Chương 156: Final Gambit

Corel turned as she felt an odd pulse behind her. At the same moment, her chest heated in warning.

'Run!' The air warped and shimmered, and in a mini explosion. Gaston, bloodied and hunched over, appeared among them. Corel tried to shout a warning, but she was too late. Gaston lashed out with a blast of wind mana that sent Alice and Esha flying into a nearby stone wall. Tevenny barely managed to dodge the blow, as she was the furthest from the suddenly appearing space mage.

But as she flipped through the air and tried to respond, the star on her chest finally gave in and shattered, and she was sent home in a flash of light.

"Kilaresot!" Corel swore as she tried to dodge aside. But once More, Gaston moved too fast, and a stone slammed into her chest, knocking her to the ground. Somehow, she managed to hold onto the token she had just grasped with her right hand. How had he appeared the moment they found the first entry token to the final area? She cursed at fate. Cursed at luck as she groaned in pain.

"Give me the token, and I'll let you leave," Gaston crouched in pain, one shoulder caved in and broken. She almost smiled at the sight of him. She knew that wound was from her bond and that he was on the way. She just had to delay the injured… Wham! Gaston's fist wrapped around her neck as he slammed her to the ground. The last thing she saw before she blacked out was her star shattering as the system teleported out of the competition. __ Joe felt the moment Corel vanished from his senses. Sent back to Thropia.

He roared in anger. His aura erupted violently as he blasted through the forest. How dare he lay his hands on her! He would die for that! He moved so fast that the ground and sights around him were just a blur as he entered some kind of graveyard. The ground tore as he ran, but he didn't stop. He would never stop! He swung around a large stone building, entered a courtyard, and saw signs of battle and devastation.

Only then did he skid to a halt as he flashed to Esha's side, pulling her up and popping a healing pill into her mouth. She swallowed it in a rush, pointing east.

"He has the token," she croaked. Joe moved. He vanished and blasted forward once more, towards the last podium that granted entry to the final area. It took him an agonizing minute to arrive as he weaved in Space Jumps and propelled dashes. But he arrived in an empty area, with a podium whose lit section was starting to fade.

"Nooo!!!" He yelled in defeat. He was too late. Gaston had entered the final area. This was confirmed as a notification flashed into his vision. The final Star Shard area has been breached. The Star Shard will release in five minutes.

"Five minutes!!! What the hell!!" Joe yelled to the heavens. He was answered by nothing but silence. How the hell was he supposed to find a token in five minutes? It took Corel and the others hours to find a single one.

"Dammit!!" he began to pace as he racked his brain for a way inside.

"What do I do? What do I do?" he mumbled over and over again. He thought back to the first time he had circumvented the rules and broken into the final area. He had used Ark's Gateway. But this time, there was no gate to use, no space particles to follow. His mind was torn and filled with anger, so he was finding it hard to concentrate. Part of him feared for Corel's condition, hoping that she was okay. While part of him tried to think of an idea. Could he Space Jump within? No, that made no sense.

He couldn't even see the final area. There was no wall blocking the path, no direction leading him forward. The podium had moved Gaston somewhere, and he had no idea where to even start looking. He continued to pace as one agonizing minute passed. He felt Esha approach as he racked his brain for an answer. But nothing came. As two minutes ticked by, Esha appeared at his side.

"Did you not make it? Did we just…" Joe shot her a warning glare, but she met that gaze with fire.

"It's okay, farmer. There are other ways to complete your plan," Esha whispered. Joe stared at her for a moment.

"How long have you known?" he asked. His mind calming.

"I knew a long time ago. You aren't as sneaky as you think you are," She slapped him forcefully on the shoulder. Joe relaxed, taking a deep breath. She was right. He had accumulated over nine billion credits now. He could probably win the remaining funds in a couple of weeks. So at best, his plan was delayed. But something didn't sit right, and his stomach roiled in anger.

"Did he harm Corel?" Joe asked in a muted tone. Esha missed his tone completely as she answered without thought.

"Just a tap. She will heal in a week or so…" Esha bounced away in fear as Joe's aura erupted like a volcano. He hurt her! That thought rang through Joe as his aura billowed out.

'Kill him!' Uriel whispered, giving Joe the encouragement he needed to attempt the impossible. He felt Esha's star shatter as his aura flared uncontrollably, and she vanished with a look of shock on her face. He would apologize later. For now, he focused his mind. He pictured that scene from two years ago. Travesty blasting everyone with ice. The Star Shard floating in the air above the central part of a circular stone-paved area. The trees spread around the circle.

He altered the trees he saw to match those around him now, hoping it would help. He pictured Gaston's broken form hunched over as he awaited his prize.

