Chapter 88: Magic Superiority

Chapter 88: Magic Superiority

The bandit leader swung his sword swiftly, going straight for Gerald's neck right off the bat.

Clank!

The sword harmlessly bounced off his skin.

"Ow, that really hurt you bastard!" Gerald rubbed his neck where the sword had struck him. The Stone Body was already soundlessly cast, protecting him almost perfectly.

"What?" The leader stared at his sword and then at Gerald. His brain just couldn't process what just happened. Updated from novelb(i)n.c(o)m

He was expecting his sword to slice through Gerald's neck cleanly, with no issue, but instead, he felt like he had struck a rock. And the lad in front even complained about it and called him a bastard.

Pure absurdity!

The leader was struck silly for a second, but he quickly recovered his wits and ordered, "Don't just stand there you fools! Attack!"

"Yes!"

"Hah!"

"Get him!"

All nine bandits attacked at once with swords and daggers in hand.

"How foolish... Your tactics might work on normal people of this world, but I'm far from it!" Gerald scoffed and waved his hand, "Now scram!"

Woosh!

With a single wave of his hand, three Wind Blasts were triggered at once, expanding away from him in a semi-circle.

The wind that came from it was immensely powerful, knocking the men away like they were dried leaves in the autumn wind.

"Ah!" A man screamed as he tumbled to the ground, hitting his head on a stone. He started to bleed, but it wasn't a serious wound.

Too bad for him though, Gerald simply glanced at him and Stone Spikes shoot out from below the poor bastard, piercing him between the armor plates. He had no time to react as he was skewered on the stone stakes.

His iron armor was completely useless against the sudden attack.

During the last week, Gerald's control over magic increased, and so did his precision. Instead of just mindlessly pounding on the armor, he just targeted the weak spots.

"You beast!" Another man screamed and tried to attack Gerald from the back.

Gerald spun and made a roundhouse kick in retaliation, but instead of connecting with his attacker, another Wind Blast was triggered, this time from his leg, blasting the man backward.

The leader saw they were in trouble so he quickly yelled orders, "Don't give him any space to move! Circle him and hold him down, he can't focus on all of us at once!"

Just when you think everything is under control, suddenly, it all comes crashing down.

Soon only the leader was left standing as everyone else was already dead.

On his face, fear mixed with anger, as he watched his people die, their lives so easily extinguished.

"Guild's lapdog! After all that magic, your Mana must be almost exhausted, I refuse to believe you can continue with your tricks!" The bandit leader shouted at Gerald and then threw his sword at him.

Gerald simply turned his body slightly, dodging the sword. His face was expressionless as he looked at the bandit leader. He already considered him a dead man.

But to his surprise, the leader made something that attracted his attention.

"I'll show you the real power of Stone Face!" the leader roared but then quickly started a short chant, "Grow around me hardened stone, protect my body with flintstone rock! Stone Armor!"

Crack! Ka-cha, ka-cha!

The ground lightly shook and the stones around the place lifted and floated to the bandit leader. It appeared almost like his body was attracting the stones, as they stuck to him like glue.

Layer after layer of stone scales formed themselves on the surface, covering him completely from head to toe, except for the eyes.

"Oh~ Not bad, Stone Face! I like the look of your stone armor, but is it any good in practice?" Gerald mockingly asked. But he was genuinely impressed. The armor looked quite pleasing to the eyes and the amount of control for such a detailed spell had to be quite great.

"Mock all you want, your fire and stones can't touch me now! Making the stone walls and trapping us inside was your biggest mistake! Now, taste my fist!"

Stone Face ran forward in his new armor and punched with his right hand at Gerald's face.

Bam!

Gerald blocked with his right hand, but the force behind the punch was much stronger than he expected and he almost lost balance.

Obviously, when Stone Face first swung his sword at Gerald's neck, he didn't use all his strength.

"Interesting! Show me what you got!" Gerald's eyes shined with excitement and his mouth formed a smile. He quickly stabilized himself and returned a punch.

Bam!

His fist landed on Stone Face's shoulder, breaking a few stone scales.

They continued to exchange punches for a while and stones flew all over the place.

Stone Face was much stronger than Gerald, so the latter had to either block or dodge his punches and kicks. Even though he was covered in stone, the leader's speed did not diminish, only his agility suffered somewhat.

Gerald had to admit that the armor of his opponent was quite good at defending. If he continued using just his fists, with the strength he had now he would never be able to break through it.

The Stone Armor could shift the pieces around, always replacing the broken parts.

"Heh, I'll have to use something different then!" Gerald grinned as he dodged another punch. "You are quite lucky, Stone Face! You will have the privilege of experiencing my new creation first-hand!"