Chương 763: Y03 - 724. Red Oak IV

Adam inhaled the crisp air before he donned his puthral helmet, covering himself head to toe in his purple armour. He donned his magical shield, feeling its great magic tingle through even his gloves, before he gripped the handle of Wraith, his axe, and perhaps the greatest weapon he had created thus far. Eddard knelt in front of the half elf, though faced away, the older man praying lightly.

'Jurot. Rot.' The name sounded so familiar, though he couldn't quite place it. He stood and turned to face Adam, noting the axe and shield, the shield which Adam had picked up when he went to don his armour. The shield was crimson, like blood.

"Ten gold?" a Grave Sword asked.

"I will bet on my brother," Jurot replied. The Grave Sword, another northerner, nodded their head. They wrote within the book of bets, handing it to Jurot to add his own bet, before the book continued to be passed along the rest of those who were watching. The small field had been cleared for the pair for their fight, though many adventurers had stepped out to watch the fight between Black Blood and the young punk in purple.

'Should I rinse them for all they're worth?' Adam thought.

'Nah.'

"Are you ready?"

"I am," Eddard replied, gripping his blade in both hands while Adam raised his shield. Once the bets were placed, Paul grabbed the book, closing it.

"You may begin." Battle Order D20 + 1 = 2 (1)'I just have to-,' Adam's thoughts stopped as Eddard had charged him before he could even blink. He brought up his shield, skidding backwards as the older man struck his shield violently, before he side stepped another swing.

'Damn it!' The pair clashed within the centre of the field, the adventurers watching near silently as their bout rung through the air. Magical steel crashed against magical steel. Adam grunted, trying to defend himself from the onslaught of the older man. Eddard pushed through his limits to try and shatter the boy's defences, to teach him a lesson, and yet his blade only clattered against the puthral armour. Fighting Spirit: 3 -> 2 Attack - Wraith (Advantage) D20 + 10 = 22 (12) D20 + 10 = 23 (13) Hit!

Mana: 25 -> 24 Ability: Divine Smite 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 28 (2, 6)(5, 6) 28 damage! Attack - Wraith (Advantage) D20 + 10 = 21 (11) D20 + 10 = 25 (15) Hit! Mana: 24 -> 23 Ability: Divine Smite 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 23 (2, 6)(2, 4) 23 damage! Adam inhaled and focused, finding a moment to push back the older Aldishman, magical steel clashing against magical steel, though this time Adam took lead of the bout.

Eddard brought up his mighty magical blade to defend himself, but as he stepped back and aside to try and deflect Adam's blows, he could already feel the great burning within his arms as he tried to deal with the young man in purple.

'The boy's a guardian?' Eddard thought, feeling the flash of hot divine magic run through him as the pair clashed. Jurot watched intently. He understood the thoughts going through Eddard's head as the pair fought. Adam was a great warrior, that was for certain. He was considered a guardian, one of those who could wield the magics of oaths, though Jurot knew that to be foolish. Adam was a guardian, in the same way he was a warrior, in the same way he was a priest, in the same way he was a scribe mage, a wizard.

Health: 91 -> 58 Fighting Spirit: 2 -> 1 Health: 58 -> 63 Attack - Wraith (Advantage) D20 + 10 = 21 (11) D20 + 10 = 26 (16) Hit! Mana: 23 -> 22 Ability: Divine Smite 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 29 (4, 5)(5, 6) 29 damage! Attack - Wraith (Advantage) D20 + 10 = 18 (8) D20 + 10 = 23 (13) Hit! Mana: 22 -> 21 Ability: Divine Smite 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 27 (4, 4)(5, 5) 27 damage!

Eddard brought his heavy might down against Adam, who brought his shield up, and yet the blow pushed through the shield and through his arm, causing him to take a knee. Adam barely managed to duck under another blow which glanced off his helmet, his head pulsing as he focused once more, before he pushed forward, almost wobbling on his feet. Thankfully, with the moment to focus once more with his Fighting Spirit, it shook off much of the terrible blow Eddard had landed.

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'Damn!' Adam thought, barely managing to force the older man back with his axe and smites, though the older man seemed to shrug off some of the blow.

'Adam is holding back,' Jurot thought. Adam had yet to break through his limits as Eddard had, though Eddard's flurry had been rather insignificant when in the fact of the tower known as Adam. Even if Adam didn't have the abilities of all these distinct ways of fighting and magic, there was something else the young man had. Eddard tried to strike the half elf with his blade, and though his blade would have crushed any other warrior of Adam's age, somehow his blade was unable to find purchase against Adam's puthral.

