The Daughter of Cursed Steel Chapter 34: Chapter 34: The Hunter Becomes the Hunted

Read chapter 34 of The Daughter of Cursed Steel by Ashfell on NovelPedia.

Chapter 34: The Hunter Becomes the Hunted Through the ruined treasury, the constant sound of the hero's fists slamming against the blood barrier echoed over and over again. But then the hero stopped. He thought for a moment as he scanned the entirety of the room, wondering where this barrier had even come from. He glanced around in every direction without saying a word. Then his focus returned to the barrier. He started gathering magic around his fist. Even though he was affected by the gravity spell, he decided to use his earth gauntlet anyway to try and shatter the blood barrier. As magic continued to form around his hand, it condensed until shards of earth expanded outward from the magic, forming a giant gauntlet around his fist. The moment it did, the hero felt the effects of the gravity spell even more strongly. He had to use more and more strength just to keep his arm raised. His fist lifted completely above his head as he prepared to strike the barrier with all of his might. But then it happened. Massive cracks appeared across the barrier, spiderwebbing outward in every direction. A red-and-black mist began to ooze from the cracks. The hero quickly raised his guard as the power coming from the barrier felt overwhelming. He brought the earthen gauntlet down in front of his chest just in time. The cracked barrier exploded outward. A burst of reddish-black energy slammed into his earthen gauntlet, throwing him from where he stood. He crashed through the wall and burst out into the basement corridor. His earthen gauntlet was completely shattered. As the dust settled, the hero pushed himself upright and looked toward the hole he had just been blasted through. At first, all he saw was a swirling mass of crimson and black mist pouring from the shattered chamber beyond. Then a figure stepped through it. Her long green hair flowed from beneath her helmet, soaked with blood. Her crimson eyes pierced through the visor as she stared at him without a trace of fear. Black armor covered her from head to toe, forged from jagged steel and adorned with countless skulls whose eyes glowed with an eerie red light. Crimson cracks pulsed through the armor like veins beneath flesh, spreading across its surface and disappearing into the darkness of the metal. In her hand rested a massive greatsword nearly as tall as she was. Red runes burned along its blackened blade, casting a bloody glow across the ruined hallway. The battered, broken girl who had been lying on the ground moments away from death was now gone. Standing before him, she looked more like the Grim Reaper clad in cursed steel, come to claim another life. The Hero of Earth quickly scrambled to his feet and rolled to the side as the massive sword came swinging down upon him. The blade sliced into the ground where he had been standing moments before, crushing the stone beneath it. He quickly regained his footing and charged mana into both hands, forming earthen gauntlets once more as he used all of his strength to hold them up. But Rachel did not stop. The moment the sword crushed the ground in front of her, she twisted and dashed toward him, swinging the blade horizontally. The strike collided with both of his earthen gauntlets, easily cutting through them. Blood spurted from both of his forearms as deep gashes were carved into them. She immediately followed with a vertical slash, intending to split him in two. But the veteran hero was already prepared. Even as blood dripped from his wounded arms, he grabbed the massive blade with both hands, stopping it mere inches from his face. He fought with everything he had against her monstrous strength and the crushing gravity that still weighed upon him. Second by second, the blade crept closer. He gritted his teeth and shouted, "Earth Burst!" Moments later, the two earthen gauntlets exploded in a violent blast. The eruption slammed directly into Rachel as chunks of stone tore into her armor and one of her pauldrons was ripped free and clatt