I watched with apathy as her Pegasus glided overhead, my bike following on the road below.
She was out of reach for the moment, yet... when had something ever truly stumped me?
My hand twisted the throttle fully.
VROOOOOM!
R1 roared, its suspension straining under tremendous pressure as I took a steep left onto an ascending road. The path wound continuously across mountainside, curving like the rings of a screw.
I pushed R1 to its very limits, drifting through the relentless uphill turns.
[Ultimate Analyst] and [Ultimate Biker] worked in tandem. At a sharp bend, R1's rear tire hugged the very edge of the pavement, mere centimeters from being thrown aside.
Rider mirrored my movements, her Pegasus beating its wings with even greater force as it ascended higher alongside the mountain road.
Air tore apart as I carved my bike through relentless twists.
Artoria. I reached out through our connection mid-turn.
Master. Her reply was instantaneous; she had been observing in spirit form.
You possess the [Riding] Skill, correct? My voice remained stable, indifferent to the world spinning around me.
I do, Master. Her voice was confident.
Can you handle this beast? I asked, cutting straight to the point.
Absolutely, Master. She spoke firmly, a hint of excitement underlying her tone.
On my signal, then. I replied, my mind split in two... one half conversing with her, the other solely focused on handling R1.
My hands straightened its handlebars as I finally crested the mountain's peak.
A plateau lay ahead, bordered by railings—the road beneath me widening into a scenic overlook.
Rider and her Pegasus hovered, directly ahead.
I did not apply the brakes.
Instead, I let my bike continue toward them, riding on its momentum from earlier.
R1 was forcefully pushed into overdrive as I applied [Structural Reinforcement] to the already augmented beast beneath me.
VROOOM!
A deep hum resonated as I shot straight toward the cliff's edge.
My hands released its handlebars, drawing my legs up to balance myself, standing upright on its seat.
"Triple Accel. Body Reinforcement."
Wind roared across my body, swallowing my words against the air pressure.
My perception of time distorted further.
I took a step back, planting my feet on its rear seat, my legs tensing imperceptibly.
Now. I spoke to Artoria through our connection.
She materialized on the rider's seat in an instant, her hands forming over the grips, fingers already pressing the brakes.
My tensed legs sprang at that same moment, launching me upward—straight toward Rider and her Pegasus.
Meanwhile, Artoria brought R1 to a sliding stop at the cliff's very edge just as I reached Rider and her mount.
[Ultimate Analyst], [Ultimate Detective], and [Ultimate Inventor] awoke simultaneously.
The concept of Artoria's [Invisible Air] flashed across my mind like a blueprint.
My thoughts accelerated.
Analysis complete.
Fundamental structure of wind magecraft deconstructed.
Formula deduced.
Synthesizing new spell...
To describe the process would take hours of lectures from a normal person, yet within my mind, it occurred in a nanosecond.
Rider's stake-chains were already hurling toward me, yet I... ignored them.
My new spell, [Wind Blade], whirled to life. Countless layers of compressed air sheathed my left arm from shoulder down, transforming it into a razor-sharp, invisible edge.
I drove my heel toward the Pegasus' face while my right arm flashed to intercept her stakes.
Sppppprrrt.
Her chains buried themselves into my arm just as my other invisible arm tore a slight gash across her Pegasus' wing, my heel delivering a kick square across its face.
Blood spurted everywhere—mine and the divine beast's—as all three of us plummeted from the sky.
I twisted mid-fall, swinging my [Wind Blade] toward her throat. Rider parried with her stake-chains, her Pegasus whimpering as wind howled around us.
[Gradation Air] activated. A pitch-black 13mm Anti-Freak combat pistol materialized in my free, bleeding hand.
I trained the muzzle on her as we plummeted below.
However...
Just before I could pull the trigger, she began to dissolve before my eyes, her Pegasus vanishing alongside her.
Her Master had recalled her using a Command Seal.
My assessment took but a moment. I was now the only one freefalling toward certain death; Rider and her mount had been forcibly summoned back.
I gazed at the ground rushing up to meet me at terminal velocity.
My expression remained unchanged. Bored, even.
Yet... before I could resort to extreme measures, Artoria's voice echoed in my mind, sharp and urgent.
Grit your teeth, Master.
I complied instantly, crossing my arms over my chest.
"Strike Air: Hammer of the Wind King." Her incantation rang out just as I neared earth.
A mass of compressed wind slammed into me from the side, violently breaking my descent. Its sheer force shattering my arms.
R1's roar followed immediately.
VROOOOM!
I flew sideways as Artoria drove R1 down the steep incline, having launched off the cliff edge just moments after me, calculating the angle perfectly to intercept my fall.
My body moved fluidly mid-air, landing securely in R1's passenger seat.
Disregarding the screaming agony of my fractured arms, I wrapped them around Artoria's waist to steady myself.
My chin came to rest naturally against the curve of her shoulder as our surroundings blurred into a stream of indistinct colors.
Artoria guided R1 with a single hand, her grip on the throttle absolute. Her other hand reached back, fingers brushing against my skin to cradle my face, pulling me closer.
"Master... for a moment, I truly thought you were going to die."
Her voice wavered, a rare fracture in her usually stalwart demeanor. She rubbed her thumb across my cheek, not merely for comfort, but to verify I was physically there—solid and real.
I closed my eyes for a moment, my heartbeat finally starting to calm down.
"Drive carefully," I murmured, my voice maintaining its usual flat indifference.
"Don't crash us now."
Even as I spoke, my ever-active mind noted a discrepancy in my own emotional state. Beneath the calculated apathy, beneath the dull gray of my existence, a strange warmth flickered.
It was a phantom sensation—euphoria. A lingering high from the dance with death I had just performed, something I hadn't felt in forever.
Artoria didn't let go, her hand remaining pressed to my face as she steered R1 down the road, wind whipping through her golden hair.
And I... I let her.
For the first time in a long, long while, I allowed myself to simply rest.
It was just me, her, and the roar of our bike.
VROOOOM!
***
[200 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter]
[5 chapters ahead on P@tr3on = [email protected]/Not_Aaryan]
...
[Riding (B)]: Since "knights" are soldiers who are proficient in mounted warfare. She is able to control modern machinery like motorcycles and automobiles in a similar fashion to mounts. The Riding skill is applicable because they are treated as "modern mounts".
This ability allows her to completely understand the controls of all ridden equipment both known and unknown to her.
Basically, even if she doesn't know the actual function of a button, she is able to understand the effect it will have once pressed.
[Strike Air: Hammer Of The Wind King]: Strike Air is the act of releasing the binding on the compressed wind layers wrapped around her Excalibur. Instead of gently dissipating, the pressurized wind is fired forward like a projectile or a shockwave. It is essentially a long-range, invisible cannon blast of pure air pressure.
...
[Author's Thoughts]
So, how was it?
It took a whole day to write and refine this chapter, I had to do deep research on bike components, motorcycle dynamics and even go as deep as researching how all the components of a bike work and interact with each other.
Honestly... I feel like I would pass with flying colors if I went and gave an exam for automobile engineering right now.
...
Hail our king!
She came in clutch at the very end.
...
Did any of you notice the Hellsing crossover in between?