Edge took a deep breath, shutting out the adrenaline-soaked instincts telling him to rise and run before he got hit again. He forced himself to calm down and remain perfectly still, ignoring the stalks of bladed yellow grass that were slicing into his skin.
He needed to keep a level head if he wanted to survive. To take advantage of this moment to calm down and think, although he only had enough mana to stay concealed for a few final heartbeats.
Surviving Warren’s assault had been far too close to comfort, and he hadn’t found an opening to use [Overdrive] yet. If Edge was going to have any chance of winning the fight, he had to wait for the right moment to strike. Until he whittled down the manslayer’s mana, Warren’s Disruption pulse would counter most of what Edge could do, even with unlimited use of his skills.
While it was powerful, Skill-Eater’s ultimate only lasted for thirty seconds. If he couldn’t win before it ran out, not only would he have no chance of winning, the bounty hunter would put an end to him the moment that the exhaustion from using [Overdrive] kicked in.
But Edge still had another card he could play. A way to make this the midpoint of their showdown, rather than the end.
Before Warren could find him, Edge turned off conceal, reached into his bag, and removed the magtech preservation unit Lilly had given him. He cracked open the seal, and the wonderous odor of the mana-seed broke over him. It smelled kind of like strawberries and mangos, only a hundred times more delicious.
He didn’t have time to appreciate it right now. He scooped out the fruit and shoved most of it into his mouth. He swallowed while praying that the sumptuous flavor wasn’t the last thing that he would ever experience.
The seed’s concentrated magicytes flowed into his core the moment that they entered his stomach, filling his reservoir to the brim in an instant. His reactor flickered to life as the excess magic overran from his tank.
Before it could go to waste, he activated regeneration. As his bruises and cuts began sealing themselves shut, Edge acted on instinct. He leapt back, angling his jump long instead of high, just as a water bullet went screaming through the space that his head had occupied a fraction of a second earlier.
Warren must have another drone in the air. He saw me the moment that I dropped conceal. He’s finding me faster every time. I should assume that he knows exactly where I am going forward. Conceal won’t work again, unless I use it while he’s distracted.
On the other hand, if his perceptions are in his drone right now, he won’t be paying close attention to what’s happening near his body. I might be able to catch him by surprise.
Edge shadow stepped to obscure his hands, then flowed out onto the cracked red earth, dodging a trio of water bullets along the way. The moment that he caught sight of Warren, he took aim, deactivated the skill, and threw as hard as he could.
A wad of concentrated magic went streaking for the manslayer’s position, causing him to flinch as he pulled his senses back into his own body. He flared Disruption pulse hard, but it didn’t do anything at all, letting the object land on target.
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The reason why was simple. Instead of using a skill, Edge had flung the last piece of the mana-seed he was holding. He was gambling that since Warren’s attention was divided, he would assume that the incoming mana was some manner of attack and respond as such.
When the Disruption skill didn’t work, the manslayer tried again, then darted back to open some distance, confusion clear in every crook of his features. He wiped a bit of mush off his jacket, sniffed at it, and then let out a laugh.
“Did you just throw a mana-seed at me, Vasher? I must admit, I haven’t seen that one before. I’m not sure what you were hoping to accomplish, other than wasting some of my reserves…” Warren’s words were cut short as Edge’s polearm came sailing through the air like a spear, heading straight for his chest.
The bounty hunter jumped to one side, throwing his body out of the way of the naginata at the last possible moment. He must have sensed that something was wrong. Some instinct developed through a lifetime of hunting. He twisted his body and tried to scramble away the instant that his boots touched the ground. But it was already too late.
The moment that had Warren used his Disruption pulse a second time, Edge had cast entangle. He was gambling that since the bounty hunter was off balance and had just wasted a huge chunk of mana, he would be slow to realize that his opponent had cast the spell. Especially with the concentrated magic of the seed wafting out from his location.
At last, Edge had managed to use the lessons he’d been taught to maneuver Warren into a trap.
Twelve thick vines, three separate castings of entangle, burst free from the soil, converging on the bounty hunter like an army of serpents. Even caught by surprise, Warren was remarkably agile. He ducked and leapt and dodged like a man possessed, almost making it out of the skills’ reach before they could close the distance.
Fortunately for Edge, in this case, almost wasn’t good enough. One of the vines wrapped around the man’s leg and pulled hard, making him stumble and take a hasty step. A step that came down beside another pair of tendrils.
They slipped around his ankle and grabbed hold tight, rooting Warren to the spot. The rest of the vines followed suit a heartbeat later, winding around each of his limbs and then tugging with considerable force.
The manslayer struggled, but he couldn’t get away. His pulse flared again, causing the vines to freeze up a second… before springing right back to life. He cursed as he tried to slash with his sword, but he lacked the leverage to take a good swing.
Thank god for Sakura’s note. It had let Edge know that Disruption wouldn’t stop his vines once they had taken physical form. He must be running dangerously low on mana by now.
For a moment, Edge thought that it was over. He started walking closer, getting ready to activate his ultimate and land a killing blow. But Warren must have been able to reach one of the magtech devices strapped to his body. Edge saw something shimmering in the air. A cloud of gold-class aether that was beginning to take form.
He knew that something was wrong and leapt away just in time. As he flew out of range, the aether solidified into an array of razored blades, protruding from the surface of Warren’s clothing. They sprang into motion, spinning with incredible force to form a blender of magical energy.
The vines parted with ease before the powerful apparatus—shorn segments flying toward the sky before raining back down.
The device turned itself off a few seconds later, its charge of aether expended. The mana-forged blades stopped turning and then faded away. But it had served its purpose and freed him from Edge’s trap.
Warren took a step, then another, releasing himself from the weight of the plants that were gradually turning to dust. He brushed himself off, then looked right at Edge and grinned. “Not bad, Vasher. But not good enough.”