The man slumped on the ground as he held the wound that was inflicted on him. He could feel that there was something moving around his body like a snake, squirming and cold. He was panting and having a difficult time breathing.
Reitou could feel that his enemy was down. He retracted the dark smoke that was filling the space and saw the lanky man. He sighed and walked up to him.
"If you had surrendered earlier you wouldn't be suffering right now," Reitou said to the man.
He crouched down to see how far his poison went but was surprised when he saw the man's body. It was obviously rotting because of the poison and he looked almost dead but he could still feel the other's mana. The lanky man's body became dust after a while but Reitou wasn't convinced yet.
If they were able to live a thousand years like the master, then they wouldn't die this easily. He stood up and looked around but did not see anyone in sight. The man must be hiding somewhere the serpent couldn't see.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt'In that case, I won't let you detect me easily.' Reitou sneered in his mind. He transformed into his serpent form and made his body as small as possible. He also hid his mana signature and blended into the surroundings.
The lanky man who was deeply hidden at the center of the ruins was confused because he suddenly couldn't find the man in black. He tried to mobilize all the mana sensors he had all over his territory but none of them responded. He became frustrated and nervous because the man might already be near him.
Several shields with spikes appeared around him and around the place where he was in. He also placed hidden traps all over the ruined building where he was hiding. They were planted on the ground, on the walls, on the fallen pillars and even in the air. All weapons at his disposal were ready to be summoned at any mana fluctuation near him.
Reitou who was crawling in his black serpent form felt the use of mana not far away from where he was searching and followed the direction. He came to a secluded building that was surrounded with moss and vines that almost covered the entirety of it. His serpent head tilted to the side as his golden eyes narrowed and his pupils further became thin slits stared at the direction of the building.
One of his abilities as a guardian spirit was to sense mana no matter how faint or how small the mana was used. He could still see the path of mana and its shape. Even though he couldn't guess what spell it was, it was still his win because he knew ahead of time that there would be an attack aimed his way.
In this case, Reitou saw that there were several mana circles hidden on the ground and on every visible part of the ruined building. There was almost no vacant space because the magic circles were overlapping each other. That member of the Circle of Eight was really cautious and didn't even leave any opening for him to exploit.
Reitou shook his serpent head and slid away from the building. There was no way of alerting the enemy without making a noise, so he decided to not attack stealthily. It has been a long time since he used his original body and it was alright for him to do so. Reitou wanted to end this façade fast so that he could go and rest.
After he found a place where he could release his body, he did not hesitate to do it. His serpent body slowly grew in size and this action alerted the lanky man of his enemy's presence and direction. All of his senses were focused on that one place and he readied an attack that he hoped would destroy the man.
The sun was covered by a shadow that spanned meters as a tall and intimidating serpent appeared in the place. All the sensors that the lanky set up were giving warning signals about the monster that appeared. It had the body of a snake but its head had horns on it. Its body was covered in hard and shiny black scales that contained poison.
In the past he used this to protect the Blackwell territory but when he slowly weakened, he could only use his overwhelming presence to keep the Blackwell's enemies. Now that he regained his power because of the contract he formed with the master, he could fully display his magnificent form. There was nothing in that world who could stop him now except for the master.
Reitou moved his body and it caused the ground to shake. His massive body crushed and flattened the remaining rocky ruins of the city. The poison from his body seeped through the ground and disabled the sensors that the lanky placed underground.
With his absolute defense, Reitou reached the ruin where the lanky man was hiding. Every space that his body passed through activated all the traps within it but it did not affect Reitou. All those traps did was tickle him and there was no real damage at all.
He lowered his head and peeked at the small entrance of the ruins. There at the deepest darkest of the ruins a man was shaking while creating more magic circles that summoned countless weapons that attacked the serpent. However, no matter how the lanky man summoned weapons to attack him, the serpent was completely fine.
With no other choice raised his head once again and positioned his mouth above the ruin. He opened his mouth and a black magic circle appeared below it. Just like dragon's breath, the serpent released a black beam that completely melted the whole of the building. It then revealed a man who had his eyes wide as he stared at the serpent's eyes.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmHis entire body was shaking and he looked like he could fall apart any time. Reitou hissed as he lowered his head towards the trembling man to show his displeasure. Even though the man was afraid, he was going to try whatever he could to at least injure the serpent if he could.
The sky suddenly rumbled as dark clouds gathered in one direction. It whirled in the sky which formed a whirlpool that slowly revealed the tip of a massive sword. Much like how the serpent shook the earth with his true form, the sword caused the heavens to release lightning.
"This is a sword I developed to kill monsters like you," the lanky man mumbled. Although it was a bit soft, Reitou heard it just fine.
He looked up at the sword but he was not afraid at all. He was a creature born with power and that power accumulated through the years. Although he lost it once, he was able to get it back and there was nothing holding him back from using it again. As the black serpent that brings disaster to the world, he wouldn't let himself be defeated.
Reitou waited for the sword to descend down and without flinching he faced it head on. He used the tip of his tail to block the sword. His eyes slightly widened at how heavy the sword was and if it was to fall into the ground, he was sure that it could create a destruction beyond human imagination. It was indeed an impressive weapon but it was not enough to defeat him.
While his tail was stopping it from descending, he quickly moved his body and coiled around the massive sword. He slowly tightened his body around the sword and he could feel that his scales were breaking because of how sharp the sword was but he did not stop. It did not take a long time before the sword finally gave in.
It slowly broke through the pressure of Reitou's body and mana. The cracks were not visible at first and the momentum hadn't stopped but after a while the sword's cracks became bigger and it started to chip away. The momentum it had lessened until it disappeared and the weapon finally broke. Its pieces rained down which made the lanky man finally surrender.
Seeing his life's work getting destroyed before his eyes, he suddenly felt that his long life wasn't worthwhile. He devoted himself to creating a weapon that could destroy but it was crushed that easily. He could only stare at the empty space in a daze.
Reitou returned to his human form with his black clothes intact. He strode toward the man with the back of his coat fluttering in the air. He then stood a few inches away from the man before he sneered. "It was impressive but it did nothing to kill me."
Right at that moment, a gate appeared behind the lanky man Reitou had no qualms in dragging the dazed man inside. They appeared at the dungeon and the lanky man was thrown into one. Reitou then followed the butler to another gate that led to the living room.