The Last Primal

Chapter 208 - 208 - Honest Discourse

Inside the forest, amidst the trees, two figures stood against each other. One was a tall, robust amazonian woman. She had an excited, almost fervent look on her heated face, as she focused on the second, much shorter, and scrawnier-looking boy in front of him.

Clenching her fists, the amazon's knuckles cracked with a clear, audible sound. Eyeing the youth from bottom to top once more, she spoke with great excitement in her voice.

"Are you ready boy? I'm not going to go easy on you!" 

In front of the woman, the much thinner but still relatively tall youngster had a leisurely smile on his face. Upon his opponent's request, he simply silently nodded, letting only a simple 'Uhm' escape his lips.

On the side, already done dissecting one of the orcs, and on her way towards the second Sarah, didn't say a word. To be perfectly honest, she didn't think anything bad would happen. This little scuffle served only to get to know the two slightly better. Amazons had a weird, very primitive outlook on the world, but at the same time, they were honest. They said that the best way to get to know the other truly was through his or her fists.

Also, she was quite interested to see how Aiden would fare against a true amazon. Whilst he seemed exceptionally fast, she wasn't completely aware of the limits of his strength. This was a perfect opportunity to get to know her partner slightly better as well.

Thus, she kept her silence, and just kept an eye on their little 'discourse' whilst she approached the second corpse and began cutting out his core as well.

"Since this is not a life-or-death battle, we will go until one of us hits the ground, okay? That means you lost, fair, and square. Got it?"

Once again, Aiden looked completely calm, and nonchalant at the whole ordeal. He did not even enter into any sort of battle posture. He nodded with the same kind, friendly smile on his face. His eyes were cool, his whole body did not emit any sort of danger towards the amazon.

"So, once you hit the ground, you will tell us your story?" He asked, with a smile that foreshadowed the results of the upcoming battle.

Hearing the question and understanding the meaning behind his tone, Naybeah, the blonde amazon burst into a loud guffaw once again. 

"Ahahaha… oh for Naone's sake, you sure are an interesting one kiddo!" Collecting her breath for a moment after the violent outburst, she nodded to the question. "But yes, if you can make me fall, I will admit the loss, and recognize you as an equal and a friend. Only then, will you get to hear my story."

Finishing her speech, suddenly her eyes became focused, as it shifted towards the boy, registering even the slightest of movements. 

"Anyway… enough chit-chat kiddo. Let's see how much you can take!" 

Contorting the muscles in her calf, she planted her legs in the ground, before leaning slightly forward and flinging her body forward, charging at the boy abruptly, not giving any additional time for him to prepare.

Seeing how the boy did not seem to startle or react in any way, her grin turned wider as she launched her right fist towards the boy's right side aimed at her abdomen.

However, just when she thought she made contact with the body of the boy and caused some damage, Aiden's body suddenly vanished without a trace. As her fist flew through the now-empty air, she stopped at the position where Aiden was previously. 

She suddenly felt the boy's presence from behind, causing her to swing her left arm in a wide but violent arc as she turned her body around, only to hit the air once again.

Seeing the sight, caused Aiden, who was now at Naybeah's previous position to chuckle, pointing with his index finger in a slightly mocking but mostly cheeky manner.

"What are you doing? I thought you wanted to fight!" He asked with a faked innocence.

This did not anger the amazon woman in the slightest. No, instead it caused her grin to once again stretch, thinking about the marvelous battle she could have with this youth.

"Heh, you are fast kiddo, but are you strong enough as well?" She asked mockingly, returning the boy's stare.

"Hmmm…" Once again, faking a contemplating expression as he was debating the thought, he looked at the woman a few seconds later, with the same friendly smile.

Nodding his head, he raised his arms in the air, creating a large opening for the woman to hit his chest. 

"Sure, show me what you got. I want to feel the strength of your kind!"

Although she was slightly surprised by the boy's agreeing manner, the manic grin she had in the battle against the orcs a moment ago quickly resurfaced. Clenching her right fist tightly, she began to cock in backward, focusing all of her inner strength and muscles into one powerful punch.

