Online In Another World

[“Divine Fortress of The Impervious Protector”]

A fortress was deployed within moments; the golden light reinforced itself into a stalwart set of walls and barricades that completely negated the arrows now. It was large and vast in scope, forcing the two Sentinels to move back as it conjured in its full glory.

“A castle?!” Dorado muttered.

“Lord Aelor’s words were the truth,” Orion realized, “Bastian Serappheart may truly be a god amongst men.”

It wasn’t just the barricades that arrived as the Divine Fortress’ beneficial nature as Bastian returned to his feet, standing in the center of the intricate barrier, but soldiers made of golden light lined the walls, aiming arrows and javelins towards the Sentinels.

“Fire,” Bastian whispered his command.

In a counterattack, the golden figures atop the walls, numbering in the dozens, fired off their arrows, though lesser in number than Orion’s, each arrow possessed the [Seraphic] attribute unique to the Seraphheart; the divine essence allowed the arrows to curve and track onto the Sentinels.

“You’re challenging me with arrows?” Orion said with a smile, raising his bow, “If I didn’t have respect for you, Serappheart, I would be laughing.”

“How about you talk less and use that bow?!” Dorado said, flashing through the sky, avoiding golden arrows and deflecting them with his light sword, though finding it to be an arduous task.

As a dozen arrows aimed towards Orion as the Sentinel’s silver ponytail flowed in the winds of the mountain-trembling battle, the bowman simply smiled in confidence as he gently flicked his finger against the string of his bow.

The simple gesture caused a ripple of cosmic wind, propelling outward from his position as a sigh of the divine skies, taking the form of tens of thousands of incredibly small, precise arrows that sought out and destroyed the projectiled that aimed at Orion.

“–I think it’d be in your best interest not to challenge a bird in a contest of flight,” Orion said with a smile.

Bastian watched from his fortress, having endured the totality of the “Star Shower”, which ended after thousands of arrows had descended.

Without responding, the Serappheart relinquished the fortress around himself, conjuring his seraphic wings as he burst into the air, sailing towards Orion as he gripped the heavenly sword in his hand.

“–!”

Before he could reach the bowman, he raised his sturdy shield as it was Dorado that intercepted, slashing at his shield with his light sword.

Though he successfully blocked it, Bastian felt the distinct level of power behind Dorado’s sword of magnificent light; it vibrated with a cutting intensity, even without being swung, as it was pressed against the lion-faced shield, it constantly thundered against it with tremendous strength.

[“Roar of The Maned King”]

Activating the regal shield he held forward, Bastian caused a bellowing roar to emit from the lion’s mouth, successfully repelling Dorado’s blade.

“–Tch!” Dorado flinched.

Though as the Seraphheart moved in, he was immediately forced to raise his shield again as a surprising offensive approach was taken by Orion.

The ponytailed Sentinel slashed at the man’s shield with his ethereal bow, using its spine like a blade and summoning an arrow into his own hand, using it like a spear.

“Did you think I was solely a ranged fighter? You shouldn’t limit your expectations of us so much–you’re not the only one who has lived hundreds of years, Bastian Serappheart,” Orion smiled.

There was undeniably a stark contrast between Dorado and Orion, though Bastian was already aware of this: Orion was the other’s superior and senior by centuries–the oldest of the Sentinels and the one touted as “Number One” amongst their ranks.

Orion dashed through the air, walking on it as naturally as if it were the ground, moving with dexterity that outpaced Bastian as he continued his dual-wielding of his melee bow and arrow, who was limited by the limitations of wings.

While Bastian was on the backfoot, trying to adjust to the ferocity and finesse of Orion’s unorthodox fighting style that resembled fencing and acrobatics in the skies itself, the man felt Dorado flash in behind him.

Front and back? Nice try, Bastian thought.

Through his immortal lifespan, forged by lifetimes of experience on the battlefield, Bastian instantly analyzed his situation and his appropriate response as he bashed his shield forward, knocking Orion back who flipped away.

In that same instant, Bastian spun back, ducking below the vibrating sword of cosmic hue, thrusting his majestic greatsword straight towards Dorado’s abdomen.

“–!” Dorado’s eyes widened.

There was a heat that bubbled up around the aureated blade, causing a ripple of the space around it as it neared the Sentinel’s spotless, white uniform.

As the tip of Bastian’s sword came close to Dorado’s stomach, the fabric of the transcendent uniform burned away in a perfect circle, revealing the man’s abdominals beneath before the radiant blade had yet to make contact.

Yet even in this compromised amount of fractionated time, Dorado was able to react and shift as his tangible body flashed into light, turning into bright energy itself that curved around and spun out of the way of the sword thrust.

“–” Bastian witnessed this as well.

In that instant, Dorado countered by shifting into light, turning back to his normal state as he was midway through a kick aimed at the Seraphheart’s helm, engulfed in cosmic energy that burned through the space between the two.

The entire exchange took place within fractions of a millisecond, between breaths of air, blinks of eyes, and even the spread of light.

Before the Sentinel’s shin could slam into his helm, Bastian condensed his wings and rolled to the side, avoiding the strike that slammed against the air like a tornado, sweeping by.

[0.0000001 second(s) elapsed]

After evading, a stream of arrows posed as beams of light that by as a sparkle of the cosmos; a couple were avoided, but one slammed into Bastian, sending him plummeting down as it burned through one of his astral wings.

“–” Bastian remained steady, landing on his feet.

In the air, Orion looked down at him, being responsible for the attack as he readied his bow once more, with Dorado readying himself as well, summoning a blade of light into each hand.

…Fine then. I wanted to take it easy since I respect Aelor, but…sometimes people need to be listen through force, not words, Bastian thought.