Chapter 32: Valoria Empire (2)
Chapter 32: Valoria Empire (2)
"WaaaaaaAAAAahhhh"
Deep yawn
"What are we even doing here this time..." One of the guards asked, rubbing his eyes. His body was covered in tattered leather armor and holding a metallic spear in his hand, he was standing on the right side.
"Just hold on a bit will you? Our shift will be over soon anyways," another guard said, his voice heavy with drowsiness, his armor matching the first guard's.
"Yeah... it's not like anyone is even arriving at this... wait...am I hallucinating or something?" The first guard said, rubbing his eyes vigorously. His drowsiness had been replaced with surprise.
"What now? You see a ghost or something?" the second guard asked, still sounding half-asleep.
"Not a ghost, bruh. I'm seeing a person running towards us... with absurd speed." The first guard's voice trembled with disbelief.
"The hell you're talking about? There can't be a single person coming to... wait, what the fuck!" The second guard's sleepy demeanor instantly vanished as he took a battle stance, his body tense. He began chanting something under his breath.
...
"Alright, just hang on, it's just...50 meters away." Ben thought, huffing as he sprinted towards the silver gate in front of him. Even with the physical abilities of a vampire, covering this distance at such speed was taxing.
-Fireball-
The chant reached Ben's ears, triggering his vampire instincts and alerting him to danger. Reacting with swiftness, Ben sidestepped, narrowly avoiding a blazing fireball that whizzed past him.
'BooM'
An explosion followed the impact of the fireball on the ground, reminiscent of the sound of stone breaking.
"Wait, we aren't enemies!" Ben shouted at the top of his lungs, trying to make himself heard above the noise. But before he could complete his sentence, he saw another fireball hurtling toward him.
Reacting swiftly, Ben shifted his weight and jumped to the side, just as the second fireball collided with the ground.
'BooM'
Another explosion resounded, marking the impact point.
Rising from the ground, Ben acted on instinct, swiftly summoning his Beetle's Chitin Dagger into his hand and launching it towards the source of the fireballs.
"The hell with that speed, is he using magic to enhance his body?" The first guard muttered incredulously, his posture still defensively guarding his assigned area. The second guard continued to conjure fireballs, preparing for an onslaught.
"We'll see about that!" The second guard responded, stopping his fireball assault and beginning a new incantation.
In a matter of seconds, his fists were ablaze with flames, a triumphant grin on his face.
"Wait, are you gonna use that? What if he's an ally?" The first guard asked with a hint of hesitation.
"We'll ask after I neutralize him," the second guard replied eagerly, his focus unwavering.
"You always go overboard," the first guard sighed as if he were used to such behavior.
...
Ben launched himself towards the second guard, his Beetle's Chitin Dagger held ready for combat. His stamina was already depleted, limiting his options. Nevertheless, he aimed to utilize his agility and skills to counter the threat.
His HP was critically low, making him reluctant to use Blood Bullet. In case of emergency, he had integrated Inferno Stringer into his blood abilities, ready for any situation.
In seconds, he was in close quarters with the second guard. The guard launched a fiery punch toward Ben, but with his heightened reflexes, Ben dodged the attack effortlessly, executing a side slash that left a deep cut on the guard's waist.
"He's fast," the guard thought, his determination unshaken. He pivoted and launched another punch toward Ben, not concerning himself with his wound.
With Ben's remarkable speed, he slid along the ground, effortlessly dodging the punch. At the same time, he executed a swift, lower kick aimed at the guard's knees. The kick connected, causing the guard to lose balance and tumble to the ground.
Instantly, Ben summoned his ancient spear and directed its point towards the guard's throat, a plea for non-violence evident in his tone. "I am not your enemy, try..."
Seeing Ben's cautious approach, the guard on the ground smiled, his excitement evident. Even though Ben's stamina was depleted, the guard had reserves of energy left. Swiftly, he punched the spear, knocking it aside.
Reacting with agility, Ben rolled on the ground to evade the punch. The guard's blazing attack hit the ground, creating a small crater from sheer force.
"What an absurd strength!" Ben cursed, summoning his Beetle's Chitin Dagger as he stood up. His body trembled, worn out from the intense battle.
-Earth wall-
The guard chanted, conjuring a protective barrier of earth about 5 feet tall behind Ben.
"He's trying to block my movements," Ben realized. He leaped backward, executing a backflip over the earth wall. Suspended in mid-air, he utilized his momentum to create distance.
"Tsk" Ben who was still in the air, heard a chuckle, and a thought crossed his head. "Shit, I fell for it." He cursed inwardly, before he crossed his hands, embracing himself for the damage.
The guard, with a chuckle, hit the mud wall with his blazing punch. With a booming sound, the upper part of the wall cracked into small pieces, all shooting towards Ben, like small meteorites.
[ Hp (-3) ]
A notification popped up on his screen as he was hit by the attacks. Ben wasted no time in gaining back his position as he fell to the ground. But unfortunately for him, he was already too late.
The moment Ben regained his balance, his enemy was already just a meter away from him, casting a strong Blazing punch.
"Damn legs move.." Ben gritted his teeth, trying to move his legs, but his body wasn't responding, as if his muscles were gone numb due to lack of oxygen supply.
With no other choice, Ben summoned his Beetle's chitin dagger and crossed his arms to absorb the attack on his weapon. But something unexpected happened.
With a blasting sound, ripples were created through the air, as the Dagger collided with Blazing Fist, the basic tier weapon shattered into pieces, causing another blast.
[ Soul Weapon destroyed: Beetles Chitin Dagger ]
[ Hp(- 12) ]
[ HP: 36/100 ]
With a series of notifications, Ben was thrown tens of meters back, sliding through the ground, before he was stopped by crashing into a tree.
[ Hp: 34/100]
"Cough, cough" Another notification popped up, as Ben coughed up blood from his mouth, his eyes were glowing crimson in anger...