Jaegar sat atop his mighty destrier, his countenance emanating an aura of unruffled nonchnce, belying the turmoil that roiled within. To his side marched the veteran warriors of Kaeso, their grim faces set in determination. And at their vanguard strode Kyra, her piercing gazemanding the respect of thepany she led.


    Jaegar''s eyes were inexorably drawn to her, an undeniable interest kindling in their depths. There was something about this woman that stirred long-dormant embers within him.


    As she raised her sword aloft, her voice rang out with the rity of a thunderp. "Charge!"


    In a great churning tide, the massed ranks surged forward, the ground trembling beneath the relentless march of their boots. The screams echoed as they charged with high spirits, ready to face whatever awaited them on the battlefield.


    Jaegar dug his heels into his steed''s nks, joining the fray with the rest of the men. Yet even amidst the chaos of battle, his senses remained hyper-attuned, ever vignt for any shift in the ebb and flow ofbat.


    Both soldiers were charging towards each other. Therge open ground was walled by thick forest on both sides.


    It was then that he felt it—a frisson of unease prickling along his spine, an anomalous disturbance around his surroundings. His head whipped to the left, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the ranks of Kyra''s forces. On the far nk, from the left side of the forest, something burst forth with explosive force, a roiling maelstrom of steel and sinew that rent the disciplined lines asunder.


    Jaegar''s grip tightened as he observed the robust men who burst out. They were all bare chested and hadrge weapons in their hands.


    Towering like giants, their muscr frames rippling with corded strength, they stood nearly seven feet tall. As soon as they entered the battlefield, they started attacking.


    Jaegar then saw something that caught his attention.


    On their right shoudler edge, branded into their skin, was the vibrant red seal, and he had recognized the seal right away. It was the seal of the Sinners'' Domain that marked them as outcasts, the irredeemable dregs of society.


    A cold knot of unease coiled in Jaegar''s gut, yet it wasced with the slightest hint of familiarity.


    For he had borne witness to the brutality of these cursed men before, when fate had cast him into the blighted realm they called home. The memories rushed back in a torrent—the oppressive miasma of despair that clung to those forsakennds, the feral snarls of those who had long since forsaken their humanity, and the indelible brand seared into their flesh, a perverse mark of their damnation.


    Now, as des of grotesque size shed in the hands of these hulking berserkers, Jaegar saw the disciplined ranks of Kaeso''s and Kyra''s soldiers buckle and break. One by one, good men fell, their lifeblood painting macabre patterns across the churned earth.


    A harsh bellow tore from Jaegar''s throat as he wheeled his steed towards the unfolding massacre.


    These were no mere men they faced, but rabid beasts freed from the shackles of civilised restraint. Each blow theynded was fueled by primal fury, their tainted des hewing through flesh and bone with sickening ease.


    Jaegar''s lip curled in a feral snarl as he crashed into their midst, then he picked up the sword of a dead soldier from the ground, then the de became a whirling dervish of shimmering steel.


    The deadly dance unfolded in a blurred tapestry of shing steel and ringing parries. Jaegar''s fabled skill was put to its utmost test as he fought to withstand the onught of these unstoppable juggernauts. Each blow they unleashed carried tremendous force, enough to splinter even the most stalwart defences.


    As Jaegar surveyed the grisly aftermath, his muscles coiled taut, and every instinct heightened in anticipation of further assault. The roars of embattled warriors echoed all around, but it was a sudden movement in his peripheral vision thatmanded his full focus.


    One of the hulking brutes broke from the melee, his tree-trunk legs propelling him forward with shocking crity. Jaegar reacted on instinct, lithely dismounting from his steed as the distance between them rapidly shrank.


    With a nudge of inward will, he summoned forth the crackling energies of the lightning that coursed through his veins.


    The brute raised his broadsword high, prepared to cleave Jaegar from crown to stem. But the seasoned warrior was faster, extending his hands to conjure a shimmering fment of electrical might. The oversized de mmed against this arcane barrier with a resonant ng, halted in its deadly arc.


    A bestial roar tore from the brute''s throat as he wrenched the de back, every muscle straining for another overhead strike.


    Jaegar''s own curse escaped through gritted teeth as the lightning flickered and winked out, forcing him to dive aside as the massive sword bit deep into the earth where he''d stood moments before.


    Rolling to his feet, Jaegar looked at the brute. He didn''t want to use his magic right now as it would exhaust him.


    He fell back on the primal forces—the rage of the earth me. He wanted to gain full control over the earth me, and he was using it frequently.


    Summoning forth a roaring burst of me, he directed the scorching torrent squarely into the brute''s face. The towering figure faltered, releasing a guttural bellow as he pawed at his seared flesh.


    Seizing the momentary respite, Jaegar snatched up a fallen sword, its edge still dimly glowing from the heat of its former master''s lifeblood. As the brute regained his senses, he renewed his assault with frightening intensity, the massive de arcing down in a blinding arc of debilitating force.


    The impacting des sang out in a piercing concussive wave, the sheer ferocity of the blow driving Jaegar''s boots into the blood-soaked loam.


    CLANG


    All around, thebatants scattered, clearing a wide berth around the pair''s private demigod duel.


    Jaegar refused to relent, channelling the fire''s essence into his appropriated de until the metal took on an incandescent crimson hue. Moving with a swordsman''s grace more befitting a dancer, he dove and weaved through the brute''s ceaseless barrage of bone-crushing swings.


    Then, in one fluid motion, Jaegar dropped into a crouch andshed out in a blinding, whirling strike. His ming de found its mark, shearing through the brute''s Achilles tendon with grotesque ease. As the behemoth crumpled, howling in anguished fury, Jaegar followed through by driving the de up to the hilt into the exposed heart. Find adventures at M V L


    The brute''s death knell was an explosive exhtion that rattled Jaegar''s very bones. For a frozen moment, he remained stock-still, his sword gripped tightly, the dancing firelight reflecting in his eyes. Then, with a grunt of effort, he wrenched the de free and rose to face whatever fresh hells the battlefield had yet to unleash.