Chapter 12

Chapter 12 - LOT - [Unedited, currently being edited :)]

Jack wheezed as knelt on the ground, catching his breath. He held his sword with shaky hands as he looked at the creature before him, his eyes intensely concentrating. A sheen of sweat covered his forehead, the desert sun above beating down on him.

The first ten waves had all been composed of Grey Wolves, increasing one by one. Despite the increasing numbers, he had been able to take them out more or less in a similar manner. His slowed perception offered him a great deal of leeway, even with his injured left arm.

On the 11th wave, however, things changed.

The familiar sight of a large pack of Grey Wolves spawned in, as expected. This time, however, two things had changed.

The wolves had all spawned near each other, in a group. There was only ten of them.

And another creature had appeared on the lonesome desert plateau.

An enormous boar, covered in red scales. It had dark red tusks, and emanated an aura of fire and heat. The boar itself was huge, easily eight feet tall, much larger than Jack’s thirteen year old height of just over five feet. Bulging muscles rippled under the scaled skin of the beast, giving it a ferocious appearance.

The creature seemed to be resting on the floor, however.

*GROWWWLLL*

The Grey Wolves rushed forward immediately, howling out loud. This time, however, instead of the chaotic rush of the previous waves, the creatures moved forward as a group, panning out to attack Jack from his front and left. Jack kept track of all of their movements using his slowed state, his eyes going cold from concentrating.

The Scaled Boar, meanwhile, slowly began to awaken.

They crossed the distance between Jack and themselves in a few stretched out seconds, ferociously charging. As the first wolf neared Jack, the familiar scene of a dripping jaw of deadly teeth and grey claws lunging at him came into view.

*SHHHHKKK*

Jack took a slight step backwards and raised his sword at the same time, slicing the throat of the first Grey Wolf, instantly killing it as he head every previous wolf. A faint blue aura of Spirit could be seen on his arms and legs, strengthening them and making his attacks more durable and strong.

He conserved his Spirit as he fought, not going all out. The wolves he was facing weren’t tough enough enough to require his trump card, the Sunder the Earth technique of the Sundering Sword Style. The attack would draw far too much energy to be worth. Instead, he focused on precise slashes imbued with regular Spirit, aiming to be as minimalistic as possible.

*SHHK*

*SHHK*

*SHHK*

Three smooth, flowing slashes later, and three Grey Wolves fell to the ground dead. However, while Jack was cutting them down, two of the rushing wolves managed to attack him from opposite sides. Their coordination was much higher than on any other wave.

As the two wolves came in at the same time, one on his left and one on his right, Jack kicked off with his right foot, throwing himself towards the wolf on the right. He kept his every motion controlled, moving for maximum efficiency.

Thanks to his jump, the wolf on the right reached him a split second before the wolf on the left.

*SHHK*

Jack’s sword flowed smoothly as he cut the wolf’s throat, leaning just a mere inch out of the way of the wolf’s lunging teeth. At the same time he spun around, hunching his shoulders together.

*WHOOSH*

He felt more than saw the claws of the second wolf pass over his back. The hot breath of the huge wolf washed over his neck as it lunged at him. At the same time, Jack thrust his blade backwards, his eyes focusing intensely as he concentrated.

*SHHK*

Thanks to his experience fighting these wolves so many times, Jack had grown used to their individual attacks to such an extent that, in slow motion, he could predict where the wolf’s neck would be even if he couldn’t see it.

The wolf fell to the ground, dead.

Six wolves dead, four remaining. Even with their increased coordination, they were no match for Jack.

At that moment, the Scaled Boar woke up.

*ROOOOOAAARRR*

A massive roar shook the air as the boar came to, taking in its surroundings. It immediately locked its eyes on Jack, however, exhaling a small puff of fire.

The last remaining wolves all charged at Jack simultaneously, claws and teeth bared. Jack kept moving his right arm and body smoothly, each step perfect as he began to cut them down.

*SHHK*

One wolf fell, its throat gushing blood.

*SHHK*

Another fell with a twirl, tumbling outward.

*SHHK*

The third wolf was cut down in the same instant the second wolf was killed, both hit by a single slash.

