A Few Hours Earlier
Aether''s brow furrowed, confusion etched across his face, "Holding back? What are you talking about?" If anyone needed to hold back, it had to be Liora, not him.
Liora, towering in her formidable wolf form, sneered, her eyes zing with a predatory glint. "Oh,e on, Aether... do you think I''m blind to the beast lurking inside you? You hide it well, but not from me."
"Beast?" Aether''s shock was genuine. His thoughts raced, trying to grasp what she meant.
"Yes," Liora growled, her muscles coiling like tightly wound springs, "I can sense it..... you''re hiding it very well.... But I don''t want to fight that facade. I want the real you. Unleash it, Aether. Either take me or die trying!" With a snarl, she sprang at him, a blur of fur and fangs, her ws slicing through the air with deadly precision.
Aether''s eyes widened as he barely evaded her initial strike, her ws whistling past his throat by mere inches. But Liora was relentless, predicting his every move with uncanny uracy. She twisted mid-air, her ws carving into his shoulder and, with a powerful swipe, mmed him into the ground with bone-crushing force.
BOOM!
"Argh!" Aether''s cry of pain echoed through the clearing as the impact reverberated through his bones. Blood seeped from the deep gashes in his shoulder.
He locked eyes with Liora, "This isn''t funny anymore, Liora."
Liora bared her fangs in a grin, her breath hot and menacing as she leaned in closer, "I''m not ying either, Aether," she growled, her jaws parting wide, ready to crush his skull.
She was deadly serious.... there was no hint of restraint in her gaze!
With no time to think, he created a blue me ball, sting it directly into her open maw.
BOOOM!!
The explosion sent Liora hurtling backwards, her massive form crashing through trees and bushes, leaving a trail of destruction in her wake.
Aether scrambled to his feet, clutching his bleeding shoulder, his senses heightened. He knew the mes had barely singed her, and he braced himself for her next move.
"Not bad..." Liora''s voice echoed through the smoke and debris. As the dust settled, she emerged unscathed, her fur unmarked, shimmering with an eerie glow. An amused expression spread across her lips. "But not nearly enough~" she taunted before vanishing in a blur of motion.
Aether''s pupil dted..... Suddenly, she reappeared right in front of him, her w aiming straight at his eyes. He reacted instinctively, bending backwards at an impossible angle, narrowly dodging the lethal strike.
[+1 Agility]
Aether''s reflexes sharpened, his movements bing fluid and precise.... the agility increased without needing the affection points.
Liora smirked, her eyes narrowing with approval.
To be honest, She hadn''t unleashed her full strength, but surely she was increasing the power slowly....
With a roar, Aether flipped backwards, his foot connecting with Liora''s chin in a powerful kick that sent her soaring through the air.
[+1 Strength]
[+1 Strength]
Liora twisted mid-air,nding gracefully on all fours, her eyes locked onto Aether with predatory intent. The distance between them widened... just as Aether had intended.
Before she could close the gap, he conjured fivepressed air balls, crackling with lightning, and hurled them at her with deadly precision.
Liora''s eyes widened in recognition. This was the same attack that had wounded her before.... However, now there were five of them, not just one!
''He''s finally taking this seriously...'' she thought as she nced at Aether... who was running away?
"H-Huh?" Confusion briefly clouded Liora''s mind, distracting her from the iing barrage.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Meanwhile,
''Increase Agility!''
[+1 Agility]
Aether''s muscles coiled like springs,unching him through the dense forest... his focus razor-sharp on a distant mountain peak!
Aether moved through the woods faster as his eyes focused on one thing.... a small mountain!
''There''s only one way to defeat her!'' he thought, he bolted, his body a blur as he sprinted through the forest, dodging trees and leaping over obstacles.
"Where are you going!!!!"
The sheer power in Liora''s voice made the hairs on the back of Aether''s neck stand on end. He knew she was closing in, but instead of fear, a thrill surged through him. His lips curled into a smirk as he pushed himself even harder, his speed increasing with every heartbeat.
[+1 Agility]
[+1 Agility]
However,
Aether''s eyes widened in surprise when Liora suddenly appeared from his right, her form a blur of lethal grace. Before he could react, she pounced on him, her powerful muscles driving them both to the ground.
Thud!
They rolled through the dirt and leaves, a chaotic tangle of limbs before Liora finally pinned Aether down. Her massive paw pressed dangerously against his sternum, the pressure enough to make him gasp for breath. It was clear she could crush him at any moment.
Drip....
A drop of blood fell from Liora''s pristine fur, evidence of the previous attack that had managed to hurt her.