Not wasting any energy, she simply walked closer, in front of the boy. Seeing how he kept his inviting posture, she got ready for the powerful blow, but before she released it, she asked once again, already expectant of the answer.

"Are you sure? If you get hurt, it's your fault. Nobody can save you here. Not even your little partner."

Shaking his head, the smile did not leave Aiden's face as he answered.

"Don't worry. Everything will be alright." Then turning towards Sarah, who had a slightly worried look on her face, stealing glances at their duo, but trying to focus on the work ahead of her, Aiden spoke to her. "Don't worry Sarah, everything is okay…"

"S-sure.. If you say so…" She mumbled, not daring to look at them directly.

Turning back towards the amazon, Aiden nodded.

"Come, show it to me!"

Answering his request, Naybeah did not hold back anymore. Releasing a loud battle shout, she raised her cocked arm slightly higher, and with all her gathered power, momentum, and strength she struck forth, punching forward, aiming at the middle of Aiden's chest.

The hit was purely physical with no extra magical or mental energy added. Still, this simplistic attack carried an immense force capable of even shattering rocks into tiny shards if it were to be forced to withstand a direct hit.

Just as the attack was about to make contact with Aiden's body, he activated his [Mystic Martial Arts] and focused on guiding his inner energy, his soul power towards the impact area, eager to see if he could absorb such an attack.

Once the two impossible objects collided, a massive shockwave of energy was released, creating a violent wind to travel through the air along with an explosive bluster of force. The incredible attack kicked off a heavy cloud of dust, shrouding the two in the process, causing Sarah to stand up in unmasked worry, and yelp in fright.

A few seconds of intense silence ensued in the area before the dust finally started to settle and began to reveal a massive shadow of a blurry silhouette in its core. A few seconds later, before Sarah lost her last strands of patience, the dust cleared off, gradually revealing a slightly shocking, but still stunning sight, despite the expected results.

As if frozen in time, Aiden was still standing, perfectly unharmed, with his arms raised in the air, smiling as if nothing had happened. In front of him, Naybeah's figure was in the same punching posture, her right fist, still in contact with the boy's chest. 

The only sign, the only proof that something extraordinary had happened, was the waste that surrounded them. Torn bushes, charred remains of grass, and a small crater that formed around them on the ground.

Swallowing her own surprise and shock, Naybeah hummed with content, pulling her fist back from the boy's chest. She took several steps back, creating some distance between her and the boy, and nodded.

"Not bad, I admit, not bad at all, kiddo! Now, it's your turn!" Deciding to follow along, she also raised her arms, creating an opening for the boy to latch onto. "Hit me the same way, with everything you got! Let me feel the true power that resides in you!"

Dusting his khaki linen shirt from the dirt it gathered earlier, he began to casual approach the amazon.

With the same smile as before, he shook his head. 

"Since you honored me with such a fine attack, I will do the same. Prepare yourself and let me know once you are ready."

Halting his trek only a step away from the amazon, he stood still, focusing on cleaning himself.

"Aiden, I think it should be enough…" Sarah tried to interject but was quickly hushed with the amazon's loud burst of laughter once again.

"Ahahaha, yes, that's it! Come on, show it to me, hit me! I wanna taste that beast inside you!"

Glancing at the side with a slightly wry expression, Aiden first addressed Sarah.

"Don't worry, I will not go overboard, but I have to give her the proper respect."

Then turning back on the amazon, he gave the usual friendly smile as he slowly clenched his right fist.

Without the need for any other word, with his [Mystic Martial Arts] innate active Aiden focused his inner energy, the flow of his [Soul Power] towards his arm and mostly, into his fist as he launched a casual-looking punch. 

However, both Sarah and Naybeah became wide-eyed with shock in the next instant when his seemingly casual thrust caused his own arm to blur, and buzz in the air, flying towards the amazon's massive bust. 

For the first time, Naybeah felt a sense of dread wash over her as she focused on the blurry, approaching blow.