Chapter 36

Zee's heart raced as the gunshot echoed through the air. "Xain!" she exclaimed, turning urgently to check on him. However, her worry turned to confusion as she witnessed the shimmering golden light surrounding him. "What's that?" she muttered in bewilderment.

"Don't get distracted!" Zee heard Grace's commanding voice. She quickly shifted her focus to see Grace effortlessly kicking a mercenary who was about to strike Zee with his sword. Zee refocused on the remaining mercenaries, clutching her dagger firmly.

"Did you know about that?" she asked Grace, who nodded in response. "Yes, I did. Why else do you think I picked Xain to fight him?" Grace replied calmly.

As another mercenary charged towards Zee with a sword, slashing downwards at her torso, Zee reacted swiftly. She skillfully dodged the attack, moving with precise agility to evade the blade. With calculated precision, Zee countered the mercenary's strike, delivering a forceful blow to his face with the pommel of her dagger. The impact knocked him out, and he crumpled to the ground. Seven mercenaries remained

Meanwhile, Xain charged at Jakel, who instead of shooting, grabbed his rifle's barrel and swung it like a bat towards Xain's head. Xain swiftly raised his left forearm to block the blow before countering with a powerful punch from his right fist. Jakel dodged the attack by moving his head to the side, then swiftly pulled his rifle back to deliver a swing towards Xain's stomach.

Xain made a calculated decision to let the rifle hit him, trusting in the armor's protection. As the rifle connected with his abdomen, Xain felt the force of the blow, causing him to buckle slightly. *Forgot that the momentum still carries,* Xain thought to himself, realizing his mistake.

"What is that armor!?" Jakel yelled in anger as he noticed his blow had no effect. "I don't know myself, but I can tell you it's really good," Xain quipped as he brushed off the dust from his clothes.

"Oh, what a funny bastard we have here!" Jakel exclaimed in annoyance, attempting to swing his rifle downwards. However, Xain agilely sidestepped the swing and delivered a swift punch to Jakel's sternum. It was Xain's first proper hit against Jakel, knocking the wind out of him.

Jakel gasped, unable to react as Xain's overhand punch landed squarely on his nose, breaking it and sending Jakel tumbling to the ground with a pained grunt. Clutching his bleeding nose with his left hand, Jakel struggled to maintain his grip on his rifle as Xain attempted to gain the upper hand by moving to pin him down.

"For fuck's sake!" Jakel exclaimed through clenched teeth, the pain evident in his voice as he pushed Xain away with his legs, creating enough distance to scramble back to his feet with a huff. *This kid's stronger than he looks,* he thought to himself, fixing a glare at Xain, who returned his gaze with an expression that Jakel interpreted as pity, although in reality, Xain was simply reluctant to engage in the fight any further after causing Jakel significant harm.

"Uh, how about you just give up?" Xain suggested tentatively, hoping to avoid any further confrontation. Jakel's eye twitched at the suggestion, his frustration boiling over. "Huh?!" he retorted angrily, refusing to back down.

Meanwhile, (Again), Mar swung his mace towards the angel repeatedly, launching a series of strikes from different angles. He attacked from the right, then the left, and finally upward, aiming to overwhelm the angel with sheer force. However, each strike was deftly blocked by the angel's wings - the left wing intercepting the right swing, the right wing intercepting the left swing, and both wings intercepting the upward strike. With each blocked strike, Mar's exhaustion became more apparent, his movements slowing down while the angel maintained a confident smirk.

"What's wrong, tired already?" the angel jeered, his voice dripping with mockery as he attempted to land an uppercut on Mar. Reacting swiftly, Mar managed to dodge the angel's punch by mere centimeters, narrowly avoiding the blow. However, the angel didn't relent, continuing to unleash a barrage of punches.

Mar defended himself as best he could, blocking a left hook with his forearm, feeling a grazing impact from a right straight on his cheek. He then absorbed a knee strike to the stomach by enhancing his defenses, but the relentless assault didn't end there. The angel concluded with a rough spinning kick that Mar barely managed to block with his left forearm, the force of the impact knocking him down to one knee.

Mar let out a few labored breaths as he struggled to get up. "You are not a warrior," he said to the angel, who put his hand to his chin, considering Mar's words. "Is that so? Hmm," the angel said mockingly, thoughtful. Mar stood, gripping his mace tightly, his frustration evident. "I guess I'm not, but I'm still kicking your ass, ain't I?" the angel taunted, raising his hands in a triumphant gesture.

As Mar glared at the angel, he realized the futility of his efforts. *This is not working, he's a terrible match for me,* Mar thought ruefully. Initially, he believed his mace would shatter the angel's wings, but now he understood the angel was his worst opponent. No matter how much mana he used to enhance himself, it did nothing to the angel's wings.

Jakel faced a similar realization. He had thought he only needed one shot to win, but now he grappled with the reality. *Fuck, I can't get through that armor,* he cursed inwardly. Xain's superior close combat skills posed a challenge, and Jakel relied on his experience to hold his ground. Surveying the battlefield where his and Mar's men fought, he counted only four still standing. Grace and Zee had swiftly dispatched the others. It became clear to Jakel that if they wanted to stand a chance of winning, they needed to change their approach.

And right then, Jakel suddenly yelled, "Mar!" He swiftly turned and ran towards Mar, leaving Xain confused. "Where are you going?" Xain exclaimed. In response to Jakel's call, Mar also turned and sprinted towards Jakel. "Where the hell are you off to?" the angel exclaimed, puzzled. Both Xain and the angel watched as Mar and Jakel ran towards each other. As they closed in, Jakel grinned, and Mar nodded. They ran past each other, and in a surprising move, Mar closed the distance on Xain.

Without giving Xain time to react, Mar swung his mace towards him. The armor protected Xain, but the force of the blow sent him flying through several trees. At the same time, Jakel ran towards the angel, who smirked, confident in his ability to block a gunshot. However, Jakel had different plans. As he neared the angel, he stomped his foot on the ground. Suddenly, the earth beneath them shook, and four stone spikes emerged. The angel, attempting to fly away, couldn't evade completely, and one of the spikes impaled his left leg, causing a pained grunt.

"Oh, how I loathe using magic, but I like coin more than I hate magic, so I'll use a bit of it to rip off those wings of yours," Jakel declared with a grin. The angel saw Jakel's nose heal, and his body faintly glowed blue. Despite not feeling any pain, Xain's heart raced as he looked up at Mar, who held his mace high, preparing to swing it down towards Xain. "Let's see if you are a warrior," Mar said as he swung down his mace towards Xain.