Conquering His Cold Heart

Douglas, Ryuu, Bastion and Vaccos were once known as the [Guardians of ice] a B-rank adventuring party of impressive renown.

Of course they had split up and started following different paths over a decade ago, Douglas becoming the ruling Viscount, Ryuu a court mage, Bastion the guild master and Vaccos a spirit chef for the phoenix fledgling restaurant chain but even so their bond as sworn brothers remained. Douglas even gave his son, Leo the middle name Vaccos in honour of this bond.

However Vaccos was not supposed to be here, his master the owner and head chef of the phoenix fledgling restaurant chain called him back to the capital so as to avoid him being embroiled in this war.

Vaccos was now a chef, someone who relied greatly on his hands so he couldn\'t very well be risking them against monsters. It\'d be a little different if he used a weapon, but the mad iron chef only used his bare hands and legs when it came to combat, a crazy die-hard pugilist.

Him being here meant he either convinced his master to let him fight or that he directly disobeyed him with the latter being far more likely. However thanks to his timely arrival Bastion was saved, at least temporarily.

Don!

As Vaccos was holding onto Bastion\'s body and inspecting his injuries with great dedication, Kiba landed before the two of them with his fur standing on end and a difficult expression on his face. He was worried about Bastion and was sent to quickly retrieve him by Hamon and Douglas, but Vaccos caused his body to shiver the moment he laid eyes on him.

He felt that in the face of this man he was nothing but simple prey or rather an ingredient. Out of everyone here only Hamon gave him a similar feeling, Vaccos was strong, very strong.

Vaccos eyed Kiba before smiling in gentle manner and delicately placing Bastion upon his back, tucking the used vial into his pocket as he did. The medical staff would need to know the concoction he fed Bastion with after all.

"Take him to safety little tiger cub and leave the rest to me." As Vaccos spoke the rindar could be heard getting up after being smacked in the face with his foot.

Kiba looked at the rindar with a tinge of fear before nodding his head and carefully ascending into the sky.

A large ice serpent quickly fired off after Kiba the moment he turned his back, but Ryuu and Jessie were on it, swiftly conjuring their own fire bird and earthen salamander respectively.

Frostine now failed to snipe two B-rank enemy fighters, a failure he would remember come tomorrow.

"He should be able to live after taking the potion master gave me." The potion Vaccos force fed Bastion was a high level health potion that was of greater quality than the one Frost had taken a few months ago and should prevent the worst from happening. His master had given him that potion for emergency use only and specifically for HIM!

So when he finds out that Vaccos used it for another he\'ll be in a whole world of trouble. Not even the famous owner of the phoenix fledgling restaurant could easily get his hands on such high end products after all.

The matter of Bastion surviving was no longer an issue however even high level potions had their limits. The chances of the guild master ever being able to wield his axe in battle again weren\'t great, this fight would likely be his last.

The second rindar who had once again risen to his full 5 metre height towered over the well-built Vaccos with an expression of pure fury. His efforts and sacrifice over the past hour were all for naught, taken away at the last second by this damn interloper. His hatred for Vaccos was palpable and it caused the madness of the stampede to encroach his mind….

he was about to snap and fall into a bestial rage.

However Vaccos beat him to it. The gentle expression he showed Bastion swiftly changed back to one of untamed viciousness. The veins across his forehead and face bulged, then his skin turned red and emitted steam before his already gigantic frame grew in size. Vaccos had entered the berserk state, the penchant for his famous moniker, the mad iron chef.

In this berserk state Vaccos\' physical strength, speed and reaction times were all heightened to abnormal levels and his now red skin would give even monsters a run for their money in terms of defence. Even magic would seem to weaken within his presence, affected by the chaotic nature of the berserk state.

This was a very dangerous double edged sword that would rend one\'s wisdom and intelligence moot, turning them into battle crazed demons that knew no restraint. A state that would also gorge itself on the users stamina, sucking them dry in a matter of minutes.

Very few dared to ever use this technique due to its dangerous side effects however Vaccos was a very special case. His constitution allowed him to negate some of the harsh effects. He would retain control over his body and not lose himself in the madness. And unlike others he could enter and exit the berserk state freely especially if he was angry.

Plus with the combination of the mortal flame he fused with he became wreathed in red hot fire, enhancing his body even further.

A wild smile quickly adorned his face before Vaccos dashed ahead with his fist drawn back.

"[Tiger fist]" he attacked suddenly not giving the rindar even the slightest amount of time to react.

"Roar!"  A heavy fist wreathed in flames and supported by an illusionary tiger smashed against the rindar\'s chest causing him to cough and lower his head only to be met with the next strike of the tiger style, [Tiger uppercut].

What proceeded was the display of a large man wreathed in red flames beating down the rindar with his bare fists as if the B-rank monster was nothing but a helpless punching bag. Even when the rindar\'s eyes became completely red and bestial rage overtook him, Vaccos still smacked him around without mercy.

Every blow of his was aimed at the still in tact areas of the rindar\'s body, slowly but surely breaking every single inch of him as reprisal for putting his sworn brother in such a state.

For those watching it was genuinely hard to tell who was the monster as both entities appeared incredibly vicious. One was roaring as it got smacked around while the other laughed madly as it smashed apart its opponent\'s bones and burned off its scales, quickly becoming covered in the other\'s blood as it did.

Many older adventurers couldn\'t help but stare in awe and mutter "The mad chef returns" under their breaths as they were reminded of the events during their youth.

The mad iron chef, the berserk and insane adventurer who fought with his bare fists and was more of a monster than the monsters themselves. Only his three friends Douglas, Ryuu and Bastion could ever control that mad beast whenever he lost it. A young man with unrivalled potential and serious anger issues.

It had been a long time since the mad chef had been last seen in his berserk state, and whenever that happened it heralded rivers of blood.

"Reinforcements huh" Frostine spoke with a cold tone and narrowed eyes as he watched Vaccos destroy the last remaining B-rank on the battlefield.

"Yes sir according to the reports that man hasn\'t shown himself during the previous waves. He must have just arrived." Chaylen, Frostine\'s prime subordinate replied.

"No matter, a single B-rank won\'t make a difference though the festivities will be more enjoyable." Frostine smiled evilly, only slightly taken back by Vaccos\' intervention.

"Deal one last blow then pull us out for the night, let them rest a while and suffer in fear for tomorrow hehehehehe."

"As you wish Lord Frostine." Chaylen bowed in response before heading onto the field with a large contingent of magic wielding spirit monsters.

With the second rindar being taken care of Frost and the other elite fighters who could still fight worked with the frontlines to push back the onslaught of chaff.

The sudden addition of hard hitting forces nearly made the lines break but through the skin of their teeth they pulled through. Vaccos being the newest entry and least exhausted was the last the leave the battlefield. He watched Lord Frostine with a fiery gaze as he left the field, returning to the Northrend forest.

He felt unsettled by the smile on his face thus he remained on the field until the very last solider was safely back behind the tall walls of Furano. His tall fiery stature standing at the forefront of the battlefield created a powerful image for the severely weakened forces, allowing them to not succumb to the heavy losses.

His dragging of the horrifically beaten rindar corpse through the large gate certainly helped too. However it was clear that this last wave really, really did a number on them. Things were not looking good.