Page 107 of The Anointed's Paladin

I charged forward and sank my sword deep into her chest. The golems dissolved into dust.

She collapsed with a hiss, transforming into a cloud of mist that retreated out of the window. Fuck. Well, Kaine did say that she was slippery.

That just left Lydes.

He straightened, brandishing his hammer as his eyes locked on to mine.

We circled each other, and with a petty twinge of satisfaction, I noted I was taller than him. I twisted forward in a solid strike, aiming for his torso. He deflected my sword with a twist of his hammer. I barely had time to lift my shield before he was turning for another blow. He was panting, though, already worn from his previous fight, while I had never felt better.

“Come here, devil. Let me have the satisfaction of cracking your skull beneath my hammer,” he snarled.

I bared my teeth at him. He was almost in front of some broken floorboards, and he didn’t seem to be paying much attention to his surroundings. I wondered how often he fought in hand-to-hand combat.

“I think, when I leave here, I’ll designate enferni as abominations, in the same class as other monsters. My Paladins will slay your people on sight,” he said, a sickening gleam in his eye.

I pushed down my response, trying to focus on strategy.

One more step, and I lunged forwards. He parried my swing, but stepped backwards as he did so, right onto the unstable ground. He twisted, trying to find his footing, but a dagger plunged into his side, and he fell, snarling. Kaine materialised, darting backwards for a second before he was gone again.

“It seems I am to be plagued with all manner of depraved creatures in this accursed tower. No matter. It will bring me great pleasure to erase your existence from this plane,” he said.

While his attention was on Kaine, I struck again, and he was forced to meet my blade with his hammer. I winced internally. That wasnotgood for my blade. We were locked together, and sweat was pouring down my back.

Come on,I thought as Lydes slowly pushed forwards.

His eyes widened as Kaine landed on his back. Kaine’s eyes were narrowed as he held on tight, dagger slicing through Lydes’ neck. Lydes sank to his knees, hammer falling to the ground with a heavy clang. His form paled, then disintegrated to dust, falling into a pile on the floor.

I panted, staggering to the side and gripping a desk for support. I gritted my teeth and used the last of my energy to patch up my wounds.

Kaine sat in Lydes’ pile of dust and leaned back, resting against a pillar. He snorted, then gave a dry chuckle.

“What?” I asked, standing upright.

“Look who’s decided to join in,” he said, nodding to the stairs.

Nidori was in the doorframe, drenched in sweat and a furious expression on her reddened face. She was breathing heavily and leaning on the frame.

She sank to the ground. “I came… up… all those… stairs… and you’redone?”she managed to say.

I walked over to her, scooping her up and pressing a kiss to her forehead. She crossed her arms, sulking. She had a nasty gash on her arm, which I patched up with some healing.

“Let’s not climb that many stairseverfucking again.” She groaned, resting her head on my shoulder.

“We did it,” I said, kissing her again on her damp forehead.

“Not yet,” Kaine said. “Given all that’s just happened, I’m not celebrating until Cirae is here.”

“No, don’t call them yet.” Nidori slipped out of my hands and grabbed my arm, looking at me pleadingly.

I met her gaze.

“Nidori, the relic is a baby,” I said softly. “We can’t leave it here.”

She craned her neck, finding the pod in the centre of the room. “Oh,” she said, stepping towards it, eyes softening. Then she glanced back at me, eyes wide.

“Anyway, I found my oath,” I said.

She brightened. “Really?”

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