Without even knowing if the one in front of him was the original Taisuke, Yoichi started the offensive and ran forward. The young warrior from Goldhaven charged his enemy frontally, setting his arms and legs as in the stance he had used against Bunjiro.

Arms open downward, hands with fingers spread wide and palms facing forward. The dragon’s charge only increased his power as he waited to deliver the blow to his opponent.

The Demon Hunter did not flinch. Taisuke had never seen anything like it in his life, but what he felt as he watched Yoichi run towards him was a feeling slightly different from fear.

Demon Hunters of a certain level knew a large number of different demons. Therefore, they could sometimes be more knowledgeable than the Tamer District scholars, that is, those people who dedicated their lives to the study of modern and ancient demons.

In a way, anyone who wanted to become a Demon Hunter and wanted to live his own life escaping from the law had to study quite a bit.

Taisuke’s place of origin was unknown to Yoichi and Takuma, but that information was irrelevant to understanding the true nature of the disfigured-faced archer.

The only thing that could be gleaned from his face and body was the pain he had experienced during his early life.

Judging by the features of his face, Taisuke probably wasn’t born in that condition but had reached it over time.

Had he become a Demon Hunter by choice or had he been forced to do so in order to survive? Although in Yoichi’s mind this question was repeated almost endlessly, the young tamer could no longer stop his charge.

With his gaze focused on his target, Yoichi continued to run in a straight line, followed by a blazing trail. From the ground, a thin streak of fire from his heels burned the grass and a grayish smoke rose into the air.

Only a few feet away from Yoichi and Taisuke, Kenji had never looked away from the last spot where the Tamurei had appeared.

After casting its last ability, the ghost-type demon had left a kind of dark halo behind. The little dragon was able to sense that aura, and its ruby-red eyes tried to intuit its movements.

“Skreeek!” – Suddenly, as soon as Taisuke’s demon pet appeared in mid-air, Kenji jumped towards it. Relying on its most bestial and mean instincts, it opened its jaws wide and tried to bite the enemy demon. 

The black ghost sensed Kenji’s impending presence and turned around, realizing too late that the sharp teeth of the little dragon were already inches away from its body. 

*clung* – Kenji’s canines passed through the ethereal fabric that hung from the ghost’s main body. When they touched the spherical part, a strange metallic noise echoed through the air. 

As Kenji landed on its feline paws, a metal sphere slightly smaller than his head was between its teeth. Around it, strands of black smoke moved like tentacles. 

Taisuke’s Tamurei possessed a physical body as well as an ethereal one! As the metal sphere was clamped in Kenji’s jaws, it began to emit that unbearable screech once again. 

At the same time, in a few seconds, Yoichi’s enemy found himself in serious trouble. Until Kenji’s timely intervention, Taisuke planned to activate a skill of his demon just before Yoichi’s arrival. 

However, the demon specter was his Oracle and the pain it felt in that instant was immediately shared with its tamer. 

“Aarggh!” Taisuke yelled, dropping his bow and grabbing his own head with both hands. 

Now! I have to hit him now! Yoichi thought hastily, who inwardly knew that Kenji would not stand idly by. 

In front of his eyes, the enemy looked helpless, immobilized by Kenji’s grip on Tamurei’s head, which was getting stronger and stronger. 

All Yoichi had to do was load the power of his next blow and end the life of that Demon Hunter once and for all. 

For the second time in less than two days, the Bronzeforest warrior was about to kill a man. Like Bunjiro, Taisuke was not innocent. But for Yoichi, that was still a difficult situation.

Even after killing him, he would not be sure that the other Demon Hunters would not rush to the aid of their lost teammate. At the same time, if he left him alive, the chances that the enemy delegation would intercept them again on their way to Oakenfair would be incredibly high. 

Yoichi released the energy stored in the center of his chest, letting the charge allow the primordial flame to reach every point on his arms. 

Taisuke had fallen to his knees and had both hands resting on the ground. His face was positioned low and this gave Yoichi a hint for his next attack. 

Instead of jumping, as he was wont to do, Yoichi ducked further, loading a right uppercut. If that punch had hit Taisuke’s face, the energy would have been enough to kill him with a single blow. 

Takuma and Karasu waited with bated breath, hoping that attack would determine the final verdict of the fight. 

Yoichi’s arms released smoke as black as the pipes of a locomotive, and the roar of Therion’s flame began to rumble nearby. 

“Aaaargh!” – Yoichi shouted and Taisuke turned his gaze towards him. Still immobilized thanks to Kenji’s intervention, the Demon Hunter showed his opponent an expression filled with pain. 

The old Yoichi, the sweet and gentle boy who would never hurt anyone, would have stopped at that scene. Probably, the intimidated look of a man facing death would have made him forgive his evil acts. 

But the old Yoichi no longer existed. He had been replaced by a determined and, when necessary, ruthless warrior. 

As the sole heir to Lumya’s most ancient power, he couldn’t risk being killed by an outlaw like Taisuke. 

Oakenfair was still far away, and no one would stand between him and his rescue mission. Shioko would have soon saved the Princess and he had to reach them in Ambershire.