*SHHK*

Jack managed to lethally stab the last wolf, his body heaving, sweat covering him as he trembled. Even with his slowed state, even with his minimal movements and attacks and Spirit usage, facing so many beasts in such a short time was taking a toll on his body.

But he had no time to rest. Just seconds after he managed to cut down the final wolf, the Scaled Boar arrived.

A wave of heat washed over Jack as the enormous creature barreled in front of him, its high speed charge quick even in his slowed state.

As Jack took note of the charge, he realized he was going to get hit by it, no matter how quickly he dodged. He simply hadn’t had enough time between cutting down the last few wolves to properly position himself.

His Natural Ability was very useful, but its one failing was that if he didn’t have enough time and speed, he wouldn’t be able to take advantage of it.

*CRASH*

The enormous boar slammed into Jack, knocking him back into the air.

The instant the bull hit him, Jack had actually leapt backwards and twisted his body. Doing so allowed him to absorb a great deal of the impact, displacing it into his body’s movements. Unfortunately, this placed his injured left arm in direct line of the bull’s attack.

As he did so, he greatly increase his draw on his Spirit, feeling the Spirit Circle in his soul flicker. The faint blue light on his arms and legs grey much brighter, strengthening his body to a much larger degree.

A red wave of pain washed over Jack’s eyes as he felt his cracked shoulder, even in this imaginary world, undergo an extreme sensation of pain. He felt more than saw the bones shatter, knowing that his left arm was done for. Even with Spirit Energy flowed to increase and protect his arms combined with his leap backward, he was unable to fully contain the strength of the boar’s rush.

In the moment the bull slammed into him, however, Jack wasn’t passively accepting the attack. His Spirit was already drawn to the maximum protecting his body and he was unable to use his Sunder the Earth trump card, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t attack.

*SHHHHK*

Jack’s right arm cut down like a guillotine as he traded his left arm and shoulder for the Scaled Boar’s neck. His golden blade, imbued with Spirit, cut through the beefy muscle and scales of the Boar like butter. An enormous slash cut the entire right side of the Scaled Boar’s neck, almost decapitating it.

“Rooaaar…” Blood spattered out of the boar’s neck like a river as it tumbled to the ground, unleashing a final, sad growl as it died, killed in a single blow.

*THUD*

Jack landed on the ground hard, his chest heaving. His left arm was in ruins, the pain distinct and real even in the imaginary trial created by the Hunter Ring. He was left gasping for breath, tears forming in the corner of his eyes. His body trembled as he slowly got to his feet, his eyes unsteady.

“Congratulations. You have completed the 11 qualifying rounds to become a Direct Member of the Hunter Association.” The Chief’s voice boomed out, cutting through Jack’s muddled mind as he spoke.

“Now, there remains one last round which will test your ability and strength to the extreme. If you successfully pass this round, you will qualify to become an Esteemed Member of the Hunter Association. However, be warned that only 6 people in the past ten thousand years have passed this round as an initial applicant at your age.”

Jack blinked his eyes, his mind focusing.

“Understood.” Even if he had no real chance, Jack would still try. Becoming a Direct Member of the Hunter Association was already a fantastic result. Becoming an Esteemed Member, while he wasn’t quite sure what that meant, would obviously be even better. He took several deep breaths as he tried to steady himself, preparing to face whatever beast would come about. His right arm trembled slightly as he held up the rag covered golden blade.

“The previous waves all had increasing number’s of beasts. This wave, however, will only have a single beast.” The Chief’s voice boomed out as he continued,

“On this wave, you will face a dragon.”

..

..

“Close the circle. Move in!” The leader of the Snow Knights ordered, his voice deep and commanding.

Immediately, the hundreds of Frostplate Guards that had created a perimeter began to move in, blocking off any escape routes. Each of these guards unsheathed their blades or grasped their spears, prepared for anything. They formed a nearly solid wall of metal as they closed off a circle about two hundred meters from the inn the aura of fire was detected at.

“Sol. Byron. The source of that aura should be in that room there above the Inn entrance. You two will move in from either side of the inn and force the target, or targets, out the front towards me. Understood?” The leader turned to face the two knights next to him. Their heavy white armor gave off a faint chill, the air around them crystallizing.

