Chapter 134: The Clash

Chapter 134: Chapter 134: The Clash

Daniel charged.

His body was broken. His face was bleeding. His eyes were exhausted. But he was moving. He was fighting. He was surviving.

Lord Ashworth charged too.

His flames burned brighter. His eyes glowed whiter. His aura blazed hotter. He was a monster. He was a god. He was the lord of fire.

They clashed.

Daniel threw a punch. Lord Ashworth caught it. He squeezed. Daniel’s bones cracked. He screamed. He pulled back. He kicked. Lord Ashworth blocked. He countered. Daniel flew backward. He crashed into a wall.

Lord Ashworth walked toward him. Slowly. Deliberately. His flames burned brighter. His eyes glowed whiter.

"You’re weak," he said. "You’re pathetic. You’re nothing."

Daniel pushed himself up. His body was broken. His wind was gone. He was exhausted.

But he was standing.

"You’re wrong," he said.

Lord Ashworth laughed. "Oh? And what are you? A hero? A savior? A god?"

Daniel smiled. A cold, dangerous smile.

"I’m a Harem Overlord," he said. "And I’m not done yet."

He switched classes.

[Class Change: Shadow Scout]

He entered stage three.

Dark energy surrounded him. Shadowy aura swirled. His eyes turned dark. His body became shadow.

He disappeared.

Lord Ashworth blinked. "What?"

He looked around. He couldn’t see Daniel. He couldn’t sense him. He was alone.

"Where are you?" he demanded. "Show yourself!"

Silence.

Daniel appeared behind him. His daggers were drawn. His eyes were cold.

He slashed.

The daggers hit Lord Ashworth’s back. They scraped. They sparked. They didn’t penetrate.

Lord Ashworth turned. He grabbed Daniel by the throat. He lifted him off the ground.

"You think shadows can hurt me?" he spat. "I’m at stage four. My body is enhanced. My durability is enhanced. My everything is enhanced."

Daniel gasped. He clawed at Lord Ashworth’s hand. He kicked. He struggled.

But he was smiling.

"I know," he said.

Lord Ashworth blinked. "What?"

"I know I can’t hurt you. I know I can’t beat you. I know I can’t stop you."

"Then why are you smiling?"

Daniel’s smile widened.

"Because I’m not trying to."

He disappeared.

Lord Ashworth stared. His hand was empty. Daniel was gone.

"What?" he whispered. "What is this?"

Daniel appeared beside Paul. He grabbed his arm. He pulled him to his feet.

"Get up," he said. "We’re leaving."

Paul blinked. "What?"

"We’re leaving. Now."

"But the fight—"

"We can’t win. Not yet. We need to retreat. We need to regroup. We need to get stronger."

Paul stared at him. His mouth was open. His eyes were wide.

"You’re running?" he asked.

"I’m retreating. There’s a difference."

"Is there?"

"Yes."

"What’s the difference?"

"I’ll explain later. Right now, we need to move."

He grabbed Paul’s arm. He pulled him toward the others.

"Cheeky!" he shouted. "Brick Head! Fluffy! Mittens! We’re leaving!"

They looked at him. Their faces were confused. Their eyes were wide.

"But the fight—" Cheeky started.

"We’re leaving. Now. No arguments."

They nodded. They were tired. They were broken. They were defeated.

They followed him.

---

Lord Ashworth watched them go.

His flames burned brighter. His eyes glowed whiter. His aura blazed hotter.

"You think you can escape?" he shouted. "You think you can run from me?"

Daniel didn’t answer. He just kept running.

"I am Lord Ashworth! I am the master of this city! I am the lord of fire!"

Daniel still didn’t answer.

"I will find you! I will hunt you! I will kill you!"

Daniel kept running.

Lord Ashworth screamed. His flames exploded. They consumed everything in his path. They destroyed everything he touched.

But Daniel was already gone.

---

They ran through the streets.

They ran through the alleys. They ran through the shadows. They ran through the destruction.

They ran until they couldn’t run anymore. They ran until their legs gave out. They ran until they collapsed.

They were in a small courtyard. It was hidden. It was quiet. It was safe.

Daniel collapsed against a wall. He was breathing hard. His body was broken. His face was bleeding. His eyes were exhausted.

