Darius Supreme

Gunner looked the lass up and down with a strange look. "Why the fuck would I do that?"

Fergie was stunned that he had answered so rudely and brusquely. Stifling her rage and indignation that a man-ape spoke to her in such a manner, she decided to goad him.

"Aren't you a man? A woman asks you to spar, yet you hide like a chicken? Do you even have any balls?" Fergie shouted as loud as she could, hoping to embarrass Gunner into fighting.

Gunner simply folded his arms behind his back, yet remained silent for a while as he stared at the Flame Pugilist, before eventually asking her. "Are you a child?"

Fergie was furious, about to blow her top. Her entire body burst into flames, and she nearly charged forward to fight Gunner to the death. That look he gave her was filled with genuine worry and concern, alone made her feel like she would faint.

Gunner shook his head. Troublesome women like this were never a pleasure to be around. Look at his beloved Celia, so gentle, so kind and far-sighted, so loving and sweet…

The half-giant lips rose up slightly as he thought about his beloved woman still at home about to give birth to his first child. Gunner was thoroughly smitten with her, seeing all her pros and none of her cons, though to that end, most men would agree that a woman like Celia had very few of those.

Gunner was a lucky man to strike gold on his first serious relationship. Many others had to suffer through many such relationships before finding 'the one'.

Fergie sucked in a deep breath. "Okay then, let's make a bet. If you win, I will give you everything I own, including myself, but if I win, you spare Fraterina."

Gunner came down from his thoughts and gazed at Fergie silently before disappearing. The woman could only brace herself before she was solidly slapped again on the other cheek, her face swelling a little.

With tears in her eyes, her heart full of indignation, she glared at Gunner with anger. "What was that for?!"

The half-giant stood before her with his hands folded behind his back and seemed nonchalant. "Ever since I came here, you've been speaking nonsense and gibberish nonstop. I simply thought to slap some sense into you."

Fergie was left speechless by this, then sat on the ground without caring about how she looked. She clutched her legs and hid her face within as she cried silently.

Gunner sighed. She really was like a child. Then again, all men and women with this kind of temperament were practically just overly energetic children, but when they acted so as adults it made them seem like they had a 'fiery temper'.

However, Gunner didn't care about the feelings or life story of his enemy, he simply went back to stuffing his face as he waited. Eventually, he noticed that Kirstien woman had walked up to him to bow.

"Respected fighter, I'm in awe of your power. Please forgive my friend for her rash and inconsiderate demands. Please understand that she has never seen power nor skill at your level before, so she wanted to experience it for herself." Kirstien apologized sincerely.

Gunner paused his eating and acknowledged her apology. He was blunt and cold, but there was no need to be rude to the sincere, enemies or not.

"If possible, I would like to renew the bet she made. If you agree to fight her and she loses, you can have all her possessions as well as mine, but you'll owe us nothing if you lose. Now that there are no detriments for you agreeing to my friend's selfish request, will you still decline?" Kirstien questioned, not daring to look up.

"Oh?" Gunner muttered with surprise as he gulped Lunar Dew again. He then faced this woman seriously, happy that she was like the complete opposite of her friend, actually intelligent and astute.

"Hm, your terms are agreeable. Since I have to pass the time somehow, might as well indulge her. However, make sure she is ready, because even if I reduce myself to her level, I can't guarantee that I won't accidentally beat her to death." Gunner revealed with a smile.

As for whether they would pull any tricks, it wouldn't matter. Gunner was voluntarily lowering his level, not being forced to. He could raise it right back up in milliseconds to negate any sneak attack they might attempt.

Not only that, but he would only lower his Power and Speed. Why should he lower his 1,500 points worth of Constitution? THAT would be dumb.

Fergie heard what Kirstien said and raised her tear-stained face to gaze at the armored woman with surprise.

"Sister Kirstien…?" Fergie muttered with confusion.

Kirstien walked over and pulled her friend up to her feet, before she patted her down gently. "Fergie, I know how much you wish to increase your pugilistic skills, and he's about the best fighter you could ever ask for."

Kirstien pointed to the lax Gunner. "Now might be your only chance to learn something from him and if you're lucky, it might help you finally breach the wall that's holding you back."

Fergie still seemed surprised. "But to give up everything you own for me…"

Kirstien's eyes beneath her visor softened greatly. "I've been looking after you for so long, what's this small sacrifice anyway?"

Fergie was touched as she suddenly hugged Kirstien tightly, disregarding her armor. "Sob sob sob… Sister Kirstien is the best!!"

Kirstien rolled her eyes and patted Fergie's back. "Yes, yes."

Then, she muttered: "Besides, Fraterina only has two options, submit or die. If we submit, we, as well as all our possessions, technically belong to him and his backers, and if it's to die, well, our possessions would end up becoming his anyway."

Fergie froze then sighed. She remembered what was at stake here and wiped her eyes, thanking Kirstien solemnly. She then readied herself and got into a fighting stance 10 meters away from Gunner, her form experienced and professional.

Gunner, thanks to his level 100 Unarmed Mastery, level 100 Basic Martial Arts, and level 32 Intermediate Martial Arts, could tell that her stance was solid.

Those skills on his system interface weren't just there for the damage boosts, but they actually fed him a wealth of information about the subject area.