Heavy footsteps clashing with the sound of metal dragging against the ground partially deafened the Blood Knight as she and her opponent walked at a safe distance from each other, separating themselves from the others. With the overwhelming presence of the Emberwyrm suffocating the air around them, they opted to move as far away as possible to avoid interruptions. Jim, Anya, and their Blood Warriors distanced themselves from Ace, Skyler, and the Emberwyrm. It was just too dangerous for them to focus on multiple opponents at the same time while watching their backs.
"You don’t speak much," Cherry initiated small talk as she drew her daggers. Having grown accustomed to them, she felt more comfortable with the dual weapons than any others she had used before. This, of course, allowed her to incorporate her Blood Skills to make them perfect for both long-range and short-range attacks.
"When in battle," Enoris replied, "it is foolish to engage with your opponent in small talk. Focus on the fight instead."
The Blood Warrior raised her battle axe above her head as blood armor formed on her body. Protecting everything apart from her eyes, Enoris’ armor was impenetrable, leaving almost no chance for the average fighter to break through.
"To make matters more interesting for you," she placed her axe in front of her while changing its build into a long, double-edged sword, "this armor, my body, and my sword have been reinforced by the Blood Commander’s abilities. I hope I am a perfect opponent for you."
"So do I." Cherry smirked. In a few short seconds, she tied her long hair in a bun, flexed her arms quickly, and summoned her daggers. Taking a crouching position, the Blood Knight transformed only her hands into claws with a prideful smirk etched on her face. "You should know, your body is made entirely out of blood. So is your sword...."
"Enough talk, let us... BEGIN!!!"
Before she finished her sentence, Enoris was already inches away from Cherry’s neck with her hand ready to grasp her head. The Blood Knight reacted quickly, having already taken into account the Blood Warrior’s incredible speed.
Using all their strength, Enoris and Cherry slammed their fists into each other’s, generating red blood sparks. They released each other and then attacked again repeatedly, their speed increasing with each hit. Soon, their movements were too fast to be tracked, so fast that a regular human would grow dizzy just from staring.
"Your speed is incredible...."
"Imagine how fast I can move fully transformed." Cherry grinned and then slapped her hand on Enoris’ armor. In a quick second, a stream of blood was drawn from the Blood Warrior’s armor, leaving a medium-sized hole in it.
"Ace didn’t give you this armor," she noticed while absorbing the blood, "you tried making your own armor with the Blood Weapon Skill."
"I can patch the hole back quickly," Enoris snarled as she closed the hole in her armor. Raising her sword again, she angrily glared at Cherry and pursued her with hundreds of slashes while declaring, "It is a shame I’m not allowed to kill you, OTHERWISE...."
While the Blood Knights fought furiously with the Blood Warriors, Ace and Skyler faced their own dilemma. For some unknown reason, the Blood Beast was more hostile to the Blood Bishop than it was before its death. The aggression radiating from it far exceeded Ace’s expectations, making him wonder just what would have happened if he had summoned it in his previous fights.
[Quest: Slay the Beast]
’Slay it? I’m not going to slay my own Conjured beast.’
It just didn’t make sense. How could Ace, the Blood Conjurer, slay his own Conjured beast? It seemed impossible due to the fact that his Blood Mana would simply heal the beast’s wounds and replenish its lost strength. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✶𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮✶𝓷𝓮𝓽
[Blood Mana: 40,832/40,832<<<<40,001/40,832]
’The others are dealing damage to the Blood Warriors too. Maybe if Skyler and I attack, we can drain my Blood Mana much quicker.’
"Whatever you’re plotting, get done with it quickly," Skyler hissed as her body morphed into her hog form. With reinforced skin and beast crystal energy coursing through her, she was partially prepared to defend herself from the Emberwyrm. "Can’t you control this thing?"
"I can’t," Ace grimaced with his hands transformed. Stretching them forward, he attempted to control the beast’s blood body, which proved to be harder than he expected. "If I could, I’d have done it already."
"Are we seriously going to have to fight this thing? Your sister told me how much you struggled with it." Skyler questioned. By the looks of it, it seemed as though they were going to have to fight the beast, so she transformed into her dragon form, giving her a better fighting chance.
"Most definitely," Ace answered. "That form... do you know how to control it?"
"What about the Emberwyrm DNA I gave you? Can you control it?" The woman remained quiet, her focus completely on the beast. In all honesty, Skyler’s body did not sit well with the Emberwyrm DNA. As soon as she ingested it, her body immediately rejected every trace of it, robbing her of the chance to transform.
[Quest: Slay the Emberwyrm]
[Blood Step Skill: Activated]
The beast charged headfirst at Ace with its jaws wide open. The Blood Bishop stood still while Skyler took to the sky. With her razor-sharp claws ready, she dove headfirst at the beast and latched onto its neck. Suddenly....
Skyler’s longer, slimmer beastly body was dragged to the ground, allowing the Emberwyrm to maul away at its heart’s content. Quickly, the Blood Bishop darted at his Conjured beast with a blade gripped tightly in his hand. As soon as he was within arm’s length, he struck the base of its neck and shoved his sword deep through the crevices of its scales.
[Blood Mana: 40,001/40,832<<<39,089/40,832]
’Damn it. That’s barely two hundred points taken off.’
[-50 HP][HP: 360/ 410]
[You’ve suffered broken ribs and a cracked sternum]
[Congratulations: Your not-so-fable body has handled a heavy blow.]
[You have unlocked the Durability Stat]