Chapter 116 Under The Moon

As the adrenaline died down, the pain that was suppressed within his body kicked in and his strength gave out, causing him to fall back as he held onto his sword, falling with the mountainous body of the chief.

It’d be real nice…if prince charming caught me in his arms right about now, he thought.

With the large body of the chief plummeting down, an echoing thud sounded out, causing the temple to rumble momentarily.

Landing harshly against the fur-carpeted, wooden floor, the fall from such a height should’ve hurt, but it didn’t register to his nerves.

Just as his eyelids began to flutter for him to attempt to take a nape–the chamber rumbled vigorously as a booming roar sounded out, beginning like a revving engine before exploding out.

…Dammit…can’t a guy catch a break…? He thought.

It wasn’t over.

Even with a stab wound through the head, the elder lifted himself back to his feet, using nature magic as wood and plant life sprouted against his back, bringing him back up.

Just as the elder did, he slowly brought himself back up like a zombie risen from the soil, exhaling out with half-open eyes.

“…Graaagh…” Chief Omana growled out.

It seemed the once wise chief was now devoid of logic and himself; his eyes were glazed over and his fangs bare; his silver fur pricked up like a porcupine as the gash in his head oozed out crimson.

Shrubs protruded from the ear holes of the chief; roots shifted out from his pores, lining his pore.

I see…You used some sort of spell that activates only in the event of your death, he realized, you’ve let the plants use your body–all for the purpose of protecting your people, right?

He wiped the blood from his mouth, “…Hate to break it to you, but I’m not letting that happen. If you leave this room, and the Outriders win, then the Verma people will suffer. They’re good people. Alekkai took me in, fed me, treated me like family despite barely knowing me…A kind old woman gave me tasty bread to try. Children play carefree in the forest…A world like this…It’s exactly what I wished for. If I let something happen to them when I could’ve done something…What was the point of me abandoning “that” life?”

“GRAAAGH!” The elder roared.

“Yeah, me too,” he said under his breath.

[One Last Stand.]

On the last bits of energy, the two stood opposite to one another. Even in the desolated chamber with both figures at their limit, a final battle ensued.

BA-DUMP. BA-DUMP. BA-DUMP.

This time, he called on it. In this moment of limits being reached, it was necessary to remove any restraint.

Give me all you’ve got, he thought.

The veins running through his body ran black as the draconic power manifested itself further than ever; rock-like horns extended from his head and navy-blue scales protected his arms and legs.

His hands shifted, resembling gauntlets of scales as his fingers became beastly, forcing him not to rely on his sword.

[Dragonheart System Activated.]

[Current Stage: Dragon Warrior | 3/10]

Unbeknownst to him, this last-ditch transformation was only possible due to the ability he had just unlocked: “Draconic Constitution.” Without it, there’d be no doubt his heart would’ve shut down on the spot.

Even so, it still strained his body; blackened blood trickled down from his nostrils and his amethyst eyes were strained as the whites ran bloodshot.

They both moved at the same time; thousands of plants blossomed from the puppeted corpse of the chief, sprouting out intensely as a blue heat gave off from the young man.

It was over in the first move.

An explosion of azure flames filled the room, burning away all of the nature-manipulating spells as a layer of ash danced in the isolated air.

Just as quickly as it came, the Dragon Flow ended, leaving him barely conscious and teetering with each step as he scavenged his precious sword and staff. He returned his sword to its scabbard and his staff to his back, doing so amidst the burning room.

Crumbling to ash, his horns withered away as did the scales that protected his flesh as he returned to his normal, fully-human state.

“Alright…next is–”

As he planned to continue on, his consciousness wavered at last as he fell forward, landing on the ground and slipping into slumber instantly.

–

[The Outrider Village | Alekkai]

The bout between two champions continued, marking a momentous occasion in the history of the great forest.

This time, it was Urganna who took the initiative, firing off from the spot he stood like a cannonball, carving through the wind with speed that took Alekkai by surprise in his rage-clouded mind.

The massive ax clashed against Alekkai’s blade; the war-ax was forged of silver with a red tint, dirtied with old blood that didn’t wash away in the rain.

