I watch the flames engulf the kijin, and check Presence Detection.
The reaction is alive and well. I didn’t think I would take it down in one move, but I regret using it. All I did was make visibility worse for me.
I think about using wind to blow away the flames, but as I’m about to attack again, the flames in front of me are cut.
I hold up my shield and use Aura shield, creating a barrier in a semicircle around me, that shakes three times with three impacts.
I increase the strength of Aura Shield after the first one with Strengthening.
“What was that slash?”
It was a lot like Hikari’s Projectile Slash.
After the flames die out, I see a two-eyed kijin holding a sword.
It swings it, and Aura shield shakes again.
No doubt about it, this kijin is using something like Projectile Slash. Is it a special ability of its eyes?
The issue is that I can’t see the slash.
It swings again. It’s just going to keep doing it until I close the distance.
I could get close with the strengthened Aura Shield active, but I don’t want to waste too much time.
Map shows me a reaction getting closer.
I don’t know if it knows it or if this is just its style, but the kijin swings its sword again.
Then I use Fire Wall, but the slash that cut Firestorm also cuts Fire Wall.
I feel an impact on Aura Shield again, and use Wind Cutter.
The kijin dodges with light steps, and swings again.
I cast Fire Wall again, but it’s cut easily.
Still, it can’t break Aura Shield, so I’m not taking damage.
But then I put away the shield and run.
The kijin isn’t rattled by my actions, and simply swings again.
I watch its sword, and take a step to the side. I immediately feel air pressure running past me.
The kijin swings again, and I step to the side again.
The slashes have a width of about two meters, and the sword dictates if they’re vertical, horizontal, or diagonal.
There’s also a fixed amount of time between the slash and it reaching me. Maybe it changes with the speed of the swing, but I don’t see the speed of the swing changing.
I’m using that information to take evasive action. That’s also why I used Fire Wall the second time, just to check.
I have the Memory skill for that, but with the barrier shield, I should be able to block an attack anyway.
I fire magic as I get close, and it dodges again.
Once I’m close enough, it feels like the kijin decides there’s no point attacking from a long range anymore, and closes the distance to attack.
It’s fast, and that combined with my own momentum means it closes the distance quickly to swing its sword at me.
I’m about to match my sword with its sword, but quickly dodge.
Air pressure passes right by me and hits the ground. That’s dangerous, it’s both swinging its sword at me and attacking with those slashes.
I consider moving back with Transfer, but change my mind.
If my long range attacks don’t work, I need to fight from this distance.
Also, if this enemy is troubling, a tough fight will be ahead of me if another one joins it.
I need to take this one down.
I have that exchange in my mind, and swing my sword.
I observe it closely, and sometimes trust my gut and dodge.
After fighting at sword range for a while, I notice something.
Its eyes. One of them trembles in an unnatural way when it uses those slashes.
Is it because it has two eyes, or are all of them like this? I don’t know, but it might be worth investigating.
I check it a few times, and since it only trembles when it unleashes those slashes, I pay attention to it as we fight.
From there, it’s a fight against time. It’s about whether I can take it down before reinforcements arrive. But in any case, I can’t get flustered.
Being flustered leads to mistakes, and increases the risks of getting hit with hard attacks.
Also, something swings the fight in my favor the longer it goes. I can remember its moves thanks to my Memory skill.
I don’t think all kijin are the same, but I can at the very least remember this one’s patterns.
Once it swings down, it always leads to another attack. How does it move then?
After using the slash magic eye, sometimes it flows into another attack, and sometimes it steps back to compose itself.
I foresee these moves, and look for the right time to attack.
I don’t attack right away because if I counterattack, it might change its patterns.
…It’s almost time. The time I was waiting for.
It unleashes a slash, and steps close to swing its sword.
I swing my sword against its sword, sparks fly, and the kijin’s sword breaks.
It opens both eyes widely, and stops for a second, so I slash diagonally from the left shoulder to its right flank, and the kijin crumples to the ground.
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Thank you for the treat. 👍