The Tenacious Wolf vs. The Ambitious Fox!

My words once again fell on deaf ears. My opponent was tenacious, but I assume that was a quality that he was chosen for. His hand raised and with it, words were uttered,

"Vine Bind!"

The ground underneath my feet began to crack as the roots of the trees heeded his command. Within seconds, they shot up from the ground and moved with practice motions. I shifted my body to avoid the incoming attacks successfully. Even though I avoided the initial attacks, I should've expected their subsequent tracking. 

"This is pointless. How about you cease with the magic, and fight me straight up?! Are you that terrified to take on a mere foxkin?!"

After spotting an opening to approach, I seized it with both hands. It would be surprising to see a man of my size move so nimbly, but it was expected if they knew my lineage. I clenched my fist, and once we were face to face again, I launched my attack. It may have been due to his sustained injuries, but he was far slower to react. As a result, my fist slammed into his face with clubbing force. A straight right punch followed by another, and then another. Each punch pushed my opponent further away from his last position until he mustered enough strength to evade the combo.

It was then that I decided to add more depth to my movement. In response to my miss, the man moved his right hand towards my direction once more. It was an obvious counterattack, but I was more than ready this time. With my left hand, I intercepted his arm before he managed to utter his next spell. 

When it comes to spells that utilize incantations there is always a strategy that could prove meritorious if executed properly. It is a simple one; prevent them from completing the incantation. Now I am just speculating since I haven't cracked open a magic book in this world yet, but I assume that one must complete the name of the spell to successfully cast it. 

In normal circumstances, it would be easy for the caster as long as there is a lull in the conflict. Since our speeds were similar early on it would have been difficult, but doable. That fact was evident to me once he managed to bind me earlier. That is why I needed to overwhelm him.

With the difference in our sizes and strength, nothing was preventing me from throwing around the man once I grabbed his arm. The dirt kicked up as the man attempted to resist me, but it was in vain. No matter how hard he tried, he found himself swept off his feet. Once airborne, I pivoted my feet to my left and promptly slammed him onto the ground. I released him and with malice intent, my boot found itself planted into his chest.

Although healing magic or recovery medicine might be available, I still held back a bit. After all, if I crushed his ribs entirely, he would be of no use to me. If he can't breathe, then he can't answer my questions. From how he struggled to move after that last slam, I could sense that he was winded.

"So, you finally decided to give up? Good. If you keep fighting me, then you'll need to pay more out of pocket for your hospital bills. The more that you resist, the longer your recovery period will be. I recommend keeping that in mind.", I informed him.

The man wheezed as he rolled onto his stomach. I couldn't help but sigh when he mustered the strength to push himself onto his feet. Well... he tried to anyway. Once he was onto a knee, I kicked in his chest again. That was more than enough to put into the dirt again. With all of my movement settled, I moved my hand to correct the position of my glasses on my face. Once completed, I moved my arms behind my back and stood next to his face.

"I'm well aware that the Blois sent you after me. It's not that hard to figure it out since I am new to town. I don't have many people to cross, so how about you make it easy for me."

I lifted my right foot and stomped onto the bicep of the downed man. My action caused the man to cry out in immense pain, but then again a fractured arm would do that to someone. As if the sky itself felt his agony, small droplets trickled from the clouds above. Nonetheless, I remained firm in my stance and even went out of my way to dig my heel deep into his newest injury.

"Tell me which brother sent you. That's all I ask."

The man's breath became heavy as he coped with my actions. I could see contemplation mixed in with his pained expression, but he proved to be quite the troublemaker.

"Da-Damned demon!", he spat at me.

His resistance forced me to change my approach. With my right arm, I crouched down and gripped the man's neck. Although it was unconventional, I still found myself successful in lifting the man with that method.

"Listen. Demon or not, make this easier for yourself. If your survival instincts are failing you now, then do it for young Lannister over there. Demi-human on demi-human violence is not a good look for the next generation."

"Y-You say that n-now... but y-you can't e-escape y-your nature! E-even if y-you k-kill me now... y-you still are no match for them! The Death of the Angea is here!"

Now that was a tidbit! Even I couldn't prevent the curiosity from appearing on my face.

