I'm Trapped Inside a Prince as the Most Powerful Entity-Chapter 104: Holograms of the Future

Monica extended her empty hand the one not holding her wooden sword. She beckoned with a single finger. It was a clear almost disdainful gesture a summons for Eric to attack her first.

She was very confident.

Eric felt a flicker of nervousness at her imperious summons her commanding gesture. But he pushed that feeling down. He had to be brave. He took a deep breath.

Then he surged forward. To Alina who was watching or indeed to most normal observers his speed would have appeared remarkably fast. He moved quickly. In just a few seconds he closed the distance between himself and Monica.

He left Alina standing some way behind them. He brought his wooden sword up in a swift upward flash. He was aiming from a low position trying to break through Monica’s guard.

It was a standard opening move.

But then just as his attack was about to connect just as his wooden sword was about to reach her he saw it again. But this time it was not just a single blue line like he had seen with Alina.

It was something more complex something much more detailed. A translucent see-through blue energy hologram of Monica appeared. It was distinct from her physical body her real self.

This blue hologram was positioned slightly behind where Monica actually stood in the garden.

And this hologram was already in motion. It was as if it was leaping backward dodging an attack that hadn’t even landed yet.

It was like seeing her future dodge before she even did it.

Even though Eric’s wooden sword had not yet reached Monica’s physical form this preemptive visual this early sight of her dodge startled him. Is this some new skill I’ve unlocked? he wondered.

A flicker of astonishment ran through him. The blue lines I saw when I was practicing with Alina were one thing. But this... this is a full-body predictive image.

It’s like seeing a ghost of her future self.

Before Eric’s wooden sword could make contact with Monica before it could even touch her clothes she moved. Her physical body her real self perfectly mirrored the actions of the blue energy hologram he was perceiving in his mind’s eye.

She leaped backward. She followed the exact path the hologram had taken. It was a perfect match.

As Monica reached the end point of that holographic trajectory the place where the blue hologram had stopped Eric noticed something else something even more amazing.

The hologram wasn’t just a single still image of her dodging. It was a continuous stream of images. It was like watching countless frames of a moving picture one after another very quickly.

It showed her entire evasive maneuver her whole jump before she even began to move her physical body.

Eric understood then. This new skill this enhanced perception this amazing ability was not just showing him the path of an incoming attack like the blue lines did.

It was allowing him to predict his opponent’s future movements their entire defensive sequence their dodges their blocks their parries. It was an incredible advantage in a fight.

It was like knowing what your opponent was going to do before they did it.

Monica however seemed utterly unimpressed by Eric’s straightforward upward slash. She didn’t look worried at all. As she completed her backward leap landing gracefully a few feet away from him she looked at Eric.

Her expression was serious almost scornful a look of contempt.

"Is that all the strength you possess?" she challenged. Her voice was sharp and disdainful full of scorn.

"The one to whom the Emperor himself my own father granted the honor of potentially surpassing him in the future... is this truly all the power he has? Is this weak attack the best you can do?"

Eric was taken aback by her harsh words. He was surprised by the open contempt in her tone. He looked at Monica. And he saw or rather he felt a distinct animosity a strong dislike directed towards him.

This girl... she hates me, he thought. A sense of unease a worried feeling settled in his stomach. It really feels like she dislikes me a lot. Why?

When Monica saw that Eric was not immediately launching another attack that he was just standing there seemingly stunned by her sharp words she moved.

She didn’t wait for him.

With the speed of a lightning strike she brought her own wooden sword down. It moved in a powerful blurring arc. She was aiming directly at Eric’s chest.

It was a very fast and aggressive attack.

The speed of her attack was staggering. Eric had never faced an opponent who moved so quickly so decisively.

The wooden sword seemed to cut through the air. It was a mere blur to his normal senses to what he would usually see.

If he hadn’t had his special vision he would have been hit for sure.

But even before the blow could land even before her sword could reach him Eric saw it again. The faint guiding blue line appeared.

This time it was originating from Monica’s rapidly descending sword.

And it was ending precisely at the point on his chest where the impact would occur if he didn’t move.

This blue line showed him the future path of her devastating powerful attack.

He didn’t have enough time to bring his own sword up to block her strike. Her attack was simply too fast too powerful.

Even with his slowed perception of her movement his body couldn’t react fast enough to make a proper block with his sword.

But the predictive blue line it gave him just enough information. It showed him where the attack was going.

With a desperate instinctual movement a reaction born from the information the blue line gave him he threw his body backward. He leaned away sharply from the incoming strike.

He arched his back trying to get out of the way.

Monica’s wooden sword whistled past his chest. The tip of her sword just barely grazed the fabric of his tunic his shirt.

It missed him by a hair’s breadth by the smallest possible margin.

He had dodged it just in time.

Monica who had launched the attack with absolute confidence with the certainty that she would hit him was visibly surprised that her strike had missed. A flicker of astonishment a look of disbelief crossed her usually composed serious features.

She hadn’t expected him to be able to react to an attack of that speed. She had thought he was slow and unskilled. But he had dodged her. This was not what she expected at all.