237 Challengers (1/2)

Markus leapt to one side as the paw came crashing down again. The ground shook as it landed where he'd stood a moment ago, causing him to stumble as the Golden Lion Lord tried to paw him once more.

Half-panicked, Markus dropped his sword and his shield, giving up on blocking entirely and focused on running. He dodged the paw, leapt aside as the ground shook from the impact, rolled as far and as fast as he could, only to fail to escape the next slam. Pieces of Frame went scattering across the field.

Astonishingly, though the veteran legionnaire had the wind knocked clear out of him, as far as injuries went, Markus wasn't all that hurt. Was his armor really that good? Markus had a moment of doubt before he glanced at the Golden Lion Lord and saw the big cat actually yawn.

Looking at it from the lion's point of view, Markus suddenly had a burst of insight and felt all the more miserable for it.

The Golden Lion Lord was just toying with him! The big guy was just pawing at him lazily without being serious in the least! If he'd been serious, Markus would probably be dead by now, but as it was, he wasn't even seriously injured. He was just tossed around like a cotton yarn for entertainment…

In a moment, the outcome became clear as day.

”I'm not going to win this…” Markus figured out immediately. ”But… but if the fight drags on long enough… maybe I can qualify as a Challenger!”

All he had to do was play along… as the toy of a big cat. As long as the lion didn't get too bored, he should be able to survive without losing anything important, like a limb or an eye.

Except his dignity. That was already gone.

[There's a big difference between a regular Tier 6 Wild and a Lord Challenger.] The Golden Lion Lord yawned again. [Though it's not as big a difference as the one between a Challenger and a ruling Lord.]

The equipment Markus had could help him hold off a regular Tier 6 for some time, but a Lord Challenger was something else. An actual, ruling Lord was again something else entirely. This was a Lord who successfully defeated every Challenger out there or otherwise scared them away. Comparing the Golden Lion Lord to a regular Tier 6 was just laughable.

Markus regretted it now. Tossed around like a plaything, pieces of Frame and armor flying every which way, all Markus could do was hope for the best.

***

Joshu was similarly hoping for the best as he took aim at the High Crown Stag Lord from his hiding place in the bushes.

There on the steppes of the Speckled Highlands, he hunted the Stag Lord and laid an ambush at his favorite drinking spot. After hours of waiting, the time had finally come; the Stag Lord was drinking, unawares, as Joshu readied his mini-ballista and took his shot.

He did not hesitate, did not think twice about striking down the Stag Lord in such a manner. Was it dishonorable? Would it even be acceptable to the Lords that he hunted his prey like this? Joshu didn't know, and this wasn't the time to second-guess the plan. His entire focus was on his aim, and the heart of the Stag Lord in front of him.

Joshu fired.

Abruptly the Stag Lord raised his head suspiciously, sensing something. But it was too late. The bolt already hit him in the chest…

And stuck. Three inches into the Stag Lord's rib cage, the bolt halted, failing to penetrate deeply enough to reach his heart.

It was a good shot, Joshu comforted himself. It was well-aimed, well-fired, and the ambush had been perfect. He had done everything right.

But despite his best efforts, despite succeeding in all his endeavors, he failed to kill the High Crown Stag Lord. It was through no fault of his own. The Stag Lord was just that tough.

”Now what?” Joshu grumbled to himself.

The Stag Lord stared at him with reddening eyes.

Joshu gulped, dropped the mini-ballista…

And ran for his life.

***

Song Chen, on the other hand, had a great many doubts and did a whole lot of second-guessing.

”Why did I ever get myself into this?” he roared as he slammed George's glaive into the scaled body of the Cyan Python Lord.

Did he ever mention how much he hated marshes? Yet here he was in the middle of the Bog Marshes trying to cut a Tier 6 snake with a heavy weapon.

While the glaive itself might have been modified and upgraded to Tier 6, there was another factor in determining whether or not it would successfully deal harm to its target; that is, the strength of the wielder striking with it.