Child of Destiny

...…

Grand Marshal Draco focused his senses on the berserk powers rampaging within him, trying to suppress them for as long as he could.

The curse within him was getting stronger and stronger as time went by. It even reached the point where even someone as powerful as him could no longer contain it. It was also attempting to take over his body and wanting to turn him into a mindless monster that was only driven by its instincts to slaughter everything.

With his curse getting out of hand, presenting the trial that he prepared for Arthur and the rest was going to be more challenging for him.

He originally wanted to further improve the strengths of each member of the group, but given the current state that he was in, he could no longer afford to do it anymore. And since it already came into this, he could only go with the contingency plan that he prepared for this situation.

Having that in mind, he slowly stood up and revealed his towering figure to everyone. He might not be as huge as Nel, who looked like a small giant, but his a little more than two meters height and muscular body were enough to make the others feel so small.

Adding the heavy pressure that his body was emitting, Arthur and the rest of the group felt that they were insignificant beings.

Realizing the effects of the heavy pressure pressing on them, Arthur and Owen quickly took a step forward and released their respective Aura Manifestation, trying to protect the others.

Ha!

With a solemn yet powerful shout from those two, the powerful pressure crushing at everyone suddenly vanished.

The others also quickly get in position, preparing themselves for the upcoming battle.

Cloe didn't wait for the grand marshal to make any moves as she quickly slammed the bottom of her staff on the ground, summoning a huge magic circle on the ground which covered the entire plaza.

She didn't hold back and poured as much mana as she could on the magic circle, ensuring that they would be able to utilize its maximum effects.

'Holy Maiden Skill (Tier 2): Blessings of the Great Heaven'

The whole place was illuminated by the light coming from the magic circle. And since the walls of the houses around them seemed to be covered by ice, the brilliant light was reflected by them and amplified the intensity of the brilliance of those lights.

On the other hand, the others immediately sensed the series of buffs cast on them, boosting all of their stats by a great margin.

Seeing that Cloe took the initiative for this battle, Grand Marshal Draco quickly made his preparations. He could feel the curse within him getting agitated after the appearance of the magic circle underneath their feet. If he didn't do anything right now, then the power of that curse would become even more berserk to the point that he could no longer control it.

At first, black armor suddenly materialized, covering his entire body. And when its materialization was completed, a black helmet appeared and covered his head, only revealing his glowing eyes from its game.

There was also a crimson came made of corrupted mana that appeared behind him before flapping alongside the wind and revealing the majestic emblem of a dragon embroidered on it.

Grand Marshal Draco extended his hand to the side before making a grabbing motion in the air. And immediately after that, a black light suddenly escaped from the gaps in his hand before extending in opposite directions.

It later turned into a double-edged greatsword with a series of magical runes on its surface. It also started to emit black smoke that drew an arc in the air whenever the sword was swung in the air.

Seeing those actions, Arthur quickly charged forward, while covering himself with his signature golden aura. And just like it always been, it later transformed into a dragon with a wide-open mouth as he charged ahead.

Roar!

But unlike how it always ended, that golden dragon didn't even reach his opponent since it immediately dissipated after a moment.

…

Grand Marshal Draco inhaled deeply, filling his lungs with air before releasing all of it with a powerful shout.

Ha!

During the process, a silhouette of a huge dragon's head appeared behind him before opening its mouth to release a powerful roar.

Right after the powerful roar swept through everything in its path, the golden dragon surrounding Arthur suddenly disappeared and dissipated in the air, leaving him stunned.

It was the first he experienced something like this kind of situation. This particular skill was one of his signature moves yet it was instantly obliterated by a single shout.

But his shock only lasted for an instant since he somewhat expecting it. After all, he already suspected that the class Grand Marshal Draco had was somewhat related to dragons.

After recovering his shock, Arthur continued to charge forward while rising his shield in front of him. His momentum noticeably weakened due to his momentary pause, but the force that he had was still strong.

Bang!

Grand Marshal Draco forcefully halted Arthur's advance by thrusting his greatsword forward and slamming it at the incoming shield.

Urgh!

Arthur couldn't help but groan painfully due to the powerful impact. He felt like his body was slammed into a metal door, making his innards shake violently.

But regardless of the pain, he endured all of it before pushing his shield further forward. He ground the shield on the greatsword, making it hard for the grand marshal to pull it back.

It was at that moment that Owen suddenly overtook him and charged straight to Grand Marshal Draco with similarly strong momentum.

Seeing that, the grand marshal tensed his muscles and tightened his grip over his greatsword before flicking his whole arm, exerting strong force forward.

His actions resulted in Arthur being sent away from him.

He didn't see how far he pushed Arthur as he was already bending his arms and rotating his wrist alongside his greatsword.

Bang!

Then, at the very next instant, Owen found himself flying in the opposite direction of where he was heading earlier.

But he was not worried. It was because they already achieved their initial role of attracting the attention of their opponent.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Right after Arthur and Owen were sent away consecutively, a barrage of spells and skills poured down from the sky and bombarded Grand Marshal Dragon.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Different kinds of magic spells, magic arrows, and magic bullets befell the grand marshal, not giving him the time to react while also blocking all of his retreat paths.

But even though those attacks looked powerful, they didn't even leave a scratch on the body of their target. It was as if the grand marshal was telling them that those attacks were not enough.

Though, those attacks were also a form of diversion. The real ones were just about to come.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

While the smoke from the explosions started to dissipate, Leonard and Zero appeared on each side of the grand marshal, brandishing their fist and sword respectively.

Leonard had his fist covered with his blinding crimson mana, acting like a miniature sun, as he threw a powerful punch forward. 𝒇𝙧𝚎𝐞𝙬𝒆𝑏𝑛𝑜v𝚎𝒍.c𝑜m

While he was throwing that punch, eerie wails could be heard as if the souls of the dead were being punished with that glowing fist.

'Blood Sutra: Pu?o del Purgatorio'

On the other hand, Zero's sword was currently covered by a razor-sharp gale rotating around it. And due to the rapid spinning of that wind, it created a jade glow that could also blind their target temporarily.

'Divine Swordsmanship: Blade of the Storm'

Being both in the state of Reality Manifestations, Leonard and Zero executed these attacks in absolute perfection. No matter whether it was the timing or the execution itself, these attacks were meant to land on their targets regardless of the situation.

But despite facing such a difficult predicament, Grand Marshal Draco remained calm and responded to it accordingly.

He held his sword invertedly before moving it around his body by slightly rotating his wrist and adjusting the angle of his arm.

Clang!

Swoosh!

With those simple actions, he managed to deflect Zero's sword and forced Leonard to stop his actions and retreat.

Bang!

Swoosh!

Not only that, but he also stomped on the ground and kicked the ground, propelling himself forward. And during his flight, he extended his sword in front of him, pointing its tip at Arthur who was currently charging back at him.

Seeing the incoming attack, Arthur quickly halted his charge and firmly planted his feet on the ground, raising his shield in front of him.

Bang!

"Urgh! Bastard!" Arthur couldn't help but curse out loud right after the collision as he felt like a huge trailer truck hit him at its full speed.

Enduring all the pain, he stubbornly held his ground while looking over his shield. "This old man sure knows how to hit hard. I feel like my innards are being shaken within a spinner, making me vomit both my breakfast and lunch earlier."

He then took a deep breath as he looked at the system notification from the corner of his eyes before grinning widely. "This time, it is my turn to stand at the center of the spotlight."

...…