Bakkhos dusted off his coat, starting a slow march back to Chiharu. He felt the slowness in his body from the attacks she made on him. His coat gave him prote from much of it, but he still had to deal with the forbsp; ‘I’ve never met ah the strength to lift someone off the ground and knock them back, especially with the size differenbsp; They really are a different sort…’ Cheg on her position, unged, he examined her stanbsp; ‘Already got back that much strength, their bodies have remarkable recovery, very troublesome indeed…’

  ‘I have some of my strength babsp; The time outside his Field helped me, but still…’ Chiharu he fact that his Field already surrounded her. As he closed, it only felt strohe draining effects it had on her. Her feet banced carefully on the ging ground to keep her defense up. ‘I’ve got a better uanding of him this time…’ A shift in her foot indicated her iion to act.

  The i didn’t slip past Bakkhos' careful eyes. He didn’t want to deal with her again. “You’ve got your spirit back, but we’ve dohis before al—“ A sharp fist cut him off with his reflexes barely dodging it. After Chiharu cleared him, he took a few steps babsp; “That’s rude of—“ Chiharu cut him off again with a kick, which actually ected loosely. He slid back already knowied too te. ‘I guess my old tricks won’t work anymore…’

  Chiharu quickly moved in on Bakkhos before he had another ce to start talking. She had to keep to her strategy. Time factored into it so much that wasted seds were crippling for her. ‘There’s a lot more at work with him than I inally gave him credit for…’ They kept moving about with Chiharu only managing narrow hits. ‘His strategy is to keep me distracted and off bah with his words and his unstable Field.’

  Their fight intensified with Chiharu making quicker strikes against Bakkhos, but the physically draining effects of his Field started to show their signs again. She began to miss him by rger margins, even trying to adapt to the ges only bore small fruit. ‘I was so caught up by everything that I didn’t even notibsp; I uimated his ability, letting him dictate pace.’ Even with his injuries, Bakkhos kept from serious harm, while also never tering Chiharu. He allowed her to remain offensive. ‘ I thought with my physical attributes I didn’t have anything to be ed with against him.’

  Watg the fight, Bakkhos felt some respect for the taleroublesome as it was for him. ‘Her adaptability is surprising, she’s already almost pletely used to the ground ges.’ He blocked an ining fist feeling the weight of it through his babsp; ‘Against a normal human, my Field leaves them pletely full of openings, but it is mostly unnecessary.’ His eyes kept wat Chiharu’s footwork to keep his dista a perfect separation for his fort. ‘In fights with others like me, it’s nearly pointless as their Field ralizes it. This is the first time I’ve actually had a fight like this…’

  ‘I still have a lot to learn,’ Chiharu eo herself. It was a fact she already knew, but something the fight reinforced for her. She needed better trol to succeed her Grandfather.

  Chapter 166 – Fighting for One’s Self

  Fumiko mao leave the range of Bakkhos’ Field, in part, thanks to Chiharu’s fighting. It was subtle, but she could feel the restored magi her body along with her physical fatigue fading. Unfortunately, her fight with Stamatia already left her drained from the start. She was hardly in a position to help Chiharu.

  Watg Chiharu fight made Fumiko realize she had never seen her in a fight before. She didn’t know how she fought, but felt something strange from the fight. ‘Why is she holding back from usiher power?’ Fumiko remembered seeing her use it when arguing with Seiji a couple of times, when everyone else missed it. With Seiji, Chiharu was definitely physically involved, relying less on the rest of her abilities. ‘I just figured it was best she didn’t take him seriously, but is there something else I didn’t see before?’

  So much of Chiharu remained a mystery to Fumiko. She ofte she knew her better than the rest of the group, but only because she watched her a an eye on her. ‘She hides everything underh that mask of hers…always so difficult to read…’ Fumiko only made progress in uanding Chiharu through her iions with others. Alone, she saw nothing.

