Something in Ken’s tone told Nick that he would launch his next attack before he finished his sentence.

Sure enough, before the last word left the swordsman’s lips, he was surging into motion once more, slashing even faster than Nick had expected. Having anticipated the blow and recovered his breath over the brief exchange, he burned stamina as he threw his body back, turning to catch the strike on his backpack before sliding his arms free from the straps.

As he had hoped, the magical bag blocked the blow cold, the unexpected resistance unbalancing Ken in the process. But the man must have been close to Nick’s level, with even more points invested into dexterity. He recovered a heartbeat later, reversing his momentum and bringing his sword down low to cut Nick off at the knee.

By this point, Nick was already reaching for the wand on his belt. His fingers wrapped around the shaft, just as his opponent’s weapon came whipping back around. He took aim and fired before Ken’s sword could chop off his feet, releasing a surging wave of force right into the swordsman’s breastplate.

Although the man had been caught by surprise, he must have activated some manner of defensive ability. Instead of sending Ken flying through the air, the wand’s magic sent him skidding back in the dirt, his boots leaving a double scar along the soil in his wake.

Having created a narrow opening, Nick didn’t hesitate. While this was his first time fighting another person for real, he didn’t have time to deal with the morality of killing another of his kind right now. Not if he wanted to survive the ambush. With the swordsman gunning for his life, it was either Nick or Ken, and Nick wasn’t going down without a fight.

Although Ken recovered with remarkable alacrity, the grimace on his face said that Nick was a tougher opponent than he’d expected.

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While Ken wasn’t going to back off so easily, the wand’s blast had bought Nick enough time to summon a mana dart. Ken’s eyes widened in surprise and began tracking the silver wedge orbiting Nick’s head, as well as the wand in his hand.

With his foe on the defensive while he adapted to two unexpected abilities, Nick knew that it was time to make his move. But he had underestimated how quickly Ken would recover. The swordsman beat Nick to the punch and launched another attack, resuming his offensive with a fierce intensity. Instead of darting back in to strike with his blade, Ken reached down to his side lightning-quick, then flung a throwing knife right at Nick’s face.

The instant that Nick leapt to dodge, Ken closed the distance, planning to use the diversion to land a critical blow. But that was not what happened.

This time, Nick had known the strike was coming. He sent his dart streaking out to intercept the swordsman, cutting off his angle of attack while holding his wand in front of him like he was preparing to fire it again. As Nick had hoped, Ken spun to one side to avoid the unknown spell, then backpedaled beyond the range of the wand instead of committing to his attack.

Having bought himself a chance to take the initiative, Nick ducked down and opened his bag, drawing his sword from the flap just in time to block the wicked overhand chop Ken had begun the instant that Nick looked away. Dropping his wand so that he could use the strength of both arms, the silver clang of blade striking blade resounded across the open air once more, as Nick caught Ken’s sword mere inches above his head.

By this point, he was dead certain that Ken was stronger than he was. That if their exchange continued, the man would force his sword into Nick’s body.

Before that could happen, Nick looked Ken in the eyes and spat straight in his face, the fat glob of spittle passing between the swordsman’s lips to land upon his tongue. Ken flinched at the unexpected move, taking his eyes off Nick for a split second as his nostrils widened in disgust.

Fortunately, on this occasion a second was all that Nick needed.

The moment that Ken stopped pushing with full force, Nick let go of the sword with his left hand, drew his arm back, and punched his foe in the face as hard as he could, fist impacting nose with a hearty crunch.