The Whitemore triplets turned towards the skeptical Queen’s guard, a smug look of satisfaction spread across their faces. “See, this is what we were talking about,” they chorused, their earlier words proving prophetic.
The Queen’s guard, his earlier bravado crumbling in the face of Val’s impressive performance, could only mumble weakly in response. “It must be some trick… it has to be… Seraphim’s attacks are lightning fast. They can’t be dodged by a low-level warrior so effortlessly… not unless…”
He trailed off, a realization dawning on him. “Unless he has achieved the same level of physical fitness as a beast! You need to be an all-rounder to do that. He must’ve trained his body and honed his senses to perfection. Yes, that must be it!”
“Is dodging all you know?” Seraphim shouted at Val, his voice laced with frustration and disbelief.
“I was just figuring out the best way to dodge your fireballs, mate. Now, I think I’ve got it,” Val shot back, his voice brimming with confidence.
And with that, he sprung into action, darting through the storm of fireballs with incredible speed and precision. His movements were so swift and smooth, it was as if he was simply weaving through slow-moving obstacles. Within a blink of an eye, Val was standing right in front of Seraphim, casting a long, ominous shadow over him.
Seraphim’s eyes widened in sheer terror. He was a fire mage. He could obliterate enemies from a distance, but this close, he was as vulnerable as any common man.
After all, it was common knowledge that while low-level fire mages do have an upper hand against low-level warriors, this rule only applies when there is a distance between them. Close up, without any room to maneuver or launch an attack, a fire mage is nothing more than a lamb waiting for the slaughter.
Basically, in this moment, Seraphim was the lamb and Val was the wolf baring his fangs.
“Wait, let’s talk thi-”
As Seraphim opened his mouth to utter a plea – perhaps to ask for mercy, perhaps to halt the fight – it was too late.
Bam! 𝔬𝓋𝔩xt.𝒸𝑜𝑚
Val’s fist slammed into his guts with such force that it lifted Seraphim off his feet, his voice choked in his throat, unable to form words. The blow sent him reeling upward, his body a helpless ragdoll against the sheer might of Val’s strike.
But just as Seraphim started ascending to heaven, or perhaps the afterlife, Val firmly gripped his ankles. The momentum of the punch hadn’t waned yet, and with a swift and brutal move, Val began swinging Seraphim around like a piece of wet cloth!
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Val’s raw strength was on full display as he swung Seraphim around like a ragdoll, the brutal momentum hurling the Inlander into the ground repeatedly. Each impact resonated with a sickening crunch, signifying that the bone-crushing force behind the onslaught was really breaking bones, breaking bad!
All eyes were on Val, the supposed ‘normie,’ who was beating a fire mage in the same way as one would wash dirty laundry. The very idea was unthinkable, yet they were witnessing it with their own eyes.
The robed servant, cloaked entirely in black, stepped forward, his voice cold as he spoke to Val. “Enough,” he commanded, his tone laced with a warning, “Let Lord Seraphim go.”
Seraphim, trying to muster some semblance of dignity despite his disheveled state, chimed in weakly, “You better do as he says, Val. My servant, Caelum, is a Rank 5 bloodline user. One of him is enough to raze your entire Whitemore family to the ground.”
“Do as he says.”
“Don’t escalate the matter.”
The Kendricks advised.
Val ignored them and looked directly at Joshua, who looked back at him with a proud gaze and smirked. Words didn’t need to be exchanged for Val to understand that Joshua was telling him to do as he liked. Whatever happens after that, Joshua would take care of it.
“Okay. I will let you go.”
As if moved by the threat, Val let go of Seraphim.
A grin appeared on Seraphim’s face.
But what happened next wiped it off his face and shocked everyone present!
Val, with a swift, powerful kick, sent Seraphim’s battered body flying back towards Caelum. Seraphim hit the ground hard, his body twitching before he lay eerily still.
“Here I let him go, Caelum,” Val stated coolly, dusting off his hands.
Caelum’s icy gaze shifted from Seraphim to Val, the anger simmering in his eyes now a roaring inferno.
“You dare to harm Lord Seraphim and even disrespect me! You will pay for this insolence!” he hissed, his hands and feet morphed into that of a werewolf, claws bursting out and shredding his shoes as fur sprouted from his skin.
“I’ll rip you apart!”
With a predatory snarl, he lunged at Val. The sheer force behind his launch left deep indentations in the ground, akin to a beast pouncing on its prey. In an instant, he was upon Val, his claw threatening to rip apart his neck.
Val tried to dodge, but the stark difference in their strength was evident. A Level 2 Bloodline user simply could not evade a Level 5 warrior with such ease. Even though he leaped back with all his force, creating a massive gap between them, Caelum’s attack seemed unavoidable, as Caelum covered the distance faster than it was creatdd!
The fatal swipe of Caelum’s claw was mere inches away from Val’s throat when suddenly, a figure appeared between them.
It was none other than Joshua Whitemore, the patriarch of the Whitemore family.
In his hand, as dark as the night, he caught Caelum’s clawed hand, stopping it mere millimeters away from piercing Val’s skin.
Caelum’s icy glare intensified, his animosity toward Joshua evident in his predatory stance. “This meddling of yours will lead to strife, Joshua. Are you so audacious as to risk conflict with the Strouds for this mere child?” he said. His words carried an ominous undertone, a thinly veiled threat that cut through the tense silence.