An object moving at incalculable speeds impacted the head of the Fang, driving it into the ground in a massive explosion that made any other up to this point seem akin to toddlers throwing tantrums.

Vincent, in what had been the scariest most uncertain moment of his life had used his Improved Dash in quick succession to launch himself high into the air. As he reached the height of his jump and the system enhanced gravity began to take him once more, he used aerodynamics and telekinesis to not only place himself at the optimal angle, but to multiply his terminal velocity.

Upon reaching what he figured to be about his max speed he took things a step further by propelling himself toward the ground with one last Improved Dash and activating an Unwavering strike. Vincent knew he had no hope of properly controlling himself at such speeds even with his abilities and stats. He settled for simply praying he survived the impact, and that the Fang would be damaged enough for his ally to finish the rest.

Fortunately for him.. he had survived, but barely. The dust was still clearing as Vincent stumbled away from the impact crater. His armor had been torn to shreds, blood caked the right side of his face and head. His left eye was swollen shut. His remaining good eye shone a deep cerulean blue that contrasted sharply with the blood surrounding it.

He checked his stats and nearly choked. Two thirds of his mana had been expanded but that wasn't a huge deal. The real issue was his hit points.. second wind had even activated during the impact meaning the totality of the damage was nearly two full health bars with the depletion of the second health bar presumably resulting in his permanent death.

Second wind! All health and stamina restored!

Warning! Extensive damage.. calculating..

Health: 435/8600(11,180)....

440/8600(11,180)...

445/8600(11,180)..

If not for his second wind as well as all the boosts from his skills and perks he definitely would have died in that idiotic kamikaze attack. He limped back over to the side of his ally who was fixing him with a scrutinizing glance. He felt like he could kneel over and die at any moment. "What??" He practically growled out.

Gildarts merely shook his head. "Nothing. That was.. impressive. I did not expect such a mighty attack from one so.. underdeveloped." He choked out looking sheepish. Which.. was kind of weird given the man's ridiculous proportions. Vincent, stunned and holding his damaged right arm couldn't help but crack a smile at the giant's attempt at a real compliment.

He fixed the settling dust cloud with a glare. Somehow he felt like this wouldn't be nearly enough. "Shouldn't you be readying your attack? That took everything I had. I'm practically a sitting duck at this point." He reminded hid ally urgently, looking up at the Orc.

"Oh! Right! Forgive me. I shall begin charging the attack now.." He said but was cut off as a concussive blast of force rocked the ground with enough impact to cause Vincent to stumble. Their attention was drawn to the Fang that had just blasted itself out of the massive creator caused by Vincent's overwhelming attack.

It looked like absolute shit. Half of its Skull looked to be caved in with blood gushing out in huge spurts. A couple of its legs were twisted and clearly broke. Large patches of fur were shredded and bleeding. It was a wonder the thing was still standing honestly. But though its wounds were deep, it had only lost a little more than third of its health..

It wailed in anger and pain before spitting several large fireballs at the two men. Vincent's eyes widened and he placed his good arm in front of him in a feeble defense. He wasn't sure where his shield was.. it would be automatically recalled to his inventory after some time but he was out of that.

In one fluid motion Gildarts interposed himself between Vincent and the blasts, knowing the wounded man wouldn't be able to avoid them in his damaged state. He roared and swung his large club. An explosion of sheer physical force from the swing alone shielded the pair, blocking the Fang from view for a few seconds. Once the shockwaves dispersed Gildarts looked none the worse for wear but… the Fang was gone.

Vincent couldn't stop his eyebrow from twitching rapidly. "All of that.. and that stupid son of a bitch got away!? Gah!!!" He yelled in frustration. He would have stomped his foot but he was in too much pain for such rough and rugged movements. Gildarts began chuckling beside him until the much smaller man fixed him with a glare causing him to clear his throat and suddenly find something very interesting on his club to pick at.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

"Let's go before that piece of shit comes back to finish me off." At this Gildarts burst into laughter he could no longer contain within himself as the two began to exit the clearing. "There is no shame in this hunt today, haha! Even though we did not catch the beast, you, a much weaker opponent than our mighty foe, managed to win this fight on your own. You may not have killed the beast but you made it tuck its tail and run. A hunt fit for elites flees before you. I bloody declare none save Garkan himself could ever claim such a feat at your level."

As if on cue the system pulsed.

Congratulations! The unique feat: victory against insurmountable odds has been achieved! New perk rewarded: Against all odds.

Against all odds.Your determination and skill has allowed you to best an opponent far beyond your capabilities. The system recognizes your accomplishments and rewards those who work hard to achieve the impossible. Skills level up +25% faster. Gain +50% experience. All stats increased by +10

Vincent grunted and continued limping. A perk that increases how fast you level up and how quickly you gain skill levels? That seemed a bit ridiculous. Then again look what it took to get here, he was pretty bad ass in that fight if he did say so himself. Could Anyone else have pulled that off? Probably not.

Thankfully, for his sake, Gildarts was walking at an extremely slow pace given the circumstances. He couldn't have kept up with even a brisk walk at this point. He supposed he could pop a potion but he didn't have many left and honestly Gildarts would likely protect him from any further harm.. Hopefully.

