Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest novel Chapter 973

Chapter 973 225.3 - Swordsgirl

"Heh..."

Julia exhaled, low and sharp.

Her fingers twitched against the hilt of her blade.

She had seen enough. freēwēbnovel.com

No flair. No wasted energy. No arrogance.

Astron fought with bare efficiency.

But that wasn't the problem.

The problem was-he was still standing.

Still blocking. Still reacting. Still matching her, step for step, even now.

And she was getting tired of playing like this.

Her stance shifted.

The moment she planted her back foot, the entire air around her changed.

Gone was the relaxed posture. The teasing grin.

In its place?

The sharpened stillness of a blade just before it strikes.

Her blade tilted downward at a shallow angle-shoulders loose, but her knees bent,

core braced. A centerline stance. Every muscle coiled.

Sword of Middleton. Core Form.

The audience might not recognize it. But any instructor watching would.

This was no longer sparring.

This was assertion.

Astron's brows furrowed-just slightly. Enough.

Julia took a step forward.

THMP.

Another.

Then-

She moved.

BOOM!

A blur of white hair and burning mana surged forward.

CLANG!

The first strike came from the left-heavy, wide, meant to shake his stance.

Astron deflected. Just barely.

But before his feet could fully set-she twisted, spinning into a rising cleave that came from the blindside.

CLANG!-TCHNK!-SKRRK!

Sparks exploded as metal kissed metal. Astron blocked-but his footing slid an inch. That inch was all Julia needed.

She pressed.

Pressed again.

Pressed harder.

CLANG! CLANG! SWOOSH! THUMP!

Every slash carved through the air with vicious efficiency. She wasn't dancing anymore. She wasn't measuring. She was attacking.

Like a predator that had found her opening and refused to let go.

And that-

That was the essence of the Middleton Sword.

Raw. Relentless. Uncompromising.

The sword of beasts.

"Try keeping up," she growled, her voice low and predatory.

Astron didn't answer.

He couldn't.

Every second was spent reading her rhythm, parrying at the last possible instant, dodging when his arms couldn't keep up. His twin daggers blurred in his hands-an endless flurry of silver arcs, trying to buy seconds. Inches. Air.

But Julia didn't give those.

Her blade came again.

Diagonal!-Horizontal!-Reverse sweep!-Thrust!

Every slash fed into the next. Her momentum was alive, evolving-not based on form, but instinct.

Astron ducked low, attempting a dagger jab at her side.

She sidestepped mid-swing, twisted with the strike-

CLANG!

Parried it with the flat of her blade, then kicked.

THWACK!

Her boot struck his dagger grip, and this time, it ripped the weapon from his hand,

sending it skidding across the platform.

"One down," she muttered, eyes gleaming. Astron reached for his spatial storage-

Too slow.

BOOM!

She was already there.

Her blade screamed toward his shoulder in a brutal are meant to crush his guard

completely.

CLANG!

He blocked with the remaining dagger-two hands on the hilt. Braced. Defensive.

But he slid back.

TCHNK-SKRRRRT!

His boots scraped against the platform, pushed back nearly two meters.

Julia's aura flared hotter.

He's strong. Still not cracking. Still reading.

She narrowed her eyes.

So I'll stop letting him.

Her blade pulled back-

And then-

She breathed.

"Sword of Middleton: First StripeJ

The technique unfolded instantly.

Her blade fell in a savage downward arc, fast enough to split wind and scorch the air.

CLANG!-!!

Astron blocked.

'Second Stripej

A horizontal slash-meant to destroy retreat paths.

He pivoted-barely-dagger scraping against the strike's edge.

CLANG!-TCH-!!

Julia's eyes narrowed.

He was still standing.

[Third Stripe!]

A rising arc. Brutal. Decisive.

This one broke guards. Shattered stances.

Astron jumped.

But her sword caught his heel mid-air-

SLASH!

A shallow cut.

But enough.

Astron landed, rolling.

Julia didn't chase.

Not yet.

She watched as he straightened, one knee dipping slightly. Sweat at his temple. Breath

harder now.

Still calm.

Still not speaking.

Her blade lowered-just a little.

Julia tilted her head, lips curling into a grin.

"Damn," she murmured, voice low but clear. "You're good."

Her shoulders rose, then dropped in a loose exhale.

"I was lucky to match with you."

It wasn't sarcasm. Not taunt.