Chapter 215: Struggle

    Chapter 215: Struggle

    Ugh! Edward grunted as a shadow protruded from his stomach and shoulders, severing both arms from his body and dropping his HP back to critical.

    Be still. Move again and Ill end you. The Shadow Witch said.

    End him now! Gerald shouted.

    You The Shadow Witch paused her attacks on Avery and pointed at Gerald. Do not get to tell me who to kill. I am here to provide support and help you escape. Dont forget it.

    Edward coughed up some blood and fell back to the ground. His wounds wouldnt be fatal if treated in time, and he could reattach or regrow his limbs. He was happy to see some dissent in the group, but sadly, it meant nothing to him in his current situation, as he was out of the fight. He would be useless for some time. He could only watch as Avery dodged and twisted, avoiding vital attacks by a hairs width.

    He couldnt help but feel a pang of regret when the man faltered and was cut on the arm by one of the shadows. Well he was hit on the arm. The shadow didnt seem to leave a cut.

    Even so, Alanahs right hand seemed to begin to slow ever so slightly as the fight went on. He may have had the Stamina or even Mana to keep all his skills active, and Edward was sure he was using a plethora of skills, but doing so at such a high rate of consumption would still take a toll on the user, both physically and mentally.

    Edward groaned and rolled slightly, getting a better angle of the action. All he could do now was believe in Avery and hope something changed. For now, it wasnt looking good.

    Avery bounced back and forth between opponents, not caring who he attacked, as long as he could get in some damage. The mental fatigue of keeping all of his buffs up was starting to weigh on him. It was getting pretty bad.

    Fortunately, his high Endurance made for excellent defense. That, plus the armor he was wearing, which didnt look like much because of how light it was, made it much harder for any attack that landed on him to leave more than a scratch.

    He remembered the feeling and breakdown of his body when his Endurance hit 1500, and it was one of the worst things he had ever experienced. The itching, the shattering of bone, and the feeling that he was being torn apart from the inside was something he never wanted to experience again. Well, he wouldnt mind if it came with the same upgrade in power that he received before.

    Another shadow fell on his arm as he stabbed one of his daggers at the plant user. The dagger was blocked once again, but the shadow left nothing but a light scratch on Averys arm. From what he could tell of the fight and his opponents, he would be able to last a few more minutes as long as he wasnt bound by the plant users vines. Which is why he focused most of his efforts on avoiding them.

    This time, the shadow that hit him left more than a small scratch. The shadow was thicker and wasnt transparent at all, unlike the previous attacks by the Shadow Witch. Looks like shes finally getting serious. Avery sighed and made a mental note to avoid getting hit squarely by one of her shadows. Within seconds, his wound began closing as he dodged more incoming attacks.

    During his short battle with the four enemies, Avery had already ranked them by how difficult they were for him to deal with. Coming in at number one was the Shadow Witch, of course. She was definitely one of the strongest opponents hed ever fought, though he believed he could take her if he didnt have to worry about anyone else.

    She did a half flip backwards, just moving her head and heart out of the way of the attack. Averys attack landed just under her chest, on her left side. His dagger penetrated first, but that wasnt all. With his momentum, his hand followed. Following the puncture caused by his dagger, his fist penetrated through her abdomen and out her back.

    Then, along with his attack, the two shot like a cannon toward the ground-the ground covered in quicksand. Just before they hit, Avery moved his repulsion to his hands. He pulled his arm out of the Shadow Witchs abdomen and used his repulsion to flip himself back upright before moving it back to his feet.

    He looked down to see the woman halfway sunk into the sand. It was a hell of a hit to take. It would take a minute for her to recover.

    Avery saw his Stamina dangerously low after the rapid uses of his skills and summoned another potion out of his storage ring. He uncorked the vial and went to drink it, but as he was moving his arm, it stopped.

    He looked down to see a small, thread-sized length of shadow wrapped around his forearm. Then, the shadow began growing rapidly. He traced the shadow all the way to the half buried Shadow Witch and sighed. He quickly flicked the vial from one hand to another and drank it.

    Stop the fucking quicksand! The Shadow Witch shouted. I got him.

    The quicksand quickly lost its magic, and the shadow user dug herself out. She looked rough. A giant hole that everyone could see through appeared in her abdomen and blood dripped from her mouth as she spoke.

    Get him! She shouted at the plant user.

    Avery tried to escape the shadow, but a vine quickly wrapped around his foot and made its way up his leg. Soon, his entire lower body was wrapped up in vines, and his upper body was wrapped in shadows. He smiled bitterly as he was dragged to the ground.

    Fuckin hard to kill piece of The Shadow Witch muttered incoherently under her breath as she took a health potion out of her storage and drank it. The hole in her abdomen healed slowly before everyone.

    Gerald hopped down from his pillar and walked close to Avery.

    Thats what you get. He spat. Thinking you could go up against me and alone at that. Geralds glove covered fist flew at Avery and hit him in the cheek.

    It didnt hurt at all it wouldnt even leave a bruise. Avery laughed. Youre so fuckin weak.

    Is that right? Gerald slapped him. I may be weak, but youre going to die.

    Avery stared fiercely into the mans eyes, then looked over his shoulder and smiled even wider. His vision, enhanced by all his buffs, including Eagle Eye, caught sight of the edge of the shadow dome, and looked somewhat through it.

    There, he saw two unrecognizable figures standing just beyond the dome. No I dont think I will. In fact, I think I did my job perfectly. He said, as he saw one of the figures put a hand on the outside of the dome. Sparks of electricity began flying where the figure touched. A passage just big enough for two people opened up, and the figures stepped in. Avery smiled in recognition.