==


    "Hold,ds, hold!" Old Thane''s shout resonated through the burning forest battlefield, rising far above the raging crackle of mes, the heavy thudding of fire giant steps, and the sh of giant me swords against wood.


    The shout had no reason to belong to a man as aged as Old Thane, and yet, the way the blind man moved, it was difficult to tell he was far past his prime.


    He shoulder mmed into the knee of a fire giant, catching the giant off bnce and forcing the mming trajectory of his me sword away from turning Mason into a smidgeon of burnt blood.


    "As!" Old Thane shouted again as the fire giant reared its attention on him, burning eyes of pure ming light flickering in annoyance.


    The giant mmed a crushing hand down on to Old Thane, but he raised his arms up and caught the attack.


    A surge of fire and heat wave distorted winds burst out from Old Thane stopping the impact, and the palms of his hands singed as his muscles rippled and bulged, surging with a red aura that indicated he had activated [Berserker''s Rage], a staple of the Berserker subss to boost strength, speed, and damage resistance.


    Yet, fire giants were ever the formidable foe, and though their great size meant their agility stat was low, making their uracy and movement speed unimpressive, they more than made up for it with their prodigious natural strength, easily surpassing pure brawlers like Old Thane in singlebat.


    But this was not singlebat.


    "Reprieve shalte to thee soon," said As, calm in her voice for as situations became tenser, she only ever became more focused, more calm.


    Her yellow eyes glinted as her pupils slit into narrow lines as she pointed her wooden staff at the fire giant.


    Wreaths of golden light swirled around the staff in flowing patterns, causing sands to arise from around the fire giant''s locking into a solidified mound around his legs.


    The giant grunted as it saw this sudden development, and instead of trying to break free, aimed its me sword against Old Thane while he was pinned by the giant''s hand.


    "Tis'' brutish but predictable," said As as she pointed her staff down.


    The [Sand Tomb] around the fire giant''s legs sunk under the ground as if parted by quicksand, and the giant lost its bnce again.


    Old Thane took this moment to get out from under the giant''s grip and side step back, and as the giant crashed face first into the ground, Old Thane charged up a [Painkiller], a powerful Berserker ss blow that dealt more damage based on how much the user had taken.


    Old Thane''s wooden, gauntleted fist smashed into the side of the fire giant''s head with resounding impact, causing it to snap back and disorient the monster.


    "Now!" growled Old Thane. "Converge!"


    From stealth emerged Mercer with his twin des and She with her short sword.


    They were not too coordinated, both of them circling in front of the fire giant to try and cut its eyes out, but She was more experienced, allowing Mercer freedom to act as she broke off, leaping onto the giant''s head and using it as a tform to flip to its back exposed back which she stabbed into with no hesitation.


    Mercer grunted as he mmed twin daggers into both the giant''s eyes.


    The critical damage caused the fire giant to roar in pain, fire bellowing out from its body and causing Mercer to immediately scramble backwards.


    Mason grabbed his brother''s cloak from the back and pulled him back to aid his escape, leaving them both with justva singed hairs for their trouble.


    She, however, smiled and continued forwards, letting theva spatter around her skin and burn it. She used the damage to channel her blood shamanism, and with it, cast [Bleeding Edge], coating her wooden sword in a rapidly rotatingyer of sharpened blood meant for inflicting as much bleeding damage as possible.


    With [Blood Boost] pumping through her body, lighting all her veins up with a crimson red visible through her skin in grotesque fashion, She sped around the giant, shing everywhere she could, some of her attacks sinking into critical spots and causing veins of fiery blood to burst, gushing out molten rock and me everywhere.


    "Gods, we really are weak,"mented Mason as he and his brother stood shoulder to shoulder, supporting each other through panting breaths and watching as She wreaked bloody havoc on the fire giant.


    "You''ve got that right-," began Mercer before his sharper senses caused his blue eyes to widen. "Watch out!"


    A fireball flew their way before Vilga emerged alight with mes from having managed to defeat a fire giant in singlebat.


    Cauterized sword wounds littered her muscr body, but she still had more than enough energy to snarl and punch the fireball with a [Iron Fist], the Qi wreathing her hand in ayer of blue aura that let her interact with projectiles.


    The fireball shattered apart into tiny specks that Mason managed to block with his shield.


    "No time for chatter,ds!" said Old Thane as he retreated back, staying near Mason, Mercer, and Vilga. She hade back too, having executed the fire giant. As stood back further behind them as their mage and support.


    In front of them, more giants were closing in.


