I Guard The Book That Slays Gods

"Bald's the name, lad," he said, prowling in a circle around Raiden inside the barrier. He turned to show his back, over a dozen names tattooed like trophies.

"Everyone who dies by my hand has the honor of getting their name tattooed on my back." He adopted a practiced look of sorrow. "So they'll be remembered forever."

Raiden tracked his movements, watching the yellow aura that surrounded him. Metallic sounds rang out from his many earrings as he moved, and he wore a soft smile while his hand traced across his bare torso, preparing to strike.

Raiden had expected someone actually bald, given the name, but this man had red hair brushed neatly back, giving him an almost gentlemanly appearance. Yet his energy was far too chaotic to match that refined look.

Why is he circling me?—Raiden wondered, following his movements.

Raiden's eyes narrowed as frustration built at Bald's circling, but just as he was about to move, he caught himself and slapped his forehead with a disappointed smile.

"Damn me!" he muttered, smirking. He couldn't read Bald's intentions completely, but he knew better than to react in anger.

He rested his chin on his hand, thinking. Bald's circling could mean two things, assuming it wasn't directly related to his ability: either he was trying to find Raiden's blind spot for a close-range attack, or he was simply trying to get under his skin.

Raiden chuckled softly, then sighed. Whatever Bald's game was, he had the perfect counter. He steadied his nerves and vanished from sight.

Bald, and the crowd looked perplexed, their eyes scanning frantically for any trace of him.

Raiden was amazed by what he could see, his eyes locking onto Bald with wonder. For the first time while invisible, he could see clearly instead of relying on heat detection.

But he knew he had to focus and take advantage of the confusion. He moved steadily toward Bald, who was still scanning frantically for him. Raiden struck him hard in the gut, sending Bald crashing down with a hollow scream, blood spilling from his mouth.

"What? He was actually invisible?"

"How?"

No one in the crowd had ever seen a blue crest bearer turn invisible—no magical creature was supposed to be capable of such a feat. But little did they know that these rules barely applied to Raiden, the bookkeeper, and his white dragon Ash, the mood dragon.

Raiden surged forward to deliver the final blow, but something made him pull up short just before reaching Bald. He leaped back, trusting his instincts.

He didn't know exactly what it was, but something about Bald didn't feel right; his dragon instincts were keen enough to sense that much.

"You're intriguing, lad." Bald started getting to his feet, and beginning at his neck, his body slowly transformed into metal. His hair was no exception.

Raiden's eyes narrowed as he swallowed hard, watching the cocky grin spread across Bald's face.

Bald waved his hand blindly, guessing at Raiden's location. "Come on, buddy. Give me another one of those hits."

Raiden sighed. He knew his strikes would damage Bald's physical body, soul, and spirit alike, and he was confident he could end the fight. But he didn't know how tough that metallic transformation was. If it were strong enough, it could break his hand completely.

He started sweating at the thought alone. One wrong move could be fatal if he didn't think of alternatives.

Bald began stretching, and when Raiden saw how the metallic skin flexed and folded like real flesh with each movement, his heart lurched.

Raiden smirked as he watched him. If the metal were as flexible as skin, then his strikes would do serious damage. He giggled at the realization—even if his fists were hurt in the process, his regeneration could handle that easily enough.

Taking advantage of Bald's closed eyes as he stretched, Raiden moved in and landed a devastating strike to his ribcage. But his eyes went wide when he saw his fist buried in Bald's metallic side.

Sharp pain raced through his hand, making it tremble. Before he could understand what had happened, Bald's counterstrike came, and Raiden barely managed to block it.

In that moment, all his attention flew to his left hand as he screamed in agony. Blood splattered on the ground, giving away his position. But Bald didn't attack. He just stood there, confident, hands resting on his waist.

Raiden gritted his teeth, heart pounding, fear unmistakable on his face. His mind scrambled, trying to understand how his ability had failed against Bald. But he knew to reposition himself first.

He clutched his broken hand to his chest, wrapping his white shirt around it. He stumbled a few steps toward the metal barrier about five meters away.

A glance at his left hand revealed that the bone was completely shattered. Though he could feel his regeneration attempting to work, he knew it wasn't enough. It needed time. His right hand trembled, fingers still dislocated from his strike.

Raiden glanced at Bald once more, knowing he was at a disadvantage in both defense and offense. He had nothing in his arsenal to counter it.

Every second made him more anxious as the importance of the fight finally hit him. Trapped within the barrier together, neither could leave until one was dead. And regardless of how he sliced it, he was the one most likely to die.

"I can't die here," he muttered, eyes darting around, sniffling through his fear.

He forced his right hand up, snapping the dislocated fingers back into place as he dropped to one knee. He bit back an agonizing scream.

Chills traced down his spine as the bones readjusted, but he wasn't finished. Grabbing his left hand, he clenched his eyes shut—every nerve screamed against what he was about to do.

He twisted the broken hand into position to heal properly. He felt more dead than alive. His body shook violently, but he endured it, watching Bald casually stroll back to his original spot, hands in his pockets.

"I won't be dying today, Bald," he muttered, pulling off his shirt and wrapping it around his broken hand. "I have far more important matters to attend to."

Raiden understood the cockiness. He would've done the same in Bald's position. Victory was already within Bald's grasp, and toying with his prey was just entertainment since Raiden would be dead soon anyway.

"There are things that go beyond strength, lad." He became visible and beckoned Bald forward. "There's resolve. And there's me."

Raiden forced a smirk through the pain. "Unfortunately for you, I have both."

Bald laughed softly, turning toward him. "Is that so?"