Not a second had passed properly when the whole room shook violently. Swords clashed. Powerhouses met. Blood gushed.
Vekas, using his jet-black sword, cut down whosoever stood in his path like butter. His expression remained neutral, his focus unwavering. There wasn't even the slightest hesitation in his actions.
Why would there be? He was an army general, trained in the art of killing. He wouldn't be suited for such a position if killing weren't a breeze to him.
The purple glow on his jet-black blade flared the more he slaughtered the men around him. It was hungry for blood, and that was exactly what it was receiving.
As he decapitated another opponent, he turned to find a blast of pure Vyr heading his way. It hadn't been refined into fire or water magic, meaning that it contained the caster's very essence.
Raising his hand, Vekas nullified the attack instantly. The blast of Vyr vanished without a trace, shocking the caster as he trembled at the scene.
"H-huh?!"
"Your essence is too weak to affect me." Saying that, the general unleashed his own blast of pure Vyr. The attack ended up completely consuming the man's existence, his body erased.
Revan noted how such pure-Vyr attacks only affected those whose essence was weaker than that of the caster. If it were to be cast by someone stronger, like what happened here, then the blast can easily be nullified, though that would depend on what the difference in essence is between the two individuals.
The difference here, as it could be seen by Vekas nullifying the attack with ease, was huge.
"W-wait! An attack made of pure Vyr isn't supposed to be that effective. How did you do that?!" Vekas turned to another caster, whose features were pale and sweaty with fear.
"Indeed. However, since the essence of my soul was on a different plane of existence, my attack damaged him far more exponentially."
Generally, these attacks were weak and didn't do much damage. It's why people mainly resort to using attacks that encompass attributes like fire and water.
However, Vekas was a semi-spiritual lifeform, while the man he had just obliterated was not. This clearly stretched the gap between the two since the higher one's existence, the stronger their essence.
Keeping this in mind, Vekas unleashed another blast of pure Vyr and eliminated the other caster, his existence eroding the same way.
He then continued to sever his enemies, a cold glint in his eyes as his movements were swift and precise. The rest of the men began to hesitate, stepping back in fear as they realised the gravity of the situation.
Anymore resistance, and what would follow them is death.
Yet, not all of them were thinking the same; some of them were too invested in the duel that the king of Aethelgard was involved in. Neither he nor Satim regarded their surroundings as significant.
Their weapons clashed with an intensity that contrasted the ease with which Vekas had in his onslaught. Their swords were further amplified by Vyr, giving their attacks more weight.
"How exciting!" Satim bellowed, his daggers baraging against Charlie's sword. "So this is the power that the sovereign of the strongest nation holds."
Charlie's sword glowed with each attack. It was a silver blade with gold stripes of magiprites embedded, emitting a golden hue that highlighted its elite status.
"Heh! It seems that the Ancestral Sword is stronger than I had imagined. Had it been Legendary Grade or lesser, it would've had over a dozen cracks by now. It truly is a Mythic Class, just like my daggers."
The duel continued. There was no stopping individuals who were hell-bent on killing each other. Revan seemed to have understood that, so he merely observed them while eating a burrito he had made out of thin air.
"You seem to underestimate the Ancestral Sword," Charlie remarked before stepping back, a new layer of golden Vyr coating his blade. A holy glow encompassed his sword as he aimed it at Satim.
"[Holy Rush]!" The king blitzed towards him, the tip of his blade rushing at his chest.
Satim intertwined his daggers and placed them before his chest. "[Demonic Embrace]!" A black layer of Vyr surrounded his entire body as the blade connected to his daggers.
The brief contact resulted in an explosion that covered the entire battlefield. The sheer light had blinded everyone, and there was no telling who had survived and who hadn't.
As the light dimmed out, whoever survived began to regain their sight, except that it was only Vekas and Revan who were the surviving bystanders, with the latter peacefully eating his burrito with sparkling eyes similar to those of a child watching an action movie.
The rest, meanwhile, were all dead. If they wanted, both Vekas and Revan could attack Satim at once and subdue him without issue. After all, he was all alone.
As the dust cleared, the two were seen facing each other, pointing their weapons. Charlie's eyes were narrowed, his frown adding more weight to his piercing gaze. Satim, on the other hand, was beaming, a maniacal glint in his eyes as his lips were curled to form a sinister smirk.
"You really are an interesting fellow, King Charlie. I guess there is some backbone in you after all." He chuckled before rushing towards him, his dagger aimed at his temple — only to be blocked by his sword.
"Sir Revan," Vekas bellowed, approaching the black-haired man with measured steps. "Should we intervene? We have no reason not to."
"You can intervene if you want, but I don't want to ruin the show." Revan smiled as he recreated the burrito he had just eaten and took a bite out of it.
He's really a fan of that beef... Moving to a serious note, Vekas turned to the king. He knew teaming up against Satim was the easy way out, but he was well aware that Charlie would be against it.
As the king of Aethelgard, he would feel entitled to handle this duel on his own without interference. Hence, Vekas decided to leave him alone. Instead, he headed to where the captured minister, Tharon, was held captive.
