Terrance grabbed Zani by the throat and slammed her to the ground.
As a result, many trees around them fell.
But Zani didn’t seem affected by it, as not even a second later, she wrapped her legs around his arm and picked herself up with his strength.
Terrance’s eyes rolled over, and for a split moment, he fell unconscious.
Staggering backward, this gave Zani the chance to free herself from his hold and make another counterattack.
As soon as her foot grazed the ground, she clenched her fist and landed a direct blow to his gut.
Just like that, his body went hurling away, tumbling like he was falling from a mountain hill.
Ultimately, he came to a stop right next to a tree, his entire body cocooned in debris and dust.
Paying close attention to where he landed, Zani stood tall, panting slightly.
Blood lingered at the side of her mouth, showing how even she had been injured in their battle.
They had been fighting for so long, and each time Zani put Terrance down, he always came back.
His endurance was not something to dismiss so easily.
As expected, Zani observed as Terrance stood to his feet, though he was barely able to maintain balance.
"Tough, I must admit. You are tough," he emitted, with bruised patches all over his body.
No doubt anyone in his shoes would have collapsed or given up.
Yet, this man was still going.
Zani, serene, witnessed how Terrance was smiling as though he didn’t just take a punch to the gut.
"I’m sure you must have realized it by now. This isn’t a fight you can win. Submit, and I promise I will not harm you any further," she conveyed.
To which Terrance chortled in response.
"Getting pity from someone like you. Today has to be the worst. It really is."
Zani couldn’t help but give him a deadpan look.
He could barely stand on his two feet. What more damage could he possibly do?
She sighed, standing up straight.
"Treat your injuries; there’s no use continuing this battle."
Turning around, she began to walk away.
If she could make her way to Sylus, then perhaps she could lend him a hand.
Unawares, Terrance hollered from behind her.
"Don’t you dare turn your back on me!"
But, of course, Zani already anticipated something to happen.
Moving to the side, she intended to dodge him and then throw an attack of her own.
Keep him down for good.
Unbeknownst to her, Terrance had done something she didn’t expect.
While she did, in fact, dodge Terrance and land a powerful hit to the back of his neck—
Another attack came from behind her, a dagger stabbing her clean in the arm.
The only reason the blade didn’t go through her chest was because she perceived the attack before it could.
Even then, she was unable to evade the whole thing.
As she stumbled backward, she grabbed her bleeding arm, her blade falling to the ground.
Terrance was still lying unconscious on the ground, so who could have attacked her?
Were there more people hiding in the bushes?
Anxiously looking around, Zani could not see anyone.
Once again, she felt something charging toward her from the back.
Before she could react, a cut grazed her cheek, and then her back was cut not long after. In the span of a few seconds, Zani had multiple gashes on her body.
"What the hell is going on?"
Now that she thought about it, the presence of what was attacking her felt similar to whatever was hiding in the bush back then.
Whatever it was, its speed was inconceivable.
Eventually, Terrance stood up from the ground.
He could be seen shaking his head as if trying to clear his mind, only to end up laughing out loud.
Zani glared. "Is this your doing?"
For some odd reason, Terrance remained on his knees and skimmed back at Zani.
"Took you long enough."
So he was the one behind the attacks she was getting?
That couldn’t be right; Zani made sure she knocked him out. There was no way he could have used another attack on her.
"You used your Blazers..." she blurted out.
Once again, the creepy look remained on Terrance’s face.
Since Terrance had no title to speak of, a Blazer’s ability was the only way he could do something .
Dancing around Terrance were long, arrow-like weapons, each one swathed in red mana and aimed at Zani.
Big enough to leave a hole in your heart if they were to pass through it.
An aerial-type Blazer. Zani was not impressed, but the fact remained—Terrance knew exactly how to use it.
"You must be wondering how I was able to use it. It’s simple, really. As long as I remain perfectly still, my Blazer will act as a defense mechanism and fight my battles for me. Cowardly, yes, but it never fails to get me on top."
True, just as he said, the Blazer gives a flaw to whoever uses it. Terrance’s flaw was that in exchange for the Blazer’s blinding speed and near-perfect accuracy, he had to not move an inch.
Doing so would cause the Blazer to take his place and remain still.
It didn’t take long for Zani to realize the arrows were what was hiding behind the bush.
"I’m impressed," she let out.
Seeing the look on her face, Terrance gently stood up, the arrows, once flying, now dipped to the ground.
"Are you accepting defeat, then?" he sounded hopeful.
"No, I feel pity for you, if anything."
"What?" Terrance frowned.
"Your Blazer is impressive, but that’s about it. It’s mediocre and quite lame—incomprehensible to me. A party trick, if you will."
Before Terrance could vent out his anger, Zani added:
"Let me show you the true power of a Blazer."
A single, star-shaped ornament bloomed upon her brow—white and radiant, like the forgotten fragment of a celestial crown.
It pulsed softly with mana, sending shimmering waves through her hair until each strand echoed its brilliance, glowing with an otherworldly light.
Around her, thorned vines of raw energy spiraled into existence, dancing with sentient grace.
Each thorn crackled with barely contained power, their movements wild and hypnotic—threatening to consume the entire forest in a heartbeat, should her will allow it.
Zani extended her hand to the side, permitting the energy from the thorns to sip into her grasp, forming into an energy-based blade.
Eyes glowing brighter than the lanterns around her.
"This...is the power of a true blazer. the power of my loyalty."