"Grrrrr....."
Liora''s growl, her multicoloured eyes burning with savage intensity as she locked onto Aether. Sheunched herself at him with ferocious speed, her jaws snapping forward, eager to tear into his flesh
Still, Aether smirked...
''Increase Level!''
!~Ding~!
Aether''s hands shoot up to intercept her powerful bite. The impact was bone-jarring, her sheer force threatening to crush him. His muscles screamed in protest as he held her jaws at bay, the strain evident in every fibre of his being.
"Arrrh!" Aether groaned, his voice a pain. He could feel the sharp edges of her teeth digging into his palms, threatening to break through. But then—
''Increase Level!''
!~Ding~!
[Level: 36↑]
!~Ding~!
[Level: 37↑]
!~Ding~!
[Level: 38↑]
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Liora''s eyes widened in shock as she felt the shift in Aether''s strength. His grip tightened, pushing her jaws apart with a force that shouldn''t have been possible.....
The shock quickly transformed into a smirk just about to increase her power when
WHOOSH!
Aether unleashed a fireball directly into her mouth, the mes roaring with an intensity far surpassing his previous attacks.
"Grrrrlll!" Liora shook her head violently, trying to extinguish the mes that hurt at her insides..... When she finally managed to quell the mes, she fixed her gaze on Aether, who stood a short distance away, holding something... ominous.
Aether''s hand cradled a ck void-like sphere.
"!!!"
Liora''s instincts screamed at her, a primal warning that this sphere was beyond anything she had encountered before. Her tail stiffened, and her ears ttened against her head. For the first time in this fight, a flicker of uncertainty crossed her mind.
Yet, instead of fear, Liora''s grin only grew, her teeth glinting in the dim light. She was eager, almost desperate, to see what her future husband would do next. But to her surprise, Aether didn''t aim the sphere at her. Instead, he hurled it skyward.
Confusion marred Liora''s expression as she watched the ck sphere soar into the sky. "What''s he nning?" she wondered, her sharp gaze tracking its ascent. Aether didn''t seem intent on harming her, at least not directly. But then—
Ssssshhhhhh
A sudden, chilling breeze swept through the battlefield, the temperature dropping as the once-clear sky was consumed by ominous, swirling clouds.
Thunder!
Liora''s frown deepened as she shifted her attention back to Aether.
He now stood with a thin, red-coloured sword in his hand... the looks almost simr to Aqualina except for the colour.
With a calm, almost casual smile, Aether spoke, "You know... I just realized something important. Your skin is so tough, that not even my highest-level mes could burn it. But this..." He held the sword aloft, letting the dark clouds above roil in response.
THUDER!
Liora flinched involuntarily.
Aether''s smirk widened as he continued, "This is going to hurt a lot... so you better be prepared." Without another word, he stomped the ground.
Liora didn''t hesitate. She lunged forward with every ounce of her strength, her ws tearing through the air as she aimed to end this battle with a single, decisive blow. But as the distance between them closed,
''Increase Agility by 10''
[+10 Agility]
[Limit reached ording to the Level]
In the blink of an eye, Aether''s form blurred, disappearing from Liora''s sight. She barely caught a glimpse of him.... now high above her, suspended in the storm-darkened sky.
Before she could react, Aether hurled the red sword toward her, the de cutting through the air with terrifying speed. Liora''s muscles coiled, ready to dodge, but—
THUUUUNNDDEERRRR!!!
A colossal bolt of lightning shot down from the dark clouds barely missing Aether! Striking the sword mid-flight.
In the next instant—before Liora could even blink—the sword pierced through her body with unimaginable force, driving her into the earth.
BBBBOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!!!
The ground erupted in a massive explosion, a shockwave radiating outwards as debris and dust filled the air.
Aether slowly descended, his breath ragged and his heart pounding in his chest.... As the dust settled,
Lioray motionless, her once-pristine fur charred and ckened, the red sword impaled through her abdomen, pinning her to the scorched earth. The ground around her was cracked and burned, the remnants of the explosion still smouldering.
"Ssss..." Aether hissed in pain as if he was suffering. He stepped forward, his heart heavy with guilt, "I shouldn''t have... I shouldn''t have gone that far..." He mumbled to himself.
But then,
"Haha..."
A small, painedugh escaped from the burnt wolf.
"Hmm?" Aether frowned.
It was then he fucking knew he fucked up....
"Ar...cane..." Liora said with a cracked voice as the gold light blinded Aether''s eyes.
''Ah... Fuck!''