“Grgh!” Alekkai struggled.

Though they struggled, Urganna gained the upper hand with his superior physical might, slamming the man back with his shoulder before rushing forward again.

“–!” Alekkai looked up.

Looming over him was that large, crescent ax, ready to be swung down onto his flesh.

CLANG.

The ax failed to cleave through his body, instead being intercepted by the sword of a familiar ally; a grizzled, bearded man of the Verma.

“Raegun…!” Alekkai called out.

Raegun grunted, being pressed back as his feet caved into the soil below from trying to hold back the might of the Outrider Champion, “–Get it together, Champion!”

It took every ounce of strength in the veteran warrior’s body to hold back Urganna’s ax; every vein pressed against his skin, coiling and rushing with warm blood as his dark complexion reddened, straining incredibly as his eyes went bloodshot.

Urganna pressed down further, inflicting greater pressure down on the man as he laughed, “Puny Verma. How many more of you do I need to eat before you understand your place on the food chain?!”

As the veil of irrationality dissipated from his mind, Alekkai jumped back to his feet, but not before Raegun’s guard was broken–causing the ax to be pulled down harshly through his shoulder and down into his torso.

“Raegun–!!!” Alekkai roared out.

“Don’t worry about me…! Fight!” Raegun yelled out as he fell back.

With those words, bestowed from one warrior of the Verma to another, Alekkai respected them; rushing past Raegun and immediately jumping back into battle with a new vigor.

“Come as many times as you like, wolf pup! I’ll carve you up nonetheless!” Urganna bellowed.

As they clashed blades once more, a continuous onslaught extended between the two; repeatedly, steel clashed at high speeds, producing sparks that fell alongside the rain.

Against both of Urganna’s giant axes, the Verma Champion kept up, moving nimbly as he combatted the disadvantage in weaponry with skill and precision.

This finesse with the blade pushed Urganna back, who struggled to keep up despite his overwhelming strength and ferocity with his two weapons.

In the rain, Alekkai looked as if he were dancing; spinning and flipping as he swung his blade in unorthodox ways, switching between low-attacks and jumping strikes at a moment’s notice.

“Grrr–!?” Urganna growled in surprise.

Finally breaking the violent guard of the scale-armored demi-human, Alekkai managed to inflict multiple slashes against his massive body.

Yula smiled, coughing as she laid against the mud, “…That’s our champion–ya can’t beat ‘im.”

[The “Beast God Style”; most swordsmen consider it too savage to be among the likes of the Ten Divine Styles, but only those that have clashed with a Beast God Swordsman know the truth: they’re just as formidable as any other, if not more so.]

A style such as the one under the Beast God was anything but similar to those that humans were adjusted to; Alekkai wielded his sword as if it were his claws for swipes, and thrust it as if it were his fangs.

As he danced around the twin axes wielded by his nemesis, he stayed low, using all-fours to move around momentarily as his tail flicked around; the nature of the Beast Style was this very showcase–he moved like a beast, closing in on his opponent.

Though Urganna was a demi-human just as he was, the Outrider Champion was a barbarian without any style, a brute that relied solely on his strength. In comparison to the noble Alekkai, there was no competition in terms of skill.

Still, the battle was far from over.

As the steel claw of Alekkai lashed out at Urganna’s flesh, the gargantuan beast-man roared out, summoning a further evolution of strength as his muscles enlarged and the animalistic side overtook his human aspects.

“…I see…You truly are nothing more than a mindless beast,” Alekkai said, looking up.

Drooling down, the Outrider Champion had grown nearly twice as large with a height of a small hill, completely clad in dark, bushy fur and massive claws that resembled shortswords.

[“Full Beast Transformation.”]

Alekkai knew what he was looking at; it was a rare trait that was rarely possessed by demi-humans, and most often came from those who chose to consume their own kin. It was that animalistic nature that allowed one to tap into their bloodline completely–turning into what was before the Verma Champion’s eyes: a towering, goliath of a bear still clad in the scales of a behemoth.

“Come, then,” Alekkai said, holding his blade up as the rain fell down his body, “Allow me to slay you like the beast you are.”