The Talentless Inheritor

Greed—Sebastian attacked first. Lightning God and Lightning Spear both took the initiative when it came to battle. To strike with lightning fast accuracy and explosive power.

If he were put on defense, then his moves would be limited. He only knew half of the styles after all. Mile had told him that once he completely mastered all of the forms, his attack and defense would be absolute.

Briggs had even told him a few tales of Mile charging into a sea of soldiers and Inheritors but came out unscathed. She was equivalent to ten thousand when it came to battle.

"Momentum..."

Kai whispered and struck out with his spear. There was no need for him to hold back and use Incapacitate, his opponent was a mercenary whose strength is focused in his body.

CLANG

As expected, Savage managed to react to his attack and blocked with the chains that cuffed his wrists.

"You do have some power, but...!"

Savage gripped Sebastian's spear and pulled him close. His other fist was aimed straight at Sebastian's face.

"I am stronger!"

Sebastian crouched to avoid the fist and then took half a step forward and slammed his body into Savage's and knocked him back a few steps.

With the extra distance between the two of them, Sebastian retreated and took another stance with his spear.

'There's no point in training with him.'

He wanted an opponent with skill. Savage was a very fitting nickname for him who fought like a barbarian brute. It felt just like fighting a humanoid beast.

After coming to that conclusion, Sebastian decided to end the match early.

Sebastian roused his energy and then ran forward.

"Ha! You've given up?!"

Savage laughed maniacally and ran towards Sebastian. Each step he took caused the ground to shake.

Sebastian hung the spear on his back and met Savage's fist with his own.

BANG

It was unbelievable. Savage trained his body, but Sebastian was covered in energy. Even then, the two of them were equal.

Savage used his other arm and punched out. Sebastian caught it with his hand.

The two of them were in a deadlock.

"You-you've got some strength, huh—?!"

Before he could finish what he was saying, their fingers interlocked and he began being pushed back.

"A-amazing! Looks like Greed has enough power to match Savage in pure muscle!"

It was a given for Inheritors to only wield one ability. Sometimes, the abilities became two or three depending on how they were used. For example, if an Inheritor's ability would be to control the elements and not just a single one, then though it is still one ability, it provides several abilities' worth.

But, there had been no record of an Inheritor wielding bodily strength along with another power. Though Inheritors do hold stronger bodies due to their ability to manipulate energy, it wasn't to the point that they could lift twice of their own weight easily.

Amy is an Apprentice and had superb control of her energy. Even though she doesn't have any visible muscles, she is able to hold a long sword built for an a.d.u.l.t male easily but if she had to carry a person, it would be doable, but a little more challenging.

"H-how?! How?!"

Savage howled as Sebastian kept on taking more steps towards him and pushing him back. All of the muscles on his b.a.r.e body bulged and veins were popping out here and there. His entire face was red due to how much strength he was exerting and because of the humiliation he was facing.

Someone not even half his size was defeating him in a contest of strength? He who had pride in his power?

"AAAAGGHH!"

Savage cried and revealed another burst of power. Sebastian was pushed back—but only for a moment.

"Huuu..."

Sebastian took a deep breath and in that same instant, the energy surrounding his body soared.

CRACK CRACK CRACK

"AAAAAGGGGHHHH!"

Savage howled in pain. All of his fingers that were interlocked with Sebastian's fingers were broken. If not for the cuffs on his wrist, they might've been broken as well.

Sebastian released Savage's hands and then launched a kick at his face.

BOOM

It was a kicked backed with lightning and strength. Savage crashed into the wall and slid down unconscious.

"""..."""

The entire place went silent.

It would be one thing if Sebastian defeated Savage with his spear, but with his b.a.r.e hands? While most of the audience weren't sure, it looked as if he crushed Savage's fingers as well. How was he so strong?

Sebastian turned to look at the overseer seeing as how there were no declaration of his victory.

"T-the winner is Greed—!"

"RUAAAAA!"

Just the overseer regained his senses, there was a roar. It sounded closer to a beast's than a human's

Sebastian turned his head and saw Savage trembling in anger. His face was contorted as he glared at Sebastian with a fierce gaze.

'He really looks like an animal...'

The Savage that Sebastian was looking at right now looked like an enraged bull.

"HAAAAAA!"

Each of Savage's steps caused the ground to shake as he neared Sebastian at an alarming speed.

Sebastian sighed and walked towards Savage. He took a deep breath as lightning wrapped around his body.

"Lightning God, 3rd Form..."

