Disrupt your opponent's rhythm and then bring them into a situation you've set up – like a grand revue, with a beginning, an up-and-down, a climax, and a gorgeous ending, culminating in your opponent's death. This is the essence of all the steps and fighting skills that Leonardo taught Edward.

With insight and intuition beyond ordinary people, Edward was able to calmly disrupt the rhythm of his opponent little by little, and then embed it into his own routine. Cortez, Greene Turn, the Brotherhood or the Knights, or the Great Chief of the Blue Wolf Clan...... No matter how fast their swords were, even if they could only leave an afterimage in their sight, in Edward's mind, it was still just a line that had already been drawn.

In a more direct way, you can "see through" them - just like in the game, each character will have a fixed "routine", the more powerful the routine, the "deeper", all you have to do is to follow the "strategy", with a variety of corresponding tricks to disrupt their routine.

But Leonardo never taught Edward another thing - what if the opponent knew himself very well, what if the other person thought about himself, even every thought he did?

No teacher can teach his students how to defeat such an enemy - because you can't defeat yourself, it's not a matter of ability and experience, it's not possible from the start.

The so-called "overcoming yourself" is nothing more than overcoming the "past" self, and we are making progress all the time - and when another person knows you thoroughly, it will make people feel extremely terrible.

"That's all you're capable of, that's what you've learned from Leonardo?!" a rather strong sword swept away the bright star in Edward's hand, and Gaio's expression was still stiff and terrifying: "It's disappointing - I really shouldn't have waited until today, maybe I should have killed you on the night of the King's Bridge!"

You've said this once before. Repeating it a second time often means regretting. Holding back the pain in his wrist to steady his pace, Edward still curled the corners of his mouth and smiled reluctantly: "You don't look down on me like this." ”

"Rude maniac!" snorted, and the silver light slashed at Edward's left shoulder like a starlight that pierced through the darkness, and the black-haired knight turned sideways almost instinctively, only to see the blade of the sword in Gaio Valense's hand falling along the trail. Stab yourself in the cheek with the gauntlet of the hilt of your sword!

"It's not like a knight did it!"

"Which fool told you that you can only attack with a blade?!" Gaio, who was blocked by Edward's gauntlet with his gauntlet, stepped backwards almost at the same time - and sure enough, the gray blade fell head-on, not even an inch away from the tip of his nose, and the blade in his hand raised upward, swinging straight away from Edward's second attack, and without hesitation, stepping forward, almost exactly the same movement as the black-haired knight, swinging towards his head.

The pleasant sound of the crash left a flicker of fire in the dark hallway. It scattered like an emberfire burned out in the night, but it bloomed again and again with those faint lights, and every pleasant sound was a note that could take a life.

Staggering, stepping, attacking, retreating...... Edward even felt as if he had returned to the time when he first woke up in this world, and every moment of his heartstrings was tightened - he was no longer facing a blood wolf whose strength and speed had completely surpassed him, nor a mercenary who had surpassed him tenfold and hundredfold in number, but a person who really knew himself well, as if he had fallen into the "rhythm" of the other party. No matter how hard you struggle, you can't escape!

"Is this almost over?" Gaio's cold voice was still stiff: "Leonardo and I have bragged about I don't know how many times that you would become the future Grand Master of the Knights. Say you're far ahead of him -- yes, you're far ahead of him in terms of disappointment!"

"And you're far superior to him in terms of lip service!"

Edward still unceremoniously "returned" the past, and the blade of the sword in his hand did not stop for a moment - but no matter how he dodged and attacked, Gayor Valence seemed to be able to predict his movements in advance: "If it were Sir Leonardo, I'm afraid I'm going to hell now!"

"It seems that you are quite self-aware - the Starry Sky Divine Kingdom will not accommodate scum like you, only hell is for you!" he snorted coldly. Gaio's sword had already slashed through Edward's face, and once again it was raised and slashed at his shoulder, forcing the black-haired knight to step backwards to dodge.

"But you're wrong—if I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't have delayed it until now. Gaiyo's voice grew heavier and creepy: "I want you to taste it." What is the taste of despair? ”

"Can you explain?" Edward's expression trembled slightly, and he still smiled quietly and "saluted" a sword in return: "Even if you plan to kill me, you should let me die clearly, right?"

"Don't you already know who the person in that room is?" asked Gaio with a sneer, "Or do you think that your dear Highness Anson can defeat Berion alone?"

"When Anson dies, his Legion of Hantu City, your Banner Legion, or the Minest Family...... You will definitely lose!" A malevolent and ghostly voice echoed in Edward's ears: "Tell me, does it make you feel hopeless to see your ambitions fall?"

"But if His Royal Highness the Prince wins, wouldn't you be the one who is desperate?"

Gayle Valence suddenly laughed, even more horrific than when his face stiffened—as if he had seen something that interested him, his eyes sharp as eagles, but his gaze vicious.

"I hate that look. Shaking his head slightly, Edward muttered to himself, "Really, very annoying!"

"The death of those closest to you, the betrayal of those you trust the most, the fact that everything you once believed to be true is nothing but a lie - when you see all this, do you despair?" said to himself, as if asking, as if to say to himself: "What if all the efforts were in vain?"

“...... There is no such thing as useless work, dear Webb Alexander. ”

The little priest, who was alone at the top of the tower, staring at the crown, overheard a voice from behind him, and turned around as if he was alarmed: "Archbishop?!"

"Are you still here, child?" the old man's face seemed to be more wrinkled, and a pair of bright eyes carefully looked at the little priest in front of him, "You look worried, and still hesitant. ”

"You're right - my friend, my best friend, is fighting for everything he holds dear, but I can only worry about him here, and I don't even have the ability to help him. In front of this old man, Weber could only bow his head slightly, and there was a little anxiety in his voice: "Then when I went to think about the past, I found that I had never really helped him, every time...... Each time it was watching him face everything alone. ”

"Then why are you so worried this time?" asked the archbishop, remarkably relaxed, "if you've seen him do this countless times." ”

"Because, because ......" the little priest struggled to say something, but in the end he could only let out a long sigh and bite his lip, "because he is my friend." ”

"That's all?"

"I know that I am not a qualified priest, Your Excellency the Archbishop. Webber lowered his head in pain: "I can't really keep myself out of the way, and look at everything in this world without the slightest emotion, just like you." ”

"No one can do that—that's a privilege only for the Radiant Cross. The old man shook his head: "But you can do another thing." ”

"What?"

"Trust him. (To be continued.) )