Chapter 138: Calling for backup

Five Peak-Silver operatives eliminated. Only Harrison remains.

The Mid-Gold captain stood alone among the carnage, his sword steady despite the impossible odds. Blood seeped from claw marks across his armor while sweat beaded on his forehead.

“What are you?” Harrison demanded, his voice tight with controlled fear.

Apex predator. Natural selection in action.

The cave system fell silent except for Harrison’s labored breathing and the distant drip of water against stone. No reinforcements would come—his entire team lay dead around him.

“Seven elite operatives,” Harrison muttered, calculating the implications. “Our Lord won’t ignore this.”

Time to end this conversation permanently.

..

Harrison’s tactical mind processed the impossible situation with professional clarity. His entire team eliminated by a single beast whose capabilities exceeded every threat assessment in their operational database.

’Mid-Gold rank. Physical enhancement specialisation. Apex predator instincts.’

But retreat wasn’t an option—not when failure would doom every territory under Lord Vance’s protection. Sometimes duty demanded sacrifice that transcended personal survival.

“If I’m going down,” Harrison declared, raising his sword in formal salute, “I’m taking you with me.”

’An opponent with genuine courage.’

Ethan’s Apex Mane form studied the captain with predatory respect. Here stood a warrior who understood the mathematics of hopeless odds but chose to fight anyway. Such opponents deserved honorable death.

Harrison attacked with the desperate fury of a man who’d accepted his fate. His sword blazed with Mid-Gold enhancement while decades of training flowed through precise cuts that sought vital points with surgical accuracy.

’Professional competence. Impressive technique.’

But the Apex Mane transformation provided advantages that human skill couldn’t overcome. Enhanced reflexes turned Harrison’s lightning-fast strikes into manageable sequences while supernatural strength promised devastating counters.

CLANG!

Steel met claw in a collision that sent sparks cascading through cave shadows. Harrison’s blade carved a shallow furrow across Ethan’s enhanced forearm while talons raked three parallel wounds across the captain’s chest plate.

’First exchange. Mutual damage but advantage to me.’

Harrison’s tactical intelligence adapted instantly, his fighting style shifting from aggressive offense to defensive counterattack. He couldn’t match the creature’s raw physical capabilities, but superior technique might create opportunities.

’Smart adaptation. This won’t be easy.’

The captain’s next combination demonstrated years of combat experience—feints and redirections that created openings while minimizing exposure to devastating claws. His sword work became a flowing dance of steel that sought to frustrate predatory instincts.

’He’s trying to make me impatient. Good strategy.’

But apex predators understood patience better than any human warrior. The Apex Mane form brought hunting instincts that had evolved over millennia to handle exactly this type of strategic prey.

Ethan circled with feline grace, each movement calculated to probe Harrison’s defenses while conserving energy for the inevitable killing blow. His enhanced senses catalogued every micro-tell that preceded the captain’s attacks.

’There. Shoulder tension before thrust attacks. Footwork shift before cuts.’

Harrison’s breathing grew labored as the sustained combat stress tested his endurance against supernatural constitution. Sweat stained his armor while blood seeped from accumulating wounds.

’Wearing him down. Time is on my side.’

But the captain’s tactical mind had reached similar conclusions. If endurance favored his opponent, then decisive action offered the only path to victory—even if success required mutual destruction.

“For Lord Vance! For the empire!”

Harrison’s battle cry echoed through stone corridors as he committed everything to a berserker assault. His sword became a blur of steel that carved complex patterns through cave air, each strike carrying enough force to shear through enhanced bone.

’All or nothing. Desperate gambit time.’

The sudden tactical shift caught even enhanced reflexes by surprise. Harrison’s blade found its mark across Ethan’s ribs, enhanced steel carving through golden fur to expose crimson flesh beneath.

ROAR!

Pain and fury exploded from the Apex Mane’s throat as the wound blazed with agony that transcended physical sensation. The captain’s enhanced blade had found the gap between enhanced ribs, inflicting genuine damage that even supernatural constitution couldn’t ignore.

’That actually hurt. Really hurt.’

Ethan’s retaliation came with violence that shook the cave system’s foundations.

Enhanced claws raked across Harrison’s sword arm, supernatural sharpness carving through steel vambraces to find bone beneath. The captain’s scream joined the predator’s roar in a symphony of mutual agony.

CRACK!

Harrison’s sword arm broke under the devastating strike, his bones fracturing despite Mid-Gold durability. His weapon clattered across stone floor while blood fountained from wounds that exposed white bone.

’Crippled but not finished. He is still dangerous.’

The captain switched his blade to his off-hand with desperation, decades of ambidextrous training allowing continued resistance despite catastrophic injury. His technique suffered but his determination remained unbroken.

’Impressive adaptability. True warrior spirit.’

But the momentum had shifted permanently. Ethan’s high vitality was already closing his rib wound while Harrison’s injuries accumulated beyond his body’s ability to compensate.

The next exchange lasted mere seconds. Harrison’s off-hand sword work created one final opening, his blade carving a second wound across Ethan’s shoulder. But the counterattack ended the fight decisively.

Enhanced jaws found the captain’s throat, supernatural bite force crushing enhanced bone while venom-like saliva flooded the wound. Harrison’s death cry became a wet gurgle as his trachea collapsed.

’Clean kill. Honorable end for a worthy opponent.’

But as life faded from Harrison’s eyes, his uninjured hand moved with final purpose. From his armor’s concealed pocket, he withdrew a crystal that pulsed with contained energy.

’What is that?’

The crystal’s magical signature felt wrong. Harrison’s fingers closed around the device with dying strength.

’Emergency beacon…’

Understanding flooded through Ethan’s mind as Harrison’s final act became clear. The captain couldn’t win their fight, but he could ensure their confrontation wouldn’t remain secret.

’No. Don’t you dare.’

But Harrison’s mind had planned for exactly this contingency. His death would serve the greater purpose—warning Lord Vance about the threat that had eliminated an entire investigation team.

CRACK!

The crystal shattered between Harrison’s fingers, its stored energy erupting in a pulse of magical communication that penetrated stone and distance alike. The signal blazed through dimensional space like a supernatural flare.

’Message sent. My duty is complete.’

Harrison’s final breath carried satisfaction that transcended physical defeat. His death had meaning beyond personal survival—intelligence that might save hundreds of lives under Lord Vance’s protection.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep