From Rags to God of War

A Fierce Battle

In the car, Nicholas was driving calmly. Suddenly, a violent jolt hit the car.

The car swerved, but Nicholas expertly gripped the wheel, controlling the vehicle to prevent it from spinning out and crashing into a tree. He slammed on the brakes, and the car screeched to a halt on the side of the road.

Isabella stumbled forward, her eyes wide with shock. "What was that?"

"It's nothing, stay calm." Nicholas showed no sign of panic. He glanced back, then checked the rearview mirror.

At that moment, a dark silhouette leaped from behind the trees and stood firmly in front of their car. An old figure in a gray cloak, his eyes glowing. It was Lord Gideon.

Isabella looked ahead, saw the figure, then turned to Nicholas, bewildered. "Who's that? Why is he here?"

Nicholas locked the car doors from the inside. "Listen to me, Isabella," Nicholas said, his expression turning serious. "You need to go home immediately. Don't worry about anything that happens here."

"But why?"

"Don't ask too many questions!" Nicholas cut her off. "I said go home. You have to leave. Now!"

"But—" Isabella tried to argue.

"No buts!" Nicholas asserted, his gaze sharp and commanding. "Go! I'll follow once everything is settled."

Without another word, Nicholas got out, closed the car door, and signaled Isabella to leave.

Nicholas turned to his phone. He sent an emergency signal, directly connecting to his highest-level security unit.

"Unit 7, activate Sierra emergency protocol. Priority one: protect Miss Isabella. Ensure she gets home safely. Report status immediately."

Lord Gideon gave a faint smile, his eyes watching Nicholas. "Secret security? Quite interesting. But what good is it when you're already here yourself?"

Nicholas slid his phone into his pocket. His face was now flat, showing no emotion. "I just wanted to make sure our show wasn't interrupted."

Lord Gideon gave a dry laugh. "Foolish boy. You think this is just a show?"

"You came for me, didn't you?" Nicholas countered.

Lord Gideon nodded. "If you're not a coward, follow me!"

Lord Gideon dashed forward. Nicholas didn't hesitate; he chased after Lord Gideon.

They were in an old, dilapidated building, shrouded in darkness, devoid of any living creatures.

Lord Gideon turned, facing Nicholas directly. The distance between them was about ten meters.

"Here, nothing can disturb my revenge."

Nicholas took a fighting stance, his feet firmly planted. "I'm ready."

Lord Gideon didn't wait. He launched the first attack. Without a sound, his hands extended, and an invisible wave of energy shot towards Nicholas. The wave carried immense pressure, causing the surrounding stones to crack.

Nicholas didn't dodge. He activated his own energy. His body was enveloped in a thin golden aura. He deflected Lord Gideon's attack with a single hand movement, diverting the energy wave to the side. The wave slammed into a cliff wall behind Nicholas, causing it to fissure.

"Strong enough," Lord Gideon murmured, his eyes narrowing. "But that's barely anything."

He leaped high, launching a spinning kick straight at Nicholas's head. The kick was accompanied by a sharp whistling of wind.

Nicholas ducked, narrowly dodging the kick. His body moved fluidly, like a dancer. He retaliated with a direct punch aimed at Lord Gideon's solar plexus.

Lord Gideon parried the blow with his palm. A powerful clash of forces erupted. Cracks began to spiderweb across the worn floor.

"You've got a lot of nerve fighting back, young one!" Lord Gideon snarled, his eyes blazing with fury. "This is payback for my son! You're going to pay dearly!"

Nicholas didn't respond. He simply attacked, without hesitation.

Lord Gideon returned every blow. He used ancient techniques that made the wind around them swirl violently. He conjured green orbs of energy that shot swiftly towards Nicholas.

Nicholas dodged, leaped, and parried. He used his foot to shatter one of the energy orbs, turning it into fragments of light that burst in the air.

Lord Gideon flinched. He hadn't expected Nicholas to last this long, let alone counter with such power.

Lord Gideon gathered all his energy. His body radiated a golden light. He dropped down, pressing both palms to the ground. The earth around them cracked even more severely, and a thick pillar of energy shot up from beneath Nicholas's feet, trying to strike him.

Nicholas leaped back. The energy pillar slammed into Nicholas's previous position, creating a huge hole in the wall.

"Enough games," Lord Gideon said, his voice cold and heavy. "I'll end this now." He conjured two spinning orbs of energy in his palms, one pitch black and one brilliantly white. Yin and Yang. The power was immense, making the air around them rumble.

Without further ado, Nicholas lunged forward. He charged at Lord Gideon with a powerful punch aimed at his face. The blow was so fast it created a whooshing sound in the air, making the wind roar wildly.

