Chapter 350: Curses! (1/2)
Selene ducked under another beam of concentrated energy, crouching down with one hand on the ground as she did so. Harnessing as much of her recently enhanced strength as she could, she launched herself forward while making sure to stay low. She'd learned from previous attempts that it was important to be able to change directions in a split second when her opponent managed to line up another shot.
It had taken her a few minutes of effort, but she managed to get a feel for her new power. For some reason, she was much stronger and more agile than she'd been previously. Although the exact cause escaped her at the moment, she figured it had to do with the time she'd lost between being interrogated and waking up next to the boss.
The male vampire landed again, once more taking a shooting stance and letting loose with a pair of shots before resuming his retreat. Selene was able to dodge the first and block the second, but she had to slow herself to do so, and as a result the distance between them increased again.
[Gah! This guy is so frustrating.] She thought to herself.
Not only was he intentionally fighting in a way that kept her from doing anything, but she could clearly tell from his expression and the way he was carrying himself that he wasn't taking this situation seriously.
When this cycle had repeated itself for the eighth time, she finally snapped. ”By the gods! Why won't you just sit still and let me hit you?!”
The sniper stopped for a moment, lowering his rifle slightly while raising an eyebrow as if the two were somehow balanced. ”I am intentionally buying time until Esmerelda is done with the Dragonknight. She would be upset if I finished you off before she had a chance to play.”
”Grrr. And you call yourself a man?! Just stand and fight!” She yelled while leaping into another charge, only to be forced to slide to the right to avoid a beam of energy that would have split her head in two.
”Why should I do that?” He replied calmly, a hint of amusement in his voice. ”Why sacrifice my advantages and fight you on your own terms?”
”Because it's cowardly! It's dishonorable! That's why!” She yelled while throwing herself to the side again to dodge another burst of fire.
”There is no such thing as honor in a fight. There are only winners and losers, and while I don't think I'll be beaten even if I took you on in close combat, there is no reason to risk it when I have the ability to defeat you from a distance. It's just a matter of waiting until you've expended your stamina.”
Selene took cover behind a bush, only to be forced to move again as her hiding spot was lanced with several blasts. Gritting her teeth, she muttered to herself. ”I understand all that. Ain't nothing special about honor when it comes right down to it. Which is why I'm going to do this.”
She opened her mouth and made use of her unique skill. It was unlikely to succeed against a powerful undead opponent, but she only needed him to be affected a little. A low tonal hum spread throughout the area, resonating strangely in the open air. The male vampire hesitated for the first time since they'd started fighting. His arms slackened and the barrel of his weapon dipped towards the ground.
”Chance!” She shouted while moving as quickly as possible, shortening the distance as much as possible before his distraction ended, readying her newly made staff as she did.
The vampire snapped his head back up with a start, muttering, ”What…”
His legs tightened in preparation for jumping back, but by that point it was already too late.
”Gotcha!” Selene yelled while swinging her weapon with all of her might.
It looked like she was about to cave the irritating man's head, but his form suddenly blurred and shifted, briefly disappearing and reappearing some distance away.
”Well, well. Looks like you've got a few tricks yourself.” He griped while examining the damage that was done to his rifle in the brief exchange. While Selene wasn't able to actually injure him, she had succeeded in rendering his weapon unusable.
After dropping the bent remnants of his gun, the vampire drew a knife, held it in a reverse grip and took a combat stance. ”Alright, I guess I can take you on.”
The aura he exuded changed, taking on a far more hostile air. Feeling his killing intent, she began to suspect that she might have made a mistake.
[Ah...I think I made him upset.]
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”Curse Resistance? Are you kidding me?” Esmerelda muttered in disbelief. ”I've used this ability on all kinds of people, including a High Priest of the sun goddess, and never had any issue. Also did you really just rank up a skill in the middle of battle? I thought that shit only happened in the stories. Maybe I should have paid more attention to these.”
She reached into her clothes and pulled out a small packet of paper. Concerned that she might be trying to activate some kind of scroll, Mike concentrated mana in his eyes, momentarily enhancing his eyesight. With it, he was able to just barely make out the contents of the cover page.
A slightly distorted woodcut image depicted an obscenely muscular man laying on the ground, covered by several wounds and gritting his teeth as if he were in pain. Looming over him was a grinning skeleton wreathed in evil energy. The caption at the very bottom read, ”This curse will stop my heart if I don't do something! My only hope is to break through to the next level!”
Feeling a strange sense of emotional detachment, his gaze slid over to the title, which was boldly emblazoned at the top of the page in large gothic letters. ”The Deadly Undead Menace: The Dragonknight confronts his most dangerous enemy yet, a lich's death curse!”