It felt as though time had slowed down as Adrian's eyes widened.
Hidden by the sleeves of her dress, Evangeline's arm was covered in a stone-like shell, making it look as though she were wearing bronze armor underneath. Looking closer, he even noticed a layer of stone around her neck, peeking out from the round collar of her dress.
He instantly understood what that meant. She had created a layer of stone over her entire body to use as armor, all while hiding it with her frilly dress. Maintaining the stone armor constantly must've taken a lot of effort; no wonder she was panting so heavily.
And now that his strike was deflected, Adrian was wide open.
Evangeline didn't waste the opening. Before he could correct his stance, she aimed her hand at his chest, releasing a wind blast at point-blank range. The wind blast connected perfectly, sending him flying several meters away as his back collided with the tree.
