Chapter 81: The Clash
[Quest Update: Defend Your Home]
[Defend Your Home: Enemies have entered your territory and threaten the peace of your home. Ensure that they do not get close.]
[Reward: 3000 EXP, Artefact Blueprint]
While the air was tense and heavy, the system sent out a quest update to Ren. He read it as soon as it came. The rewards were not staggering, but they were impressive.
The quest was not the reason why he was here to stand up to an enemy though. He was doing it because that was what he had to do as the leader of the settlement.
Ren looked at Ken. He took a deep breath and then spoke, "There is no way for you to back away and leave, I presume?"
"No, there isn’t, because besides the fact that you are a dragon, you are in possession of one of the divine armaments that belongs to the Vermilion Kingdom.
A weapon that is highly respected and sought after, and only the elite of the elite have the opportunity to lay their hands on."
"The weapon is that important, and you handed it to an old man that had no respect?" Ren asked in a clear voice.
Ken frowned. He now understood that Ren was in no mood to budge to his standards. He was not ready to bend or be bent.
"I see this is the way you want it to pan out. Then forgive me for what comes next," Ken said and stepped back.
"Attack. Push past them and make it into the forest. Find the settlement. We will not stop until we reclaim the armament."
He gave the order, and instantly the knights moved. They were first, pulling their weapons and charging ahead eagerly. This was the reason why they had come here, and now they got to fight and probably take down a dragon.
As for the adventurers, they took a second longer to respond. The order came out of the blue and was now forcing them to charge at an enemy that had called himself a dragon right before their very eyes.
The situation did not get crazier than that. Sadly, they had no choice in the matter. They had all taken their pay, and now it was time for them to work for it. One adventurer let out a thundering roar, one hyped enough to get the others burning. They pulled their weapons and charged ahead.
’Hmmm, so an all-out brawl is what they want? First step to act, show them domination,’ Ren thought, and then stomped his foot into the ground, the force so explosive that it cracked the ground beneath his feet. He leaped backwards and sucked in as much air as he could until his chest became like a balloon.
PRIMORDIAL ROAR!
RAWRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!
The sonic roar ripped through the air, a blast of sound and high-pressure air. It slammed into the knights like a brick wall, hurling them into the air, coughing blood as they all slammed into the ground. Some adventurers collapsed right there, their bodies shutting down after facing that roar.
’Second, Bestow.’
Ren proceeded to use Bestow while the enemy was down. His subordinates all felt it there, the power that coursed through them in that instant. He didn’t stop there and proceeded to use his second buff on them, allowing their power to climb even more.
He turned and looked at them. "Defend our home."
After he said that, he turned and looked right at Ken. Ken had been the only one who was not badly affected by the roar. It had still pushed him back a few feet, but he had dug his sword into the earth and used it to stop himself.
Ren’s gaze turned to slits as he looked at Ken. He stretched out his wings to their full span and, with one thunderous flap, he shot forward.
Air twisted. The speed of his motion caused massive chunks of rock to fly.
He became a blur.
BAM!
His fist connected right into the face of Ken and hurled him back. He flew after him immediately, grabbing his neck, spinning a few times in the air like a tornado and hurling Ken further into the forest before chasing after him.
’I know he has immense strength. I have to ensure he is far away from the others before I fight him,’ Ren thought while he chased.
After they left, the knights and the adventurers started getting back on their feet. It was time for their own battle to begin.
Ragna stepped up first. His every step caused the ground to shake, and when he stopped, he slammed his shield into the ground, causing the earth to tremble. His shield exploded with a red aura, and so did the blade that was in his hands.
"Come at me, puny humans!" he bellowed.
The knights looked amongst themselves and then charged ahead. Even after what Ren had done, their spirits would never be down.
Ragna looked at the ones in front, two knights. The first pulled his sword back and began slashing. Multiple compressed air blades ripped through the air. Ragna hid behind the shield as the attacks slammed into it. He waited for the right moment. When the attacks stopped for half a second, he burst forward with a large slash.
WHOOSH
SLASH!
SPLAT
The first knight didn’t know when the massive cleaver dug into his arm and took the entire arm as well as a good portion of his body, but all he felt was immense pain while he slowly looked down to see the wound. By that time, Ragna was already swinging down at the second knight.
Rumble!
The knights controlled vines to burst out of the earth and latch onto the arms and body of Ragna to stop him, but that only lasted a second as Ezra flew in fast. She spun her spear around and slashed through the vines while at the same time creating a ball of metal that shot at the chest of the knight.
BAM!
The knight was hurled back with a massive hole in his chest.