Chapter 348 Woman Of Madness [Part 1]
Northern narrowed his eyes, gaze locked onto the approaching figure, a shimmer in the desert sky that was dropping.
They landed into the haze with a powerful THUD and began to walk closer to him.
As they drew nearer, details sharpened into his focus.
Their armor, a striking contrast of white and crimson, gleamed under the unforgiving daylight star.
Every step they took resonated with a predatory grace, and a palpable energy seemed to radiate from them, warping the air around them into a mirage of madness and intent.
The figure held a long and elegant spear, which looked like an extension of their being. Held with a familiarity that spoke of countless battles fought and won.
The blade glinted menacingly, promising death to any who dared to face it.
With closer steps, the ground seemed to recoil, as if acknowledging the danger the figure represented.
Northern tightened his grip on the twin-bladed staff. He could feel the weapon's pulse, almost in sync with his own heartbeat, as if it were alive and aware of the coming conflict.
The air between him and the advancing warrior thickened, charged with the anticipation of imminent violence.
He wanted to speak, ask questions. Because he didn't even know this person and they just suddenly appeared before his eyes, carrying an unwavering air of bloodthirstiness.
The figure finally stopped a dozen paces away. Northern this far could see them more clearly.
Their eyes—wild and unhinged—fixed on Northern with a mixture of glee and malevolence.
Their short, tousled hair framed a face that was both beautiful and terrifying, lips curling into a grin that hinted at the savagery they were about to unleash.
"You? What is your name?"
Northern lingered cautiously, assessing every corner of their stance.
'Perfection! No openings at all!' Even though he was using Chaos Eyes, he couldn't see any.
"Answer me!!" Their voice rang out more powerfully, it was with a strong tone and had no melody but was definitely feminine.
Yes, they were undoubtedly a female.
'A female that feels so powerful…' She was by far the strongest human Northern had encountered.
This was not like any other time, the opponent that stood before Northern now was the strongest person… he had ever perceived by [Sense] alone.
He breathed and responded:
"Northern… and may I ask who you are?"
"Bah!" She let out a wild short scoff and without warning…
…She hurled the spear with a speed and accuracy that defied belief.
Northern barely managed to twist to the side, the spear slicing through the air where he had stood a heartbeat before.
It struck the ground behind him with a thunderous impact, sending up a cloud of dust and debris.
Immediately, Northern figured something was wrong.
He didn't even see the attack coming with [Sense], it was just his own perception that helped him.
There was also this strange chilling aura that surrounded him. He didn't know how to describe it.
Like he caught a cold…
Something was definitely going wrong!
Because [Sense], which is supposed to be a passive ability, didn't work, his Limitless Void force was not activated also.
'Now, that is certainly not a fair thing. How come just after I gain the ability it becomes useless.'
He immediately tried to use [See] but nothing came into view.
'Eh? What is this?'
He looked back and tried to use [Shunpo] to give space, it was the same thing.
There was no result.
'What… the fuck… all my talent abilities are not working…'
In that moment, Northern's mind began to race.
He had faced many adversaries, but none quite like this.
Aside from her movements which were not just fast and erratic but seemed to be packaged with a whirlwind of aggression and unpredictability, she could block all of his talent abilities?!
This spelled doom for him… yet again!
She grinned at him, seeming to admire him with her eyes glinting with pure madness, then she shot forward.
As she charged, retrieving her spear with a fluid motion, her eyes never left his, locked in a challenge that seemed both personal and deadly.
"Impressive," Northern called out as he flew back again to dodge the woman's strike.
His voice was steady despite the disturbance that churned inside him.
He landed and added, "But I'm not so easily taken down."
The woman's laughter cut through the tension, sharp and unsettling.
"Come on, then!" she taunted, her voice dripping with manic excitement. "Show me what you've got. NORTHERN!" She shouted his name like a mad woman.
As she screamed Northern held the Gengar tightly.
It could have been his imagination, but in that moment, the twin blade staff vibrated in his hands as if eager for the fight.
She lunged at him, her spear a blur of motion.
He parried the thrust with a swift twist of his staff, the blades sparking as they collided.
The impact reverberated up his arms, but he held firm, countering her next attack with a quick, precise strike.
Their battle quickly became a dance of deadly grace, each movement fluid yet fierce.
She was relentless, her spear darting and weaving with a life of its own.
Northern had to draw on every ounce of his skill and reflexes to keep up, his body moving almost instinctively to block and counter her rapid strikes.
It was now worse because this was his first time using a twin blade staff. This much he could do because he watched Helena use her staff from the view of the world of ligatures.
It had stuck with him more than it would have in reality and seemed to be instinctively being expressed.
There was not a single chance to withdraw to change his weapon into something that he was more used to.
The woman's combat Art was like a tornado that was sucking him into its maelstrom with each fierce and powerful arc of attack. It was chaotic yet terrifyingly effective.
One moment she was a blur of motion, attacking from every conceivable angle; the next, she would feint and dodge with an agility that seemed almost supernatural.
Northern could feel the weight of each strike through Gengar, the dark energy of the staff amplifying his every move.
But it was not going to be enough, even now, Northern could not help but feel like this woman was still battling him like she was a child.
She had a pleasant, distorted smile beneath her dark circled eyes.
It was truly vexing.
'Crap… just crap!'