Chương 17: Felicity steps in

Morvath raised both hands, and blazing spheres of fire formed within them. Without hesitation, he hurled them at Ethan. The Golden Knight responded by creating a wall of flames, which absorbed the impact. He then counterattacked by conjuring a fiery tornado that surged forward with destructive fury. Morvath thrust his hands forward, his face contorted with effort. With great difficulty, he managed to absorb the vortex of fire and immediately sent it back.

Ethan tightened his grip on his sword and channeled the flames directly into the blade, absorbing them. His breathing was heavy, his body exhausted.

"Already tired?" Morvath said, slowly advancing.

"It really seems that legendary swords corrode the bodies of those who wield them". Ethan took a deep breath, trying to remain calm. At that moment, Morvath immobilized him once again with his power.

"I'm sorry, Golden Knight", he continued.

"You fought well, but now it's time for you to…for you to…". His body suddenly jerked. Blood abruptly streamed from his nose. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. An instant later, Morvath split into two perfectly symmetrical halves. The two pieces fell in opposite directions, revealing his still-smoking entrails. Behind him stood Xia, one hand extended and her expression calm. At her sides were Felicity and Leah.

"How the hell did you do that?!" Leah exclaimed, shocked. Xia did not answer. She took a step forward, but Felicity stopped her by placing an arm across her stomach.

"I'll handle him", she said, drawing both swords.

"He possesses the Legendary Sword of Fire, he's too strong for you", Xia replied.

"But he's far too weak for you", Felicity answered without turning around.

"You'd kill him in a second. Leave him to me. I can beat him". Xia observed her for a moment, then nodded and stepped back.

"I hope you're right". Ethan, panting, wiped the sweat from his face.

"Everyone's against me today, huh?"

"Don't worry", Felicity replied, slowly advancing.

"I'll be your last opponent". She attacked immediately, unleashing a barrage of air slashes. Ethan parried them with precision and responded by generating a tornado of fire. Felicity countered with a vortex of wind. The two powers collided, but the fire prevailed. Felicity narrowly avoided it, but some flames wrapped around her clothes. She performed a roll, tumbled across the ground, extinguished them, and immediately returned to the attack.

Ethan, his breathing growing increasingly labored and his vision blurred, generated several fire slashes while retreating. Felicity dodged them, planted her feet firmly on the ground, and with both swords steady in her hands, dashed forward at an astonishing speed. In a single instant, she was right in front of him. Ethan was caught by surprise, but managed to block the strike at the last second. He tried to counterattack, but Felicity dodged and stepped back gracefully.

"You're not bad", he said, panting.

"Neither are you", she replied. They stared at each other for a long moment, swords at the ready, fully aware that the next clash would decide everything.