James fell to the ground with a thud, his head rolling across the concrete as it created a trail of crimson blood on the ground. The battle was almost won, but there was still one enemy to deal with. Edward looked away from the corpses below him and turned toward his final enemy.
"How? How did this happen?" Dan shouted, more angry than ever. By this point, his eyes were a deeper crimson than the blood decorating the battlefield. Markus and Brandon hadn't yet begun their battle with him. Instead, they waited by the side like guards. Simply by standing still, they prevented Dan from attacking through sheer intimidation. Ikarus hovered a few meters above the fight— watching like a bloodthirsty bird of prey.
Edward took a few steps toward Dan and wiped the blood clean of his weapon. Leila followed from behind, though she seemed distracted. Edward recognized that she was currently inside her status screen as she allocated the points gained from her level-up.
"You seem to really love being killed," Edward smiled, "You have a crush on me or something?"
"You! You're the bastard that started all of this!" Dan shouted as he pointed his weapon in Edward's direction, "You're nothing but a cheating scumbag! Had you not used that monstrous pet, I would've claimed what was rightfully mine! You rely on your pet because you know— you know you can not beat me!"
"Hmm," Edward mumbled. He stopped just next to Markus and gazed at Dan.
︽
Dan Butler
Lvl 5
Paladin
HP: 105 | DMG: 16 | DEF: 26
︾
'His Damage and Defense are both too low,' Edward thought to himself, 'His stats are more balanced than the others. Luckily, he's not that difficult to beat. I could fight him, but I have a better idea.'
Edward looked to Leila and did the same. This time, however, his appraisal showed much more information.
︽
Lvl: 4
XP: 0%
Title: The Forgotten Flame
Origin: Dragonkin
—
HP: 80
MP: 160
SP: 85
HUNG: 80/80
---
DMG: (Pyrokinesis - 10) 42
DEF: (Leather Armor - 5) 21
—
POW: 1
AGI: 17
END: 16
WIS: 32
LUC: 1
—
Skills: [Perfect Pyrokinesis], [Draconic Language (Pending a safe environment)], [Dragon Breath],
︾
'Holy shit,' Edward thought to himself. He immediately changed the XP distribution in the party upon seeing how many levels Leila had gained from the battle so far. This time, he put all of the XP distribution toward himself as he and Ikarus were the lowest individuals.
"I think I have a better idea," Edward smiled. He looked back to Dan and smiled, "This whole fight happened because you and Leila fought. How about we have a rematch? If Leila beats you, then you must never approach her or anybody here ever again."
"A wager?" Dan laughed. He looked at Leila, "Against this weakling? I agree! When I win, you will give me everything you own, including your dragon!"
'Did he not appraise her? Fool,' Edward thought to himself, 'against his stats, there's no way she'll lose.'
"Agreed," Edward smiled. He turned to Leila, "Burn him alive for me, okay?"
"My pleasure," Leila smiled. She stepped forward and began to approach Dan. Then, to Edward's surprise, she dropped her daggers upon the ground, "I won't even need these to beat you."
"Cocky girl," Dan snarled. Then, before there was any confirmation for the duel's initiation, he charged forward and raised his greatsword. His speed was much faster than Edward's— but Leila was faster than Dan. She hopped to the side as two short bursts of flames erupted from the soles of her feet. As if she were using boosters, the flames carried her out of harm's way. She moved her feet to a different angle and directed the flames into the air. Then, as she rose upwards, she twirled her body in the air and forced her fist down.
A massive pillar of fire erupted from her fist and shot down at Dan as her legs rotated to support the midair somersault. By the time the pillar of flames reached Dan, she had already straightened her flight path and began to descend.
Dan— who was expecting an easy fight— was deeply shocked by Leila's strength and acrobatic skill. He didn't even recognize that a pillar of flames was heading in his direction. The fires struck his chest with ease, the force of which ripped apart his armor. His body flung backward before landing with a painful thud against the ground below.
Leila landed on the ground once more, then moved forward. Her feet danced across the ground as she swung her two arms wide— as if scooping the ground. Two waves of flames emerged from her skin and climbed through the air.
By the time Dan had recovered from his initial shock, both waves of fire had already reached him. By now, both of them were over three meters tall. Dan shouted in pain as he attempted to dodge the attacks. He was quick enough to avoid one wave as it passed over him— blocking that entire side of his vision. The wave of flames quickly turned into a wall too high to climb over. The other attack, however, struck him soon after. He was further pushed to the ground.
Leila stomped her foot on the ground before her as she raised another fist. A third attack in the form of a flaming arrow shot from her fist. Then, before the attack even left her personal space, she stomped her other foot down and attacked once more.
Both attacks shot toward Dan with enough strength to kill him, but he managed to dodge both by diving forward and falling to the ground. Half of the battlefield was on fire now. The only safe place to stand was near Edward and the others.
"H-How? How have you gained this much strength?" Dan asked as he slowly climbed to his knees. He gazed forward and the fiery figure before him, but his question was not answered. Leila lifted her right arm to her side and swung it wide in a circular motion above her head. Her left palm shot forward and the rest of her body turned to support the movement.
Immediately, flames began to surround the remaining battlefield in a circle. These flames gradually climbed higher until eventually forming a flaming tornado. From the center of this tornado, Dan screamed in pain and agony. Leila took another step toward the tornado and used both her hands to imitate the flames before her. Both of her hands rotated counter-clockwise but one was always ahead of the other. Then, with an expression of fierce satisfaction, she slowly brought both of her hands closer together.
The tornado shrunk in width yet rotated quicker than before. Dan's screams became louder and louder until, eventually, he became silent.
︽
+5% XP delivered by The Forgotten Flame
+5% XP delivered by Markus Davenport
+5% XP delivered by Ikarus
+5% XP delivered by Brandon Colt
+5% XP
︾
Leila looked at Edward and shrugged. Then, she lifted both hands and gradually lowered them closer to the ground. The flames on the battlefield died down until they were eventually extinguished. The battle had been won— and it wasn't even close.