F-ranker Sword Saint: My Soulbound Sword is Secretly SSS-tier!-Chapter 287: Taiya

"W-W-What was that?! Just when everyone thought the Sky Prince had gone either overconfident or mad, he pulls off an impossible move! Skylar Ashwind, against calamitous odds, emerged victorious at the disadvantageous head-on, somehow dismantling the thundering wheel before it reached him!!"

The crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted into wild cheers.

This was the loudest Skylar had managed, though he didn’t seem to care, only shooting a condescending gaze at Baldric, who was gritting his teeth and clenching his fists hard at the respawn point.

He was the one who understood what happened best.

Soon, the expensive instant replay blessed the crowd with a slow motion, showing the Sky Prince’s talent in all its chilling glory:

Every time Baldric’s sword passed in its incredible speed and momentum, a wind slash would sneak through the vulnerability window, slicing whatever part it could, until Baldric’s entire body could no longer hold together.

The scene would’ve been extremely gruesome, had blood and flesh splattered instead of red cubic particles.

Even Daru could not deny that he was impressed.

Meanwhile, a pair of blueberry eyes watched heavily as the hands of their owner gripped the rails tightly.

Skylar Ashwind was truly a cut above the rest.

Only after a few dozen seconds, when the winner was back to his seat and the loser was making his way to the reserved seats, did the commotion begin to settle.

Still, whispers of the Sky Prince’s terrifying prowess continued to be discussed, though the same consensus was reached in every circle:

The next match would have to conclude before they could dare say whether Skylar was truly unbeatable.

After all, Taiya’s abilities were strange, and Omaru was a monster in his own right.

Fortunately, Nathalie knew to strike when the iron was hot. Her vibrant and passionate voice boomed:

"Truly, what a humbling conclusion in the first match of the semi-finals!" She began. "Is the Sky Prince truly the one true king of novices in Southern Noravia? We will find out very soon! Hold on to your seats, folks, as the second semi-final match will begin shortly!"

She paused masterfully to let her words settle, then continued:

"Introducing our representative from the left...The savant of terrain warfare, the third young master of the illustrious House Seiden, the Former Sword Prince of Belford Sword Institute, and the strongest of Class 8, please give it up for Johann Seiden and his Soulbound Sword, Taiya!!"

The moment Nathalie finished her introduction, Taiya stood up and sauntered to the main stage, his short maroon hair swaying in the wind and his chamois alloy armor clanging lightly.

The usual cold arrogance in his gaze was less intense, though no one noticed.

To everyone’s eyes, he was as apathetic and sure of himself as ever, and Omaru’s earlier displays of dominance weren’t too effective.

"Now, introducing our representative from the right!"

Hostess Nathalie hadn’t even made it halfway through her introduction yet, and everyone was already cheering.

Clearly, the crowd loved Daru.

"The former Sword Prince of the prestigious Ashton High, the young man once hailed as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, among novices worldwide in raw swordsmanship talent, and the only F-ranker in Neo-Earth’s history to reach the Inter-Class Representative Competition, let alone make an impossibly deep run. A round of cheers and applause for Daru Finnley and his enigmatic F-tier Soulbound Sword, Omaru!!"

The stands erupted into more uproarious cheers, making it feel as though Daru was the hometown favorite of the event.

To make things better, his sauntering to the main stage was graceful and unhurried, and there was not a hint of pride on his face.

His composed actions suggested that this was no fairy tale run. That he knew all along he would make it this deep into the competition.

’What regal confidence!’ thought the spectators.

Because of his disposition and feats, the scouts — even the veterans — threw all caution to the wind and added his name to their lists.

Their superiors could slap them if they wanted to, but their intuition told them that this young man was the real deal.

Some short time later, Daru arrived at the centre of the main stage, standing a fair distance away from his maroon-haired opponent. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

The two sized each other up.

Even if his face didn’t reflect his heart, Daru was quite excited. He had long been aiming to challenge these guys at the top of the forums’ official tier list.

Finally, he could test Taiya’s blade.

Johann, too, seemed very interested in him, though no one could deduce what he was thinking. It was evident that the third young master of House Seiden had the brains to at least be still water on the surface.

"Omaru, what a strange existence you are." The young master finally could not resist. "I’m sure you’re not as simple as you look. A pity that your sword is garbage, really..."

Johann shook his head, though hints of superiority occasionally oozed from his pores.

"I’ll tell you what. How about you do me a favor and surrender now? If you do, House Seiden will take care of you. I’ll make sure you’ll at least live a luxurious life, one that could never be attained by a no-background F-ranker, or if you don’t want that, then I can make sure you’ll at least make it to Vigrheim. Of course, the options aren’t limited to that. I can acknowledge your current strength and give you grounds to negotiate. Speak, what is it that you want?"

Taiya was naturally confident that he would emerge victorious, viewing Omaru’s fighting style as "too straightforward and simple" — his style’s favorite prey.

It was the cost of victory that he was worried about.

If he revealed too much here, then he might be forfeiting his chance against Skylar.

"What I want is to fight you," Daru responded coldly, disdainful and disappointed, "so spare me the nonsense and draw your blade."

Johann’s jaws clenched, and his face twitched, clearly not expecting the unfriendly response.

"Dumb. You’re just ruining my plan for illogical reasons!" spat the young master, failing to suppress his frustration.

"Hmph." Daru snorted. "And what is logical for you? Should I give up on my personal reasons for your, a selfish stranger’s cause? I will not willingly surrender for any filthy price. Anything you can give, I can get them myself. Save your breath for the match."