Amon leapt backward, throwing his hand out.

[Gloom Orb!]

A dark sphere formed instantly and shot toward Arnold. It exploded on contact, swallowing him in black smoke.

Boom!

Amon didn't wait. He dashed sideways, using the smoke as cover. His heartbeat thundered in his ears. He didn't want to fight Arnold, but at this rate, it was either fight or be crushed.

He circled behind the smoke — but then a voice came from inside.

"Too slow."

Slash!

A silver gleam with star particles flashed through the dark.

Amon barely blocked, sparks raining between them again. Arnold's blade was relentless, each strike faster and heavier than the last.

Amon's breathing grew ragged. He could feel his mana draining fast.

He had to do something. Anything.

'Fine then… time for a gamble.'

Dark shadow flared around his sword. A familiar, ominous glow coating the blade. His shadow rose behind him like wings.

[Umbral Veil Sword Art: First Form — Crescent of Dusk!]

A dark crescent slash roared forward, tearing through the air toward Arnold.

Arnold's eyes narrowed slightly. The first sign of emotion. He crossed his sword in front of him.

BOOM!

The shockwave shattered trees nearby. The impact sent both of them sliding back several meters.

Smoke drifted in the air. Amon was panting heavily, his clothes torn, his mana nearly gone. Arnold stood firm, though his arm had a shallow cut, the first wound he'd taken.

Amon smirked tiredly. "Heh… finally made you bleed."

Arnold looked at his arm, then at Amon. His eyes softened. Just a little. "You've grown stronger, Amon. Well, I guess warm-up is enough. I should get serious and end this."

Amon blinked, confused. "Huh?"

Arnold raised his sword again, the air around him shimmering faintly with mana pressure.

"But you're still not strong enough. Train harder, Amon." A smirk appeared on Arnold's face.

"Tch–!"

Arnold disappeared once more, his presence vanishing entirely.

Amon's heart pounded. His eyes darted around. 'Where did he–'

Suddenly, a cold voice came from behind him.

"Next time, be ready before you swing."

Before Amon could turn, Arnold's blade hit his backside.

Splash!

Blood flew in the air.

Thud!

He was sent crashing into the dirt, groaning. The sword strike wasn't lethal, but enough to knock the breath out of him. Somehow, Amon was able to react and throw his body forward, making the slash impact shallow. It didn't cut too deep.

Arnold lowered his weapon, watching Amon struggle. "You have potential. Don't waste it by running from every fight... or maybe your talent for running is better."

Amon looked up, coughing. "…Then stop attacking me, damn it!"

Arnold smiled. But it was not friendly at all. He raised his sword slowly. He didn't feel any danger from Amon. He didn't even fight seriously against him.

Amon pushed himself up. There was only one thing he could do.

He extended both hands forward. Mana shot immediately through. Amon conjured two spells at the same time Gloom Orb and Eclipse Bolt.

Arnold raised one brow in amusement.

[Gloom Orb]

First, the Gloom Orb dashed in Arnold's direction. The dark smoky sphere was going to hit him.

At the same time, Amon shot the compressed darkness sphere at the ground between Arnold and himself.

Arnold cut down the Gloom Orb as dark smoke covered him. At that time, the Eclipse Bolt collided against the ground. It exploded and sent debris everywhere, increasing the dust and smoke in the air.

"Cough! Cough!" Arnold started to cough and waved his hand.

Slowly, the smoke disappeared into the air.

And to his surprise, Amon was not there anymore. He had run away.

Arnold chuckled. "He does have talent for running away."

Meanwhile, Amon was running with all his might, not looking behind. Covering his feet with shadow so that his footsteps' sound would be concealed.

"Hah... hah..." He breathed tiredly. He had chugged down two potions while running away, healing the slash on his back.

His legs buckled as he fell forward.

Thud!

Now he got back up and remained seated on the ground.

"Hah... hahaha. I got away!" He started to laugh, closing his eyes. He couldn't believe his small trick had saved him from this.

"Heheheh. Look who we have here? Isn't this the great Amon Vale?" A mocking voice came from behind Amon. He didn't turn away. Yet he knew who the voice actually belonged to.

'Why, goddess?' He turned his head toward the source of that voice.

There stood a handsome young man with violet hair. His purple eyes looked at Amon mockingly. There was an arrogant smirk on his face. A crimson spear was held proudly in his hand.

The guy was none other than Marcus.

"Hello Marcus. Listen, no need to fight between us—" But Marcus didn't let him finish.

"Now finally I will beat you, for all the annoying things you've done." He was smiling evilly, like some third-rate villain.

Marcus twirled his crimson spear, its tip gleaming faintly with mana.

"You look like you've been through hell, Amon," he said, his smirk widening. "Fought someone strong, didn't you? Hah, not that it matters now."

Amon forced himself to his feet, gripping his sword tightly. His back still burned with pain, even though the healing potion had sealed most of the wound. "Marcus… you again?"

"Of course," Marcus replied, taking a few slow steps forward.

"You've been quite the lucky rat, running around and stealing points from beasts. But luck doesn't last forever."

He spun his spear once, channeling mana into it. Flames flared along the shaft, wrapping the weapon in a brilliant, searing red glow.

Fwoosh!

Amon's eyes narrowed. "Fire element…" He had forgotten about his element.

Marcus grinned. "Exactly. Let's see if your little shadows can survive my flames!"

He thrust his spear forward.

A wave of fire erupted from the weapon, roaring toward Amon like a burning serpent. The air itself seemed to twist and shimmer from the heat.

Amon rolled aside, the flames scorching the ground where he had just been. The air burned his lungs as he coughed and raised his sword, dark mana swirling at his feet.

'Not again… my mana's almost empty…'

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.