Just as I leaped for the rune etched on the closest pillar, the rest of them picked up their rate of fire. Every single rune discharged a bolt of aura, one after the other, in rapid succession. I changed direction at once, jumping to the side. The bolts slammed into the black carpet at the spot I’d just been, but the runes were firing again already. I dove behind one of the pillars myself, and I lost sight of Rictus and his runes.

“You think you’re safe there?” he shouted. “Wrong again, little killer!”

A bolt fired from out of sight, and I instinctively raised my defense. Then I was glad that I did, as a bolt curved around the pillar I was using as cover and slammed into me. Oh great. The things didn’t just shoot straight. Well, no point in hiding, I told myself. I waited for the next rune to fire, and moved out.

I hit the ground as the bolt flew over me, going into a long slide that let me dodge the others as well. My maneuvers had brought me closer to Rictus, and he was finally in reach. I leaped forward with a yell of rage, the scythe going up for a swipe. He put out his hands and fired two bolts at me. The first stopped my movement with its force, and the second blasted me back. I landed hard on my back but rolled immediately to avoid another barrage.

“You have got to be the most annoying guy I’ve ever met,” I spat at him as I jumped away. “This is your strategy?”

“It’s working!” he shouted back. “You won’t be able to dodge forever, little killer. I think I’ll hang your corpse on my wall!”

I spun the scythe around my body to smack away another round of projectiles, and dove at him again, only to be rebuffed. I jumped again and got smacked away again. Then I tried to throw my scythe at a short distance, but that went about as well as the first two attempts. I smacked away another barrage and jumped away to give myself room to think.

The middle ground isn’t working, Tomas. I can’t drain his aura by attacking and also keep up with my defense.

Hmm… this is tricky. Try making a prayer.

I rolled away from another thirteen bolts, ending up against a pillar. You mean like how you summoned the guard? But we’re not in Granis.

You don’t have to be in Granis, he explained. Just repeat after me.

I made my defensive screen a little thicker to protect me and closed my eyes in concentration. I could feel dozens of impacts on the outside of the shell I’d made, but I paid them no mind. I focused my entire being on the plane of Granis as Tomas instructed me, trying to reach out and take hold of its essence.

“Ancient Beast Granis, lend me your power,” I said, feeling a strange hum both inside myself and the ground. “Grant me the mantle of the panther, so that I may chase down my prey.”

Immediately, I felt more power enter my body. It wasn’t part of the mass of Granis’s energy that I’d already been holding, but something new. My entire body felt lighter, and more strength was injected into my arms and legs. I felt like I could jump over the entire Nook Inn if I were so inclined. Finally, I had something useful in this fight.

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Alright, Tomas said. Let’s end this.

I gripped the staff of my scythe a little tighter and swallowed. Then, just as another few dozen bolts hit the defensive shell and shattered it, I darted out as fast as I could. I aimed directly for Rictus, the scythe trailing behind me for a massive swipe. He didn’t have nearly enough time to fire any bolts at me, but he did make his own defenses stronger. I turned on my heel and jumped again, shooting past him to the rune closest to us.

My sudden change of direction and the fact that he’d wasted that half-second preparing a defense meant that I got to the rune in time. Just as I swung, it was beginning to glow brightly, but my scythe cut a long jagged line through it before it could fire. It immediately went dim, and a large cloud of aura dissipated from it.

I darted away again just as yet another storm of bolts struck the pillar, further damaging the rune that was there. Letting out a victorious laugh, I rolled under two shots that Rictus sent after me. Jumping back to my feet, already clear across the room with my speed, I slashed yet another rune. A few of the bolts hit me this time, but I didn’t care, already darting across the room. I felt like a pinball, bouncing around the place, too fast for any of the attacks to track me.

I dove towards Rictus again, my scythe raised. His defenses came up, and I slashed twice, both attacks deflected a foot away from his body. Before he could recover, I’d leaped away and slashed another rune. His shout of rage made me laugh again, and I closed in once more.

He didn’t bother to make a defensive rune this time but fired two huge bolts at me. I slid under them with ease, then instead of attacking him, I gripped him by the collar with my left hand and threw him towards the center of the room. He landed heavily, rolling a few times, and let out a curse. I jumped after him.

“Now who can’t keep this up forever?” I shouted in exultation. “You’re starting to slow down, old man!”

My taunts were starting to drive him mad, which was what I wanted. If Master Ivan had taught me anything, it was that a sound and disciplined mind was essential for controlling aura. If you lost that, and let your emotions get the best of you, then your control becomes unstable. As I flashed back and forth, dodging his attacks and toying with him, he was starting to lose his grip on the calm needed.

“I will kill you!” he screeched at me, firing off two more blasts.

I laughed again as I sidestepped the bolts, then slashed my third rune. He fired again and again, but I was too fast. I slashed a fourth, and then the fifth rune before he started to realize my tactic. Just as he forced himself back to a state of semi-calm, I cut a deep line into the sixth. Half of his effective attacks were eliminated now, and we were on a more or less even ground.

“Curse you, Silas!” He spat at me. “I should have killed you as soon as I saw you!”

He put his hands together and fired an extra-large bolt of mana at me. I could have dodged it, but I was feeling pretty cocky and decided to just shred it to pieces with my scythe. The problem was that, as soon as the light cleared from my vision, he was gone from sight. I flooded the room with my aura, but couldn’t find any trace of him.

“What a coward!” I exclaimed as I saw the elevator indicating that it was traveling down. “He ran away!”

As I waited for the elevator to come back up to me, Tomas’s voice sounded in my head. Judging by his words, he was just as disgusted and indignant as I was.

If he didn’t run, he wouldn’t be the prey.