Chapter 122:

"Fuck! That backfired." I shouted, frustrated, landing on a roof next to Kayda, a few hundred meters away from the fortress.

"Hehe, now what will I ask," Kayda said, giggling to herself.

"Tsk, I didn't think you would use your dragon form to win this."

"Well, you used your fox form."

"Because you used your dragon form!!" I yelled out again out of frustration.

"You also used flash step the entire time.

"Yeah, and you just flew over everyone while I needed to hide and run between buildings."

"Yeah, but you said there were no rules."

"... true, but doing that ruined the entire purpose of the challenge. Anyways how did you know where this place was?" I said, trying to change the subject.

"Aah, I have been to this city many times. I might actually know it on the back of my hand."

"that's unfair," I said, pouting.

"Not really. You already knew where it was."

"Yes, but you are faster than me. Especially in your dragon form." I said, getting more depressed. 

"Ha-ha, there were no rules. You said it yourself." Kayda said, shrugging, not letting her smirk falter.

"Sigh, well, what is your wish," I asked, pulling my hands through my hair.

"Hmm, there is a festival in a week. Let's go together. Oh, and wear a kimono, okay." Kayda said, winking at me.

"Ugh, you serious? a kimono?" I said, frowning.

"Yeah, I think you would look good in one," Kayda said, checking me out.

'Danger-looking fox girl plus kimono equals hotness.' I thought, sighing.

"Tsk, for some reason, I can't refute that anymore," I said, glaring at Kayda.

"Hmm, did something happen with you?" Kayda said, a bit worried.

", no-no, it's nothing, don't worry about it."

"You are sure."

"Yeah, let's back to the main thing," I said, looking at the fortress in the distance.

It quickly stood out from the other places in the slums with its 4 stories, metal windows, and marble walls.

"It really is a giant fortress. It wasn't this big last time." Kayda said, sighing.

"Yeah? but how did the Anabald try and siege this thing?"

"Huh? Don't you see the giant doors at the bottom of the building?" Kayda said, looking at me weirdly.

"Oh, I do see door-like shapes, but they are no doors."

"Nova, don't you see the hinges on the sides pointing out?"

"Oh, you mean those little metal plates?" 

"Yes, those little... they are fake," Kayda said, looking at the things.

"Jip, but there should be other entrances around it in other buildings. There was no way two 30cm hinges would be able to care a marble door, and why would the hinges be shown outside? You can just break, and the door should fall over on its own." I explain with a thoughtful look.

"Yeah, that is a very clever trick."

"Hmm, I bet the place has self-repair on it as well."

"Probably, those hinges are quite obvious. The team from last night should have targeted that first."

"Yeah, and there is no show of battle at all this morning."

"Aah, that probably because the Anabald cares a lot about their deceased comrades and servants."

"So, they retrieved their bodies?" I said, amused.

"Yes, most likely," Kayda said, nodding disappointed.

"I see what a waste of time,"

"I would advise you not to finish what you are thinking." A man suddenly said from behind us. Turning around, I saw a man in his late 20 looking at me. He was wearing a black and white armor set with a great sword strap to his waist. If it weren't for his bright blue eyes, I would have felt a bit intimidated by his large build and armor.

"Heh, that got you mad," I said, smirking at the man.

"..." narrowing his eye at us, he moved his hand to his sword

"Oh, you want to fight," I said, walking closer to him getting in front of Kayda.

'He isn't weak, and I don't know how fast he is.' I thought, making sure my smirk didn't falter.

"Tsk," disappearing from view, he appeared in front of me, making my eyes widen in surprise. 

"Ugh," I grunted, grabbing the sword.

"Die for the devil's cult." The man mumbled in a monotone voice.

"Nova!?" Kayda yelled, surprised.

"don't worry, you will be joining her in a few seconds. What?" The man said before trying to get his sword back.

"Hehe, you missed idiot," I said, smirking at him, holding the sword in me.

"What!?" The man exclaimed, surprised wide-eyed. 

"Cheers, idiot," I said just before a scorching beam took his head away.

"Nova, you are being too careless," Kayda whined, hitting me over the head.

"What you were also surprised he snuck up to us this closely," I said, looking at the body with a complicated expression.

"Yes, but provoking him and trying to protect me in the process," Kayda said, mad and worried.

"I wasn't trying to protect you. It's just I would survive his stab while you won't." I said, waving her off.

"Whatever floats your boat," Kayda said, pouting.

"Yeah yeah, now help me get this sword out of me. This thing just doesn't want to budge," I said, struggling to get the sword out of my chest.

"Here, let me help you," Kayda said, walking closer.

"Dammit, why isn't. Oh, his falling over." I said, annoyed only to see the guy's body falling, overtaking me with it.

crash

'Shit, that armor what probably heavier than I thought.' I thought, seeing the roof breaking at the impact of the body and looking at the black armor still trying to get the sword out of my chest.

Crash.

"Huh? Of fuck." Looking down the broken part of the roof, I cursed my luck, only seeing darkness.

"what's wrong?" Kayda said, walking towards the hole.

"Kayda, help! Me, there is nothing under this roof. In other words, this house is an entrance or trap of that fortress." I said worriedly, pulling on the sword.

"This thing isn't coming out. There got it out, sigh." I said, sighing in relief.

"Come, let's get off," Kayda said, also sighing in relief.

"Oh, fuck, this isn't what I wanted!?" I yelled, paling at the roof give in under my feet.

"Nova!?" Kayda yelled, grabbing my hand.

"Hmm, it's actually not that deep?" I said, seeing that the hole was only 100m deep.

"Kayda, go get some back off from the Anabald. We are taking this fortress." I said, letting go of Kayda's hand. I threw a war hammer against her stomach, sending her backward, and added.

"Ugh nova!" Kayda yelled in anger.

"Sorry, I will make it up to you later," I said, disappearing into the darkness. 

Letting the darkness engulf me made my night vision come into effect.

"Now to land gracefully," I said. Turning around in the air, I looked at the floor 76 m away and got closer.

Luckily, the sides of the hole weren't very wide, 4 or 3 meters wide. Smiling to myself, I made two long-bladed sickles in my hands with a chain connecting both of them.

"This will do," I said, throwing them at the opposite walls.

boom boom

"Hmm, is that a door?" I said, seeing a wooden door a couple of meters above the ground.

"Jip, which is one alright. Let's make the chains shorter then," I said, looking at the chain that was connected to the sickles.

"Hope I don't break anything," I said, feeling the chain getting pulled, making my body jolt upwards with force with the sudden tension on the chains.

boom boom

even though I threw the sickles in the walls were quite deep, they still moved downwards with force, making groves in the wall.

"Ugh, nope, didn't break anything, just pulled some muscles. Easy heal."I said, hanging in the air right in front of the wood door.

Cluck

"Did someone fall in the trap?" A man said, opening the door. Walking out of the door, he held up his lap, looking over the small ledge downwards.

"Huh? Nobody huh? What was all that noise." the man said, disappointed only seeing a broken roof.

"Yo, you are blind," I said, making him look up at me.

"What?" Looking up, he saw an ice barrel in front of him.

Boom

He didn't even have a proper time to register what was going on before there was a giant bullet hole in his head.

Just one shot, and it still explodes. My guns really need some work." I said, looking at the broken barrel of my ice hand cannon.