The Bard is Fantasizing Again

Shivana had never been patient to begin with, and in her rage, she wouldn't give Black Snake any room to breathe.

Her assault was like a violent storm, the enormous axe in her hands swinging as if it were nothing more than a bamboo fishing rod.

Black Snake was determined to drag this out, so he simply focused on dodging.

His combat experience was far more abundant. With his background as a rogue, he had mastered every muscle and bone in his body thoroughly.

So much so that he could always slip away through the gaps in her attacks like a boneless viper.

But seeing her offensive repeatedly miss only made Shivana even more furious—

This was a duel she couldn't afford to lose.

There was only one prophet.

But there were many old bastards who didn't accept this chieftain.

"Coward! What kind of skill is hiding and dodging!?"

If he were at full strength, Black Snake wouldn't mind retorting a few times.

But right now he only felt exhausted, unwilling to waste even the energy to speak.

He kept retreating until he backed into an orc, with nowhere left to run. Only then did he leap up, stepping on Shivana's shoulder to pull away to another side.

Shivana still felt infuriated.

But this fury would eventually transform into frustration.

That's when she would calm down due to disappointment.

That would be his moment to strike.

Watching Black Snake dodge and weave, stabilizing the situation, Tang Qi felt that the outcome of this duel was only a matter of time.

But the closer it got to the final moment, the less he could afford to relax.

The goblin warlock was their only bargaining chip.

He absolutely couldn't let her escape.

Otherwise, they wouldn't even have the qualification to negotiate.

However, during the duel, the old goblin had been surprisingly well-behaved.

The necromantic aura from her wound was stabilizing her condition...

Tang Qi couldn't help but consider the threat she might pose—

By common sense, after consecutively using [Fireball] and [Fear].

Her spell slots should be completely exhausted.

[Spell slots] were intimately connected to a caster's mental power.

For example, a caster at Starshine's level—his mental power was sufficient to support two second-circle spells and four first-circle spells.

Unless extraordinary means were used, once the spell slots were depleted, his brain could no longer bear more pressure and would require long rest to restore his mental state to full strength.

And for warlocks, who were also spellcasters, spell slots were particularly scarce.

Of course, since their power didn't truly belong to them.

They only needed a brief rest to release all the pressure.

[False Life] was a special blessing granted by her patron and didn't count as one of her spells.

What worried Tang Qi was this:

During the time Black Snake and the female orc were dueling.

Had the old goblin, who had been stabbed in the abdomen with a curved blade that was never pulled out, counted as resting?

Perhaps it would be more secure to stab her in the waist and abdomen one more time right now?

Tang Qi wasn't quite sure of the situation:

"Forget it, better safe than sorry."

Thinking it, he did it, directly yanking the curved blade out and stabbing toward the other side of Babaya—

"Damn human, what are you doing!?"

The sudden stab made the old goblin cry out in pain despite herself.

Tang Qi realized that the ghostly green glow at her wound dissipated with this strike.

No wonder Babaya was hysterical—

Originally, taking advantage of the gap while the two fought, she had closed her eyes and prayed to her 'master' for grace, releasing the pressure on her brain.

But this sudden stab directly severed her connection to the blessing.

And the disappearance of [False Life] meant that from now on, any damage she received would be borne entirely by herself...

Was it coincidence?

Or was this human's insight truly so vicious...

She clenched her teeth tightly, her expression unsettled.

And at the same time Tang Qi delivered the follow-up stab, Kuru beside him suddenly shrank his neck and moved closer to his leg:

"Watch show, many people!"

Tang Qi immediately looked around and discovered that many goblins and orcs on the turtle shells were constantly pressing toward the center to get a better view.

Now that the duel was becoming increasingly intense, with Shivana holding the upper hand.

The continuous cheers and shouts in his ears, with more and more spectators, was normal enough...

No.

Tang Qi narrowed his eyes slightly.

He was now within the encirclement, several feet from the crowd.

