"No!" The pain in Jacob's voice was palpable, but the witch hunter master's heart and movements had never been swifter and more violent. His pistol fired continuously, and his axe swung wide, each motion taking a Forsaken's life.
Belter frowned. Jacob's performance slightly exceeded his expectations, so he signaled the remaining Forsaken to swarm. The fallen hunter faced the last young witch hunter.
"Fallen one, meet your fate." The young witch hunter wielded a longsword and a long pistol instead of an axe.
"Show some respect to your elders, kid. Didn't your mentor teach you manners?" Belter turned to face the young hunter.
The young hunter didn't respond verbally. Instead, the sound of a trigger being pulled was his answer.
A barrage of mercury bullets fired from the long pistol towards Belter's twisted face.
Belter immediately rolled sideways to dodge, and the bullets tore through the Forsaken, causing them to scream and fall. Mercury bullets were extremely effective against Chaos creatures, melting their corrupt bodies rapidly. Even Belter didn't want to face their power directly.
The young hunter fired three more shots, but Belter dodged each with incredible speed. As the shots ended, Belter charged at the young witch hunter. Without time to reload, the hunter calmly drew his sword, clashing it against Belter's axe with a sharp ring.
"Ugh!" The young witch hunter felt the overwhelming strength in Belter's arm, unable to resist. After a brief exchange, he rolled away and pulled a silver dagger from his coat, throwing it with all his might.
Belter caught the flying dagger with ease, grinning smugly. "This kind of throwing knife…"
"Boom!" Before he could finish speaking, a shot rang out from the side, a mercury bullet blasting off half of Belter's shoulder.
"As always, you're so easily overconfident!" It was Jacob.
In the burning warehouse, the witch hunter master had already dealt with all the Forsaken. Jacob walked through the flames. "Chayelin, fall back. Belter is mine."
"Yes, Vice President!" The young witch hunter named Chayelin withdrew from the battle.
The fire spread rapidly. What began as a small blaze in the inner room had engulfed the entire warehouse. The candles and piled clothing caught fire, and the beams were ablaze, filling the room with a red glow.
The scene was surreal, as if a grand banquet were taking place because only a banquet hall would be so brightly lit.
"Retreat, Chayelin. I'll handle things here. Find a way to get back to the city and tell Ryan and Veronica about this!" Jacob glanced at the warehouse door, seeing no ambush, and signaled for Chayelin to leave quickly.
"Vice President!" The young witch hunter hesitated.
"Go! Don't make me repeat myself." Jacob's battle axe clashed with Belter's, and Chayelin didn't delay any longer, rushing out of the warehouse.
Only the sound of clashing weapons and gunfire remained in the warehouse.
"Bang! Bang!" Jacob's short gun fired two more shots at Belter. The fallen hunter was hit in the chest and abdomen, but seemed unfazed. Belter's axe sliced through the hot air, aimed at Jacob's neck.
Jacob didn't flinch. The high-ranking legendary witch hunter dodged the deadly blade and countered, his axe slashing Belter's arm.
Belter's arm was hard as steel. Jacob noticed a metallic gleam inside. "This is… alchemical modification?!"
"Exactly. Human bodies are so fragile. So, I made a deal with the servants of the Lord of Pleasure." Belter's shattered shoulder also gleamed with metal. "I offered my body for their experiments and modifications, and they derived endless pleasure from my suffering. A win-win!"
Belter opened his mouth, revealing metal fangs.
"Self-indulgent fool!" Jacob fired two more shots, noticing blood still flowed from Belter's wounds, indicating that flesh still made up most of his body.
"Severing Strike!" Belter roared, his axe glowing with a crimson light. In the fire's glow, it seemed even more terrifying. Jacob's thigh was hit.
"Execution!" Jacob didn't evade. His axe came down hard, leaving a deep gash from Belter's shoulder to his waist.
The former mentor and disciple separated briefly. Jacob growled and instinctively rolled to his right.
Someone moved faster. As Jacob rolled, Belter had already drawn his pistol and fired at Jacob's intended position.
"Bang!" "Ugh!"
The gunshot and Jacob's grunt sounded simultaneously.
Jacob's body trembled slightly, clearly wounded badly.
"My mentor, I know you too well." Belter discarded his empty pistol, his tumor-ridden face full of satisfaction. "Every time you exchange injuries, you instinctively roll backward. And with your right leg injured, you'd roll to the right."
"Ugh..." Jacob pressed his abdomen, blood seeping through his gloves. The large man trembled in the fire's light. "Tell me, Belter, why did you choose this path?"
"..." Hearing his mentor's words and seeing the blazing warehouse, Belter's eyes showed a flicker of emotion. "Order took too much from me."
"I served humanity all my life, spent decades as a witch hunter, and dedicated my life to the nobles. But when my wife was dying, they refused to help."
"The plague first took my wife, then my daughter. I watched my daughter grow weaker, covered in sores, and could do nothing. I even knelt before the bishop of the Goddess of Mercy, begging him to save my daughter. And what did that fat bishop do? He cast a minor spell and left."
"Desperate, I tried everything, prayed to all the gods. Finally, in the void, a god as kind as a father answered me. In my despair, I was overjoyed. He promised that if I served him, my daughter wouldn't die. Hahaha! He did it; my daughter didn't die!" Belter laughed maniacally, pulling a 300ml glass bottle from his pocket. "Look, my daughter didn't die!"
Inside the bottle, a mass of flesh with an eye floated in murky liquid.
Jacob realized this was Belter's daughter. She was alive, but only just.
The fire had spread to where they stood. If not for the dwarven craftsmanship of the underground tunnels, the lack of ventilation would have suffocated them both.
"You should have known better. The dark gods grant wishes, but never as you expect." Jacob felt a complex mix of sadness, helplessness, and anger. "So you turned to the Blood God, Khorne."
"That's… bang!" Belter raised his axe, blocking a mercury bullet. The acid hissed against the axe.
"I know you well, my mentor. You love to attack unexpectedly." Belter lowered his axe.
"What about this!" Jacob had been waiting for this moment.
When Belter raised his axe, it blocked his view, giving Jacob enough time to unleash his strongest technique.
"Blood... Hurricane!" Jacob wielded his sword and axe in a perfect frenzy of attacks, each strike risking his own injury.
"Come, Jacob!" Belter also drew his sword and axe, launching his strongest move, "Dance of Death!"
Blades clashed, axes collided. The warehouse collapsed in flames, beams and debris falling but not hindering the fierce duel. Any debris was shredded by their legendary powers.
"Bang bang bang bang!" Their techniques collided, neither gaining an advantage. When their attacks ended, they stood in a field of rubble.
The fight continued amidst the burning wreckage. By the dim firelight, Jacob's relentless attacks finally gave him the upper hand.
The witch hunter master's axe slashed twice across Belter's chest. Belter's sword pierced Jacob's right shoulder. Each movement aimed to kill.
Jacob's sword grazed Belter's neck, and his axe swung towards Belter's head. Belter screamed, spinning to strike Jacob three times.
At the critical moment, Jacob halted, realizing he would die first if this continued. He quickly retreated, firing his pistol.
Belter dodged each shot, his body covered in wounds. His left arm hung useless, his face cut. Yet he laughed, a joy spreading on his face. "Jacob, how much more blood can you lose?"
Jacob's face darkened like winter frost.
He felt the weakness from blood loss.
Jacob knew that despite Belter's corruption and advancement, his strength was only that of a mid-level legendary fallen hunter. Jacob's power still surpassed his former disciple, and Belter hadn't fully mastered Khorne's tainted power.
But Jacob faced a fatal issue.
He was old.
His body was no longer young, his movements slower. He had missed the best chance to kill Belter, and now, weakened and bleeding, he doubted he could win.
Ten years younger, he was confident he could easily kill Belter with his skill and strength.
But now... the pain and weakness from his wounds overwhelmed him. Jacob knew his chances were dwindling.
"Mentor, I'll give you one last chance. Join me in serving the supreme lord!" Belter's tumor-ridden face twitched. His injuries were worse than Jacob's.
Jacob's response was silence and angry breaths.
"No other answer, then." Belter's blood-red leather armor was in tatters. "Do you really think Chayelin can escape? My mentor?"
"What?" Jacob's expression changed.
"The mercenaries are waiting outside." Belter's words rang true, with no reason to lie.
Knowing Belter worshipped Khorne, Jacob felt a twisted sense of relief. As absurd as it was, he realized that this was why Belter hadn't overwhelmed him with sheer numbers. Unlike the other Chaos gods, Khorne's followers valued martial prowess and survival of the fittest, giving Jacob the chance for a one-on-one fight.
The fire dimmed, leaving only the crackling of embers and the faint glow of dying flames, much like the state of the witch hunter master himself.
"Too much blood has been spilled, too many lives lost in pursuit of you. Those left behind must bear this hatred. So now, Belter, let's end this." Jacob stood up, resolute in his decision.
"Come, Jacob, let us finish our unfinished battle. My master demands a gift, and you will be my offering."
"Let's do this!"
The embers' glow faded, dispersing into the air like the last remnants of hope.
...
Marienburg, Shield Coin District, near the Sea Church.
The bustling crowd filled the streets, the noise of commerce echoing through the air.
It was mid-November, and the weather was growing colder. Even in Marienburg, the number of people on the streets had decreased. The cold weather drove many wealthy merchants and nobles to take a break from work and begin their holidays.
Inside the "Gindora" tailor shop, Ryan admired the new dress he had bought for Veronica. It was a deep black enamel embroidered gown with black roses, expensive at dozens of gold coins. Ryan's face showed no sign of regret; instead, he smiled and said, "It's beautiful, Veronica. This dress suits you. Let's buy it!"
"You think this dress looks good?" Veronica stepped out in slippers, twirling in front of Ryan.
"No, nothing can compare to your beauty. Your beauty isn't changed by clothes; you make the dress look exceptional, like coffee complemented by milk. The precious part is the coffee, not the milk."
"Hehe~ How many girls have fallen for your sweet words?" Veronica's tone was light, indicating her pleasure.
Ryan was about to say more when the sound of commotion from the street outside caught his attention. "What's going on out there? It's been noisy for a while."
"It's a mercenary group in a dispute over payment with a shipowner, Mr. Ryan. The Sea Church has sent Sea God Knights to handle it," the shop assistant explained quietly. "We apologize for the disturbance."
"They shouldn't be causing such a fuss on the street!" Ryan leaned out the window and was stunned by what he saw.
Isn't that the female mercenary from the Blood Axe mercenary group, Emilia?
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