‘This will be hard.’
Although the man’s level was close to that of the cult leader I've defeated earlier, similar or slightly higher than Zod, the situation wasn't good.
‘At least two mastered attack skills. A movement skill similar to Bern. And that weapon…’
The asymmetric dual-headed glaive, made from some durable metal - the color of which I couldn't discern through my Arcane Sense - didn't have a strict advantage over my sword, yet it definitely had its trade-offs.
The defensive capabilities were clearly superior.
While it couldn't deliver a powerful strike at its maximum reach, the enemy had a Skill to make up for that.
If I stepped too close to deliver my attack, the scar-faced man could create counterattack opportunities with relative ease.
Above all else, there was the fact that he clearly had experience in this type of matchup - glaive vs greatsword - while my experience was basically nonexistent.
Actually, I could tell his combat experience was high, in general. Very high.
To add to that, his earlier Skills demonstrated the fact that his Strength was in the 2nd realm, perhaps slightly above mine, and his reaction speed was evidence of his 2nd realm Agility.
Given his level and physical constitution, I could safely assume the similarly named Attribute was in the 2nd realm, too.
‘Very fucking hard.’
I couldn't kite him; I had no physical advantage; Even if I had any useful magic, my arcane reserves were far too low.
I had full potion fatigue.
The only clear advantage was…
‘The sphere.’
And yet, I decided to wait before using it. The man's belt was far from empty – there could yet be potions or contraptions there that could help him overcome the darkness, just like with Zod.
“Not going to come, brat?”
While I was trying to find the path with the highest likelihood of victory, the two of us have been circling each other for over 10 seconds now.
We both knew how unforgiving every exchange was promising to be.
“Then let me come to you!”
He finally stepped forward, cautiously, but steadily, switching his grip to a thrusting one. He must have finished an assessment of his own.
Tzang!
There were no Skills yet – only a collision of two blades, one in my hand, the other at the end of his shaft, spanning over half a meter, curving forward, thick and wide like a butcher’s cleaver.
I did not apply too much strength – as expected, the enemy’s blade recoiled backwards and to the right with ease, as the bottom blade changed towards the left side of my torso from below.
I stepped back, twisting my sword to meet his blow. However, as his bottom blade slowed down, I could already tell it would only lightly tap my blade. I also noticed the Skill-induced fluctuations, starting to form on the other side of his weapon.
[Charge] ~
On instinct, I used the lightest version of my movement Skill, while raising my sword back to my right side.
Tang!
The speed of his blade was faster than my Charge, yet, our blades only met for a moment before I moved out of the range of his downward slash, stopping behind his right flank.
The blow itself was heavy enough to hurl my blade towards my right shoulder, painfully hitting it with its broad side.
Turning around, I saw the man already turning as well, with around 4 meters between us.
‘How do I turn this around?..’
While I didn't see the current situation as desperate, it was pretty bad, and I still couldn't see a way for it to not get worse.
“You’ve got some moves kid – for someone who’s still wet behind the ears.”
“I can show you a few more if you come closer.”
We were both circling each other, the distance between us slowly shrinking. It seemed neither of us wanted to risk dashing forward first.
“Ha! If you insist!”
The distance between us was now close enough for him to step forward, swinging his glaive. My sword rose to meet it.
Clang!
The other side came from below – this time, it was too close for me to block with my sword. However, it was also close enough to deliver a precise kick to the upper half of the shaft with my left leg, stopping the weapon's momentum. I used the momentary support to take a step forward, and, at the same time..
[Arc Slash] !
Tzzng!
The middle of the shaft rose to meet my strike, as the enemy used the force of the impact to leap farther back.
“What strange style… Hey, did you also drop out of the Royal Academy?”
Although neither of us lowered their weapons, still looking for opportunities to pounce forward, his voice suddenly gained a measure of interest.
“The hell are you yapping about?”
“The way you swing your sword between the Techniques. I swear on my mother’s grave, I’ve seen something like it back THEN!”
The man surged forward again thrusting his glaive towards my abdomen. The arcane particles around the tip were shifting. I took a small step to the right, shifting my sword into a near-vertical, using the blade to divert his strike. However, he didn’t step back – rather, he continued forward!
