Chương 46: The Witch-Trial Duel P2

Rook!" Vaelith called.

"I'm gonna kick your ass first."

"Great…" I muttered under my breath. The golem's arm came down and signaled the start of the duel. The stones began to glow an ominous blue, ancient markings across their surfaces lighting one after another. Around the area, a thin blue forcefield shimmered into existence, barely visible against the afternoon sun. I felt myself heal instantaneously. All of the scrapes and bruises disappeared.

Hell, even my clothing was repaired, torn fabric stitching itself back together until there wasn't so much as a loose thread. Powerful magic indeed. I felt my mana top off as well, and more importantly, when I covered my arm in carapace armor, it hadn't used any mana at all. I had an infinite supply. Vaelith roared as she charged me. I coated my entire body in carapace armor. Since it cost no mana, I didn't need to ration it. Vaelith jumped from stone to stone, her boots striking the flat surfaces with heavy thuds.

When she reached the stone I stood on, she jumped high and came down with an overhead swing. I saw Darwin's tongue lash out, catching the side of Vaelith's wrist. My companion used her momentum to swing himself across while yelling, "Leave Master alone—" Vaelith turned midair and broke free from Darwin's tongue. My companion continued on, hit the barrier, and passed through with little resistance before falling outside the stone ring.

"One down," Ysra announced.

"Three to go."

"Finally," Vaelith said.

"You and me, Rook. Let's see which of us is stronger."" You!" I replied.

"It's clearly you!" She smirked.

"I'm not so sure. But come on, let's fight. Don't ruin this for me." I glanced at Sable.

"Can I get some help here?" She shrugged.

"Fight your own battles. I'll deal with the winner." Vaelith didn't give me any more time. She began a mad swinging dance with her axe, the blade cutting through the air with a low whistle. Instinctually, I raised my forearms and blocked. It wasn't that I was particularly skilled. It was just that without the carapace using mana, I could resummon it the moment it broke away. And with it covering my entire body… Vaelith laughed as she continued to swing, lost in battle fervor.

Each impact cracked the carapace across my arms and shoulders, scattering dark fragments across the stone. I could feel the blows getting stronger and stronger. I turned and threw a wild haymaker." Ha!" Vaelith laughed.

"You think I'll let your Goblin Punch hit me?" She jumped back. I opened my hand." Wild Firebolt." A flash of light shot from my palm. Two Three Four Vaelith swatted away the first two, but she was unable to escape the next. They exploded against her, bursts of heat rolling across the stone, and I could see they had singed her flesh. My heart sank. I felt bad about hurting her.

"Let's just stop—" Vaelith leapt at me. I raised my hand again to fire another bolt—" Sovereign: Kneel!" An otherworldly pressure cascaded over me like a heavy blanket. The more I resisted, the heavier it became. Suddenly, I was staring down at the stone, my knees planted against its rough surface, and I was unable to lift my head. I hadn't realized just how powerful Vaelith's command spells could be. I had to do something. Fast. I could hear her getting closer, her boots striking stone." … Fire… bolt!"

I shot the firebolt into the stone. The concussive blast threw me backward, breaking all of the carapace armor covering my arms. Heat rushed past my face as stone dust scattered into the air. Luckily, it caught Vaelith as well, and she was thrown off to the side. Or at least I assumed she was, since I couldn't see her anymore. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Great…

now I could focus on— Vaelith grabbed my ankle and swung herself back up from the edge of the stone. Somehow, she had managed to catch the side before being launched off. But she had lost her axe. Vaelith stood and began striking me with punches and kicks. I put up my carapace defense as best I could, but each time she hit an area, the shell shattered away beneath the impact. I felt her try to drain my strength for herself, but I pressed all my willpower into blocking it.

Vaelith slugged me in the jaw—my vision swam. I spun around and, with a wild haymaker, activated Goblin Punch." Sovereign: Stop!" Vaelith commanded. As before, my arm simply stopped moving. No matter how much I pushed forward, I couldn't budge. Vaelith reared back, swung her hips to the side, and delivered a bone-shattering haymaker into my ribcage. The carapace exploded. I felt several ribs break beneath the impact. I coughed blood and fell to my knees. Vaelith was breathing hard.

Despite her obvious strength advantage, she had actually had to work to defeat me. I suppose, in the end, I could live with that. What hope did someone with a chef class have against a demon Sovereign? Still… I wasn't done quite yet. My ego couldn't allow it. Vaelith picked me up by the neck and walked me toward the edge of the stone. She smiled.