And those busybodies gathering around were of mixed races, but the short goblins with yellow-green skin were mostly clustering around his side.

"Kuru, help me watch the surroundings closely."

Tang Qi had no choice but to grip the old goblin's neck tighter and move a bit farther from the goblins behind him.

"Behave yourself, don't try any tricks on me."

"You already stabbed me once, what more can I do!?"

Babaya's shrill, hoarse voice always made people uncomfortable.

And in the crowd, Black Snake had already led the enraged Shivana on a long lap.

In his mind, he kept calculating how to let Shivana win this duel with dignity.

Though reluctant, sometimes 'failure' was a kind of 'victory'.

He wasn't trying to compete with anyone—that was something he liked to do when he was younger.

Right now, he had to get back to town ahead of the orcs.

Understanding the key point, Black Snake stopped being wishy-washy. Seeing the fury in Shivana's eyes gradually fade.

He understood this was the only opportunity he could seize.

He immediately stopped, turned, and rushed toward the barbarian.

Seeing the annoying flea finally stop scurrying around, Shivana roared and swung her giant axe at his head.

A crimson crescent moon whipped up a gale.

But the human's figure wasn't before her eyes!

As she swung at empty air, the fury in her eyes and the savage bear on her back both vanished in an instant.

And Black Snake had already slid under and past her to her back, pushing off the ground with both feet, leaping up and turning to draw his blade.

Shivana immediately panicked, hurriedly twisting her waist with the momentum, shouting loudly, trying to use the inertia to swing the giant axe in a full circle, spinning it toward her back!

But the black blade had already cut through the night, slashing toward the back of Shivana's neck—

If this strike was swift enough, it would hit Shivana's neck one step ahead of her axe strike.

This might not take her life.

But it would definitely decide the victor.

Shivana clenched her teeth tightly.

After fighting with Black Snake for so long, she knew she wasn't fast enough to block this long-premeditated slash.

After this strike, all her previous boasts, her hopes of winning reputation, would vanish into smoke.

For a moment, she regretted agreeing to that silver-tongued human's duel wager.

After losing, should she honor the agreement and let them leave?

After a brief hesitation, Shivana ultimately chose to refuse.

What contract? What honor?

No orc would care about these things.

Much less would a tribal chieftain tolerate someone who had defeated them living past three days...

If there were no means of punishment, that person would replace their position and become the new chieftain.

Tribes were just that savage.

They must die here!

Shivana decided firmly in her heart, about to face the outcome she anticipated. Latest content publıshed on novelFɪre.net

But the blade didn't slash across the back of her neck as expected.

Instead, the feeling of the axe cutting into flesh reached her hands first.

"BOOM!!!"

Shivana used the momentum to send Black Snake flying.

The victor was decided!

She looked back hesitantly to see the human lying on the ground, a vicious bloody gash clearly visible on his back—

The wound looked frightening, but it hadn't injured the spine at all.

She belatedly realized that in the final moment of the duel, this man hadn't actually turned to deliver that strike.

Instead, he had judged the distance in advance and controlled the injury to an appropriate range.

He had thrown the fight.

And she had won dishonorably...

"URAAH!!!"

But no orc could see the truth of it.

They only saw the result before their eyes.

In an instant, rough cheers exploded in Shivana's ears:

"Shivana! Shivana! Shivana!"

She didn't know if she should enjoy these cheers.

As she fell silent, the shouts echoed through the forest.

At the same time.

Tang Qi's spine felt as if it had been struck by an ice pick.

That unique tingling sensation from [Alertness] instantly arrived!

But he was still gripping an old goblin in his hand, his movements restricted.

So the moment he sensed danger approaching, he gripped Babaya's neck tightly and turned to block with her toward the rear—

Several flashes of silver light crossed before his eyes as four goblins who had emerged from the crowd of onlookers simultaneously slashed the inferior curved blades in their hands toward their respected prophet.

"Ahhh!!!"