His blade at the end of his glaive was now slightly behind me, the shaft pressed against my blade.
“This-”
He launched a kick towards my right knee. I was forced to leap back – however, as I did, he exerted even more force on his weapon, as the shaft reached the left side of my torso. He then pulled back the weapon with all his strength.
“-is-”
The blade tore through my already-battered leather armor. The steel links of my chainmail managed to mitigate most of the cutting force, yet the weapon still managed to tear through them near the very end of its withdrawal, leaving a shallow cut.
“-how we fight in the real world!”
The man leaped back, satisfied with his small victory. Had he left the blade close, intending to pierce my abdomen, I would have rushed forward, striking at his exposed front, yet, he left me no such opportunity.
I didn’t answer, as our slow dance continued.
“I’ll admit, though – the way you fight feels too strange for that. Not academic. Not truly. Like you’ve been forced onto the streets after a few years with your private instructor.”
“I’m from Luskar, you idiot.”
“Ha! Quite careless for a spy.”
“Shut up. I’ve got my permit – there’s only one criminal here.”
“Hahaha!”
Despite his laughter, his stance still showed me no openings.
“Just by being here, you’ve already violated two city laws. One major law, at least. Unless you’re gonna spew some bullshit about a sanctioned mission?”
No reply followed, as the man was within striking distance once again.
Clang!
I tried to strike with enough force to tear the shaft out of his hands, or, at least, send him reeling to the side, yet his grip was simply too strong. Instead, I found myself getting pushed back, having to dodge, then block, yet another pair of strikes from two angles.
This time, he didn’t retreat – rather, as both of his hands still shifted the shaft’s angle, he pressed against the blade one more, pushing it farther towards my legs, while jumping to my right.
Rather than [Charge] left or jump forward, leaving myself open to a spinning strike from behind, I thrust the tip of my sword into the stone, simultaneously letting go of the hilt with my right hand, and grabbing the shaft as well.
Pouring all my strength, with my arm closer to the top than his, I managed to stop his swing in its infancy. However, the situation became very awkward. And I could only see it getting worse.
He tried to bring the bottom of the shaft back, to strike me with its free end.
clang!
I had no choice but to release the grip on my sword completely, grabbing his weapon with both hands.
“You’ve got some guts, kid!”
Thump!
His right knee launched forward, aiming between my legs. My left knee rose to block it, as the impact sent a painful pulse through my bones. As he pulled, we came closer, our faces inches from each other’s.
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“Ha!”
Cling!
We both brought our heads forward at the same time, our helmets colliding. My head jerked backwards, as my thoughts became a mess for a moment. And yet, my hands were gripping the shaft like my life depended on it – because it did.
“Uhaa!”
He tried to shake me off, pushing the weapon down, then pulling it upwards with all his strength. At that moment, my instincts saw a tiny opening – there was enough distance between us for me to instantly launch a kick to his stomach.
As he brought his own knee up to defend, I instantly let go of the shaft. His own pull was too strong to swing the weapon at me at the fraction of the moment before my foot connected with his kneepad.
The force of the strike, coupled with his one-legged stance, sent him tumbling backwards, and allowed me to leap back at the same time, picking up my sword before he could fully recover his footing.
“Ha ha ha!”
Despite the minor loss, it looked like he was enjoying the fight to its fullest.
“If you weren’t a hidden prince, I’d consider inviting you to the Gray Syndicate.”
“A hidden what now?..”
“Ha! Don’t bullshit me. Someone your age, with this training and equipment? Although, I doubt you’re an actual prince – those stuck-up royals would never send their precious litter alone on such a journey. Maybe some of those stone hearted bastards in Brasstoria, or the battle maniacs from Graygate.”
“...did that headbutt give you brain damage?"
“Ha! Sounds like something a hidden prince would say!”
Quietly shaking my head, I focused on the battle, instead. However, rather than coming closer, the scar-faced man was actually stepping farther away.
“Finally had enough?”
In truth, I’d much rather go help Xin, wherever he was now. However, this fight was starting to look like something that would drag on for some time.
“Not quite. But, there’s fun, and then there’s work. And it’s high time I got back to my job.”
I noticed his knees were bent in a similar manner to his earlier leap – which, although it came from behind that time, I managed to ‘see’ through my Arcane Sense.
