The Strongest Woman

Elise Tera had been sentenced to execution. And the crime that warranted such a heavy punishment had been something so small as simply assaulting an aristocrat. The noble in question had connections to both the King of Humanity and an Elven official. After consistent talks of pardoning her actions due to her status as a Knight of the King's order, it was ruled that it would be in the best interest of both the Human and Elven races' relations to pass the judgment begrudgingly and compensate her family for the harsh action taken. 

When I was training to learn and master Aura, during my first life in this world, I hadn't been aware of the true depth at which the corruption of the nobles of the Human Territory operated. However, when I learned the truth about what had happened a few years after the execution, I found myself disgusted with the nobles. But...I could do no more than simply play my part as the "Hero" and move forward. Now...I plan to do things a bit differently.

" Strongest swordswoman? "

" Yep! Exactly that. You've got more talent than even me! "

While I may have been stronger than her now due to my past experiences, she truly did hold more talent than I did. It took me six months to learn and use Aura. 

" You've already begun to produce trace amounts of Aura, haven't you? And you've only just recently begun training here. "

While this may have been technically my first day in this new world, I had years of knowledge to call upon. And in my favor, as luck would have it, I managed to run into the talented woman so soon. Lowering down the weapons the two held, I turned toward the man she had been fighting. I believe his name had been something starting with a G...

" G...G...Gran! Right! Your name was Gran. "

He turned his nose up to me, he was a little taller than I had been but not by much at all. Despite originally being summoned here as a teenager, I had a mixture of both my adult physique and my original body. Probably a side effect of taking the place of my younger self. 

" Yeah, Gran. Don't forget it, 'Hero'. If you think for even a second any of us acknowledge you, some nobody from nowhere dropping in on us...you're sorely mistaken. "

Gran's type was common. Though I'd never held a conversation with him before, many people cursed me for being some unknown from another world. They weren't particularly wrong, however, I always felt some way about it.

" Then would you acknowledge me if I beat you in a fight? "

He was a larger man, built like a farm boy who lifted heavy all the time. His ability with the sword he wielded must've been good enough to put Elise on the edge, however, what I had wanted to test was if he had any actual grit and capability to use Aura. The best way to do that...had to have been through hand-to-hand combat. By coming into contact with him directly, I'll be able to gauge his physical talent and latent potential within Aura. 

" You beat me? No chance—even if you are the 'Hero'. "

Stepping back a few paces, I kept a neutral standing stance, keeping my body still and my mind at ease. When it came down to hand-to-hand fighting, I would have an easy advantage due to my extensive knowledge of Aura usage as well as my experience in battles. However, if I simply trounced him with no chance of him showcasing anything, I would never learn if he truly could keep up with me or even Elise. She did beat him in weapon combat, however, she had already begun awakening. 

" I'm ready when you are, Gran! "

He grunted and rushed forward, quick to take an aggressive approach. He raised his fists, stepping in deep with his leading foot and twisting his hips, throwing a sharp and accurate straight at my chin right off the bat. Swiftly stepping off to the side, I lifted my left hand and simply redirected his blow toward the ground, slipping into his guard and shoving my knee forward into his gut. If I gave him too much leeway, he'd get an inflated ego and throw reckless blows. That would be of no use to anyone.

* SLAM *

Bringing up my right elbow, I slammed it down against his spine, forcing him to crash into the paved sparring grounds we stood upon. Taking another set of steps back, I could see that he had managed to cushion his fall by placing his arms under himself. Almost as if he were scrambling to stand up, he backed away from me, raising his fists and preparing himself once more. His breathing was a bit labored due to the rushed recovery and his clothing had already begun getting dusty and stained.

" Throw tighter blows and don't leave yourself so open to counterattacks! Let me show you how it's done! "

Maybe it was my attitude and tone or just my confidence but something about what I said seemed to tick him off as he came rushing toward me again. This time he threw a combination, left, right, left, then upper. It was a mix of left jabs and right straights with an uppercut thrown as a finisher. Each blow was relatively trivial to deflect, however, the uppercut had a lot of power behind it. I easily parried his jabs and straights and dealt with the uppercut by bringing my elbow down against his fist as a counter, his force being used against him as he slammed directly into one of the toughest bones in the human body.

