The Growth of a Titan

Chapter 14: Chapter 14- The Black Bracelets

The male paladin immediately made a quick second decision to abandon his long sword and block Sol's fist with his forearm.

However, the fist never came. Instead, Sol's right foot impacted the man's side that was left wide open when he raised his hand.

The man's body slammed against the wall from the force of Sol's kick, causing the thick stone wall to crack.

"Ugh…"

The male paladin release a groan, he wasn't dead yet. However, through the blood running from his head, he saw Sol's foot closing in on his face.

BANG!

With a loud bang, Sol's foot crushed the male paladin's skull against the wall. Not able to handle the second force, the thick stone wall crumbled to reveal the interior of a simple family home.

"Bastard!!"

Swoosh!

The female paladin was already upon Sol, and with a flick of her hand, a golden whip lashed out at him.

Sol reacted quickly by shifting his body out of the way, but the whip still managed to catch him; tearing the clothes on his chest and leaving a thin line of blood on his pale skin.

Sol stumbled back a few steps before looking up from the wound at the female paladin with a solemn expression.

The female paladin was using her Holy Energy to form the whip. This was out of Sol's expectations, he thought she was merely a sword user judging by the long sword on her waist.

Swoosh!

Swoosh!

The female paladin's whip was extremely fast as she expertly maneuver it in this narrow alleyway to attack Sol.

The advantage young Sol had of fighting these grown adults in this narrow space was now gone.

"You fucking brat, I'll definitely skin you alive!"

The female paladin showed a malevolent expression as she bombarded Sol with her whip.

And what was worse...

Swoosh!

Screech!

Even the thick walls of the alleyway were sliced apart by her.

But Sol could only dodge in this situation. He tried to get close to her multiple times, but her whip was just too fast and she completely refuse to allow him to get close.

'I can't keep dodging like this.'

Even though Sol was able to read the female paladin's movements and dodge the fast whip successfully, this situation was bad for him.

There was a time limit on how long he could remove the bracelet before it became too much for his body to handle. Even as he continue to doge, he could feel the toll on his body increasing.

Sol's speed lessen as a result and this caused the female paladin's whip to leave several thin bloody lines across his body.

If only he could close the gap, Sol was confident he could beat her.

The male paladin form before was the strongest of the two and was even slightly strong than the leader Sol faced before. That's why he made sure to deal with him first.

However, this female paladin was slightly weaker than the leader.

'I just need to be faster than her whip, to get close.'

Sol thought as he continue to dodge the female paladin's whips.

Suddenly, hesitation appeared in Sol's eyes. Though it was only there for a brief moment as he saw Amon huddle up in the corner trying to avoid the female paladin's whip.

Sol gritted his teeth and made a decision.

'Maybe my bones won't break this time.'

Sol thought in his heart as retreated back from one of the female paladin's attacks, but his foot suddenly faltered.

The female paladin who was continuously attacking Sol narrowed her eyes at this, then...

Swoosh!

Her whip suddenly increased in speed aiming to replicate what she did to the wall to Sol's face.

The female paladin had been hiding a portion of her strength and was waiting for an opportunity to strike. She was no weaker than the leader!

It was Sol's miscalculation. He could only watch as the female paladin's whip swiftly approached his face. With this attack, Sol would surely die or at the very least become severely injured and disfigured.

However, Sol's panic demeanor suddenly fell as he stomp down on the ground.

The ankle bracelet on his left foot detached, while at the same time the whip struck his face. However, the golden whip merely passed through his body.

"Damn it!"

The female paladin cursed.

Despite being so careful, she was too eager to end this fight that she took the first chance she got when Sol made a mistake. However, it was a trap.

'Who is this kid? Speed, power, combat instincts. This kid is a monster.'

The female paladin could not help but have her heart quiver because even among the disciples from her Seven Great Churches similar in age, this child would be head and shoulders above everyone in terms of raw talent.

However, she quickly threw all her thoughts to the side and focused after having lost track of Sol.

'Even if he's a monster for his age, he's still just a kid. I'll kill him before he grows too much.'

The female paladin thought as she looked around the alleyway for Sol, however, she realized that his presence had completely vanished.

"W-What?"

Above the female paladin, Sol suddenly appeared; crouching on the wall as if he was on solid ground.

The power currently overflowing in his body leaked from his eyes in the form of a sinister dark glow, as well as from his mouth in the form of steam.

Sol seemed to resemble an untamed beast as he pounced towards the female paladin.

"You-!"

The female paladin's senses were sharp. She quickly turned around and lashed out with her whip, but Sol's figure faded away as the whip passed through him once again.

Sol then appeared behind the female paladin, and being unable to react to this level of speed, the female paladin was helpless as Sol's fist slammed into her back.

The female paladin's armor did nothing big to weaken the force of the blow as it simply passed through it to rattle her body. With a loud bang, the female paladin's body was blown through the thick stone wall.

The force of Sol's attack was evidently more powerful than before, so she was likely dead with that one blow. However, after Sol made the attack, his body suddenly jolted. He then released a scream filled with agony and fell onto his back.

The pain Sol was feeling was familiar but it was not pain he could get used to. It was akin to having his bones hammered with a thousand-pound force, while his skin and muscles slowly peeled away layer by layer.

'I need… I need to put on back the bracelets.'

Even though Sol had this thought, the pain was too much for him to even move.

These bracelets were something Sol had worn ever since he could remember.

His father told him never to remove them under any circumstances, but if he had to, he should release the number of bracelets his body could handle.

After training with his father, Sol managed to remove two under his father's supervision. But afterwards, almost every bone in his body had either been broken or fractured.

The fact that he was fine relative to that time three years ago, means he had made significant improvements. But even with those improvements, the backlash that taking off two bracelets had on his body was still mind-numbingly painful.

But even feeling like he was being skinned alive wasn't what Sol considered truly painful about this, rather it was the pain that was coming from between his brows; a place where his father said his soul was located.

At that place currently, a faint outline of a crescent-moon tattoo could be seen. It was pulsating slightly with a dark glow, but with each pulse, the tattoo would become clearer and the pain from his soul would increase.

At the same time, odd golden inscriptions appeared on the bracelets on his wrists and began flickering like crazy.

As this was happening to Sol, in the sky above the village, beyond human sight. Han Min could be seen floating across from Bishop Adalhard. The two had been fighting for less than an hour but the power difference couldn't be more clear.

Bishop Adalhard's clothes looked unruffled and a dark halo pulsate around his body. This was Holy Energy, though of a different more sinister kind.

One could still see the golden color of his original Holy Energy mixed inside, but those little specs would soon become dark as well.

"Are you convinced now? My power is slowly becoming close to an Archbishop's thanks to taking over this village. After I kill you and complete my mission, I will surely be appointed to the rank of Archbishop by the Cardinal."

Adalhard then released a laugh after saying that.

As for Han Min's current condition, he was currently three meters tall, and though his size looked imposing, with him missing an arm while a huge hole was in his chest, he looked rather weak and frail.

But despite his current condition, his expression was extremely tranquil for some reason. He wasn't even paying attention to Adalhard, something seemed to have drawn his attention making him look down.

Han Min's gaze was like a magnifier as it zoomed in on the ground below; stopping on Sol in the alleyway. Han Min then frowned when he saw his son's condition.

'You brat, I thought I told you not to take off the bracelets unless you're confident you can put them back on?'

Sol who was gritting his teeth in pain, suddenly heard his father's voice in his head scolding him.

With a dumbfounded expression, Sol momentarily forgot the torture-like pain he was feeling as he crooked out.

"D-Dad?"