Cherreads

Chapter 6 - Don't Die Too Fast, Alright?

Noah took a few deep breaths to calm himself. Just who was the idiot that was trying to stop him from having his bath? His precious bath!

There was another knock on the door and he almost snapped, if not for his experience at controlling his emotions while doing business.

If this was just another noble trying to rope him into some kind of scheme, then he'll have to use his fists to send a message to both the person, and any other idiots who had the same idea.

Nothing made a statement more than a punch to the jaw.

He walked to the door and swung it open, only to see a nervous looking servant clutching a letter.

"A message for you, my lord." The servant said with a hurried bow before practically shoving the letter into Noah's hands and scurrying off.

Noah frowned, closing the door behind him as he tore open the wax seal.

The parchment was smooth, expensive, and carried the faint scent of lemons. But it was the message itself that told him whom it was from.

'You're welcome.'

That was it. Just two words, scrawled in an elegant but slightly chaotic handwriting.

Noah chuckled to himself. "Arlo."

The man had prepared this beforehand, using his simulations. This had to be the second freebie he'd been talking about.

He closed the door, and walked back into his room, turning the parchment this way and that, and finding nothing else on it.

"Is that it?" He murmured to himself.

Then the wall across from him shimmered.

At first, he thought his vision was playing tricks on him.

The stone surface rippled, like water disturbed by a breeze, and the light from the fireplace flickered unnaturally, sending the shadows dancing along the walls of the room.

Then, something stepped out.

The first thing he noticed was that it was tall. Too tall.

The monster unfolded itself unnaturally, as if it had been compressed into a space too small to hold it.

Its body was thin but twisted, dark flesh writhing like liquid shadows. Glowing red eyes locked onto him, unblinking.

A familiar stench of chaos emanated from it. The kind of chaos that Noah reveled in. And just like that, he could tell what it was.

An abyssal wraith.

He chuckled to himself. He'd been looking for something to test his strength against, and Arlo had brought it just for him.

"Perfect." Noah chuckled. Then, he disappeared.

A soft breeze swept through the room as Noah blurred forward, the grin on his face wide enough to split his cheeks.

The abyssal wraith hissed, its body billowing like smoke as it phased backward, passing through the wall behind it with no resistance.

"Aw, come on." Noah chuckled, rolling his shoulders. "Don't go ghosting me now."

He crouched low and leapt, not at the wall, but at the air just above it. His body twisted in mid-air, foot cocked back, and he slammed a heel drop straight down.

The shockwave cracked the stone beneath the wall.

The vibration rippled through the wall, disrupting the wraith just as it phased back through. It flickered, destabilized, and Noah landed directly on top of it with a knee to the face.

The creature shrieked, still more shadow than flesh, but the hit still landed.

"That's it." Noah said, eyes glowing faintly red. "You can feel pain. Good."

The wraith launched itself backwards, its body exploding into tendrils of smoke that swirled across the room. A dozen mist-like limbs darted out at once, aiming for Noah's eyes, throat, and chest.

He stepped between them like he was dancing.

One spin. One duck. A twist of his torso. Not a single thread touched him.

He caught one of the tendrils in his hand, gripping the black vapor like it was solid. The wraith shrieked again, its body crackling like static.

"Smoke tricks? That's kinda stupid, you know. Even an idiot wouldn't fall for that." Noah muttered, yanking it forward.

The wraith reformed in front of him just in time for Noah to slam a palm into its chest, sending it flying, but angled low, so it bounced off the bed's edge rather than crash into the walls.

The mattress dented, and the pillows flew. The sheets billowed up, but in the grand scheme of things, they all sustained little damage from the wraith's impact.

"I just got this room, buddy." Noah said, brushing his knuckles. "Try not to bleed all over the sheets."

The wraith screeched, its body reforming and stretching wider and taller. Black claws formed at the ends of its limbs, curved like sickles. Its torso split down the middle like a jaw, rows of red runes glowing inside it.

Then it vanished.

Noah narrowed his eyes, listening.

There!

He dropped flat to the floor, letting the wraith pass over him. Its claws grazed the tips of his hair, barely missing his scalp.

While still on the ground, Noah kicked his leg up with perfect timing, catching the monster under its spine and flipping it headfirst into the fireplace.

The flames erupted, licking the creature's body as it howled. Shadows shriveled, but it phased again, flickering out of the hearth and reforming near the desk.

Noah moved fast.

He was in front of the desk before the wraith fully formed. He grabbed the edge of the desk and slid under it, flipping his legs up and over, scissoring the creature's neck with both calves in midair.

Its body twisted, trying to phase, but it was too late.

Noah rotated, twisting in a perfect arc, and slammed the wraith into the wall, gently.

Just a shallow dent. No cracks and no collapse.

"If only you knew how considerate I'm being right now." He muttered through a grin. "Thank your stars that this is quite fun."

The wraith hissed again and tried to vaporize, but this time, Noah was ready.

He pressed both palms against the creature's shifting chest and forced his abyssal aura into it, just a flicker.

Not enough for Dragon's Roar, he was having the time of his life to mess it up with the nullification technique, but just enough to disrupt its phasing.

The wraith froze, stuck halfway between substance and mist.

"Whoops." Noah said, leaning forward. "Looks like you're stuck."

He pulled back his fist.

Twisted his hips.

And punched.

The punch landed like a silent thunderclap. All the force compressed and focused, with no wasted sound, and no shockwave to damage the furniture. Just power.

The wraith's body folded in on itself like wet paper, collapsing with a soundless implosion.

Then, it crumbled to dust.

Noah stood there, breathing lightly. His room was nearly spotless. The sheets were slightly wrinkled, there was one dent in the wall, and a scorched log in the fireplace, but it was better than a trashed room.

The fight had been quite fun. He'd have to send Arlo a gift basket later.

He turned toward the bathroom, rolling his neck.

"Now," he said, stretching his arms behind his head, "if anyone else interrupts my bath, I swear to whatever gods they serve, I'll actually use the roar."

And then, whistling softly, he disappeared into the bathroom.

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