Chapter 106: End of a Rivalry

Chapter 106: End of a Rivalry

It seemed unbelievable that Fhazi would really fight him alone, so Kai waited suspiciously. The young noble had an entire gang of cronies with him, though they weren't enough to take him down even if they worked together. Only the Tonjin brothers had progressed meaningfully, which meant all the rest had power in the 20s or 30s.

Could his confidence actually lie in his own skills? The young Lantrian noble was certainly swaggering as he crossed the deck. Kai tried to open his spiritual sight using all the skills he'd learned.

Name: Fhazi Lantrian

Total Power: 22

Grandfist Class: 3 (13)

Physique Level: G-3 (8)

Soul Level: 1 (1)

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As far as he could tell, Fhazi had barely grown stronger. The bulky armor he was wearing wasn't even mana-charged, so he was weaker than any time Kai had fought him before. His Grandfist Class was still barely out of Novice - Kai could probably take his punches directly without much harm.

There had to be something more to it. Kai realized that the assassin woman named Yerinna was nowhere to be seen in Fhazi's entourage. He hoped that she had been sent to do something more important during the battle, but it was always possible that she was waiting for the moment to strike while he was distracted.

"Come on, are you a coward?" Fhazi began summoning his Class mana and it seemed unbelievably slow after fighting Inafay. That almost made Kai attack simply because the window of opportunity was so large. Just in case his opponent had a clever trick, he held back.

Finally, when Fhazi was just a few steps away from him, he let out a burst of laughter and new power flowed within him. Kai's eyes widened and he looked more carefully at the strange heavy armor he was wearing.

Name: Fhazi Lantrian

Total Power: 47

Grandfist Class: 3 (13)

Physique Level: G-3 (8)

Soul Level: 1 (1)

Supreme Lantrian Armor (25)

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Apparently it was the "Supreme Lantrian Armor." It certainly flowed with more mana than Kai had seen in a piece of equipment that wasn't part of someone's essence, but the fact that it more than doubled Fhazi's strength didn't mean much. With his low Physique and Soul Levels, it would be like a child trying to swing a greatsword.

"Wait..." Kai thought back to the moment when he'd felt the attacks behind him and made the connection. "Did he try to attack me? And did y-"

"Yeah, I did. You wanna thank me, find out a way for us to survive this."

When the eagle came around for another pass, Kai swung his arm as broadly as possible. He could practically see the claws slice the air, but the eagle twisted to the side and he barely clipped a wing. Given that the monster was clearly tainted, that wouldn't be close to enough. It was so fast, too... he could only think of one way he might hit it.

Before he had a chance to tell anyone the plan, Juray was suddenly at this side. No embrace now, she just shoved a potion into his hands.

"Kai, this is for you. But there's something else." She thrust out a hand toward the lower city, where he noticed a group of hunters defending themselves inside a damaged building. "If we leave them out there, they'll all be dead, but if we get them back here, I have enough potions for all of them. The defenders are getting thin, can we afford to rescue them?"

"Absolutely not," Rallia snapped. "We can't risk opening the gates again, and you can see how many injuries they have. If you try to limp back here with them, you'll be cut apart. They're dead unless you're willing to go out there yourself."

"I would, if someone would guard me!"

As Kai looked over the city, he didn't think the area was swarming with too many monsters. Not yet, anyway. He stepped in between the argument and focused on the Tonjin brothers instead.

"Raghi, Lofgan... are you willing to go down there?"

They swallowed, but nodded, so Kai shoved the bundle of Supreme Lantrian Armor at them.

"Use this if it helps. Juray... all I can say is be careful."

"You aren't coming with us?" she asked. He wanted to focus on her, but he was still keeping one eye on the monster eagle as it circled for a better angle.

"I will if I can," he said, then turned back to the Tonjin brothers. "You two better keep her safe, you hear?"

Before he could say more, he saw the eagle fold its wings for another dive. Kai turned away from the group and began running toward it, even as it plummeted toward the ground far faster than he could move. It was too fast for him, so his only chance was to hit it while the beast was diving along the wall.

He leapt just before it struck the first defenders. It slammed into him like a brick wall and his momentum redirected instantly as it swept him along. As he clawed into its flesh, it rose again, striking at him with strange talons and trying to knock him away.

No matter how he tried to strike it, the tainted body kept distorting away from his claws. He was losing his grip even before it began to spin, then he realized that he couldn't hold on. Before he fell, Kai opened his mouth and clamped down on the nearest wing.

Something gave way and he tasted monster flesh, then he was hurtling through the air. He crashed through a building hard enough to daze him and skidded across the street. All he wanted to do was lie down and groan, but he forced himself back to his feet because he had no idea where he was or what he was facing.

He'd fallen in the middle of the lower city, near the central street. Monsters surrounded him and he could see even more in a line all the way to the outer wall, where the giant creature continued to stomp inward.

With hardly any defenders remaining on the outer walls, charging into that horde was lunacy. But behind him, he knew that there were hunters struggling and even in that moment Juray might be venturing out on her desperate mission. Given the state of the defenses, he was the only one standing between them and the rest of the horde.

The enormous monster let out a bellow. Kai growled back and started running.