“Understood, Ser Guvas.”

“As you say, Ser Guvas.”

The two other Snow Knights, Sol and Byron, withdrew the large shields on their black and equipped them alongside the longswords they wore, looking at the inn in question. A moment passed as the Snow Knights paused, concentrating.

Gradually, white particles began to flow around the two knights. These particles began to flow faster and faster, forming a translucent whirlwind of snow. Shards of ice began to form on the glistening white armor the knights wore, causing them to sparkle in the sunlight. The blades and shields the knights wielded were entirely engrossed in a heavy layer of jagged ice, giving them an intimidating look.

In addition, underneath their armor, a heavy blue aura of Spirit covered their entire body, enhancing their strength and durability greatly. The knights had become veritable walking fortresses of frost.

“Hupp!”

“Whew!”

The two Snow Knights grunted, and then bent down, the ground beneath them cracking slightly.

*WHOOSH*

They exploded into the air, easily jumping over thirty meters in height. A trail of icy particles flowed in the air behind him, wavering slightly in the breeze.

The Dragonflee Inn stood two stories tall, roughly 80 feet in length and three dozen in width. The wooden roof of the inn was covered in colorful shingles, depicting a grudge image of a Dragon flying away into the sky.

*THUD*

These shingles exploded in a shower of colorful wood as the two Snow Knights landed atop the inn on either side, surrounding a spot on the roof. Immediately, a large layer of ice warped the entire roof frozen solid, melding with their armor.

*CRACK*

Both knights slammed down on the roof below them, completely caving in their portions. The ice around them shattered and then continued to spread.

The two fighters each fell into separate, unoccupied rooms. Immediately they both focused on the wall of the neighboring room, where the fire aura originated. Ten foot long blades of blue and white ice began to form in the air above as they held their shields out in front of them. A tense moment of silence reigned as the jagged blades of ice came into existence.

..

..

“Don’t… Kill… Anyone… Please….” A weak, barely conscious feminine voice echoed in the room being attacked by the Snow Knights.

A muscular man with long red hair turned to look at the little girl lying on the bed, her face pale and covered in sweat. He sighed.

“As you command, Princess. It may be difficult to achieve that, but I will try. We are leaving this place as soon as I finish handling them. A cadre will be here in minutes.” Jebraim turned his head to either side, a merciless look appearing his eyes as he looked at each wall. A powerful blue aura of Spirit covered his body.

..

..

“Go!”

“Hiyaa!”

Both Snow Knights attacked at the same time, almost as if they were intune with each other. Dozens of sharp edged blades of ice rushed forward, piercing into the walls of the room, ready to instantly freeze the occupants.

Just as the dozens of icy blades came into contact with the wall, the air inside the Inn seemed to ripple.

..

..

“They should be about to strike…” Ser Gavus muttered as he watched the scene before him intensely.

“I’ll capture the assailants when they are forced out by the ic-“

**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMM**

The entire top half of the inn exploded, an enormous billow of golden fire blasting out hundreds of meters into the air. The nearby buildings, and the foundation of the inn, shivered in the wake of the enormous blaze. Heat billowed outward, forcing the cool temperature in the city to jump.

Scraps of wood and debris rained down on the surroundings, the entire upper floor of the inn decimated. All the occupants survived thanks to having fled to the ground floor due to the earlier confusion caused by the perimeter of guards.

The surrounding group of Frostplate Guards stumbled backwards almost as one in shock and awe.

Two figures sailed out of the golden flames, crashing down hard on the stone paved road of the street.

“Damn.” The leader of the Snow Knights stared at the enormous explosion, his eyes filled with rage. A heavy blue aura surrounded him instantly, flurries of icy particles forming a dense miniature storm. A powerful, heavy aura encompassed the Snow Knight leader, stronger than that of the two other Snow Knights.

Several blades of ice began to form in the air above him. He readied himself to charge.

Before he could move, however, an extremely loud voice rang out in the air, stunning everyone within a mile due to its sheer volume.

“WHO DARES ATTACK THIS INNOCENT AND LAW ABIDING CIVILIAN?!”