"Alright, boys! Let's get em crown fragments!"
"LET'S DO THIS!" several men shouted
"Tarus what are you planning to do?!"
"I have no time to think! I have to face them!"
I jumped out of the spot by the stairwell and I charged in at them with the shield of prejudice, they didn't even move a bit! I gritted my teeth as I needed to think of a plan, unexpectedly the green-haired girl came running from my back and she stepped on my shoulders on the way and jumped off. Soaring through the air she brandished the long blade that was sheathed in her back, the sword was long and has a pointy end.
"What the hell?!" those were the last words of one of the bandits before his throat got slit, his heavy body fell to the ground.
"YOU BRAT!" shouted one of the other men
As that man was about to hit the green-haired girl I rushed in with the shield of prejudice and without knowing what to do next, I subconsciously used the everlasting ice, this time instead of encasing them, vines sprouted from the walls and ground. The cold spiky vines made out of ice tied themselves around the arms and legs.
"NOW, STRIKE!" I shouted at her
She fell down from mid-air and used me again as some sort of leaping platform, she made easy work of the entrapped bandits by severing their heads from their bodies...she was the very embodiment of the word assassin, how can she keep her cool whilst killing people?!
"We're fine now I guess...?!"
Suddenly a huge force of air sent me flying out of the building, it hit me from behind. I toppled into the streets and to my surprise not only was the association building being attacked but most of the capital as well, it was chaos outside, the screams of the people, the sounds of explosives, and mostly various crown users were fighting to the death, there was even one fighting in the skies.
"Tarus!"
"Look behind!"
I quickly got back up and tossed the shield to hit her. There was a beam of light coming out of the building, could it be the same guy who hit me?
"Ouch, that hurt you prick!"
"I had to do that, there was literally a beam of light coming for you from behind!"
"HEY HEY LITTLE KIDS! ENOUGH OF THAT IDLE CHIT CHAT!"
"Crap..."
"HEY BIG OAF! YOU'LL BE FACING ME!" I shouted as I ran for him
"HOHO, THIS'LL GET INTERESTING!" a huge smile formed across his face
I summoned the Nemax and cast corrosion on it, I finally reached him as I sliced the Nemax, aiming for his head.
"CROWN FRAGMENT OF DEFENSE: HARDEN!" he shouted
His head started to turn grey and once the Nemax hit, sparks flew and a loud clang could be heard. I got repelled away, I stood back up, and knowing that corrosion nor the Nemax can do anything to it, my options are limited...
"HAHAHAHA! I HAVE IMPREGNABLE DEFENSE!"
"No need to boast, I've finally got a plan!"
"HAHAHAHA! SHOW IT TO ME THEN!"
"I will gladly do that!"
I dashed for him again and this time the gauntlets of ice formed at my palms, the bulky guy in front of me looked surprised for half a second but he just continued to smile.
"DO YOU THINK THAT SOMETHING LIKE THAT CAN DESTROY MY DEFENSES?!"
"You never know until you try!"
"YOUR ALL TALK! CROWN FRAGMENT OF DEFENSE: PETRIFY!"
His whole body started to become grey, I have to punch him quick! Before his whole body became a statue, his smile never faded...now it just became an even bigger smile.
"HAHAHA! NOW YOU'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO BREAKTHROUGH MY DEFENSE-"
Just as he was going to say his last words, I managed to punch him with my right arm, ice formed surrounding the impact are but my bones fractured because of the impact, my muscles ripped and blood started gushing out of the opened wound. Swiftly with my left hand, I summoned the Nemax and imbued it with corrosion and corruption. I pointed the blade at the crack that I made with the punch earlier. I bore the pain, with my greeted teeth and pained expression, I drove in the sword to his fleshy body through the crack in his stone defense.
"TAKE THIS, YOU BASTARD!"
The sword drove in smoothly and cleanly, all I could hear was the muffled screams of pain and agony through his stone defense. His fleshy body started to dissipate into the air, I sat on the floor, exhausted as I watched specks of dust go up in the air. The green-haired girl went to my side and she kept quiet until there was nothing left but a hollow statue of that man.
"Are you a crown user?" she asked
"I guess I can't keep it a secret now..."
"So you are one...those crown fragments look natural to me...they don't have the distinct look of artificial ones...that crown ring...it's corrupted...ARE YOU SECRETLY A ROYAL?!"
"N-no need to shout! I'm not a royal by chance!"
"Good thing...I thought you were my long lost brother or something..."
"Long lost brother?"
"IT'S NOTHING! JUST FORGET WHAT I SAID!" she shouted with a flustered face
"Don't tell me you're a roya-"
Before I could finish what I was going to say, she hit me in the gut with the back of her sword...this really hurts so much...I fell to the ground while clutching my stomach and wailing.
"You looked so manly and tough a while ago...and now we have this..."
"Is that a compliment or an insult?!"
"Hmph! Whatever!"
"You haven't even told me your name!"
"Jade, that's my name. Now we're even."
She silently lent me an arm so I took it without haste, I got back up while still clutching my stomach.
"You sure can be kind sometimes..."
"I'm always kind!"
"Then what was that hitting me in the gut for?"
"Nothing special."
Just as she said that the ground below us collapsed and we fell into water...this is the sewer...gross...
"EEEK! THIS IS DISGUSTING!" she screamed
"C-calm down!"
"HOW CAN I BE CALM!? SEWER JUICE IS ALL OVER ME!"
"Let's survey our surroundings first, there might be a way out nearby."
I probably use corrosion to teleport us in the air and since there are two of us, I possibly can't carry her up...the ground started to shake and the water started to flow in a direction.
"Let's follow the water flow!"
"He-Hey!"
We went into a smaller tunnel and found an opening as the water started to flow stronger. The opening led to a huge dome-shaped structure and that's where the water coagulated, it formed the shape of a man.
"Hoho...look what we have here...some mice that sneaked in..."
He noticed us...