"Mana Barrier!" Shouting my skill out of shock and adrenaline, a protective familiar screen of light blue mana surrounded my body. Blocking the oncoming copper gladius.
CRACK!
My mana barrier cracked visibly.
You have got to be kidding me!
BANG!
I managed to block the slash aiming at me but the force beneath them is way too overpowering!
My feet slipped. My figure launched back as I can vividly feel the with rush past as me. My cracked mana barrier managed to protect me from bearing the brunt of hitting back against a tree. Sliding down, I gasped for breath, clenched my fists before tightly gripping the wooden stave.
A second too late and my ribs would've been cut open. And the weapon might've even continued and sliced my heart in half.
It was then that I saw who struck me...
A green lizardman no taller than five feet. Wearing leather armor and a bronze helmet. In his hands were two shortswords. Two copper gladius glinting dangerously under the sun.
A light green suit of scales plastered across their body reflected a healthy sheen of sunlight. Some parts of the leather armor had been cut and his flesh wasn't spared either. Red blood dripped down his fresh wounds. Staining the forest floor in crimson.
"Celo! What happened to y-" Shocked, I asked him outright but didn't bother to approach. Something is wrong with the honorable Lizardman that once listened to my reasoning.
And soon enough, my suspicions were true. Celo had lunged towards me again. Brandishing two copper blades. Aiming for my neck and gut.
Swish!
I could only hastily dodge the two strikes by taking a step back and retreating before sending out a swing of my wooden staff.
SNAP!
Wooden pieces scattered into the air.
The staff broke apart with just one clean slice from one of those copper weapons.
Celo stared at me. It was there that I noticed that his eyes seemed hollow. Hollow and dull.
Something's messing with the lizardman's head. There's no way they would attack humans unprovoked! And all I did was kill a green slime!
The lizardman grunted. Shifting into a stance with two of his blades outstretched. His eyes took on a dangerous glint as a murderous aura intensified around him.
Just great...
If Chief was the big boss of the Grim Guard lizardmen tribe then Celo was one of the mini-bosses that run around.
I glanced at my attributes again.
-----
Variable Attributes
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Str: 40
Ten: 38
Dex: 30
Agi: 33
MI: 16
Spirit: 20
-----
With this, I should be able to keep up with my opponent. Lizardmen are stronger than adult humans since young. And Celo's already had reached adulthood judging from his large figure standing five feet tall.
It may not seem much. Yet their clan's children only could reach about three feet tall before maturity.
40 strength. 38 Tenacity. That means that my strength is four times that of an adult human and the same goes roughly for my body's durability.
Due to focusing on physical training abuse. Constantly pushing this body to the limit by increasing the number of repetitions. The usual 100 repetitions for all my exercises had risen past that. Entering the 400 repetitions mark.
My body could handle it. And casting lesser heal on myself hastened both muscle growth and strength accumulation. Despite being a six-year-old child. My body was now resembling that of a well trained ten-year-old kid.
Complete with a set of greatly defined muscles.
I've looked at myself in the mirror after having passed the 30 strength and tenacity threshold a few days prior to this. And it's easy to say that my body has slowly stopped being human.
My body had started showing signs of being a body forged for combat.
I've torn off the doorknob to my house multiple times on accident. And broken glass fragments have trouble piercing my flesh.
A six-year-old possessing strength four times a grown man at lvl 1. And a body more durable than any human.
The world of Reverie is insane to let me achieve such strength through the loophole.
But right now. I have to focus. I'm facing Celo. A lizardman captain.
Celo has power. And skill capable of making full use of such strength.
Should I be afraid of fighting? No. I am happy to fight.
Only when I am violently pummeling a living creature or being destructive am I at the most peaceful point of my life.
I feel free. Free and unhinged.
Pillow seems to have disappeared into the ground again. It's fine with me. I would've tossed Pillow out of here anyway. The slime wouldn't be of much help anyway. Cole can just keep cutting away at my pet.
