"Dropping your weapons and taking your armor off? Heh, you're making my life easier." Said Azazel with a wicked grin as he looked at Alexander, brandishing his claws, only to dash toward him.
Raising my fists, I lunged towards Azazel, who slashed his claws that dangerously cut through the air; tilting my body to the left, dodging his attack, I utilized [Strength Augument] and [Speed Augument], bolstering my already enhanced physical capabilities as I swiftly stepped forward and punched his stomach, forcing him back slightly.
However, unlike me, he seemed rather adept at fighting hand-to-hand, so he managed to slash my arm at the same time; clicking my tongue, I ignored the wound and pressed on, dodging another one of his attacks before punching his face. Yet, his earlier attack was merely a decoy, and he only showed his actual attack after I initiated my own, leaving me momentarily defenseless; glancing at his five claws that sought to stab my stomach, I [Blink], teleporting right above his arm as I redistributed my momentum to my leg, kicking Azazel in the face.
Having learned from the last time, I moved my leg out of the way, which proved correct, as Azazel would've slashed my calf if I hadn't. Landing on the ground, I pushed off of it and grabbed Azazel's face before sprinting toward a tree, where I then smashed him through it; however, I wasn't finished, and I continued to sprint deeper into the forest, leaving Yuki, Lazuli, and Vanye to deal with his friends.
Smashing him through a boulder, I suddenly grunted in pain before aggressively tossing him through several more trees.
"Tsk, that hurt." Muttered Alexander while rubbing his chest, where five blood holes appeared; though quickly, they healed within just seconds.
"Heh, thank you for that; it's a bit hard fighting next to my party members; I can't use my mana without worrying about accidentally killing them." Said Azazel with a wicked grin as he stood up, rubbing his face while approaching Alexander, who frowned at his words.
Coming to a stop, Azazel suddenly spread his arms, causing a blackish aura to erupt from his body before rapidly spreading; everything the blackish aura touched switched, decayed, and died, with the only exception being inorganic items. Narrowing my eyes at the sudden release of mana, I clicked my tongue, realizing what kind of mana Azazel had an attribute for.
"Death mana." Said Alexander with a slight frown as he looked at Azazel, who continued to release his mana before eventually converging it around his hands and claws.
"Now, let's see how you'll survive!" Said Azazel with a wicked smile as he lunged at Alexander, his body radiating death mana that killed everything it touched.
Since Azazel wasn't holding back, neither did I; activating [Lightning Cloak], causing a faint bluish aura to sound me along with tiny bolts of lightning across my body, I speedily dashed toward Azazel, reaching him first as I kicked his stomach, launching him far into the distance through several trees, though I didn't follow up and instead inspected my leg.
Looking at my shin, which was noticeably older than the rest of my otherwise youthful body, I watched how it returned to normal, not taking longer than a few seconds, causing me to sigh in relief.
'Ha, that's good to know. I was worried for a second, I figured my body could counteract the effects of rapidly aging, but I didn't know for sure.' Thought Alexander with a sigh of relief as he wiped imaginary sweat while cracking his neck, only for his gaze to harden as he raised his head and looked at Azazel in the distance.
"Let's make this quick." Muttered Alexander solemnly as he dashed after Azazel, leaving behind smoking footprints through the forest.
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Holding the unconscious Minotaur by the horns, I grunted before dropping him to the ground; he took pride in his strength, but couldn't even last five minutes against me.
"Hmph, what trash." Said Yuki angrily with a scoff as she spat on the Minotaur while kicking away his broken sword before violently slamming the butt of her shield on his head, causing it to explode.
Turning around, I glanced at Lazuli, who walked towards me while holding the head of the Succubus and dragging her burnt, frozen, and mangled body, leaving a bloody trail behind her, causing me to nod as I stepped to the side, allowing her to toss the corpse onto the Minotaur.
"Her beautiful voice served well for screaming." Said Lazuli lightly as she glanced at Yuki, who furrowed her brows before hesitantly nodding.
Just as I was about to open my mouth, I glanced at the approaching Elf, who had been dealing with that little Imp, though when I noticed he was nowhere to be seen, I couldn't help but furrow my brows in confusion.
