[A/N: Changed Asher's windbreaker to a gray trench coat]
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Tessai walked into the den as people quickly grew uncomfortable
His boots struck the floor with loud, deliberate thuds, echoing with each step as he shoved aside anyone in his path.
People instinctively moved, many edging toward the exits—
Until Tessai extended a thick arm and signaled for them to stay.
They froze. Gulped. And obeyed.
Then, his gaze slid across the room before locking onto Asher. Slowly, he turned to face the crowd, voice booming:
"Was the Bright Lord's mercy not enough for you all?!"
No one dared respond.
[Asher, please... Whatever Tessai does, don't snap. I'm begging you. It'll only make things worse.]
Hou's voice was calm but urgent in his mind. He knew Asher's emotions better than most— Aiko did too. They both sensed it.
Asher exhaled slowly, eyes narrowing.
It really was bad luck.
Asher expected one of lieutenants to come. Chances were, it was going to be Tessai or Gemma. If it was Gemma, things would have been much easier.
At least he was a sensible man.
Thanks to Kido's stories—and Asher's memories from the novel—he had a decent idea of what was going on. Gunlong hated losing control. Tessai was the same. And with Castle Guards and Hunters drifting from their grip, it was only a matter of time before someone tried to tighten the leash.
Maybe Gunlong was scared of an incoming resistance on top of Nephis.
So, they had to publicly eliminate the threat before it got bigger, thus why Tessai was here.
Tessai continued, now pacing angrily, waving his arms toward the box of soul shards.
"These... these are the soul shards the Bright Lord generously grants you?""Is this what you're spending them on?! Gambling?! You could've asked the Bright Lord if you needed something!"
Asher's expression shifted. His throat burned, heat rising beneath his skin.
Tessai didn't care how the guards or hunters spent their shards. They never had. This whole display was fabricated—some twisted performance to justify stamping them out.
Asher clenched his jaw.
He knew how to stay cool.
Tessai stormed to the crate of soul shards and kicked it hard, sending the shards scattering across the floor in a dazzling cascade. He turned to the stunned guards.
"What are you waiting for, you dogs? Pick them up!"
Aiko stepped forward, her voice cracking in disbelief.
Tessai whirled toward her, towering over her, breath hot against her cheek.
"Citizen Aiko, owner of the Dark City's gambling den, I—Tessai, commander of the Castle Guards—hereby confiscate these soul shards. As punishment for an attempted rebellion against order."
His eyes slid to Asher. Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡•𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚•𝙣𝙚𝙩
"And if you have any objections, feel free to invoke the Right of Challenge."
The room stiffened. The injustice was blatant. Naked. But who could challenge one of the lieutenants of the Bright Lord himself?
Asher didn't move. Neither did the others.
[He's baiting you. Stay calm, he's leaving—he's leaving!]
Tessai seemed to realize Asher wasn't biting. He scoffed, turning away.
Hou exhaled in relief. Aiko's shoulders slumped. They were safe...
Tessai suddenly spun around and grabbed Aiko by the hair, yanking her head back.
"Actually…" he sneered, louder now, "overthrowing order is a serious crime."
"Serious enough to warrant—"
He never got to finish.
A hand gripped his wrist in a vice, stopping him mid-sentence.
Tessai barely had time to glance up—
Before a fist crashed straight into his face.
The impact was brutal. Bone crunched. A tooth flew from his mouth as he staggered back several steps, stunned.
He looked up, dazed, eyes narrowing at the figure now standing in front of him,
Glowing blue eyes locked onto him with cold fury.
"Don't touch my friend."
The entire crowd froze.
For a heartbeat, no one moved. Eyes wide, breath caught, they instinctively backed away from Tessai—hands trembling, footsteps faltering.
"Can I consider this your invocation of the Right of Challenge?" Tessai grinned, his voice like cracking ice.
The temperature in the den dropped sharply. Frost began to spread across the walls as Tessai's skin took on a bluish tint.
Asher exhaled a puff of white mist.
With a burst of sparks, Asher summoned the Azure Blade, intercepting a massive axe mid-swing. Tessai was already on him, a sardonic grinning playing on his face.
He gritted his teeth, glancing at Hou.
[Take Aiko and go to Neph's place!]
Hou nodded, quickly clutching Aiko's arm and disappearing into the crowd.
Asher grinned, augmenting his arms.
Tessai's axe slammed downward—but Asher ducked, letting the blow shatter the ground behind him as he maneuvered around the giant, Wincing at his slower movement from the biting cold. He stepped back a little as Tessai engaged himself in more blows while he deflected another strike, then another, weaving between attacks like a shadow—but it was clear Tessai was faster in this frost.
Until... Asher's trench coat shimmered into full form. Instantly, he felt his body temperature get warmer. His movements weren't so slow any more as well.
Tessai roared, swinging his axe in a brutal horizontal arc.
Asher leapt backward, landing deftly on a table, arms outstretched for balance. Tessai didn't stop. He gripped his axe with both hands and brought it crashing down.
Asher's eyes scanned the room—left and right, blocked by people. No space to dodge upward.
Only one path left: Back.
He slammed his palms into the table and launched himself backward into the air, just as the axe cleaved the wood in half, splinters exploding like shrapnel.
But Tessai was ready.
In the same fluid motion, he ripped the axe from the wreckage and hurled it.
It whistled through the cold air, slicing falling snowflakes as it spun toward Asher like a guillotine.
Asher's coat fluttered wildly. He twisted mid-air, forcing his shoulder to the left with gravity. The axe grazed his coat—clean cut—but missed his torso by a hairline.
Asher's hand shot out.
Fingers locked around a icy hilt.
His arms screamed under the weight and momentum of the axe as he caught it mid air.. Veins bulged. Muscles burned. But he held.
Using the momentum, he twisted midair, absorbing and adding force with gravity before hurling the axe back at Tessai like a missile.
Stunned by Asher's dodge, Tessai's composure cracked.
The axe was spinning straight for his chest.
He quickly dismissed the memory but realized it wasn't fast enough as ducked down.
Sparks of light from the memory blinded his vision as he opened his eyes to see a familiar fist at his face.
Asher had him exactly where he wanted him to be...
[A/N: How was the fight?]