Meanwhile, the army outside felt impotent at the way Darius had simply ignored them and disappeared with the City Lord at a point.
It was unprecedentedly rude for sure, but it also perfectly displayed the power gap between both parties, so there was nothing they could do about it.
Especially with Gunner still standing there, folding his arm coldly, and giving them a glare that practically screamed: 'Try something, I dare you!'
Xela also observed them quietly, her usually soft and gentle demeanor gone.
She was an Elven Princess, so even though her natural disposition was that of kindness and amiability, she also knew when to shut the world around her behind a wall and project an icy cold demeanor.
Darkus' face was thunderous from this kind of treatment, and he made a subtle signal to his vice behind his back. Seeing this, his vice-commander quickly dispatched someone to summon their own Master stage expert.
Neither Gunner nor Xela missed this, but both kept quiet and opted to wait. Darius hadn't given them any instructions, so they refused to do anything unless necessary.
This awkward standoff continued for 5 minutes until a pathway was made in the ten thousand strong army for a batch of riders to come through. Three vice-commanders rode behind their Master stage expert who happened to be a burly axe-knight.
He had messy brown hair and dark black eyes that seemed common. His features were rugged and mature, giving him the appearance of a well-learned man who had years of experience under his belt.
His armor was similar to the ones the rest of the army wore in that it was colored in a greenish hue and bore the insignia of the Riaslin Kingdom, but it was definitely a grade higher than mere steel, likely being mithril.
On his back was a large two-sided war axe with a long shaft, almost resembling a poleaxe. Its shaft was made of blackish wood while the blade shone with an orange-green color of orichalcum.
His warhorse was the largest and most menacing of the lot, likely so due to the weight the warrior had to bear. Trying to put him on a normal horse was guaranteed to break its back.
The warrior eventually stopped his crew and signaled them to wait behind while he dismounted and walked forth slowly. He casually observed Gunner and Xela, checking what about them had the whole army pause.
His face became solemn and his mind entered turmoil once he sensed three things. Firstly, they radiated some strange energy that appeared to bend the laws of the world around them, even going so far as to overwrite them.
Secondly, they had the aura of multiple special abilities that he could sense, from Afterimage to even Mind Power. Heck, the pretty and dainty-looking elf girl had Explosive Strength, making the warrior wonder whether he was hallucinating.
He himself only had two abilities, Limit Release, and Fast Regeneration. This alone had allowed him to stand out and become one of Riaslin Kingdom's top masters, among the 300+ they had.
Even in the top empires, Masters like him who had a Basic ability on top of the obvious Intermediate one - that had allowed them to become Master-stage in the first place - were far from being common.
To encounter two youths who have all the detectable abilities made him shiver. However, he could not retreat at this point because the whole army was looking to him for guidance.
He had no other choice but to bull through using clever means.
He stopped a few meters from the duo, simply removing his war axe and slamming its head into the ground, causing a minor tremor that shook the area.
"My name is Keith Durant! I am a proud Axe Knight of the Riaslin Kingdom, and a Master stage expert! I demand to know why you impede my kingdom's army from conquering this town!"
His question that was bellowed elicited a reaction from the men behind him, as they raised their weapons and screamed 'raah!' with boundless vigor and a shine in their eyes.
With their moral pillar standing forward, the duo blocking their way suddenly appeared far less menacing. There were 10,000 of them and the opponent were cowards who had remained in their shell!
The people of Listo saw this and became apprehensive. They had only turned brave because the genius of Andrato had returned and had successfully intimidated their foes, but they actually didn't understand the nuance of what was going on.
Seeing the opponent ready to restart the fight, they naturally became tense and worried.
In response to Keith's words, Gunner walked forward with a look of interest.
"Well then, Master Durant, I, Gunner Stone, stand here blocking your army because I feel like it. What the fuck are you gonna do about it? Use that piece of coal to hit me? Go ahead then."
Gunner chuckled as he pointed to his shoulder, copying the actions of an amazing character from his favorite anime series.
"I have an ache right here, feels very sore. Why don't you use that charcoal on a stick to massage it for me, huh?"
Xela giggled audibly, unable to hold back at Gunner's cruel taunt. It was clear to her that this kind of behavior should have been learned from his time in the arenas, because only the combatants there would use such methods.
Keith was absolutely livid at the disrespect shown him and picked up his war axe easily. Despite the burning rage within him, he still kept him calm and pointed his weapon towards Gunner.
"A vile vermin like yourself is a disgrace to all Masters on the continent. Today, I, Keith Durant, shall beat some manners into you!"
Keith flourished his axe as the soldiers behind him once again cheered for their man, and even Army Commander Darkus smiled thinly, his fear of Gunner replaced by a hint of disdain for the half-giant's vulgar tongue.
However, both Darkus and Keith still feared his power and the quiet elven maiden beside him. They just found Gunner as a person to be beneath their respect.
Gunner frowned.
"The mouth was created for eating and speaking sense, not spewing verbal farts and feces. Get on with it!"
