If there was one word that could describe this golden dreadlock zombie, it would simply be:
'Honourable.'
Ryan didn't know whether he should be mad at the cunning Gift, or the injuries on Lex.
It was too honest…
"You didn't use your weapon." Ryan gnashed his teeth. Grinding them with a smile.
One that belonged to that of a tiger.
He was so livid from this dastardly tactic that they would've used against Goldie themselves. Perhaps it was hypocritical, but they wouldn't be heroes if they were fair.
Honour belonged to knights.
Goldie retrieved his extended arms and cracked his neck. He was actually surprised.
It's not everyday someone would be able to analyse his Innate Gift with the little clues.
Regardless, this wasn't a weakness.
Changing from being a challenger to the challenged meant he had a home advantage.
The second effect of his Gift activated.
The benefits of being the one challenged…
"I didn't need it against someone unarmed."
"How noble." Ryan mocked the hypocrisy.
"Call me what you want, you caveman. I now know your abilities, and all their effects."
"…Really?" The bulky youth raised brows.
"I'm honest. There's no point having any mistrust in my words." Goldie clarified.
This was a rule he placed on himself so that he wouldn't stray too far from his origin.
Not wanting to become a total monster.
He continued with confidence. Raising his index at Ryan while making a statement:
"You can't beat me." The zombie stated as if understanding about his opponent's abilities.
Putting on a posture of being the very best.
A predetor for humans.
"Why'd you say that?" Ryan narrowed his eyes while spinning the bat in his right hand.
Swinging it around and around.
Goldie Dreadlocks too picked up the strong-looking club he'd discarded not too long ago.
Having fought Lex completely on even terms.
"You're using that now?" Ryan felt unnerved by the amount of times he was doing this.
He guessed the guy was pairing weapon with weapon. Not going back on his words.
Was this some form of psychological tactic?
"Don't worry. This doesn't have some amazing ability like yours. It's just something to whack you to death with." The monster's words caused the bulky young man to frown.
"…So you know about me?" Ryan tilted his head. After all, there was no way he would.
The boy hadn't lived in this era for that long.
"You shouldn't take advantage of another person's ability if you don't understand it. This is how my Innate Gift works." Goldie started to explain it, and Ryan didn't interrupt: "It's called 'Sacred Duel'. A vow between fighters.
When I challenge others with it, I need permission to use the effects to isolate the two of us. No attacks will reach those who are in a 'duel'. This way, I can have a fair fight.
But when others challenge me, I'm allowed to get information on their abilities to an extent."
When he finished his explanation, Goldie pointed his weapon at the youth and spoke:
"You have no Class." He said this in a way that could cause some misunderstandings.
"I don't need one." Ryan's weapon, Gravel Dusk, glimmered dangerously with power.
An opal glow combined with a dark radiance that seemed to devour light in its entirety.
They walked closer to each other without missing a beat. Accounting for any dangers.
The first one to make a dumb move would be whacked, so they were both being careful.
Ready to show exactly what they trained.
Ryan was no swordsman. He was somehow laughably inept despite having a teacher.
But when it came to using other weapons-
WHACK!
He wasn't that bad.
Ryan and Goldie took a swing at each other.
Their weapons colliding heavily, but none of them backed down. No one stepping back.
"You're strong, but not a proper Warrior." A glint of curiosity appeared in youth's eyes.
The zombie couldn't figure out how the person in front of it was able to use magic.
Miasma should be influencing and irradiating Ryan's 'reinforcement', but it didn't change.
There was no effect.
"I don't need to be a Warrior to beat you black and blue." Ryan changed his strategy.
Something was about to happen.
"Well… Yeah, you do." As if speaking something obvious, Goldie swung once again. Putting his back into aiming for the skull of his opponent. Trying to shatter it.
However, he missed by a large margin.
Goldie's eyes glanced down to see his foot had melded into the floor. It was stuck inside.
Completely phased into the concrete floor.
"Here. Let me get you out of there." Ryan smugly mocked while throwing a light swing.
BANG!
The stroke was heavy enough to injure, but not enough to push him out of the concrete.
Goldie made a furious look. He glared while enforcing his Miasma Reinforcement on his leg. Throwing a decent flying knee. It wasn't enough to kill, but it managed to strike him.
Enough to knock him a few steps back.
The zombie became more cautious, but the versatility of this type of instant manipulation of elements was a first. Most who were born Mages had to write scripts to direct Mana, but this bulky guy in front of him merely danced.
He'd make some strange motion. Like waving or pushing at nothing. In response, the ground and concrete would mould to his willpower. This was exactly that: 'Moulding'.
Only an advanced application lost in history.
Shadows enhanced and interwove around the basic techniques using the 'Earth Style'.
Digging a pitfall became phasing the opponent into the ground to bury them.
Earthen Lances became Solid Spears.
The intricacy of the dark element interwove into the simplistic Moulding using Earth.
It was pretty well-practiced.
Except… His opponent was wrong.
"You know… Fighters have two Stigmata Gifts that are widely known: 'Peak Constitution' and 'Riot Hysteria'. The latter only activates when the user has low health." These honest words, coupled with his earlier actions, made the zombie's opponent stop trying to injure.
Merely standing there in shock.
"If you want to kill, you need to focus and do it cleanly. Warriors all excel in that. If you don't do that, well…" Goldie shook his leg and showed a lack of injury from the attack.
Regeneration.
It wasn't the same as natural healing. He'd pieced his body back together using miasma.
The strong energy of death stored within.
Ryan mused at how anti-synergistic it was if he was telling the truth. It didn't suit him.
But if you look at it from another angle, if he fails to kill him in one move, the zombie would immediately restore his health after inflicting a nasty wound. It was a counter gimmick.
However, Ryan still felt confident.
The brown baton and black shield was separated. Gravel Dusk was deactivated.
He pulled out the third weapon of his Gift.
A white pistol was drawn. A powerful energy of light automatically loaded itself as bullets.
Before the zombie could interrupt him, he shot a barrage of laser bullets from the gun.
Causing Goldie to immediately retreat.
He then saw several more weapons appear.
The earthly baton was wrapped in a dark shield, radiant firearm, flowing ribbon, fiery lighter, razor wind edge, and electromagnetic taser. Swirling into a poorly defined, rugged bat. Emanating a reckless and chaotic power.
It was his final technique.
Goldie tried to interrupt it, but his peak speed had been accounted for without some 'scan'.
The bulky youth's observation skills weren't to be ignored. He also calculated factors.
There no fancy movements to sound out Goldie's abilities. He only needed one strike.
That much was enough.
His ultimate technique was still rough and unfocused, but it was still a 'final form'.
The elements didn't simply add to his attack's strength. They combined to multiply it.
The result was a overwhelming magical pressure that acted like an armour around him. With Goldie's current strength, he wouldn't be able to stop him whatsoever.
When the ultimate bat, 'Galaxy Dusk', was lifted. The entire mall started shaking.
An earthquake that alerted outside forces.
In an office of Faustus City, the headmaster of a certain academy lifted his head thoughtfully.
Looking away from his workload.
"Someone is touching the realm of the ultimate again. Has it been thousands of years since the last time this happened?" A strange look appeared on the man's face.
He looked at that direction.
"Sir…?" His assistant looked worried.
"I'm going to oversee Deanfold City's rescue operation myself. Prepare everything."
"Yes, Sir…!" The assistant nodded his head.
A massive light engulfed the sky. The ground and space itself started to shake fearfully.
As if they were trying to keep distance.
All he had to do was throw the attack.
Ryan started winding up for a heavy smash downwards. His back arched exaggeratedly.
The world became slow.
Frozen in time at the moment before the great impact. A moment of calm before the storm.
There was only one person who could sense this world within moments. Two red eyes silently glinted, and a fist tore through the world of pressure. Parting the sea of force.
The fist created a river that ran straight into the chest of the only person frozen in time.
That instant then ended.
When time started to flow, Ryan could only gasp for air like a fish brought above the sea.
He felt a tremor run through his organs.
Someone had played him.
He'd fallen a trap the minute he started to talk to Goldie. Believing every word he said.
The enormous power dispersed. A blue light of Water Mana covered the wounded area.
Trying to heal the injury.
"You… lied…" Ryan felt both embarrassed and scared. Knowing he was in danger.
A shadow loomed over him.
Goldie looked hysterical with his beaming smile and glaring eyes. Being full of passion.
His ability had activated, but he had no wounds to trigger this Stigmata Gift:
'Riot Hysteria'.
"I didn't lie even once." Despite his scary face, Goldie was already past being livid.
He was already insane from the get-go.
"The only problem was that you think being honest is a weakness, isn't it? Did you think I'd warn you before attacking? You should have already known." Goldie pointed at his head: "I have all your mastery data in here."
Ryan then understood what happened.
Maybe it was because of his lovely looks and expression, but he forgot Goldie was dead.
If this Gift, Riot Hysteria, only worked when the user themselves had low health, then…
…wasn't he already in the negatives for that?
Being a zombie meant he was dead from a fundamental law's viewpoint. It couldn't be altered. He fact he had misunderstood that Goldie couldn't use his ability was his own fault. After all, this barbarian zombie didn't lie.
He simply misled and guided Ryan's actions.
Baiting him into using his ultimate technique so he could dismantle and ambush him.
That was the reason for his loss.
He believed honesty without compassion.
Paying for it dearly.
Ryan felt his heart aching.
"You should take this as a lesson to the other side. If there is an afterlife." A zombie like Goldie wouldn't know. He simply did as the screaming laws in his head told him to.
'Eliminate life!'
Goldie could've probably went against that ghostly thought, but he was spiritually tired
There was no room for errors in his path.
When he became a Black Death, he'd have to kill numerous more people like this anyway.
One more dead guy didn't mean anything.
Goldie lifted his club with both hands in the same posture Ryan had been using earlier.
Ready to being down judgement.
Ryan felt he was at the end of the road. Even unwillingly closing his eyes to take the hit.
He didn't want to die.
But even if he wanted to live, there was no second chance. He'd pay for his errors.
Things were about to take a turn for the worse. Hope was fading from existence.
After bashing Ryan's head in, Lex would be next. However, they couldn't change fate.
They were out of commission.
Just as Goldie was about to strike the nails in their coffins, a strange sound interrupted.
'…?' Goldie looked in the area. There was a subtle noise gradually becoming louder.
The sound an engine roared.
CRASH.
With a large bang, a flying car came barrelling through a window. Shattering it to pieces.
The zombie stayed his hand.
It wasn't like the most annoying one of the two of his prey could escape. Simply no way.
His Gift, Sacred Duel, would immediately kill anyone who even attempted to run away.
Space itself would collapse in order to punish those who tried to run away from a battle.
That applied even to him.
Though since he was already dead, it was hard to say if 'death' could really apply here.
Maybe he'd be extra non-alive or something?
Well, the details didn't make any sense.
The car tried to ram into him while he was lost in thought. The tyres were close to hitting him as it wizzed past. Unable to directly lay a hand on him until his current 'duel' was over.
"Are you challenging me?" Goldie took initiative to ask this to the newcomer.
Then he patiently waited for a response.
After seeing attacks were ineffective, Lex's father parked the car on the ground calmly.
He bravely opened the door and walked out the car. The zombie did nothing to stop him.
Sacred Duel's rules were still at play.
Mr Lindblum got an ominous feeling when he saw the powerless Ryan gasping for air, then turned his head to see his son barely holding onto his consciousness. Having been awakened by the familiar sound of an engine.
Lex couldn't see anything, but he knew exactly who arrived… and what he'd do.
"Dad…" The boy cried out.
He knew what was about to happen. There was nothing he could do. He already lost this.
The father looked at his son's expression and broken figure. Blood seeping from the chest.
His skin bruised and torn. His mouth barely able to string words. His breath stank of iron.
He carefully lifted his child.
"It's fine. I'm here."
"D-Dad, don't accept or challenge him. His Gift-" Lex's panicked words were shushed.
"I can guess as much." He glanced at how calmly the zombie was watching his reaction.
A hysterical and crazy smile on Goldie's face.
He ignored his child's protests and brought him over to the backseat of the flying car.
The father didn't choose to leave just yet.
Also bringing the child, Ryan, to the back and putting on both their seatbelts by himself.
"Are you challenging me?" Goldie asked this again, but this time in a provocative tone.
As if to say he wouldn't let them leave alive.
The father didn't answer, he simply turned to aim the Ruby MagiPistol at the zombie.
This much was enough of an answer.
"Ha!" Goldie exclaimed in pride: "Now let's see what you're made of, Mr latecomer."
Information was sent directly to his brain.