The enormous window that Byron glanced out through smashed into a hundred fragments that flung all over the room. They strew on the floor and encircled Byron, who had seen a group of three people leap from the city's streets.
Tim sank to the ground and stretched his legs to stabilize himself. He slid across the shattered glass and came to a halt a few meters away from Byron's position. Tomomi landed flawlessly on the floor, however Kou stumbled on one of the glass fragments, flipped back, and slammed his bottom against the ground.
Tim and Tomomi sprang to their feet and stared directly at Byron, who showed no symptoms of surprise. He had been anticipating their arrival. He stood silently watching them for a few seconds before greeting them.
"I expected company today, but not such an unique arrival. You must be one of the three intruders that incited a riot and massacred my men, and then you appear from nowhere through the window. What an impressive group of people."
"Byron! I've heard everything about your treatment of others! You've disgraced Ireene's life by first imprisoning this kingdom's monarch, then putting people through these horrible trials, even forcing Walmo and his buddies to go on a mission that involves slaying innocent people if they violate the rules! All of these horrible activities will return to their previous state once I kick your ass right now!"
"You'll kick my ass? That's a phrase I'd never hear from someone who disagrees with me. However, can you pull it off? I've heard you're a skilled fighter, but I believe I'm beyond your regular strength in comparison to those you've defeated before. I'll give you a chance to attempt, or perhaps you're too weak to battle me alone and had to enlist the help of some friends. I didn't expect Kou to be one of those pals. He was the last guy I expected to see with pirates."
Kou jumped to his feet and shifted his focus forward. He appeared to be terrified, but concealed it under his determination to defeat Byron. He irritatedly pointed at him and railed about the problems Byron had made since becoming the ruler of the Golden Wasakona.
"I know I won't be able to defeat you on my own, and we're not friends. We're just an alliance. I'm only here to show my support so that an evil monarch like you can be laid to rest once and for all! All of the things you've done in the past are completely unacceptable! I'm not sure if this is the ideal approach, but there's no turning back now! I used to be unconcerned about you being the ruler of Wasakona's capital, but now that I'm here, it disgusts me! Even if I have to do it myself, I'll beat you!"
"Kou, haven't you grown into a bold young man? You have my heartfelt congratulations. I never imagined you'd grow into the person you are now. I'm quite impressed that you've developed into a formidable fighter. You easily dispatched the bandits. That's incredible for a kid."
"Your bandit comrades are wusses who can't fight like men, so they decide to launch an army attack against three people. It is beyond any equality to disapprove trial participants to work as a team based on those regulations. Your approach to things isn't fair to people or to us. Those who take part are putting their lives on the line by venturing out into the desert alone and unsupported, while you cowards hide behind small soldiers like those bandits. I guess you're too frail to take care of yourself. I'll crush you!"
Tim heard and accepted Kou's criticisms directed towards Byron, but instead of allowing Kou to continue, he flung his arm in front of Kou's chest, preventing him from making any further blunders. As they stood there, Tim's intense look continued to cut through Byron's, until Tim eventually spoke.
"I understand your rage, but I'm afraid this opponent isn't on an equal footing with you, Kou. You and Tomomi should stay put and let me handle the situation. I came here to restore the kingdom's peace, and I'll do whatever it takes. I promised Ireene, and there's no way I'm going back on my word. After a promise has been made, it should be fulfilled.. No matter what happens, do NOT interfere! You got that, Kou, Tomomi?"
"You're much more stupid than I imagined if you believe you can beat this guy on your own! Byron is a Sea Noble, a position chosen and assigned by the world government. Because the world government only chooses the best fighters for each rank, conquering Byron will be impossible unless you have a strategy or more physical force than they do! You're simply a scumbag pirate who's been cruising the seas, slaying several inferior adversaries, but none of them compare to a single Sea Noble. Sea Nobles could knock down an entire army of stronger opponents without breaking a sweat."
"Yeah? Well, I'm not weak myself!"
When Kou saw Tim was not going to accept their help, he watched him carefully lift his right arm to the side, almost swinging it. Tim's fist instantly erupted in flame, which scorched outward. It wrapped itself around Tim's arm like a strange breeze and began to extend away from his chest. When Kou and Tomomi jumped to the side to back away, they observed a black and long sword emerging from the flames.
He swung his right arm in front of his chest, the blade's long tip pointing at Tomomi, who stood a few meters away near the wall. Kou was taken aback by the blade's look, which left him perplexed. "A sword...? I've never seen this kind of a sword before, they have never been discovered in the Vast Expanse, especially not in Golden Wasakona..."
