The Sword and The Shadow

Sacred Wandering Lance

"To hell with you!" Geoffrey tore a spell scroll containing Death's Finger. That scroll was powerful enough to sap most of the mana of a low-order magus. Surely a first prince of the empire like him would at least carry more than ten such scrolls with level six or seven spells before going out.

From that perspective, Geoffrey wasn't that much weaker in comparison to Annelotte.

Within a short minute or two, Geoffrey had used half a dozen level-seven spells and more than ten level-six spells. However, the demi werewolf darted around the forest with lightning speed and was able to avoid most of the spells easily before leaping towards Geoffrey and trying to bite his throat off like a wild beast.

But Kurdak was no beast. He just fought like one because it was the fighting style that afforded him the most speed and strength. He thought of himself as an animal and visualized how they moved, avoided, and attacked.

But he still kept his human mind, despite the fact that it was so angry that it was at the brink of breakdown.

Pwooosh!

Death's Finger didn't strike Kurdak squarely and only brushed on his left arm. The demi werewolf only seemed all the more agitated from the pain and kicked his legs for a leap towards Geoffrey.

The first prince grit his teeth and tried his best to kick himself out of the way with one leg. However, his physical abilities were already quite weak by virtue of him being a magus. He was just only able to barely avoid Kurdak, but the claws that slashed past left three bloody marks on his face.

"Hell!" Geoffrey cursed. He turned to look at the frozen soldiers and Agnas and cried, "Help me or you'll know what's coming!"

The few of them only reacted after hearing the terrified cry for help. However, they hesitated. Kurdak now looked no different than a wild beast and Geoffrey was at an obvious disadvantage. If the first prince ended up dead, what would happen to them after they angered the beast? They were hesitating between fighting and running away.

Agnas grit his teeth and charged. His family's fate was in Geoffrey's hands and he had to fight if he wanted them to continue living a good life.

Agnas wasn't able to block the savage Kurdak at all, but he was able to buy enough time for Geoffrey. Some five short seconds later, Geoffrey's fireball came shooting towards them.

It was an attack that didn't take Agnas's wellbeing into account at all. He only wanted to eliminate the berserk Kurdak no matter what.

Boom!

Kurdak and Agnas were both blasted away in flames. Agnas slammed heavily into a tree and fainted from his accumulated wounds.

Kurdak, on the other hand, used his fire impetus to mitigate most of the damage from the fireball and adjusted his posture mid-air, allowing him to land gracefully on all fours. He kicked both his legs and shot forwards once more like an arrow.

"Aaaaaaaah!" Geoffrey shrieked with despair as he tore another golden scroll with the level-eight Bigsby's Vajra Palm, a spell which Annelotte had used to send Saron flying.

"Graaaagh!" Kurdak let out an ear-curling roar and sent his impetus out of his body against the giant palm, before sending his head-sized fist punching towards it.

He had just broken through to a new stratum.

In an instant, his impetus surged once more and he reached the 17th stratum. The rise in his abilities gave him newfound strength. His right fist looked like it expanded as it shot forwards like a trailing comet covered in flames.

Boom!

The collision triggered an explosion, sending shockwaves from the point of impact that flattened the trees nearby and struck some of Agnas's men who hadn't escaped yet.

Snow and dust gradually fell. Kurdak was now on the ground with all his fur gone. He had returned to his human form.

Geoffrey was also seated on the ground. Though he had many scrolls, they all took quite a large amount of mana to use. Bigsby's Vajra Palm was his last strike, but fortunately, he was able to take out the berserk fellow with it.

Geoffrey looked at his right leg. His calf was completely crushed and looked to be a mess of blood and meat. However, a magus like him knew there were many spells to heal limbs. He only needed the court magi to give it a look and wouldn't end up a cripple. However, he couldn't endure the humiliation Kurdak gave him. He was considering how he should deal with the fellow.

At that moment, there was some movement not far away.

Geoffrey looked up in shock and saw Kurdak's nearly corpse-like body struggle to stand. More shockingly, he had his grip around Londo's greatsword!

He didn't say a word or show any emotion, but he didn't stop. He crawled up like a zombie and inched forward with a heavy greatsword in his right hand.

Apart from the sound of the wind blowing through the forest, only his footsteps and the sound of the greatsword being dragged on the ground could be heard. Though Kurdak could already barely inch forward, he never stopped.

The incessant, repetitive sound made Geoffrey feel true dread. He looked at the expressionless Kurdak and backed away in terror. "No! Impossible! How can you still stand?! Impossible! Stop!"

"I hear you…" Tears and blood covered his face. He seemed to be muttering to himself and replying to Geoffrey at the same time.

"I hear you, Londo… you want me to… to kill him…" Kurdak limped forwards slowly. He couldn't move any quicker, given his injuries and the heavy sword he was lugging around.

"Kill… you… Kill you with this sword… to avenge… my brother… no matter what… I have to stand… my brother is calling…"

"Don't come here! I"ll give you gold! Tens of thousands of gold coins! Stop!" Geoffrey said, terrified, "Or do you want something else? Status? Women? Anything! I am an imperial prince! The first prince! The future emperor! I can give you anything you want! Just don't come here!"

"I only want one thing…" Kurdak was five meters away from Geoffrey. He struggled to control his body and mustered the last traces of energy he had remaining to inch forwards.

"What is it?" Geoffrey yelled in despair, "Just tell me! I'll give you anything! Just stop!"

"Your--" He looked Geoffrey square in the eyes and raised his greatsword. "--Your pathetic life!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!" His cry of despair rang through the forest.

Clang!

Kurdak's final strike ended up deflected by an ancient, even crude-looking, wooden lance. What was more surprising was that lance didn't show a trace of damage.

Kurdak turned around and saw a nondescript looking middle-aged man. His skin was a dark tan and he had white, balding hair. There were few wrinkles on his face, but each one was as clear as an engraving on a rock.

"Pffft!"

Kurdak vomited blood and some chunks of ruined innards, but he no longer took note of it. The final strike had taken the last vestiges of his energy. He blacked out and fainted at the sight of the middle-aged man.

"Hehehehehe… Ahahahahahaha!" Geoffrey laughed like a deranged madman from the relief of being saved.

The middle-aged man looked at the people around to assess their injuries before beginning his work without a word.

He kept the wooden lance and walked to the most heavily injured Kurdak before channelling a golden light towards him, holy impetus!

No, it wasn't just holy impetus! Part of it had been converted into the purest form of holy energy… Sacred light!

Any living creature would regain lifeforce rapidly under the illumination of sacred light, fiends included. Kurdak's expression softened gradually.

After making sure that Kurdak was no longer in mortal danger, he went to the second most injured Agnas and resumed his treatment.

When Geoffrey had enough of laughing, he turned to look at the middle-aged man and carefully took out his dagger and inched towards the unconscious Kurdak.

"It's best that you don't do so on account of the Sacred Light." The middle-aged man didn't turn back, but he noticed Geoffrey's movements all the same.

"I'm an imperial prince! I'll do whatever I want!" Geoffrey cried like an animal whose tail was stepped on.

"Apologies, but your status holds no bearing on me. I believe your younger brother has far better manners." The man continued treatment on the others without worrying that Geoffrey would kill Kurdak.

"Why are you here, Sacred Wandering Lance?!" Geoffrey asked with his teeth grit in frustration.