Gildarts's attention appeared to remain focused on the path ahead, scanning for any stray threats. Though to be honest the Orc was confident there were none in their immediate vicinity that would dare attack one so mighty as himself. Truthfully, within his dense green Skull, the man was playing over what he had seen in his mind. The more he replayed the situation over in his head, the more impressed he became.

He glanced at the limping man beside him who had somehow managed to best an abnormally strong level 50 beast. It shouldn't have been possible.. When he began to level and amassed level specific class skills he would become a true monster. Class skills were typically in a whole other league than regular ones and even if you waited reached level 100 before electing a class all levels were applied retroactively so there would be a noticeable difference.

After a few minutes of grainy silence Vincent's curiosity got the better of him and he couldn't help but ask, "so.. why exactly did you need to capture or kill that thing, anyways?" Gildarts regarded the shorter man sharply and for a second he had thought he had crossed a sensitive subject like a journey of vengeance or something. But then the Orcs expression relaxed and he grunted.

"Why else but for bragging rights? I, the mighty Gildarts shall be the next king of the Orcs but.. first I must acquire renown. And win the heart of the king's daughter." Vincent stopped dead in his tracks and stared the giant directly in the eyes. "You seriously almost just got me killed for a piece of ass?"

A dense and heavy pressure filled the air. Vincent gulped realizing he may have overstepped with that one. Gildarts seemed to glow with purple energy. His form seemed to become larger and more menacing. The world fell away and Vincent saw nothing but the hulking ogre in front of him and the purple aura he exuded.

Was this some sort of skill? The energy of this aura was denser and more intense than anything he had ever seen before. It barely extended past Gildarts body but Vincent was sure that within that area.. all things bent to the Orcs will. "I do not pretend to know why you compare the princess of my people to the backside of a beast.. Perhaps that is a compliment to your people. But for us it is a grave insult. Be careful what you say boy. You're in our world now."

Vincent shuddered, nodding quickly. Apparently whatever relationship Gildarts had with this woman was true and genuine. He wouldn't make that mistake again. "Anyways.." Gildarts began, as the pressure let up and he relaxed. "I.. may have been a bit hasty before when I said I was the.. strongest Orc.." He said sheepishly. "Truthfully the king is the strongest by far. And the princess's suitor is a nobleman from a very talented Orc family. He is the second most powerful Orc…"

Vincent's eyes widened and he listened intently as the Orc continued. This was the most they had ever said to one another. Usually they bickered or discussed the system and almost always in short sentences. Due to the extended traveling time both seemed to be trying to pass the time with idle talk and surprisingly it was the 'manly' Gildarts doing the lion's share of opening up.

"I owe you an apology for what I did. Truly you are an infant in the eyes of the system and.. even to Orcs.. forcing infants to do battle is.. frowned upon."

Vincent sweatdropped but said nothing.

"I was born a nomad as most of my people are. Nomads are peasants who have no real bloodline or claim to any lands. Some in my current village are not even pureblood Orc. But I was special among my people. Stronger. My parents knew it from birth. They raised me to be strong and my mother told me to be proud of who I am and where I come from. One day I will challenge the king for the right to rule. Any may rule if they prove to be the strongest. It's just.. the royals have been so far ahead of the nomads for so long.." Gildarts finished, sighing and looking at the ground.

When it was clear the giant was in deep thought and had no intention of continuing Vincent whistled. "Phew.. I had no idea man. But I mean.. that's absolutely amazing honestly I respect the hell out of that. Your mom's a blessing from.. uh.. Garkan?.. And I'm confident you'll achieve your goal." Gildarts seemed to perk up a bit at the man's attempted kind words.

"Bahaha! That she is!" He examined clapping Vincent hard on the back causing him to yelp and groan in pain. He stumbled barely regaining his composure. He was still heavily damaged from the battle.

Even with his considerable regeneration it took a little over half an hour to fully recover. He wondered how long it would take him to recover if his endurance matched his vitality… God, progress would be slow. Thank the heavens for system exploits.

Rolling his shoulders he decided to ask the question that had been bothering him. "So.. obviously the king is probably level 100. How do you stand in comparison to him? What about with that purple aura thingy you used."

Gildarts raised an eyebrow. "Truly? It would be akin to you fighting me now." He answered flatly. Vincent had to do a double take. He assumed the king was probably roughly twice Gildarts strength given their respective levels. It seemed there really was more to overall strength than just levels. But how did Gildarts expect to close that sort of gap? He supposed that was for him to figure out.

"As for the second part of your question.. you are too fresh to the system to understand Auras. Even if you can just barely perceive them. But know this.. my Aura gives me the strength to move mountains. The kings aura however.. is enough to destroy half the country. He is the second strongest Orc to ever live next to Garkan. "

Vincent was flabbergasted. His entire goal the last year and some odd months had pretty much just been to get strong enough to survive. He couldn't even comprehend the magnitude of the events transpiring around the safety of his sanctuary. He really was an insignificant pawn in a much larger game. No.. scratch that. He wasn't even a piece yet. He was merely a speck of dust on the board. What in the hell had he gotten himself into?

End of chapter 14.