* CRACK *

" That didn't hurt—did it? "

" S-Sonuva...You're getting cocky!! I can keep going! "

Again, Gran recklessly rushed toward me. 

" Watch this, Elise. This is the power you're most talented in using. "

Pulling from deep within my body, I managed to conjure up my Aura. It was a golden hue, my body being more adept at using physical melee attacks with my fists than anything else. These two wouldn't be able to see it due to their unawakened bodies, however, they would be able to feel the sheer amount of intimidating presence my Aura presented. It was like a concussive force brought down onto their heads, weighing them down and forcing them to acknowledge me as a much stronger opponent.

Gran had already put his body into his rush and so, I stepped down onto the ground and came forward, raising my right fist to his face but stopping short, allowing the wind pressure I had managed to kick up and the wave of Aura coming from my fist to wash over his face, acting like an invisible punch. His head knocked back as if he suffered extreme whiplash, and his neck rocked into place. The entire body of the man before me stuttered and stopped in place, completely at a loss for movement. 

" I-I s-surrender... "

The towering man fell to his knees, clearly beaten. 

* SURGE—AURA *

Almost as if completely on cue with his surrender, something overwhelming came from behind me. It put my entire body on edge, reminding me of what it felt like when I came face to face with the Aura of my first instructor after I had awakened. My body reacted and I jumped back, looking back toward the cause of the sudden feeling. Before I was able to provide any schooling to Gran and use that to teach Elise, she had already done something amazing. 

She was talent incarnate, having awoken to Aura, abundant in volume to rival my own. And then it hit me. I had been rather foolish— 

" Shit...I wasn't thinking. Her body was already beginning to awaken and my own Aura caused a catalyst reaction...She's awakened using my Aura as a basis... "

All Humans of Theatera have the capability of using Aura, it's a birthright. Unlike me, who had to spend 6 months even gaining the capability to manifest Aura within myself, someone as talented as Elise would've been able to use it from birth if she had been exposed to it early enough. Her body was primed and ready for Aura usage and depending on who helped her awaken or if she awakened on her own to the power, she could gain significant boosts in volume and power. My own Aura had been carefully built and crafted over years of experience and battles. And while my capacity had only been roughly forty percent of my true capabilities, it was still far more than most of the Knights in the King's order. 

My Aura had caused a monster to awaken.

" Elise! You need to reign in your power! If you don't—you'll burn yourself out! "

Any awakening to Aura caused by another person's Aura led to a phenomenon referred to as an "Involuntary Aura Burst". Aura Burst was the ability to use your Aura as an oppressive wave around yourself and force your Aura's volume on objects and opponents. But when your Aura is awakened for you, an involuntary burst occurs and if this isn't controlled swiftly, it can lead to rapid deterioration of the muscles and fatigue your Aura usage. 

* DASH—CRASH *

Before I could utter another word, Elise's body flickered and dashed forward toward me, her first slamming into my guard and blowing it away. Her strength was unreal—it was like facing a truck head-on. My leg, in complete instinctual reaction, shot upward and went to kick against Elise's midsection in an attempt to put space between us. Though, as if she predicted it, her arms came down and pressed against my shin, letting her lift over my head and jump behind me. Had I been any less experienced, her fist would've met my chin.

* CATCH *

" I'm sorry! I can't help it! I've gotta...I have to...Fight you!! "

More Aura released from her body, this time feeling like she did it on purpose. Had she been beginning to purposefully use her Aura? Already? Those were the only thoughts that circled my head before I could feel the force in her fist increasing as she tried blowing past the hand that caught her blow. If she planned to fight like this...I'd have to get serious if I truly wanted to stop her from ruining her own body with her Aura.

Pulling on Elise's fist, I brought her closer and raised my other fist, throwing a barrage of blows to her face. With Aura enhancing her body, not much external injury would occur instead, it would be primarily internal. If I could strike her hard enough, I could potentially rattle her brain and cut her consciousness. With the amount of Aura she wielded, if the fight dragged on too long...in terms of raw power...she'd become stronger than me. 

