733 Cat Archbishop
First, I moved the children away from here. Then, everything started to freeze. After that, there’s a huge earthquake and spikes started coming out of the ground trying to stab people who were flying.
What a crazy fight. This is the craziest fight we’ve ever been in. So crazy that an entire country, small it might be, is destroyed.
Well, at least we don’t have to face a lot of enemies at once. Thanks to the master level mages who killed their own people.
Anyway, I grabbed the one who wears the same garb as the previous Archbishop and threw him away to somewhere far from where the others are fighting.
But this time, instead of hitting his head to the ground like the previous Archbishop, he’s still fine. In fact, he landed perfectly on the ground like a cat.
This guy...
“You’re a beastform mage,” I said.
“...I am. And you’re the Aura user who have been caused so much trouble to us,” he said.
“Whoa, that’s surprising. I thought you only know one or two occasions where I caused trouble. But how did you know that I caused more than what you’re supposed to be informed about?” I asked.
.....
“I just thought that with how strong we are, we lost too much. And after I heard the rumor about an Aura user, I placed the pieces together and made a conclusion that everything is related to you,” he said.
Wow, he’s smart! Or that is to be expected since they keep losing and finally found out that there’s an Aura user among the enemies they’re fighting.
Maybe I will meet more enemies in the future who will be prepared to face against me no matter in what situation.
As for this guy...
“Well, you’re actually right. Though I never thought that the first person to say that to me will be a cat,” I said.
“Not a cat. A tiger.”
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt“A slightly bigger cat then,” I said.
What’s different? The only reason tiger is scary is because they are big. But if we think that tiger is just slightly bigger cat, then... no. Cats are all assholes. So it’s still bad.
Well, the biggest different is that while cats will give you scratch, tiger will break your neck. Not just tiger. Any big cats can do the same. Lion, leopard, jaguar, cheetah, or panther.
“You might be strong physically. But I’m also strong. I won’t lose to an Aura user like you,” he said.
He then transformed into a half-tiger. Similar to a werewolf transformation, but this time it’s a tiger. And he’s different than Jewel who when transformed, she wore armor instead of changing her own appearance.
He’s actually pretty fast. Our speed is almost the same.
And he’s also a wind mage. So that makes him faster than me if he used wind magic.
But for a close-range fight, I’m better than him. With my Divine Vision and Mind’s Eye, I could see his every move.
He lack experience in fighting against another human who is excel in melee combat. Seems like all his experience came from fighting monsters.
But I can’t underestimate him. He’s this strong when he’s not even a master level mage. And he could even sense me looking at him from distance. His animal instinct is too great. It’s as if he has been living his whole life in constant danger.
Even when I thought that my sword will hit him, he dodged it even though he shouldn’t have seen it coming.
His battle instinct might be greater than Angela. But I won’t lose.
But while fighting, I also observed the surrounding. And I see Victoria and Spot leaving the water thinking that it’s best to let the orcas be.
“FOCUS ON THE ORCAS FIRST!” I shouted.
A hundred of orcas, with many of them bigger than ordinary orca, could create powerful wave like tsunami.
And what I feared happened. But I can’t go and help the others since I’m busy fighting this cat-man.
“Where are you looking at?!” the cat-man shouted.
He thinks that I made an opening for him to attack. But my reaction was faster.
Even when he tried to dodge, he has an obvious weakness. His priest robe. Or is it an archbishop robe? Google seaʀᴄh Noᴠelꜰire
I grabbed the hem of his robe and pulled it hard. He couldn’t escape anymore.
Then I lifted him up before throwing him to the ground. But while he’s mid-air, he used his claws to cut the robe.
“Hey, isn’t this robe expensive?”
“Defeating you comes first!”
Damn. I hate to face someone experienced in real fight. And I think there will be more people like that in the future. Enemies I have to defeat.
By this time, Victoria and Ray defeated an orca that might be the leader of the orcas. Seeing them being surrounded in the middle of the sea, I summoned the two of them when I have the chance.
“Good job. Take care of the rest!”
I said to my two familiars. They also saw me busy with the cat-man before they left to the sea again.
Our fight continued, I could see that Graham has killed a master level mage. And that mage seem to be a tamer. So our fight becomes easier.
Not for me. It’s still hard to fight this cat-man.
He’s so agile. And his body is extremely flexible. It’s hard to get a solid hit against him.
I guess I need to bring it out.
I stopped using the Blobbysword, and opened a portal to grab another weapon. A sword. But with a cane that can create barrier when I drew a circle with it. It doesn’t have to be a circle though.
If the enemy can move freely and difficult to catch, then I just need to make our battlefield smaller.
I fought the cat-man while dragging the cane on the ground. Trying to make a circle.
But the cat-man move too freely that I have to give up several times and create another circle.
We keep chasing each other and ended up at where I first started the circle. The first incomplete circle.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm“Well, it won’t be as small as I wanted, but it’s better than nothing,” I said to myself.
“What? Are you giving up?”
The cat-man tried to slash me with his claws. Similar to the werewolves, he could also attack from distance. Adding his wind element, it’s even stronger than the werewolves’ attack.
“No. I’m just finishing drawing a circle. Well, it’s not really a circle. But at least we’re in it,” I said.
I connected the other incomplete circle and completed it. And a wall was created and covering us both in it.
It’s a weird shape because it’s not a circle. So the wall didn’t became a dome. Just weird.
“What is this?! I can’t get out!”
“Well, that is a wall as you can see. I created it with the help of this cane. Now, you can no longer escape. I’d like to continue the fight, but let me ask this before we fight. Do you know where the God you worshiped is? I’m trying to kill him, you see,” I said.
“Don’t know. Don’t care. I joined this group because they gave me meals and a chance to survive. I only do what they told me to do and they started to call me the Archbishop and forced me to wear that robe. I don’t care as long as I can survive,” he said.
“Well, if I capture you for interrogation, and after you tell us everything you know and asked whether you want to join us or not, what will your answer be?” I asked.
“That’s funny. Even after doing all this shit, and you might even kill me here today, I still can’t see any future where you can win for some reason. For my survival, I will chose to not change side. You asked me that because you know what my answer will be, right?”
“Actually, yeah. You are far more dangerous and smarter than others from the cult. Even if you said that you wanted to join us, if you think that the cult can give you better survival rate, you will choose that side and betray us in the future. It’s best if I kill you right here,” I said.
“Only if you can! Even if you trap me here, I will still fight!”
This guy joined the cult for survival. So, even if someone other than the cult found him first and helped him, he will still choose to join the cult once he feel that his survival rate will increase there.
And he fully understands something. No. We both fully understand one thing now.
It’s either him who will die, or me. There’s no changing side at all.
His instinct must have told him that he has to kill me no matter what to survive. And I also think that he shouldn’t be left alive no matter what.
He will be dangerous if we leave him be. Because I feel that even if Albert asked him if he wanted to join us, he will answer it honestly that he will join us. And Albert will believe it. Because for this cat-man, he can only survive if he joined us.
But that doesn’t mean he will stay. He will betray us and join the cult once he feel that he will survive if he joins the cult.
He’s similar to me in my past life. Having various ways to survive. In my case, I called it Shameless Survival Arts.
But in the end, I was not as shameless as this cat-man. Because I have my own principle. To not join the cult who made everyone suffers so much.
And this guy will join anyone who will increase his survival rate. That’s why I have to kill him now.