The flames flared up, then suddenly dissipated into the air, as though extinguished by wind or water. Tim then tossed the blade forward and twisted it to face Byron by pulling his hand back. He held the sword in both hands and braced himself for a tough fight.
"Watch it, because I'm kicking your ass!"
Tim took a stride forward with his left leg, his torso bending forward. He pressed his toes into the earth and elevated his heels. He ran forward at breakneck speed, slipping in front of Byron. He sliced the sword in an oblique motion and saw the blade go through Byron's hip, but there was no blood.
The sword sliced through the sand and separated Byron's body and legs upon impact. The sand continued to fall, and Tim was startled to hear a laugh from behind him. Byron's body reattached itself like sand, and there was not even a mark on his skin. "What the hell happened?" Byron smiled as he observed him and looked Tim in the eyes. He shared information that Tim found interesting.
"I'm afraid that won't be enough to take me down. Because my entire body is built of sand, I can modify it in any way I desire. Swords and physical strikes have no effect on me. So, are you prepared to die?"
Tim reacted instinctively and chopped through Byron's neck from one side to the other. It erupted into sand on the floor, but Byron's head sprouted back out from the torso, just like before. He maintained his smile and then flung his right arm behind his back.
Byron's palm started to loose sand, which circled around his wrist. He swung his palm forward and crashed at Tim's skull, but Tim raised his sword in front of his head and shielded himself. As a result of Byron's onslaught, the sand began to spiral around Tim and wrap itself around him like a snake. Tim's hands were bound by the sand, and he couldn't swing his sword.
Byron instantly drew his right arm behind his back and punched forward at shoulder height. Tim was thrown into the wall adjacent to the window after the knuckles slammed into his face. The wall erupted into pieces and spread around next to the shattered glass when Tim's body collided with it. Tim's body began to float across the sky.
Byron burst out laughing and took a step forward. He jumped through the hole in the wall and followed Tim, who instantly began rotating his body around in an attempt to regain control. Due to the intense strain being applied on his body, it was impossible and he couldn't accomplish it. He barely managed to see Byron approaching him swiftly, his legs engulfed in a sand whirlwind.
"He can fly?"
Tim attempted to straighten his body and draw it forward in order to drag the blade forward as an attack. Byron swooped over Tim's flying body, rotated using the sand as a boost, and then hit Tim in the chest, sending him crashing to the ground at breakneck speed. Byron abruptly came to a halt in the air and spread both arms, beginning to discharge sand from behind him. The sand snakes darted behind him, peering over Byron's shoulder, which he promptly released after slamming his fists in front of his chest. The snakes sped through the air and slithering at Tim at breakneck speed.
Tim realized what would happen if he was struck by the snakes. As his eyes trembled, he was taken aback. He lifted both of his legs and bent them in front of his stomach as the snakes closed in on him. "Burning Boost!"
He kicked both legs forward, igniting a fireball that exploded and propelled him through the air like a rocket. The snakes soon whirled around and pursued Tim, who rolled backwards before finally straightening his body.
"Burning Boost!" The flames exploded beneath his soles once more. He launched himself to the right side with greater speed than before, repeating the procedure of attempting to avoid the snakes that would not release grasp of his body. The snakes again turned in the same direction as Tim and flew after him, gathering speed as they chased him.
He repeated the act of propelling himself with flames. As he hurled his body toward Byron, the flames blazed beneath his boots, and Byron quickly swiped his hand from left to right, pulling sand from the temple's corners. He sculpted it into a long, wide sand wall, blocking Tim's route. Tim immediately braked in the air and came to a halt before the sand could absorb him.
The sand snakes were still flying behind him, he realized. His mouth shuddered, and he launched his flames through the air alongside the sand wall, but it was in vain.
The snakes pursued him, and he continued to utilize the flames as a boost, bouncing and flying through the air without stopping. The snakes stayed fixed on him and followed his motions no matter where he went.
He tried attacking Byron from every angle he could think of, but he couldn't get into a good position to launch a long-range attack. He finally came to a good position after more jumping, flinging, and dodging the snakes, and instantly turned his body around. He ignited his sword by raising it far into the air above his head. It screamed out furious flames and then unleashed a long-ranged blade of fire that shot through the air toward the flying snakes with a downward swoop.
The sand and the flames collided and burst when they collided. After they spread and fell toward the town's streets, Tim was able to refocus on Byron, who continued to fly through the air.
"He can manipulate sand in any way he wants, and the sheer amount of sand in the town and desert certainly gives him an advantage. All I can do with the aura is make fire, but he has complete control over the sand. I need to strike him as quickly as possible before I run out of energy to spew fire, but there's nothing I can do because of his immunity to physical strikes."
The battle continues...