"Dammit!" Arthur curses as his body slams into a large tree after crashing through several others, finally hitting the ground in pain.
'Arthur?? Are you okay??' Nyx's voice echoes in his mind as his vision blurs.
'I think so... that explosion wasn't that strong,' he responds, though the pain wracking his body suggests several of his bones might be broken.
'Not that strong??' Nyx replies sarcastically. 'I saw several high-level Elite Warriors die instantly, and you're still just a Mystic Warrior—you almost died!'
Arthur senses the worry in Nyx's tone, feeling regret for attempting such a reckless attack. 'Shit! Does everyone have protective treasures??'
'Young Masters from powerful families certainly do. You need to learn to handle that,' Nyx advises while trying to materialize her body in front of Arthur.
"Let me take care of this," she says, grabbing the last healing potion from his belt. She pours some into his mouth and carefully applies drops to the deeper cuts on his arms and chest.
Arthur can't help but smile, seeing Nyx's concerned and loving expression as she tends to his wounds. He gently strokes her face. "It's okay. Mom wouldn't have let me take that hit if she didn't know I could survive."
"If she's testing you, it's to teach you not to rely on her protection all the time," Nyx warns, her tone soft. "But it was also my fault. I should've warned you he'd have a protective item like that."
"Don't worry, dear. We'll win this—together!" Arthur rises, feeling the potion work quickly through his body, healing him, especially thanks to his unique physique.
As he turns his gaze back toward where Marcus was, Arthur frowns. "What about Eliza? Was she caught in the explosion?"
"She's fine. I can feel her energy," Nyx reassures him quickly. "But did you hear Marcus's scream? He's going to fight seriously now..."
A dark gleam flashes in Arthur's eyes as he raises his right hand. "My sword," he commands, and Nyx flies over to retrieve his sword from where it was lodged in a tree, bringing it back to him swiftly.
As Arthur walks back toward the battlefield, he stretches his muscles to loosen up. "That explosion was from his protective treasure breaking, right? So now, I can go all out..."
"Yes," Nyx nods. "Most of his men are either dead or gravely injured. Only the lizard remains as a threat."
"Can you handle it?" Arthur asks.
"Of course!" Nyx smiles brightly. "But with my focus on the creature, I won't be able to assist you in the battle..."
"We'll be fine, trust your man," Arthur says confidently, holding her chin and kissing her lips again.
"Arthur?!?" The romantic moment is interrupted by Eliza's frantic voice. Arthur turns to see her running toward him, relief and tears streaming down her face.
Whatever Marcus is pulling out is much larger than the bag itself, making it clear that this is a storage treasure. Marcus moves quickly, and as he finishes pulling out the mysterious object, he wraps it around his bare chest. The mesh tightens around his body as if it were a living creature.
"It's a rare artifact!" Eliza exclaims beside Arthur, causing a brief flicker of jealousy in Nyx's eyes.
Arthur glances at Eliza, and she quickly explains, "It's a magical mesh with enchanted chains. Lethal to anyone below Champion rank, and even dangerous to those at that level, so please be careful."
A rare artifact shouldn't pose a major threat to Arthur, given that his sword is two ranks higher, at Unique level. But this is just another of Marcus's many advantages, so Arthur knows the battle won't be easy.
"Let's do this," Arthur spins his sword, advancing toward Marcus with resolve.
"I tried to be a good friend, but you're not leaving me any choice..." Marcus grits through clenched teeth, his frustration evident. "I'll have to do this the hard way."
As Arthur locks eyes with Marcus, the green lizard starts flanking him. However, Nyx makes her move as well, positioning herself in front of the creature. Her yellow eyes glow intensely as she focuses her energy, attempting to hypnotize the beast.
Marcus had expected this, but he can't help casting a greedy look toward Nyx, which only darkens Arthur's expression.
The four chains of Marcus's magical mesh sway around him like living tentacles as he loads a black dart into his crossbow, aiming it at Arthur.
Arthur prepares to dodge the dart, but to his surprise, Marcus's chains lash out toward him first. *Shoosh!* Arthur swings his sword to block them, but Marcus's dart reaches him faster, forcing him to evade.
*BAM-SSLASH*
One of Marcus's chains strikes Arthur while he's mid-air, dodging the dart, slashing across his stomach.
"DAMN!!" Arthur hits the ground hard, rolling before quickly getting back on his feet to face Marcus, who stands tall, surrounded by the darts he planted in the center of the arena.
"You're out of your depth, boy," Marcus taunts, his voice full of confidence.
Arthur has never fought someone with this kind of style, but he quickly formulates a plan. Taking advantage of Marcus's moment of arrogance, he pulls two bottles from his belt—one filled with blue liquid and the other with green.
He swiftly drinks the contents of the blue bottle, licking his lips as he glares coldly at Marcus. "Healing potions won't save you," The mercenary comments casually.
Arthur ignores the remark and uncorks the bottle of green liquid, causing Marcus to frown in confusion. Especially when Arthur gulps the entire thing down in one go.
"What the fuck?" Eliza is equally shocked.
"Let's go!" But Arthur seems to know what he's doing and charges at Marcus.