the fight: part 2(chapter 67)

Chapter 67

The other three knights, recognizing the threat, moved in perfect unison. Their coordination was masterful—Gray could see that their training was leagues beyond the Ironbound Initiates. One knight thrust forward with a magically enhanced spear that crackled with electricity, while another summoned a magical shield, its surface shimmering with defensive wards. The last knight raised his hands, casting a series of magical restraints designed to bind Gray in glowing ethereal chains.

Gray didn't falter. His superior senses, honed through Rachel's relentless training in the demon's rift, allowed him to read every move before it happened. He sidestepped the spear with millimeter precision, the electric crackle brushing harmlessly past him. His foot placement was deliberate; he stepped inside the spear knight's range, delivering a sharp jab to the man's gauntlet. The strike shattered the enchanted steel, rendering the weapon useless.

The chains surged toward Gray, but with a twist of his torso and a shift of his stance, he spun through them like a dancer avoiding an embrace. His speed was blinding, each movement calculated and efficient. In a blur, he appeared behind the knight casting the spell. Without hesitation, he grabbed the knight's arm, twisting it with such force that the sound of the magical armor groaning under the strain was audible. He slammed the knight into the ground with bone-shaking impact, the magical wards flickering and failing.

The remaining knights regrouped, their strategy shifting. Two of them flanked Gray while the third engaged him head-on. Their weapons glowed with potent magic—an axe wreathed in fire, a sword shimmering with frost, and a mace crackling with kinetic force. They attacked simultaneously, their strikes coordinated to leave Gray no room to escape.

But Gray didn't need to escape. With a speed that rendered him nearly invisible, he ducked, twisted, and sidestepped every blow. His legs were a blur as he shifted his weight, his foot placement impeccable. Each step grounded him perfectly for the next attack. When the knight with the flaming axe swung down, Gray caught the weapon mid-air with his bare hand. The flames licked at his skin but did nothing. With a casual squeeze, the axe shattered, its magical aura dissipating

Gray retaliated with an elbow strike to the knight's chest, sending him flying. He turned to the frost-wielding knight, who slashed with icy precision. Gray leaned back just enough to avoid the blade, his counterattack instantaneous—a spinning back kick to the knight's side. The impact was tremendous; the knight's armor caved in, and he skidded across the battlefield.

Gray didn't even blink as the mace-wielding knight roared and swung his weapon in a deadly arc. Sidestepping with effortless precision, Gray caught the mace mid-swing, his grip unyielding as he twisted the weapon out of the knight's hands. Using the knight's own momentum, Gray hurled him into the air with a force that shook the battlefield. Before the knight could land, Gray leaped high, slamming his fist into the knight's back with an earth-shattering impact that ruptured the ground upon landing. Breathing in deeply, Gray looked at the five knights sprawled around him and muttered, "Well, this was disappointing." He extended his hand to freeze them solid, only to be interrupted by one of the knights, who weakly croaked, "Stormblade, if you let us die, the First of Merlin is not going to be happy about this."

A groan of frustration escaped the mysterious stranger, who suddenly vanished and reappeared beside Gray, halting his outstretched hand. "That motherfucking bitch is going to kill me if I let them die, even if they are useless," Stormblade muttered. Gray raised an eyebrow, his expression shifting into a wild grin, his demeanor now eerily unhinged. "You guys have ridiculous names," he said, his voice dripping with mockery. "Ironbound Initiates, Battleforged Knights, Stormblade. But nonetheless," he paused, leaning in closer, "don't you want to see something special?" Without warning, he seized Stormblade's arm, his grip like a vice. The stranger struggled, but Gray's strength was absolute.

"I call this move Hater Breathing: kamikazi" Gray whispered, his steps beginning to glow with radiant star energy. As he moved, each glowing footprint detonated behind him in violent bursts, rupturing the battlefield with catastrophic explosions. The ground heaved, entire sections of earth launched into the air before crashing back down. The explosions grew in intensity, their blinding light and deafening sound obliterating the surrounding terrain. When the dust finally settled, the battlefield was in ruins. Only Sebastian remained standing, trembling amidst the corpses of his cultists. He murmured weakly, "No... I was this close, this close..." Meanwhile, Stormblade emerged from the devastation, his robes gone, revealing a man in his late twenties with black hair, a scar crossing his mouth, a tight black t-shirt, baggy cloth pants, and sandals.

Stormblade dusted himself off, his tone casual despite the destruction. "Ay, are you a sorcerer or what?" Gray cracked his neck with a smirk. "Sometimes I wonder, but I've been neglecting my magic lately. Even then, I'm still superior." Stormblade groaned in irritation. "Either way, you're just a bunch of monkeys." In an instant, he vanished, reappearing behind Gray with blinding speed. Gray spun just as quickly, meeting the attack with a devastating spin kick. "Oh, please. That's my trick," Gray quipped. Their fists collided in a thunderous clash, the shockwave reducing the already crumbled battlefield to rubble.

The two titans moved with such ferocity that every blow felt like a calamity. Their punches and kicks were devastating, their strikes shattering the earth and sending shockwaves that rippled across the battlefield. Entire sections of terrain collapsed under their relentless exchange. Gray's superior technique clashed with Stormblade's sheer ferocity, the two matching each other in speed, strength, and durability. They fought like living hurricanes, their movements creating craters and fissures with every step. Amidst the chaos, Stormblade grinned. "Ay, let's finish this. I want to get back to my gambling." Before Gray could reply, they both turned abruptly toward Sebastian, who had torn his heart from his chest and was chanting in an ancient demonic tongue.