Fighting An Ape And It's Pet Human

He decided to put his questions about Theon on hold as their group began their journey. At that moment, they were a little more relaxed—it wasn't usual to see beasts this close to the village. Theon and Sigurd walked side by side, with Astrid and Arya in front of them.

"So, Sigurd, you mentioned you had a plan to get us out of this mess. Mind sharing it?"

"I did?" Sigurd replied, feigning ignorance. "I plan on using my skills to tame one of the beasts at the Red Tomb."

"Oh really? It didn't seem like that was the case when you were talking earlier."

"Huh, what else is there to do?"

A cold tension filled the air as both boys examined each other skeptically, as if peering into each other's minds.

"Well, it won't be that easy," Theon broke the tension with his usual cheerful tone. "You know what kind of beasts reside in the Red Tomb, don't you?"

"Lizards," Sigurd joked, though he knew the truth. He was well aware of what really lived in the Red Tomb—the kind of beasts that caused entire nations to flee in fear.

"Dragons."

The word sent a chill down their spines. The only time they'd heard mention of dragons was when foreigners used them to terrorize their people or when one wandered too far from the Red Tomb.

"Dragons and all different types of scaled beasts. You really think you have what it takes to tame a dragon?"

"Truthfully, I don't even want to find out. I wouldn't mind just getting an average-level beast, to be honest." Sigurd answered.

Theon looked at him with a dumbfounded expression. "You are one strange guy, Sigurd."

"Is it strange not to want to die for a foolish cause?"

"No, it's not. The strange thing is that you're not saying all of this out of fear. You're saying it because you don't want to go through the hassle of trying. Your laziness really makes you seem like a coward most of the time."

"Maybe you're the one confusing my cowardice with laziness."

Theon chuckled at his comment. "Hah, maybe you're right—"

WHOOSH!!

Before the words could leave his mouth, he was hurled into a cluster of trees. At the same time, a spear came flying at Sigurd. He deftly dodged the spear, but before he could register what had happened, he was thrown by the same behemoth that had tossed Theon.

As he was about to hit the ground after being hurled away, he nimbly adjusted himself to land on his feet. In an immaculate display of gymnastics, he landed upright without a scratch.

ROAR!!!!

A deafening roar echoed through the forest. The source—a blue and white mountain ape. The monstrosity stood roughly ten feet tall. Beside the behemoth stood a man with golden hair, clad in golden armor and brandishing a golden spear.

Sigurd glanced over at Theon to see if he was okay. In his tumble, it seemed he had knocked over a whole cluster of trees. He appeared fine, if one disregarded the sheer amount of blood gushing from his head. Still, he managed to get to his feet, wobbling as he did.

"Theon!!" the girls screamed, their voices filled with concern. Luckily, they hadn't been caught in the attack.

"Hey, get a hold of yourself and handle that thing already," Sigurd admonished Theon.

"Uhh, why don't you do it? You seem fine to me."

"You're the only one here with the physical strength to match that thing."

"What about your agility? You're like a damn cat."

"You expect me to dance it to death?"

"Fucking kids," the knight with golden hair snarled, hissing through his teeth. "Alright, step right up. I'll make it painless for you if you die quietly."

"Who are you?" Theon asked, though he already knew. From his appearance, it was clear he was from the Aztez Empire.

"Never mind who I am. Just do as you're told, little boy."

Theon steadied himself and wiped the blood from his face to clear his vision. He then shifted his attention to the mountain ape. Without even looking at Sigurd, he addressed him.

"While I handle the ape, you take care of the knight. And protect the girls while you're at it."

With a deep sigh, Sigurd turned to look at the girls. His posture relaxed, and his sword still sheathed. In a split second, the knight was upon him, attacking from above with his spear.

Sigurd dodged the attack at the last moment, twisting his body into an awkward position. At the same time, he drew his sword and swung at the knight.

The knight saw the attack coming, but it was too late. The sword slashed across his face, leaving half of his nose dangling.

"Bastard! You left yourself open on purpose!"

Sigurd chuckled as the knight retreated, covering his bloodied face.

Meanwhile, Theon had just begun his deadly one-on-one with the mountain ape.

The girls watched from the sidelines, bewildered by the chain of events. Though rare, there were times when tamers were born with advanced physical abilities.

In this case, Theon possessed advanced strength, Varys had advanced speed, and Sigurd had cat-like agility. Plus they were also blessed with quick healing and after bonding with a beast their abilities would only get stronger.

Furious, the knight turned to his familiar. "Zinar! Kill them, all of them!"

But in the split second he turned to address the beast, Sigurd was already upon him. With a clean cut, he severed the knight's hand, striking between the wrist. The knight turned to run, but he didn't get far before Sigurd's blade reached his Achilles tendon. With quick speed he cut through the gaps in the knight's armor like it was nothing.

In three swift strokes, he managed to immobilize the knight. The familiar, sensing its master's distress, turned its attention to Sigurd and charged at him like a beast on steroids.

Sigurd dodged its wild swings as it created small craters in the ground. The mountain ape's body was well-guarded, layered with thick muscles. It would be difficult to slice through.

Yet he was doing it with the ease and precision of a well-trained surgeon. The trick was to strike when the muscle was expanding, right as the beast launched an attack. The stretched muscle would be easier to cut through, and there were areas on the body where the muscle wasn't as thick. It was relatively easy to spot if the beast was standing still.

But calmly observing a beast while it was actively trying to kill you was no easy feat. It required a level of mental calmness that most people couldn't achieve.

Still, his attacks weren't doing much damage to the creature. They merely caused discomfort as its flesh was cut open.

AARRRGHH!!

He was just keeping it busy while Theon prepared his attack.

Theon seized the spear the knight had been holding while the beast was engrossed in its battle with Sigurd.

In a dazzling display of strength, he launched the spear like a high-speed bullet. It pierced through the mountain ape's back, striking perfectly through its heart.

RRAAAWWWWR

The beast let out a final roar before collapsing to the ground.