Crushing flags and claiming the Villainess
Chapter 306 - 305- I am a human

Chapter 306: Chapter 305- I am a human

It was a rare sight—to see every Council Head gathered in one place to witness a contest.

They had assembled on the eastern battlefield, just outside the main building.

Naturally, an open field was chosen for this match. After all, Austin’s opponent was the strongest under the sun.

But that didn’t matter to him.

The Council Heads sat in the viewing stands, surrounded by layers of protection and alert guards stationed nearby in case of unseen threats or accidental magic surges.

Charlotte was also present, maintaining a barrier around the Council Heads—clearly prioritizing the safety of humanity’s strongest pillars.

Austin stood calmly in the middle of the field, hands clasped behind his back, waiting for William’s arrival.

As he waited, he spoke to the system in his mind.

’Wanna give me a quest here?’

[The host wouldn’t receive any reward worth using even if the system assigns a quest.]

Austin sighed. ’Well, you could at least give me something I can give Valerie?’

[Understood!]

[Quest alert!]

[Task: Defeat your opponent within six minutes and receive a reward.]

Austin gave a quiet hum as his opponent finally emerged from the shadows.

Clad in golden armor, William stepped forward onto the battlefield with calm, heavy strides.

Austin had been offered armor, too, but he declined. Armor restricted his movement.

Of course, that decision had been taken by some as sheer arrogance.

William shot him a cold look. "Are you sure you want me to summon my Shard?"

"Unless you plan on getting injured and failing your duties afterward," Austin replied, his tone casual, "you’d better not hold back."

"Very well," William said—and the air around him began to shift.

He extended his right hand, and a sharp golden crackle tore through the space before him.

From the void, a sword began to materialize—long, imposing, and crackling with raw power.

It was no ordinary weapon, but one of the feared Tools of Destruction. A Shard revered and feared by thousands.

Austin gave an impressed whistle as the sword stood tall before William. The man rested his palm against its hilt, waiting silently—for Austin’s response.

Austin tilted his head. "Shall we begin?"

William frowned. "You’re not seriously planning to fight me without a Shard... are you?"

Austin smiled. "I am wielding my Shard. Here—look closely."

He raised his hand, and William’s eyes narrowed as he caught a faint distortion in the air around Austin’s arm—like a shimmering blur, as if the very space was peeling back. It was subtle, but unmistakable. A blade hidden in plain sight.

"...So be it," William said, his tone firm as he shifted into position.

Austin, too, took his stance, his expression unreadable.

The atmosphere thickened.

Tension swirled in the air like gathering storm clouds.

Silence fell over the field.

A single gust of wind blew across the field.

Then—CRACK!

They vanished.

To the untrained eye, it was as if nothing happened. But in the next instant, shockwaves exploded across the battlefield. The ground cracked. Dust shot up in walls. Metal clanged so violently that it echoed through the sky.

Austin and William clashed at the center, their blades a blur. Austin’s invisible edge shimmered through the air, each swing sharp enough to tear through steel. William’s golden Shard met it every time, its arcs perfect and precise, like it moved by instinct.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Each strike sent waves of pressure outward, ripping chunks from the earth, shattering distant stones. Their feet barely touched the ground before they blurred again—reappearing ten meters away, then twenty, then circling each other mid-air.

Austin twisted mid-strike, flicking his blade from an impossible angle. William spun low and parried with a rising slash, the contact ringing like a bell struck by thunder.

They darted in again.

In the audience, almost everyone had their lips parted in shock.

Many of them didn’t believe Austin to be that strong.

He was not keeping up with William but giving him a hard time to land a blow.

"Why in the world have we never noticed such a talent?" One of the heads asked no one in particular.

No answer came. Because everyone was keeping all their focus on the battle.

One step. Ten slashes. A parry. A faint. Sparks. Dust.

William brought his blade down in a heavy arc—only for Austin to raise his forearm and block it with the shimmer of his invisible weapon, his knees digging into the dirt, then rebounding with a whip-fast counter. William deflected it just in time, sliding back with furrowed brows.

Their eyes locked—neither breathing heavily, neither injured.

William narrowed his eyes. The initial exchange had told him enough—Austin wasn’t someone he could afford to hold back against.

Raising his sword high, William summoned a massive fireball above his head, flames swirling and roaring as they gathered into a blazing sphere the size of a carriage. The heat warped the air around it, and the ground beneath his feet cracked under the pressure.

From the stands, Charlotte’s expression tightened.

’Isn’t he going a little overboard?’ she thought, concern flickering in her eyes.

But William wasn’t acting out of pride or temper. He had felt it—the monstrous power behind Austin’s subtle movements, the speed, the precision.

"I hope you dodge this!" William roared, his voice booming as he hurled the fireball with a sweeping arc of his blade.

The blazing orb tore through the sky like a meteor.

But Austin didn’t dodge. He didn’t even flinch.

Instead, he launched forward, straight at the incoming inferno.

A blur—then a single slash.

FWWOOOOOM—!!

The fireball split clean in half, flames unraveling in the air before vanishing into nothing, as if swallowed by the void.

Gasps rippled through the audience.

William’s eyes widened ever so slightly.

Austin landed lightly on the ground, his invisible blade humming with residual heat, eyes calm as ever.

"I don’t dodge gifts," he said with a faint grin.

William’s jaw was clenched, "What...exactly are you?"

He couldn’t believe that one of his strongest spells was dispelled so easily.

Austin shrugged, "Didn’t I tell you?" His figure blurred and William instinctively raised his arms as Austin appeared right before him and whispered,

"I am just a human."

°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading.