We moved forward together, that seemed to be the decisive moment. That was an opponent too dangerous to stay alive much longer. I had an idea, but I didn't know if I would be able to do everything as I had planned, especially since I couldn't communicate with Arabella, so as not to give any information to the enemy. I just needed to inject some of the poison present in the arrowhead into him. It was a bet, but it was the only one I had at the moment. I needed to focus on hitting the part of his arm that had been severed. Taking advantage of the fact that he only had a single hand now. The officer accelerated her attack, pulling her dominant hand back, deciding to use a few blows to end it all. But it seemed that nothing could shake the strange man's confidence. A cruel smile slowly began to appear on his lips. It seemed like he had a plan. Arabella attacked, taking the neck as her target. But, the moment his blade was just inches away from its target, it suddenly stopped, seeming to no longer be able to move. That was when she looked down and realized that the hand that had been cut off by her had grabbed the tip of her cape, immobilizing her with an abnormal force.
"That fucking hand again!?" She asked. The anger and hatred were noticeable in his voice.
The man smiled; it seemed like everything was going according to his plan. It was at that moment that the theory that was forming in my head seemed to be right. Somehow, that man must have been an energy user. But something didn't seem right. Nothing that man did fit into the types of energy control that my master had told me existed. Could this be a rare type of domain? I needed to understand this. While my companion turned her attention (and anger) to the walking hand, I took advantage of the man's moment of distraction to attack him. He planned to use the dagger strikes as a distraction while he tried to use even a drop of that corrosive poison on his body. I advanced quickly, using my energy mastery to strengthen and accelerate my steps. There was no time that could be wasted in this fight. I needed to go to meet my master. I was already a few meters away from him, and I jumped to get even closer. While in the air, I made a sideways strike, aiming for his neck. With a quick body movement, the man turned towards me. With the same cynical smile on his lips, he throws a punch at my attack. When the blows collided, something unusual happened. My dagger had been broken just by coming into contact with his hilt. The fragments of my blade fall at my feet, and due to the shock wave resulting from the clash of our attacks, I ended up being thrown back, heading towards a nearby tree.
"Where's the guy who just killed my two allies?" He asks me, as he approaches me. "I know you're better than this." As he said this, he stopped. "Or, for some reason, you're not taking me seriously?" His expression had changed, and that cynical smile that was on his face disappeared, giving way to a closed expression, emanating anger.
I tried to get up, but the hit against the tree had done a lot of damage. I was tired and almost out of energy, but I couldn't give up. Furthermore, I supported my back against the wooden trunk, and forced myself to stand. My breathing was starting to get heavy; I was close to my limit.
My legs wouldn't stop shaking, and every step I took felt like it would be my last. I looked around me, looking for Arabella, and that's when I noticed her. She had just pierced the severed hand with her sword, pinning it to the ground. Right behind her, three other soldiers from Von Stein's personal guard appeared from among the trees, their clothes crumpled and full of blood. It looked like they had defeated some invaders. The mysterious man was cornered. When everyone had approached him, the man on Arabella's left fell. On her back, the warrior's sword was stuck. The hand had come loose on its own. It dragged itself all the way, trying to return to its owner. Upon reaching his feet, the hand began to climb the man's body, like a spider. The man picked it up, placing it in its original position, and almost like a miracle, it linked itself back to its place of origin. If it weren't for a scar present where it had been cut, no one would believe that the hand had been severed. Seeing the indignation on everyone's faces, the man began to laugh uncontrollably, savoring the terror on everyone's faces.
"Your persistence is truly admirable," The mysterious man said, as he put his left hand in his pocket, taking out three small objects that looked like stones as dark as the night, but that transmitted a dangerous aura. He looked at them, and with a quick movement, he threw all three into his mouth at once. And with a single bite, he devoured them. "But now, not even that can stop me."
After ingesting the three glowing stones, his energy seemed to receive a boost. His eyes turned red, his veins began to appear, and his muscles seemed to double in size. Upon seeing this, Arabella seemed to have almost lost her breath, as if she had just seen a ghost. "A soul stone? They are considered profane objects among warriors, which is why they were banned from the entire kingdom." Finally, he managed to say, "How did a simple little bandit manage to get his hands on not just one, but three copies of this item?" The man responded nothing; he just smiled, and with a quick dash, he went on the attack. He seemed determined to end the whole fight.