Chapter 74: Battle

Thud!

Orga slammed his cane on the ground and took the evil beast's attention. He was preparing for another fight against the larger beast…

"Come!"

He shouted loudly as if he was afraid that the beast would ignore him. He channeled his Spiritual Energy and covered his whole body.

It seems that he decided to confront the Armored Black Ape alone and let the two retreat into safety.

Reiji admired his courage to confront an almost three-meter tall Evil Beast alone.

'You can do it…' He cheered for Orga as he wanted him to beat the Ape or at least deal a critical blow so he can benefit from it later…

The Arcanist who was carrying the silver-haired young man didn't hesitate at all and left the trustworthy three-star Hunter.

"I'll leave it to you… I'll call for help! Stay alive!"

"Hmph! Who do you think I am?! I can at least escape here if I needed… Go!"

Orga reassured the middle-aged man as he dashed forward to meet the beast that was fuming with anger…

Bang!

A collision between the Ape's iron-like head and Orga's cane created a huge impact on the ground… Reiji noticed how Orga frowned as his feet sunk on the ground…

If he didn't properly hold his ground, he would've thrown away just by its impact…

"Whoa~ This is completely different from the previous battles I've seen…"

Reiji was not aware of how did they get tangled with this strong evil beast but it didn't matter…

He appreciated the two individuals fighting in front of him since he could learn a lot. He could sense their incredible Spiritual Energy and it was several times stronger than the ten-year-old Diether…

Pah!

An unexpected attack managed to hit Orga's side as he was thrown ten meters away.

Bam! He managed to stop himself from being thrown too far by using his cane to strike the ground. After taking two breathes, the Ape started attacking again… It jumps towards him and sent relentless punches that could destroy even thick trunks of trees…

Orga couldn't defend all of the punches and he didn't have enough time to run away…

Boom! He was struck on his stomach and was thrown away. After slamming on a nearby tree, Orga cough a mouthful of blood.

"This is getting dangerous but…"

Reiji could see that Orga was struggling to fight this brawler Ape… However, he could similarly feel that Orga was still hiding his strength as if he was waiting for something…

"What are you waiting for?! You're about to die old man!"

Even if you have a lot of remaining Spiritual Energy, it would be useless if your physical body couldn't summon them due to being injured heavily. Orga should know that as well, however, he just continued his defensive strategy which confused Reiji…

Although he manages to hit the Ape's body, it does little damage due to its thick bone armor…

Bam!

After getting hit once again, Orga gritted his teeth and changed his plan…

His cane suddenly broke into two… No! The cane had a sword inside!

"So it was just a scabbard?"

Reiji realized that the old man was a genuine swordsman… He suddenly felt the man's sword aura after pulling the sword out. He was hiding it really well!

Ting!

Orga tried slicing the Ape's neck! Unfortunately, the armor was too tough!

"Hmph!"

The old man didn't give up as he continuously slices the Ape's body… Its whole body wasn't armored and only some parts of it were protected. So he created many small wounds to the Evil Beast's body…

"Rooaarr!

The beast probably realized that fighting any longer would be disadvantageous and decided to end the battle…

"Haat!"

The Ape bravely caught the blade with its left hand while the other hand tried to grab the old man. Orga managed to cut its palm but it didn't go too deep…

As soon as he noticed the Ape's plan, he decided to abandon the sword and dodge the palm trying to grab him… However, the Ape wasn't finished, it jumped once more and opened its mouth widely!

The ape was trying to bite off Orga's head!

Boom!

Orga somehow avoided the Ape trying to gnaw at him… The three-meter tall beast crashed on a nearby tree and struggled to stand up… It seems to have used most of its energy just like him…

If Orga was in a good state, he would have a good chance to finish off this Evil Beast.

Reiji was trying to guess their next actions but he was surprised by Orga's words.

"Are you still not showing up?!"

Reiji suddenly heard Orga calling out someone…

'Eh? Is there someone else here? I didn't notice!' Reiji was alarmed since he was sure that he remained focus on sensing the surroundings during the whole battle. After all, he was afraid that some other beasts would try to get his prey…

Orga looks around in different directions as if he wasn't sure where this third-party was… Finally, he briefly glanced at the top of the tall tree which made Reiji frozen…

"Eh? He's talking about me?!"

Reiji suddenly remembered how Orga remained cautious during the whole fight with the Evil Beasts and how he tried saving his energy during the battle. Only in critical moments did he decided to fight it seriously…

Reiji somehow felt bad about it.

"Is he afraid of someone backstabbing him during his fight? Urgh… Sorry about that… I should practice my skills even more…"

Reiji thought of getting Stealth in case it would help in hiding his presence from strong individuals…

"Sigh~ I should save SPs for now… I'll do it once truly necessary…"

After noticing that no one was responding, Orga became cautious… After a while, he started doubting himself…

"Am I just imagining things? Am I too injured to hallucinate things? Haa~ It's better to leave this place…"

Orga glanced at the recuperating Evil Beast who was staying wary of him…

"Hey! Give me back my sword and I'll leave…" Orga shouted at the Ape…

"Grrr!"

Reiji was amused seeing how Orga was trying to communicate with the Evil Beast… To his surprise, the beast actually removed the sword from his palm and throw it far away as if it was telling him to just go away… It was a very interesting scene!

Orga didn't mind the Ape's action and left without any more words…

This time, it was Reiji's turn…