"What happened to the Imp?" "Dead." Remarked Yuki and Vanye, respectively, as the former curiously eyed the latter, who pointed behind her with her sword.
Glancing at the two daggers the Imp used but no Imp, I rubbed my head in confusion before eventually shrugging my shoulders; so long as the Imp was dead, I was satisfied.
"So, um, thanks for your help–" "Vanye…. I've heard MUCH about you from Alex. Seeing how you easily handled your opponent, you've lived up to his boasting." Said Yuki and Vanye, respectively, as the former removed her helmet while looking at the latter, who did the same, flashing a faint smile of respect.
Glancing at the disfigured face of Vanye, I faintly smiled and outstretched my hand, grabbing her whole arm as I shook her, feeling a bit embarrassed at her words.
"Hahaha, well, Alex is also pretty amazing." Said Yuki with a faint blush as she sheepishly rubbed her head while shaking Vanye, whose expression slightly twitched.
"Y-Yes. He quite is." Muttered Vanye as she nodded in agreement while retracting her arm.
"Oh, speaking of Alex, shouldn't we help him?" Asked Yuki wth a raised eyebrow as she glanced into the distance where Alexander was fighting Azazel, only for Lazuli to shake her head.
"As your husband, Alex has an honor to uphold on your behalf." Stated Lazuli lightly as she glanced at Yuki, who frowned before sighing while reluctantly nodding.
"Haa, fine." Muttered Yuki in annoyance as she placed her two great shields on her back, before glancing between Lazuli and Vanye, only for the former to suddenly bow, causing me to tilt my head in confusion.
"Um… What are you doing, Lazuli?" Asked Yuki with a confused gaze as she eyed Lazuli, who raised her head.
"I'm apologizing for what I did and how I behaved all those years ago… I never properly apologized to you or Michelle, and it has been long overdue. I now understand the things I did and how you felt; I hope you can forgive me." Stated Lazuli earnestly as she stood upright while holding her chest, looking at Yuki, who was taken aback by her confession.
I was actually frozen in shock at Lazuli's apology; never would I have imagined this from her. However, I couldn't help but faintly smile as I reached down, embracing Lazuli in a powerful hug.
"It would be hard for me not to forgive you, Lazuli." Said Yuki with a toothy grin as she looked at Lazuli, who faintly smiled.
Setting Lazuli down, I heaved a sigh, feeling as if a small weight had been lifted off my chest, only for me to glance at the two before me.
"So, what now?" "Wait for Alex to finish?" Asked Yuki and Vanye, respectively, as the former glanced between the two, while the latter equipped her helmet, only for a bolt of lightning to be seen in the distance.
___
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Grabbing Azazel's wrist, I pulled him closer and violently head butted hsi face, knocking out a tooth, though I wasn't finished as I quickly grabbed the back of his head before slamming my flaming knee into him. However, he managed to regain his bearings and returned the favor with a kick to my side, causing part of my body to rapidly age because of his mana, though it only persisted for a few seconds before returning to normal.
"W-Why!? Why aren't you dead!?" Exclaimed Azazel in fear and confusion as he viciously glared at Alexander, who spat golden blood onto the ground before burning it.
I didn't give him a response and lunged towards him, prompting him to instinctively back away, though I wouldn't let him as I wasn't finished with him yet. Azazel tried to retaliate, attacking me in a frenzy, but I abused [Rebirth] and ignored his numerous deadly attacks before stomping on his foot and repeatedly slamming my fist into his face while he did the same to my body.
We quickly entered an endurance contest, yet it didn't take long for Azazel to grow desperate as he realized, despite his rapid attacks, he was doing nothing to me.
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" Yelled Azazel loudly in desperation as his mana violently erupted from his body, quickly draining everything of life, though Alexander stood firm.
Outstretching my hand, I grabbed his neck and slammed him into the ground while raising my other arm, quickly summoning Zartha. Azazel stabbed his claws into my chest right where my heart was, causing me to wince, but once I felt Zartha's hilt rest in my palm, I slashed at his arm before stabbing his chest, only to watch as he died.