A/N: For those who read the previous chap on 05.10.2024 I edited it a bit lol. I realized I messed up the total experience requirement (Total EXP requirement to pass Level 10 was 40k, rather than the 60k originally listed). I'm sorry. Forgive the old lady.
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"Another one! Milord! Watch out!" Another guard yelled. It was an aborigine sheildsman assigned to guard Fargo and he pulled up his shield to protect him from the new shot.
CLANK!
And another.
CLANK!
His eyes twitched as his entire arm shook. They looked at the shield's stats and saw that it dropped the shield's durability to only a fraction!
This was a Class D weapon that had barely been used before this damned war! And now it wouldn't survive another shot.
He wasn't able to think more as another looming figure reached him, passing everyone else. It was the tall half-orc who raised his claws, repeatedly pounding on him and his shield. "GAH!"
CLANK! CLANK! CRASH!
His eyes widened as his shield cluttered and the next thing he knew, the claw had already appeared above him, striking down.
Fargo had long stepped back as soon as he saw the half-orc come near.
Althea naturally didn't want to waste her mana on the small fry, and had been targeting Fargo the whole time. It was just that she had to distract him a bit and take down more dangerous elements for her people.
Now, more of her team had neared the area and dealing with Fargo's men, she could resume targeting him again.
"Damn, my lord! She's targeting you! It's best you get out of her line of sight!"
At this time Uzon was pushed back by Fufi. The man gritted his teeth and continuously tried to stab, but Fufi was strong and swift and he was barely able to damage him at all.
"Hey, you people! Help me out here!" He called several mercenaries who twitched at the bloody sight of his enemy.
Uzon, now free, immediately raised his hand—now with only a couple of bullets left—aiming right on the woman's head.
He refused to believe she was invincible—especially in their turf! If he shot a few more times, maybe it'd go through!
"Bitch!" Uzon yelled, targeting his gun at the woman. He saw that the beast and half-orc were distracted, and he doubted they'd reach her in time!
However, before he could pull the trigger, he was forced to step back. Just in time, too, as a sharp sword swiped right where his arm was. His thick eyebrows furrowed as he turned to look at his attacker.
Uzon's eyebrows rose when he saw who it was, seeing a handsome blonde looking at him.
"You!"
"Remember me?" Micheal asked, eyes dark, very unlike the poor battered man from Bright, and now completely like the mafia boss that he grew up like.
"You—" Uzon gathered his cool and just sneered at the man who lost his token to his friend. "You're like a cockroach."
"I have to say thank you, I never would've been pushed to my limits if it wasn't for your… friendships."
The man sneered hiding his gun and taking out his sword. Uzon immediately jumped back and raised his weapon. However, Micheal was a trained fighter and he ducked, lunging towards him.
The two entered an impressive swordfight that created a vacuum around them. It was a very tense fight. While Uzon was a little bigger, a level higher, and was much more experienced in cold-blooded killings, Micheal still managed to hold his ground.
This was because, unlike Uzon, who was trained mostly in hot weapons, Micheal was also trained with various cold weapons—this included fencing and kendo—and this leveled the fight between them.
At some point they had gotten farther and farther from the main battle, entering their own world.
The sounds of swords clashing abounded and Uzon's eyes twitched as he felt the durability of his sword go lower. He also had a class D weapon bought from the Rongos, but for some reason, the blonde's seemed a bit more… durable?
"Tsk," he gritted his teeth when a particularly deep gash appeared on his leg. He sent the blonde a bad look. "How can you even fight with me in the first place?"
The blonde didn't hold back, continuously parrying. "Luckily, we vowed not to harm Bright, but not Fargo."
Uzon frowned. They didn't really take notice at the time because in their minds, it was impossible for him to make a comeback.
While in terms of power they were equally matched, in terms of equipment Micheal's was superior. He borrowed some money to equip himself to the teeth and it was saving his limbs many times.
He also borrowed some money to get a bit of that paralysis potion.
Uzon's eyes twtched when he realized the places where his wounds were starting to feel numb. He glared at Micheal, having an idea of what he did.
"I see you used some potion like a coward," he said, trying to avoid another hit, only to get a small wound on his face. He stabbed his own leg with a small knife to enduce physical stimulation—a decisive move to lessen the effects of the paralysis on him.
Micheal continued to stab and parry, unaffected by his words at all. "Nothing more cowardly than taking advantage of the weak," he said.
Uzon sneered as he attacked with all his might, pushing his limits despite the wounds and the poison. Obviously, Uzon had been trained in poison immunity so the effects were much lesser to him than others.
At some point, Uzon would take advantage of the major adrenaline rush and barrage him with attacks until Micheal was just as bloodied as he was.
The more they exchanged hits, the more Micheal recalled the damage and death these people caused them. Adrenaline flowed and his attacks came even faster and harder—beyond his usual level—
[Learned! Berserk (D) Level 1: Increase all physical attacks by 30% for 1 minute. Cost: 30 mana, Cooldown: 30 minutes]
His eyes sharpened, using it to the max, and soon a flurry of attacks pummeled Uzon, Crack! Breaking his sword.
"Shit!" Uzon cursed as he felt a stinging pain in his arm.
"OI! HELP ME!" He yelled at the nearest guard, but sadly they had their hands full with the Alterans—who were, frankly, as durable as cockroaches!
Uzon immediately ran backwards, holding his gun, immediately shooting at him.
Uzon's hands were shaky due to the injuries and the poison. His first two shots missed and hit collateral damages, one Alteran and one was a teammate. But the Alteran had an armor so while he received some internal injuries, he survived. It was not the same for the other guy, however.
Uzon's heart beat loudly as panic dawned on to him, and he immediately used the remaining bullets. Micheal tried avoiding, but he couldn't avoid everything.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Micheal's eyes twitched as two of the bullets hit him. One almost made him lose his footing but he pursued, and the other hitting his minimally armed arm, making it bleed.
But Micheal didn't feel anything. He yelled, using the final second of his skill to finally land the kill.
STAB!
When Uzon received the fatal stab through his heart, his knee buckled as he held on to the blade.
His fallen figure reflected on Michea's blue eyes. "I'm going to take back Bright." he said, gritting his teeth. "Your friend is next."
And Uzon was no more.