Chapter 24: Dual Weilding On Peak

Leon woke up in the meadows once again. The sun was still showering the world with its warm light, and the ground seemed to be using a green blanket to shield the earth below. He jumped to his feet and took out the freshly purchased short swords. He sheathed one of them and brandished the other one. His first task was to make sure he was in a safe area. Only then could he practice freely. From the last two tries, he also guessed that the strange monster that killed him every time was attracted to blood too. After all, it only came after he had killed a Rabbit. His attacks on the rabbit’s fangs had definitely drawn out blood. That might have done the job of attracting it. Still, it was just a theory. He looked around and couldn’t see anything even in the distance aside from the rolling hills full of grasslands. He checked some more and found a location where the surroundings were elevated. It helped in him not being sighted by other monsters. So he quickly went there and once again checked. He wanted to make sure there wasn’t a monster around him. Only then he heaved a sigh of relief and decided to practice the dual wielding of his short swords. He had already covered the basics—now the time was to use it in practical. With a deep breath, he calmed his mind and began doing some slashes and sword movements with both of his hands. The main problem with dual wielding was always dividing one’s concentration on both hands. Not everyone could do that, and even those who could often lost their concentration in fights. After all, in death battles, most of your concentration would be on the enemy. If you had to give your own movements a lot of your focus, then there were high chances you would die a terrible death. Not to mention that even a slight mishap and lost coordination between his hands could lead to the same result. Fortunately for Leon, he had a habit of writing with both of his hands, and he had decades of experience with it. So, he found it easier to accept the basics. There were also other factors like maintaining balance, being precise, having a clear head, having a proper stance even in a bad situation, etc. Everything was written in the manual, so Leon practiced with all his heart and didn’t even realize when he fell into a deep meditative state where he just focused on improving, nothing else. For two hours straight, he didn’t do anything aside from honing his basics and improving according to the manual. And of course, the main part was being used to handling two swords at once. He didn’t want to lose his grip when it came to fighting, so he was giving his all in training. But even his Awakened body had limits, so he snapped out of his meditative state and panted, sweat trickling down his lean muscles. He took off his shirt and sat down to give oxygen to his burning lungs. For a few minutes, he didn’t do anything aside from resting. It soothed his nerves, and even the muscles relaxed. Finally, his body returned to normal and he relaxed. ’That was a good session,’ Leon smiled. ’I can do this if I practice it more, especially in real combat.’ Just then, he heard some rumblings in the distance and quickly put his ears on the ground. His lips curled up as he thought, ’Talk about timing!’ He quickly donned his shirt and picked up the pair of short swords again. Then, he climbed to an elevated position and hid behind a boulder. His eyes scanned the vast grassland for the Crimson Rabbit and soon found it skipping over randomly with a dazed look in its crimson eyes. ’Are they real or programmed?’ Leon wondered as he first assessed the Rabbit’s level before coming to a decision. He didn’t have the ability to see its status like he could do with himself, so he could only go with his gut feeling. It told him that this Rabbit was on the same level as him or slightly stronger perhaps. ’It’s risky but I gotta take this if I want to become stronger,’ Leon took a deep breath to calm his pounding heart. Even though he had been in two battles previously, he still wasn’t ready for death battles, especially since he had the choice to hide away. But remembering how Silver was most likely fighting harrowing Abyssal Creatures all alone in the Primordial Expanse steeled his resolve before he stepped outside. He had decided to fight the rabbit head-on to get better in combat. Death battles honed one’s battle prowess like nothing else, and he was going to use this method to improve as fast as he could. Leon wanted to become strong enough to enter the Primordial Expanse to search for Silver. Even if that wasn’t the case, there were various other events he could only participate in if he was stronger. He had to do this. There was no other option. He wouldn’t back down now. ’Fuck this prep talk! I’m gonna fight and that’s all!’ Leon cursed and dashed towards the Crimson Rabbit, who had also noticed him. Its dazed eyes transformed into a deeper crimson colour. Madness, hunger, and pure insanity revolved in them, as if there was nothing else in the monster. It growled and kicked off the ground as its huge figure soared in the air as if it had wings and was flying towards him. For a moment, Leon hesitated. But that was it. Only a moment of hesitation before he also kicked off the ground and ran towards the incoming threat. It was clear that he wasn’t a match for the Crimson Rabbit in pure physical strength and durability, so he didn’t bother meeting the Rabbit head-on. He simply rolled forward after somersaulting and barely managed to get past the paws of the Rabbit that made cracks in the ground. The Crimson Rabbit didn’t waste any time and spun around while brandishing its razor-sharp claws. A fierce glint passed through Leon’s eyes as he closed in on the Crimson Rabbit while he cursed himself, ’Shit! This guy is higher level than me. I hate my guts!’ But he couldn’t back down now. Neither did he want to. He was going to defeat this big boy to take the first step in fulfilling his desires. Sadly, the Crimson Rabbit also had a few desires of its own. Like eating this tasty little human.