Chapter 2098 - 2098: The Skyborn Duel 2

A single, focused gale erupted beneath her feet, throwing her into the sky with even greater speed than Alex. She spun as she rose, her katana already free, and met the second wyvern mid-climb.

It was fast. Faster than her. It dodged her first slash and answered with a clawed strike that would have disemboweled a lesser warrior. She twisted in the air, her wind creating an invisible platform beneath her feet, and she pushed off, changing direction mid-flight. The wyvern's claws slashed empty air.

She landed on its back.

The wyvern shrieked and bucked, trying to throw her off. Its spines crackled with electricity, attempting to shock her. But the wind around Saeko formed a protective barrier, a layer of constantly moving air that the lightning could not penetrate. She drove her katana deep into the base of its wing.

The wyvern screamed in agony. Its flight became erratic. It rolled, trying to crush her against the mountainside. She leaped off at the last moment, her wind carrying her safely away, and the wyvern slammed into the rock with a bone-jarring crash.

It recovered quickly, launching itself back into the sky. But it was slower now. One wing dragged slightly. Its eyes burned with hatred.

Saeko hovered on a column of wind, katana held ready, waiting.

In the meantime above them, Alex's battle raged.

The larger wyvern was smarter. It didn't rely on brute force alone. It used the sky, climbing higher and higher, trying to force Alex into thinner air where his fire would burn less fiercely. It circled, waiting for an opening, its lightning-charged spines crackling with building power.

Alex wasn't waiting.

He chased it.

His flames didn't just propel him; they wrapped him, turning him into a comet of crimson light. He closed the distance in seconds. The wyvern, surprised by his speed, tried to dodge. Too slow.

Alex's sword carved a deep gash along its side. Blue-black blood sprayed, freezing instantly in the cold air. The wyvern roared and swung its tail. The spiked club caught Alex in the ribs, sending him spinning. He recovered, his flames flaring, and came right back.

This time, he aimed for the wings.

His sword sliced through the membrane of the left wing. The wyvern's flight faltered. It struggled to maintain altitude, its one good wing beating desperately. Alex didn't give it time to recover. He landed on its back, his black hand gripping one of its lightning spines.

The wyvern screamed. The electricity tried to flow into him, but his black arm absorbed it, drank it, made it nothing. He raised his sword.

And drove it down.

The blade pierced the wyvern's spine, severing the connection between its brain and its body. The creature went limp instantly. Its eyes, once burning with rage, went dark and empty.

Alex pushed off the falling corpse, his flames catching him, and hovered in the sky, watching the massive body tumble down the mountain.

Then he turned to find Saeko.

---

She had led her wyvern away from the mountain, out over the valley far below. The open sky was her arena now, and she used it.

The wyvern, despite its wounded wing, was still faster. It dove at her, claws extended, jaws wide. She waited until the last possible moment, then dropped. The wyvern shot past her, unable to stop its momentum. She rose again on a gust of wind and slashed at its underbelly.

Another wound. More blood.

The wyvern was getting desperate. It opened its mouth and unleashed a torrent of lightning, not aimed at her, but at the air around her. The electricity spread, creating a net of energy that closed in from all sides.

Saeko didn't try to dodge. She couldn't.

Instead, she spun.

Her katana became a blur, moving so fast that the wind around her became a cyclone. The lightning net hit the cyclone and was redirected, the electricity following the spiral of air and shooting harmlessly back into the sky.

The wyvern stared, unable to comprehend what it had just seen.

That moment of confusion cost it its life.

Saeko shot forward like an arrow, her body wrapped in wind, her katana extended before her. She became a spear of silver and green. She pierced the wyvern's chest, driving through scales, through muscle, through bone. Her blade erupted from its back.

For a moment, they hung in the air together—hunter and prey, woman and monster, locked in the final embrace of battle.

Then the wyvern's light faded. Its body went limp.

Saeko pulled her blade free and pushed off the falling corpse, her wind catching her, lowering her gently toward the mountainside.

---

Alex landed on the plateau a moment after her. His flames died. His sword vanished. He walked to her, his breath steady despite the battle.

She stood at the edge, watching the second wyvern's body disappear into the clouds below. Her katana was still in her hand, dripping blue-black blood that sizzled and evaporated on the hot steel.

He stopped beside her. Together, they watched the clouds swallow the evidence of their victory.

The wind howled across the plateau. Snow began to fall, soft and silent, covering the blood, the claw marks, the scars of battle. By morning, no one would know what had happened here. The mountain would keep its secrets.

Alex turned to look at her. She turned to look at him.

Their eyes met. No words passed between them. None were needed.

She sheathed her katana. He nodded once.

They walked away from the edge, away from the cave, away from the fallen monsters. The snow fell harder now, erasing their footprints as they descended.

Behind them, the mountain returned to silence. Two villages had been avenged. Two wyverns would hunt no more. And two warriors, bound by something deeper than words, vanished into the white veil of the storm.

The mission was complete.

Afterward, the couple helped the survivors, distributing food and other necessary items for survival, and they bought them on the way.