Within seconds the guard with the wolf mask rushes me, a sword in his right hand.

I lift my arm in time to block the attack, my scales absorbing the blow. The scales don’t manage to break as I continue to hold back the attack.

The man continues to push me back a bit as he remains silent.

I’m kind of glad they aren’t as talkative.

You and me both. I’d rather just get this over with before the king can make another move against us.

SLASH!!!

He quickly steps back and swings the sword towards me once again, this time I manage to move to the right to avoid it. He is definitely moving a lot faster than the previous guards.

This is just swordsmanship at the moment instead of power.

CLASH!!!!

Blades collide in the distance as the entire area starts to feel a bit more intense. The power from the others is definitely starting to radiate a lot more than before.

Briefly I turn my head slightly to the left to see that Velia is fighting with the tiger guard, both blades moving quite fast. She still seems to be handling herself well.

SLICE!!!!

In the next moment the sword goes past my face as I just barely manage to dodge in time.

Still absolute silence as the man continues to swing his blade relentlessly towards me, his technique becoming more and more obvious.

He isn’t as skilled with a sword as I thought but the power he is hiding is completely different.

I won’t underestimate anything with this asshole but I’m not sure what to do to make this better. More power would usually be my go to but it would also prove I can’t go without the raw power.

I’ve said that I want to rely on more than that going forward.

Relying on your power is how you’ve come so far Rokuro, why stop now?

Honestly I don’t know what’s gotten me thinking like this recently but I guess I don’t want to completely lose myself. It took a lot for me to even realize that in the first place.

What is it that really bothers you about this now?

Maybe it is just the bloodlust that I’m worrying about. I don’t want to accidentally hurt one of the girls because I lose control of myself.

It has been a concern since I first started dealing with the bloodlust in the first place. I think it has also gotten progressively worse over time as well.

Like how it doesn’t only apply to humans anymore?

Exactly that. I’m also about to kill someone once again and it isn’t going to be just one person. There’s multiple guards here and I’ve already killed some before these ones showed up.

CLASH!!! CLANG!!!!

His sword continues to smash against my arm as I block and dodge his attacks but something is beginning to glow around him.

A dark orange aura mixed with some black is starting to emit from all around him, slowly building up pressure. It is forcing me to use more of my power as well.

CRUMBLE!!! CRACK!!!! CRACK!!!!

The ground begins to break beneath my feet as I start to channel more power throughout my body. Even the scales start to radiate a darker glow from them as I focus.

’So he is finally using more of his power? This can’t be all it is,’ King Albus thinks to himself.

"Rokuro I might need help!" Eliza shouts in the distance.

Weave! Dodge!

His attacks are speeding up but I’m able to keep up since I’m great at controlling my power properly. It has taken a lot of practice but I’ve managed to move it to specific spots.

I push myself off the ground as he swings the sword towards me and drive my fist into his stomach.

"GAH!" He lets out as I knock him into the air.

CLATTER!!

His sword hits the ground and I use this opportunity while he’s in the air to slam my fists down onto his back.

SLAM!!!!

His body smashes into the ground within seconds; leaving him in a lifeless state for a moment.

You should probably finish him off while he is down on the ground.

I don’t plan to leave him alive anyway.

As I go to stomp his head in he rolls out of the way; Within a few seconds he stands back up with his fists up in the air. He is somehow ready to go once again.

His mask is slightly broken, enough for me to notice his yellow eyes staring back at me. Still, his silence lingers.

"You guys are really enjoying yourselves!" King Albus shouts with excitement.

"F*CK you!" Aria shouts back at him as she continues to fight.

The sounds of battle continue to echo around me as I prepare for the next round against the guard in front of me. I’ll definitely make use of my fighting stance I learned.

I prepare by going in the Variseth lunar arts stance, the hybrid of offense and defense.

Breathe in, breathe out. After taking in a breath and letting it back out he starts to rush towards me again.

Throwing a right hook, then a left, right, and each time I manage to block it. This tells me that the Variseth fighting technique is definitely good enough to fight against demons.

THUD!!

I block his attack and swing my right fist across his face, fully shattering his mask this time. The pieces all fall onto the floor as he stumbles back a few steps.

"Spit. Spit. You really are strong, but I expected this much from a dragon," The guard says with a serious tone in his voice.

I don’t see a reason to respond to him since he’ll be dead shortly anyway.

FWOOSH!!!!

The wind rushes past me as I wind my left fist back to deliver a final blow.

I won’t let this bastard stand back up after this attack no matter what.