Fierce Battle
The collision burst the weapon into pieces as the pieces of the hammer transformed back to mana state and scattered in the air. While Joseph did manage to succeed in punching, the first Asura slammed a kick on his stomach.
Joseph flew out like a cannonball until he collided against the tree and fell to the ground. He coughed out blood as his arms tremble in pain. He tried to get up but his eyes reacted before him.
His eyes caught the Asura above him as he was going to smash his fist. Joseph managed to dodge to the side thanks to his eyes and he quickly stood up.
'Hah! Hah! Hah!'
Joseph panted as he raised his eyes and looked at Asura in front of him. His eyes were filled with shock.
'Is that Teleportation Magic? How could someone with such powerful magic work as a guard? Damn it! I can't back down now. I must defeat them.'
"Hoo, boy!"
Suddenly, a figure appeared behind him, or rather he was behind him but Joseph didn't notice until he spoke. Joseph quickly reacted as he turned around and put his forearms in front of him.
Bam!
His body once again flew like a cannonball but unlike before when he flew slowly and collided against the nearest tree, this time he was flying too far. His body collided against a tree but the sheer force that pushed him broke the tree as he continued to fly away.
"Argh!"
Joseph moved his hands when he gathered his consciousness properly and caught the branch of a tree nearby. He forced himself to stop and his arms trembled a bit.
Thud!
He fell to the ground with blood coming out of his mouth. But, he still struggled and stood up while wiping away the blood from his mouth. His eyes fell on the man that punched him.
He was none other than the fourth Asura Guard.
"Tengen, it seems like he is one hell of a stubborn guy. No wonder he dared to barge in here despite the bounty on his head." Jogin shrugged his shoulders and spoke while looking at Joseph who was very far away.
"It seems like he isn't aware of his bounty or rather I should say he is not from Royal Capital." Tengen spoke.
"What made you say that?" The Asura who kicked Joseph spoke.
"Mugin, look at his body! He has one hell of a massive reserve of mana but he is keeping it stagnant. If my assumption is correct, he has some sort of spell on his body that increases his weight once he uses mana." Tengen spoke with a serious expression.
"What made you say that?" Mugin asked. He knew Tengen was the smartest among them which was why he believed Tengen but he still wanted to know the full reason.
"Earlier, when he used his mana twice, I noticed his body getting abnormally heavy as his feet were literally cracking the ground. He hid his expression but he couldn't hide the outcome."
"Do you really think Moon Eye Clan would let their children come here for battle? Don't forget the bounties on their heads! Those people were the biggest hurdle that Spirits and Asuras had to face during Third Great Magus War."
"That's why everyone from that clan has a bounty. In such conditions, they wouldn't let their children come to battle, especially someone with a lower rank. Not to mention, he isn't using his mana."
"All of these points prove that he isn't from the capital rather he must be either an orphan or one of his parents must have married someone outside the clan. Tch! Whatever the case, he can't use mana, his rank is low, and there are four of us."
"You know what this means, right?"
At this moment, Mugin, Jogin, and Lingo put smirks on their faces as they smashed their fists together.
"This means we are getting 50000 Mana Crystals."
In the middle of the trees, Joseph was recovering. He was carefully examining their movements.
'I don't know why they haven't attacked me but this is also good. I finally get a chance to breathe. Now, I have to make a proper strategy. Four of them with four different magic and with their secret art as well.'
'I can't use mana. I don't have a spell. And, the only thing I am good at has been matched by them. I really need to find a way to fight back. These eyes are slowly shutting down. I must finish this quick.'
'Here, they come!'
His eyes shrunk as he quickly stomp his foot and punched forward. His fist moved toward Lingo. From what he had seen, Lingo was the only one who hadn't shown any kind of magic.
Lingo simply smirked as he channeled mana throughout his body. He put his body forward which forced them to miss each other's attack. Joseph's fist smashed on his chest while Lingo's fist also smashed on his chest.
But when Joseph landed a punch, his expression twisted. He quickly retreated while coughing out blood. On the other hand, Lingo was completely fine.
'Damn it! His chest got even harder. It's like he improved his defense with his magic.' Joseph gritted his teeth and his instinct suddenly kicked in. He clenched his left fist and swung his body toward the right.
Bang!
His fist collided against a hammer made out of mana. But unlike before, he couldn't destroy the hammer instead the hammer managed to break his attack and smash him in the chest.
His body flew away but suddenly, Mugin appeared next to him and punched his face. Joseph was absolutely defenseless against this attack as he got smashed away from the attack.
His body collided against the tree and fell to the ground. His eyes were shut but he quickly opened them. He saw Tengen holding his fists together and trying to strike him.
Joseph's eyes reacted to it. He saw the position that he could make in order to dodge this attack. He raised his hand and held his fists. He pulled himself and his body jolted up and somersaulted.
Bang!
Tengen's fists smashed the ground and broke it. Joseph managed to push himself toward the ground. He landed on his knee and arm. But, suddenly, Mugin appeared behind him and kicked his head.
Bam!
Joseph's body flew but his eyes were opened this time. He saw Mugin blurring out. He moved his arms to defend himself but Mugin didn't arrive until he fell to the ground.
Only then did Mugin arrive at the front to kick him on his face. This time though Joseph was ready. Joseph quickly raised his hands and just when he kicked his face, Joseph caught his legs.
Bang!
He smashed Mugin on the tree while his nose started bleeding. Joseph wasn't letting Mugin go but suddenly, he sensed the fist coming toward him.
His instinct forced him to drop Mugin as he retreated away from that fist.
It was none other than Tengen. He quickly moved toward Mugin and shook him.
"Are you alright?"
"Damn, it hurts….. But, I can still fight." Mugin nodded his head and slowly stood up.
"Damn you, stubborn bastard!"
Lingo roared as he dashed toward Joseph. His body was fully channeling mana so his defenses were on. He didn't care much about damage and focused on smashing Joseph with his fist.
Lingo did manage to attack from the side so Joseph became a bit startled. If Lingo hadn't shouted, he would've launched this attack with full powers. But, thanks to his roar, Joseph managed to react by pushing himself to the side as he punched Lingo while dodging his punch.
But, his punch did nothing to Lingo instead he was pushed back. And, at this moment, a hammer smashed his back.
"Gah!"
Joseph coughed out blood as he flew away. But, it didn't end there. Mugin appeared in front of him in a flash and kicked him in his face once more but this time, he tried to send Joseph up.
When Joseph was in the air, his eyes were getting blurry from those attacks. Blood Moon Eyes were already off but that didn't end there. Tengen clenched his fists together and smashed Joseph's chest.
Bang!
Joseph flew toward the ground and collided. He coughed out blood and his skin started bleeding. He was covered in bruises and his eyes slowly closed off. The mana that had to remain stagnant started moving and his body weight began to crush himself.
'Am I going to die like this? No….. dean is still there, right? He should help me, right?'
"If you choose the simple path, you and your feat will never be recorded in history. So, do you want to become an ordinary person or someone extraordinary?"
When those words rang in his ears, Joseph's eyes suddenly opened. He gritted his teeth as the pain was striking his mind. He forced all of his concentration into controlling his mana.
"Huh! Is he going to wake up now?" Lingo asked with an exaggerated expression.
"No way! There is no way he can wake up now after facing all those attacks." Jogin spoke as he refused to believe it. But, his eyes widened as Joseph slowly stood up on his foot.
Joseph's legs were still trembling and his hands were weak. But, he still raised his hands to make a fighting stance. He looked at them as his eyes changed.
'If I get defeated like this in the battle, how can I ever become a PROTAGONIST?'