"Not on my watch," Joe growled as he raised a hand. He had done this once before, and it almost killed him. Led him to something he still didn't fully understand. But Joe didn't care. He had laid his hand on his bond. His partner. His love. For that, he would pay the price in blood.

'Blood for blood,' Uriel intoned as Joe raised his hand and, with purple mana coating his arm, he tore a hole in space. Unlike the first time he did this, the hole he tore was massive. Large enough for one farmer-sized human to step into. So he did. He stepped into the void, and the tear closed behind him. He knew what he was doing was anathema. He had learned that the hard way. He was meant to be gentle and open space, not tear it. Tearing it only led to… danger.

His senses screamed louder than they had ever screamed before as a million tiny slashes blasted past Joe's form. Tearing through his body, through his mind, through his very soul. Carving paths that would never heal. The void storm passed in the blink of an eye, leaving only Joe's bloody form reeling. He didn't care; he barely felt the damage as he raised his hand. He tore space once more, revealing a path to the other side, and he stepped through. This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval.

Report any appearances on Amazon. He stumbled as his bloody form landed on rocky ground. It took him three more steps to control his shaking legs. He looked around and saw… his vision. He saw the circular stones scattered around him. The brown ageing trees. The hunched form of Gaston stared at him in shock. That shock turned to anger. But Joe's anger eclipsed everything as he swung his staff.

Gaston only had time to widen his eyes before Joe's staff tore through half his face, and one eyeball exploded as Joe's staff exited out the other side, and Gaston's body was tossed aside like a discarded carcass. A moment later, Gaston vanished, removed from the competition by the system's life-saving grace. Joe felt no pity. His anger had still not been sated. So his aura blasted out at nothing until his mind calmed. A new timer appeared in the sky above him, counting down from five minutes.

Joe sat, breathing deeply. It took the full five minutes for his vision to return to normal, and he stopped seeing red. Once the five minutes were up, the glass container holding the Star Shard opened in a blast of air, and the Star Shard floated down into Joe's lap. A small palm-sized array disc appeared beside, and Joe chuckled. He didn't even have to identify it to know what it was. He had stared at it many times on the competition screen shop. The pillar city teleportation array. He did it.

After everything, every battle. Every scare. He finally achieved his goal. He placed both items into his storage ring, and the exit competition notification flashed in his vision. Joe climbed to his feet and looked down at his bloody, scarred body. He felt more injuries deeper within him. In places he didn't even know existed. He knew it would take a while to heal from this. If he ever did. He gave one last look around at the final area. The last Star Shard competition was done. And soon the integration would end.

Only a few months remained. He gave one final glance to the sky before he vanished. Joe appeared back in Landradad, just outside his house. He felt his chest warm as Corel's presence closed in, only a short distance away inside the house. He looked down at his bloody form and grunted. The last thing he wanted was for her to see him covered in his own blood. So he sent her a tiny pulse of patience and walked to his pond to clean up.

No one else was awaiting him; they were all inside tending to the wounded, so Joe washed in relative peace. The only thing that approached and lay down beside the pond was Bravo, who sported a new wound on his shoulder. As Joe emerged from the lake, free of blood and filth, he pulled on a new toga and walked over to the tired-looking sabretooth. He gave him an enthusiastic rub on his scar-free shoulder.

"Good boy," he said with a smile.

"You did a good job protecting the ladies." Bravo leaned into Joe and pushed him aside with his large head, pushing him toward the house.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going," Joe said with a chuckle as he made his way inside. He walked toward his bedroom, where all the dots on his mini-map were gathered. As he approached, he heard some cheerful chatter and light teasing, so he knew everyone was okay. Battered and bruised. But alive. He walked through the doorway to his room as all eyes turned on him. No one spoke; they just stared at him, uncertain, wondering how the competition ended.

Joe first glanced at Corel, who lay on their bed, her chest moving in the rhythm of deep sleep. He let out a breath he didn't know he held. He then raised a hand, the Star Shard appearing in his palm. The room erupted in cheers as everyone who could walk shot up and hugged him in celebration. Once the celebrations were done, they all gathered and sat down on the floor beside his bed as questions poured from them.

Tevenny and Alice lay on the bed beside Corel, nursing heavy injuries as they rested their eyes and just listened. Joe animatedly retold the important parts of the fight. About his realization and turning the tide. About Gaston's last gambit with the black hole skill and his entering the final area. Joe paused at the part when he blasted Esha with his aura.

"Sorry about that. It's just I didn't have time to wait, and well, I knew you'd jump out of the way," he apologized. Esha smiled and laughed. She laughed and laughed, rolling on the floor.

"You know what. I'm not sorry. You deserved it," Joe complained as Esha laughed some more.

"Okay. Let's give everyone healing, time to rest," Gao said as she pulled a still laughing Esha up and over her shoulder.

