Record of Ragnarok: Ouroboros

Chapter 27: Warriors Clad in Armors

The saint and the queen.

Seconds ticked away after the announcement of the fourth round, and the first to make a move was Jeanne. She stepped forward and crouched low, wrapping both arms tightly around the thick log before her. Athena, standing in front of her, observed in silence. Jeanne braced her back to support the weight before twisting her body and, with a powerful heave, hurled the log into the air.

"Huh?! What is she doing!?" Aslaug gasped, her eyes widening in disbelief as she stepped closer.

With the chain clutched tightly in her hands, she swung it down toward Athena, bringing the massive log attached to it crashing down in an arc. The air cracked with impact as the log collided with Athena just as it closed the distance, slamming into her.

However, Athena slightly raised her shield at the last moment to intercept the log hurtling toward her. The impact reverberated as the log collided with the shield's surface, causing a clang that echoed across the arena. Even as the blow's force pressed against her arm, she used the momentum to propel herself forward. Her spear angled just past the rim of her shield. The spear aimed directly at Jeanne as the distance between them rapidly closed.

Seeing the opening, Jeanne seized the opportunity as Athena's charge bounced the log behind her. The maiden yanked the chain just before the spearhead could reach her face. The pull jolted the log forward with renewed momentum, reversing its direction instantly as it surged toward Athena like a battering ram from behind.

"Watch out, Athena!" Ares shouted, her eyes widened from his alarm as she moved her eyes back.

Noticing the log barreling toward her from behind, she instantly twisted her body around. Her shield swung around just in time, catching the impact of the log's momentum with a resonant thud. Simultaneously, she thrust her spear toward Jeanne as the latter narrowly avoided the spearhead grazing her face by moving her head back.

However, the goddess was not finished yet. Athena swiftly adjusted her grip on the shaft, sliding her hand slightly down. She raised the spear above her head before bringing it crashing down toward Jeanne. But just in time, Jeanne twisted her body and leaped aside, narrowly avoiding the strike. The spear struck the ground, sending pebbles flying.

As the spear firmly lodged in the ground, the massive log remained suspended high above Athena, casting a long shadow over the goddess. The moment the log was fully blocked, the sunlight from the goddess, Jeanne, whipped the chain downward.

Athena's fingers curled tightly around the shaft of her spear before yanking it free from the ground. The ground groaned as the spear tore upward, sending pebbles into the air. A thick cloud of dust engulfed them, momentarily shrouding Athena in a veil of dust.

However, the goddess deliberately released her weapon, not in haste or desperation, but with a calculated intent. At just the right moment, aiming not to strike Jeanne, but to intercept the log hurtling down from above. The spearhead pierced into the log's surface, while the shaft wedged itself between the falling log and the ground below.

Using the cloud of dust, she raised her shield and slammed it out in a bash. The blow caught Jeanne off guard, and though Jeanne reacted quickly, raising her arms in a defensive cross to absorb the blow, the sheer power behind the strike still launched her backward through the air.

As Jeanne was launched backward through the air, she instinctively twisted her torso mid-flight. Her right arm swung back as the log broke out of Athena's spear before the maiden hooked her arms around it. Just before her back could slam into the stone castle, Jeanne drove the log into the ground, absorbing her momentum before she could fully crash.