The others collapsed too. They were all broken. They were all exhausted. They were all defeated.

"That," Paul said, "was insane."

Daniel nodded. "Yeah."

"We almost died."

"Yeah."

"We almost died!"

"I know."

Paul stared at him. His mouth was open. His eyes were wide.

"Why did you do that?" he demanded. "Why did you fight him? Why didn’t you run?"

Daniel looked at him. His expression was calm.

"Because he hurt you," he said.

Paul blinked. "What?"

"He hurt you. He hurt Cheeky. He hurt all of you. I couldn’t let that stand."

Paul was silent. He looked at Daniel. At his tired face. At his broken body. At his determined eyes.

"You’re insane," he whispered.

Daniel smiled. "I know."

---

Cheeky was sitting in the corner. Her iron skin was cracked. Her body was broken. She was quiet. She was shy. She was scared.

Daniel walked toward her. He knelt beside her. He looked at her.

"You okay?" he asked.

Cheeky nodded. "I’m okay."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"You fought well."

Cheeky blinked. "I did?"

"Yes. You were the tank. You took the hits. You protected everyone."

Cheeky’s face went red. "I... I just did what you told me."

"You did more than that. You were brave. You were strong. You were amazing."

Cheeky looked at him. Her eyes were wet.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Daniel smiled. He patted her head. She leaned into his touch.

---

Fluffy appeared beside him. She was bruised. She was tired. But she was smiling.

"Master!" she said. "Fluffy fought good!"

Daniel nodded. "You did. You were amazing."

Fluffy’s tail wagged. "Fluffy was shadow. Fluffy was sneaky. Fluffy was fierce."

"You were all of those things."

Fluffy hugged him. He hugged her back.

Mittens appeared beside her. She was scared. She was trembling. But she was there.

"Are you okay?" Daniel asked.

Mittens nodded. "I’m okay."

"You didn’t fight."

"I know. I’m sorry."

"Don’t be sorry. You’re not trained. You’re not ready. You did the right thing."

Mittens looked at him. Her eyes were wide.

"Really?"

"Really."

She smiled. A small, fragile smile.

"Thank you."

---

Brick Head was sitting on the ground. He was bruised. He was tired. He was smiling.

"That was fun," he said.

Paul stared at him. "Fun? That was fun?"

"Yeah! The fighting! The explosions! The running!"

"We almost died!"

"But we didn’t!"

"That’s not the point!"

Brick Head shrugged. "It’s the point for me."

Paul groaned. He buried his face in his hands.

Lyra was sitting beside him. She was bruised. She was tired. She was quiet.

Daniel walked toward her. He sat down beside her.

"You okay?" he asked.

Lyra nodded. "I’m okay."

"You fought well."

"I didn’t do much."

"You did. You hit him. You distracted him. You helped."

Lyra looked at him. Her eyes were wet.

"I felt useless," she whispered.

Daniel blinked. "What?"

"I felt useless. He was so strong. My bullets didn’t work. My cannon didn’t work. I couldn’t hurt him."

"You hurt him. You distracted him. You gave us time."

"It wasn’t enough."

"It was enough. We survived."

Lyra was silent. She was thinking. She was processing.

"Okay," she said. "Okay."

Daniel smiled. He reached out. He took her hand. She squeezed it.

---

They sat in silence for a while.

The sun was setting. The sky was orange. The stars were appearing.

Daniel looked at the sky. At the clouds. At the stars.

"We need to get stronger," he said.

The others looked at him.

"We need to train. We need to level up. We need to reach the aura realm."

Paul blinked. "The aura realm?"

"Yes."

"That’s... that’s impossible."

"Nothing is impossible."

"Daniel, the aura realm is... it’s a legend. Most people never reach it. Most people never even get close."

"I know. But we have to try."

Paul stared at him. His mouth was open. His eyes were wide.

"You’re serious," he whispered.

"I’m always serious."

"You’re never serious."

"I’m serious now."

Paul was silent. He looked at Daniel. At his calm face. At his determined eyes. At his confident posture.

"Okay," he said. "Okay. We’ll try."

Daniel smiled. A warm, genuine smile.

"Good," he said.

He stood up. He looked at the others. At his team. At his family. At his friends.

"Tomorrow," he said. "We start training."