Flashy Adventurer System : Show Off to Get Stronger!

'F*ck!! What the hell was that skill?!' John inwardly cursed as he clumsily jumped back to evade Shye's attack, feeling utterly weak after suffering just a single hit.

He hadn't even heard of such a skill, let alone encountered one.

At this point, John couldn't help but slightly panic. So far, nothing he did worked. In addition to this, the dastardly mage was somehow…not only fending off his attacks but also defeating him in melee battles.

He simply couldn't wrap his head around what was happening, and he couldn't accept it. He could never…

'This won't do…I need to stop thinking about saving trump cards, otherwise, I might not be able to reach the finals!'

Initially, John thought that this fight would be a mere walk in the park, after all, if a mage's abilities hit nothing but air, they were toast.

Moreover, although John already saw Shye's masterful melee defense, he didn't think that the guy would actually be able to fight a top scout like him at the same level in a melee exchange.

This…was where the entire battle went horribly wrong for him. Well, no one could blame him since normally, there was no way a mage could defeat a scout in a melee.

This was simply a case of Shye being a huge anomaly.

'I refuse to believe he's as invincible as that midget said!'

Deciding to reveal his final trump card, John decisively charged forward once more, disregarding the sudden exhaustion and weakness his body was suffering from.

Naturally, Shye wouldn't shy away from a direct confrontation.

However, he temporarily deactivated his unique-tier skill, [Blades Of Despair], planning to turn it on and off depending on the combat circumstances to reduce the risk of others realizing what the skill was.

Unbeknownst to him, John was so traumatized by the skill that he didn't dare block Shye's attacks anymore, opting to dodge everything instead as the two of them engaged in a melee again.

Inwardly, Shye couldn't help but chuckle upon realizing the huge change in his opponent's combat approach.

'Hahaha, poor brother was traumatized.'

…Still, even though the stylistic change exhausted John's stamina like crazy, the young man didn't hesitate to burn it all for the sake of victory.

Finally, after around two minutes of nonstop action, the young scout detected an opening to exploit.

Just when Shye was pulling his right arm back from a downward whack, John finally summoned the courage to perform a crazy maneuver.

He used the momentum of leaning to the side to both dodge Shye's attack and spin, attacking Shye with a backhand stab promptly after.

John's assumption proved accurate; Shye was momentarily surprised by the scout's bold maneuver, resulting in a slight delay in his response, which was to block the attack.

As a result, his defense was rather clumsy, allowing John to finally use his last trump card.

'Chrono Slash!'

Promptly after Shye's staff made contact with John's dagger, a yellowish-slash mark suddenly shot forward, successfully landing on Shye's chest.

"Hahahahaha! You're done for, Crowley!"

John's ability, [(Unique) Chrono Slash Lv.2], generates a slash mark that shoots forward upon coming into contact with another weapon.

This slash mark does not deal any damage, however, it slows down the opponent's movements by 70%, making them a sitting duck ready for slaughter.

Shye…was currently nothing but a fish on a chopping board in John's eyes.

Fully knowing that his skill's effects would only last for two seconds, John acted fast, promptly empowering his dagger with another skill called [(Dark) Sinister Stab Lv.4 (Uncommon].

With black vapor oozing from the edges of his weapon, the young scout decisively stabbed at Shye's throat.

"W-WHAT IS THIS?! COMPETITOR CROWLEY IS NOT MOVING?! WAS IT THE YELLOW SLASH MARK FROM EARLIER?! WILL THIS BE IT?!"

Shye tried his best to move his right arm, seemingly grabbing at John's arms without a single hint of panic.

His counterattack was slow…way too slow for a battle of such a level.

This futile attempt elicited another mocking laugh from John who was currently charging forward in a stabbing motion.

If nothing unexpected happened, Shye's throat would be destroyed before his hand could grab the young scout's wrist, hence, John didn't think about Shye's counterattack too much.

"DIE!!"

At that moment, time slowed down to a crawl for the Shye Crowley supporters, especially for Seira, Corvus, and the old guildsmen.

Their fears finally came true. In the end, it still proved difficult for a mage to defeat a highly skilled scout.

'Stoic'

As the dagger made contact with Shye's throat, a shocking thing happened.

It didn't even pierce the skin on Shye's throat.

Well…how would his dagger be able to when Shye's vitality attribute was as high as 180 points? He was simply a high-ranked, tough monstrous creature in human skin when it came to fighting someone his age.

Add in a skill that would reduce incoming physical damage by seventy percent? John could consider himself lucky if his dagger even managed to pierce through the skin.

Maybe a warrior could do it, however, a scout with only ninety to a hundred points of strength? Futile.

Utterly stupefied for a few moments, John was rudely dragged back to reality by the feeling of a brutish hand grabbing his wrist.

The grab hurt like hell.

"I got you now, you slippery snake. Let's see if you can still slither your way from me now that I got my hands on you." Shye said with a sinister smile.

He was secretly frustrated at not being able to do what he wanted to John as the guy was truly a bit too slippery even in a head-on confrontation.

…Pulling John closer Shye grabbed his opponent's throat.

"Now, why don't you struggle for your life." He said while slowly tightening his grip around the young scout's throat.

"How…are…you…so…"

John desperately struggled, clawing at Shye's forearms while savoring every point of Shye's strength attribute.

In desperation, he even tried kicking the unbelievably strong mage repeatedly on the chest, yet, the guy was unfazed.

At this moment, the young scout finally realized the terror of the rookie named Shye Crowley, who seemed to be hiding secrets…a lot of it.

As his consciousness slowly faded, he finally realized that Shye…wasn't at the same level as them.

His level was already way beyond even that of Arthur's.

This…was a true prodigy.