Solis narrowed his eyes as he aimed his metal dagger at the back of Gaius' legs, specifically his thighs, knees, and ankles because they were the muscles that supported the whole body from standing up. His goal was that he wanted to bring Gaius down so that he couldn't apply force or power into his attack towards the incapacitated Valedd.
Shing – Shing – Shing – Shing!
"W-What the!?"
After doing quick work with his dagger, Gaius' legs naturally buckled from having both of them lacerated by a sharp blade.
Right then, not wanting to miss a beat, Solis placed a hand on the ground and did an upper kick that heavily impacted the horseman's behind, thereby sending him flying across the cavity he caused before landing on the other side.
'With that horse out of the way, I should quickly take this chance to feed that dying f**k a healing potion.'
His next action already in mind, Solis promptly skidded down the slight slope of the cavity to get to where Valedd was lying half-dead.
Upon seeing Valedd's mangled form that couldn't be considered normal, Solis unwittingly winced at the gruesome sight before him. Broken bones jutting out the surface, ligaments that were twisted beyond belief, and an overall appearance that could be called a bloody mess. Was he still even alive at this point?
Solis checked his Character Window once more just to make sure, and he was still indeed alive, albeit only holding on to a sliver of health.
'No time to waste. I gotta save this guy if I want to kill that horseman. Only by working together with him will I have a chance of survival against that barbarian, or else I will be ending up like him if I fight alone…'
Having assessed his situation clearly, Solis made up his mind and took out three health potions from his inventory. Alas, there was just a bit of a problem.
'Looking at him, this guy's clearly not in a state to drink the health potion on his own… What should I do, then?'
He inadvertently frowned as he scanned the mangled body from head to toe, searching for a way to somehow administer the liquid. Ultimately, Solis' gaze landed on Valedd's face, before moving on to his lips.
'…No way.'
He frowned even more deeply at his subconscious thoughts as he shook them away and tried to get them out of his head. Seriously, was that really the only option he had?
'There must be another method! Surely…'
But he had to think fast; time was running out. Solis clenched the three small red bottles in his hands while trying to think up something—anything other than that. Then, it eventually hit him.
'Wait! I've got it!'
Solis' eyes gleamed brightly in the mist and fog, as he finally thought up of a brilliant idea that would keep his dignity as a man safe. Setting his plan into action, he hurriedly uncorked the three health potions, then poured all of their contents onto Valedd's mutilated body.
'This should work… No, for the love of God, please let it work!'
Solis hoped and prayed in his heart for the experiment to succeed. In a few seconds, the three small bottles worth of red liquid showered down toward Valedd's body, and miraculously, when the substance made contact with the wounds or injuries it healed them without a problem.
Solis stared intently at Valedd's character window, and he couldn't stop himself from letting out a satisfied grin. He watched silently as Valedd's health points quickly climbed up all the way to 306 HP. Surely this was more than enough to bring him back from the dead.
In a matter of seconds, Valedd's mangled body returned to its original shape and form; only the copious bloodstains remained on his clothing as evidence of the terrible state he was in a moment ago.
Valedd's shut eyes trembled a bit before he slowly opened them. His daze look seemed to indicate that he was at a loss as his eyes swam around everywhere in his surroundings.
"…Where am I? Is this hell? Am I dead?"
'Why would the first thing you think about when dying is hell? Shouldn't it supposed to be heaven or something?' Solis thought wryly.
Then, he squatted down to be somewhat at an eye level with Valedd, so that the poor man wouldn't have to strain himself from looking up at him.
"No, you're not dead, Young Master Valedd. You were merely unconscious for a while." Solis replied to him. "But this isn't the time to be dawdling and asking me questions. We've still got a powerful enemy to defeat in our hands! So, get up!"
Solis forcefully took his left hand and then lifted him off the ground.
Valedd was startled at the strong pull, as he almost lost his footing when he stiffly stood up. He was just about to open his mouth and ask another question when he heard a sudden bellow, snapping him out of his dazed state.
"YOU SON OF A B**CH! I'LL F***ING MAKE YOU PAY FOR THAT!"
Valedd looked up at the top of the crater, and there he caught sight of a burly horseman carrying a giant long axe on his shoulder. When he identified who the horseman was everything suddenly clicked in his head.
"Gaius… You damned traitorous bastard…!"
He remembered now, and that made his eyes abruptly turn into crimson. He should have been dead right now, a real goner; and it was precisely this man that almost killed him in this dreadful forest where no one would've been able to find his corpse. A day or two by now, his lifeless body would've most probably been eaten by the mongrels of this forest.
Valedd breathed heavily while gnashing his teeth in utter rage. He really, seriously wanted to slice and dice this treacherous villain into tiny bits and pieces of flesh and meat before feeding it all to the dogs.
"I can't stand it anymore!"
The genius young master of the Nebuchadnezzar Aswang Clan picked up his trusted sword on the ground. Then, he wielded it like an expert swordsman while unleashing a sharp, baneful aura that could pierce the eyeballs of any ordinary being looking at him.
"Let's end this!"
The clash of warriors, round two—final round—was about to start!