Eternal Freedom's Ascension-Chapter 104: Try Again

’Wrong. Utterly wrong.’

The statue looked perfect, like a saintly angel known to Earthlings. However, all Kaiser got was a feeling of wrongness. Something didn’t seem right about the statue, as if it had been tainted or corrupted.

"See? It doesn’t really look like the pitiful statue we saw on the ground earlier."

Anna smiled thinly, gripping her weapon tightly. Behind them, Alex kept the other statues at bay, though it was obvious she was already getting tired.

’I’ll have to keep this as short as possible.’

A black dagger appeared in his hand, and he threw it at the praying angel.

The instant the dagger approached it, the angel’s wings snapped close. The dagger bounced off the stone, then disappeared into sparks.

After a few seconds, the wings opened and the angel looked down at them. Kaiser felt his body shiver under that pupil-less gaze.

"Prepare an escape route to our hideout. Retreat when I give the signal."

He said to Anna, then dashed forward to engage the descending angel. The young lady’s brows furrowed, but she didn’t argue.

’Can he even handle that thing?’

She didn’t know, but she chose to believe him.

While she went to support her sister, Kaiser engaged the angel alone. His probing attack was a simple stab. The angel blocked with one of its wings, then reached out towards him.

Kaiser pressed those hands downwards, jumping back immediately. He could already tell, those hands had incredible grip strength.

Standing on his hands, he rotated on the spot, delivering a series of kicks towards the angel’s head.

It blocked every kick, though the force pushed it back slightly.

Just then, the angel caught one of his legs. Before he could even register what was happening, it had lifted him in the air.

He quickly raised his arms before his head, as the angel swung him towards a pillar.

Bang!

He slammed into it, splitting the pillar into two. He rolled in the air, landing perfectly on the ground.

His vambraces had shattered, revealing his arms marred with bleeding cuts. Blood flowed from beneath his hair, painting his left eyeball red.

Kaiser’s eyes sharpened, and he suddenly blurred. He reappeared right before the angel, his fist raised.

The statue reacted instantly, protecting itself with its wings.

Bang!

The punch landed cleanly with a heavy sound, the force sending the angel skidding backwards. The wings were forced apart to dispel the force, faint cracks appearing on them.

Anna, who had witnessed this spectacle, was stunned. The threat level of that particular statue could be compared to an Awakened Horror. Yet, Kaiser had used his Rank 1 Awakened strength to knock it that hard.

The boy didn’t let up and immediately followed with sharp attacks. Punches, kicks, and jabs set at angles hard to dodge. He threw out every attack with full force, the wind caving beneath his strikes.

’Damn, He’s fast when he goes all out.’ Anna thought as her spear skewered two statues. ’But he’s barely dealing damage. At this rate, he’ll get worn out soon.’

Just as she expected, the angel took an opportunity and struck him in the guts. Kaiser was sent flying, but he did a cat flip and landed in a crouch.

He glanced at Anna, then nodded subtly.

The young lady took that as the cue, then began moving towards their underground hideout. Alex, using the last bit of her strength, fired a flurry of arrows at the angel. The action forced it to halt and protect itself with its wings.

Before it could reopen its wings and continue attacking, they had already disappeared.

It looked around for some time, then flew up again, hands clasped in a silent prayer.

The other statues also went back to their respective activities, clasping their hands and worshipping the angel.

......

"You..."

Anna sighed in frustration, looking at Kaiser who was vomiting blood. That single punch from the angel had caused this much damage to him.

Alex slumped to the ground, panting and covered in sweat. "Big Sis, I finished all the arrows."

She said tiredly, earning a head pat from Anna.

"You did well. You can rest now."

The girl nodded weakly, then fell asleep.

Anna turned her attention to Kaiser who was still conscious but weak. The little bonfire she had prepared illuminated the cavern. The shadows danced around Kaiser, though they seemed darker than normal.

Kaiser wiped his lips, then raised his head. "I’ll be fine before tomorrow. Take care of yourself instead."

Saying this, he curled up in a corner—seemingly hibernating.

Anna’s gaze lingered on him for a while, then she also went to sit at a corner. The flames eventually burned out, covering them in darkness.

Now in the embrace of his element, Kaiser recovered from his semi-conscious state. His injuries had healed slightly, though not fully.

’This island is truly bizarre. There are so many statues, I’d wager there are more angel statues out there.’

The battle against the angel statue today was very enlightening. He clearly realized he didn’t have the capability of destroying such a thing.

’I need more tries to study it—to break it down into simple compartments.’

He glanced at the red-headed sisters, seeing them asleep. ’They’re useful for now.’

Although they lacked the tendency to gain color, he wouldn’t mind keeping them for as long as they were useful.

"Tomorrow, we go again."

He whispered to himself.

......

The next day, they were woken up by Anna who had already opened the cover above the cavern. Without exchanging much words, they came to the surface, once again met with the sight of broken statues and toppled pillars.

’Last night really feels like an illusion.’ Kaiser thought, slightly amazed.

"Let’s hunt something to eat. But my arms are very sore."

Alex said, caressing her arms weakly.

Kaiser collected the bow from her, then walked about. He looked into the foggy clouds for some time, then fired an arrow.

Seconds passed and nothing fell, making Alex snort. "Just bring it. I’ll force myself."

"No," Kaiser shook his head, then fired another arrow. "You’ll need to rest up for tonight again."

"Wait. You want to try again tonight?" Anna walked over, her brows raised.

Kaiser nodded calmly. "Every single day, we repeat."