Chapter88

A Knight's Death
Gazel didn't give the monster a second to breathe. He launched himself forward, the gold light of the Sovereign's Brand trailing behind his blade like a searing comet that tore through the light of the clearing.
The sword collided with the monster's arm in a spray of blinding sparks, the sound ringing out like a massive hammer striking a cathedral bell.
He didn't let the impact stop him, instead twisting his body in mid-air to deliver a flurry of strikes that forced the monster to retreat, its arms moving in a desperate blur to keep up with the golden assault.
'He's actually pushing it back,' Didi thought, her eyes wide as she watched the golden flashes carve through the air. 'I've never seen him fight like this. Not once in all the years he's guarded me.'
The monster laughed, the sound a low, guttural rumble that shook the very dirt beneath their boots. It swung a massive claw in a wide, sweeping arc, but Gazel slid under the attack with a precision that seemed almost supernatural, driving his blade upward and leaving a glowing, golden gash across the creature's ribs.
The monster hissed, stepping back and staring at the wound. The gold light of the Brand continued to sizzle against its skin, eating away at the dark matter.
"Interesting," the monster murmured, its voice dripping with a new kind of curiosity. "You're not just a vessel for the Brand, you've actually refined the frequency. You're trying to synchronize your soul with the royal resonance."
He didn't respond, instead pivoting on his heel and launching another strike that slammed into the monster's shoulder.
The force of the blow created a visible shockwave, sending a wall of dust and shattered stone rippling outward, nearly knocking Didi off her feet.
'Is he going to win?' She wondered, her breath hitching as she watched the golden light flare. 'Could he actually kill this thing?'
The fight became a blur of gold and obsidian. Gazel was a whirlwind of motion, his sword singing as it carved arcs of light into the monster's hide. He used the environment to his advantage, leaping off a fallen trunk and bringing his blade down in a crushing overhead strike that cracked the ground upon impact.
The monster began to enjoy it, blocking strikes with a smug expression, its claws clashing against the gold steel in a rhythmic, metallic thunder.
It was playing with him, testing the limits of the Sovereign's Brand, fascinated by the way the human's power spiked and dipped.
But Gazel was pushing himself further than he ever had. His breathing was ragged, and the gold lines on his face were glowing so brightly they almost looked like they were burning into his skin. 
He channeled everything into one final, desperate sequence, his sword becoming a streak of pure light as he delivered a series of rapid-fire thrusts that forced the monster back toward the edge of the clearing.
For a moment, it looked like the tide had turned. The monster was on the defensive, its skin covered in glowing gold scratches.
Then, the monster's expression shifted. The amusement vanished, replaced by a cold, flat void that made the air in the clearing feel like it had frozen solid.
"Enough," it said.
The monster blurred the moment it finished speaking. Gazel barely caught the movement, turning his shoulder while a claw missed his throat and scraped across the Brand instead.