V3 Chapter 4

Cian settled at the top of a huge branch above, with the Manticore on his side. He looks at the person that he had sensed a while ago, wanting to see it’s true identity. He felt a humanlike aura, not like a werebeast or a monster. Hence, he was somewhat interested.

Would this be the first human he would meet in this strange land?

The Manticore’s body was quite large, fortunately, the trees in this place are like world trees—just the smallest branch was enough to accommodate four people. The Manticore didn’t know why her Master suddenly hides, but she still meekly squirmed into the thick of the leaves and even dropped her head on Cian’s lap comfortably.

Cian touched her head and started stroking it—being an obedient beast, Leona closed her eyes, enjoying her Master’s pampering.

“Shh!” suddenly, Cian made a shushing motion at the Manticore the moment he felt a presence and then took a deep breath in, immediately calming down his heartbeat and breathing. Then, he chanted out an incantation in a low voice. Immediately, a cloud of grey air appeared and obscured the two’s location.

As expected, a few minutes later, a beautiful woman floated in mid-air, landing nearby the tree where Cian and Leona were hiding, with an indifferent expression. She inspected the four directions for a sign of anything out of the ordinary, with lofty air and above everything. She walked out of the bundles of trees and started marching on a little trail. Her dewy eyes glanced around and sought for any oddness, and her scrutinizing gaze seemed to have the power to see through everything.

Looking from above, Cian could see the woman’s appearance clearly. She’s extremely beautiful even by his standards. With an adorable oval face, her skin was powdery, her brows were perfectly shaped, and her long black hair draped straight down her back. With her being tall and slender, she wore a black tight-fitting robe that hugged her body tightly, accenting her tiny waist and curvy hips. Like a female heroine that just marched out of a painting, her temperament was extraordinary, with a bit of mystery.

Her beauty was enough to cause others to lose their breath, however, to Cian’s chagrin; her chest was as flat as a plain.

As she walks, her footsteps were feather-like, as if she was floating. Her eyes never stopped scanning around with indifferent vigilance, though her brows seemed furrowed as if she was baffled, or confused.

Her perception is incredible…

Cian nodded his head as he watched her, stopping, surveying the surrounding. She should have felt something—wait, she…?! Cian’s eyes narrowed, then widened in realization.

“She’s not a she… she’s a he...!”

He was slightly taken aback. This can't be! But! He can't be wrong. This beautiful creature, that seemed to be not less inferior to his Big Sister’s appearance, was actually a he…?!

How is this possible?!

Cian had seen many handsome men before and even heard about men being as beautiful as women, that they are easily mistaken by people for the opposite gender. However, there is still a bit difference from fiction to reality. A truly beautiful man that could easily trample a woman’s beauty, only Apollo from Greek Mythology would perhaps be that man who’s smile alone can make anyone faint and be charmed.

But he is a myth, a fiction.

And yet this one…

Cian would never be mistaken in his judgment. Hence, this beautiful woman was actually a very beautiful man. It was to the point that just by seeing him; any kind of jealousy on his appearance would become an admiration instead. This person has a massive cheat-like Charm, it’s completely unfair.

As Cian was completely surprised, it was at this moment that the person had reached the tree Cian was hiding, and her brows even furrowed much further.

"Someone’s here.”

The beautiful man muttered coldly and his brows locked together as he lifted his plain, but clearly well-crafted black boots. Gracefully, he stepped back and turned towards Cian’s hiding place. Although Cian was certain that this ambiguously beautiful man cannot see through his hiding prowess, but with their eyes lock, he was certain he had already been found.

“Peeping is a disgusting behavior! Why not show yourself, or else I will make you myself!”

The beautiful man’s face turned white as he muttered out coldly. An overbearing amount of magical power poured out of his body, creating a twirling tornado of cold.

"Such sharp senses,”

A burst of bright and clear laughter came from above. Then, the beautiful man saw a young boy perhaps lesser than his age hops off the tree beside him. Behind him was a striking beast, a Manticore so beautiful with golden-colored fur and strands of green stripes—clearly not a normal of its kind. Especially the aura it was emitting, it felt some kind of oppression. He had seen many kinds of Manticore before, but this Manticore was truly unique of its kind.

Finally, the beautiful man’s gaze turned towards the young boy whose age between late teens to early twenties, with fox-like features displaying his true identity as a Werebeast.

His brows straight, his lips red, and his teeth pearly white showing small unconcealed canines at the corners of his mouth, and his coat and hair as black as ink. He had handsome features and a tall and straight stance. Even though his robe was coarse and thick, he still gave out the vibe of calmness and serenity. He possesses maroon-colored cat-like eyes that occasionally appear blood-red—which looks very gentle and soft but when narrowed, turning into a pair of rubies, appearing sharp and intimidating.

