Chapter 295 - Days CMLXXXIV - CMLXXXV, Part III

Even with the flames in both of my hands roaring angrily, I was still shivering when I arrived at the place Ki'rai was waiting in. I was actually soaking wet with all the frost now melted down on my body.

- Is everything ok? - she asked with concern painted all over her face.

- Yeah - I squeezed out of myself. - I'll drop by the city, wait for me a bit.

She nodded. I dropped the anchor and shadow walked to the one left in the alley.

I headed straight to the pub and got something to drink. I emptied the mug quickly, and went outside, to bathe in the sunlight for few minutes. It helped a lot. I still needed more, but there was no time for such luxuries. I swung by the device, to get myself some food, and returned to Ki'rai.

I sat down under the wall with fire in one of my hands, slowly munching on the food, and explaining to my little lizard what happened. She was very curious about the battle and my tactic, which led to a lot of questions. I took my time answering those since I wasn't still feeling good enough to try pushing forward.

Eventually, though, the time to move my ass came, and we all started moving forward. As we reached the chambers of mages, Ki'rai stopped there, and I went even deeper. Past this cluster of connected rooms was a short corridor, ending with a staircase going even deeper underground. I slowly made my way down and found myself in a long hall with a high ceiling, and multiple statues of knights wearing heavy back full plate armors.

They had giant two-handed swords put down, with the tips resting on the ground, and both hands tightly gripping the handles. The helmets looked most interesting to me, as I noticed multiple short spiked all over those things.

I went to inspect one of them, but then that fucker moved, and almost grabbed me with his giant hand. I avoided by jumping backward and Immediately had to shadow walk out of there, as I almost got cleaved in half by the enormous blade. I did a bit of maneuvering between the falling swords, and hands trying to get me. 

It was easier than trying to avoid several dozens of magical effects at once, but If I got hit by any of those, I would probably not survive, so I activated all of my skills, and started fighting back. I started by repositioning myself and cutting off one of the legs of the knight I ended up next to. It wasn't easy, as the armor was thick, and I needed several hits, but I could swing a couple of times in a matter of seconds. I chopped it off, then evacuated. The armor inside was empty.

I had to repeat the process several times, finally immobilizing them enough to finish the fight with a bunch of critical blows to the head. Whatever they were, I could see somebody with less strength than me, having a problem with defeating them.

I took a few breaths and checked my pudao for the damage. It was still intact. Then I went further, to the end of the chamber, and another door. It was decorated with carvings of skeletons kneeling down in front of a king, sitting on the throne. It was pretty. I spend few minutes admiring the art and then pushed the door open to reveal a familiar view. Familiar, because I partially just saw it.

In an oval chamber, lighted up by multiple coke ovens, burning with bright blue flames, sitting on a simple throne, was a dried-up man. Basically skin and bones. White hair, and even whiter skin, with a crown of bones on his head, and a black skirt covering the legs. The torso was practically naked, except for the shoulder pads made out of dark leather.

He had a nasty-looking scepter, lying on one of the armrests. More or less in the middle of it, there were four metal pieces, spiraling around it all the way to the top, to support crimson red crystal, slightly shining with a light trapped inside.

There was a slight fog obscuring the floor, and the air itself was very cold. To the point, a single breath was freezing my lungs painfully. 

As I walked inside, he simply extended his hand, and my body twitched painfully. For a split second, I lost my vision, as all of my body cramped so hard I just couldn't do anything. My heart and lungs stopped working for that very moment. I gasped for oxygen and peaked at my hands. All the veins were black, although that effect vanished quickly.

Whatever he did, It almost killed me. Panic invaded my mind and overtook it completely. My body turned back, to run away, without me even knowing, but then the anger kicked in. I wasn't angry at the situation, or the boss, I was pissed off at myself. "Something like that happens, and you go back to you old, coward self?", I asked myself.

I slowly turned back, pushing all the fear outside of my head, and letting that fury take over. He was already on his feet, with the scepter in his hands. Looking at me with his empty eyes.

All my life flashed in front of my eyes. All the hardships and happy moments. All that struggle to climb my way to the top. Some dried old man with a metal rod in his hand, and fancy magic wasn't gonna stop me. I still had to take Will to earth, I still had to teach Ki'rai how to hunt, I still had to return to my home. I had plenty of people counting on me. I had a life now.

A life worth dying for. I activated all the skills I possibly could. The fog had to give its way to the void essence, emanating from the floor, and drifting slowly away. My vision changed and gave space to the sixth sense of simply feeling the area around me.

Then I charged, with a battle cry on my lips, knowing this might be my last battle.