However, as I got into a pre-[Charge] position, I noticed him take his left off the shaft, and reach for something that looked like a sphere with a rod at its center.
“It’s been a good fight, hidden prince.”
He raised the artifact, pointing the rod towards me. A fraction of a moment later, before I could even think of dodging, I felt something ‘tag’ me within the Tides.
“A shame it has to end like this.”
I felt the sphere pulsate with invisible energy, as his finger withdrew from what must have been a button at its back. A moment later, he tossed it into the air above his head.
The sphere shattered into tiny pieces, and from within, two balls of violent arcane energy soared towards my chest.
At the same time, I could see him still ready to leap, likely timing his arrival a few moments after the ‘Arcane Missiles’, or, alternatively, ready to follow my own charge, and leap again after I’m hit, regardless.
‘Don’t stop me this time.’
‘Is this a joke?’
I could no longer afford to hide it.
[Arc-Slash] !
The strike was quick enough to hit both accelerating projectiles – the first one with the tip, the second one with the blade near the sword’s base.
P-pop!
Both projectiles were destroyed by the adamantium sword, popping like overly-inflated balloons.
“...”
I was expecting ‘scar-face’ to jump by now, ready to dodge to the side, yet, despite my anticipation, no attack came.
“Well, gods be damned.”
Instead, what came was a cry of disbelief.
“Bloody hells. You actually were a hidden prince!”
“Maybe I’m just a Spellblade who enchanted his sword?..”
“Fat bloody chance!”
There was genuine glee in the man’s voice.
“Kid… Thanks to you, I can finally retire from all this shit.”
“Aren’t you getting ahead of yourself?”
“How about this?”
Ignoring my words, he decided to give me a ‘proposition’.
“I’m sure your family would pay a hefty fee for your sound return. If you surrender now, I’ll let you keep your life.”
“I don’t have a bloody family!”
The man’s expression turned solemn.
“Denying it to the end, are you? Very well… I wouldn’t enjoy an unearned retirement, anyway.”
He raised his glaive, displaying the intention of downward strike.
“Let's end this, kid.”
My sword getting pulled farther back to my left was the only answer he needed.
[Leap] !!!
[Charge] !!!
I didn’t charge directly at him – rather, we were each at the others right flank.
[Arc… Slash] !!!
[Power Strike] !!!
The weapons collided mid-swing. In the fraction of a moment before they met, I noticed my blade was glimmering with faint red energy, just like his was.
CL-BOOM !!!
The impact, and the resulting mini-explosion caused by the collision of two maxed-out Skills, halted most of my forward momentum, sending me flying to the left, barely holding on to my sword.
At the same time, the glaive’s main head broke off, flying into the darkness, and the man wielding it had his trajectory altered, as well.
However, perhaps due to him being airborne, or the torn-off weapon head lessening the impact, as my back hit the floor, and began sliding, he had already landed on his feet, and began turning around.
Before I could use my rattled arms to bring myself back up, he was already leaping towards me in a higher arc, his weapon raised high, ready to descend onto my chest.
In a split-second decision, I raised my sword towards him. The lengths of the weapons were similar now – if he chose to bring his glaive down, he’d get impaled, as well.
A moment before landing…
Tang!
He struck my blade with the secondary head of his weapon with all his might, while simultaneously shifting his grip on the shaft – which was now aiming at my neck!
The moment I felt the impact, I let go of the sword once more, raising my hands, and pushing the metal rod farther up with all my strength.
Ding!
“Gh!..”
The shaft grazed my helmet, as the man landed on top of my stomach with one knee. A moment later, I felt his grip on the weapon weaken, as his right hand rose up.
This was also when I finally took note of a previously irrelevant detail – just like my boots, the upper side of his gloves, near the knuckles, was lined with a metal strip.
Bong!
At the last moment, I released my left hand’s grip as well, raising the shield on my forearm to block his blow. My forearm buckled, pressing against my helmet and face. Beyond the blunt pain, I also felt the already-damaged metal bending inwards, starting to press against the area where my earlier wounds were.
“Ha!”
He had already withdrawn his arm, preparing to launch another punch.
