Chapter 106: Second Limiter

[Second limiter released.]

The clearing stank of ozone and burned wood. Vell’s feet crunched over blackened grass and shattered crystal, his favorite blade humming softly in his grip. His trademark grin was there, but something darker lurked behind it—the kind of focus that made smart people run.

The leader stood opposite him, his chains writhing in the air like angry serpents. Light caught their links, casting weird patterns across the scorched ground between them.

“About time you took this seriously,” the leader said, his voice rough from exertion.

Vell rolled his shoulders, letting his blade’s tip draw lazy circles in the air. “What, this old thing? Just did not want to waste the good stuff on you.”

The leader did not waste breath on a reply. The chains shot forward, weaving through the air in patterns Vell had seen a dozen times before. He stepped aside, almost casual, then had to jerk his head back as one whipped past his ear.

“Getting slow in your old age?” He brought his blade up in a clean arc, splitting the nearest chain. It burst apart in a shower of sparks. “Shame. I was hoping for a workout.”

The leader’s jaw tightened. The remaining chains swept wide, then curved inward like a closing fist. Vell watched them come, weight balanced on the balls of his feet. At the last possible moment, he lunged forward. His blade sang as it carved through the air, leaving remnants of the leader’s chains to rain down like metallic confetti.

“Not bad.” He brushed a bit of molten chain from his sleeve. “For a warm-up.”

The leader slammed his palms together. The impact sent tremors through the ground, and jagged spears of crystal erupted beneath Vell’s feet. He leaped back, his feet skidding on loose earth as more chains lashed out from impossible angles. Each strike drove him further into the torn-up landscape.

“A thousand battles,” he snarled, his chains forming a dome of writhing metal around Vell. “A thousand warriors just like you, all fell by my hand.”

Vell found himself backed against a ravine, crystals crackling beneath him. “Funny thing about those thousand battles.” He adjusted his grip on his blade. “You never faced someone like me.”

The dome of chains collapsed inward with a sound like thunder. Dust and debris exploded outward, and for a moment, the leader allowed himself a grim smile. It died when the haze cleared.

Vell stood untouched, his blade wreathed in a subtle glow that distorted the air around it. “You done monologuing?” He did not wait for an answer.

He crossed the distance between them in three quick steps, blade flashing. The leader stumbled backward as his chains scattered, trying to regroup. But Vell pressed forward, each strike more vicious than the last. Their battle turned the clearing into a war zone—trees splintered, and the ground itself cracked under the force of their clashes.

“Stand still and die, damn you!” The chains flailed wildly, desperate for purchase.

Vell ducked under a wild swing. “Make me.”

With a roar of frustration, the leader drove his fists into the earth. A pillar of crystal shot upward, catching Vell in the chest and sending him flying. He hit the ground hard, rolling through the debris before coming to a stop. He advanced, chains coiling around him like armor.

“Not so cocky now, are you?” he spat.

Vell pushed himself up slowly, wincing. “You know what your problem is?” His blade began to change, becoming something sleeker, deadlier. “You mistake tricks for skill… see me?” He vanished, appearing right behind the leader, “I am right here.”

Chains instinctively covered the leader’s body, ready for his attack. ’Something is wrong,’ the leader thought, the energy coming from him different, unlike anything he had ever felt. ’N-No, this is dang—’ A single line appeared on his face, followed by his body falling apart.

“That is real skill, you were not bad though, you just faced off against the wrong guy.” He put his sword back in his inventory and made a gun, firing it behind him without even looking. The bullet traveled fast, hitting the last guardian that was running away straight in the head. “Loser.”

[Mission complete.]

[Reward, system upgrade.]

[Initializing, estimated time… 30 days… sleep mode activated.]

“Seems that one is out of commission for a while. So what did you think, putting limiters on myself was genius right?”

[Haaah, when I asked you about your evolution, this is not what I meant, but this is not too bad I suppose, it hides your power well, while also allowing you to sharpen your skill, but… why were you spamming your codex, you know that it eats up a lot of mana.]

“Yeah, got carried away for a bit there, it was my first time using it properly so I was fascinated about how far I could push it… I saw no limit.”

[That is because it is merged with you, did you forget what you are?]

“Oh… well, whatever, let us get out of here, I am starting to get sick of seeing trees.”

With the current guardians gone, new ones will eventually pop up, and the cycle will continue.

{Somewhere in the tower}

“Are you sure about this information, do not you dare come to me with misinformation.” The man in golden armor asked, his aura slowly leaking out.

“Y-Yes, I heard it when I fell out into the outside world, it has been unsealed.” The bird said, sweat crawling down its face.

“…Alright, you may leave, get back to work.”

“Thank you sir!” It bowed and left in a hurry with a happy expression on its face.

Meanwhile, the man looked pissed, his aura covered the room, reality began to bend around him, forming cracks. “It escaped? Seems things are going to get chaotic soon. I cannot wait to see you again, void walker. This time around, we will end your existence.”

Two weeks had passed since the fight with the guardians, and Vell’s group had finally made it out of the forest, arriving at a path covered in pure green grass. A few kilometers from them were massive walls that stretched into the sky.

“Hoho, we finally made it.”

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