  Her fight revealed another new side to her. ‘She looks so determined…determio fight her own way on her own terms… What exactly is she fighting against?’ Fumiko’s recovery restored her eyes' ability to follow all of the movements of the fight. Lowered down to a mere human before, her body had her the reflexes or focus to see much more than a blur. Yet, she could watch every move Chiharu made in the fight now. She could see the look in her eyes. ‘She’s not looking at him… Her gaze is going past him, looking beyond…seeing something else… Her goal is further ahead…’

  Seds piled up into minutes for the fight. Fumiko assumed that Chiharu had to be slowing down. The Field pyed against her. It left her open and weak. However, it wasn’t what Fumiko saw. ‘Is she actually moving faster?! She’s driving him back!’

  Bakkhos slid back again, uo deflect Chiharu’s attabsp; His defense saved him from something worse, but the impact still rippled through him. The strength she still held inside surprised him. ‘She should be getting weaker the longer I’m dragging out the fight, but it doesn’t feel like it… I ’t keep up with her pad my Field isn’t w fast enough anymore…’

  Another pound smmed into his arms. Even with the resistance of his clothes, it still made it through to his body. He still felt the sting and dull quaking feeling that rattled his bones. His body ared the crushing force, but it still left a mark on him. ‘So troublesome…I might not st long enough to see her drop from fatigue again…’ Bruises and hairline fractures covered his arms. His wounds groao him every time he made any movement that he ignored.

  Chiharu slid around Bakkhos making use of her legs to add to the strength of hits. ‘All he’s doing is defense, like before… I’m eg, but at this rate…’ She mao slip in her punch between his defense, sg a solid hit on his chest. It knocked him back a step, but in breaking through his defense, he weakened her forbsp; ‘Always like this…Why is he so passive when fighting?’

  ‘She’s adapting quickly…pressing me back…’ Preferring a break, he was sharply denied anything more than his usual defense. A crumbling defense and weakening body were facts he koo well. ‘I’m out of options now…so troublesome…’ Slightly shifting his weight, he intercepted the kick meant to destroy his defenses pletely. ‘Guess I’ve got no choiymore…win or lose…this has to end…’

  A flicker went off in Chiharu’s eye as she realized what he was doing. ‘He’s switg! This is the moment I’ve waited for!’ Her features narrowed reading his hand movements. Her leg still held by Bakkhos slowed her a as a hidden bde released from his fiip in an unavoidable trajectory. Chiharu’s eyes widened in the moment before blood sprayed into the air.

  “Chiharu!” shouted Fumiko, starting her legs moving.

  Bakkhos sighed for a sed. ‘It’s over…’ However, a sharp pain struck him in his baog him off banbsp; His left foot smmed into the ground to recover himself. Yet his eyes widened a bit in surprise to see the image of Chiharu fade from in front of him. ‘’t be…’ He turned around and found Chiharu standing before him.

  Releasing a snap of his hand, a bde sshed out at Chiharu cutting through her arm. However, the image faded away and arike crippled him. He couldn’t keep his banymore as the blow cracked his ribs. Bakkhos fell forward with a cough of dust billowing out from his body. The Field disappeared into the ft surface it used to be, a clear sign. ‘…troublesome ones, Captain…’

  Chiharu walked away from Bakkhos’ unscious body holding a hand on her shoulder. The blood from the first strike was real. She couldn’t evade it pletely. Her binja garb turned a deep red from the soaked blood of Chiharu’s fight. ‘I knew my only ce was when he went on the offe I feel so tired…’

  “Chiharu! You’re alright!” Fumiko came running to meet Chiharu putting her arm partially around her. Chiharu didn’t seem tue with Fumiko toug her.

  A nod came from Chiharu in ao her question. “But I’m not so injured I need your fort,” replied Chiharu, when she realized Fumiko was hugging her loosely. She pushed Fumiko awake and took a safe distance.

  Grinning a little, Fumiko did not push Chiharu further. “What happened back there? It was all a blur.”

  Chiharu gnced back at Bakkhos and recalled the final strikes she made. “I made use of his Field to move faster, but when he held me down it slowed my movement. It ended up leaving a little illusion behind, so I used it again.”

  Fumiko lifted her hand to her thinking about what Chiharu said. “So like an after-image?”

  “Why do you sound like the weakling right now?” Chiharu demanded, her eyes fttening out with irritation.

  “Well he’s not here to say it, someone had to!” A small ugh came up from Fumiko after she said it. She quickly ged back to a serious toh another question. “But how did you make use of his Field to move faster? It’s so unstable I ’t even stand.”

  “I was used to it enough that I made use of the rising and falling to slide with my movements in a more fluid manner. It let me increase my speeds more than my body could at the time due to his Field’s effebsp; The hills are all created from him at his ter, so all I could really do with it was rotate around his position to get behind him.”

  “I don’t think I uand that one.” The thought of what she did made Fumiko’s hair a little frizzled. She let it go quickly however, to pce her hand on Chiharu’s shoulder. “No matter, you won. So we get back to finding Yori.”

  “Yes…” Chiharu tilted her head ba the dire of Yumi and her brother. They were far away from them. However, something else bothered her. She never had a ce before to ask about it sihe old man got in her way. “What happeo your arm?”

  Fumiko gnced down at the stump of her upper arm. It still had the odd feeling of being with her even though she k was not. The pain long passed and she still wasn’t used to it so she easily fot about it. “ht! This!” She lifted her stump and poi it with her other hand. “I lost it in my fight.”

  “Against him?” she asked, pointing over at Bakkhos. Chiharu made a slight movement towards him as though hinging on her response for her a.

  “No, not him.” Fumiko shook her head thinking about her fight. The moment she lost the arm and bur to keep fighting made the end ache. Her hand massaged the coarse skin burned by her own fme. “I was in a fight before. That’s why he got me so easily. He was able to ralize my magic.”

  “I uand.” Chiharu pulled back, returning to fag Fumiko. Thoughts ran through her mind on the new information. ‘Two of them now. We’re going to have to be careful going forward. They know too much about us and with their powers it’s dangerous knowledge in their hands.’

  “We should get out of this area before another one of them shows up, Chiharu!”

  “Agreed, where’s the muscle head?”

  “Huh? You mean Seiji?” A nod firmed the question for Fumiko. She had to think about Seiji for a moment. Everything in the fight was a blur and the time before was almost a history. Some of the pieces slowly came back to her. She turned around looking at the camp. “Everything’s ged so mubsp; I ’t tell where we came from. I remember the tall woman attag Seiji and they disappeared.” Fumiko looked around more, rag her brain. “I think it was towards the edge of the camp, but I don’t know where that is.”

  Chiharu’s eyes slid around taking in the camp and their position. She already had a good idea of his dire. “I’ll look for him. I locate him faster.”

  Fumiko stretched for Chiharu to interrupt her before she left. “Seiji’s strong. He’ll be fine. We o find Yori first!”

  “I’ve already found him. The siblings are together.”

  “What? Why didn’t you tell me this?!”

  Tilting her head up to meet Fumiko’s tall gnce, Chiharu’s ft expression remained unged. “Because I hadn’t gotten to telling you yet. I was going to tell you to go to them ahem out of the camp while I search for the muscle head.”

  She wao say so many things about the frustrating nature of Chiharu, but restrained herself. Fumiko focused on the more important matter. “Where’s Yumi and Yori? Why isn’t she with you?”

  “Because I o locate the rest of you ahe order for you to leave. But since she’s sealed, she’ll need your help leaving safely.”

  ‘Leaving out more details…’ Calming herself down, Fumiko uood Seiji’s position. She sed the mess of the camp trying to imagine navigating it. “Where do I find them?”

  Chiharu lifted her arm pointing off in the dire of Yumi. “I left them there.”

  Fumiko shifted a little to get a better look at where Chiharu pointed. She didn’t know the distance she had to travel or the dition of them. Turning back toward Chiharu, her mouth opened only to be cut off. Chiharu was gone. Sing the area did er for her. “Chiharu!” she screamed in frustration to the sky.

  Within the bck void, Chiharu already went in search of Seiji. She had no time left for Fumiko and her questions. Their time in the camp was over and the lohey trespassed risked even more dangers. ‘My strength still ime to recover. I won’t be able to fight anyone else…he better have dealt with them…’

  Miltiades stared ily at the two bodies for minutes on edge. Aside from the cough he heard before he started healing them, they made no further movements. It ed him that he was too te. ‘e on…I’m not losing another rade tonight! Not to them!’

  A click of a bde suddenly came from behind Miltiades. The shining polished metal stretched dowo his nebsp; Behind him, a dark shadow stood over him with his life in their hands. “What do you think you’re doing?”