As I feel his Jurisdiction trying to trap me, I unleash my entire Dominion combined with my Imra, pouring everything I have into forcing it back.
The bald man shows a hint of surprise and furrows his brow before his expression returns to its usual calm. I quickly raise an ice wall behind my back as a completely black spike tries to pierce me without warning.
Death mana? No... this is something different. One person immediately comes to mind—Shawu. They share the same affinity: shadows. That must be why I failed to detect him until I made my move. We both acted at the same instant, but my reaction was faster, allowing me to protect Edupe.
I release an overwhelming killing intent, hoping to catch him off guard. It works. I can sense his momentary confusion, and I immediately capitalize on the opportunity. My free sword swings straight for his neck, but the man reacts instantly, retreating while raising his spear to block my attack.
The other two monsters seem just as confused. All four of us step back simultaneously, as though it had been planned. Edupe stands close to me, while the bald man remains near the ogre. None of us takes our eyes off the opposing side.
"Who are you?" I ask, directing my question at the bronze-skinned man.
A faint smile appears on his face, the first genuine expression he's shown. "I never expected to meet the Empire's rising star in a place like this." He plants his spear beside him. "Forgive my earlier disrespect. I didn't recognize you."
I freeze for a moment. What is this guy doing? I'm not the only one caught off guard. The ogre standing beside him also looks both shocked and furious. "What the hell are you doing? That wasn't part of our plan!" he roars, his voice thick and utterly revolting.
A powerful killing intent erupts from him, and I can feel his Jurisdiction activating instantly. "Remember your place. We're neither companions nor friends. My master only contacted you because our goals happened to align."
The ogre refuses to back down, unwilling to lessen the pressure. The bald man doesn't seem willing to yield either. "Who's your master? What's going on here?" I interrupt, not giving a damn about their internal conflict. Whether they have problems with each other is none of my concern.
The moment they hear my voice, both turn toward me. Their reactions couldn't be more different. The ogre looks at me as though he wants to tear me apart, while the human simply inclines his head slightly in apology.
"The ruler of Sullan Territory." The bald man retrieves something from his dimensional bracelet and tosses it toward me.
I catch the small ring. Engraved on it is the figure of a snow fox—the emblem of Sullan Territory. Its purple color also signifies rank. Within the territories surrounding the Empire, only the ruler himself ranks above someone wearing a ring of this color.
I continue staring at him, waiting for more answers. A few seconds later, he speaks again. "I'm carrying out a mission assigned by my lord. I can't reveal the details right now... but if you agree to speak with me afterward, I promise I won't interfere. I might even switch to your side." His words sound sincere, though they're difficult to believe.
I know Sullan Territory has been negotiating with Lully's Lepak Territory and her entire family. That was one of the reasons Lully's father wasn't there during my visit. According to Mirtha, everything had gone remarkably well, and they'd reached an agreement.
Mirtha didn't explain every detail. She only told me they'd become allies in case another territory declared war on either of them, lowered trade taxes, and granted each other special permits to enter the other's territory.
I don't know whether their relationship is purely strategic or if it's become something closer, perhaps similar to the friendship between my father and Uncle Camux.
"Fine. We'll talk afterward." I stare directly into his eyes without softening my gaze for even a second. He doesn't seem bothered in the slightest. "Just stay out of this. We can handle everything ourselves."
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My words cause another Jurisdiction to explode in every direction. The ogre looks completely enraged and out of control. His fist, engulfed in devastating flames, shoots toward the bald man's head. Before it can connect, the man disappears into the shadows.
I turn toward a tree about seventy meters to my right. The bald man is already sitting calmly on one of its branches. He moved through the shadows with unbelievable speed. He looks surprised for a brief moment when our eyes meet, but then he gives me a couple of nods before returning to his usual poker face.
"We need to beat the hell out of this fat bastard. I want to end this quickly." Before, I only wanted to kill him as fast as possible so I could help my companions. Now I also need to find out why a Diamond Rank is here.
