As soon as Taznaar had a clear view of his enemy, it didn’t matter to him whether Kaizen’s back was turned or not, with the fury that numbed his veins he didn’t even hesitate to attack him.

Taznaar stretched his left-hand forward and, after snapping his fingers, shouted:

“Fireball!”

Flames spewed out from the tips of his fingers, rapidly gaining strength, growing and getting more intense. A fireball the same size as a cannonball formed in the air as it flew toward Kaizen. Taznaar smiled, confident that this was a very strong ability to char even a mutated creature.𝒐𝑣𝑙xt.𝔠𝑶𝑚

As the levels rose, all the effects that afflicted Kaizen were extinguished, and his life was fully restored, as were his mana points and stamina.

The momentary recovery gradually absorbed the blood of the mythical creature that had previously soaked him, which could be seen with the naked eye.

Everyone running toward Kaizen saw him as an imposing and mysterious figure, except Taznaar.

‘That thunder that fell on the Druid Centaur… I wonder if he’s the one who threw that? Is he like Thor?’

‘Who is this guy? An evolved one?’

‘Damn… I ran on impulse when Taznaar yelled, but this person is giving me weird vibes.’

Some of these warriors hesitated. However, they were all already so close to the mysterious man that they would be branded cowards if they backed down. Besides, Taznaar would probably come to hate them, and having him as an enemy was not something people willingly wanted. However, Kaizen didn’t even know Taznaar, so he didn’t feel the same way.

When the fireball was about to engulf Kaizen, he didn’t turn back, but when he moved his right arm, Taznaar’s ability was also moved to the right, missing the target by a few inches.

The passing flames came so close to hitting Kaizen that he could hear them crackling.

The fireball followed at high speed until it exploded several meters before Kaizen’s eyes, who smiled cheerfully again.

‘Hehe! This is fun!’ he thought.’

The explosion caused an earthquake, which all the people in the abyss felt.

*Broommm*

The players who watched Taznaar’s attempt from afar were very surprised.

“Taznaar missed?”

“H-he never misses… Isn’t that why the Blood Lily stayed here instead of running after this guy?”

“Ouch! That tremor!”

“Are you kidding!? Taznaar missed!?” Klank scratched his eyes and still couldn’t believe it.

‘Come on, Taznaar, what do you think you’re doing?’ Said Blood Lily, who continued just to watch. “Dathan, don’t even think about moving a muscle.” She warned her friend.

“R-right, right.” The handsome brown-haired boy next to her smiled nervously as he stepped back.

At the epicenter of the current battle, Kaizen finally turned to look at his opponents when their footsteps became too close to ignore, indicating that he had no more time.

“Hey, motherfucker! What do you think you’re doing!!!? Who are you!?” Taznaar quickly confronted him.

Before turning around, Kaizen looked at the Guardian’s Elmo he held in his right hand and, appearing to have all the time in the world, placed it on his head with a single hand.

When he turned around, a few players backed away, startled.

The broad-shouldered man in steel armor, partially covered by a green cloak, was wearing an unusual helmet, to say the least, which made his face look somber.

The Guardian’s helmet had a monstrous, decrepit look. The material of it was wood, but it was visibly black and looked like nothing from the normal world. It also had an unusual, strange shape, as if it was inspired by the ancient Japanese practice of creating folk masks in honor of myths and legends. The Epic Classification helmet mimicked a wolf’s head with an elongated snout and accentuated ears and clad Kaizen’s skull like a living animal without Kaizen needing to attach it manually.

Usually, Japanese folk masks cover the face completely, but this helmet only reminded of that culture and did not imitate it. The Guardian’s helmet left Kaizen’s mouth and broad chin exposed, showing everyone the wide smile Kaizen expressed. This smile seemed more terrifying than the strange helmet itself.

Why was this helmet so different from the others? No player present could answer.

The only person in front of Kaizen’s smile who was not frightened was Taznaar puffing out his chest.

As soon as he turned around, Kaizen answered with indifference:

“Before you ask about me, be polite and lower your tone, stranger.”

“THAN YOU ARE-“

Taznaar suddenly felt something grab his throat, trapping his voice.

“Did you bite your tongue? Go on, buddy.” Kaizen said.

With his right hand on his throat, Taznaar’s anger quickly began to rise, and when it did, everyone knew to get away from him. Steam began to come off his skin, gradually adopting a redder hue.

“Who the hell do you think you’re talking to!? I am Taznaar, leader of the largest Guild in this kingdom, I’m rich both in real life and in Rise Online! And you? Who are you? A poor, frustrated guy living in mommy’s basement!?” Vociferated the brown-haired man, expectorating flames.

A vein jumped on Kaizen’s forehead when he heard Taznaar’s insults; however, he resisted the anger and did not give in to the pressure.

‘Hmm… I mean, you’re just another daddy’s boy…’ Kaizen thought. “Dude, no hard feelings, okay? I saved you guys. If you want, feast on the meal from the corpse of the Centaur Druid, after all, that’s all you’ll get from him… These things are part of the game, don’t be too try hard.” He said as he walked back to the edge of a drop behind him.

Taznaar smiled, debauched, and with a snap of his fingers, made a fireball appear in the palm of his right hand. “What are you talking about, weirdo? Do you really think you can get away? You’re surrounded.”

The initial shock of the nearly thirty players who had followed Taznaar there had passed, and they all faced Kaizen with the same anger from before, wielding their weapons and ready to attack.

“There is always a way.” Said the Psyker as he threw himself with open arms into the fall behind him.

At that moment, Kaizen used the Druid Beast Mount for the first time, something that, before visiting the Howling Cliff he didn’t even know existed in the game.

The beast that appeared beneath him was a mixture of many creatures. Most of its body resembled that of a horse, but its head was like that of a griffin, its horns were those of a moose, and its legs were like those of a goat. Its fur was a shade between white and a weak yellow, like an Eared Owl’s.

Thanks to its goat-like legs, the Druid Beast Mount’s resourcefulness in the uncertain terrain of the Howling Lands was enormous. Making it look very easy to jump four or five meters high.

Once Taznaar and the others reached the edge where Kaizen threw himself, they were perplexed watching the Druid Beast jump with such agility in the terrain they suffered to get around.

Like the Druid Centaur, the Druid Beast left an enchanting ethereal green glow in every place it stepped.

“Son of a bitch…” Taznaar uttered, watching Kaizen run away without a scratch.

…

Edited by: DrHitsuji

If you want to see original illustrations of Rise Online characters, consider helping me on pa treon: Pa treon.com/NandoFalske

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