Reincarnated in the Astral World
Chapter 81: With The Fists

"I'm almost making it!!" Jovie maintains her act while rubbing her body against Arthur as much as possible, his scent driving her wilder.

"Really?" Arthur doesn't appreciate being tricked, but he can't really get mad at the girl since she's trying so hard. Yet, he lets her go and pushes her forward.

"Hey!" She turns around and shoots him an annoyed look. "I could have escaped if you gave me one more second."

As Oliver and his cousins laugh, Arthur shakes his head in disappointment. "Do you use that approach often?"

His question makes her blush a bit while she laughs shyly. "No one's been worth the try so far…"

Jovie can't fool Arthur's sharp eyes, but Oliver jumps into the arena to assist him. "Don't believe her! Jovie is a pervert; she's thirty but still acts like an innocent little girl…"

"You feline ball sucker!" She attempts to land a kick on Oliver but he easily dodges, pushing her out of the ring with a swift move.

Arthur can sense the difference between their auras, but since both are more than a whole Rank above him, he ends up relying on Nyx's magic senses to provide an accurate report on their cultivation:

Jovie is in the fourth Grade of the Elite Rank, being thirty years old, which makes her a noble with good talent compared to the average level of Lakeview, but certainly not among the best noble lineages of the Eldoria Continent.

The two younger cousins are also in the fourth Grade, one thirty-one and the other thirty-three, both with the same capabilities as Jovie. The third cousin is thirty-seven and is in the fifth grade of the Elite Rank, making him stronger and faster than the previous ones.

But the difference becomes quite significant when comparing Jovie with Oliver, who is thirty-four years old and is in the sixth grade of the Elite Rank. His potential is clearly related to him being born with a slightly purer Lineage compared to his cousins.

Yet, overall, that entire generation of Drummonds is already close to surpassing their parents even though they are considered young for being under fifty years old, undoubtedly due to all the resources their parents can now provide.

Oliver ignores Jovie's complaints and focuses on Arthur. "You're really impressive… Jovie went easy on you, but you're truly on the level of an Elite Warrior despite being a Mystic Fighter…"

"I've seen other Mystic Knights, but…" Oliver's eldest cousin comments, also impressed. "Doesn't your kind have to rely on using magic to overcome higher-ranked Warriors? Can you really be so fast and strong just like that?"

"You're not using magic, are you?" Oliver quickly asks.

'Damn!' Arthur feels cornered because he doesn't want to lie to the people who will be his allies during the fight, but he also can't explain that his body became so powerful due to sex with Margaret and Nyx.

"I haven't used magic so far," He speaks honestly. "I've started to study some basic things about it, but I don't know how to use spells that are useful in combat yet."

Oliver and his cousins become even more impressed with Arthur.

"Your lineage must be incredibly pure."

"Yeah, I've never seen anything like it…"

"Such a genius, huh? Oliver must be jealous now, hehee…"

Oliver ignores the comments while concentrating on Arthur. "I thought I would be the strongest in our group, but now I'm not so sure; we'll have to replace out, alright?"

Arthur becomes excited about the fight again since Oliver is obviously stronger than Jovie. "Sure,"

Oliver removes his belt with the scabbard and sword and tosses it to Jovie, who catches it in the air. "Better not to have weapons nearby while we fight seriously," He comments, and Arthur does the same, tossing his sword to Jovie.

"Also, Arthur, give it your best because I won't go easy," Oliver speaks in a friendly and excited tone as he gets into a fighting stance, with his legs slightly bent and his hands in fists.

"My best, hmm?" Arthur can't help but wonder about how his best potential is limited to the use of a blade to access his Intent. Yet, Liam also knew how to handle himself well with fists and feet, so that technique is still within him as Arthur.

"Yeah," Oliver wastes no time, advancing with an agile and light step, *Swoosh,* He punches forward with his right arm.

Arthur sees Oliver's movements, which are faster than Jovie's, but he still manages to dodge the punch with ease.

"Good reflexes!" Oliver praises but launches another punch immediately, this one with more speed, *Whoosh* *Swoosh,* Arthur needs to use his senses and agility to the maximum to dodge Oliver's consecutive punches, which seem to move faster and faster.

'He's so fast!' Arthur manages to match Oliver in speed, but the guy appears well-skilled with his fists, making Arthur struggle to predict all his movements.

