Chapter 46
Alex who noticed a close range gun fight was useless, distanced himself from Lyner and started shooting at long range . Lyner who saw Alex changing tactics smiled, shooting at the same time as Alex . It was then that Alex saw something he has never seen before happen, right before his very eyes, the bullet he shot was deflected by another bullet . Alex was bewildered at what he had witnessed, but only for a moment and continued shooting . In a battle one mustn"t lose concentration even for a second . Alex started to a.n.a.lyze how Lyner was able to deflect bullets with bullets . When Alex finally came to a conclusion, he tried shooting and deflecting Lyner"s bullets as well .
Lyner seeing Alex copy his technique was getting even more excited, this was truly the fight he hoped for, a fight were the stench of death surrounded them . The fight with guns at hand felt endless, but even though the two"s stamina could last longer than most, their bullets couldn"t . The two had finally used up all their bullets .
"It seems like our marksmans.h.i.+p is about the same . Truly I"m surprised Alex, you"re practically at my level . Most probably the only reason you haven"t gotten to SS rank yet is because you"re too young and lack the experience . . . " Lyner started to ponder while facing Alex, as if showing he had room to spare . Alex didn"t really care for this gesture, this was clearly an act to lure him in .
"I don"t really care about that right now . How about you just admit defeat and become our adviser . " Alex calmly asked Lyner .
"And miss out on all this fun!?" Lyner attacked Alex while laughing joyfully .
Alex and Lyner started fighting but this time with their fists . The fight between the two made other hand to hand combat specialists look like they were just exercising . A punch, a kick, evading, deflecting, all there movements were precise, and left no room for mistakes .
Alex finally noticed that this old man called Lyner, is an equal to him in both speed and technique . If they fought like this it would take hours, and Alex would eventually lose the game of tag by default .
"It doesn"t seem like plan B will work either, time to initiate plan C . " When Alex was about to change strategies, something from the distance flashed, it darted pa.s.s Lyner .
BANG!
Lyner who was having the time of his life, while fighting Alex, finally noticed that a bullet had grazed his right shoulder . Between a fight of individuals with similar abilities, a moment"s distraction was fatal . Alex who saw an opening reacted quickly and was able to hit Lyner at his chin .
Lyner who was too slow to react smiled as his consciousness faded . "I forgot what it felt like to lose . . . It really isn"t that bad . " After that thought pa.s.s his mind Lyner fainted .
Alex looked at the direction where the shot came from, there he saw Oliver leaving the premise . He was at the sniping position Alex was at . "Oliver must"ve found my gun and waited for the perfect moment to shoot . As expected of him clean and efficient"
Alex saluted at Olvier .
. . .
Oliver was shocked that the gun was real . When he first saw it, he simply thought that it might be a replica, but when he pulled the trigger the recoil was too great to be a fake, and an actual bullet came out . He looked at where he fired the rifle at, there he saw Alex and Lyner, it seems like no one got hit . Oliver placed the rifle aside and retreated . As long as no one saw him it was alright he was safe, that"s what he thought . Oliver quickly left the rooftop, to escape the scene of the crime, but little did he know Alex already saw him .
. . .
Alex looked at the fallen Lyner and felt like the ending of this battle was a little bit anticlimactic . It wasn"t like Lyner was weak, in fact he was the strongest opponent he has ever faced, but he felt like a SS rank merc should have more to offer than this . When he was about to approach Lyner to pick him up, the unconscious Lyner stood up .
Lyner stood up as if he didn"t receive any damage from Alex"s strike, which made Alex"s perpetual poker face break a bit, it was seen by the widening of his eyes .
"Well that was fun . . . I guess I lost . . . Hm fine then, your group does interest me a great deal, so I don"t really mind being your adviser . " Lyner who started yawning told Alex his decision . Alex looked at Lyner a bit dumbfounded at how quickly he recovered .
"Sir . Lyner did you go easy on me?" Alex asked Lyner since this surely wasn"t all a Rank SS merc could do .
Lyner hearing Alex"s question shrugged his shoulders . "To tell you the truth, I haven"t had a real battle in ten years . The moment I became a Rank SS merc, I became something like a national treasure, so I couldn"t fight those of the same rank as freely anymore . A merc is suppose to do what he wants when he wants to, but the moment your rank increases you become like those boring soldiers, you gain shackles called your country . I haven"t been to the battlefield in a long time . Our fight is the first decent fight I had in years, so maybe I"m a bit rusty . "
"I see this was Sir . Lyner at his weakest state . . . Well I wasn"t really in my best state as well but the difference in experience is clear for anyone to see . . . So this is a Rank SS merc, I truly became too arrogant . . . What 100% completion rate? What youngest S cla.s.s mercenary? . . . I guess I"ll need to retrain my techniques and go back to the basics . " Alex solemnly swore to himself to become stronger . For some reason the faces of the members of the Mercenary Club, pa.s.s through his mind when he thought of becoming stronger .
Alex didn"t know why he thought of their faces, but for some reason Alex felt even more motivated now .