Chapter 921 Chapter 920: 4 versus 1
As I watched Anput, Satanya and Jahi step forwards to meet the Fiend's challenge, I couldn't help but sigh as I looked between each of them, shaking my head at how they willingly let go of their advantage without any hesitation, despite their opponent being a Fiend.
Who knew if the lion headed thing was being truthful with us, or if it was going to renege on its word and take this opportunity to try and kill some of the largest threats to the Fiends going forwards in one fell swoop, using their hubris against them.
Its raspy giggle filled the air again as the Fiend righted its head and turned to look at me, still grinning as it said "Fear not, pup... I might not be the sharpest blade in the drawer, but I am no idiot. Sneak attacking you here does not end well for me, and it isn't even because of Sla'Caligo there... No, I would be dishonoring my Ensis, and that is the last thing I want..."
Cali floated down to my side and nodded as she added "Don't worry about it too much, Kat... I can still protect you if Ka'Minvis decides to pull something tricky. Besides~! The four of you should have no~ trouble at all with this~! Trust me on that."
Patting my cheek, the pink skinned Arch Fiend grinned before winking at Ka'Minvis, who just snorted and shook it's furry head, not appreciating what it was hearing but not refuting her claim at all, and I could sort of sense why...
Of the four it chose, Jahi was the obvious threat to it with her Light Magic and general strength, but Anput was a diverse threat on her own as well, while Satanya had some strenght to her as well; then there was me, with the pseudo Lust Mana I had lingering around in my Core, which would be weaker than Jahi's Light Magic but still rather strong on its own.
This fight was weighted in our favor, which only made it odder to me that the Fiend would willingly ask for a fight like this instead of challenging just Jahi, but I decided to stop thinking as I unsheathed my blade and took out my wand, moving forwards to join the other three as we drew closer to the surface of the lake, which Ka'Minvis still stood on, waiting for us.
"Now, are we ready..? Yes? Good, good... Beliali, might I have you announce the start, hm? I'd rather have someone... not bound to one of the fighters do so."
Rolling out its shoulders and lowering its stance, the lion headed Fiend clenched its fists and cracked its knuckles that way before opening them again, extending its golden claws as far as possible and ensuring that its 'weapons' were as evenly spaced as possible to ensure a wider surface to attack with.
Power rippled over its muscled form in invisible waves, each time it twitched or shuffled its feet to perfect its stance sending its muscles into small spasms, while the sudden lack of joviality from the Fiend that had only been grinning and joking around made the serious expression all the heavier.
Its jaw was still unhinged though, and the Fiend occasionally gnashed its teeth and exhaled sharply, a small cloud of moisture and heat billowing from its maw and clueing me in slightly to what it was doing, which I vocalized as soon as I could, not waiting for Belian's signal.
"It's using some kind of enhancement spell, completely internal. Heightened physical status. I'll lead with a domain to start."
Seeing its lips twitch slightly at my words, I narrowed my eyes before flexing my hands, ridding them of the minuscule nervous cramps that were wracking my body as I waited for the signal, which Belian was being rather slow in giving, something that was a boon and a bane... though he wasn't being annoying with it, as the shout "Begin!" boomed across the grotto.
Following that shout, Ka'Minvis shot forwards like an arrow from a bow, it's feet not touching the water as it flew straight at us with its hands outstretched, looking like a grappler preparing to engage its opponent... despite it being taller than all of us by multiple feet.
As it shot forwards, I traced out the myriad runes I needed for a Domain spell as quickly as I could, but the Fiend was quicker as it appeared in front of Jahi and clapped its hands down towards her, only to finally plant its feet against the ground and leap into the air, jumping over the Demoness and avoiding her great sword entirely as it flew towards me instead.
Those red gold eyes were flooded with bloodlust as it sneered at me, its lips pulled back to reveal its golden fangs that matched the golden claws that were crashing down towards my head, trying to kill me before I could even cast my first spell.
My eyes locked to its as it descended towards me, and I felt my hairs stand on end as its balled, clenched fists hurtled down towards my skull like a meteor, breaking through the air and whistling with the promise of bursting my head like a melon before smashing the rest of my body into the ground, turning me into a paste of meat and blood within mere breaths from when Belian shouted 'Begin!'
As those clasped red hands descended towards me, my mind froze as it wondered if I was about to die, if I was to return to that void without even being able to protect myself, if I was going to lose everything thanks to the stupidity of my actions in allowing this challenge to be accepted.
And yet, those thoughts were erased instantly after they appeared, the collective anger and desperation from both Jahi and Anput being funneled towards me as they both reacted just as fast as the Fiend had, their blades flashing straight towards the Fiend and allowing me to react as well, no longer locked up with fear as I began to leap backwards and tilt my body away from its fists.
My speed wasn't the fastest, nor was theirs, but adrenaline and sheer willpower were far stronger than anyone could have anticipated, much less the Fiend that was suddenly smacked to the side by a heavy metal spear and had its spine severed in two as the Demoness behind it slashed at the Fiend as swiftly as she could.
Having my life almost flash in front of my eyes as the Fiend suddenly targeted me was not something I was expecting, but I couldn't really think on it too much as I continued my backwards trajectory as much as I could, throwing myself to the ground and traveling away from the Fiend as far as I possibly could.
My spell was interrupted, but as the Fiend was slammed aside and had its attention diverted away from me, I breathed a sigh of relief before resuming the Domain, ensuring it went off this time as I shrouded the immediate area in ice, layering the gravel with frost and trying to encase the Fiend's legs with frost too, though that was harder since it continued to move around as soon as it could stand again.
Its wounded flesh knit back together again almost instantly, and as Jahi yanked her blade free from its spine, the Fiend stood up and moved away from her, not letting her get another swing in without earning it as it leapt back onto the water and moved away from the fight, creating space between us and allowing it to appraise everything without worry for just a second.
A second that it barely got as two giant silvery spears were hurled at its head, followed by a discus of golden light that sliced through the air in incredible speeds, forcing the Fiend to defend itself lest it receive a large amount of damage.
Satanya was a tad slower than the other two - not to any fault of her own, but simply because currently the other two were relying on the vast amount of anger that had suddenly erupted inside them from the Fiend's initial attack, something that was clearly felt in how they moved and what they were doing, which was opting for an entirely offensive strategy for the moment.
Four crescents of boiling flame leapt off of her longsword and joined the other two attacks as they began to press the Fiend back with this sudden onslaught of magic, and when Jahi leapt forwards and cleaved her great sword down towards the lion's head, the battle began to feel far too easy despite having just begun.
Ka'Minvis had pressed the advantage so quickly before simply giving it up and being pressed back instead, and despite having shown clear speed, it had been retaliated against in a lightning fast manner that left me wondering what was happening, but that didn't stop me from channeling my Lust infused Ice Mana into my wand and tracing out the runes I needed for a concentrated beam of frost that would further hinder the Fiend's movements and allow the other three to attack more freely than they already were...
Though I was trying to keep an eye out for what the Fiend's game plan was, but I sadly had too little information to call upon to formulate any semblance of an idea on what was going on inside its furry head.
With no clue what it was planning and very little understanding of its strength, I had to continue to study the Fiend even as it blocked Jahi's great sword simply by raising its arms and catching the blade on its ulna.
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