Release That Witch

Besides Roland, those who watched the duel was Iron Axe, Tigui, Brian, and members of the Witch Cooperation Association.     

And a pigeon perched on the lookout tower.     

Everyone had to climb up the city wall to watch to avoid the stray bullets. The two participants, Chief Knight Carter Lannis and Extraordinary Ashes, will have a one-to-one duel in an area near the city wall.     

Instead of his usual knight costume, Carter wore a lightweight close-fitting leather suit with a custom holster belt around his waist. He had two revolvers on both sides of his waist, and a short dagger behind him for emergency purposes. But Roland knew that if Carter had to resort a dagger in fight against an Extraordinary, he might as well surrender.     

Ashes was in her usual outfit, a long dark robe covering her entire body. She combed her long black hair into a ponytail, unconcerned about the weakness she had created for herself. The only difference was the wrapped strips of cloth on her giant sword was uncovered. The dark brown body of the sword was dull and had little shine. As per Roland's expectations, its surface was bumpy. It was not a well-made weapon. Due to the lack of maintenance, rust was beginning to form in the cracks on the sword.     

The two of them walked into the duel field. Carter tried to adjust his position until he was 15 meters away from Ashes. He held a 80% chance to get an accurate shot from this distance. He took out two revolvers and checked the bullets and the muzzle.     

Roland made Echo imitate and magnify his voice. "The rules are very simple. Don't make critical kills and you're allowed to surrender! As long as you don't die, Nana can heal you immediately. Any problems?" When he did not hear any disagreements about the rules after a moment of silence, he said, "When the clock rings, begin!"     

Ashes observed her opponent. As an Extraordinary, she fought by listening to her instincts. She had learned combat skills from the master of the swordsmanship in the palace after she came under Tilly's care. She, however, felt those skills were superficial to her. Her opponent was Prince Roland's chief knight, but he did not carry any swords or spears, or even wear an armor. The weapons in his hands looked bizarre, too. Based on their shape, they could not be close combat weapon such as a dagger. The only possibility was a long-range strike weapon, something like a hand crossbow.     

Crossbow bolts would not threaten Extraordinaries. Ashes learned that through numerous combats. If it was a crossbow bolt, she could even catch the flying bolt in her hand. However, noticing the prince's confidence, she believed that the weapon would not be as simple as a crossbow bolt.     

Her instinct told her to approach the knight quickly, instead of waiting in the sidelines for the knight to strike. Before the duel started, Ashes sank the tip of her giant sword into the ground. Her posture seemed innocuous, but it was the best strategy to handle a crossbowman.     

A string of clock chimes drifted from the city wall.     

Ashes made her move at nearly the same time. She gripped the hilt of her sword with both hands and swung it fiercely at Carter. The soil, grass, and rocks were thrown at him, forming a smokescreen.     

Chief Knight Carter reacted swiftly. A spark burst from his weapon and an astonishing roar followed. But Ashes saw nothing. Either Carter did not have any bolts or the bolts were so fast that she could not even see them. Compared to the stupid-sounding first speculation, she was inclined to believe the latter.     

Under the protection of the smokescreen, Ashes struck from the side. Their distance was almost narrowed by half and the smokescreen had yet to fall. People would normally try to dodge the dirt. If she could interrupt Carter's shooting, she would most likely win.     

But Carter did not move nor did he care about the dust on his face. He squinted, aimed at the Extraordinary, and pulled the trigger. The spark flashed along with the roar. Ashes instinctively dodged, but still did not see any bolts. She did not see him pulling the string either.     

This new weapon could shoot in succession. However, under the situation where Carter had already missed two shots, the outcome was clear.     

The last 10 steps of distance passed in a blink of time. She raised her giant sword in front of her and kicked the ground hard, striking at the knight. Such collision would not cause instant death, but it would be enough to knock him unconscious. Even if the knight could still stand through his strong resilience, the broken bones in his chest would make him lose any ability to fight. In the last minute, Carter's third strike exploded in front of Ashes. She felt her giant sword shake and make a crisp sound. The right side of her stomach felt a sudden numbness as if it was harshly scratched by something.     

Almost at the same time, she smashed into Carter and knocked him into the air, where his body created an arc in the air before falling to the ground.     

Only now did she have the time to check the wound on her waist. Just as she lowered her head, a strong sense of dizziness rushed to her head. Ashes stumbled and almost fell. The strength from her magic power left her like flowing water. Her limbs became unbelievably heavy.     

Ashes used her sword to support her weight. The numbness on her wound became a burning sensation of pain. She felt like she lost a chunk of flesh on her waist. She could even see her bright red liver. She could only clench her teeth to not let herself collapse.     

...     

In Roland's eyes, the whole duel ended in five seconds. He saw the Extraordinary swing dirt towards Carter and strike him from the side at the same time. She changed direction once and smashed into the knight. Carter then fired three bullets before he was knocked upwards. That was out of Roland's expectations.     

When facing an abnormally fast Ashes, it would be difficult for Roland to even trace her movements with his eyes. However, Carter was able to aim and shoot at her, proving that he deserved the title of Chief Knight. It was normal that he missed the first two shots. In fact, had Ashes kept switching directions at her speed, he could not have shot her at all. The key was the third shot. Ashes made a frontal strike with her sword blocking her chest in a short distance of six meters.     

If it was a bolt, even a heavy one, it would at most hit the sword and not hurt the Extraordinary. However, the ammo with a 12mm diameter with an iron bullet head made an terrifying impact at such distance. At that time, Roland could only see black dust flying and the side of Ashes covered in blood. When she stood still, he noticed half of her waist was damaged, as if bitten by a demonic beast. Her intestines flew out and slid down her side. There was a bowl-sized hole in the sword. The bullet probably penetrated the sword, swirled into her stomach, and inflicted a huge wound.     

Even heavily injured, Ashes did not faint and stood persistently. The physical fitness of an Extraordinary was astonishing. If they had used lead bullets or smaller bullets, Ashes would most likely survive them. Maggie ran toward Ashes and tried to hold her. However, she was so short she could only hold onto her leg, looking anxious.     

Nana rushed to heal Carter, while Roland took quick steps toward Ashes.     

This moment seemed to be what she was waiting for.     

"I won..." Ashes collapsed into Roland as soon as she said these words, without giving him any chance to react.