Anthesis of Sadness-Chapter 26: The Sovereign (2)

The sky rumbled above us, as if it were reacting to our clash. Lightning streaked across the heavens, briefly illuminating the forest with blinding light before plunging it back into oppressive darkness.

The tiger, that monster of power and majesty, was fast—far too fast. Every movement he made unleashed a frightening, raw force.

But I was the wind. Elusive. I danced around him, brushing his flanks without ever being caught.

Our claws clashed in a cacophony of metal and flesh. Every blow exchanged echoed through the air, thick with tension. I aimed for his vital points, but he blocked them every time with an almost supernatural precision.

But that wasn't the goal.

The real issue was time.

Slowly, insidiously, Cassandre's poison seeped into his body. I could see his muscles stiffen, his movements losing a fraction of their fluidity. He felt it too. That's why he became more aggressive, more savage.

Then, with a thunderous roar, he changed pace.

He was no longer just countering my attacks. Now, he was leading the dance.

With a leap, he charged at me, his claws slicing through the air with terrifying violence. I dodged at the last second, throwing myself backward—but he was already on me. A bolt split the sky and, in that brief moment, I saw his gaze.

Fierce.

Unyielding.

Determined to crush me.

The ground trembled under the impact of his attacks. I weaved between the trees, trying to keep the upper hand of the terrain, but he followed effortlessly, as if the forest posed no obstacle to him at all.

From the outside, this fight must have looked like a clash between two primal forces.

Lightning against wind.

A duel of apex predators.

Feeling the effects of the Blood Pact I had activated earlier beginning to fade, I reacted instinctively.

I needed a new approach, a new offensive before the tiger could fully take over.

With a swift motion, I slashed my palm, letting blood bead between my fingers.

Then, in one precise movement, I launched those droplets at breakneck speed.

They shot through the air like rifle bullets, whistling between the trees before striking their target. But they weren't just simple projectiles: each one was laced with a paralyzing poison.

If I couldn't bring him down with brute force, I would wear him down, little by little.

But the tiger wasn't easy prey.

Cunning, he gave me no respite.

Seeing me try to gain ground, he charged after me, mirroring my every move, refusing to let me impose my rhythm.

And worse still...

He summoned lightning.

The sky lit up with blinding light, and suddenly, a rain of lightning bolts crashed around me.

Each impact exploded with the fury of thunder, lifting the earth and scorching everything in its path. I zigzagged between the discharges, dodging by a hair, but I no longer had the space to retreat.

He wasn't letting me escape.

This was no longer a simple fight.

It was a hunt, and this time, he was the predator.

Claw against claw, we exchanged blows in a deadly dance. Each strike made the air vibrate, creating shockwaves that made the surrounding vegetation tremble.

But between the tiger's brute strength and the lightning falling around us, the advantage was clearly his.

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I had no wounds.

He was riddled with them—his body covered in gashes and scratches, his muscles trembling from the many poisons gnawing away at his stamina.

And yet...

He held strong.

And I knew: if this continued, I would be the one to fall first.

I had to change the pace of the fight.

In a sharp motion, I sliced the air with a horizontal blade of blood—a crimson wave that surged toward him, allowing me to fall back while narrowly dodging a bolt that struck where I had just stood.

Seizing the brief opening, I plunged a hand into my bag and pulled out a flask of poison.

Without hesitation, I hurled it into the air.

At the same moment, I launched a burst of blood droplets, piercing the flask mid-flight.

The poisoned liquid spread like a cursed rain, seeping into the tiger's open wounds.

I saw his body twitch, his fur stained violet from the poison's effect.

But instead of slowing down...

He accelerated.

A bestial roar tore through the forest.

The lightning intensified, bolts crashing everywhere, lighting the night in ghostly flashes.

I had to push myself even harder to dodge—every strike becoming more dangerous, more precise.

The tiger was going berserk.

And I had to hold on.

My breath was short, my muscles on fire. Blood loss left me teetering on the edge of exhaustion, but I couldn't afford to falter. Every heartbeat was an order to continue, to not give in. Before me, the dense forest stood like a living wall, blocking every escape.

Behind me, the sovereign tiger advanced with calculated steps. He was not like the others. Every fiber of his being radiated untamed power, an overwhelming aura that made the very air vibrate. His eyes gleamed with cold intelligence, as if he were reading my thoughts, as if he knew I was at my limit. Lightning crackled across his spine, rumbling ominously, illuminating his colossal form in bursts.

