Chapter 15: Tower Trial II : Cootchee Cootchee Coo

William and Cent stood in the middle of the second floor, weapons drawn, staring into empty space, waiting to ambush the climbers so that they could get a few before the real fight started.

This was exactly why William had asked Rollie about the location. Sure, it was dishonorable, Cent’s face made that clear. Centaurs are a proud race, they take pride in their battle abilities.

William glanced at Cent and muttered, "I know this feels like shit, but honor and battle spirit and blah blah blah... that crap only sounds good in bedtime stories. Out here, it doesn’t mean shit when you could actually die. Only thing that matters is you’re the one standing on the corpse, not the other way around."

Cent nodded, finally getting where William was coming from.

The plan was simple, William would handle the brute, Cent would deal with the wolves, with Lumina supporting him with her buffs. William had also given some Blooms to Cent just in case things get bad.

As soon as the climbers hit the end platform on the first floor, they vanished. William and Cent raised their weapons, aiming them outward. Lumina’s tiny hands were already stretched out, ready to cast buff.

A few seconds ticked by, no Big Bad Wolves, no Hulk. Then a low growl rumbled from behind. William jerked around and found all the beasts standing right behind them, glaring at William with disgust.

Seeing them behind him, William clenched his teeth and cursed in his head, ’Rollie! You digital fuck. We’re definitely having a talk after this.’ He was ready to fuck Rollie for giving the wrong directions, but there were bigger problems now. And by bigger, he meant massive.

The Brute stood in front of him, gripping a four-foot iron bat covered in spikes resting on his shoulder. One hit from that, and he would be a goner. Next to the Brute were three wolves, and the one that just got nipped by the last arrow stood behind him.

William shot Cent a quick glance and nodded. With the signal, Cent sprang straight at the Howlers. William followed close behind, eyes locked on the Brute.

As Cent moved first, every eye snapped to him. The wolves hung back, waiting for the perfect moment to pounce. But patience wasn’t the Brute’s style, he charged straight at Cent, lifting his massive bat high, ready to smash him to hell.

But before the Brute could turn Cent into paste, William was already there. He raised his sword and, using both hands, drove the blade straight into the Brute’s exposed armpit. No fancy moves, no show-off swings, just cold steel into soft flesh. The blade sank deep, all the way to the shoulder joint.

The Brute jerked from the pain, his grip slipping as the bat crashed to the ground with a heavy thud. Green blood poured from his armpit. William grinned and said, "Cootchee cootchee coo~."

Seeing this, the injured wolf, the Brute, lunged at William. But before it could even get close, Cent swung his spear sideways and smacked the wolf out of the air. The force sent it tumbling across the floor.

Cent glared at the other wolves, his eyes saying, ’You lot are with me.’ Lumina had already thrown her buff and now hovered at a safe distance. Cent lunged at the wolves, drawing the fight away from the center.

Now, William and the Brute stood apart. The Brute kept his weapon low, really low, his armpit still aching from that nasty hit. No way was he letting William do that again.

The tension thickened between them, then both moved at once. William was quicker. He rushed in, slid to the Brute’s left, and slashed just beneath the ribs.

William barely managed a shallow cut, not even enough to make the Brute flinch. The Brute swung his bat backward, and William twisted away just in time. The bat slammed into the ground so hard the stone floor cracked, sending debris at him.

William was shocked as he looked at the floor, ’Na...a no fucking way am I getting hit by that.’

He shook his head. No time to get distracted. He took a defensive stance as the Brute charged, swinging his bat again and again, trying to smash William. It was like they were in some carnival, playing ’Whac-a-Mole’.

Thanks to his higher agility, William dodged every blow, silently chanting to himself, ’No hits, no fucking hits.’

While William repeated his little life spell, Cent was in hell. Three Howlers attacked from the front, pinning him on defense, while the fourth wolf, the same bastard Cent tossed at the start, kept clawing him from behind. Every time Cent tried to turn and deal with that pest, the other three rushed him, not letting him catch a break.

Because of that damn wolf, Cent couldn’t fight properly. He just needed one shot, one opening. For now, all he could do was grit his teeth and take it.

After a few seconds of watching Cent struggle, the wolf at the back got cocky. It used its skill, Shadow Flick, and lunged for Cent’s back thigh, sinking its fangs deep into the flesh.

The attack was quick, but the wolf’s fangs lingered in Cent’s thigh a moment too long. Cent gritted his teeth and jerked his lower body upward, tossed the mutt into the air, and smashed both hind legs into the bastard’s gut.

The wolf let out a sharp yelp and flew back several meters. With that done, Cent turned his attention back to the other wolves in front of him.

In the center of the floor, William and the Brute were still trading blows. Most of the time, William was on defense, dodging when he could, parrying when he couldn’t. Every blocked strike sent a jolt of numbness through his arms. The force behind each hit was almost enough to break him.

He’d been nibbling on Green Blooms, trying to deal with the possible muscle tears. He knew he couldn’t keep this going or he’d burn out soon. Not wanting that, he took a Red Bloom. Instantly, a surge of strength rushed through him.

The Brute didn’t notice the change, he just kept swinging. This time, William parried on purpose, knocking the weapon up. He didn’t stop there. With the Brute’s arms raised, William drove his sword’s tip into the other armpit. Green blood spurted, painting his blade.

The Brute let out a guttural shriek, both his underarms were on fire now. Orcs were a warrior race; they loved battle, even thought dying in a fight as an honor. But the human in front of him fought dirty. The Brute glared at William with bloodshot eyes. William just grinned and said, "Why angry? Let daddy tickle you some more."

Seeing that grin, the Brute backed up a few steps. But William rushed him, he didn’t let the Brute rest. The tables had turned; now the Brute was on defense. With both armpits burning, the Brute couldn’t put much force into his swings.

Even with the upper hand, William couldn’t do much damage. Brute’s skin was like steel, and he had to finish this fast before his buff wore off.

William took a few steps back and lowered his sword until it hovered just above the ground, knees bent, ready to pounce. His eyes narrowed, locked on one spot. The Brute followed his gaze and realized this spineless human was aiming right at his balls.

Instantly, the Brute shifted his bat to guard his goblins, determined to protect what mattered most, well, second most.

William smirked and lunged. The Brute kept his weapon steady, not letting it move an inch. Too bad for him, William wasn’t aiming for that at all.

William shot forward, planting his foot right on the bat, then launched himself into the air. The Brute was so damn big that, from the ground, William could never reach above his shoulder. So he baited the orc, made him guard his balls, then used the Brute’s own weapon as a springboard.

As he soared up, William twisted his shoulders and, with every ounce of strength, swung a slash at the Brute’s neck. The blade sliced clean through. Blood sprayed from his neck, and in an instant, the Brute crashed to the ground with a thunderous thud.

Some distance away, Cent’s fight with the Howlers was nearly over. It wasn’t like William’s duel, Cent was covered in blood. Every time he struck one wolf, the other two jumped him, so his wounds just kept piling up. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Running on nothing but sheer stubbornness, Cent kept fighting. Only one wolf was left, trembling on shaky legs. Cent didn’t hesitate. With a final burst of strength, he drove his spear forward with Static Thrust, burying the blade deep in the wolf’s chest. The wolf let out a broken howl and dropped.

William looked around, wiping sticky, disgusting green blood off his face. The fight was finally over. Only one left, the same bastard that chewed on Cent’s ass, now lay on the ground, playing dead.

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IronthokBrute ’s character design is attached in the comment.