Chapter 49: Futile Resistance

Blasting out of the foliage like a strong gust of wind, was Roy. The speed at which he traveled saw to it that his hair stood up like spikes, an audience of standing ovations on his head. There was nothing but rage in his eyes, rage and regret.

As his focus came into view, he spotted the two and though his rage did not dissipate, there was a hint of confusion. This was not the same assailant. And even more strange, there were two of them. Despite one of them being a child, he could not let his guard down.

“Who… are you? Both of you, what’s your business?”

Grodd simply blared his aura in an aggressive manner. The seals were undone so that his full energy could be felt. Tremors could be felt in the air. This was akin to a silent roar, expressed only through the aura he exuded. There was no mistake, this was hostility.

This vehemence was met in kind as Roy withdrew his blade and outstretched it in front of him. No matter what, this assailant was not going to pass him. “Manipulation Magic [Blade of Uncertainty], Manipulation Magic [Vibrato Wave]”

“You guys only have a couple of seconds to answer. Why are you both following us?”

This time the kid spoke in response. “I’m sorry. But I cannot simply let you all escape. You plan on bringing the guild down upon this place, do you not?”

“Th-...you mean to tell me that you too are in on this whole thing? A child?”

“I’m sorry… I can’t let you and your group continue-”

Just before he could finish his sentence, the blade had made an appearance just 1 inch before his eyes. This was an attack barely dodged by Grodd. The buzzing sound was like that of a thousand cicadas.

In response, Grodd had vanished and was behind the opponent in the same move. Just as his sword had slashed through the intended target. This was a clear warning. He was faster. He had aimed his blade at the man and just like that whispered out the words for ‘Manipulation Magic [Spirit of the Former]’

The blade extended instantaneously, firing into the back of the young man. He yet again parried the blow with his blade and spun back several steps to create distance. By now only 12 feet separate the duo.

As their swords clashed, the vibrations on his blade began to cut through the mana that coated the rest of Grodd’s sword. This was when Grodd quickly changed up his fighting style. His blade came down upon the man once more, a powerful quick downwards slash. The man had no choice but to block the attack, aiming his blade right at the physical portion of its structure.

At that moment however, Grodd decided to change his method of attack. The blade was already released from his grip and instead, his fist lurched outwards with a powerful hook. Instead, the child had picked up the blade as it fell. The man realized the move too quickly and was forced to release his blade, and place both hands in front of him defensively.

The massive fist connected, sending him sprawling back more than 20 feet before a tree had finally broken his progression. He scowled, flexing his hands and checking the motion at his shoulder. The punch was far stronger than anticipated. He quickly noticed his inability to move at the joint of his left elbow.

“Tch… pretty damn good. Huh?”

In comparison to the brute from before, this one was much more dangerous. He held just as much power if not more, and much greater battle tactics.

“That’s one debuff…” He checked his arm one more time. “Yep… definitely broken.”

This time he had even lost his sword as well. As he stared back at the duo, the child now had possession of it. He handed Grodd his blade once more and Grodd aimed the blade at the man, as if to warn him to prepare. The ethereal portion of the blade formed and Grodd yet again disappeared.

This time however, Roy knew where to find him. Since the tree was right behind him, he couldn’t teleport behind him. This was going to be a full frontal attack.

Or so he thought…

The speed was too great to determine where this behemoth would attack from, but just in the very knick of time, Roy felt something completely off. The moment when he should’ve made himself apparent in front of him was too delayed. Then he doubted his previous hypothesis.

It was only due to that, that he saved himself. The giant blade cleaved straight through the tree behind him like butter. If he had not jumped when he did, he would have found himself bisected as well.

The hairs on his neck stood up and the adrenaline began to pump and throb. In that moment as well, he made his counter attack. As he could not be seen, he quickly grabbed his arm around the length of the tree, swung around and delivered a powerful kick to the side of the giant’s head.

CLANG!!

The sound of bone and iron collided. His helmet flew clean off. There was a temporary loss of balance just then which Roy readily took advantage of and retreated. There was a look of shock on both his, and the child’s face.

For what they had seen underneath the helmet, they would not have guessed. Standing before them was a goblinoid, bigger than any they had ever seen or heard of. His glowing green eyes remained trained on the adversary.

‘This…. This doesn’t make sense… he’s… a goblinoid?!’ As a general rule of thumb, in the adventurer’s world, it was imperative that you always remain vigilant of surprises. However, this one…. He could help but be surprised. The man he was facing all this time, and the one that was capable of utilizing manipulation magic… was a goblin? This was rather unheard of. First, Goblins are rather primitive and much smaller in size, and possess no fundamental skills in the arcane arts.Yet this one was able to control his aura, as well as utilize a tier of magic that one needed to practice with precision.

Technically speaking, it's not that goblins weren’t able to use magic. It was just their intelligence when it came to learning and honing the craft. Every now and then, there may be a goblinoid able to utilize some semblance of magic or the other. But never to an extent such as this.

“Or is it the kid… who truly is the skilled one?” that was a theory much more palpable. A quick blast of steam left the Goblin’s mouth. Perhaps it was the manifest of his rage? Perhaps not. With a roar that shook the terrain in much the same way as his aura, he dashed forward. He was much slower this time however. Much much slower.

So in the end, he truly was just a goblinoid. Losing his skill and ability to concentrate when angered. His body swelled just before he could reach the man and expanded. He brought both of his fists down into the ground, sending gravel and dust hurtling through the air.

Checkmate.

Roy quickly dodged the attempt, boarded onto the behemoth’s giant arms and took out a dagger. In one rapid movement, the battle was going to be decided. As the dagger flew onwards towards the Goblin, Roy remained on top of his hands, slowing down his reaction, albeit however slightly.

Grodd glared at the man who now had this confident smug glance as the blade whizzed through the air. He had too little time to react. Then, his mouth opened. Wide. One could see the hot white glow of flame.

“Oh… I see….I’m the one in checkmate”

Manipulation Magic [Dragon’s Breath]

Just like that, the entirety of the view in front of him became enshrouded in flame. This caught them all by surprise. The blade got blasted back. The only thing the young man could do in time is to try and cover himself as best as he could. He grabbed the dagger as it flew back at him and attempted to perform manipulation magic in time to create a giant blockade of energy.

This was, of course, incomplete and premature. As the smoke cleared up, there was a giant crater of scorched earth through the ground. The only thing that was holding up, was the blade that now cleaved into the ground and the man who stood there on the only small patch of land unscathed by the flames.

The smoke cleared up to reveal Roy, battered and bleeding. The skin around his hands and up to his shoulder were entirely singed. Kissed by the heat. His left leg, his foremost front facing, was also completely scorched.

He stood there panting heavily as the flames died out in patches around him. That was an entirely close call. He had just stared into the face of death. He yet again underestimated his opponent. The fact that he was a goblin, made him doubt the range of his skills. No, this man was just as skilled as the rest of them. He was probably more skilled than himself if it came down to just combat ability.

He sighed…. “Another debuff…..and another.” He checked his hands and his legs. There was barely any room for motion in them. He lowered his stance and sighed.

“Now…. I can end this.”