"The Death of Angea?", I parroted.

My fingers tightened around his throat as I contemplated that phrase. It was a simple one, but I knew at that moment for a fact that was after me. Claire von Angea, Lady Ana Von Angea, two big fishes within Astanan culture, and here was this man calling for the death of the entire clan. Not to mention, he declared that right in front of me. That tells me that he is well aware of my connection to the family.

"C'mon now. Why would you go and say something like that?", I questioned.

With swift movements, I dragged the man over to a tree. With tremendous force, I slammed him against it. The impact rocked the tree and caused a slight fissure to run up the length of its trunk. He winced at the pain, but his resolve to tell me nothing remained strong.

I realized then that perhaps I didn't have the time necessary to crack his resolve. Instead, I moved to another plan. With my free arm, I moved to depower the man by removing the ring from his fingers. With my grip increasing in its tightness, it made it more difficult for him to breathe much less cast an incantation. With the ring stashed inside my pocket, I delivered an uppercut into his ribcage. 

It was a blow aimed to deter any retaliation from him as I backed away. Without me holding him up by his neck, the man slid to his rear. The once brash and defiant fox demi-human remained bloodied and defeated. Since that rain had begun to pick up, I decided to help myself to the cloak on his body. As I expected he didn't put much of a resistance, so I decided to go a step further.

While one might debate me on the moral ethics of taking something that doesn't belong to me, I have a simple response to that. To the victor goes the spoils. In my eyes on certain occasions, one could play fast and loose with established morality as long as it was in self-defense. You see, this large pouch of rattling coins that I found in his pockets just so happened to fall out when I was defending myself.

It just so happens to help alleviate the lack of funds that I was just experiencing. It isn't my fault that he believed that he could target me due to my species, or whatever faults that he saw in my species. As far as I know, this was no different from looting a defeated enemy in Infinity Unleashed. There is nothing immoral about collecting what you are owed after an encounter such as this one. 

"Lannister! You can come out now. This is settled.", I said.

After I issued the command the soft rustle of the bushes caught my attention. No doubt it was Lannister who exited the hiding spot that he was in. I turned to face him as I slipped my newly acquired cloak onto my body. While I'd admit such a battered cloak clashed with my dirty green attire, I wasn't against it too much. After all, it served to protect me against the increasing raindrops.

I raised my hand to greet the boy as he cautiously approached. While at first, I assumed it was due to the possible threat of our attacker, I soon realized why. Even after I extended my hand in an attempt to show my friendly nature, it must've clashed hard with my current appearance.

"No need to worry yourself. This was why I was entrusted to your safety. So it would be best for you to overlook a little blood.", I said as I lifted the bloodied cloak.

To be honest, taking such a bloodied cloak was not one of my best ideas, but that didn't matter. We still had about half a mile left to traverse and the rain was steadily increasing. Although it may not be all too relevant, I may have appeared to be this gruesome demon that the Cyto religion depicted my kin as. 

"S-sure.", the boy squeaked out as he clasped my hand.

"I apologize for what you witnessed, but I am sure you have seen far worse already. I imagine that it is rough growing up in the bronze district, especially as a demi-human.", I replied, gesturing for the boy to continue our advance.

Hesitantly he did so, but there was a distinctive shudder in his every step. It must've been frightening for the boy to have a man who was covered in blood attempt to give him a lesson in the quality of demi-human existence. It was perhaps poor taste to try to lecture him, but there are times that I can not go against my nature.

"You shouldn't avert your eyes from me. Take a good, long look at me, Lannister. It will do you well to remember the battle you witnessed today as it could define your future. For one, you could end up like the man we left against that tree back there. Angry at a race of people that in reality did nothing wrong to him, he followed a path that led him to this moment. He was so overwhelmed with mistrust that he couldn't see past the red and as a result red now coats his body."

Upon stepping back, I reflected on his words thus far. He declared boldly that he would never work with elves, but I find it inconsistent with the enemies that I possess. If I look deeper perhaps I was not the one whom he was truly slotted to go against. 

'The Death of the Angea is here...'

Words that slot me as a man on the lowest priority when it comes to this organization. It makes me wonder just what type of individuals I got involved in.