The colorful rays of light cast from the glass above created a beautiful display of dancing lights on Titus as he approached. Asura watched intently as the man took the lead before Sandman, finding his place between the two as if presenting himself as the opponent.

If Asura hadn't been prepared for a fight, he might have appreciated the reflecting that appeared like colorful water swirling along their skin. The atmosphere was tense as the three prepared for conflict, their eyes focused on one another.

Asura watched Titus shift the halberd from a relaxed position into a middle guard, placing the point towards Asura as he grabbed the pole with both hands.

The sight brought Asura back to the movies he used to watch of old knights fighting in battle. "Am I the villain or the knight in shining armor?" He thought to himself as he stared at the Paladin. Asura smirked playfully, eager to begin.

"Man... I can't even save the hot princess without being the villain anyway. She'll look at me like I'm an ogre."

Asura furrowed his brow after processing his statement.

"Wait... literally like I'm an ogre."

He shook his head as the two stared at him, confused. Titus raised a brow but kept his position, believing the conversation to be a distraction.

"I've been hanging around humans too long. Ah, whatever, prepare your blade, oh great villainous knight."

Sandman tilted his head and slightly raised his hanging eyelids as Titus cast a look back at him.

"I believe we found a peculiar ogre that is mentally ill."

Titus asked with a hint of curiosity.

"Have you met one before?"

"No, but I can tell."

Asura reached down to the floor with four arms, pressing his fingers against the stone below.

"Hey! I'll have you know I am... mostly okay. You try being locked in a realm alone for a while. Well, not alone, but I didn't like the other guy!"

Sandman looked at Titus, interjecting before Asura continued to talk.

"He was alone."

Asura hesitated, caught off guard by Sandman's comment.

"What- You weren't there asshole."

Sandman spoke as if confident. His unwavering eyes and constant heartbeat left no impression of a lie.

"I can see it."

"Do those creepy eyes allow you to see inside my head or something?"

"I would not say it is my eyes, but rather I can. If I were blind, I would still know."

Asura looked up at the Sandman with wide, horrified eyes, finding his dreadful eyes staring back. The thought of someone peeking into his mind was horrifying. It was a safe that kept his thoughts locked inside. A stranger who forcefully broke inside would know every embarrassing and shameful act ever committed.

"Really?"

"I see the worst of everyone's unfiltered dreams. What everyone wishes to hide comes to light before my eyes."

"... What kind of villain monologue is that?"

Sandman raised his hand to his lips, spreading his index and middle fingers as if an object sat between them. Asura tried to watch his hand but stumbled and blinked. When his eyes opened, a cigarette rested as if it were always there. He blinked again to see if it would disappear, but it remained. Suddenly, a gold metal lighter appeared from the man's other hand.

He flicked the lighter open and raised his hand to cup the end of the cigarette as he lit it. After taking a breath, he pulled the cigarette from his lips.

"He's waiting for you to relax. Strike him before he throws the floor at you."

Asura was caught off guard by Sandman's instruction. However, Titus reacted to the command as if it were an activation code given to a robot. His body tensed as he raised the halberd up in preparation to strike downward.

"Hey, woah! I wasn't... doing anything of the sort."

Asura dug his fingers into the stone, quickly ripping out large chunks before his attacker closed the distance between them. As Titus stepped forward with his left foot, Asura swiftly threw one of the chunks of stone at his left knee. The intense force sent it hurdling in seconds as if pitched like a baseball at a target.

However, before it could reach Titus's leg, he brought down his halberd's blade with a swift, precise swipe. Its blade cleaved through the rock, leaving a clean cut that appeared unreal. The two halves split apart, flying past Titus like he had cut a bullet in two. Asura was left in awe but watched as his opponent's hands drifted downward from the momentum.

The ogre pitched the last rock, but it was at Titus's head this time. He was left defenseless as his heavy halberd drifted in its path. However, Titus's eyes remained steadfast as he stared at Asura. As the rock flew at the Paladin's head, Asura took the opportunity to rise and lunge forward at his opponent.

The rock had approached past the halberd's blade, rendering it useless in defense. To Asura's surprise, Titus released the halberd with his left hand and raised it. He stepped forward with his right foot before throwing his weight behind his fist as he struck forward. His knuckles slammed into the rock, releasing a thunderous clap throughout the room.

Asura's eyes widened as the man's fist followed through the rock, causing it to explode into debris and a cloud of dust. "Damn." Asura thought as Titus dealt with his attack with ease. However, the ogre took the opportunity to continue his attack as the cloud of dust covered Titus's vision.

Before striking, Asura glanced at the side where Sandman stood before the fight. It was only a matter of time before his second opponent joined the fight as he struck at his ally. However, Sandman stayed in his spot. His only movement was to raise the cigarette back to his lips. As he stared, Asura felt as if he could see a slight smirk curve the corner of his lips.

