He had a feeling that one of the reasons why he successfully pulled this off was because the Heartsword was inherently compatible with every E energy attribute, just
like the Everchanger!
As the original melee weapon paired with the expert hero mech, the Heartsword was
also decismod with worentilitu in mindl
It was just that Joshua was unable to recognize and appreciate this advantage. He only channeled one design spirit at a time in the past, which made it so that the
Heartsword did not perform exceptionally well.
He changed his mind. The unassuming sword was more suitable to him than he
thought. What it lacked in killing power, it made up for it in versatility.
There were times when having the right solution at his disposal was better than
wielding overwhelming brute force!
Of course, Joshua recognized that versatility alone may not be enough to defeat every
opponent.
His newfound appreciation for his old mech weapon did not change his mind about the necessity of taming the Bitter Scimitar.
The weapon was designed to kill phase lords! It would probably take a lot less work
and effort for him to defeat a phase lord with the Bitter Scimitar than if he relied on
his old combination of the Heartsword and the Vitalus.
"Enough. It is time to end this bout!"
As the power of death settled into his lightcast Heartsword, the manifested weapon gained a distinctly sharper and more lethal edge.
Joshua still found it difficult to integrate the power of death more profoundly into the sword. The current result was barely enough for his purposes.
His eyes grew sharper as he tried to recall all of the lessons and advice he received on
swordsmanship.
"I am not a swordsman, but I don't need to beat you by relying on superior skill in
arms. That is Dise's routine. Versatility is my strength! Now taste my death edge!"
The lightcast Everchanger became a lot more threatening to the Bitter Swordsman after the latest change!
Although the Heartsword only contained a small amount of death energy, its forced interaction with light energy and life energy generated brand-new synergies that caused the weapon to become qualitatively stronger and more lethal!
While the Bitter Swordsman's life-fueled scimitar continued to batter at the lightcast Everchanger's fortified defenses, the Heartsword lashed out at the demonic artifact spirit and inflicted wounds that cut surprisingly deep!
The Bitter Swordman was taken aback by the enhanced effectiveness of the
Heartsword!
The seemingly simple sword had become absurdly more dangerous to demonic
entities like himself. Not only was it suffused with light and life, the addition of death seemed to weaponize the positive energies and make them a lot more focused towards killing beings corrupted by negative energies such as himself!
The lightcast Everchanger immediately took advantage of the Bitter Swordsman's surprise and pressed the attack. The manifested mech continually pressed forward the Bitter Swordsman regardless
and unleashed a flurry of sword strikes that cut of whether he managed to block the weapon. The artifact spirit was not wielding the real Bitter Scimitar. He only shaped his own
energies to form the weapon to make it more convenient for him to attack his target. Therefore, attacking the manifested Bitter Scimitar was no different from attacking the artifact spirit directly!
Joshua had set aside all thoughts about defense. He solely focused on cutting the
resistant and rebellious personality that had given him so much trouble and grief over the past few days.
"The elements are under my control!"
The Heartsword struck again and again. Even shallow wounds inflicted significant
damage!
"Your weaknesses are mine to exploit!"
As Joshua gained more confidence in his performance, the lightcast Everchanger
glowed brighter.
"No longer will I tolerate your defiance!"
His momentum continued to grow, causing him to completely take over the initiative
and deny any breathing room to his opponent!
"You will fall in line, or you will die!"
The Bitter Swordsman cried out in pain as the lightcast Everchanger lunged forward
and cut off one of his arms!
"Will you submit, or will you resist to the bitter end?"
The manifested expert hero mech finally relented in its attacks. Joshua paused his
assault not because he wanted to show mercy, but because he sought to preserve the power of the Bitter Scimitar as much as possible.
After all, he still hoped to wield it against his true opponent after this ordeal! Given how extensively the tides had turned, the Bitter Swordsman did not see much
hope in making a comeback.
He had already started off strong and quickly proceeded to fight at his full strength.
Yet ultimately the human expert pilot developed entirely new capabilities and managed to overpower him in a clear display of strength.
The Bitter Swordsman would have been a lot more unwilling to accept his loss if Joshua borrowed the power of others or won because of a trick. That was not the case this time. As angry and unwilling he may be. the Bitter Swordsman was still rational enough to recognize that he had been beaten fair and
square. Perhaps a semblance of honor still remained inside his blackened heart, because he did not choose to deny or contest the outcome.
The Bitter Swordsman resentfully bowed his head. He acknowledged his loss, but he did not forget the terms of their pact.
Once he recovered and managed to grow stronger, there was no doubt that he would
mount another challenge in the future in the hopes of taking over Joshua's body! The expert pilot responded with a savage grin.
"I will be waiting for you to try again. The outcome will be the same. Do you know
why? It is because I already have you figured it out. No matter what abilities you use next time, I will always be versatile enough to counter your means." When the struggle for control formally came to an end, Joshua regained his awareness
of his cockpit and his expert mech.
Although Joshua and his D-arm had fought each other for quite a while, not as much
time passed in reality as he expected.
"DID YOU WIN?"
"You wouldn't be asking me this question if I lost."
When Joshua directed his attention towards the Bitter Scimitar, he felt relieved when
he noticed that it had ceased all forms of resistance.
The powerful weapon had finally surrendered control to him. It rested obediently in
the Everchanger's sword hand, and looked ready to be used for its intended purpose!
Joshua confidently grinned as he activated a special command.
The Bitter Scimitar immediately burned 100 grams of phasewater, causing its curved
blade to glow with piercing might!
"Let's finish this fight!"