"We'll see you later." Joe nodded thanks as the pair left, and he listened to laughter echo through the house until he made a door appear in the entryway to his bedroom and closed it.

"Finally. Some peace," he said as he sat on the corner of the bed. He glanced at the snoring trio. Joe tenderly laid a hand on Corel's leg. Tevenny stirred, blinked at him, smiled and then promptly fell back to sleep.

"You guys did great today," Joe said in almost a whisper.

"I don't think I could have done it without you all." Then, exhaustion finally won over as he lay down and closed his eyes. Joe groaned as he was roughly pulled awake by something human-sized landing on his chest.

"Wake up!" a voice echoed through the room. Joe blinked the sleep from his eyes as he peered up at the grinning face looking down at him.

"You could have just shaken me," he complained as Corel rolled off him. She offered him a hand and pulled him up. As he stretched his legs and rose, he groaned when he looked down at his naked form. He made his gear appear with a thought, but wondered when or why he was naked. He shrugged.

"What's going on?" he asked as he was dragged through the house to be unceremoniously dumped into a chair in the kitchen. He was handed a hot, steaming cup of tea that lit up his eyes like a kid experiencing their first Christmas.

"My god. I needed this," he purred as he sipped the hot tea and sighed in contentment.

"The villagers have all moved over now. The village is completely empty," Corel said, taking a seat beside him as she sipped at her own tea. He could smell the scent of raspberries flowing from her cup. His was unsweetened black tea, which was the best way to drink tea, of course. Everyone knew that. But hers did smell good, he had to admit.

"That is a relief," Joe said as he gathered his thoughts.

"Where is everyone else?"

"Helping the brats pack up their stuff. I chose a house for them, and they seem quite happy with it. At first, I was worried they would want their own places. But they insisted on living together. They are all attached at the hip now," Corel commented.

"That doesn't surprise me," Joe said with a wistful look.

"The amount of flirting I witnessed was far too high for my liking."

"Flirting?" Corel giggled.

"Coming from the… man who is constantly flirting with either Tevenny, or Alice, or any woman who looks at you." Joe gaped at Corel in shock.

"I have never flirted with any of those people," he argued.

"How could you even suggest such a thing?" Corel rolled her eyes at him while lightly patting his leg.

"You encourage it. I've seen your smile," she continued.

"Hey! Smiling is not flirting." Did she really think he was a flirt? He thought he was trying not to flirt at every opportunity. Corel's melodic laugh made him realize she was pulling his leg. He shook his head in defeat.

"Okay, you got me good there. But seriously. I'm not a flirt, am I?" he asked in all honesty. Corel gave him a long, assessing look before shaking her head.

"No. But your handsome face makes it seem like you are. Just a smile from you can light up a female's eyes," Corel gave him a wink.

"I would know." She added with a pur.

"Well, I'll try not to smile as much," Joe laughed. After the pair were done… flirting. They made their way outside, but first Joe changed out of his usual toga clothing and put on some more appropriate leather armour, styled like something you'd find on a Viking warrior. It was also similar to the Volduran leather armour Corel now wore, though hers was more casual, and she had shorts that left her finely shaped legs exposed.

While Joe wore long trousers, though lightly armoured, so he wouldn't sweat in the mid-autumn weather. He rubbed at his bald head as they walked.

"You don't have any of that hair growth stuff you borrowed from Sarah left? Do you?" he asked. Corel giggled before she gave his bald head a rub.

"I like you hairless."

"Hell no!" Joe exclaimed in disgust.

"I don't like it one bit." He gave her long braid a light touch as it swayed behind her.

"How do you think I would look with braids?" Corel pursed her lips.

"Long or short? Loose or…" she ran a finger along his head just over his ear.

"Running along your head? I think if you had a braid on one side, while keeping the other loose… it might look dashing." He liked the sound of that, and it also slightly reminded him of the men he had seen inside Uriel's inheritance gate. As he contemplated a new hairstyle, they arrived at the training grounds where the brats and everyone else were gathered. All of the sabretooths were close by, Alice fusing with their fur and harnesses. There were now sixteen fully grown sabretooths and eighteen smaller kittens.

Their pack was growing at quite a rate. He hoped Heliopolis would have enough space for them. Joe walked up to the brats first.

"All packed?" Four heads nodded as they stood in a line before him.

"Seeing as you're all lined up nicely. How about a quick inspection?" Joe grinned. He made a show of patting each of them down, adjusting their gear and giving them all a rough head pat. Meris and Shanna both complained at the childish treatment, but only half-heartedly. Locke and Travis accepted the treatment without any complaint.

"Leave the poor children alone," Corel finally moaned as she stopped him from getting too carried away. Joe laughed as he finally relented. It was time.