The Laughing Swordsman

The tidal wave approaching Apollo suddenly twisted violently. In just a second, the tidal wave surrounded him on all ends, ready to collapse on him.

For a moment, Apollo was at a loss. The tidal wave rapidly closed in on him, without mercy. It was as though Apollo was a single man challenging an army of countless people.

Once the tidal wave was only a few meters away from Apollo, the corner of his lips turned up. He casually laid his hand on the side of his blade while the arcs of lightning dancing on his body increased in intensity.

It was almost like Apollo wasn't actually surrounded on all ends by a magical attack.

His bokken flashed.

The sound of crackling lightning and rushing waves resounded throughout the city.

Apollo slashed in front of himself and behind himself, splitting apart the tidal waves coming after him. It was as though the tidal waves had been a cake, something meant to be cut apart.

Apollo looked at Rhys and Rhea with his wide eyes. He bolted towards them in a fashion that was not too different from a rabid dog.

Rhys expanded his paper fan and held it just below his mouth. He smirked.

"The boy must think he dealt with that attack."

Rhea raised her hand before rolling her eyes.

"Just hurry up already."

Rhys chuckled.

"Alright, alright."

He fully opened his paper fan while a solemn expression appeared on his face. The paper fan flashed.

There was a strange ominous feeling that fell down upon the empire.

The tidal wave behind Apollo abruptly surged and threw itself at him. However, it was as though Apollo didn't notice this. Instead, he was focusing on his front.

There was a strange distortion. As though the light was bending around. Apollo held his bokken with both hands, while a laugh seeped out from his lips.

However, Rhys wasn't the only one that attacked. A massive hand of water conjured next to Rhea, in the same shape as her own hand. She clenched her fist, causing the fist of water to clench as well.

Then, she swung.

The fist of water shot towards Apollo, but it wasn't that fast.

At first.

Without warning, the fist of water rapidly accelerated once it entered the strange distortion. It was almost like a miniature wormhole opened up, letting the fist of water shoot forward at impossible speeds.

Apollo's pupils shook as he traced an arc towards the sky with his bokken.

The fist of water split in two...

Then combined together, as though it had never been slashed in the first place.

With a deafening bang, the fist of water slammed straight into Apollo's chest, launching him towards the tidal wave.

Just from the fist of water alone, Apollo's rib cage had shattered. Even his organs were heavily damaged from and this was despite the extra layer of bones protecting them.

Apollo felt like he was waiting for a pedestrian traffic light. Once it showed a little walking white man, he walked onto the road.

Then, a car hit him at speeds that were multiple times over the speed limit.

Apollo's body was thrown into the tidal wave as though he were a rag doll. There was little resistance when Apollo was swallowed up by the waves, but it all changed once he was submerged completely.

The water began crushing him with abnormally strong pressure.

Apollo saw himself at the bottom of the ocean, enduring water pressure that threatened to obliterate his body into a pulp. If he didn't do anything, the only thing waiting for him was death.

But to remain standing was unbelievably hard, not to mention moving.

While Apollo was drowning in the waves, Rhea sighed.

"That should be enough, I imagine."

Rhys narrowed his eyes.

"Well... it doesn't hurt to be a bit more thorough."

Rhys held out his paper fan as though he was saluting in the army. Then, it twitched.

Numerous massive gales tore through the air before traveling towards Apollo.

As for Apollo, he saw faint silhouettes of marine life from the bottom of the ocean. There were great white sharks, killer whales, and hammerhead sharks.

Though initially faint, they rapidly approached Apollo as though they had smelt his blood. Death itself lingered above his head, ready to swing its scythe at any moment.

But Apollo was not one to fall when he was thrown into the pits of hell.

Thunder crackled violently, dancing across Apollo's body. He held his bokken with both hands while his eyes widened. His muscles stretched taut while countless red scars snaked all over his body.

Then, his bokken flashed.

Apollo moved against the ocean's will. His bokken tore through the water, splitting it apart. He stood at the bottom of the ocean, but there was no longer any water surrounding him.

Instead, there were tidal waves emanating from his direction, directly swallowing up all the marine life that threatened to kill him.

As for Rhys and Rhea, they saw the massive tidal wave scatter as though it were a pile of sand. Even the blades of wind Rhys shot out had shattered from the shockwave of Apollo's strike.

Rhys sighed.

"This one... seems a little troublesome."

Rhea shrugged her shoulders. She gingerly plucked off the blue iris on her shoulder. It was as though the flower was the most delicate object in the world.

"All of them are a little troublesome. Else, we would not have been called."

Rhys snapped his fan shut. Then, he clicked his tongue.

"Annoying."

Violent gales of wind stirred around Rhys. His hair and clothes wildly whipped around as a serious expression appeared on his face.

As for Apollo, he wasn't in the best condition. Although he broke out of the tidal wave, his rib cage had been shattered. The bones were regenerating, but not at a fast enough pace to resist continuous attacks from the two mages.

But Rhys suddenly narrowed his eyes.

"We have to dodge."

He dashed to the side.

"Now."