Chapter 29: The Queen of Briaran [1]
The blond knight was still standing, but barely. He blinked several times in rapid succession, clearly trying to clear his vision and make sense of what had just happened to him. A thin trickle of blood ran down from where my boot had connected with his temple, stark red against his pale skin.
"Impossible...Sir Oliver..." One of the other knights whispered.
Oliver huh?
"What’s happening, Sir Oliver?" I called out with mockery. "Are you ready to give up already?"
Oliver’s head snapped up at my taunt, and I immediately realized I’d made a potentially fatal mistake. The look in his eyes had transformed completely—gone was the shocked confusion, replaced by something much darker and more dangerous. This wasn’t the gaze of a man who’d been caught off guard by a lucky shot.
He took a step forward, and his entire demeanor had changed. Where before his movements had been confident but predictable, now he moved with the fluid grace of someone who’d stopped holding back.
Holy shit.
My enhanced reflexes were the only thing that saved me. I threw myself to the side purely on instinct, feeling the displacement of air as his fist whistled past my ear with enough force to cave in a skull. The sound of his punch cutting through the air sent a shock wave echoing in my ears, and I knew with absolute certainty that if I’d taken that hit, I would have been eating dirt—assuming I was still conscious enough to eat anything at all.
Gasps rippled through the crowd of watching soldiers as they witnessed their captain’s true speed for the first time. Even they seemed surprised by the transformation in their leader.
Oliver appeared momentarily taken aback by my successful dodge, but he recovered with the fluid adaptability of a seasoned warrior. His hand shot out like a striking snake, fingers grasping for my shirt to hold me in place for a finishing blow. But I was already moving, dropping into a low crouch and sweeping my leg in a wide arc aimed at his ankles.
My leg connected with satisfying force, and I felt the impact travel up through my bones. Oliver’s leg trembled under the assault, his perfect balance wavering for just a moment. Unfortunately, despite the power behind my sweep, it wasn’t quite enough to bring him down. He managed to keep his footing, though I could see the effort it took.
Oliver glared down at me.