Leaping back, Satim raised his hand and formed several beams that seemed to embody darkness itself. Throwing his hand forward, he launched all the beams at the king, who raised his own palm and unleashed a ray of light, one that annihilated all the beams instantly.
Coating his body with Dark Magic, he formed tentacles made of pure Dark Magic that seemed to be a part of him, sticking out from every part of his body.
"It's time I got serious, don't you think?" With that, he rushed at the king with a toothy grin.
Due to the prior explosion, his cloak was discarded, revealing his violet eyes and dark magenta hair. His face could be considered better than average, yet his beauty was reduced thanks to how maniacal his expression was.
Charlie activated a barrier made of Light Magic, the Vyr around him radiating with an ethereal light. As Satim unleashed a barrage of attacks from both his daggers and tentacles, Charlie proceeded to block and deflect them using his sword and barrier.
The duel was intense, and their oathweight ran wild. Soon, the pressure of the combined oathweight, as well as the sheer impact of their strikes, formed cracks in the infrastructure of not just the room they were in, but the entire underground base itself.
"Damn, the place is really gonna collapse at this rate." As Revan took another bite of his burrito, he waved his hand, forming a barrier around the entire room, as well as fixing all the infrastructure around him.
Since Vyr could be used to manipulate all forms of reality if mastered correctly, such a thing was a breeze for him. He chewed his burrito eagerly as he continued observing the duel with sparkling eyes.
Blocking Satim's daggers with his sword, Charlie used his free hand to launch multiple beams of light, which were similar to the beams of darkness Satim had previously used.
The beams of light ended up impacting the tentacles, destroying them in the process. His eyes widened, Satim leapt backwards, his breath heavy.
"I didn't expect you to—" Before he could finish, a jab impacted his abdomen, crushing multiple arteries beyond it. He spat blood from his mouth before being launched towards the sky.
As he reached the maximum height he could go, Charlie jumped above him and proceeded to land a swift axe kick, stomping him to the ground with considerable force. Satim's body crashed onto the ground, its impact causing dust to form around him.
Landing on his feet, Charlie gazed down at his bleeding opponent. "Your liver and pancreas have been permanently damaged. There is no saving you after this. You have lost."
His declaration boomed throughout the battlefield. Observing his surroundings, Charlie detected the barriers placed around the room and glanced at Revan, who simply made a peace sign in response with his free hand before eating another bite of his burrito.
"Y-you... won't last long..." Satim muttered, his voice a weak, faint whisper as he frowned at the king. "Once the grandmaster finds out... you won't get to see another day..."
With that, he raised his hand slightly, his palm charging a [Dark Bullet] aimed at Charlie's face.
Yet, the Dark Magic died down instantly as the man's face was pierced by Charlie's sword, taking his life. His hand fell limp to the floor, his expression unreadable as his facial features were completely dismembered.
Satisfied, Charlie retracted his sword before slashing the air, launching the blood on the blade off of it. The Ancestral Sword then disappeared, stored in his inventory.
"That was fun. You're quite talented." Revan cheered as he swallowed the last bite of his burrito, clapping his hands as he did so.
"Haha, thank you for the praise, Sir Revan." He momentarily turned to the surroundings. "Where is Vekas?"
"Here, your majesty." The general immediately appeared before him, performing a 90-degree bow before straightening himself.
"Good. It seems that the entire base has been wiped out, correct?"
"That would seem so, your majesty." Turning to the entrance of the room, they spotted Augustus, who held his stomach whilst limping. "But damn, you really don't hold back, Sir Revan."
"Meh, it was necessary. You'll get over it." Revan waved in response, his expression showing no remorse for his actions.
"Hah... I guess I have to cut off making beef for you, then."
Alarmed, Revan immediately sped up to him, kneeling and clinging to his apron. "Please don't stop making beef! I love that beef! I can't be separated from the love of my life..."
His shining eyes and sudden change of demeanour startled all three men in the group. At one point, Revan was a serious individual focused on one task. On another point, he was an amused wildcard who did as he pleased.
And then there is this: a clingy mess that's desperate for more hell bull beef. It was ironic, yet amusing at the same time. Neither Charlie nor Vekas could stop the amused smile that curled up their lips.
"All right, all right, I won't stop making them. Now get off!" With a shrug of his leg, he freed himself, prompting Revan to stand up as well.
Seeing that the charade was over, Charlie turned to Vekas, his expression serious once more.
"Vekas," he began, "how is Minister Tharon? You went to check up on him, didn't you?"
"I did, your majesty. However," he paused, his eyes narrowed. "The explosion that you and that Satim guy had made from that one attack not only killed the rest of the rebels, but also took Sir Tharon's life."
Charlie's mouth hung open, his eyes wide with shock and what seemed like pain. Tharon was a minister of his kingdom. He was someone who governed an aspect of Aethelgard, no matter the shady suggestions he was giving in the council meetings.
And the worst part was that his attack was involved in his death...