Sandman motioned with a slight nod of his head back to Titus. Asura frowned at the gesture. as he turned to Titus. Although the glance took only a moment, his opponent had taken a step away. Asura cursed,

"Fuck."

He had gained spacing between them. Titus quickly grabbed hold of his halberd again with both hands. Asura tried to close the distance as he raced forward. He was only a few steps away from reaching Titus, but the sound of swift metal cutting through the air told him he was too late.

Titus brought the halberd upward, directing the point at Asura's right side below his rib. "Damn, Lydia would be disappointed for letting myself-" His words caught in his throat as a sharp pain pierced his side. Titus had thrust forward, sending the spear into his flesh. Its tip pierced without resistance, sliding through his body as Titus continued forward with momentum.

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The blade sank deep into his body, causing Asura's body to ignite as if it were on fire. Its tip pierced through, striking bone as it finally reached its end. The clink from the metal striking his bone echoed in his ears as thousands of needles prickled his skin. Before he could process it all, Titus ripped the spearhead out swiftly to prepare for another strike.

Asura roared as the blade exited his body, gripping his side as blood poured from the wound. His hand quickly became covered by the liquid pouring out from within, cascading onto the ground in a crimson waterfall.

As the Paladin sent forward another stab, Asura swatted the end with his two arms, sending it to the side as he swung with all his force frantically. Although strong, Titus was blinded by the sudden explosive force that sent the weapon away. He tried to recover quickly, but Asura took the opportunity to retreat several steps.

"You stabbed me? How-"

The blood continued to pour out from the wound, dripping onto the ground as he walked away. Asura was speechless as he stared with dazed eyes. His mind raced from the pain as he gripped the wound. He looked up from the wound at the two who studied the ogre's reaction.

"Fuck that hurts..."

They both appeared unsurprised by the act of cutting the ogre's skin. However, Asura was baffled as he stared at the bloodied spearhead.

"How did you stab me?"

Titus raised an eyebrow at the question.

"I used my brother's distraction to gain distance and-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know that. I don't need you to explain it to me again..."

Asura held the wound, watching as blood still drenched his fingers and splattered onto the ground below. The pain of an open wound felt foreign, like a long-forgotten memory. His skin had been raked against, cut at, and stabbed into, but none had ever pierced through for years. He couldn't remember the last time he felt the cold metal open his flesh.

"I meant more that-... Wait, what the fuck did you do to me?"

Asura poured his holy mana into the wound, healing it as he had done in the fight against Jormungandr for others. However, his flesh wasn't healing, and his natural regeneration never began. As the mana coursed through his body, the wound rejected the mana like a virus.

The ogre looked up at Titus to see if the blade had an unusual property. However, as he stared, he found nothing but emptiness—an inanimate cold weapon without holy mana present within.

Asura jabbed his finger into the wound, digging deep with his fingers. He clenched his teeth as his fingers squirmed inside the meat of his body. Blood poured out as his fingers disappeared up to his knuckles. The ogre found nothing burrowed into his flesh.

"Hm, nothin inside me. What kind of bullshit blessing do you have?"

"I do not have a blessing."

"Then... You."

Asura turned his attention to Sandman, who continued to smoke his cigarette with mild interest in the conversation.

"I have not interfered in the battle in... that particular way."

Asura stood confused, furrowing his brow as he stared at the two.

"You guys are weird as fuck. Why haven't you attacked me while I've just been sitting here?"

The ogre pressed his hand against the wound before igniting his palm with the white holy flame from expelling his mana. His flesh sizzled and closed as he began to cauterize the wound. "If it won't heal, I'll close it now."

"I thought I could bait you from talkin to you nerds, but that hasn't worked."

Titus ignored his words, staring with raised brows as he studied the ogre's impressive composure. The act of cauterizing one's wounds was a feat many men would fall in agony from. However, the ogre seemed unimpressed as he scorched his flesh.

Asura shrugged and wiggled his shoulders to loosen them. He opened and closed his fists, clenching them as if bringing sensation back to them. The buzz from his nerves being rattled still lingered throughout his muscles.

"I will say, hittin' my bone really fucked me up, though. That shit did hurt a little."

"So you really can use holy mana. How come you didn't use it before?"

Asura froze at the mention of his mana once again.

"I have no idea what you're talkin about. Holy mana? An ogre? That's crazy talk."

The Sandman's unnerving eyes rested on Asura as he inhaled more smoke. In the time spent in the room, Asura could not recall a moment when he watched the man blink. He observed every moment that unfolded before him. Sandman spoke as he blew smoke from his mouth.

"You wield Uriel's mana yet refuse to use it in combat? What a shame and stain upon his name."

Asura puckered his lips while placing his hands on his hips.

"Well, I don't think I'm the biggest stain since he stopped accepting human applications last time I checked."