    Li had created a massive wall of wood to separate the fire giant army, leaving just two giants for the party to deal with, but now, the giants had scaled the wall, leaping down from it with solid thumps as their hefty weights settled on the forest floor, their every step burning foliage.


    Many, many giants. Almost ten of them, it seemed, and probably moreing.


    Vilga spat out some blood and exhaled a strong breath through her burnt and parched lips. Patches of burns lined her face and her thick silver mane was singed ck at its tips. However, she just smiled, baring her fangs, her gleaming yellow eyes wide with adrenaline and battle hunger.


    She mmed her gauntleted fists together.


    "Come!" she roared, her once quiet demeanorpletely gone now that her blood had started to flow, bringing her back to how she had been bred to be through decades fighting every single day, three hundred and sixty-five days of the year for fifteen years: a veteran of the Republic Arenas once feared as the Savage Fist.


    "Y-yes!" shouted Mercer rather weakly, raising his dagger to support Vilga, though he was evidently much, much more worried about losing his life than she was.


    Mason watched as the ten giants began to charge forwards now, their huge bodies causing quakes. He raised his wooden shield and peered through the visor of his oaken helm with worry.


    "Where is the seer!?" said Mason. "I thought he would have dealt with these foul beasts yet!"


    "It is difficult to sense him," said As. "His magical energy flows strong, yet none of it do I now perceive."


    Old Thane stood beside Vilga at the front and smiled just as broadly as the Lupi warrior.


    The Savage Fist and the Blood Fist together. A union that would never have been known had not the all weing nature of Li''s presence made its mark on this world.


    Yet, a union that would not be enough.


    "Is what she says true?" said Old Thane as he rolled his shoulders, feeling the blood trickle from burns and wounds littering his body. "Zagan."


    A brief pause. The fire giants approached ever the closer, but everyone''s attention, everyone except Old Thane, stared back at Zagan, the unassuming ck dog that followed them everywhere.


    Old Thane kept his fists clenched and stared straight ahead. "I know ye were to keep yourself hidden, but if thed is gone, now is no time for it."


    "The Serpi is correct in her arcane judgement," said Zagan, his deep voice projecting outwards, an infernal rattle underlining it. Mason and Mercer, unused to demonic influence of this caliber, felt shivers rattling across their bodies.


    "Aye." Old Thane nodded to himself. "I worry little of thed and the girl. They are mighty. But we will need some help."


    "This personage understands the situation." Zagan trotted forwards, his ck fur swaying like mesprising a royal cloak as he stood in front of Old Thane.


    Old Thane''s smile broadened even more. "Then shall we? I am quite greedy for battle meself."


    Zagan''s crimson eyes zed. "It shall be so."


    Zagan''s form turned into a cloud of ck me for a moment before funneling into Old Thane.


    Old Thane sighed as he felt power flow into him, the effects of his agingpletely reversing. His wrinkles faded. The fat gathered around his belly melted away. His muscles filled into his skin, veins bulging and old scars popping through taut, youthful skin.


    His usual hunch disappeared, and he grew taller, noticeably taller until he was just a few heads shorter than the smallest three-meter-tall giants.


    The loose skins that wrapped around his shoulders and legs, skins of mighty beasts such as Dire Crusher Boars, Frostbears, Yeti, and even the scales of cial Serpents began to fill out, worn by the younger body they truly belonged to.


    No more did Old Thane look like he was out of ce wearing his gear. He was ferocity incarnate, his teeth tapering into near bestial points. Many of his veins bulged through his skin, and they were ck, flowing with demonic energy.


    "Aye," said Old Thane as he cracked his neck and clenched his fists. "Aye. This be the might I had. The violence I held down."


    On Old Thane''s exposed chest, where his heart was under his te like pectoral muscle, two red eyes popped out, and from them, Zagan''s voice emerged.


    "This personage grants you power to fulfill the safety of this party as the ''Seer'' wishes. Waste no more time inpleting this objective, mortal."


    "Hehe, aye, aye," said Old Thane. He looked back at Vilga, and she stared at him with surprise now. "Yer a lot like me,ss. I know how much ye wanted the fight. So I''ll be sure to leave ye some scraps."


    With that, Old Thane looked forwards, at a fire giant that now was within ten meters of him, and charged forwards, his speed so explosive that he was a blur. He tackled the fire giant''s leg and took the giant''s multi-ton weight clean off the ground as if it was as light as a feather.


    Roaring like a wild beast, Old Thane swung the giant around like a ragdoll, building up speed before tossing the giant as a projectile right into a group of three other giants.


    The thrown giant crashed into the group and scattered them backwards, causing them to tumble several times on the dirt, disoriented.