Nameless King



From each ash tree came a multitude of roots that effortlessly pierced through the clones even when they had two crimson layers. It took them less than a second to reach Gael just like their claws, but the ash trees were loyal defenders of their owner.

Crackle. Crackle. Crackle.

Crimson fragments of darkness-like glass fell down while the clones tried to recover. Depending on the number of crimson layers, the clones could be resurrected before they were gone.

The clones tried to do this while planted on roots, but there was a problem they couldn't do anything about - they couldn't get out of the roots. Thus, once the crimson layer fell off and the clone regenerated, it would almost immediately die due to the ash particles cutting the clone from the inside.

Ereg frowned, his clones were already almost halfway to maximum strength, but that meant nothing to Gael. All he had to do was use one ability and now Ereg's darkness seemed to be useless.

Gael with a calm expression, snapped his fingers as the roots came into motion piercing not only the clones but also each other as well.

Thus, the nine clones were shattered into tiny particles, disappearing into the void. Obviously, this was not their end, for immediately afterward, ten patches of darkness appeared in the arena, from which silhouettes slowly emerged.

However, there was no longer a satisfied smirk on Ereg's face. He wasn't afraid of Gael, but he realized that his clones were no longer a serious threat to Gael.

"What now? Are you going to keep summoning your clones or are we going to move on to the real fight?" Gael said in a low tone pointing his sword at Ereg.

At the same moment, a multitude of roots came down directly on Ereg. He had almost no time to dodge, so he was saved by his clones who were now three-fifths crimson darkness.

The clones stood in front of him like a human shield, buying him an extra second, which was enough time for Ereg to dodge.

Then, the roots tore all the clones apart without allowing them to recover and slammed into the wall of the colosseum where Ereg had just been.

"No... no... no... no...!" Nila nervously bit her nails not wanting to believe what she was seeing. She wanted Ereg and his clones to defeat Gael, but the reality was that now Ereg was running away.

Krana tilted her head with a curious expression, "Looks like Gael is much stronger now. All Ereg can do is run away with a worried face... Am I understanding this correctly?"

However, no one was going to answer her.

Liang and Nitra watched the battle with interest, especially Gael's skill which they had never seen before. It was something Gael wouldn't have used in any other battle, but Ereg's clones had forced him to do it.

Alucard was doing the same thing, however, he had a sly smirk on his face that was different from the previous one.

Naturally, neither Krana nor Nila could get into Alucard's mind and understand what he was thinking. All they could do was watch the fight and hope for the best, or rather it only mattered to Nila. Krana didn't care who won, she just wanted to adapt to society faster.

Crackle. Crackle. Crackle.

The ten clones revived again and now they were almost entirely crimson, consisting of it on 4/5, only the center of their bodies remained black and that would soon be fixed.

Gael frowned slightly, obviously, he was getting tired of killing clones over and over again. He wanted to fight Ereg specifically, but instead, his opponent was running away from him. The only thing left for him to do was to get rid of the clones as quickly as possible.

'Ereg... You disappoint me a bit... I'm sure you could have used your attribute in a more interesting way than some clones that can't even scratch me!' Gael inwardly exclaimed as a long-forgotten feeling of anger appeared inside him.

At the same moment, the tree roots began to move much faster as if to show their master's irritation.

Gael had great patience, but even it had limits.

First, their fight was interrupted by Alucard, but Gael was ready for that, however now Ereg himself seemed in no hurry to fight his opponent. He let Gael beat himself up, then called on the clones, so far there were only a few moments when they really fought.

Whooooooooooooooooooooosh.

Roots was quickly heading towards Ereg, who obviously didn't have enough speed to escape them. Roots pursued him like hunters, never taking their eyes off their prized target for a second.

Just like last time, the clones tried to protect their owner, but they failed. Even though they had four crimson layers, the ash roots easily killed them in just a few seconds.

However, Ereg was able to evade the attack, once again. 

Gael received a powerful grimace, his patience was already reaching its limit and it was evident from the ash roots. They had become much more aggressive, faster, and chaotic, moving like wild monsters rather than the foundation of nature or any plant.

"Agh... We need to calm down..." Gael muttered, taking a deep breath, which actually helped him, and the ashy roots became a little slower.

'Well... After all, Ereg was just trying to make it harder for me this way. He probably thought his clones would be able to make me expend a lot of energy. His plan didn't work, and that's the end of it.'' Gael internally shrugged before slowly waving his hand.

The roots separated, slowly moving around the borders of the arena and heading towards Ereg, who was trying to run away from them.

However, the roots were no longer as fast and wild as before, they moved at their own pace and trapped Ereg.

At the same moment, the last level of clones emerged from the clots of darkness. These clones were completely crimson ones with 5/5 layers, and there was no ordinary darkness among them. 

Gael was alert that he was ready for these clones to do something special, and immediately attack him. But, nothing that came to his mind happened as the clones just stood still as if undead.

'Hmm? Why isn't he controlling them?" Gael was puzzled, but he didn't have time to think since his roots had already surrounded Ereg.

Nila's heart was beating very fast, looking at her King hopefully. She wished that everything would magically change now and soon something happened that made her eyes go wide.

However, her eyes filled not with elation or happiness, but with deep despair.

Crackle. Crackle. Crack.

Six roots, meeting no resistance, pierced Ereg's chest from all sides with powerful bursts of dark blood spreading around.

"Argh!!!!" Ereg cried out in pain, but very soon he lost his voice, it seemed like he didn't have the strength for it.

This time, Gael personally controlled the roots, so they attacked critical points in any creature's body - organs and especially the heart.

Ereg's feet didn't even touch the ground, since the roots had lifted him up, leaving no chance to get out of this trap.

Gael's face grew colder as his gaze traveled to the dark drops of blood trickling off Ereg's body and soaking into the ground of the arena.

"Ereg... Weren't you fully prepared to use that skill?" Gael muttered with a grim look, glaring at the clones that still hadn't even taken a step.

Gael shook his head, "Well, it's probably because he didn't expect me to use such an ability. Surely such powerful clones need to be controlled, especially when they've reached a full layer." 

Gael took a deep breath and took a step forward, running his palm over the blade of his sword.

One way or another, he had promised that he would fight seriously, and like any Ashen, he was going to keep his word. Ereg couldn't even move, bleeding with a blank stare, but Gael had no right to stop.

"Fine. In that case, let's finish this." Gael whispered, directing energy towards his sword. Particles of ash swirled around the blade, causing it to fill with white light and space to shake.

"No! Is this really how it's going to end..." Nila fell to her knees, trembling with fear and despair.

Many Beastfolks had a similar reaction, none of them wanted to accept that their King had lost to Gael, especially in this way.

"I hope you stay alive, I'm not sure of that... as I want to fight you again in the future. This shouldn't be the end of our story." Gael said sincerely before swinging his sword.

Tremble.

With a strange ringing sound that repelled the wind currents, a light blade capable of cutting through anything, even the fabric of matter itself, flew forward. 

At the same moment, ten crimson clones came into motion, but they didn't attack Gael, instead, they turned into ghosts heading straight for Ereg.

Then, an insidious smirk appeared on Ereg's face as well as the light of life in his gaze.