MMORPG : Ancient WORLD

In a crowded tavern full of men, where tables were cramped close together, leaving just enough room for a single individual to move, the air buzzed with lively chatter.

"I heard those bastards had taken control of another small town and are making all able-bodied men work in mines, while the women are forced to work in the Sandsprout fields just to earn their food," A bulky dwarf said upon hearing the topic of the Oasis Scorpions bandit group being brought up.

"Well, what do you expect from those humans? Those bastards don't even hold the slightest bit of compassion for even children," A dragonkin lady seated closest to them said, following with a curse in Draconic.

"Hey, scale head, don't drag my whole race with those scums," A human with a scar running through his bald skull and face said, letting his aura loose to show his displeasure.

"If you can't take the insult, then do something about those bastards," The dragonkin roared back, slamming her fist on the table.

The Oasis Scorpions bandit group had recently attacked and taken control of a relatively large town under the protection of the Zephyrblaze clan, which was inhabited by many dragonkin.

So, after getting a bit drunk, it was only natural for someone who had suffered to let their emotions flow.

"Their second in command is Sand Wyrm, a defector from your mighty clan, and he is also the reason behind their audacious display of aggression," The human fired back, making the female glare at him.

Alex was silently listening to various groups talk for the last hour, and now he had the information he wanted, so he placed a dark gold coin on the table and began making his way out of the tavern.

Having already tested his knives in battle, Alex was more than satisfied with their performance, and while he was still far from optimally using them in battle, he felt prepared enough to face the leader of the bandits.

To move the knives, Alex needed to use telekinesis, and while he could perform some simple tricks with his control over mana, controlling four knives in a fast-paced battle was currently beyond his abilities. For the time being, he used darkness manipulation to retrieve his knives, as he needed to be physically in contact with them to make use of their skills.

While needing to be physically in contact with knives to use their skills was a weakness, Alex could be in contact with one knife and make the other execute the skill, and as the player who held them in his previous life was capable of summoning them back, so even this weakness was only until he acquires the last set.

After exiting the tavern, Alex asked for the direction of the town under the control of the bandits and swiftly took off toward its location, using the chaos wings. The human who provided the information stood shocked before rushing back into the tavern.

---------------

(An Hour Later)

"BOOOMMM"

Alex landed at the entrance of a town that stretched for hundreds of meters, right before a small chamber outside the wall, where a bulky man was seated.

"I am here for the head of Sand Wyrm, so tell that lizard to come out before I start slaughtering all you cowards," Alex declared, inducing eye contact with the guard as he let his mana loose, laced with killing intent.

Startled by the sudden entrance and upon spotting Alex, the man seemed poised to unleash a threat, likely invoking their group name.

However, as he felt the suffocating pressure of mana and the intense killing intent, panic overtook him, and he hurriedly stood from his chair, stumbled to the ground, and, driven by sheer desperation, rushed toward the door leading into the town.

Alex stepped back, appearing tens of meters away from the entrance, as he didn't want his fight to spill into the town, potentially injuring any common folks or destroying their homes.

'Early Sixth Rank,' Alex thought, as he looked at the towering figure who landed meters away from him.

A Dragonkin named Zaetrax, who stood at over three meters in height, with bulking arms and an oversized stomach, with him being adorned in black and gray leather armor. The most eye-catching thing about the figure was his elongated neck and large draconic face, with one of the horns on the side of his head cleanly sliced off.

"So, you are here for my head—" The Dragonkin deep voice sounded, his amethyst eyes meeting Alex's, but he was stopped mid-sentence by Alex's statement.

"You lost an honor duel and decided to get spared?" Alex said, a bit surprised at seeing the sliced-off horn.

The Dragonkin was a race born from dragons mating with other humanoid races, such as humans, elves, beastmen, and even lizardmen. As their genes were much superior, the child always took on the characteristics of dragons, now centuries later has turned into a subspecies independent of dragons.

But the Dragonkins still had ways similar to dragons, and to settle a dispute, they used the method of an honor duel, where both parties agreed to a fight to the death.

While most honor duels ended with the death of one participant, in rare cases, one of them would accept defeat and request to be spared, forcing the winner to spare them but not before branding them with the mark of shame by cutting off one of his horns.

The dragonkin had blinding pride, and the majority would rather die than have their boundaries crossed, but there were also cowards. When Alex came, he was expecting to kill the second in command, but now he could just scare him and avoid this unnecessary battle.

"Let's begin our little match," Alex uttered to the fuming dragonkin, whose veins were bulging on his exposed neck as he let his killing intent loose.

'Ruler Pride' 'Rage Embodiment'

Alex's rank rose, and with it, his stats also rose until 200K before coming to a sharp halt. It happened because his 'Rage Embodiment,' while a decent skill, was just an Elementalist-grade skill and had a stat cap of 200k.

Alex swiftly drew four of the three blades strapped to his waist, keeping his eyes on the fuming beast who now wielded a bladed club and in an instant, closed the distance bringing it down at him.

Throwing one of the space blades in the air, Alex used the other to block the blunt attack, and as their weapons clashed, he instantly activated the 'Teleport' skill.

Alex felt the surrounding air freeze and become heavy, momentarily restricting his movement as his vision blurred, and the next instant he appeared next to the space knife in the sky, and without skipping a beat, he threw the destructive knife at the back of Zaetrax.

Zaetrax had been testing the physical strength of his opponent with the first attack, and just as he put more strength into his arm to push forward, his target vanished, causing his club to smash into the ground, throwing him off balance.

Before Zaetrax could grow comfortable with the idea that his target could teleport, he sensed a weapon coming at him from behind, and without hesitation, he tensed his scales and began to spin around, his mana senses locked onto his target in the sky.

'Impact Release' Alex's left hand was set on his waist, holding the second destruction knife. The moment the first one was inches, away from impact, he used the second skill, unleashing all the stored destructive energy.

The web of cracks on the knife pulsed with energy, and Zaetrax, who saw the attack as just a distraction, felt his instincts scream at him about the impending danger.

However, just as he registered the danger, the knife made contact, and a thunderous sound erupted, akin to a bomb detonating, accompanied by a massive shockwave.

Zaetrax was slammed face-first into the ground, sinking a few feet into it as a crater formed, and cracks spread through the surroundings like a spider web.

His body took the full brunt of the attack, and what followed was a guttural roar as the shockwave rippled through his insides, damaging his organs and causing blood to flow from every opening.

Alex had spent considerable effort preparing the energy reservoir of 100k points and while on impact, it only dealt damage similar to a middle-stage Sixth Rank attack, its concentrated destructive nature made it potent enough to deliver a substantial hit even to a peak Elementalist. The attack could leave the target vulnerable for some time and could be exploited to shift the battle, and with the blades being not seen as a real danger, it was a killer move with great potential.

Reaching the 100k points in the energy reservoir was not an easy task, at least not in a short period, but the results were worth the time spent preparing.

After successfully delivering the killer combo, Alex appeared before Zaetrax, his sword pulsing with mana and sword intent, aimed at his head.

"Now, don't get prideful, and I will spare your life," Alex said, prepared to deliver a killing blow if Zaetrax decided to resist.