Babaya screeched, her narrow eyes streaming tears as big as beans.

"You useless fools, you hit me!"

The goblins froze, never expecting this human's reaction to be so swift.

They thought no one had noticed them.

But the goblins' failure couldn't ease Tang Qi's urgency.

He was a bard, not known for his strength.

Being able to hold a blade in one hand while lifting Babaya with the other was entirely because this old goblin was small in stature, her withered body carrying barely any meat.

But the four goblins' solid heavy chops shifted Babaya's center of gravity.

Making it impossible for him to keep gripping her neck.

Losing his hold, he let the old goblin fall to the ground!

"Shit!"

Tang Qi didn't dare delay, immediately moving forward to grab their only 'bargaining chip'.

But the four goblins pressed their advantage, swinging their blades again at Tang Qi's forehead.

"Rua!"

Kuru waved his wand, shooting out an ice crystal that hit one goblin's forehead squarely. The frost made his stiff curved blade utterly non-threatening.

Tang Qi followed [Alertness], sensing where the other three goblins' strikes would land, deflecting their attacks.

He didn't counterattack.

Instead, he tried to risk the three goblins attacking again, passing through them to charge directly at the fallen Babaya—

But those three goblins had already bought her a moment's opportunity.

Disregarding the bleeding wounds on her body, she stubbornly gripped the pendant at her neck that her patron had granted.

Foul, grating words spilled from the warlock's lips, like mosquitoes and flies buzzing in his ears.

Dark, evil light suddenly burst forth, connecting her pendant to her fingers.

"[Eldritch Blast]!"

In an instant, [Alertness] sounded.

The approaching danger made Tang Qi's entire body shudder with cold—

In that moment, the noisy cheers in his ears, the goblins' screeching, the kobold's worry...

All sounds seemed to transform into muffled white noise, gradually returning to silence.

Tang Qi suddenly realized his vision had become exceptionally sharp.

So much so that those two formless forces—which distorted the firelight, white fog, and air they passed through with repulsive energy—

Revealed columnar trajectories before his eyes.

They were like two sharp swords.

Ready to pierce through everything in their path.

Until his chest, until his heart.

Tang Qi had already experienced the power of this repulsive force.

Just glancing off to his waist and abdomen was enough to make him struggle to catch his breath.

This fragile body couldn't withstand its consecutive strikes.

"I need to dodge."

His mind was clearer than ever.

This was the only choice he could make.

"Dodge quickly."

He tried to move his legs.

But found they seemed trapped in sinking mud, heavy and powerless.

Pinning him firmly in place, unable to move.

"Fucking dodge already!"

Tang Qi roared in his mind, but his legs sinking in the swamp had already grown roots, embedding into the ground.

No matter how he called out, they remained unmoved.

The cold on his back made Tang Qi realize the reason—

[Alertness] had enhanced his perception of danger.

This was equivalent to infinitely extending the distance of his reflexive nerves within a fixed time.

Putting his brain in a state approaching 'bullet time'.

But his body was too weak to keep up with his neural transmission.

Thus presenting this current state where thought and flesh were almost separated—

Nothing in this world came with only benefits.

[Alertness] could help him avoid dangers he had time to react to.

But it also made those horrors he couldn't evade become bone-chillingly vivid.

This invisible repulsive force arrived in an instant.

Bringing Tang Qi face to face with death.

And there was nothing he could do.

"BANG, BANG!!!"

Two explosive sounds shattered the air, comparable to thunder accumulated in dark clouds!

Tang Qi's entire body flew backward.

His hearing gradually became clear, his vision grew dim, his chest grew heavy...

When he crashed to the ground, he felt like he couldn't catch his breath.

But this wasn't the sensation death should bring.

It was the suffocating feeling of being pressed by something heavy on his chest.

Tang Qi opened his eyes in confusion, groping at the heavy object on his body.

Slippery wetness reached his fingers.

A thick bloody smell filled his nostrils—

This was a person!?

