CHAPTER 149: VERSUS SHADOW, FINAL CLASH

The farm had started coming along properly in Ribest. All around the town, the soil was getting tilled, ready for planting. It wasn’t the rainy season yet, but in a few months they would be getting one.

That would be Raze’s first season of rain in this world; it showed him just how long he had stayed here, but it also heavily pissed him off due to the fact that he wasn’t moving fast enough.

But now with the two-year contract that he had gotten everyone to sign, work was moving way faster. A building had been set up for classes held three times a week in the evening after work.

And the progress had honestly been astonishing, many people already picking up on things in class, and it had only been a week after they did.

[... ]

Raze had just finished another round of training. He walked out of the heat chamber covered in sweat, a bright smile on his face. He could feel he was close to a breakthrough. He wasn’t there yet, but very soon. His entire body felt stronger than before, and his understanding of the Yin-Yang-Sword technique had reached new heights.

Waiting for him outside were Fey and Elaine. They had been there since he went in.

"Did you make any good progress?" Elaine asked, curiosity clear in her voice. Raze had been training in this method for almost a month now.

"Yup," he replied with a nod. "Soon, I should be reaching a new level of strength."

"It’s really weird, this technique you train in," Fey said. "It doesn’t use mana, but I’m a testament to how much you’re getting stronger. What exactly is it?"

Raze smiled. "The same thing I taught the townspeople. It’s an energy born from within, unlike mana."

He was about to go deeper into the explanation, but suddenly Fey stopped and looked into the distance, alert.

Raze immediately spread out his God’s Eye as well, covering a wide area of the forest. He had been getting much better at it. And that’s when he saw her.

Shadow.

She was walking toward the village with a dagger in hand, killing intent pouring off her in waves.

Raze instantly turned to Elaine.

"Elaine, head back to town and make sure no one comes toward the forest. Do you understand?"

She nodded quickly. Whatever they had sensed, she knew it wasn’t small. She turned and headed for the town.

Raze climbed onto Fey’s back without another word. Fey bolted into the forest on all fours, moving at a crazy speed.

Once they arrived within visible distance of Shadow, Raze jumped off, and Fey returned to his human form. They stood side by side, facing her.

Shadow stood across from them with no emotion on her face, no shine in her eyes, only cold, focused killing intent.

Raze looked at her.

"From the way you’re approaching, I’m guessing you didn’t come to agree with what I offered," he said.

Shadow gave no response.

"Are you seriously just going to ignore me and attack, Shadow? You know you’re not going to survive if you decide to fight, right?" Raze asked.

Shadow paused in her steps and lifted her head.

"My task is to kill you. Nothing more, nothing less," she said, her voice void of emotion.

"Is this really what it has to come to, Shadow? I’m offering an olive branch. Walk with me, and whatever it is... we can fix it."

Shadow chuckled.

"You don’t understand anything. You can’t understand anything when it comes to me," she said. She lifted her dagger in a reverse grip, raising it to eye level as she stared at Raze.

"Raze... this is what it has come to. I am a killer, and you are my target," she said, and then she lunged.

Wind exploded beneath her feet, launching her like a rocket. But before she could even make it halfway, Fey intercepted her, coming in with a punch from the side.

She reacted fast, firing a burst of wind magic to block his fist. Wind and fist collided, erupting into a small explosion. The impact sent her flying back, slamming her into a tree before she hit the ground. She immediately pushed herself up, dagger still in hand.

"Give it up already," Fey said. "You might be strong for a human, but you’re nothing special. Last time I let you escape. This time won’t be the same. Do you agree with what Raze offered, or do I kill you now?" His real eyes glowed like a wolf’s.

She stared at him, then gave a sadistic grin.

"Give me your best shot."

She kicked off the ground, blasting upward as wind magic propelled her skyward. She thrust her fist downward.

"Wind Barrage Explosion!"

Multiple concentrated blasts of wind screamed through the air toward Fey.

But Fey didn’t move.

He stomped the ground, and a massive wall of stone shot up, blocking every wind blast. The wall crumbled after absorbing the attack, but Fey stood untouched.

Raze, watching from behind, muttered in shock,

"Fey knows earth magic..."

He hadn’t yet seen Fey’s full range of abilities. This was entirely new.

Fey flexed his hands, claws extending as lightning crackled up his arm.

"This is your last chance," he said, staring up at her.

Shadow didn’t respond. Instead, she spun in the air and slashed downward, releasing a purple blade arc straight toward him.

Fey dodged easily. The blade carved through several trees, shredding everything in its path. He shot upward like a rocket.

"You were warned," Fey said.

Shadow couldn’t dodge; he was too fast. His clawed hand plunged into her shoulder, ripping down through her torso. Lightning exploded through her body, burning her from the inside out as the claws tore through flesh.

She crashed into the ground like a falling meteor and didn’t move.

Raze stared, confused.

’Why would she throw her life away when she knew she didn’t stand a chance? No human in physical form could rival a divine beast like Fey. Yet she still came... even after all the warnings.’

Before he could think more, Shadow’s body twitched. Then, slowly, she began pushing herself up to her feet. Both Raze and Fey froze in shock.

How was she alive?

The massive gash across her torso was still there, burned, torn, and impossibly deep. No human should be able to breathe, let alone stand, after a wound like that.

But she stood anyway.

Meanwhile, back at Ribest, several figures reaching easily into three hundreds, all fully armed and in armor, rushed toward Ribest.