Chapter Sixty-Two


    Ambrose Severen fell from a portal he had opened just behind the mage’s head and cleaved the unfortunate spellcaster in two with Akaroth. Elayne was dead, and while he mourned her, time waited for no one.


    He had a goal, and that meant he couldn''t afford to take too many breaks. Even if that weren’t true, this was a trial he still needed to pass. He wouldn’t admit it to himself, but he also had a competitive streak, and it wasn’t in him to lose an event he had set out to win.


    As the two halves of the mage fell to the ground in a bloody heap, Ambrose stood up. Noelle was digging fingers wreathed in lightning into the throat of a warrior, who died moments later. Her ears were flat against her skull, her face twisted into the intimidating snarl of a predator. In a way, it was cute.


    That makes ten.


    Since leaving Elayne’s new grave and wandering the forest, he had run into several people, none of them particularly powerful enough to harm him. It reminded him of when he saw Alice playing an epic fantasy game where the character absorbed dragon souls.


    “This game looks super easy,” he had said to her.


    She threw him a grin,


    “I’m just over-leveled, that’s all. It’s what happens when you do a bunch of side quests before taking on the main story. I almost forgot this game had a main plot!”


    The memory faded away, leaving behind the ghost of a smile on his face. That’s exactly what he was feeling here. He was over-levelled for these people. That was fine with him. He set his mouth into a grim line. It meant he was ready to face Eric.


    “Wow, you really did a number on him!”


    Ambrose turned to find a red-headed woman with bright green eyes staring at him. She was…barely dressed. Her shirt was cut off, showing an impressively muscled midriff. Her bare biceps bulged, and Ambrose thought she might have broader shoulders than his own.


    Resting on her shoulder was a massive bastard sword, the grip of which she held in one hand. Along the blade were glowing green runes, and he felt a pressure emanating from her, attempting to bear down on him like an invisible predator.


    His own spirit repelled the oppressive, predatory force, but Ambrose had a feeling this foe was not like the rest of the underleveled rabble he had faced so far.


    She did have on what appeared to be sweats, like the kind you might wear to exercise. However, her feet were bare.


    Ambrose used [Retributions Gaze] on the woman, not caring if she thought him rude. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    [Susanna Borreat Level 215 Arcane Berzerker]: Susanna is a fierce warrior from a world known as Davalice. She was exiled from her tribe for being considered too weak.]


    “Didn’t anyone ever tell you that it’s rude to analyze a girl without asking first? I mean, come on big guy, at least buy me dinner.”


    Ambrose raised an eyebrow. Her words sounded almost flirty, but the way she said them was anything but.


    “Seeing as you’re an enemy likely going to attempt to kill me at any moment, I don’t care whether it’s rude or not.”


    Susanna pursed her lips, blinked a few times, nodded, and then said,


    “Yeah, that’s fair.”


    Then she hefted her sword and tried to kill him.


    Ambrose opened a portal right in front of her at the very last second. The result was the red-headed warrior woman rushing headlong into a fifty foot drop because Ambrose had crafted the second portal that high up in the air.


    He didn’t think that would end the fight, but he had been hoping. Using the time wisely, he created distance, raising Akaroth to be at the ready.


    When the woman crashed into the ground, there was a burst of destructive purple light and an explosion of dirt as a crater formed at her impact. After the dirt settled, Susanna stood up, a wild grin on her face and a wild light in her eyes.


    “Oohh, do that again!”


    She blurred toward him like a crimson bullet. As she moved, her bastard sword flashed, knocking away the lightning Noelle sent her way.


    As fast as she was, Ambrose had created considerable distance between them, and he used that distance well. First he formed small portals, and willed them to rotate between open and shut, at the same time he fused more hellfire into the portals, creating spinning portals of hellish flame and death.


    He sent those right at the warrior woman.


    That was when he felt her Icon.


    The feeling that swept over the area was like that of an open challenge, a defiance of cast into the teeth of an oppressor.


    His portals vanished.


    Just like that.


    Then she was on him, and he didn’t have time to think about what had happened.


    Fending off a bastard sword with an axe was not a great idea, and so Ambrose found himself ducking and weaving around her blows. It was easy to avoid them because Noelle was hounding the woman, blasting her with lightning or rushing in attempting to scratch her with claws.


    Irritation blossomed in Susanna’s eyes, and finally she whirled around at the last second, lashing out with a vicious kick at Noelle that landed on her chest.


    Noelle cried out in pain as she was spun away from the woman with incredible force.


    “Now then, where were we?”


    Ambrose unmanifested Noelle who flowed around him, a cloak once more. She was in pain, but alive, and being in cloak form would help her heal.


    After that, he went on the offensive. He dropped through portal after portal, using hit and run tactics against the woman.


    Who’s flesh repelled his attacks as good as if she were wearing a heavy plate male.


    What succeeded in impressing him was that she did not grow overconfident. She didn’t just let him rain attacks on her body, she fended him off as best she could, that same mad grin on her face the entire time.


    Kicking off, she flew backward away from him, resting the huge sword on her shoulder once more.


    “You’re good. Your foundation is about as good as mine, if not better. This is fun. Who are you?”


    He wasn’t interested in exchanging pleasantries, so he fed Akaroth mana, and the axe lifted into the air, taking her large draconic form, and roaring her fury at the warrior as dark clouds gathered overhead. He never understood the desire to talk in fights like this. It was a waste of breath, and often pointless. He didn’t feel a need to brag, or taunt, only to end the fight as the victor.


    Her eyes widened a bit at that, and widened even more as Akaroth sent a beam of destructive lightning directly for her. Thunder boomed, rolling across the sky in a wave of portent fury.


    She raised her sword, her grin never wavering, as she prepared to meet the destructive power head on. He could already feel her gathering her Icons power.


    He didn’t want a drawn out conflict. No, he hoped to end this here and now.