It can't really be considered an invasion. This area technically belongs to the Empire, yet at the same time it's unclaimed land because no one has officially claimed it or is willing to spend the resources required to protect and maintain it.
Within that legal gray area, anyone is free to hunt here. Even people from neighboring territories can do so as long as they remain near the border. The people of Sullan and Lepak Territories could come here whenever they wished and kill as many monsters as they pleased. That's actually beneficial to the Empire.
My body overflows with mana, Imra, Laws, and my Dominion. Every one of my abilities is active at maximum power. I'll be fighting with everything I have from the very beginning. Several black swords appear around me, and a Crushing Tempest spreads across the battlefield, announcing that I'm ready.
Both monsters also seem determined to finish this as quickly as possible. Edupe reinforces his body with metal mana, while the ogre becomes completely engulfed in blazing flames. A field of fire spreads around him.
No one gives a signal. There is no referee. We simply move the moment we feel ready. Edupe is the first to take a step forward, and both the ogre and I react the instant we see him move.
The flames are incredibly intense. Even with my ice abilities covering my body, it's difficult not to feel the scorching heat. At times, it feels as though my body is about to evaporate. It's not just the flames themselves—he's reinforcing them with multiple Laws and his Jurisdiction.
The ogre's affinity gives him a slight advantage over both Edupe and me, but that's all it is. Individually, each of us would have roughly a fifty percent chance of defeating him. Fighting together, however, there's no possibility of us losing.
A massive slash tears across the ogre's arm. Edupe moved with incredible speed, creating an opening in the monster's guard. I immediately tried to sever one of his arms, but the flames leapt forward to protect him before I could finish the strike.
When I turn back to continue the fight, I realize his arm has already regenerated completely. I'd forgotten how absurd these bastards' vitality is. Their regenerative abilities are ridiculous, especially for Grade 5 monsters.
"This bastard just refuses to die." I complain as I slice off another one of his legs. I know Grade 4 ogres die if you destroy their heads, shatter their cores, or force them to exhaust all of their mana through constant regeneration.
This Grade 5 monster looks like he could keep fighting even if I cut his head off. The problem is that I can't. He defends himself brilliantly, and I can't find a single opening to decapitate him or strike directly at his core.
I've lost count of how many times we've cut him apart, butchered him, and battered him. I've also lost count of how many times Edupe and I have suffered serious injuries from attacks we couldn't dodge in time or from the overwhelming power of his flames. This battle has been far more evenly matched than I expected.
Eventually, his regeneration slows dramatically. Regrowing even a single arm now takes him a long time. Even the flames surrounding him begin to lose much of their heat.
Despite fighting at a two-against-one disadvantage, the ogre has pushed us farther than I ever thought possible. We're not exhausted yet, nor are we close to running out of resources. That doesn't mean we're in perfect condition, though. Edupe has already lost an arm, and I've had to heal countless wounds that could easily have been fatal.
Edupe slams one of the ogre's legs with his metal plates, forcing the monster down onto one knee. My body had already anticipated that outcome, so I was moving toward him before it even happened. My sword is already descending toward his neck.
The weakened flames fail to hold long enough for him to evade my strike. They are sliced apart as though they never existed. His other defenses prove just as useless. His Imra and Jurisdiction are completely overwhelmed by the combined power of my abilities.
The ogre's head crashes to the ground. I don't relax because I have no idea whether he can regenerate from this. Immediately afterward, I unleash lightning, gravity, ice, and death mana, reducing as much of his body as possible to dust. Edupe does the same. Together, we obliterate every part of his body except for his core.
Edupe collapses onto the ground on his backside, breathing heavily. Numerous wounds cover his sturdy scales. The power behind his strikes and his mastery over fire mana were not something we could afford to underestimate. "Do you always end up like this after every fight?" I ask with a grin.
"Shut up and go deal with the man over there. I'll go help our people. Don't take too long." As soon as the Escamus finishes speaking, I turn toward the man who hasn't moved from the tree.