If that happened, I wouldn't be able to properly tame her wild behavior. 

" Cut it out, Elise! I don't want to hurt you! "

" Sorry, Hero! But I want to HURT YOU!! "

I pulled my fist back again and shot it forward, the blow being strong enough to blow a hole through a medium-sized tree unprotected by Mana. 

* SLAM—CRACCKK *

My fist met her forehead. Elise had managed to push her skull closer and force my punch to not only be stopped short but also meet the thick forehead bolstered by Aura. A few of my knuckles cracked, causing immense pain for a moment. However, no blood had seeped out and no bone fragments shifted. Unlike Elise, I knew how to use applications of Aura. In that same instant, I felt my bones shift, I focused on defense within my fist and strengthened my bones. 

" S-Shit...She's getting stronger... "

Elise's hand yanked from my grip and both of her fists raised to begin a deafening barrage of punches. Her viciousness and rapid fire of attacks reminded me of Raksha—That sort of pissed me off. A vein popped up on my forehead, I'm sure I looked rather aggravated, and a smile came across my face. I didn't get to enjoy the fight I had with Raksha. Not that I was a violent enough person to enjoy fighting...but...testing my strength was exhilarating for sure. 

Our bare knuckles now met, each of our punches causing a shockwave of Aura to wash over our surroundings. Spectators had shown up and even Gran, who had previously been rather rattled, had cleared the way. Elise and I dashed around the sparring grounds, each time one of us got the upper hand, the other used instinctual defensive tactics to back up and get away. 

My fist met Elise's stomach and my other hand grabbed her long red hair, and lifted her, throwing a few blows into her stomach before hurling her into the air with all my available strength. Elise's stunned physique used what could only be described as an advanced Aura Burst to stop her momentum in the air. However, I wouldn't allow her to simply come back down that easily. I put Aura into my legs and jumped into the air, meeting her in the sky and wrapping the both of us in my Aura. 

" Unlike you—I know how Aura works! "

With my Aura expanding around her, I had created a Thick Aura territory. It was an advanced application of Aura that used what's known as "Thick Aura" to create an isolated space. There in the air, it was almost as if we were flying. However, the amount of Aura the technique consumed was immense. This meant for a moment, my Aura's offensive capabilities would dive.

Elise took advantage of this and started to lay it on thick, punches and kicks of all sorts flying at my body. A few of them landed right on target, punches rattling my jaw and kicks bruising my internal organs. However, this was good. Elise's Aura usage had thinned and her body had gotten used to how it worked. What once were powerful blows that could break my bones had now turned into strikes that simply bruised me. 

" Seems you've run out of steam, Elise. It's time I ended this!! "

* RELEASE—SLAMM *

I let go of the Thick Aura territory that kept us suspended in the air for a moment and raised both my fists up in the air, using an axe-hammer-like blow to crash into Elise's head and send her barreling down into the sparring grounds. Her eyes went blank and her body went limp, the force of my attack sending her into the ground. We were only roughly 3 or so stories up into the air and so while that may have potentially killed a normal Human...That was nothing too serious for any Human that had been wrapped in Aura.

My own body fell down to the ground after my momentum returned, however, due to my being able to manipulate my Aura still, my landing had softened. Once I allowed my Aura to retreat into my body, a few spots on me had begun to bleed. My lip cracked open and my right fist started to splinter a bit, bleed seeping from my knuckles. 

* DRIP DRIP *

" Damn, you're strong...But...I think you'll become even stronger... "

I had been rather worn out. I was stronger than Elise due to my deeper understanding of Aura and my capabilities. However, what Elise lacked in applications she made up for in volume and Aura output. And had I used Mana within that fight, it would've sullied it. And besides, my magic abilities were significantly lesser without having a catalyst on my person. 

" H-Hero...huh...? You...You're strong... "

Elise lifted for a moment to speak, the two of us surrounded by many spectators of our fight and yet it was as if we were in our little world. I smiled at her, putting one hand on my hip as her head tilted back and she passed out again. 

CHAPTER 22 END