Chapter 245: The International Tournament (6)
Jake stared into Shiro's eye.
"Seems like you were questioned about it already," he whispered.
Shiro frowned, confirming Jake's speculations.
Her obsessions must have been questioned by someone close or special to her, and her current self meant that she didn't reach a consensus with that person.
Jake arched his head back and gazed down at her, "Not like I care about it or you, in particular."
He kicked her away. He loaded as much strength as possible into that single move, forcing Shiro away for at least a few meters.
'The problem is that she made me question myself,' Jake thought as he looked ahead. Her movement skill meant she wasn't all about adaptation and could throw her enemies out of their flow with powerful skills.
What else did she have up her sleeve?
Jake should have asked himself that, yet he thought about his obsession more than the battle. He recalled his life and how he always treasured how understanding people around him were.
His parents and friends accepted this side.
He could be 'offline' for months, yet his friends would always respond to his messages or casually hang out with him after all this time. His parents were only worried about this side in his adult life but still believed in him.
'I made them proud,' Jake thought. 'I don't need any more validation.'
He didn't want to question himself for longer, as it would make him less focused on the opponent before him.
She wanted him dead, and so Jake desired to kill her with his archery.
Her presence was jarring.
That was when Jake recalled someone else's obsession. In that person's case, it could be mistaken as a passion. Or perhaps it was both. What mattered to Jake was that he was at ease next to that obsession.
He sneered. "You've opened my eyes. Let's get it over with."
"I'll fill you with obsessions," Shiro replied.
"I have enough of my obsessions," Jake said before rushing at Shiro. He turned his bow into twin short swords and bolted at her. It was a content Shiro had been wanting a lot before exchanging moves with him.
As of now, she only waited for him to enter her reach.
Her katana was low, anticipating Jake's swords.
Once in range, Shiro drew a slash and successfully blocked Jake's assail.
A new presence suddenly appeared above her head.
It rolled mid-air before plummeting down and hitting her with a loud bonk! The damage was so high that her head was forcefully lowered down.
A short stun had been applied as well. Find adventures at m_v l|e'm-p| y r
While Shiro gawked at the ground in shock, Jake breached her range. He reversed the grip of his short swords and thrust them straight into Shiro's shoulders, sinking the blades into her flesh!
Blood fountained, staining Jake's clothes.
Her severe bleeding increased, threatening to finish Shiro in two or three minutes.
The unknown presence landed beside Shiro. It was so small that Shiro could turn her eye to the side and look at it, finding an adorable black-furred monkey glowering at her with golden eyes.
Jake kicked the ground, rising toward the forest's canopy. His weapon became a bow, which he slightly increased in size.
Upon landing on the ground, Jake hurled his Death's Lock at Shiro.
Meanwhile, Wukong engaged in a combat with his master's opponent. He wielded a short staff and even had a baby armor Master Aaron had prepared for him.
These two became quite close since Wukong was the only summon who had the chance to learn about the artisan class.
It meant that Wukong's staff was also a weapon to be wary of!
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Shiro and Wukong exchanged a few moves. In this short contest, Shiro's katana never went past Wukong's staff, for he blocked her attacks with the precision of a seasoned warrior. His moves were also heavy and difficult to see through, mainly because of his small size.
He'd use staff to bring himself to the top or go for Shiro's joints. Her knees hurt so much because Wukong sneakily and successfully sneaked in a few moves.
That said, Shiro's katana weighed too much for Wukong. He couldn't wound her enough to apply the second stun or a considerable damage.
Yet, in Jake's team, Archer was the main damage.
As the cold presence akin to an ice dragon's breath washed over Shiro, she jerked her head to the side and stared ahead, finding Jake in his shooting form.
That… was the moment she had been waiting for.
It was the only moment Wukong would stop attacking her and distance himself from her!
She rushed like a mad hound at Jake, discarding any sense of safety.
Her movement skill weaved around her, soon teleporting her to Jake's side.
She thrust her sword in, aiming at the wound on Jake's stomach.
Jake was gone, however.
He stood beside Wukong, whose little armor had two arrows tucked in.
A whistle resounded across the forest.
Its echo dispersed as fast as it came, though.
"Instant Devour," Shiro whispered as her katana made contact with Jake's arrow. It only took her a touch to devour the arrow's strength and velocity. No sparks whatsoever conjured, and the poor arrow fell like a dead fish.
Jake and Wukong stared at it with widened eyes.
It was… unbelievable.
Shiro locked her eyes on Jake's. "Four Phrases Of The Moon."
[You have been impacted by The Four Phrases Of The Moon Skill.]
[Each attack coming from Shiro will lead to The Full Moon.]
[Upon The Full Moon, you'll be executed.]
"My adaptation skill comes from Tsukuyomi, the legendary trace. She's the Goddess of the Moon, who was worshiped a long time ago in this game's Asian Continent, more specifically, on the island that represents Japan. In this game, Tsukuyomi had been led by a nose by those who called themselves true humans. They unsealed her from the Moon to kill her.
Sealed for eons in The Moon, Tsukuyomi developed a Mirror Moon Skill and reflected this world, conjuring her own world. She believed she'd be able to turn it real with the help of those true humans and demons and be once again worshiped and loved by everyone else."
Wukong's eyes welled up.