The beautiful man had seen his share of handsome and good-looking people before. And this boy cannot be called special among them, of course aside from the werebeast features, but he had seen much more good-looking and handsome werebeasts, desperately presenting themselves to him. Still, this werebeast had a refined handsomeness about him that made him stand out wonderfully among them.

However, why is there such a Werebeast in the Black Lands? More so alone. Don't they always move in groups.

Most Werebeasts don’t differ from Barbarians and not a shred of elegance on their body. And yet this boy… the beautiful man’s brows were tightly locked together as he stared at the good-looking young werebeast. He was skeptical. Could it be… he was also here for the ancient ruins?

As he checked out Cian, the latter was checking him out as well. His visage was, as expected, beautiful without a doubt. Much more when he looked at him at a closer distance. Despite being a man, his figure developed quite femininely. But, of course, Cian wasn’t most concerned about this. Since it was a man, even if he was a very beautiful man, he’s still a man. He had lost his interest. What he cared more about are the man’s capabilities.

With the magic power that was spilling out of him, this man’s capabilities definitely did not lack compared to him. Perhaps, he was even much, much stronger than him by several realms in terms of magic capabilities. This transgender is certainly as strong as Oriel in terms of magic power!

Watching the beautiful man before him, Cian had a heavy heart. He silently summoned his mana in preparation for battle. It was his first time running into someone that can rival his prodigious sister’s power, he had to be on guard and defend himself if the opponent attacks. Though he was strong, he was a little pressured by the man’s abilities. Especially now that he had lost his [Absolute Defense] and [Vector Body], even if he possesses many skills and abilities beyond a normal human, they still have the limit where they can be of use to patch up the difference.

At the same time, the beautiful man got the same feeling from Cian. Although he was certain that Cian’s magic power is not as dense and high as his, displaying the fact that he was beneath him in terms of magic capabilities. He was certain that Cian still has some tricks up his sleeve that could actually pose a threat to him. The beautiful man’s face changed, and Cian’s defensive posture solidified his guess. He was certain that Cian, like him, was not a native of this place, and instead sent by some powerful Clan to try and explore the ancient ruins.

Perhaps the Beast God’s City in the Northern Mountain…?

Sadly, he guessed wrong.

Cian was indeed not from here, but coming from the outside world. He cared less about the faction conflict in this land. Much less, knowing about the ancient ruins. It was purely coincidental that he showed up when the ruins were about to appear. Running into someone like the beautiful man was also by chance.

This misunderstanding made the beautiful man aggressive. Horrifying demeanor like tidal waves gushed out of his body as he sharpened his killer instinct! He was determined to slaughter the opponent here and now!

In this kind of land, much less the appearance of the ruins, killing people was as normal as the sun shining in the sky. They do it for benefits, pleasure, and most of all, reducing competition. It’s common for a fight to the death to suddenly break out the moment two people from different parties meet. And the beautiful man understands that rule.

He looked at Cian with his lake-like eyes and said with a voice as smooth as the night wind blowing through willow trees, “If you don’t want to die, turn back now,” he gave his warning, and his fierce aura exploded like a dragon coming out from the sea.

Even the Manticore beside Cian felt a dragon glaring at her, and she felt oppressed. Even still, she stood her ground and growled menacingly.

“Relax, brother,” Cian grinned. “I’m not the bad guy in this story,”

“I also don’t believe in the good guys either,” but he was easily countered as such.

"Bellisima, let’s get real. Did I do something to upset you?"

Sensing his intentions, Cian frowned. His accent turned weird, but he still tried to act cordial and polite.

“If I did, please say it with words and not violence. I’m more fond of the former, not the latter,”

After observing the beautiful man before him, Cian quickly realized that he was not from this place. His clothes and temperament were not like one born in a wild. After realizing this, the Demon Prince was certain that there is a complete society that might exist in this place—like some sort of a City, Kingdom, or even an Empire.

And if that happens, things might get even more interesting. Therefore, Cian didn’t want to anger the beautiful man as much as possible, because he wanted to find information about some things he might get interested in. However, the other party doesn’t seem to be that friendly either…

"You being here is what’s wrong.” declared the beautiful man in a bold voice as a kind of frigid whirlwind began to arise.

The mana overflowing from his body then became a maddening blizzard that pierced Cian’s body. His beautiful face was still frigid. His eyes narrowed dangerously and when he moved his hand, frost energy started to gather and in an instant, he was already holding a long sword that looked very much like an icicle.

Its gleam was like that of a glacier and it was a long white sword, the width of it seemingly ill-fitting for someone like him with such slender arms.