Titus clenched his halberd tightly, causing his knuckles to go white. His jaw and neck tensed, causing the tendons to become visibly strained. As he spoke, his voice lowered into a growl like a defensive dog's.

"Are you insulting—"

Sandman waved his hand at Titus as if swatting the insult away without care.

"Do not lose your composure because of his taunt. He is correct, after all. Who knows the last time Uriel accepted a man or woman as his Paladin."

He looked up at Asura, who squirmed as his eyes peered into his soul.

"You are quite intelligent for an ogre."

"Thanks? You think we're all stupid or something?"

"No, but I have read that your race was volatile and rash. There was nothing mentioned about them being quick-witted and experienced."

"Do ya believe everything the internet says? That's like believing Abraham Lincoln, the vampire dude, is real."

Asura crossed his arms as the two showed no signs of approaching.

"Are we going to fight or just talk the entire time? You talk like you're from the past, and the big boy named after a dog is sittin' here staring at me."

Sandman ignored his taunt once again, watching the ogre's moves vigilantly. The man smoked his cigarette once more before he flicked it forward.

"You are far stronger than you appear to be. It is always wise to test your opponent before rushing into a fight."

As the cigarette flew through the air, embers spread in an explosion that appeared like sparks. The explosion completely blinded Asura, and the light expanded from the embers to a glaring shine.

Asura covered his eyes with one of his hands, but he knew better than to let his defenses down. With his three arms, he protected his body as Titus charged through the embers with a halberd in hand. The large Paladin swung downward with the blade, trying to catch Asura off guard.

"Too slow knuckle-nuts."

Asura ducked to the right, narrowly dodging the blade as it sliced downward. He tucked his two right fists before twisting his body forward to launch a dual strike at Titus's side. Titus watched as the ogre drew close and tried to pull his halberd back to commence another swing.

"Lydia's fucked me over too many times with that shit."

However, Asura's swift punches slugged Titus's side before he could react. The powerful blows sent Titus flying backward into a nearby pillar. A large boom echoed from the impact as Titus emitted a small groan. The room shook, causing a dust cloud to descend from the ceiling, blocking the three's vision of each other.

"Hahaha. Down goes the giant."

A figure emerged from Titus's crash spot as the dust settled. However, the being that rose looked nothing like the man. Instead of where Titus should've been, a large armored figure rose from the dust that rolled off his back.

"Ok. I know for a fact there wasn't that much dust up there."

From head to toe, the wearer's body was covered in black jagged armor, leaving no sign of weakness in its defense.

The mixture of black metal with jagged rocks jutting out from unsymmetrical spots made the armor appear ancient as if it had been left somewhere for so long that the earth had become part of it. Everywhere Asura looked, he found small shards of the black rock on its body, creating spikes that made the appearance more menacing.

When its helmet rose to look at Asura, he found it circular with seven holes, creating a hexagon on the front. Within the helmet, only darkness remained, and no sight of a wearer was present. However, Asura knew from the halberd in his hand and the holy mana inside the armor that Titus wore the black knight armor.

Titus pressed the handle of his halberd against the floor, using it to rise to his feet. The sight made Asura's skin tingle, and a smile spread across his face. "It looks as if a black knight in a movie arrived to kick ass against his foes. That's so fucking cool." The ogre thought to himself as he became even more eager to fight.

A tired voice spoke out to Asura's right, close enough to touch. The voice caught him off guard, causing the ogre to jump back.

"You have other problems to worry about. Why did you ignore the sign I put up?"

Asura turned his head, catching a glimpse of the Sandman from the corner of his eye, standing beside him with his body propped against a pillar.

"Tsk tsk tsk."

Sandman waved a finger and pointed in front of Asura as a scolding parent would to their child.

"You ignored the warning. There is nothing I can do to help you now."

"What the fuck are you-"

Asura looked forward, following the direction Sandman pointed towards. Before him now stood a sign that seemed to be uprooted from the street. The street sign appeared normal at first, but as Asura read the words, his face scrunched in confusion. "Beware of Land Shark." was written on the sign, with a large picture of a shark with human arms for legs and hands for feet.

"What the fuck is a land shark."

As the words left his lips, the stone floor to his right shifted, and the sound of sand hissing began as if it were moving. Before Asura could react, from the shifting floor, a large great white shark exploded forth with outstretched hands as if it were going to grab him.

Asura's jaw dropped at the sight. The horrifying creature on the sign rose before him like it was pulled straight from his nightmare. Its jaws were open wide, ready to bite the ogre with its razor-sharp teeth.

However, Asura found the most horrifying thing about the shark was its lanky arms covered in hair. Instead of bipedal or quadrupedal, the creature had four human arms with hands that grubbily grabbed at the air like a monkey. Asura was left speechless and could only utter two words at the sight.

"HOLY SHIT."