Lord Gideon was surprised. Nicholas's power far exceeded his expectations. However, he was a Demonic Sage. With agile movements unbefitting his age, Lord Gideon slightly tilted his head, narrowly avoiding Nicholas's punch which almost connected with his jaw.

The two energy orbs, pitch black and brilliantly white, which he had prepared in his palms, did not shoot forward.

Nicholas tried to break free from the black energy's grip, but the momentum of his body, pushed by the white energy from behind, was too strong. He stumbled forward. It was a fatal mistake. A wide opening appeared.

Lord Gideon seized the opportunity. A green flash shot from his hand. The energy orb transformed into a pure energy blade. In a fraction of a second, the blade swung.

ZZZHNNNGG!

The green energy blade slashed across Nicholas's back.

Not stopping there, Lord Gideon showed no mercy. He plunged his energy blade deeper, directly into Nicholas's heart.

Blood spurted.

"That's for my son!" Lord Gideon screamed, consumed by bitter vengeance. He pulled out his energy blade, leaving a gaping wound in Nicholas's chest.

Nicholas staggered, falling to one knee. His eyes widened, staring at Lord Gideon in disbelief. He tried to get up, gathering the last vestiges of his strength.

Suddenly, Nicholas felt all his energy drain away. His joints stiffened, his muscles loosened, and his consciousness began to dim.

Poison. Nicholas suddenly realized that the food Gilbert had prepared earlier contained a poison that was paralyzing his power.

Nicholas collapsed, slumping to the ground, his body going limp on the cold stones. Fresh blood continued to seep from his wounds.

Lord Gideon stood over him, his cloak flapping in the wind. His face was hard, triumphant. "I told you, you're going to pay dearly!" He raised his energy blade high, aiming it at Nicholas's neck.

"This is for my son! The King of Death."

Just as Lord Gideon's green energy blade was about to sever Nicholas's neck, a flash of light cut through the night, followed by a deafening gunshot.

BANG!

A bullet streaked at high speed, aimed directly at Lord Gideon's head.

Lord Gideon gasped. He hadn't expected anyone to dare interfere, let alone shoot from such a distance with deadly accuracy. With extraordinary reflexes, he spun his energy blade, parrying the bullet.

CLANG!

The bullet ricocheted, then pierced the wall behind him, leaving a small hole.

Several fully armed figures emerged. They were Martin and his team, Nicholas's secret security force, activated via the Sierra emergency protocol.

"Charge! Protect the General!" Martin shouted.

A rapid succession of shots flew from various directions, like a rain of bullets, targeting Lord Gideon.

Lord Gideon snarled. He was surrounded. His energy blade spun at insane speeds, deflecting every incoming bullet. The bullets ricocheted, shattered into fragments in the air, or bounced off in all directions without harming him.

"How dare you interfere!" Lord Gideon roared, his fury erupting. He conjured a wave of green energy that shot from his hand, slamming into several pillars that looked like they could bring down the old building.

Martin knew they couldn't wound Lord Gideon with regular bullets. "Unit Alpha, lay down suppressing fire! Unit Beta, secure General Nicholas and evacuate!" Martin yelled again.

The troops moved swiftly. Unit Alpha kept firing, keeping Lord Gideon busy deflecting. Meanwhile, Unit Beta darted towards Nicholas, who lay weak on the ground.

Two members of Unit Beta reached Nicholas. They immediately lifted Nicholas's slumped body, trying to carry him away.

Lord Gideon saw the movement. He knew Nicholas couldn't be allowed to escape. He lunged forward, weaving through the continuous gunfire, trying to block Nicholas's evacuation.

However, Martin had anticipated his move. He leaped, firing a small projectile containing special energy towards Lord Gideon. The projectile wasn't lethal, but it was enough to momentarily disrupt Lord Gideon.

THWACK!

The projectile hit Lord Gideon's chest, making him stagger slightly.

"Get out of here now!" Martin shouted to the evacuation team.

The two members of Unit Beta carried Nicholas away.

Lord Gideon tried to give chase. But Martin and Unit Alpha continued to block him, throwing various smoke grenades and other diversionary devices.

Finally, Lord Gideon lost track of Nicholas. And Martin's team.

"Damn them for interfering!" Lord Gideon muttered. That stab to the heart, though not immediately fatal, surely must have caused catastrophic damage to Nicholas.

"He was already paralyzed by that poison," Lord Gideon added, talking to himself. "And I stabbed him in the heart. He'll probably die any minute now. No one will be able to save him!"