“Let’s be real for a second… it’s good that you are eager and all, but do I absolutely have to fight you?” asked Cian.

He stepped back, his oversized fox ears twitching and bluish-white sparks started to crackle around him. Because he knows that Dark Magic was not seen favorably by common people, Cian chooses to hide it and use his other Magic; Lightning and Fire instead.

For some strange reason, when he successfully merges with the Ten-tailed Fox, his control of magic power had become much smoother than before, and he could now even use Lightning Magic as easily as Dark Magic.

Just like what fantasy novels back in Earth claimed—Magic is Imagination.

Although Death is some kinda specific type of Elemental Affinity; Dark, Lightning and Fire, and perhaps even the other basic Elemental Magic relies on the imagination of the user. As long as a perfect image is provided, the phenomenon called Magic has the power to distort the laws of physics and manifest what is deemed impossible.

Now Cian can understand them much more clearly with the knowledge and enormous amount of magic power given by the Ten-tailed Fox. She was not known as a Heavenly Fox Spirit for nothing!

With Cian’s modern knowledge and the power of magic, he can now do wonders!

“I don’t want to fight.” Replied the beautiful man unexpectedly.

“Wow, we can finally reach some level of understanding—at least, we’re becoming civilized,” Cian's lips curved upwards.

“…however,” but Cian’s happiness was cut short. “…you being in this place, means you and I have the same purpose. And I won’t let you,” said the man amidst Cian’s chagrin.

The eyes he saw in him were not that of a young girl or boy, whatever he is, his appearance displays, but of a warrior on the battlefield. The beautiful man gripped the sword and subtly shook his head. She then took his other hand to it and caressed the blade to then say: “Blossom, Zanris!” and with a snap as well as some other little sounds the sword destroyed itself.

The trembling of the air as well as the delicate crushing sounds was by no means unpleasant and was actually melodic like an elegant, awe-inspiring symphony. Be it either like glass or like ice crystals, the sword on the beautiful man’s hand had shattered. After the bulky sword had shattered, all that remained was a magnificent, ornamented rapier. With the shell that was the long sword shattered, the slender sword underneath then came into being.

Now the countless shards of the shattered sword drifted through the air as if being controlled by invisible power.

“…blame the fate that leads you to me!”

The beautiful man’s toes tapped the ground and instantly, he flung off the ground, and his crystal-like sword was heading directly toward Cian.

Frightening demeanor continued to flood the place.

The wind blew, and the ground shook!

“Merda! I hate stupid people who don’t know how to listen,” said Cian coldly.

Truthfully, he was proficient in many languages, and often, whenever he was in a new environment, he often changed his tone, voice, and accent, to disguise himself. And this was what he was doing right now... though, Cian doubted whether there is such language in this world, it still the best method to disguise himself.

Then, as he watched the rushing cold storm, Cian realized that the shattered fragments were not just normal pieces of ice. Each and every shard possess a power that can rival a high-grade magic blade.

“Tsk!” Cian and the Manticore both jumped in opposite directions at the same time. It was then followed by a loud roar of a thunder-like explosion as the sword struck the place where Cian was at. When the ice shards hit the ground, another group will form after.

“Rooooaaar!!”

Leona roared as the moment she landed, her forelimbs turned and she pounced at the enemy with translucent blade-like wind firing like a storm. Clang! Cling! Clang! An ice wall appeared, still, with a slash of Leona’s claw, the ice wall was torn apart. However, a sound of cutting air slashed from behind Leona with the speed of light.

“Not on my watch!”

A cold voice rang out.

Claang!

A black sword clashed against the ice sword just above Leona’s head.

“You’re too hot, Bellissima,”

Cian appeared just above the beautiful man, his sword arm circled in a blur, the black blade whistling as it sliced through the air. The beautiful man was a little startled, yet he showed no fear. With an almost impossible reaction, the sword changed trajectory mid-air and went upwards, meeting Cian’s black sword.

Boom!

The two swords clashed each other and caused a large spark that erupted in the sky.

An infinite amount of strength dissipated the air.

The scary amount of force made them stumble back several steps each.

Stalemate!

A tie… this person is strong. Which Clan is he from? How come I’ve never met him?

The beautiful man’s brows rose again as shock washed across his eyes. He had seen the were beasts of the Beast God’s City and the geniuses which he was certain would surely join this time’s event. But this man was not among them. In addition, he was certain that his opponent’s power was beneath him by several realms, but to so easily block his attack still surprised him.

What kind of power does he have to rival his strength?

The shock was short-lived though, as the beautiful man never doubted himself. No matter how strong this person is, he is not worthy enough to be his opponent. He’s none other than Asceius Reidheld Grimward!

Since he was born, he has yet to lose a battle!