"I'll have to apologize to Jet for not listening to his final words."
Noah sheathed his blade as he heaved a sigh, a bit of mist leaking out of his lips. He cast his gaze on Britta, who remained silent as she lay on the ground.
It would be a lie if he said he didn't feel bad for her.
Not only had she lost to him, but her entire resolve—the strength she painstakingly mustered so she could raise her blade—was rendered useless by him.
"You shouldn't feel too bad." Noah mumbled as he stared off into the distance.
Despite Britta bleeding, he didn't pay much attention to her. He already knew she wouldn't die or suffer permanent damage from her injury.
He also had some attention on her, so she wouldn't be able to catch him by surprise.
'Not that it would happen, though…' One look at Britta was enough to tell Noah that her will to fight was gone.
He had utterly broken her fighting spirit.
"I don't need your pity." She whispered in response.
Noah sighed and shook his head the moment he heard this. "That's not why I said it, though."
He raised his hand and pointed his finger in a particular direction that was a short distance from where they were.
The battle between Jet and Sebas was reaching an explosive climax, and as Noah saw the brilliant display of destruction, he couldn't help but chuckle.
"They make our fight look like child's play." He commented, now turning back to see Britta.
"I know you must have your reasons for suspecting Jet and Lux, and I don't think you're being irrational in your stance."
He heaved a heavy sigh and shrugged.
"It's just… I also have my reasons for trusting him."
Noah began to walk away from Britta, his sights set on the white dome that he was tasked with protecting.
"You… were you this strong back then?" Britta's voice suddenly echoed, causing him to stop dead in his tracks. "When I constantly challenged you, were you already so strong?"
Noah's smile broadened and he shook his head.
"No. I leveled up considerably during this Conquest. I expected you to have done the same, but in all likelihood, your group must have avoided danger to preserve energy and reduce risks."
There was also the chance that their group didn't encounter as many Undead as Noah and Jet's respective teams.
Britta nodded at Noah, and then—for the first time ever—she offered Noah a genuine smile.
"Well… you've gotten really strong, Sherlock."
Noah chuckled and shrugged. He didn't have the heart to tell her that he wasn't even in top form thanks to the whole marathon within the Dungeon, and how most of his Enchanted Items had run out of power.
'It would just make her feel bad…' And so, keeping that secret to himself, Noah resumed his departure.
Before completely leaving Britta's presence, though, he uttered words that came raw from his very depths.
He wasn't smiling, neither was his tone casual.
Noah meant every word he uttered, and the way he turned his head back and gazed at Britta while saying them expressed them perfectly well.
"I'm going to get much stronger. You just watch me."
And, without saying anything more, Noah Sherlock returned to the inner walls of the white dome.
After all, he had one more duty to fulfill.
'Sir Jet… whatever happens, I will not forget my promise.' Clenching fist with resolve, he burned the rest of the unfolding fight into his eyes.
'I will protect everyone!'
**********
[Meanwhile…]
"Huff… huff…"
Adonis was breathing heavily as he stared at the man who stood opposite him.
Just like him, Jet was also panting. They both looked extremely exhausted, way past their limits. However, this was only how it appeared on the surface.
'This situation is getting a bit difficult.' Adonis narrowed his gaze as he looked at the opponent.
'I can't use my Divine Sword, and while I'm utilizing most of my Skills at the moment, I have to restrict myself to a particular set so I don't get recognized as the Hero later on.'
Also, he had stopped holding back with his Stats, so he should have still been much stronger than humanly possible.
'So how in the world is he still able to keep up with me?!'
Adonis could recover both his Mana and Life Force by using passive Skills, and while Dragons were also notorious for having the same capabilities, Adonis found it increasingly strange that Jet wasn't showing any signs of recovery, yet he was still fighting on a somewhat even ground with him.
'The sheer skill he has with the blade is incredible, and his combat application is nearly flawless.'
Even though Adonis was obviously the superior one when it came to Stats, it constantly felt like Jet was just the better fighter.
'Dragons are strong, but they're not very good in Combat Application, especially in human form. They mostly rely on Magic and Skills.' Adonis' eyes narrowed in thought.
Jet seemed to be the exception to that standard, though.
Not only was he a much better fighter, but he didn't display any proper Magic-based abilities.
That was too strange to ignore.
'Is it possible that I was wrong? Could it be…?' Adonis glanced at Lux, who seemed to be a more typical example of a Dragon.
However, with both of them working so well in sync—another trait that wasn't seen with Dragons—Adonis began to doubt her identity as a Dragon as well.
'But… the future, and the Spatial Magic… and…'
A creeping thought entered Adonis' mind as he felt himself doubting all of the theories and assertions he made.
'What if there was another explanation? Is there something I'm missing?'
As his heart raced quickly and his exhaustion slowly began to vanish, he noticed Jet falling on one knee—a weakened mess.
"It seems… I've reached my limit." He whispered, a sad smile spreading on his face as he stared at Adonis.
"This looks like the end."
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Thanks for reading!