*Whoosh* *Whoosh*

Arthur continues on the defensive, just dodging the punches while trying to understand Oliver's technique, but as soon as he feels confident enough to try a counter-attack, Oliver replaces an opening and lands a punch on Arthur's face,* Bam*

Arthur feels the impact of Oliver's fist on his cheek, a medium pain echoing through his skull; he's dazed for a second and pushed back.

"SHIT!" Oliver quickly advances and catches Arthur's arm before he hits the ropes at the edge of the arena. "I'm sorry, Arthur, I had to push my body to the limit and couldn't hold back my strength."

Arthur tastes the metallic tang of blood inside his mouth due to a small cut. Yet, to him, that pain is nothing, just a scratch compared to the brutal training with the Bloody Golems at home.

"I'm fine," he wipes the drop of blood trickling from his lips while smiling at Oliver. Nice hit; you have good technique."

"Good technique?!" Jovie exclaims sarcastically. "Oliver goes around showing off a fancy sword, but his favorite ones are fist weapons!"

His cousins nod. "That's why Aunt Josephine insisted that the duels be unarmed; yeah, no noble under fifty in Lakeview can beat Oliver in a fistfight without using magic."

"Ohh," Arthur looks at Oliver with an enthusiastic expression. "Your mother is really smart."

"Hahaha…" Oliver laughs proudly. "The old woman has her tricks, but I still had my doubts; after all, we will have to face many strong opponents… however, now that I see how you also seem to handle well with your fists, I think we can't lose."

"I see," Arthur surprises the group by starting to remove his tunic and shoes, keeping just his shirt and shorts. "But I haven't shown my best yet… It's been a while since I fought only with my fists, and these clothes were getting in the way,"

He quickly stretches his arms and legs, making Oliver and his cousins, especially Jovie, once again impressed with his appearance. 'Damn, he's so hot!!!' The girl gets wet really fast.

Oliver stops envying Arthur's body and also gets ready. "Now, shall we go all out?"

"I guess so," Arthur flexes his neck side to side, making low *crack* sounds; now that he has an idea of Oliver's strength and skill, he can go all out.

"Let's go!" He dashes toward Oliver, using his agility to the maximum, *Whooosh!*

"Fuck-!" Oliver barely has time to react, but his reflexes in such a style of combat are exceptionally good, and he manages to dodge at the last second.

*Whoosh!* Arthur follows up with a series of punches, pressing Oliver just like the guy did to him before. Oliver remains on the defensive for only a few seconds before getting hit in the face by Arthur, *Bam*

Unlike Arthur, Oliver goes directly to the floor, leaving the spectators with widened eyes.

"Oi, oi, are you alright?" Arthur quickly extends a hand to Oliver, helping him to stand up.

"Yeah!" Oliver spits out a bit of blood, but his expression is happy and excited. "Damn, boy, you have an amazing technique, too!"

"Haha," Arthur laughs, but in reality, he's adapting his technique to a non-lethal form because all of Liam's movements were intended to kill.

"Let's continue," Oliver gets into a fighting stance again and signals for Arthur to attack.

*Whoosh* Arthur goes all out, and they start exchanging rapid punches and kicks. Jovie and the other spectators can hardly follow their movements with their eyes and only understand what's happening when one of them hits the floor.

Both Arthur and Oliver fight without holding back, landing brutal hits on each other, but at the same time, they seem to enjoy it a lot and continue for half an hour non stopping.

Both end up sitting in the arena, breathing heavily with faces and chests dirt with blood. But while Oliver has several purple bruises on his skin, Arthur's body looks perfect, except for a few small cuts on his lips and eyebrows.

They look at each other, and Oliver starts to laugh. "Hahaha... those trashes stand no chance; we're going to destroy them!"

Arthur laughs, too, excited to face someone he actually wants to hurt. "Fighting like this isn't bad…"

He's fine, not minding the slight pain in his body, but Oliver quickly accepts some pills that Miriam, his cat-girl maid, brings for him, along with a bottle of water and a clean towel, which she gently uses to clean his face.

Seeing that scene, Jovie also grabs the same things and approaches Arthur with an expectant expression. "Can I take care of you?"

"Thanks," Arthur isn't upset by the girl's attempt to help him, but he still avoids her 'help' and goes to one of the many bathrooms in the house, where Nyx heals his wounds with kisses and love juices.

Afterward, he returns to the patio and starts working on strategies with Oliver and the others. The atmosphere is friendly and exciting, so the group doesn't even notice the hours passing until sunset…