'Yes,' Jurot thought, noting how Eddard had taken a step back before Adam had even retaliated. Eddard finally understood. The puthral plate mail had been payment to Adam as part of his enchanting of a shield for the Iyr, the same shield which Jurot now possessed. Defence: 18 Adam had taken a particular ability from his system called Defence, which increased his defence whenever he wore armour. Defence: 19 He had recently become a man of faith, taking several abilities which belonged to priests.

One such ability was called Blessing of Forgia, which allowed him to pray over a weapon or armour to increase its effectiveness. Defence: 20 There was another ability Adam had picked up in his time within the other world, where he had engulfed himself in fire often. Soul of the Forge, which not only granted him the ability to handle the heat, but also increased his defensive capabilities when he wore heavier armour.

Defence: 21 Such abilities allowed him to gain the defence which almost matched Jaeryael, the ancient golden dragon which protected the capital of Aldland. There was another shield which belonged to Adam, a shield which had been gifted to the half elf by Turot, who had received it from his grandfather, Jarot. It was the same shield the old man had used during his time in the north, which someone recognised. Strong Shield. Defence: 25'Adam is holding back,' Jurot thought, confirming it within his mind.

Adam had yet to break through his limits as Eddard had, nor had he cast one of the spells which could defend him to even greater heights. Adam possessed the ability to gain such a high defence, a defence which could, perhaps, even match the likes of Lord Stokmar.

'That shield,' Eddard thought for a moment, before his thoughts fell still as he tried to defend himself from Adam's blurring axe. Fighting Spirit: 1 -> 0 Health: 63 -> 68 Attack - Wraith (Advantage) D20 + 10 = 15 (5) D20 + 10 = 30 (20) Critical hit! Mana: 21 -> 20 Ability: Divine Smite 4D6 + 4D6 + 9 = 38 (2, 3, 4, 5)(2, 3, 5, 5) 38 damage!

Adam focused intensely as his axe blurred through the air, the young half elf stepping forward as his blade managed to barely bend over the old man's sword, and struck him harshly against the side of his helmet, denting it. Eddard stumbled back, feeling his vision fade, his entire body growing heavy as he tried to right himself. His mind rang wildly as he swayed, barely able to keep the grip on his blade.

"Do you surrender?" Adam asked, still gripping Wraith tightly.

"Boy," the old man began, inhaling deeply as he managed to right himself.

"Young man. I'm a northerner." Attack - Wraith (Advantage) D20 + 10 = 15 (5) D20 + 10 = 24 (14) Critical hit! Mana: 20 -> 19 Ability: Divine Smite 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 17 (1, 3)(2, 2) 17 damage! Adam swung his axe with surgical precision, striking the old man across his helmet again, though the old man had pulled his head back to dampen the blow. Yet, Eddard dropped onto the floor, his sword still gripped tightly in hand, though he remained still. Victory!

XP Gained: +200 XP: 10 600 -> 10 800 Quest Complete: Northern Respect XP Gained: +100 XP: 10 800 -> 10 900 A gasp filled the air as Adam, a relative newbie, who wore a tag of bronze, knocked out Black Blood, the man who wore a tag of silver, stamped quite some ways through. The same Black Blood who had slain such a large number of drakes, who had even clashed against Black Blade, the Black Blade, for his title, who had even demanded respect from members of the various orders.

'Adam held back,' Jurot thought.

'The first blow against his helmet would have struck him down if Adam had decided to use Wraith or a greater smite.'

"Young man," called a Grave Sword, tossing a pair of gems to the half elf.

'A pair of tiger eyes?' Adam thought. He had also brought a few, being a gem worth fifty gold a piece, so he didn't need to carry a ton of coins with him. It was also one of the most popular gems within the Iyr.

"This the one hundred gold?"

"What else do you think it is?"

"How can I be su-," Adam stopped as he felt a hand against his shoulder, glancing aside to see his brother beside him.

"It was a good fight," Jurot said, nodding his head to the Grave Sword, who had begun narrowing their eyes towards Adam.

"Yeah," Adam replied, glad Jurot had grabbed him.

'Seriously, I was so good during the fight, and almost cocked it up.'

"It was my honour." The Grave Sword nodded, allowing the half elf to step away from the fight, while the bets were all paid out.

'I can't believe there's a time I win ten gold from a bet and think it's more like copper,' Rick thought. He had already made so much from betting on the half elf the previous year that ten gold seemed like almost nothing, even if it was about a month's salary for a great number of people he knew.

"That fight got me all hungry," Adam said, slipping Wraith to his side.

"Why don't we grab some bread?"

"Okay," Jurot replied, far too eagerly.