Ultimate Level 1-Chapter 456: The Fight of a Lifetime

“You two need to take a break!” Dagon shouted as he moved toward Tanila and Max. “Neither of you realize it, but you’re caught in a loop that sometimes happens here.”

It took a little effort not to glare as Max watched the King walk toward him.

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve fought twenty times straight. Twice she came close, yet not once have you lost. Tell me Tanila Gilmenor, do you feel like you’ve improved.”

Her gold hair shimmered, and she also seemed to glare at the dwarven King for a moment before the aura she was giving off lessened.

“I… have.”

With a wave of her hand, the power that exuded from her vanished, and her hair returned to the red color Max enjoyed so much.

“Which is the point of all this. Others still need to fight and learn to get better. You two have hogged this place for too long. Sit back and think about what each of you have learned. Even better, go find a corner somewhere and spend some time kissing one another.”

Max felt his cheeks turn a little red as he glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw that Tanila had also done the same.

“I’m sorry… what?”

Snorting, Dagon pointed up to the area to watch from.

“You two have been going all out. I’ve seen the look in your eyes. Sometimes rage and anger, and occasionally borderline hatred. How many times did you use the skill?”

He could feel the gulp that Tanila took as the King stared at her.

“Seventeen,” she replied, her voice almost trembling momentarily.

“And each time, how did it feel? Glorious? Like you wanted to use it over and over?”

She nodded slowly.

“Trust me. I understand. The ability that I get for being the King is easily ten times more intoxicating. Perhaps that’s why we dwarves drink so much. It is to learn how to avoid giving in to the desire, but my father warned me countless times that I would want to use it constantly if I didn’t learn to control it. He was right. You need to learn that as well, and I think you’re finally starting to get there.”

Just as Max was about to speak, Dagon pointed a thick finger at him.

“And you, Max Hoste, held back far too often. While I understand allowing her to cast and get better, at least four times I know that you toyed with her like a cat and mouse. It went beyond training and into the realm of being wrong. Just like when we tease someone we love, we often know the limit we can go and try never to pass it. You and I know you were very close to that line, if not over it.”

Nodding, Max knew the dwarf was right. Caught up in the bloodlust of all this and the sensation of knowing a life was his to take at any moment, he had done just that.

“Forgive me, my love. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Tanila nodded and shrugged.

“I probably should ask for a little forgiveness as well. Some of those words I said.”

Each of them started to laugh and then clasped hands.

“Good. Now that you two remember you love each other, leave this room. I have work to do, and everyone else needs to train before tomorrow. I’ll give you three fights against me, and that’s it.”

***

Fowl pushed back his seventh plate of food and uttered a loud burp. “Excuse me.”

“You really can’t say that when you do it every five minutes,” Batrire stated.

Cordellia laughed and then mimicked their warrior's utterance, letting her belch last a little longer.

“I tell you, these elves grow on me daily,” Fowl muttered.

Max couldn’t help but smile as they stared at the pile of plates before them.

“It would appear that you all put in some work today,” Erwini muttered as she sipped from her cup. “Some Faction leaders might get upset about a party coming in and consuming this much food, but the other part of me wishes I could watch tomorrow's fight.”

“It’s not our place to invite, and I’m also certain that Dagon doesn’t want his ability to be witnessed any more than it has to.”

“Dagon. You just toss that name around like he’s one of your dwarven-drinking buddies… Still, I know you’re right. Even if it pains me, some humans and elves get to fight in a place most would give both arms just to visit.”

“Trust me, it hurts… a lot,” their archer stated as she picked up another chicken leg. “Who knew dying could feel so bad.”

Chuckles came from everyone at the table, each of them having experienced the pain dozens of times.

“So are you going to stay here and tower climb afterward or return home?”

“We may try the tower here and see what it offers. I appreciate you not prodding too much, as we can’t discuss it. If we could, we would.”

“Oh, I understand,” the Faction leader for this city replied. “Honestly, that makes it a little scarier. You’re the first group in a long time to reach those levels, and it answers so many questions. It also helps me understand why the King poaches all of the good talent. To be able to reach that level and join his Guard is a special thing.”

The sound of another belch from Fowl and his tankard banging against the table rang out through the dining hall.

“I’m going to bed. Tomorrow’s going to be a day where I die quickly, I’m afraid. As such, I want to sleep a little.”

Nods came from everyone as their warrior stood up and held out his hand to Batrire.

“You coming, babe?”

“Not that tired, are you?”

Max saw his friend wink back at their healer and shake his head.

“I’m never that tired.”

As the two of them took off laughing, he motioned in their direction to Tanila.

“It’s not a contest, you know,” she muttered as she started to stand.

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“Oh, I know, because if it was, I’m definitely the winner.”

***

“Remember the plan,” Max whispered as the five of them stood in position.

“Yeah, I got it,” Fowl muttered. “Let myself get beat to a bloody pulp.”

“Don’t worry, I’m certain we’ll all get a turn,” Tanila stated.

Dozens of Dagon’s Elite Guard were watching from above, and it looked like all of them were excited as they leaned forward and shouted.

