Parallel (A Virtual Gamer's Story) [Vol.1 - Vol.4 Complete]

Chapter 23: Mission Impossible

Vrwhooo!

Gruger the minotaur roared as it shot out a column of fire from its mouth. Syèl and Shokō nimbly dodged to either side of the pillar and continued their charge. Gruger, enraged by their audacity, dashed toward them and swung its ax in a horizontal arc, aiming to cleave both fighters in half.

'Shit!' Syèl cursed as he realized the minotaur was much faster than it had previously shown. The halben didn't even have enough time to cast a spell and was forced to block the strike with his sword.

Boom!

Syèl grimaced as he was sent hurtling across the field. The Mage righted himself and stabbed the blood sword into the ground. The friction of sword against earth slowed his flight until he finally fell to the ground. The halben winced and clutched his stomach. It felt like he had just taken a bulldozer to his abdomen.

Syèl struggled to his feet, and Gruger's eyes gleamed as it identified the straggler. Its ax glowed as it leaped into the air and then brought down its ax on the weak Mage, aided by gravity.

Syèl sensed the danger before he saw it. He tried to beat a swift retreat, but his legs buckled under him and he fell. The halben looked up to see the metal sheen grow increasingly larger till it took up most of his vision.

Clang!

The ax of death halted inches away from Syèl's face, blocked by Shokō's blade. The swordswoman issued a sigh of relief when she saw the clash. She'd barely made it in time. She looked at the stunned Mage and angrily ordered, "Move!"

Shokō had been forced to stretch to make it on time. As a result, she had not been able to position her sword correctly. At the moment, she did not have much leverage to push back the ax as its force was applied mostly near the tip of her sword. This, in turn, forced her to exert far more energy than she would typically need to block the ax, depleting her stamina in the process.

"Sorry," Syèl apologized and forced himself to at least roll away, features contorted in a mask of fury and pain.

"Damn it," Shokō cursed as her blade snapped in half, crumbling under pressure from the ax. Despite the setback, she did not lose her concentration. In Live No Evil, there were a few seconds before a weapon or armor damaged beyond repair disintegrated, and she used them well.

Boom!

A shockwave erupted as Gruger's ax slammed into the ground, blasting Syèl even further back. However, the second Gruger's weapon hit the earth, Shokō dashed forward. She braved the danger and jumped onto its ax.

Gruger's eyes widened in shock as it stared at the swordswoman, wondering what her intent was.

Schhk!

Its question was quickly answered as Shokō shoved the entirety of her broken sword through its right eye.

Roaar!

Gruger clutched its right eye as it reared its head in pain and instinctively slapped Shokō off the ax.

Shokō flew across the field for several dozen meters, but then she twisted in the air and landed in a crouch. The swordswoman clutched her broken ribs with her left hand and wiped away the blood leaking out from her mouth with her right.

While the beast was still distracted by its pain, Shokō checked her inventory. She only had a single elixir left which would fully restore her mana and health. The potion was one of the most expensive items on the current market as only expert alchemists could craft them. It had set her back 2000 Syros.