Curse the Mainframe! 280 That Stupid Cape

The man that was definitely a Meister didn't exchange any words with them. His face was impassive, but his eyes were burning as they flitted from Elysia to Alec, before resting briefly on Sekai'a unconscious form.

Alec shifted a little, blocking Sekai's body from Raegan's intrusive gaze.

Raegan's eyes flashed, and his body shot towards Alec with so much power that Alec only just barely managed to block the blow from Raegan after using all his strength. He grinned as he slid backwards but managed to stop before Sekai's prone body.

Raegan raised a brow.

The opposition was stronger than he thought, and Raegan felt a faint admiration for the young man in front of him, despite what he might have done to his daughter.

The man was not even in the advanced stage yet, but he already had such strength. His strength far outstripped his rank, and Raegan was knowledgeable enough to know that strength depended on the wielder of it.

In this aspect, this young man passed all the tests. It was something that shocked him. Despite his lower rank, Reagan could already tell from his smooth moves and quick glances that he was leagues ahead of his daughter.

Even though he had already been taking this seriously, Raegan started channelling more strength than his previous ten percent.

Raegan tilted his head minutely as the palm strike from the girl flashed by his head, the strength of force less than the young man's, but still rather sizable.

He inwardly raised another eyebrow.

These two teenagers seemed to be rather strong – they were definitely beyond that of his daughter, and his daughter wasn't a slouch either.

Raegan's training had ensured that.

While he tried to put aside such thoughts, he was progressively growing more shocked about how strong they were. Their strength was truly far beyond what their rank could show.

The feeling that they might have something to do with how Lucielle had changed seemed to have solidified – they were certainly strong enough for it. But there was something niggling in the back of his mind.

Alec almost swore when he saw that the burning rage in the man's eyes was decreasing somewhat.

That meant that he was now taking this more seriously, and that wasn't good for them.

So long as he was in the throes of anger, it meant that they had a higher chance of escaping with Sekai.

Now, however, the fight would be that much harder.

Yet, the pleased smile on Alec's face stretched wider.

Alec didn't realize how much his previous mentality had changed.

When he had first been sent down onto Incantix, he had originally tried to avoid violence and actions that he called 'certain death'.

Now, however, Alec almost revelled in the adrenaline and bloodlust that came together with battle.

Elysia was grinning – and her smile was almost innocent, matching Alec's gentle one.

Raegan raised a brow at both the male and female that seemed to delight in the challenge of battle despite being terribly outclassed.

Despite himself, he felt himself grow interested in the two.

He'd seen that step that the teen took to block his view from the man that was lying on the ground, and he could tell that it was a genuine action.

He frowned a little, rethinking about whether or not they had anything directly to do with Lucielle or not.

When he studied the teen, he could see why Lucielle had been attracted. There was something special about his aura, and while he was more pretty or elegant than classically handsome, that was precisely Lucielle's type.

Yet, what had caused her to promptly abandon both of her friends?

…In the end, it was still better to capture them first before doing anything.

Raegan attacked harder, but he made sure he still held back because he didn't want to kill them.

Wounds, on the other hand, he didn't mind so much. He was sure that he'd be able to heal them up if it came to that.

With a gleam in his eye, Raegan used a bit of his Magitype, testing them.

Alec cursed loudly in his mind when he felt the pressure of gravity pressing down heavily on them.

This had to be part of the man's Magitype!

His limbs were heavier, and gravity was pressing down on him. From what he could see of Elysia, she was facing the same predicament.

He heard Elysia's laugh before he saw her move, but she seemed to move even quicker under the force of gravity.

There was a hint of astonishment in Raegan's eyes, but he dodged the strikes that came from her with minimal movements.

There was a hint of approval in his eyes.

The man used his Magitype in an annoying way. Whenever Elysia or Alec attacked, he would press then release the gravity at different times, throwing off their movements. While they adapted as best as they could, it was clear to see that the man was experienced in his craft.

Begrudgingly, Alec felt something like respect for the other man bloom, but he never showed an inkling of it on his face.

Even when he attacked, Alec make any big ones nor stray too far since he couldn't guarantee Sekai's safety.

It grated that he had to act like this. Alec wasn't made to battle with a person to protect in mind.

There was a reason why being someone's bodyguard was a whole different matter from fighting properly.

While Elysia faced Raegan head on, Alec threw a few short daggers that he considered disposable, supporting Elysia from the back.

Since they were thrown with all his strength, Raegan had to dodge them unless he wanted a wound that was deeper than he wanted, which gave Elysia a bit of respite.

Raegan wanted them to work for him.

These days, there weren't many with this much combat sense since the peaceful days were being maintained.

The youths were lacking all sorts of practical experience, but there wasn't much they could do about that since the number of monsters and creatures that inhabited the continent were dropping dangerously low.

With gleaming eyes, Raegan increased his strength even more, pushing his test even further.

The blow sent Elysia flying away, and the gravity pressed on the two even harder than before.

Alec snatched Elysia from the air, landing with her on the ground.

Neither Main Characters acknowledged each other or showed any signs that the time was almost up.

They were stalling for time now, and it wouldn't do for the man to catch onto what they were planning.

The battle between the three became fiercer, and five minutes had never felt so long.

Alec could feel the seconds slowly trickling down, and his heart echoed loudly in his ears as the blood rushed and adrenaline pumped.

Every couple of seconds, the intensity of the battle amped up.

While both Elysia and Alec were sweating heavily, Reagan looked relaxed, as if their attacks didn't matter to him at all.

Alec ground his teeth. He could see that neither he nor Elysia were doing any damage to him, and they weren't even expending his stamina at all. It rankled.

The Meister rank was really in a whole different league compared to them.

While Alec could still fight off and win against the advanced stage, the same could not be said for those who had broken through the threshold to the Meister stage.

It was not until now that Alec realized just how huge a gulf there was between the ranks.

No wonder they said that anyone below Meister was no match for them. There was a qualitative change once someone broke through to Meister.

Still, there was no backing out, and time was indeed creeping forward.

Raegan was only testing them, and had no intention of killing them, which was better than he expected.

More than that, it was beyond infuriating that the man's cape was perfectly untouched, as were the rest of his clothes. With the way that cape billowed with his movements, Alec had fully expected to be able to take advantage of it.

Ten seconds were left.

Ten.

Nine.

Eight.

Alec parried the heavy strike from Raegan, putting every ounce of his strength into it. Sekai was behind him.

Seven.

Elysia took the chance to strike at Raegan's unprotected back, only for him to flash to the side and slam a palm onto hers instead.

Six.

Elysia stumbled forward, coming to a halt next to Alec.

Five.

A very faint smile appeared on Raegan's face, and his eyes narrowed.

Four.

Alec braced himself, and he quickly picked up Sekai, slinging the man over his shoulders.

Three.

Raegan's eyes narrowed, even as Elysia quickly stepped backwards.

Two.

Elysia grabbed onto Alec's hand, the grin on her face still there despite the numerous wounds that laced their body.

One.

Raegan darted forward so quickly, but just as he was about to grab Alec, the System threw three daggers out that shot towards the Meister at a breakneck speed.

Raegan was about to minutely dodge it as per usual when the daggers changed direction in mid-air, forcing him to dodge with wider movements.

The three disappeared in a flash of light due to the delay in the man's movements.

Raegan's eyes deepened, and his eye seemed to catch on his cape. Taking a bit of the cloth, the man let out a short but deep laugh at the gash that had appeared in the previously immaculate cape.

Chapter end

Report