoulder brushing the platform as the arrow skimmed over her hair.

SHHHK!

Her momentum never broke.

Two more arrows flew-fast, precise.

But she was already past his range.

Her blade gleamed as she surged upward from the slide, twisting into a rising cleave- vertical, savage, meant to split his bow in two.

CLANG!

Astron spun back, his bow already discarded, twin daggers flashing into his grip as he caught the blow just before it connected with his body. Sparks erupted as steel kissed steel.

Julia's grin returned instantly.

"You really are fast."

Astron didn't answer.

He pivoted off her blade's edge, sliding to the side with minimal effort. His daggers danced around her sword's length, eyes tracking every micro-adjustment of her shoulders, hips, stance.

She pressed harder.

Her blade snapped forward again-this time a feint-then twisted into a reverse arc, slashing low across his knees.

CLANG!-CLINK!-SWOOSH!

Astron jumped-not back, but up, flipping just enough to avoid the sweep, his foot landing on the flat of her sword for a split-second of balance.

Julia blinked. Then laughed.

"You cocky bastard."

She twisted her blade sideways.

CLANG!-TCHUNK!

Astron launched off before she could dislodge him, flipping over her shoulder and

landing behind.

Julia didn't wait.

Her body whipped around, the tip of her blade tracing a deadly half-moon arc as she followed through with zero delay.

He ducked.

Barely.

The wind of her strike cut across his cheek like a slap.

FWOOSH!

But that wasn't the end of it.

Her next strike was already coiled in her hips-she pivoted on her heel and unleashed

a vertical slash aimed straight at his chest.

CLANG!

He crossed both daggers to block-arms bracing against the sheer weight behind the

blow.

The force slammed through his guard, pushing him backward.

Not enough to stagger him fully.

But enough to shift the tempo.

Julia advanced.

Her strikes were coming in waves now-every slash tighter, every feint sharper.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!-SWISH!-TINK!

She wasn't overwhelming him with speed alone.

She was testing him-his footwork, his rhythm, his decision-making. Watching the angle of his blocks. Tracking when he dodged, when he parried, when he pivoted.

And for every adjustment he made-

She responded with something just a little faster.

Just a little more aggressive.

But even then-he didn't crumble.

Astron's movements remained efficient. Not flamboyant, not reactive. Exact. He redirected blows without wasting energy, slipping between her strikes like a thread

through cloth.

His daggers flicked out again-short, precise jabs meant not to wound, but to check

her flow.

Julia leaned left, twisted her torso-ducked under the second blade and responded

with a high kick.

THWACK!

Her boot caught his wrist-barely-just enough to knock one dagger off its optimal

grip.

She followed with a diagonal slash-

CLANG!

Astron caught it one-handed-but slid two steps back this time.

His breath came just slightly faster.

Julia's eyes gleamed.

"Getting tired already?"

Astron flicked his blade, resetting his stance. "Not yet."

Her smirk widened.

"Good."

Her mana surged.

And then?

She vanished.

BOOM!

A burst of golden light exploded from beneath her feet-[Tiger's Pulse Step]-the

short-distance blink woven into footwork.

She reappeared just left of center, sword raised.

Astron's eyes flicked-barely a twitch,

But it was enough.

CLANG!-SWIPE!-CLANG!

He blocked.

But she didn't stop.

Her blade snapped into a second slash mid-motion-then a third. Horizontal. Vertical.

Diagonal.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Every strike came faster. Cleaner. No wasted energy.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Her blade blurred through the air-rising, sweeping, twisting in angles that demanded

precision, And Astron? He matched each one with practiced deflection. No hesitation.

No panic. Just that same unreadable focus in his eyes.

Julia gritted her teeth, breath evening as she shifted her grip and circled.

Damn, this feels weird.

Her muscles moved, but not how they usually did. There was resistance-like her body

was wading through shallow water. Her reach felt shorter. Her bursts, slower. Her

instincts were fast, but her body? Lagging by a heartbeat.

No wonder people hate rank adjustment.

Still, she had asked for this. Wanted to feel what an average freshman felt like.

And now?

Now she did.

It's annoying.

Her next strike came in sharp, a slicing are toward his midsection. He twisted at the

last second, his dagger intercepting at the precise angle that sent her blade skimming

wide.

CLINK!-TCH!

Julia rolled her shoulder, hopping back half a step to reset.

That dagger work...

She narrowed her eyes.

It wasn't flashy. No named art. No pressure flares or aura bursts. But the way he

moved-how he read her stance before each strike, how he used the minimum effort

to defend-was clinical. Surgical.

Efficient.

That word repeated in her mind as she watched his next movement. The sidestep. The

guard shift. The low-angle parry to bait her into committing high.

This bastard's got good instincts.

And it pissed her off-in the best way.

She darted forward again, this time lower to the ground, testing his centerline with a

tight thrust. He shifted. Slid. Parried.

CLANG!-TCHNK!-SWOOSH!

Her blade met his daggers again and again, he blocked at just the right moment, his

movements sharp but compact.

That dagger form... That's not even advanced technique.

She recognized the lines-basic Hunter dagger work. The kind most students outgrew

after six months.

But he's elevating it. Measuring distance perfectly. Not wasting a single twitch of his

wrist.

Julia stepped back, brows drawing together as she adjusted her breathing.

No frills. No style. But clean.

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She hadn't underestimated Astron-but seeing it up close, feeling the tension in every

exchange, the precision in every block...

This must be why Eleanor had chosen him.

She confirmed it more.

Another parry. Another perfect deflection.

He's not stronger than me.

Her blade snapped low-feinting at his knee before twisting into a rising slash,

But he's adapting faster than most.

A fast learner was a dream for the most of the instructors.

"Heh....

And well, sadly, or not, she was also one of those.

-A/N-

I had an exam today, and the result was not as I expected.

I hate numeric answers, the error is way too small.