'And so it begins…'

Ater's eyes gleamed with a certain kind of understanding as he looked at Fae and smiled. Despite a lot of reasons to be slightly shaken, he maintained a calm facade.

No, he was actually calm.

Compared to the Fairy who was now boiling with anger and didn't hide her sheer dissatisfaction, Ater kept his cool.

"Let's see how long you can keep that smug expression on your face!"

~WHOOOSH!~

Moving way faster than Ater could detect, the small creature glided through the air and became a blur of bright yellow. Before he could even sense anything at all, a powerful blow hit him in his jaw, sending him flying high into the air.

"Guh!"

That very instant, the painful sensation coursed through his body and he felt the concept of pain take effect.

'She's fast… and strong.' He thought, squinting his eyes as he attempted to find her position around him.

He couldn't see her.

His detection ability was no good either.

Then, right as his face was turned to the left, she appeared at his right, thrusting her fist for another powerful blow.

~BOOOOM!~

A shockwave echoed through the air—one of an unbelievable scale, especially when considering the size of the Fairy.

Ater's body helplessly flailed through the air as he felt yet another assault of pain flood his whole body. He found it difficult—albeit not impossible—to think clearly given his circumstances, but he continued to remain calm.

He had to assess his current situation with the utmost care.

'Two hits now… with the damage in a similar range. I'll need one more to be able to determine the Combat Abi—' Right as he was having this thought, Fae appeared right in front of his face, causing his eyes to widen slightly.

"I'll pummel you to death!"

A powerful right hook impacted Ater's flesh, forcing a squishing sound and a spray of blood bursting out before his body was forcefully sent crashing to the ground.

~BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!~

The explosive collision sent echoes of destruction, as well as chunks of debris, flying all over the area. At the center of all the chaos and thick smoke was Ater—powerlessly choking on the dust and groaning as he recoiled from the damage he suffered.

'I estimate her Combat Ability to be in the early to mid 300,000s. Looks like I slightly underestimated her capabilities.'

He judged her based on the average and extreme Status Windows he had observed from every single race. Even Dragon Lords didn't have Status Windows this extreme.

'That means this single Fairy is stronger than the Dragon Lords. How interesting…' He smiled, nearly laughing until he had to cough out blood.

His injuries were getting severe, and if he didn't do something quickly he would die.

'I can't die… not yet.'

As he said this to himself, he felt a powerful pressure descend upon him from the sky.

It was undoubtedly Fae.

~WHOOOSH!~

Like a powerful comet—no, more like a piercing spear—she fell with unstoppable might.

Even if Ater could move, there was no hope of him dodging the impending strike. As a result, he chose to resort to defense.

"That won't do you any good!" She yelled, her leg thrust downward so it would crush his stomach the moment she made impact.

Ater ignored her words and attempted defensive Magic, however it shattered… just like his [Illusion]. There was practically no resistance at all as she crashed upon his belly and caused a great fountain of blood to spill out.

~SPLOOOSH!~

Ater's body was scattered into chunks as he exploded.

Chunks of meat burst in multiple directions like shattered debris, and his blood accompanied the pieces of solid flesh. However, in merely a few seconds, the pieces were all pulled together by a certain darkness.

The tentacle-like thing gripped every single portion of flesh and drew them closer together until they reformed Ater's badly damaged body. His outfit was long gone, leaving his pale and bare skin on the ground, completely at the mercy of the Fairy who stood above him and scowled.

"Nice trick."

"Thank you." He smiled.

"Too bad it'll do you no good too." The Fairy raised her fist once more to hit Ater, but this time he wouldn't just take the hit.

That would be too dangerous.

Despite looking calm and healed, the truth was that he had barely recovered. His body was still in a state of rapid regeneration, but he made sure to focus on external healing so it seemed like he had restored everything in no time.

'If she gives me a casual hit, I'll break apart again.' He would have broken out a bead of sweat if not for the fact that he had a plan.

And that plan was simple.

~SHWUUUP~

Before Fae landed her hit, Ater's whole body drowned in darkness, completely vanishing from his previous position.

"H-huh?"

He immediately appeared a couple hundred meters away from her, barely standing on his two feet. He was also panting, though he did his best to suppress the unsightly action.

"You think escaping to such a small distance will save you from me."

"Not at all." He responded with a grin.

She could probably close such a trivial distance before a second started counting.

In fact, if she really wanted to, she would have killed him by now. Yet, she was still showing some measure of restraint.

Why was that?

'She's curious about me. She's also cautious, and even though it doesn't look like it, she's trying to glean as much information from me as possible.'

Of course, Fae still had every attempt to end his life once she got what she wanted.

'Which is why I have to pace myself well…'

Right now, Ater was at a great disadvantage, and he could tell that this fight wasn't entirely under his control.

'Illusions don't work on her, and she has the ability to negate my Magic. She's also much stronger and faster than I am.'

Though he was yet to land a proper hit on the adversary, he could also tell that she was most likely more durable than he was. How else would she be able to throw out such devastating blows that created craters and huge shockwaves?

Ater glanced at his surrounding and grimaced.

'We're quite a distance from the barrier. She brought me here intentionally, separating me from Esme…'

This wasn't a brash opponent at all.

Fae was intelligent!

'If I don't take this fight seriously, I'll lose. Even if it's in my best interest to drag things out and pace myself accordingly, I can't afford to do so because of Esme.'

He was tempted to think of the Half-Elf like dead weight, but considering how useful she had been for some time now, he couldn't objectively give her that label.

'In any case, this should be an educational experience for both of us.' His smile widened, darkness slowly creeping around him.

'Let's enjoy ourselves to the fullest.'

[STATUS WINDOW]

- Name: Fae

- Race: Fairy (Royal)

- Class: War Harbinger (S-Tier)

- Level: 500 (99.99% EXP)

- Life Force: +++ (300,000)

- Mana Level: 300,000 [50,000]

- Combat Ability: 300,000 [50,000]

- Stat Points: 0

- Skills (Exclusive): [Art Of War]. [Fairy Land]. [FairyTale]

- Skills (Non-Exclusive): [Breaking Point]. [Royal Authority]

- Alignment: Chaotic Good

[Additional Information]

The most powerful Fairy in the Fairy Kingdom, and the masterpiece of the Fairy King. She excels in battle and shines the best during war.

Do not make her an enemy.

[End Of Information]