"Who are you, really?"
Ado's sharp gaze burned with frustration and anger as he stared at Arthur.
The man standing before him, this so-called porter, couldn't possibly be as ordinary as he claimed.
At least that's what his domineer suggested.
What was his connection to Claire?
He couldn't be her teammate.
That much was obvious. The guy was crippled, and there wasn't even an ounce of mana around him.
No aura.
Nothing.
Ado wasn't in the mood for this mind game anymore. His patience was already wearing off, and this unexpected interference was like salt in a wound, fueling his irritation more.
But Arthur, contrary to what Ado thought, remained unfazed.
Took his pressuring gaze head-on.
For a moment, the silence between them was heavy.
Yet Arthur didn't bother answering.
Instead, he turned toward the towering green ogre standing beside him.
With a subtle shift of his eyeballs, Arthur gave a silent command. It was barely noticeable, but the ogre caught on immediately.
Stupid as he was, the creature still understood the intent behind his summoner's glance.
Without hesitation, the ogre charged forward, its massive build closing the distance in an instant.
Ado's lips stretched into a scornful smirk as he eyed the charging ogre. His expression showed nothing but evident disinterest.
"Fine. I'll kill him first then,"
He muttered as if the ogre were nothing more than a minor inconvenience.
But then, a slow, mocking smile spread across Arthur's face.
"Bastard," Arthur whispered in a low voice, too low for anyone to hear. "Before I got crippled, I fought guys way stronger than you. You think I'll lose now?"
He turned to Claire, who was standing nearby, her gaze fixed on confrontation. She looked tense, unsure of what to expect.
Arthur spoke, his voice calm but firm.
"Claire."
"Yes, Master?" she answered, snapping out of her daze.
"Just do as I say,"
Her confusion deepened, though she didn't show it. As his summon, it was her duty to protect him, and she could see how grim their situation was.
From her previous confrontation, she already knew winning against Ado was impossible.
Yet... for some reason, as she looked at Arthur's unfazed demeanour, a small part of her started to believe otherwise.
Maybe... just maybe... with him, they could turn this around.
Claire gave a slight nod like her usual self.
Arthur exhaled a puff of smoke from his cigarette, his eyes narrowing as he quickly ran through the plan.
"The ogre won't hit him directly. I've ordered it to fake the attack. It'll shift to the side at the last second and throw a punch from the blind spot. That's when you strike."
"Understood," Claire said, taking her stance.
"Don't aim to kill him, just injure him, go for his vitals."
"Yes, Master,"
As Arthur commanded, the ogre shifted its momentum at the last moment, turning sideways just as it reached Ado.
Too frustrated to focus, Ado missed the feint, something unexpected by him. His dagger sliced through the empty air.
The ogre used that split second to launch a punch, its massive fist falling toward Ado. But even in his anger, Ado's reflexes didn't fail him this time.
He narrowly dodged the strike in his classic way, something Claire already had experienced.
"Now," Arthur signalled.
Claire moved instantly, "Basic Swordsmanship, Form Two: Heaven."
Her blade glowed faintly as a concentrated aura blast shot forward in a precise, straight line toward Ado's legs.
The timing was perfect.
Just as Ado's foot touched the ground after evading the ogre's punch, the aura blast struck it. There wasn't enough time to dodge, and it hit him dead on.
The sharp impact sent Ado rolling on the floor, blood running down from his injured leg.
"Motherfucker! Who the hell do you think you are?!"
Ado roared, spitting curses as he struggled to stand.
But he didn't get the chance.
Following Arthur's instructions, the ogre picked up the massive broadsword hanging from the shop's display, the weapon Claire had pointed out earlier when they first arrived.
With all its brute strength, the ogre swung the blade in a wide, powerful arc.
The blow landed hard, sending Ado flying across the room. He crashed into a shelf of decorative spears, shattering the glass display before slamming into the wall behind it.
The slash was the combination of the ogre's full strength, every ounce he could muster and the shop's one of the best swords and yet,
It left only a deep wound.
That was the strength of someone in the Elite Realm.
'I wonder what grade his soul will summon after I sacrifice him.'
A thought crossed Arthur's mind, only widening his smirk as he watched Ado struggle, blood dripping from his head and staining his face red.
His broken leg made it impossible to stand properly, and yet his fierce gaze burned with intense anger and rage.
He was too irritated now.
Ado, now trembling with rage, glared at Arthur. "You're a dead man, you bastard!"
Arthur didn't flinch.
He stood there, calm and unbothered, just casually smoking his cigarette.
Arthur's eyes shifted to Claire. "Now, fight him with everything you've got,"
"Yes, Master."
Claire gave a sharp nod and, without hesitation, launched herself at Ado.
With her broadsword raised high, she swung a vertical slash straight at him. Ado countered effortlessly with his dagger, his cold, unyielding gaze locked on Arthur as he advanced slowly toward him.
Claire shifted her stance, channelling her aura into the blade.
The sword began to glow faint blue before she unleashed a lightning-quick strike aimed at Ado's face this time.
He blocked again with his flaming daggers, sparks flying from the clash.
But before he could walk any further, the ogre came out unexpectedly, grabbing Ado's leg and making him off balance.
Claire seized the opening and drove her blade toward his chest, but Ado twisted his body at the last second, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow.
Gritting his teeth, he unleashed his full power, flames erupting across his body.
The intense heat burned the ogre's hand, forcing it to release him. Ado didn't waste the chance, he swung his flaming dagger with all his strength, cleaving the ogre in two.
Blood splattered across the room as the lifeless body collapsed to the ground.
Ado's bloodshot eyes then turned to Claire, making her instinctively freeze for a moment.
"Claire," Arthur called out, exhaling smoke as if unbothered, still like everything was under his control.
"Don't try to kill him, now. Play defensive and exhaust him."
Arthur's aloof response sparked confidence in Claire.
She nodded and shifted to a hit-and-run strategy, Striking him and after he had repelled the strike before he could attack her back, she retreated just out of Ado's reach.
For ten minutes, she repeated the pattern, frustrating Ado further with every missed attack. Eventually, his patience completely snapped, and he ignored her entirely, charging straight at Arthur.
"Master!" Claire shouted, rushing to intercept him, but—
Bang!
Ado's eyes widened in disbelief as a bullet pierced his right eye.
The realization hit him too late, the crippled, defenseless man, he thought Arthur to be... Struck him directly in his eye with a gun.
A gun.
He was so much into a rage that he never thought about that,
and yet he used to call himself a veteran...
What a joke this fate made of him.
And soon... Before he could do anything,
Bang! Bang!
Two more shots rang out, striking his remaining eye and forehead. Ado collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
Claire froze in shock, staring at Arthur, who calmly lowered his gun.
The mighty Elite realm practitioner she thought was impossible to defeat, dead powerless before the feet of her master.
[You were involved in the death of one Elite Realm human. Do you wish to sacrifice his soul?]
********
{A/N}
Finally, the long-ass fight concluded, Now, Comment on what type of Racial Class Arthur should pick...