Chapter 202: The Final 1v1
[1V1]
"…"
There was nothing between Stark and Akira now: Kokoro was dead, the [Superior Clone] was killed by the energy ball as well.
Now… it was just the two of them.
A TRUE 1v1, between the two strongest of the trial (or maybe Sora was stronger, nobody knows).
"Fucking hell…" Stark could hear Akira from beyond the smoke screen created by the explosion of the energy ball, but it didn't seem to disappear as the energy of the elements was still present even after Kokoro died.
[Stark Equipment (Rewards of trial): Monster Scent, Revive Token, Key Location Map, Killing Spree]
[Akira Equipment: Invincibility Token, Monster Scent, Key Location Map and the final reward he got from killing Kokoro was… the Healing Spring]
Each had three rewards they could use in battle, but would wasting them all before even meeting the [Warden] be beneficial…?
In the end, it didn't matter.
And after around a minute… the smoke dissipated.
"Full Moon Form…" Akira had activated this perk right as he was the first giant energy ball, thus allowing him to transform into his ultimate form, much like Leader with [Ultimate Fusion] and [Symphony of Snakes].
And so… Stark was finally allowed to see Akira's new form: the [Full Moon] form…
It was as if Akira's body had been infused with ethereal light, his white hair now shimmering with an otherworldly aura, his eyes glowed a piercing violet, and his attire had transformed as well.
The once-casual business suit now replaced by what could only be seen as a [Moon] armor: a sleek, polished white exterior adorned with intricate lunar symbols and patterns, shimmering silver accents that glinted in the light.
The armor was protecting everything except for his head, and it looked frankly beautiful, the lunar power emitting from it.
A small moon was spinning around Akira's waist, much slower yet faster, almost impossible to hit now.
[Full Moon HP: 100000/100000]
But in exchange its HP were reduced massively.
And as for his weapon… he was holding not one, but TWO katanas, each resembling the others as both of them were shivering with light, golden stars glowing in them.
Over all… it looked like a powerful form, and it was a masterpiece of lunar power.
"Sigh…" Akira frankly didn't like using this form as it actually was really difficult to use, and uncomfortable for him as he wasn't used to wearing the heavy armor and using two katanas, but he himself couldn't deny he was much more powerful with it.
[Akira HP: 10853/43700]
The accumulation of all the small damage, as well as the 17000 he got from the energy ball, resulted in Akira being at last quarter of life.
His stamina was also depleted, swinging his katana too much and using too many skills, while Stark just avoided everything and was still just as confident and ready to fight as before, meant that he was tired.
To be honest, his chances of victory were low now, even in his new form.
Stark had lost his clone, and he couldn't avoid everything forever, so if only… he had a way…
"…!" he turned his eyes toward the panel that announced his new reward… and there he saw it.
[Item: Healing Spring]
[Healing Spring: A special spring that will instantly heal all your injuries and recover your stamina, one time use.]
He summoned it in his hand, as it said in the name, it was just a green spring with some strange motifs on it.
[Elongate the spring and place it around your neck, in such a way that it circles it completely]
He did as the instructions said… and when the tail of the spring touched its head… it began to flow in a green aura, some + particles escaping from it.
The spring floated around his neck, and with a deep breath, it instantly activated.
An intense healing sensation surged through his body, repairing his injuries, and replenishing his stamina.
[Your HP has been filled, and all your stats have been reset! Take good care of this new opportunity to win]
And so right afterward, the [Healing Spring] disappeared, evaporating into the air as it did its job.
[Akira HP: 43700/43700]
"Feels better," his handsome face smiled at Stark, who could only smile back as he knew that this was bad.
Stark was a powerhouse, more than the others that's for sure, but he wasn't restless like his clone either: his stamina could deplet.
[+10 EGO!]
[EGO Meter: 85/100]
Strangely enough, the more his EGO grew, the angrier Stark was getting, and the more the aura in his eyes was growing, the vortex of darkness inside of them increasing in power.
Was this the… EGO?
"Time to end this," Akira put one of his katanas against the other and sliced, creating sparkles as both of the blades were extremely sharp, "By the power of the moon… thou shalt die!"
"Why is he speaking like that?" Stark raised his eyebrows as he saw Akira dash at him, closing the distance between them in a fraction of a second, both his katana positioned to slash the enemy.
"MOONLIGHT SLASH," his blades left a trail of aura as both closed in on Stark.
'He can try to dodge, but then I'll continue to slash endlessly,' Akira thought, a wide smile on his face.
And this was true: in his new form, it would be hard to deal damage to him, and keeping up with his new speed would be hard for even Stark to keep up.
His options were to waste [Heaven's Wrath], [Dodge Control] or [Double Assault], but doing so would mean putting himself at risk if he used his reward or somehow managed to counter them.
'EYE VISION!' he used up his new perk from [Focus], and the world slowed down, Akira's blades only a few centimeters away from where he was, 'Think…'
He opened up his skill panel and observed everything as fast as he could.
Akira was too strong in this new form…
'THINK…'
[+2 EGO]
'FUCKING THINK…'
[+3 EGO]
And that's when he saw it: the latest skill he got, and possibly his salvation.
"Here goes nothing…" he deactivated [Eye Vision] and immediately used [Invincible Dodge] once to avoid the blades, which sliced the spot he was in only a microsecond ago.
[Perfect Dodge!]
For the second time, the world turned gray, but now Stark was confident in what he was going to do.
And so he did it.
"WIELDING CROSS!"
[Description: Activating this skill allows the wielder to summon a giant crimson cross above them, which emits a powerful aura that is very uncomfortable to undead beings and demons, you can swing the cross three times.]
A massive scarlet cross, with strands of gold and holy energy surrounding it, materialized directly above Stark.
The cross was at least five times his size and emitted an aura that could make the undead extremely uncomfortable.
Of course, Akira wasn't an undead or demon, so he didn't feel anything, and so he just dashed toward Stark again, wanting to take him off guard after he finally used his 'dodge' skill.
"It's over!" Akira yelled confidently as he closed in on the boy for the second time, certain that he would hit his target.
However, Stark had a surprise in store for him…
"Goodbye," With a smile, he mimicked the motion of swinging a baseball bat and the giant cross above him followed suit, as if guided by invisible hands.
"…!" Akira couldn't avoid the attack as the cross was already right in front of his face.
And so…
~SLAM, BOOM~