I tightened my grip on the blood flask. I couldn't falter now.

With a sharp motion, I flung the liquid before me. A red tide stretched out in a dense veil, masking the tiger's vision. He reacted instantly. A lightning bolt shot from his body, tearing through the darkness in a blinding flash.

The blood veil exploded on impact, spraying a crimson mist into the air. I dove into it, lunging at him from the shadows.

He was expecting it. His paw, fast as lightning, slashed through the space where I should have been, shattering a tree trunk with a deafening crack.

But I had already moved.

Behind him, a spear of blood shot out, targeting his exposed flank. He spun at an unimaginable speed for a creature his size, smashing the weapon aside with a swipe of his claw. But that wasn't the only threat. A second spear launched from his blind spot, aiming for his other flank. He leapt sideways, dodging by a breath. An inhuman feat.

But I was there.

Taking advantage of the moment he focused entirely on defense, I struck with all the strength I had left. My claws tore through the air, aiming for his wounded eye. The tiger reacted at the last second, turning his head, transforming what would have been a fatal blow into a fresh wound that slashed across his snout.

His roar shook the forest.

The air around him crackled with electricity. A storm broke above us, a ring of lightning bolts crashing down in a perfect circle around him. A deadly barrier. He wanted to keep me close, to prevent me from fleeing.

But he didn't know. He hadn't seen.

I had activated my Intimidation skill during the attack for this very purpose.

From the tiger's right side, where his vision failed, hidden in the shadow of the vegetation, Cassandre was already in motion.

She leapt, light as a breeze, her eyes fixed on the beast. Her timing was perfect. Just as the tiger focused all his attention on me, his body tightening to crush me—she struck.

A vial of acid in hand.

From the tiger's right side, where his vision failed.

She gave him no chance to react.

The parasitic liquid poured onto his ruined eye, seeping into the gaping wound. The reaction was immediate. A titanic scream of pain shook the forest, so powerful it seemed to make the earth itself tremble. The lightning around him exploded into chaos, striking at random, uprooting entire trees.

But we had already vanished.

In a flash, I grabbed Cassandre and bolted, activating Blood Pact at full power to propel us out of his reach.

My muscles screamed, my body already spent, but I had no choice. Every step was a battle against exhaustion, every breath a burning pain.

Behind us, the tiger still roared, blinded by pain, trying to strike a target that was no longer there.

But the fight was over.

We had won.

After a few frantic minutes of running, I heard the sound I'd been longing to hear.

Ding!

You have defeated [Sovereign Tiger Xylorath (Predator) - Level 87]!

Out of breath, I looked up at the notification screen—but my breath caught in my throat.

The next lines were blurry, unreadable.

The blood loss from the fight had been too great.

My strength gave out, and I collapsed to my knees, taking care not to let Cassandre fall, still nestled against me.

Gently, I laid her on the ground before letting myself go, a tired smile on my lips. We had won.

Already, Cassandre had knelt at my side.

In a soft voice, trembling with worry, she whispered an incantation while placing her hands on me.

A comforting warmth spread through my body as her spell began to take effect.

"You're unconscious... I told you not to overdo it."

Her gaze, filled with love and reproach, pierced me more surely than any blade.

A weak laugh escaped my lips as my eyelids grew heavy.

"You know me..." I whispered with a lopsided smile.

Cassandre's healing spell wrapped my body in a gentle green glow, slowly dissipating the pain and fatigue that weighed on me like a thousand stones. I felt my muscles relax, my wounds slowly closing. And yet, I no longer had the strength to move.

Cassandre placed a hand on my forehead, a look of half-annoyance, half-tenderness on her face.

"You're truly incorrigible..." she murmured.

I let out a sigh, savoring the warmth of her magic. In that moment, the dangers of the past—or those to come—didn't matter.

We had won.

"We did it, huh..."

Cassandre nodded, a tender smile on her lips.

"Yes, we did. But next time..."

She continued, her voice trembling with a mix of love and reproach:

"Next time, I hope you'll take better care of yourself... I hate seeing you suffer."

Her fingers gently brushed my skin, as if to make sure I was real, that I wasn't slipping away.

I drew a difficult breath and, despite the fatigue, offered her a reassuring smile.

"I'll do my best... for you."

Cassandre lowered her eyes, a slight smile on her lips, then tightened her hands around mine, letting her spell continue to heal me.