As soon as the long vines of Bunjiro's demon touched the ground, they were pulled back in their original place. They were reabsorbed by the two holes in the demon's trunk from where the arms were supposed to be.

Yoichi took advantage of the moment of distraction to assume an even more aerodynamic position and increase his run speed. In the meantime, Bunjiro had taken a step back, fearing that his demon would not be able to stop his opponent's advance in time.

​​

The trunk demon's lianas fell back into place, and at the same instant, Yoichi leapt toward Bunjiro, attempting a frontal attack. He didn't put all his strength into that jump: his real goal was to test his enemy's reflexes and defensive skills.

The warrior with the red armor crossed his arms in front of him, and some strange roots rose in front of his body, creating a kind of hard and thorny vertical barrier.

Fortunately, not having jumped with all his energy, Yoichi managed to extend an arm in front of his face and place one of his scaled hands on the barrier created by the enemy demon.

*tap* - Nimbly, only touching the barrier for a second with a hand, Yoichi's body rotated on itself, moving the attack in another direction and evading that defensive maneuver.

Bunjiro's demon had stuck its arms and legs into the ground in order to parry that attack, stretching them out like tentacles and reaching for its tamer. The vines had twisted together, and the thick woody cables had then crossed on each other, forming a peculiar kind of grid similar to a natural shield.

"That's a good strategy, but it's completely ineffective against me! Aargh!" Yoichi roared, who for a moment let his anger get the better of him, acting like a real untamed beast.

As his large hand closed into a fist, the blurry image of when he had knocked out Bunjiro in the Goldhaven alley appeared before his mind's eye. As their first encounter ended with his hand violently slamming his enemy's head and back against the wall, the same hand was about to deliver an equally violent blow.

The fiery sparks that had sprouted on his arms during the enhancement flowed through his veins and entered his fist, imbuing it with a small portion of draconic energy.

Unexpectedly, Bunjiro was so fast that he ordered his demon to change its defensive strategy: the roots that made up the vertical wall sprouting from the ground slashed towards his body and wrapped around his abdomen, creating a greenish thorny armor.

*CRACK* - The knuckles of Yoichi's right hook impacted the wood of the armor, splitting it into a thousand pieces and penetrating inside. Even if only for less than a second, Bunjiro's eyes widened as if he had never seen anyone penetrate that magic armor with such ease.

In addition to the armor created by his demon, the light armor of the Emperor's Heralds wrapped around his torso, giving him additional stamina. Yoichi's enhanced fist was so strong that it reached his rib cage despite the two layers that protected his body.

The crunch that echoed through the trees came not only from the shattered pieces of wood but also from the cracked ribs of the helmet-haired warrior.

"Ough!" - Bunjiro's expression of pain and astonishment ended with an uncontrolled spit of blood from his mouth staining the trunk of a nearby tree. Yoichi's hook continued its upward movement even after hitting the target.

As a result of that attacking motion, Bunjiro's feet were lifted off the ground under the action of the draconic warrior's almost superhuman strength.

His body is so light! Yoichi thought, whose gaze was fixed on Bunjiro's face. I can hardly feel his weight! The training worked!

A moment before the enemy's toes could touch the ground, Yoichi's shoulder lowered and his arm, in a whip-like motion, threw Bunjiro's body far in the air like a weightless rag doll.

"What stunning strength!" Takuma gasped, unable to restrain his amazement. "Yoichi has skipped his armour and has lifted his body with ease!" The small shockwave released by his companion's fist was felt by his horse, which reared on its hind hooves.

Bunjiro's back hit one of the trees in that small wood, sustaining significant damage to his spinal chord. His body then slid across the ground, falling to his knees with his shoulders still resting on the tree. The impact had visibly damaged his armor to the point of breaking it in a few spots.

Yoichi's fierce gaze, perfectly synchronized with Kenji's, immediately turned to Bunjiro's demon: the trunk demon's vines lay on the ground like wilted flowers, and its small beak opened and closed in pain. From that vision, the young tamer had confirmation that it was his Oracle.

Steadily stepping forward, still thinking about the ever-diminishing time, Yoichi approached his opponent, looking down on him. "The one you call 'friend' threatened my guild mates and me senselessly," he spoke, referring to Kato. "Everyone who witnessed the duel that day was more than thrilled to see the defeat of that blue-haired blowhard," he added.

"Shut up, you son of a bitch!" Bunjiro yelled forcefully. With a kidney hit he attempted for the umpteenth time to strike Yoichi, throwing a slow, predictable punch toward his chest.

Yoichi remained motionless, letting the Heralds warrior's blow hit him. As calculated, Bunjiro's punch hit, causing no damage to his body and again uncovering his defences.

*grab* - Yoichi grabbed Bunjiro's wrist and pulled his arm towards himself in a lightning-fast gesture, lifting his back off the tree trunk. "I decided to spare Kato because, despite everything, I feel a strange form of respect for him. But the same will not happen to you. Anyone who rapes an innocent woman doesn't deserve my respect in the slightest," he ragefully whispered in his ear.

A moment after those words of hate, a twist of Yoichi's wrist twisted Bunjiro's arm, fracturing its bones and causing him a hellish pain punctuated by a scream.