Sanctuary: Safe Haven

The ground trembled beneath Tiberius's feet as he readied himself for the next assault. His greatsword gleamed in the ambient light, the sharp edge catching a glint of moonlight as the dust settled from the initial clash. Beside him, Thalion, the elf master swordsman, stood tall, dirt smeared across his robes and a clear fist-shaped bruise marking his side, but his grip on his sword was steady.

His eyes, cold and calculating, watched Canna with a determined focus.

Canna hovered above them, his expression unreadable, the air around him crackling with the lingering charge of his earlier attacks. The battlefield was littered with the remnants of his summoned undead army, but the real challenge had only just begun. Tiberius's chest rose and fell as he caught his breath, but he didn't let exhaustion creep into his limbs.

Thalion, ever composed, lifted his blade and fell into his familiar stance.

This was the moment they'd been training for, the chance to prove their worth against their leader.

The sanctuary crowd was in a frenzy outside the barrier, cheering loudly for both sides. The shock troops had shown their strength, but now Canna would test them further. Tiberius felt the weight of the crowd's anticipation, the pressure of everyone watching. But it only fueled his determination.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Thalion nodded once to Tiberius, his eyes never leaving Canna. They had fought side by side in countless battles, their trust in one another absolute. They didn't need words to know what the other was thinking.

Tiberius slammed his greatsword into the ground, summoning pillars of rock and jagged spikes from the earth in a wide arc toward Canna. The ground rumbled, the earth answering his call as it rose up to form a barrier of sharp stone that sought to trap and crush Canna.

Thalion darted forward at the same moment, his elven blade singing through the air as he charged. His swordsmanship was flawless, his movements fluid and precise. Each swing of his blade was like a dance, graceful yet deadly, as he sought to cut through Canna's defenses.

Canna moved like lightning, literally. His body crackled with electricity as he blurred to the side, evading Tiberius's earthen spikes with ease. Thalion was on him in an instant, his sword flashing through the air with blinding speed. Their blades met in a shower of sparks, Canna's claws parrying Thalion's strikes with inhuman reflexes.

Tiberius, not one to be left behind, stomped the ground once more, sending tremors through the battlefield. Massive stone hands erupted from the earth, aiming to grab hold of Canna and pin him down, but Canna leaped into the air, avoiding the attack just in time.

With a flick of his wrist, a bolt of lightning shot from his fingertips, but Thalion was already moving, his lithe form dodging the attack with a graceful spin.

The elf swordsman countered immediately, his blade slicing through the air in a series of rapid strikes aimed at Canna's midsection. Canna parried each strike with practiced ease, his claws meeting the blade with a metallic clang. But Thalion was relentless, his footwork impeccable as he kept pressing the attack, his sword a blur of motion.

Tiberius wasn't idle either. With a grunt, he slammed his fist into the ground, and the earth beneath Canna's feet shifted violently. Spikes shot up from the ground, trying to catch him off guard, but Canna responded by summoning a gust of wind that swept the spikes away before they could reach him.

He spun in the air, his wings flaring as he descended back toward the two warriors, his eyes glowing with amusement.

"Impressive," Canna said, his voice calm despite the intense exchange. "But you'll have to do better."

Tiberius roared as he charged again, this time using his earth affinity to create a trap beneath Canna's feet. The ground crumbled away, leaving a pitfall lined with sharp rock at the bottom. Canna didn't fall for it, though. Instead, he flicked his hand, and the pit filled with water instantly, nullifying Tiberius's attack.

Thalion seized the moment, leaping toward Canna with a flurry of precise sword strikes. His movements were a blur, his sword an extension of his very being as he aimed for Canna's vital points. One strike, two strikes, a third—all aimed to cut down their dragonkin leader. Each swing was blocked or dodged, but Thalion kept the pressure up, forcing Canna to stay on the defensive.

Tiberius came in from the other side, raising stone walls and summoning jagged pillars of earth to box Canna in. It was a two-pronged assault, designed to overwhelm even someone of Canna's caliber. They fought as a single unit, complementing each other's strengths and covering each other's weaknesses.

And then it happened.

For a brief second, Canna's attention wavered, just enough for Tiberius and Thalion to see an opening. It was small, but it was there. With a roar, Tiberius raised his greatsword high, channeling all of his strength into one devastating strike. Thalion moved in at the same time, his blade aiming for Canna's side, where he had noticed the slight shift in his defenses.

The two swords descended on Canna, ready to strike him down.

But then, faster than either of them could react, Canna caught their swords mid-air with his bare hands. His smirk widened as he tightened his grip on the blades, the force of his hold cracking the metal.

"Got you," Canna said, his voice low and menacing.

Before either Tiberius or Thalion could pull back, Canna yanked their swords—along with their wielders—into the air with inhuman strength. He tossed them high into the sky, where they were little more than silhouettes against the darkening clouds.

A moment later, lightning crackled through the air, and with a deafening roar, bolts of lightning struck the two warriors square in the chest, sending them plummeting back toward the ground. They would have been severely injured or worse if not for Sylvanar's vines, which shot up from the earth and caught them before they could hit the ground, gently lowering them out of the battlefield.

They were out of the fight.

Canna's smirk grew as he turned his gaze back toward the remaining shock troops. The two strongest fighters had been taken out of the equation. The rest of the shock troops were still standing, but they were clearly shaken.

Outside the barrier, the spectators watched with wide eyes, awestruck by the display of power. Mira and Dot, the youngest of warriors, watched with stars in their eyes. They had been training under Canna for a while now, but seeing him in action against the elite shock troops was something else entirely.

"How is Master Canna that strong?" Dot muttered, not expecting an answer.

Kael, who had been watching silently from the sidelines, chuckled. "Obviously, the shock troops did their best with their 6 months hellish training, but Canna's been doing it for years. Back in the dungeon, he would spar with Vorgrim and Grimruk every single day. Sometimes for ten hours straight."

Dot and Mira's eyes widened as Kael continued, his voice tinged with nostalgia. "There was a time when Tonitrum—the crazy maniac of a dragon—would throw him into battles with powerful monsters without warning. He wasn't even safe when he slept. Imagine fighting for your life in your sleep, and one time while he was just trying to pee, an axe nearly cleaved him in two.

He dodged it, of course, but that was just a regular day for Canna."

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Kael smiled faintly as he recalled those dungeon days. "Canna fought every single day, sometimes for 24 hours straight, and it wasn't against easy enemies either. His first large-scale battle was against an entire warband of goblins and kobolds, and he was barely B-rank at the time. The shock troops are strong, but they don't know what it's like to have your life on the line every single day."

Dot and Mira looked back at Canna, now seeing him in a new light. The shock troops had done their best, but it wasn't even close to what Canna had been through. His strength came not just from training, but from years of survival against impossible odds.

Inside the barrier, Canna stood tall, a menacing figure crackling with lightning. His eyes gleamed with excitement as he watched the remaining shock troops regroup, their resolve hardening even after losing two of their strongest.

'Let's see how long they can hold out.'