Hero and Mike stood side by side, both in a battle stance and ready to strike or defend. They chose to attack. Together they dashed toward the stone guardian. Their blades cut through the air, and the clash rang out loud enough to echo across the cloudy field. Both of their attacks were blocked. Their weapons slammed against the guardian's.

Mike's sword struck the guardian's axe. The axe cracked and split in several places while Mike's blade stayed intact thanks to the power of the shadow. Hero's sword, however, shattered into pieces. That was the end of Hero's blue blade. Only the handle remained in his hand. For a moment he looked sad, but the feeling vanished immediately when the guardian kicked at him.

It happened incredibly fast. Hero dodged at the last second by throwing himself backwards. The guardian immediately swung its sword after him, trying to stab him while he was still in midair. The blade spun toward Hero.

Ice watched from a short distance away. She sat on the soft ground, exhausted. She had used all her energy to heal Hero's arm. She had earned this short break, but the guardian's sword was almost upon Hero.

A flash burst out at the last moment. Mike swung his sword and knocked the guardian's blade aside. He struck again and again, each hit breaking more stone from the guardian's body. The clouds wrapped around its form began to peel away. Soon only its legs were still covered by the mist. It must have been some kind of strength enhancement.

An idea struck Mike. "Hero, you can help. Give me the golden aura."

Everyone here seemed to have powerful abilities. Hero raised his arms, closed his eyes, and formed a golden ring around Mike. During this time the guardian stopped moving and suddenly knelt.

"It is kneeling? Why?"Mike quickly understood. The guardian was strengthening itself as well. The clouds gathered around it again and wrapped its entire body.

Seeing all these abilities reminded Mike of his own shadow child powers. He had not thought about the castle or his abilities for a long time, not since all the admin chaos began. But now he had no choice. He had to handle everything alone.

The golden aura wrapped around him fully. His body glowed, and he felt the surge instantly. His strength and speed increased sharply. It was a very useful ability, he thought.

Now he stood face to face with the guardian.

"Leave. Go now," the guardian warned one last time. The warning sounded sincere.

But Mike answered, "No. I am sorry, but we cannot."

"Then so be it," the guardian said, and shot forward with superhuman speed. He dropped his sword before sprinting and let it fall onto the ground with a heavy clang. Now armed only with his axe, the guardian launched himself at Mike. He raised the weapon and swung straight at him.

Mike barely managed to block by pressing his sword against the axe. A loud crack and a shockwave echoed across the area. Hero could only watch while Ice lay on the ground without any energy left. That meant Mike was the only one who could still save them. This powerful creature had appeared from nowhere. It would not just disappear again.

Mike pushed his sword against the axe, forcing the guardian back a bit. Then the guardian stopped moving. Mike prepared to dash forward and strike, but suddenly the guardian vanished into the cloudy ground. His body split apart like mist. Two black points remained on the ground. They rose again, and suddenly two guardians stood before Mike.

Something became clear right away. One had the axe with clouds wrapped around its chest and arms. The other carried the sword, the clouds swirling around its legs. These were no illusions. They were solid stone copies.

Both guardians sprinted at full speed with their weapons ready. Mike had no time to think. He made a massive leap upward, and since the clouds beneath them acted like a trampoline, the soft surface sent him higher into the air. The two guardians struck the ground where he had stood, their weapons smashing only clouds and leaving pieces of vapor flying everywhere.

As Mike gained height, he aimed his sword downward at the sword guardian. He drove the blade straight into its head. Stone shattered and the guardian crumbled into dust. Its sword dropped onto the cloud surface and dissolved into dust as well.

But since Mike had just attacked and was pulling back his sword, the axe guardian took the chance. It swung sideways. A direct hit. Mike was knocked to the ground. The strike was powerful, but thanks to the titan armor he was unharmed, without a scratch or a drop of blood. The same could not be said for the guardian.

Mike quickly got back up and charged forward like a bolt of lightning. He drove his sword deep into the guardian's chest plate, leaving it embedded there. He jumped back and delivered several powerful punches. Each strike sent out a shockwave. Cloud particles burst into the air while chunks of stone crumbled away.

For the final blow, Mike grabbed his sword, tore it free, and sliced through the guardian's torso with one swift motion. Stone dust and armor fragments scattered across the ground. The guardian fell to its knees and then collapsed.

"Done," Mike gasped.

(Boss defeated: Cloud GuardianUnlocked: Cloud Aura)

Exhausted, Mike let his body relax. His legs gave out and he collapsed to the soft ground as well.

In the distance they could see people running through the village in a panic. They must have witnessed the battle. They looked like ordinary humans, but each of them had a long white tail and a pair of wings, one on each side.

One of them flew toward them at high speed. Hero looked at her. She looked at Hero, then pressed a sword against his throat.

"What are you doing here, and what happened?"

Hero stayed silent. He did not understand. Was she an NPC or not? Since he was not allowed to ask directly, he tried to trick the system.

"Are you from here?" Hero asked. That question would not count as a violation.

He received the answer he wanted. "Yes, I was born here," the blonde woman with blue eyes replied. She held a white sword right against Hero's throat.

"Now speak. What happened here?"

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