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Black Snake, whose back had suffered severe trauma, felt something sweet surge up his throat and spat congealed blood onto Tang Qi's shoulder.

Tang Qi hadn't expected that the one who saved him at the last moment was actually this mercenary.

But he understood even less—

Why would he save him at all costs, even at the expense of his own injuries?

"You—why!?"

"Cut the crap. If you die, how the fuck am I supposed to get back to town?"

Black Snake panted heavily, his cursing tone becoming hollow.

Starberry Town... was it really that important to this mercenary?

"Save the talk for when we're out! First fucking help me up, we—we still need to fight our way out."

Right now wasn't the time for idle chatter—

Babaya gripped the pendant at her chest again.

Foul words were about to spill from her teeth:

"[Eldritch]—"

She hadn't finished the syllable.

A heavy fist suddenly smashed into her cheek.

This punch carried tremendous force, the skin on her cheek rippling from the shockwave, her cheekbone immediately caving in.

The old goblin was sent flying into the crowd of watching orcs, who scattered one after another, letting this prophet drag a deep furrow through the wet earth.

She couldn't withstand such tremendous force at all, her eyes rolling back, foam at her mouth, directly passing out.

"Uraah!?"

The orcs were also shocked by this sudden punch, all looking toward the leader who had thrown it—

Shivana spat coldly, slamming the giant axe in her hand hard into the ground:

"I'm not fucking done yet, what's that old hag interfering for!?"

Tribal duels were sacred.

Before the victor was determined, anyone who interfered in the struggle, regardless of status, would be seen as disrespecting the tribe.

Black Snake could still move, hadn't surrendered, so it wasn't over yet.

So Shivana had ample reason to teach a lesson to this old goblin who had irritated her from the start.

As for that human...

Looking at Black Snake, who was being helped up by Tang Qi but trying to stand straight.

Shivana couldn't help but clench her fists.

Honor told her she should explain to the tribe members the truth of her dishonorable victory.

"For this position, for the tribe, I need to learn to suppress, learn to restrain..."

Shivana let out a long breath, thumping her chest with a "bang."

"You lost.

Our [Fierce Roar] tribe has no place for the weak.

But some blind old hag interrupted this wager.

So—

Get lost!

Go back and recuperate properly.

Carry your fear of [Fierce Roar] as you watch our iron hooves crush that little town—

I'll be waiting for you there.

Then we'll restart this unfinished duel!"

"URAAH!!!"

Perhaps because the show had been good, no orc wanted to oppose Shivana's decision.

They only celebrated another victory with their cheers.

Shivana sighed.

She might have truly matured.

She could now lie shamelessly without changing expression, just like her old man.

But regardless, she would let this human go—

Since she had obtained the reputation she wanted, she didn't mind honoring this wager.

Moreover, she didn't want to recall the result of her dishonorable victory.

It gave her the illusion that even though she'd won the duel, she'd lost everything.

Keeping him in the tribe would only be irritating.

But someday, she would reclaim the dignity that belonged to her.

Before then, letting him go was acceptable.

Consider it...

Respect for a strong opponent.

'Strength.'

That was the creed of the [Fierce Roar] tribe.

"HUH, HAH!"

"HUH, HAH!"

"HUH, HAH!"

The orcs opened a path through the forest for them.

The war cries were like drums, celebrating and also demonstrating.

Before Shivana changed her mind, Tang Qi and Black Snake exchanged a glance and strode forward with their heads held high—

This too was to intimidate some orcs, telling them their injuries were nothing at all.

But after they passed through the forest leaves with Kuru.

Believing they had put some distance between themselves and those slow Skyrim Giant Tortoises.

Black Snake finally couldn't maintain his deliberate composure.

He felt his brain growing increasingly dizzy, his vision gradually darkening, weakness filling his entire body.

Making him want to just fall asleep like this.

Regardless of whether he would wake up tomorrow.

He was gradually losing the ability to feel pain.

His knees went weak and he collapsed to the ground.