I swung my arm outwards with all my strength, intending to swat his away. However, he delayed his striking for a moment – then, he opened his palm, pressing my arm against the ground.
His other arm released the grip on his glaive completely. For one instant, I thought about somehow using the weapon, yet quickly discarded that idea, releasing my grip while throwing it farther backwards.
However, in the moment it took me to do so…
Bong!
A weaker, but quicker jab was delivered to the side of my helmet, leaving me in a momentary daze. If it wasn’t for my 2nd realm Endurance, I might have blacked out right there.
My concentration was broken, yet, driven by ingrained instinct, I could partially perceive the nearby Tides – enough to see his arm rising upwards.
Thud! Clack!
With my free hand, I launch an uppercut, connecting with his jaw. His head jerked upward, yet the grip on my pinned arm only tightened – and a mad grin spread across his face a moment later.
“Ha!”
I tried to defend my face, yet his arm went to the left, delivering the strike to the side of my helmet, between the chin and jaw.
Bang!
As I tensed my neck muscles to avoid having it broken, I felt the metal press onto my cheek, as the iron taste of blood filled my mouth.
‘Am I..’
Another strike.
Bong!
This time, I managed to block with my other forearm shield, yet my arm buckled at the force of the strike yet again.
‘Is this really?..’
I had to do something. Anything.
‘If only I had a dagger.’
The dagger would be within the reach of my right hand, if said hand wasn’t pinned.
Bong!
I barely managed to block another strike, with the metal bending inwards, pressing against my pained muscles.
‘Any weapon!’
I twisted my body, trying to break free, but my attempt was unsuccessful.
“Ha!”
I used the palm of my hand to grab his flying fist, scraping it on the metal of his knuckle strip. Rather than continuing his weakened strike, abruptly, he moved his hand to the side, breaking from my grip, before swinging at the bottom of my forearm, sending it flying to the ground with a flare of blunt pain.
‘A weapon!..’
As his hand rose up, I decided to try something completely unthinkable.
The fingers of my left hand pressed together.
‘I am the weapon!’
It was an absurd proclamation. This was simply my hand – not a blade, or even a knuckler. However…
Awkwardly, reluctantly, as if the world itself was grinding its teeth, fuming at me for catching it on a technicality, I felt an unfamiliar variation of the familiar energy gather around my outstretched fingers.
[Arc Slash] !!!
Just as his arm started its descent, my hand made it to the gap between his helmet and the sleeve of his chainmail, reaching his neck.
Crank!
I felt my bones break, and my fingers twisting in ways though shouldn’t have – yet, at the same time, I saw his neck bending in an unnatural way, too.
Crash!
I blacked out for a moment, as his strike connected with my forehead.
When I opened my eyes again, I couldn’t see anything – and yet, I felt the grip on my right arm had weakened.
“Rhaa!”
I pushed with all my remaining strength. Breaking free wasn’t difficult – the strength of his arm felt much weaker than before.
I reached for his helmet.
As I touched it, I felt his body trembling ever-so-slightly. I also felt a mix of liquids – blood and saliva, judging by the scent – drip onto my chest.
Jerking once again, I threw the big man off me, at least. His left arm tried to grab me, yet the hand simply slid across my chest.
“Huff… Haa…”
I reached for the dagger, still strapped to my right thigh. A second later, I activated my Arcane Sense.
The man was convulsing on the floor beside me, still trying to move his left arm, while the right side of his body seemed to be completely paralyzed.
Without wasting another moment, I rolled to the side, ignoring the pain as my left hand touched the floor, and drove the dagger through the side of his neck.
The convulsions became subtler, as blood began to drip. As I withdrew the blade, a fountain of the liquid erupted, and his movements finally stopped.
“Haa… Haa…”
Using my healthy hand, I sheathed the dagger, standing on one knee. After a few seconds of catching my breath, I finally stood up, starting to feel the many bruises on both my arms. While my right arm still functioned, I stumbled towards my sword, sheathing it.
“Haa… Haaaaa.”
This fight was over.
And yet, as I focused my senses on the two tunnel exits, I couldn’t help but feel a grip on my chest.
‘Xin.. Bern.. Everyone!’
I could only pray, to whichever gods in this world that’d listen, that everything somehow worked out on the other fronts of this battlefield.