Chapter 49: Lightning Meets Steel

"Oh, this?" I said, tossing the Doom Axe from one hand to the other.

The blue runes along its surface glowed faintly as I moved it, occasionally releasing tiny sparks of lightning.

"It’s the clan’s heirloom. Why? Does it catch your eye?"

Thors narrowed his gaze, studying the weapon more carefully. Then, to my surprise, he smiled.

"Hand it over, goblin, and I’ll spare your life."

Oh? The dwarf must have thought highly of the weapon to demand it so quickly.

He had spent the entire fight with Orgrun complaining about how weak his opponent was, yet the moment he saw the Doom Axe, he seemed willing to put our little contest aside in exchange for it.

Unfortunately for him, I had no intention of handing it over.

"Why are you so serious all of a sudden, dwarf?" I asked, resting the axe against my shoulder. "I thought you were looking for a mighty foe. Don’t tell me you’re more interested in my weapon than in fighting me."

Thor’s expression hardened.

"Goblin, you’re delusional if you think you can wield an axe like that properly. You don’t even understand what you’re holding. Hand it over to someone who knows how to use it."

I raised an eyebrow.

Someone who knew how to use it?

The way he spoke made it sound as though the Doom Axe had a history beyond being a powerful weapon passed down among the goblins.

He hadn’t simply called it valuable or expressed a desire to own it. Instead, he had questioned my ability to wield it, almost as though there were something about the weapon that an inexperienced user could never hope to understand.

Could he know something about its origin?

That was possible.

The Doom Axe was clearly no ordinary weapon, and its connection to the Legacy of the Thunder God suggested that there was a great deal about it that I hadn’t discovered yet.

The system had granted me a new class and several skills after I awakened its power, but that didn’t mean I understood everything the weapon could do.

If Thors knew anything about its history, this might be my chance to learn more.

I tilted my head and gave him a thoughtful look.

"Tell me what you know about it, and I might consider handing it over."

I was obviously teasing him.

Even if he told me everything he knew, I wouldn’t surrender the weapon. Still, there was no harm in trying to get some information out of him before the fight resumed.

Unfortunately, someone else seemed to take my words far more seriously.

"Don’t joke about the Doom Axe like that, tainted!" Gunther shouted from among the goblins.

His face was twisted with anger, and he looked as though he wanted to march over and snatch the weapon from my hands himself.

"That axe belongs to us goblins!"

"That’s right!"

The others quickly echoed his words, their voices rising as they rallied behind him.

Some looked offended by the suggestion that I might hand over the clan’s heirloom, while others seemed more concerned about the possibility of Thors taking it by force.

Whatever their reasons, they were united on one point.

The Doom Axe was ours, and they had no intention of allowing a dwarf to claim it.

I shook my head at their reaction.

Of course I wasn’t going to hand it over.

I had only been trying to find out whether Thors knew something about the weapon, and I doubted that asking him directly would get me anywhere.

Judging by the look on his face, he wasn’t the sort of person who would willingly explain himself when he could simply take what he wanted.

"Doom Axe?" I asked, turning my attention back to him. "So that’s what you call it?"

Thors didn’t answer immediately.

His gaze remained fixed on the weapon, and the muscles in his jaw tightened as if the name had confirmed something he had already suspected.

"Yes," I continued, answering my own question with a shrug. "And unfortunately, I can’t hand it over to you."

The dwarf’s smile disappeared.

He raised his long axe, gripping the handle with both hands.

A low hum came from the weapon as he shifted his stance, and the sound grew more noticeable as he tightened his grip.

I couldn’t tell whether the hum came from mana flowing through the axe or some other property of the weapon, but I didn’t like the way it sounded.

It reminded me that Thors had been fighting Orgrun without appearing to take any serious damage, and I couldn’t afford to underestimate him just because I had managed to push him back once.

"No matter," he said, his grin returning. "I’ll just take it off your dead body."

So much for getting information out of him.

There was one thing I still needed to confirm, though.

"The offer still stands, right?" I asked. "If I win, you and your army will leave the clan alone and return to wherever you came from?"

I didn’t believe I could kill Thors easily, especially after watching him overwhelm Orgrun.

The difference between us was still a mystery, and I had no idea how much of his strength he had used during the previous fight.

My new abilities gave me a chance, but I wasn’t arrogant enough to assume that a few powerful skills would automatically make me the stronger fighter.

Still, defeating him might be enough to end the conflict.

If he was truly a dwarf who kept his word, he would have to honor the agreement he had made with Orgrun.

I didn’t particularly trust him, but I was willing to take advantage of his pride if it meant saving the clan.

"Of course," Thors replied, flashing a toothy grin. "I’m a man of my word."

"Dwarf of your word, you mean," I corrected.

His smile vanished, and his brow furrowed. He clearly hadn’t appreciated the joke, but I wasn’t finished yet.

"It’s a stretch to call yourself a man, isn’t it? You’re a dwarf, after all."

For a moment, the clearing fell quiet. Then Thors’s expression twisted with anger.

"Bastard!"

He moved first.

Despite his size, the dwarf accelerated with startling speed, charging toward me with his long axe held firmly in both hands.

The broad blade travelled close to the ground as he approached, forcing me to keep my attention on both his weapon and his movements.

The instant he entered striking distance, he drove the axe upward in a brutal diagonal swing aimed at splitting my body from hip to shoulder.

I barely had time to react.

I brought the Doom Axe across my body and caught the incoming strike with its blade.

The collision sent a violent shock through my arms, and the force of the impact drove me backward several steps.

My boots...