“Let’s have fun!” the King called out. “And remember, you only get three chances! No holding back!”

The glow of Tanila’s hair left no doubt they would do anything like that.

As the horn sounded, everyone moved.

Fowl activated his Juggernaut ability and charged forward, his shield out and crashed into the King.

Max transformed into his Ultimate Form and was already in berserker mode, blinking behind their foe.

Tanila and Bob started the barrage of spells while using their crowd-control ones, trying to get one to stick.

A purple wolf joined the fray as their ranger unleashed arrows at the King’s feet.

Within the first few seconds of combat starting, the chaos was a frenzy of spells, attacks, and shouts.

Batrire’s heals never stopped pouring out as Fowl and Dagon seemed to be caught in some feedback of a thorn aura, each causing damage to the other from their warrior's initial charge.

Unlike last time, Max focused on the king's shoulders and arms, not trying to hit his back, as attacking there seemed to cause more damage than the other places.

Still, he was bleeding, and each time he drew blood, the aura Dagon had returned the favor.

“Taunt!”

A groan came from the King as Fowls’s ability went off.

“I’m not that stupid!”

The massive hammer continued to rain down blows on Fowl, each time suffering damage as the warrior blocked them, continuing the thorn feedback.

Say when…

Not yet.

Each attempt to hold the older dwarf in place with the root or binding spells lasted not even a fraction of a second, but they did slow down Dagon’s ability to move slightly.

Arrows bounced off his armor, but occasionally, one or two would find a weak spot, and Max watched their archer's health decrease after a successful strike.

Tanila’s big spell was coming, and when he saw her nod, he stored both weapons and grabbed the King from behind.

A twenty-foot-long, four-foot-wide chunk of ice raced at Dagon and struck him in the chest.

Max roared when he saw the dwarf’s armor flash a few colors, and Tanila immediately fell to the ground.

“Not good enough!”

He could sense the arrows but couldn’t do anything about it.

The golden light came, and right before he was tossed away, two arrows struck the eye slots of the king. Cordellia fell dead from the feedback of the damage.

Fowl’s hit points had almost been gone after the first strike, and nly Batrire’s healing had kept him alive to endure two more before their warrior was flattened beneath the hammerhead.

Max tried to stop Dagon, but the King was on their healer so fast.

Her barrier appeared, and laughter erupted across the room.

The older dwarf turned and threw something at him.

A weird metal ball that glowed came at him faster than anything he’d seen before, and Max watched it destroy everything Bob had put in its path to slow it down.

[ Demonic Teleportation ]

His sonar told him that the object had shifted direction and was still coming at him.

It collided with his shield just as he got it into place, and then, the next moment, he realized he was being dragged toward the King.

The sound of laughter grew louder, and a quick glance at Dagon revealed a weird grin on his face. His expression felt familiar.

He’s enjoying this.

That thought was Max's last one before the hammer caught his shield.

***

“Not a bad fight. You made me use a few tricks I rarely show.”

Still rubbing his bald head, Max let out a groan.

The plan’s working—one more fight.

Yeah… but I mean, I’m the one getting beat up.

Ohh, I feel it, too, in a way.

“Thanks, I think,” he replied, taking the hand held out to him. “What was that object you threw at me?”

“Some things are old relics, and this hammer is one of them. Just know it’s part of it, and the fact I used it means a lot, as none of those in the area above have ever seen me use it.”

A godly weapon? Or an artifact?

Possibly. Still it seemed to draw us to the hammer and we couldn’t dodge that object. A potential item to consider making if we can one day.

His friends all moved to where he and Dagon stood.

“So, you all ready for the next fight or need a moment to prepare and discuss things?”

“If you’re willing, we’ll take a minute to talk,” Tanila replied.

“Take five. I need a drink, but be ready when the horn sounds. As always, I’m coming for you.”

Watching the King walk to a door where they knew a few kegs of ale were, everyone huddled together.

“That was painful,” Cordellia stated. “Every time I hit him, I got hurt. Just how strong is his ability?”

“It’s higher than mine,” Fowl replied. “Imagine that but never stopping. Ours seemed to reflect the reflected damage multiple times.”

“Yup, and it made me have to work hard,” Batrire informed them. “By the way, he saved me for last, which means I won the bet.”

A grunt came from their warrior and archer, who each handed over a gold coin to her.

Max snapped his fingers to get everyone's attention.

“Okay, plan B this time. He showed a few more things, and I’m betting he is hiding a couple more.”

“You really think it’s best to wait till the third time to try our last plan? I mean, if we fail, that’s it.”

“Cordellia, let me ask you a question. Do you think we have any other options? We’ll only get one chance; if it works, we can win. If it doesn’t… Well, we’ll all be dead anyways.”

“The plan seemed good last night,” Tanila said. “I don’t see how it’s going to change. All we can do now is adapt, and I, for one, want to kick his dwarven arse.”

“Hey! That’s my king!” Fowl exclaimed. “If anyone’s kicking his arse, it should be a dwarf!”

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