THE USELESS PRINCE

The Dread Reaper observed Ash and Furina carefully, then sneered and put the sword behind its back, deciding not to use it.

In the game False Horizon, the Dread Reaper only used its sword when it felt its opponent was worthy.

The fact that it didn't use that giant sword showed that it didn't consider him and Furina as formidable opponents at all.

It was very confident in being able to kill both of them.

And it really could. Even without using that sword, the Dread Reaper was already powerful enough to defeat both of them.

To some, they might feel that this was an insult, but to Ash, this was nothing short of a miracle.

But… whether the two of them could still survive even if the Dread Reaper didn't use its sword was still unknown.

They were lucky to have an advantage, but even so, would the situation become better?

Understanding the current situation, Furina immediately activated Star Domain, buffing Ash and reducing the Abyssal Creature's power.

But after doing all those things, the Dread Reaper was still extremely strong, not much affected even when weakened by Furina's Star Domain.

And then, without letting anyone to announce, the battle started.

In just a blink of an eye, Dread Reaper disappeared from its previous position, but then reappeared behind the two of them without warning, not even making any sound.

Not even the slightest.

'What the…' Before Ash could react, it punched him so hard that it felt like a truck had hit his body.

Ash floated in the air for a moment before slamming into a nearby tree, causing the leaves on the branches to fall down, covering his entire body.

He coughed up blood, but was still alive.

If it weren't for this armor, Ash's fate would have been certain.

He wasn't heavily injured, but the armor wasn't in good shape at all.

Some parts were broken, but the buff he received from it was still active.

'Damn it… I have to wait for it to recover again.'

But Furina was different, even though she reacted to the Abyssal Creature's speed, she still couldn't block its attack.

The Dread Reaper instantly grabbed her and squeezed Furina's body, causing her to experience an indescribable pain.

It felt like every bone in her body was being shattered.

And then, without hesitation, it immediately threw her far away with a disgusting smile on its face.

Like a broken doll, Furina floated in the air before colliding with a tree near where Ash was sitting.

"Argh!"

A miserable pain spread through every part of the poor girl's body.

Blood continuously gushed out from Furina's mouth like a waterfall, not spitting blood like Ash. She held her side, grimacing in pain.

He couldn't even imagine how terrible the pain Furina was going through. And he didn't want to.

"Furina!" Ash quickly ran towards her, worry clearly written on his face.

"Don't come any closer Ash! Be careful!" Furina shouted loudly, it was rare for her to panic to this extent.

Ash didn't understand what she said, but after turning back to look at the Dread Reaper, he understood everything.

The Abyssal Creature's terrifying mouth was wide open, inside it was a deadly black energy ball that had been formed, ready to be launched at any moment.

When he was fighting the Dread Reaper in the game, Ash often saw that energy ball during their battle.

Although its appearance looked quite normal, the destruction it brought was not to be underestimated.

Then, without anyone needing to order or remind, that deadly energy ball just left the Dread Reaper's mouth casually, shooting straight towards Ash and Furina.

Ash's mind and brain seemed to have completely stopped when he saw that energy ball leisurely approaching.

But his body and instincts did not.

By the time Ash realized it, his body had quickly dashed straight towards Furina, hugged her tightly, and ran as far away as possible.

Unable to touch Ash or Furina's body, the energy ball continued to move forward, until it hit the nearest tree…

BOOM!

A huge explosion occurred, blowing away everything within a 5 meter radius.

After that, everything was gone, no trees, no grass, no bushes, no nothing, it was completely empty.

But fortunately, Ash and Furina had managed to dodge the explosion and were still alive. However…their condition was not very good.

Ash immediately dropped Furina to the ground and fell beside her, gasping for breath before forcing himself to stand up again.

His body was in pain, but Ash could not allow himself to collapse right now because the Dread Reaper was still alive, and worse, it did not have a single wound.

Ash gritted his teeth, looking at the Dread Reaper with eyes filled with resentment.

"...Hey Furina, can you still fight?"

Furina quickly stood up, but with the same speed, she fell to the ground again.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

Furina didn't reply, but only touched her right leg, and Ash wasn't stupid enough to not understand what was happening.

"Did you...break your leg?"

"...I think so. I can't feel my right leg anymore." She said, her face still expressionless.

"...Okay, then sit there and use Star Domain to buff me. I'll take care of everything." He patted her head with a gentle gaze.

"I'm sorry, I've become a burden to you."

Ash didn't reply, but only gently turned away, facing the Dread Reaper once again. His gaze had changed, it was no longer gentle like before.

Instead, it was certain and serious.

From the void, he summoned the Sword of Dawn.

[Energy: 1000/1000]

Ash had promised Modric that he would not use this Relic again, but in this life-or-death situation, that promise needed to be reconsidered.

Ash knew that when he used the Sword of Dawn, his body would experience horrible pain and, depending on the situation, he might even die.

But so what? He would rather bet on this sword than die in the clutches of the Dread Reaper.

With a bitter smile, he muttered,

"Sorry Modric, but it seems like this little brother can't listen to you this time."

He gripped the hilt of the sword tightly, slowly approaching the Dread Reaper.

Stars continuously appeared thanks to Furina's Star Domain, dancing around Ash before touching him and vanishing completely.

At the same time, his sword blade also began to glow with a divine light, just like the last time he used it.

'Long time no see, old friend.'