From what Gabriel had assumed, even though it was Novius, he was still supposed to have the same strength as the young Novius did before he entered the Towers of Challenges and left a figment of his conscience behind.
Didn't that mean that even before Novius was thirty years old, he still had so much Spiritual Strength that he could keep the Domain for that long? It was no wonder the two Founders were called to be comparable to the Holy Priests of their time.
Unfortunately, it wasn't the time to praise the enemy.
"I need to-"
Gabriel clenched his fist, but before he could even finish his sentence, his expression twisted as Novius disappeared. Gabriel felt a cold hand around his neck as Novius appeared right in front of him.
His grip around Gabriel's neck tightened as Gabriel's body started rising in the air.
"Humans often make the mistake of underestimating their opponents. Many people did that with you and ended up dead, but aren't you making the same mistake?" Novius declared as his grip only tightened, making Gabriel struggle to even breathe.
"It's disappointing. I thought you were strong enough to survive outside the Dungeon, but you aren't capable. And I don't feel like training you more. It's just a waste of time for me... I suppose I will actually kill you and wait for someone who can actually defeat me."
Gabriel was gasping for breath, and his head was filled with thousands of thoughts. He didn't know what to do. His body was aching in the grasp of Novius. Even his vision was starting to get affected. He was sure if he didn't do anything, he was going to die.
Unfortunately, he couldn't even cast his spell as some mysterious force kept his mouth sealed, making him unable to speak.
Dark Shackles also wrapped around Gabriel's wrist, bringing his arms behind his back against his will, tying his wrists right next to each other.
Even though Gabriel hadn't dropped his Ancestral Staff of Darkness, he couldn't move his hand either.
"If there is ever a next life, I hope you remember this lesson and don't die the same way!" Novius calmly stated. He seemed completely different than before, as Gabriel could see some bloodlust in his eyes now. It was completely unlike anything he had seen before.
"It's good to analyze the moves of your enemies, but you can't base your analysis on guesses. When you don't have enough information in battle and are in a situation like this where the enemy has more Spiritual Strength than you, there are only two feasible options."
"Either you use all you have instantly to win without giving the opponent the time to think. Or you escape so you can gather more information before facing the enemy. You chose the third option, which might be good in some situations, but not in most."
"You've made so many wrong decisions in our battle, but also some very clever ones which honestly surprised me. Unfortunately, not enough."
As Novius talked, his body started rising in the air, similar to what Gabriel had done with Novius.
After rising up to twenty meters in height, Novius finally stopped. He could see two ways now. Either he crush Gabriel's neck right now, or he does the same that Gabriel did to Cylix. In both cases, Gabriel was going to die.
"Hah," Novius let out a deep sigh. "So many expectations, only to end up in disappointment." Sighing, Novius decided on what to do.
"I suppose I will give you a quick death." He applied even more force around Gabriel's neck.
Gabriel couldn't free his hands. He also couldn't chant any spells, thanks to his mouth being closed. Initially, he wondered if this was it, but the more he heard Novius speak, the more his anger increased.
He didn't want to die! He didn't want to be disgraced. He wanted to win! At any cost, he wanted to win. It didn't matter how that victory came, but he knew he couldn't die like this! He had so many things to do in the outside world!
'No! I won't die!'
His grasp around his Ancestral Staff tightened. Gabriel couldn't move his mouth, but despite that, for some reason, his feelings seemed to be conveyed to the Ancestral Staff of Darkness.
Even Novius noticed this much. A faint smile appeared on his lips, which disappeared before Gabriel could even notice it.
"I always knew Cylix was weak. To even lose to a weakling like you, what a pity. I guess he really went easy on you...." He further continued taunting Gabriel.
Through Gabriel's training and his growth, he realized that Gabriel wasn't a normal person and his source of strength wasn't the same as theirs. While they grew stronger to protect the world and themselves, Gabriel grew stronger to have his revenge.
Gabriel's source of strength wasn't as holy like this since it was considered a major sin in their world... Gabriel's source of strength was anger, according to Novius.
The angrier Gabriel was, the more he was able to surpass his limits, achieving new heights. That's precisely what the goal of this battle was. He wanted Gabriel to reach that new height... A height that only a Holy Priest could do... The Wordless Chants!
The Wordless Chant was said to be a phenomenon where a Mage could cast a spell without even speaking a word, just through their thoughts. Unfortunately, it was something that only Holy Priests had been able to achieve. Even those two hadn't achieved that.
The only reason he closed Gabriel's mouth and tied his hands was to force this out of him! It was all to make him break the barrier between his consciousness and his words. And what better way to help him but by making him angry?
Novius knew that as long as Gabriel respected him in the battle, he wasn't going to win. He wasn't even going to achieve the Wordless Chant, so he went out of his way to force it out, and he succeeded as well.
The Ancestral Staff of Darkness started shining, surrounded by a mysterious darkness.
Boom~
Novius' body was shot back like a bullet as some mysterious force hit him. Surprisingly, his hand was also missing.
The hand with which he was choking Gabriel was detached from his body. He couldn't even see what sliced his hand before his body was attacked once again.
Novius still managed to balance his body, but for the first time in the battle, he coughed out some blood, wiping his lips.
A dark aura surrounded Gabriel, who held the detached hand of Novius. The Dark Robe appeared behind him, still having the same symbol of the bleeding moon... Gabriel had cast his own Paradise of Darkness…
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