"Looks like I win." Then she tossed me off. I turned my hands away from me." Wild Firebolt." Surge… Explosive! The firebolt erupted from my hands, propelling me forward. Vaelith's eyes went wide. I could see my own fist reflected in them, cocked back as I shot towards her. Goblin Punch… Critical Success! I connected with Vaelith's chest. I felt my power course through her. Her chest bone broke beneath my attack, and I felt her spine shatter as well.

Her feet lifted off the stone, and she went flying away from me, through the barrier and slamming into the earth beyond.

As she hit the ground, she tumbled before finally coming to a stop." Vaelith!" I yelled, only then realizing that I'd likely killed her. I went to jump off the stone and check on her. Vaelith raised a hand and slowly moved into a sitting position. She checked her chest, stared up at me, and yelled, "I'm fine. Really. Good punch. I think you killed me!" She laughed, then fell backward, staring up at the sky. What a psychopath. At least I knew the healing magic was working because my broken ribs screamed in misery.

Sable looked to be playing her lyre slowly and patiently, waiting for us to finish. The fact that she hadn't tried to take advantage and win spoke to her confidence in her own abilities.

"Do you need a moment?" she asked as she casually jumped from stone to stone until we both stood on the same one. I shrugged.

"Does it matter? I planned on asking where we could find the witch anyway." Sable gave me a coy smile.

"That is sweet of you… but stupid. Ysra has a way of… changing what someone wants. She will offer you things beyond what you can imagine. So, even if I believe you would help me, which I do, I don't believe Ysra would allow it. No… this is only something I can do."

"Then how about I simply jump off?" Sable shook her head.

"It would be a violation of the duel. No… we must play this out, and you must try."

"Alright," I said, getting into a fighter's stance as best my broken ribs would allow.

"If you insist." Music filled my head. Dreadful music. Screeching torment. The sky darkened, the afternoon light vanishing beneath a churning black haze, and things of eyes, claws, and teeth descended on me in the thousands. I shot firebolt after firebolt, flashes of flame tearing through the darkness, but there were just too many. They surrounded me. They began tearing at my flesh. One ripped out my eyes. Another tore away my tongue as I screamed. Torment… cruel, bloody torment.

I couldn't imagine pain worse than this. I couldn't imagine— Imagine! This… it wasn't real. The music. Listen to the music. Low and dark. Screeching. It played on my mind. It made me see things. Where was the music coming from? There… over there! I shot a firebolt through a break in the flurry of dark creatures. The world snapped back. The blue sky returned. Sunlight washed across the standing stones. My body was whole. I hadn't lost my tongue. Nor my eyes.

Sable stood only a few feet away, her lyre blackened where my firebolt had struck it.

"I'm surprised you didn't fall for that," she said.

"Fine… let's do this another way." Her hands began strumming lightning quick. I could see the skin tearing from her fingers. She didn't seem to care as she strummed hard, and a bolt of lightning screamed from her lyre, arcing toward me. I blocked with my arm, carapace armor encompassing it. It didn't matter. Power surged through me. I think my heart stopped for a moment. Sable didn't wait. Cold enveloped me. To my right, blades of ice formed in the air, their edges catching the blue glow beneath our feet.

I dove down as they narrowly missed my head. I aimed up and summoned a firebolt at her. She strummed. It dissipated into the air. I cast it twice more. One surged, taking on some sort of homing effect. It went wide, curved through the air, then came back and slammed into Sable's back. She growled in frustration as she struck the strings of her lyre three more times. Wind and pressure crashed down on me with each note. It was as if I had been stomped by the wind itself. I had one chance.

A critical-success Goblin Punch. I jumped up and rushed Sable. I activated my skill. Goblin Punch… Critical Success! I smiled as my fist collided with her lyre. For a moment, all was still.

"You lose," Sable said as she strummed the strings once more. In an instant, all of the power from the punch backfired, reflecting into me. The carapace armor protecting my body exploded. Nearly every bone in my body broke at once. I felt myself flying through the air. Then I hit cold, hard dirt. I lay there with my eyes closed, waiting for the end… but then my eyes popped open, and I breathed in deep. Air. Sweet air. I felt my body. My bones were fixed. I was okay. Better than okay… completely healed.

Even my fatigue was gone. I glanced over at Vaelith, who was still lying on the ground, staring up at the sky.

"Hurt, didn't it?" she asked. I sighed and laid down as well. The sky really was beautiful today.

"Yep," I replied.

"It sure did."