Campione: Strongest# 475: The Gradually Filling Void

Shiki's cold gaze fixed on Araya Souren, her azure Mystic Eyes tinged with pink light sweeping over the scant death lines marking his body.

Her impossibly agile form darted forward then back, cat-like, slowly toying with her prey.

Suddenly, Shiki's eyes sharpened. Brilliant steel flashed through the night sky.

"—Fearless!" A circular bounded field materialized before Araya with his shout, blocking the blade aimed at his neck.

Her katana struck the barrier with a piercing metallic shriek. Twisting at the waist, Shiki instantly redirected her slash, threading through the barrier's gap with howling force toward Araya's wrist.

"—Crown!"

Another barrier blocked Shiki's path.

"Tch!" Shiki clicked her tongue impatiently, retreating several meters. Without waiting for stability, she attacked again.

Every time her katana targeted those few death lines, Sanskrit-based circles materialized perfectly to intercept, ringing out crisp, clear notes.

On the surface, it appeared Shiki couldn't breach Araya's defenses. But both combatants understood—Araya was already losing.

Araya had lived two centuries. Born a monk, he'd never ceased honing his body through those two hundred years.

Yet this monk who'd trained in martial arts for two centuries was being utterly demolished by Shiki's technique.

Speed, skill, reflexes, even experience—she surpassed him by miles. Only in raw strength did he barely edge ahead.

But a man comparing strength with a woman? What a pathetic reality.

"Still being passed down? That inhuman technique!" Araya's voice carried its usual suffering, his speech pattern unchanged—as if he weren't the one cornered.

"Hmph~" Shiki snorted coldly, ignoring his question. She brandished her gleaming katana, attacking Araya once more.

The Ryougi family's self-taught style, passed down as demon-exorcism techniques for generations, centered on releasing the body's limitations.

If compared, it resembled the gene lock system.

Using the grip on her katana's hilt as a trigger, the instant she grasped it, the girl named Shiki Ryougi released her body's restrictions, transforming into an ancient sword saint seasoned by countless battles.

Araya, having lived two centuries, naturally knew this secret technique. Precisely because he knew, he'd decisively abandoned any hope of defeating her through martial skill.

Fortunately, this world wasn't some martial arts realm where technique reigned supreme. Relying on his world-class bounded field techniques, Araya effectively blocked Shiki's assault, even suppressing her several times.

But the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception's existence inevitably made him hesitant. Combined with his goal of capturing her alive, it became even more troublesome.

CRACK—!

"Ha!" With Shiki's cold shout, the barrier protecting Araya's right hand shattered. The fierce blade nearly severed his wrist—crimson blood sprayed out.

Though compared to losing the hand entirely, having only some muscle connecting wrist to palm wasn't much better.

After landing the blow, Shiki immediately pressed her advantage. Her pale blade reflected cold moonlight, tracing a crescent arc through the air toward Araya's neck.

"—Serpent! Scorpion! Crowned King!"

Araya shouted, two circular barriers appearing in sequence before him.

Shiki's wrist flicked. Her razor-sharp katana shattered one barrier before being stopped by the second.

Seeing this, Araya finally understood—his bounded field techniques' death lines had been perceived.

Araya's gaze hardened. He commanded: "—Suppress!"

The relic embedded in his right arm activated instantly. In less than a breath, his hand returned to its original state.

Though his right hand's soul had been severed by Haru and couldn't move freely, Araya used the relic anyway to avoid blood loss and maintain peak combat ability.

Normally, consuming such a precious relic on something trivial would give Araya pause. But now, betting everything on this confrontation, he naturally didn't care.

Because Shiki's displayed power made Araya understand—this was his only chance.

'Why are the bounded fields' death lines being seen through so quickly?'

Araya wondered with deep confusion.

After a moment's consideration, Araya decisively formed mudras, activating half-baked fire magecraft.

Within his own Reality Marble, even in the outer areas with limited support, Araya's single-action magecraft received massive amplification.

Centered on his broad left palm, azure flames thousands of degrees hot formed a blue serpent, rapidly coiling toward Shiki.

Shiki narrowed her azure eyes slightly. She sidestepped, then slashed down forcefully.

Pew—!

With a strange sound, the snarling flame serpent shattered instantly.

"Hmm?" A puzzled voice escaped Araya's lips. Even using that half-practiced magecraft for a surprise attack, it had been split apart by that impossibly sharp katana.

This bizarre situation made Araya's expression even more bitter.

All his techniques seemed transparent to Shiki. If not for her ability to only target one death line or point per attack, he'd probably already be dead.

What was going on? This was technically their second meeting, with this being their first real battle. Why did Shiki understand his techniques so thoroughly?

After fighting for so long, Araya finally couldn't contain his confusion. "Why are all my techniques being seen through?"

At his words, Shiki stopped moving, looking at Araya with a strange expression.

Prompted by Araya's reminder, Shiki suddenly realized—every technique he'd used seemed familiar from countless sparring sessions with Haru after she'd awakened.

Remembering how Haru had insisted on practicing bounded field countermeasures under the pretense of familiarizing her with the Mystic Eyes, Shiki finally understood. All that extensive training had been Haru's rehearsal for defeating Araya.

"..."

The atmosphere fell into bizarre silence.

After a long moment, Shiki spoke heavily: "You should leave."

Inexplicably, Shiki felt no killing intent toward Araya anymore. Perhaps she didn't want to defeat him through Haru's cheating methods.

Or perhaps she found Haru's excessive concern for her safety—his painstaking training preparations—both touching and exasperating.

At least now, Shiki had completely lost interest in Araya.

"Oh... You who are filled with emptiness and killing impulses actually spared me? Could it be that void in your heart has already been filled?"

Araya's perpetually bitter face showed rare delight.

Shiki's void being filled was excellent news for him. It meant her Origin had awakened further, and more importantly, capturing her would increase his chances of reaching the Root.

So he absolutely couldn't let Shiki go!

With that thought, Araya clasped his hands together, unleashing his signature bounded field technique with everything he had.

"Fearless! Vajra! Serpent-Scorpion! Heaven-Crown! Summit! Manifest King!"

"—Six Realms Boundary Field!"

Just then, a red light suddenly flashed.