Sebastian closed his eyes and when he opened them, he was already far behind Savage.

PSSSSHHHH

Blood sprayed out of Savage's wounds and he fell down unconscious. Sebastian made sure to not hit any vital spots.

"Lightning Strike."

BZZZZZZZT

Following the spray of blood, Savage was electrocuted until his skin turned dark. He wasn't dead, but he might as well be.

Just as Savage's body fell to the floor, the audience and overseer finally reacted.

"What? What happened?"

"He just disappeared and then Savage fell to the floor!"

"I saw a flash of light pass through Savage!"

It all happened in an instant.

From the moment lightning wrapped around Sebastian to when Savage was cut and electrocuted, it all happened in an instant.

'The 3rd form of Lightning God is Lightning Strike.'

'The essence of the 3rd form is to strike like lightning and defeat the opponent before they even realize it.'

'Out of the six forms of Lightning God and twelve of Lightning Spear, I would say that this form embodies the word 'lightning' the most.'

The reason that Sebastian took so long to learn the technique wasn't because he couldn't execute it. On the contrary, it was the easiest to use.

He just needed to move as fast as lightning and strike with his weapon in that speed.

Unlike Thunderclap and Death Throes that had specific movements, Lightning Strike had a lot more freedom.

Unfortunately, it isn't exactly easy to move at the speed of lightning, let alone react at that speed. The training that Sebastian did with Mile helped him adapt to that speed, even if it was only slightly.

When he used the ring on top of Lightning Strike, he was able to move a little better but it still wasn't enough.

"The winner is Greed!"

"""...OOOOOOOHHHH!"""

There was a momentary silence after the overseer's proclamation but the audience cheered after getting over their initial shock.

Sebastian glanced at Savage before heading to the shared rest area. Many of the warriors there congratulated him while some eyed him like they would an enemy.

After making sure that nobody noticed him, Sebastian slipped out and changed back into his clothes. He headed straight home after. It was already late and Sana would be worried.

"Gilbert?"

Sebastian saw Gilbert wearing a cloak walking with a few other cloaked figures. They didn't exactly look suspicious as there were many people that dressed like them but of all people, Gilbert? Sebastian would have to be crazy to think that he's just going out for a stroll.

After hesitating for a bit, Sebastian wore his mask and cloak as Fox, a temporary member of Blue Rose and tailed after Gilbert and his entourage.

Following them for a while led to an abandoned building in the slums. There were plenty in the area but they chose this one in particular. Were they meeting someone?

Sebastian entered the neighboring building and peered through the broken window. With his eyes, though he would face difficulty in identifying unknown faces, it wasn't impossible.

Watching them from a corner in the same building was too dangerous as Sebastian didn't have anything on his person other than Mile's spear.

"A box?"

Sebastian managed to see Gilbert holding up a small box to the other party.

The other party took the box and confirmed its contents before handing over a case. Unfortunately, Gilbert only peeked inside and Sebastian didn't have an opportunity to see what was inside.

"What a shady deal..."

Sebastian smacked his lips and mumbled. After the two parties exchanged items, they talked for a bit before separating.

Sebastian wouldn't be able to do anything if he tailed Gilbert so he decided to chase after the ones that gave him the item.

He didn't have to stalk them for very long. Because they were here in the slums at night, there were many areas devoid of any people.

"Wha-?!"

Sebastian dropped from above them and knocked out one of them. He swiftly dealt with the remaining two while making sure at least one retained his consciousness.

"Ugh..."

"I want answers. What did you sell Gilbert Walt?"

"F*ck you...!"

Sebastian rolled his eyes and held up the man to the wall.

"I'm going to ask you again, what did you sell Gilbert Walt?"

"Y-you can kiss my—!"

Before he could even finish, Sebastian pulled him back with one arm and then slammed him into the wall.

"Hak..."

"Are your lips looser now?"

"You bas... tard!"

Sebastian sighed and slammed the man into the wall again. This time, he let him fall down as the wall cracked slightly from the amount of force he exerted.

Thinking he was free, the man tried to escape but Sebastian grabbed the back of his head.

"Why don't we have some fun?"

The man shivered. Sebastian's words felt just like a death god's.

"P-please..."

For a good while, only the screams of the man were heard in that alley. Occasionally, there'd be two other voices but in the slums, it was a common happening. Nobody went near and nobody inspected the alley after either.

...

"That bastard, what is he going to do with that?"

Sebastian frowned.

After disposing of the three men and making sure there were no traces of them left, Sebastian decided to look for Gilbert.