“Gideon!” Flida ran to hug the furry wolf while Marina burned enemies to ash around her. Tears drip on the wolf's dirty coat.

“I am so sorry.” She hugged her wolf friend tighter. The large black dog whines, licking her face in happiness. Flida noticed a large chain around Gideon.

“Need help? Oh, a rune. Let me...” Marina said as she grabbed the metal collar. The wolf growled at the blonde.

“Calm down, dog. Unless you want a new scar.” The collar around Gideon snapped and was thrown away. “There. See?” Gideon licked Marina's hand in thanks. Marina rushed to pat the large dog's fur. An enemy approached with a sword in hand.

A column of bright orange fire turned the assailant into dust. Marina's arm was aimed behind her as she scratched behind the ears of a happy wolf.

The fire witch is as scary as they say...

You met good people this time, miss. She really knows how to scratch an itch.

“Boss?”

The large man stomped on the ground, producing a great tsunami of aura. Drac was blown away, bouncing on the stones. With levitation, he paused in the air, face down. A clunky sword swung to his chin. Drac made a platform of blue and pulse-stepped to evade. The large sword split the air with its velocity. Drac cannot move his head out of the way.

A cane blocks the sword.

“If I had a problem fighting him, did you think you could beat him, you idiot?!”

Drac completes the flip. Drac smiled wide, seeing Axton’s master. A person who was a stranger 30 minutes ago was now someone precious to him. The grumpy grandpa reminded Drac of a certain farmer back in Plyton.

“Kinda.” Drac unsummoned his second Heilong. The large man shoved the cane away, pushing the handler near Drac.

“Oldman, are you okay?”

The handler knocked Drac on the head with his ashy knuckles.

“You nearly died! Was the test for nothing?! Stop. Playing. Around.”

“...Yes, master.”

"Go."

Drac bowed and turned away from the handler, he strrched his tried muscles while he walked towards the caped warrior.

“I want to correct you on one thing, child,” said the warrior of the chunky blade. “The noble ain't my boss. We are partners, you see. Heh. Was partners. I thank you for that. Now I don't have to share any piece of the pie.”

The problem persists.

Drac stopped a metre before the big man. “If you're so grateful, how about a name? I liked to know the man I will disembowel.”

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“Hah! You're funny, youngster. Tristan Gladus. Just a merc.

Oh fuck.

Do you know who he is?

Renowned name in the underbelly of Tralor. Muscle for men of power in the criminal underworld.

Tristan smiled, and his sword rested on his right shoulder. “You know who I am... I’m surprised my name still floats around.” With the clunky grey sword still on his shoulder, Tritan spread his legs into a wide stance. “Go on. Your name.”

“The Hood.” Drac widened his stance as well. He held the blade close to his face; its point faced the enemy. The hand left was down low with an open palm.

The Merc’s eyes widen, and he bursts into laughter. “How lucky am I?!" Tristan flared his aura. White energy twisted around him and coalesced into his weapon. His aura built higher and higher on the sword, and a white light towered.

Amazing! A blade made of aura.

It's fucking long.

Stop flattering the enemy.

Tristan jumped back and swung the long beam of Aura. A Drac flipped his blade in reverse and blocked the sword of aura from the left. Drac ran forward while his copies blocked attacks from the long beam of light. Tristan maintained his distance in vain when Drac pulse-stepped inward.

Tristan’s left hand formed a claw gesture. And swiped to the right. Waves fly at Drac, with him escaping with levitation and Ignis blasting up. A beam of light slashed downward. Drac summoned another copy; he and the other Drac pulse-stepped off their feet, and the sword of aura cut the empty air between them. The Drac’s pulse stepped off blue platforms and ran around the large man.

Tristan swung his blade of light around himself, creating a barrier of strikes. The two Dracs hesitate to wade in.

Try above.

Drac summoned another, and it lifted him high. With the culmination of spells and aura, Drac descends like lightning. Gladus stabbed above. He was left open.

Tristan stomped down with an aura, causing the two Dracs to disappear. The sword of light connected with a Heilong; a Drac protected him, and Drac propelled himself with magic and aura downward. A massive explosion dug a wide area into the ground, where two swords collided.

“Amazing! The stories! All true!” With levitation, Drac hovered in the air, slicing at Gladus. Their weapons smash into each other, creating vacuums in the air. Heilong became a blur. Drac cut at Tristan faster than the eye could perceive. The Merc gets nicked, and cuts appear around his body. The smirk from earlier slowly turned into focus as he tried to rebuff Drac's barrage.

The mercenary aura stepped backwards, and the man in black pulse-stepped in pursuit.

Drac's eyes glow a soft white.

“Still think you are lucky?”

From a pulse-step, Drac enveloped his sword in a condensed aura and dragged it through the stone, then a jumping slash upward unleashed an aura wave.

The merc braced with his wide sword against the vertical wave as it carried him back. His boots drag on pebbles.

At the apex of the jump, Drac blasted at his opponent with Ignis. Swords spark again.

Drac's blade phased through, dissipated, and he dropped to the ground. Heilong was still in its scabbard.

He unsheathed Heilong.

Drac flared his aura and charged his sword.

And split into two.

In moments, the Dracs crouched down and placed their swords on their left thighs.

The two Drac’s arms became imperceptible.

Then came back again.

A cross of light hit the stomach of the compromised warrior. Tristen's eyes widened as he saw his last moments before his torso was ripped apart. A Drac dissipated, and another flipped his sword into its sheath.

The Iai was performed well.

He was renowned?

Don’t get cocky, Farmboy.