“Don’t feel too bad that yoing to take fourth,” the Drakken woman said, removing her helmet to reveal her hardened face. She was more handsome thay, with short hair that was cut at the side, with slightly longer hair at the top. Brass scales fell down the sides of her neck, going down to her back. “It’s just your lue ae.”

  “Funny that,” Adam said, revealing his own face to her. “I was going to say the same thing.”

  “What is a handsome fellow like you doing in the finals?” Vasera asked.

  “I’m trying to make a name for myself, you know how it is.”

  “I do,” Vasera firmed, her hair boung as she nodded. “They say I don’t have to surrender against you.”

  “They said the same to me.”

  Vasera donned her helmet. “Good luck, Faeken, you will .”

  “You too, Drakken,” Adam replied, donning his helmet, before lifting up Strong Shield, and Wraith. “Hey! Do you want to make a bet?”

  “Ah? You’re speaking my nguage, Faeken.”

  “Firstly, it’s Vifaeken,” Adam replied, stating the term in the Drakken tongue, before tinuing in the Aldish, “and sedly, I know more than just that.”

  “You speak reat tongue?” Vasera asked, speaking in Drakken.

  “Something like that,” Adam replied, in the Aldish tongue.

  “How much do you want to bet?”

  Adam thought about how much he could spare. ‘I have quite a bit.’ “A thousand?”

  “Make it two.” Vasera reached for the diamond amulet at her chest, holding it up. It shone golden for a moment. “firm the bet.”

  Adam reached down to the symbol of Baktu on his chest. “Two thousand gold it is.” He felt his hand pulse with warmth as his symbol glowed gently for a moment. ‘What the hell was that?’

  Vasera was adorned in full pte mail too, brass in colour, though it didn’t appear to be magical. However, she held out her hand, and the brass of her armour seemed to almost melt before it formed a longsword within her hand.

  “Nice,” Adam whispered in the Drakken tongue. ‘I’m a little scared now.’

  “Should we have warned him about her on?” Jaygak asked, only realising then that it was more powerful than she realised. Due its magical entment, she didn’t seem too bothered about it, and nor was Jurot, but Adam did not have their tolerance for heat.

  “Adam,” Jurot began, “is Adam.”

  Battle OrderD20 + 1 = 19 (18)

  Fighting Spirit: 3 -> 2

  Attack - WraithD20 + 10 = 11 (1)D20 + 10 = 16 (6)Miss!

  Attack - WraithD20 + 10 = 13 (3)D20 + 10 = 15 (5)Miss!

  Onward Soar: 1 -> 0

  Attack - WraithD20 + 10 = 26 (16)D20 + 10 = 30 (20)Critical hit!Mana: 21 -> 19Ability: Divine SmiteWraith: 3 -> 04D6 + 6D6 + 12D6 + 9 = 79 (3, 3, 5, 6)(1, 3, 3, 5, 5, 6)(1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)79 damage!

  Victory!XP Gained: +600XP: 13 900 -> 14 500

  Adam and Vasera cshed in the tre of the arena, the pair finally able to fight without holding back. Wraith met the brass on, which sparked, and Adam ducked under a powerful swing, stepping behind the Drakken warrior. The pair spun together, and struck each other’s ons once more, sparks flying into the air. Adam could feel the heat of the bde as it tried to force its way through the chill of Wraith.

  Adam flexed his muscles, f himself forward as Vasera, who wielded no shield, csped her bde with both hands. She began to t, as Wraith formed a shadow over her. She brought her bde up to try and stop Wraith, and though she struck she caught the axe, it still tore across her armour, fshing white hot with divine magid cool with its charges.

  Vasera dropped to a knee before Adam, uo nd a blow against the Half Elf.

  “I told you to take him seriously,” Rook muttered under his breath from the sed flng over to the sed son of the Littlesea family. He shrugged his shoulders. “Fourth pce is not so bad.”

  The crowd was shocked, for Adam really only strud defeated his foe, which was simir to how he had defeated his st few oppos.

  “Orike!”

  “One kill!”

  Adam smiled. ‘Nice.’ Adam jogged towards one side of the arena, waving his axe around, before cttering it across Strong Shield. He tio enjoy his victory p while someone brought Vasera up.

