The blob smiled upon seeing the hesitation in their eyes. "Now, do what you intend to do. I won’t interfere any more."
Max flashed a bright smile and turned to Evlin, Nathan, and Tom. "Did I hear wrong? You guys want to challenge me?" He asked with a sneer.
Nathan glanced at Max, ready to challenge him, but a hint of hesitation flashed in his eyes. Knowing that losing would bring many unwanted penalties, he drew caution.
But the greed for 10% of Max’s 1000 minutes in hours made him want to gamble his chances.
"What, chickening out at the last minute?" Max sneered at them, seeing their solemn faces.
"Aren’t you worried about yourself?" Princess Aveline asked at that moment. "If you lose, you’ll lose around 100 minutes of time."
Max glanced at her, his expression curious. "And who are you? You don’t look like these hooglians. You seem different," he said carefully, noticing her attire and clothing.
Mikale, who was standing beside him, took this moment to step forward and introduce the princess. "This is Princess Aveline of the West Region."
Max’s eyes widened slightly. He hadn’t expected a true princess to show up in the temple.
"Princess Aveline, about your question…" Max said, flashing a smirk. "I won’t lose, so your question is pointless here."
Princess Aveline smiled, seeing Max’s confidence. "You seem very confident, but I don’t know where this confidence is stemming from."
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Max shrugged. "I am strong, I guess." With that, he turned his attention back toward Evlin, Nathan, and Tom. From what he could tell, the princess seemed more concerned with his strength than him personally, and moreover, he hated her tone.
"So, have you come to a decision or not? I don’t have much time to play with you guys," Max asked.
Nathan glanced at Tom before turning to Max. "I challenge you, Max."
A smile appeared on Max’s face as he heard Nathan.
"A challenge, huh?" Max laughed lightly, glancing at Nathan. "Should I accept your challenge or not?" He began to ponder in front of them.
"What are you thinking? Accept the challenge," Nathan said impatiently.
Max glanced at him, his face full of confusion. "Here’s the thing… I won’t get anything useful if I accept your challenge, so I’m wondering if I should just quietly go and comprehend the auras."
Princess Aveline smiled slightly upon hearing him. "Just say that you want something in return for accepting the challenge," she said calmly.
Max sighed, glancing at her. "I hadn’t thought of using such low means, but since Princess Aveline has suggested it, then how can I dare to reject it?"
"You’re shameless as well," Princess Aveline smiled, her tone playful.
Max smiled and turned to Nathan. "Give me a sword technique, and I’ll accept your challenge. Otherwise, forget I’m here," he demanded.
Nathan was dumbfounded hearing Max. To accept his challenge, he would have to provide him with an additional technique, something he had never heard of.
"What? You want to fight me or not?" Max asked, seeing Nathan’s difficult face.
Nathan gritted his teeth as he turned to Tom, who shook his head. "A technique is very important for everyone, so I suggest you ask for something that can be arranged," he said, his face dark.
"I don’t care," Max shrugged. "Either give me a sword technique, or forget about challenging me," he said directly.
Nathan glanced at Tom, their faces dark. They couldn’t truly gamble a technique, no matter the cost.
Just as they were about to give up on the challenge, Princess Aveline stepped forward. "Hear my words for a moment," she said, catching everyone’s attention as they turned to her.
Smiling, she suggested, "Since a technique is very important, how about not giving the technique completely? One can scan the content and keep it in their holowatch. That way, everyone will be happy. What do you guys think of this?"
Max pondered and felt that this could be done as well. All he wanted was a technique; it didn’t matter what form he was getting it in.
"I can accept that as well," he said, glancing at Nathan.
Nathan glanced at Tom, and seeing that he nodded, he took out a small old book. "This is an uncommon rank technique I found at the edges of the Falling Lake. It’s a sword technique called Momentum Sword."
Max nodded and said, "Give the technique to Princess Aveline for safekeeping, lest you decide to change your mind after your defeat."
Nathan gripped the book tightly for a moment before tossing it to Aveline, who caught it.
"Alright, I accept your challenge," Max said, smiling.
Almost instantly, everyone aside from Max and Nathan was pushed aside by an invisible force, and a dome of transparent shield enveloped the two of them.
"Nice," Max said, smiling as he turned to Nathan.
"I won’t kill you, but I will destroy you," Nathan said, his voice filled with rage.
"Come," Max beckoned him to make a move with his tiny finger.
Calming himself down, Nathan focused.
Swish!
Wind rings appeared at both his legs, circling around them. The same thing happened to his arms as five wind rings on each of his arms rotated violently, generating a gale of raging wind from his figure.
Just at that moment, tens of wind blades shot from Nathan’s figure towards Max.
Max smiled and easily dodged them with his quick movements, along with the use of the Three Dimensional Body skill.
Wings of wind sprouted behind Nathan’s back as his figure suddenly vanished.
Clang!
A sword collision reverberated through the first floor as both Max’s and Nathan’s swords collided. With that came a shockwave, but it was contained in the dome.
"Is that it?" Max asked, gripping his sword as it clashed against Nathan’s sword.
Nathan sneered hearing him.
Just then, tens of knives formed from wind materialized behind Max and shot toward him, but as if he had eyes behind his back, a red hexagonal shield materialized behind him.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!…
All the wind knives were blocked by the red shield, leaving Nathan momentarily stunned, but he didn’t think much of it as his figure vanished. Like a gust of wind, Nathan vanished from sight, his movements fluid and unpredictable as he harnessed the very speed of the wind itself. His figure flickered around Max, appearing and disappearing in rapid succession, launching relentless assaults from every direction. Each strike was precise, aimed to overwhelm and exploit any possible opening.
Yet, Max remained calm, his posture unyielding. With uncanny reflexes and a focus sharper than a blade, he deflected each attack with ease. Every swing of Nathan’s weapon met resistance, either from Max’s sword or a perfectly timed shift in his stance.
His Three Dimensional Skill combined with his high level sword skills were enough to counter every move of Nathan no matter the speed.
The geniuses watching the battle from the sidelines could scarcely believe their eyes. "Impossible! He’s reading Nathan’s every move!" one of them exclaimed, his voice trembling with disbelief.
"Is this the same Max at Level 4 of the Apprentice Rank?" another whispered, their expression a mixture of awe and confusion.
Nathan gritted his teeth as frustration mounted, his attacks becoming more ferocious with each failed attempt. "How?!" he growled, his movements a blur as he tried to break through Max’s impenetrable defense.
But no matter how fast he moved, Max was always a step ahead, countering with precise blocks and parries that seemed almost effortless.
Max’s expression remained composed, his movements fluid and controlled. It was as if he wasn’t just reacting to Nathan’s strikes—he was anticipating them.