Cracking a smile. My body heated up as I could feel it.
The rush of facing a dangerous opponent.
Celo...
You'll be my first punching bag as a means to test how far my dedication and self-discipline had brought me.
"Bring it on Celo."
RuMblE!
The earth shook. A testament to the great strength laying inside both me and Celo's physical selves after we stomped. We launched ourselves like cannonballs. Greatly closing the short distance between us.
I have to win this fight. If I don't and run away, Celo would follow me into the village and he would cause a great mess.
Celo's figure blurred. And for a second I couldn't keep up with the lizardman's movements as he ducked. Leaned back a little with his legs as support.
His right hand swiped horizontally at me. The copper gladius screaming for my stomach.
Shit!
He's fast!
Bang!
The attack sent me staggering backward. Protecting me once more was a light blue screen of mana. Cracks riddled it as it started to fall apart.
My eyes shrank into dots... My heart missing its beat.
The lizardman had already closed in the small distance between us both of his arms gripping a copper gladius stabbed downwards onto me. For that brief moment, I was able to look into Celo's dull eyes.
It was so dull that even my figure wasn't reflected in them.
Damn it!
Fush!
My arms flashed, catching Celo's wrists as the force bore down onto me. The two copper blades couldn't be stopped. I was only able to make them graze my two shoulders.
Crack! Crack! crack!
Flakes of stone followed by dust rose into the air. The floor under me cracked. I could feel a powerful wave of force run through my body.
I pulled the lizard man into me. Into a strong headbutt.
"Nghh!!!" Grunting, Celo's hold onto the blades loosened a little.
I grinned...
It's working...
Celo was fast and strong. But it seems that no matter how much he pulls back his arms or struggles, this grip of mine remains as solid as iron.
I tightened my grip on his wrists.
If I let go I'll get cut up.
I don't know how to fight with great skill. I can only rely on my body and crude methods.
BAM! I headbutted Celo again.
Blood dripped from my forehead as the skin gave way and crumbled under the force. My mind shook. But I won't stop.
Bam! I headbutted the lizardman again.
Bam! And again.
And again.
And again...
And again...
The world seemingly started spinning around me. The rush and rustling of leaves were replaced by this ringing tune.
I ignored it and kept headbutting.
Crack!
Bloodstained my robes. And I was sure I heard my skull fracture. And pain assaulted my head once more. Threatening to turn me numb and listless.
I don't care.
I can just heal any damage done to me.
Clank~ Clank! Celo's weapons fell into the floor.
The Lizardman reeled back. Shaking his now bleeding head as he stood and wobbled unsteadily.
Amidst the spinning and ringing world around me. I made my way to him.
I clenched my fist. Hard enough to the point the knuckles started issuing popping sounds.
And while Celo was still disoriented. My fist hammered onto his face.
"Guh!" Sending the lizardman stumbling back.
Pa! My fist flew into the air once more.
Striking Celo square in the head again. Effectively sending him falling onto his back.
It's not yet over...
Pa! Pa! bam! Bam!
I straddled the lizardman. Sitting on his chest as I wailed on him. My fists raining down like a hurricane onto the Lizardman's head.
Keep punching...
Don't stop.
Celo tried to stop me and grabbed my sides. Wanting to push me off.
I stopped for a second. Seeing his eyes flicker between lucidity and listlessness.
It seems that you're still not awake.
If I stop. You'll get back up and hurt me as they do.
I punched at his throat and stomped on his stomach.
"GuhA!" Feeling the air knocked out of his lung's Celo coughed up a mouthful of blood.
But again... I'm not done yet.
Celo's eyes are still dull and lifeless. He's still brainwashed or something.
I'll beat you into an inch of your life.
Just enough to make you wake up once more.
"Don't worry Celo... I can just heal you back up anyway."
My fist slammed onto the lizardman's face again. Effectively earning cracking sounds.