  “Finally!” Adam huffed once he was back at the inner octagon. “That felt so good.” He gnced around, furrowing his brows. ‘Where…’

  Jurot walked around the arena, holding his axe and shield up. Yet, Kitool was o be seen. The croed, and as Adam wondered what they were gasping at, before Kitool’s staff nded on the ground, the baied to it twitg in the air. As the staff bounced up from striking the earth, Kitool nded right beside it, grabbing it before it could fall.

  ‘Why the hell are you Iyrmen so crazy?’

  Kitool, had been standing atop the walls of the octagon, about twenty Adam’s high. She had tossed her magical staff and dove after it. The dust settled around her, hiding how it had winded her, though Jurot could still see the fact. Kitool flexed her muscles and fought off whatever little damage she had taken.

  The crowd howled for Kitool’s dispy of physical prowess. They cheered for the smaller, thinner Kitool, who had mao defeat figures seemingly greater than herself. Kitool walked around the arena, holding up her magical staff, causing more of an uproar.

  Adam tilted his head, noting Kitool’s staff. ‘Hold on…’ He threw a look to Jaygak, who remained focused on the pair who were about to fight.

  Jurot held up both Mighty Roar and Phantom, as he always did. Kitool taking damage before the fight began was surely to add to her story, but there was an eveer decision she had taken to make the story truly great, ic.

  “You will not use Tigerstaff?”

  “I do not wish to end the fight quickly,” Kitool replied, bowing her head.

  Jurot lips formed a wide smile, before he felt his body heat up. He trolled the rage, as the fight had yet to begin. Had she used Tigerstaff, Jurot would have had a greater issue to deal with her, but to think she wouldn’t eve against him.

  Jurot held Phantom out towards her, and Kitool held Seekerstaff towards him. The pair remaiill, their entire bodies taut, ready t into a. A silence fell across the arena, while thousand of eyes fell across the pair. Adam’s fight had been a warm up for the audience.

  Ohe order was given, Jurot’s entire body turned red hot, but it was uo take hold within the Iyrman, as Kitool struck him with Seekerstaff, freezing him in pce.

  The dust floated in the air around them.

  Kitool inhaled deeply. She struck Jurot across the side of his leg, before pnting Seekerstaff into the earth, kig Jurot upwards. As Jurot was forced upwards, Kitool slid under him and onto her back, before kig him further into the air. The dust tio swirl around them, betraying Kitool’s near ghostly movement. She flipped backwards and swung Seekerstaff with all her might, striking Jurot across his chest, smming his frozen body onto the earth.

  At this point, Amokan and Timojin would have been knocked out, though Timojin would have immediately gotten back up. As Jurot’s body bounced up, Kitool used the momentum of Seekerstaffs blow to pivot on her foot, and aimed a heel against Jurot’s head, but she found only the dust she and Jurot had kicked up from moving so swiftly.

  Timojin had focused on his natural strength and might.

  Amokan had focused on striking wildly with great ons.

  Jurot had focused on taking on hell of a beating.

  Jurot stood beside Kitool, the pair taking a moment to gather themselves. Jurot’s entire body was hot red with rage, but even Kitool could see that he was one blow away from falling. Kitool spun Seekerstaff arouo try and strike Jurot, but before her staff could bruise his neck, it slipped out of her grasp.

  The people had already seen Phantom in a, and Jurot had revealed its true abilities. Before Adam had earhe phrase, Jurot had dispyed Phantom in full force against William of the Thunder Riders.

  Orike. One kill.

  Kitool fell within a single blow, in which Jurot had not only struck true, but had used all three charges of Phantom, each of which were strohan Wraith’s, but Jurot had no luxury of showing Kitool any mercy after her onsught. He would have caught her too, but after expending all his strength on striking her down, Jurot was barely able to keep himself standing. He couldn’t evehe crowd, as his vision blurred. It wasn’t just that Jurot was a simple blow away, but that he stood at a single Health.

  “Kitool is so scary,” Adam said, breaking the silence of his group.

  Brittany stared at the young Iyrman who had assisted in training her. Her eyes fell to Nobby, before they fell back to Kitool. Her lips twitched into a small smile.

  Kitool is way scarier than I inally thought...