The purple-eyed knight stepped forward, dragging his broadsword behind him as he approached the robot. In an attempt to disrupt the flow of the armored man, Azim rushed him in return. The robot swung his giant sword arm out from the right and across in a horizontal arc. The knight stopped in his tracks, putting up his blade just quick enough for the wands of metal to clash against one another.
The knight released the pressure from Azim’s sword, bringing it down and coming back up. Azim was quick, bringing his right arm down as well to block the armored man’s swing. Despite his possessed state of mind, the knight still had a relatively good sense of awareness of the battle at hand and was able to develop an understanding of his opponent. Such a characteristic was not found in any other of the witch’s puppets on Floor 4, but the bald man had poured extra energy into focusing on his adaptability.
Watching the android’s movements and how he dropped his large sword, the knight noticed how restricted his opponent’s attacks were. Not only was his right “arm” straightforward and unable to bend, but because of such, the range of motion in his weapon was reflected in his shoulder, restricting how far the sword could move.
Having gotten Azim to lower his weapon, the knight swung his left hand forward, clenching his gauntlet into a fist. He punched the robot in the shoulder and sent him sliding along the dirt. He was annoyed that, this time, the metal man did not seem as taken aback as he did by the first punch.
Interrupting their battle, a random amphiome ran up to Azim, winding back a battle axe as he charged. Not amused by the amphibious man’s attempt, Azim gently raised his left hand and cast Scrap Return. In an instant, the stranger’s weapon flew out of his hands, knocking him in the back of his head as it did. The amphiome stopped in his tracks, anxious at the fact he was now unarmed. Not trying to look too defeated, he raised both arms over his head and chanted in a squeaky voice, “Cubice!”
As he did, a medium-sized block of frothy ice manifested above him, shaped into a perfect cube. In response, Azim clenched the stolen axe and muttered, “Metal Sway.”
The robot then let go of the weapon and let it fly forward, spinning vertically as it did. The amphiome chucked the ice block forward, only for it to get bisected by his own weapon flying back toward him. The battle axe continued its spin, whirring like a loose buzzsaw as it flew. The amphiome, panicked, ran off in a huff, leaving the axe to chase after him endlessly. Little did the amphibious man know, Azim had not intended for the weapon to actually hit him. The robot had merely assigned the spinning wood and metal to scare him, perpetually chasing after him and keeping him away.
While the metal man dealt with the distraction, the knight faced one of his own. The possessed man struck down a gnome that challenged him with little effort, leaving the two with no one but each other once again.
With nothing else in the way, the two fighters reunited in a clashing struggle, their blades bouncing off one another and their stances shifting constantly. Azim knocked the possessed man’s weapon back at one point, following up the move with a straightforward left jab to the knight’s armor-covered chest. While the man in armor had been left exposed, his defensive aura was still very much alive, and upon impact, the man felt nothing. He lifted his right leg up and booted Azim with a forward kick, sending him skidding back through the dirt. Still, the robot refused to lose his balance.
Annoyed at the metal man’s determination, the knight charged forward to close the distance between the two fighters. He ducked an incoming stray fireball, ignoring its caster, and hopped over a body that collapsed in front of him. With the knight’s sword in his right hand, he brought his weapon down in a wide, overhead swing. Azim, in response, put up his blade, too, tilting it at an upward angle as he did. When the possessed knight’s broadsword came crashing down, the angle of the robot’s sword left the knight’s weapon to slide completely off it, resulting in him hunched over with his sword resting low, his torso twisted slightly, and his left arm flung behind him.
His left arm bent as he swung his sword back around, Azim sternly uttered, “Scrap Return.”
A clinking sound of metal chimed through the air in response to the android’s words. Since the knight thought Azim was exposed, and too agitated to process what had just happened in the last 4 seconds, he swung his sword back across his chest.
Azim, however, was ready. Having brought the triangular sword down to his side, he plunged the tip of the blade into the dirt next to him, before flicking the weapon forward. In turn, the metal man lunged himself back and out of range of the knight’s attack.
Following up the swing, the armored man took a step and lurched his left fist forward, focusing more strength to send the shining combatant even farther back than he already had. Instead, he found the robot unmoving.
The knight’s bare fist clanged against Azim’s steel chest with a deflating effect. The knight stood there for a moment, staring at his exposed skin, which was no longer protected by the same reinforced aura as his armor. He looked up at Azim in disgust, though the robot did not give any sense of expression at the display. Instead, he grabbed the possessed knight’s left hand with his own, squeezing his fingers so tight they cracked. The man in armor winced but wouldn’t dare let out a cry of pain.
Azim spun on his abdomen axle, pulling the knight by the hand as he did until finally throwing the possessed man several meters behind him. The armored man scrambled to his feet, enraged at getting toyed with. Azim looked back at the bald-headed witch and saw that he was still just watching, unfazed but the current battle. Returning his attention to the knight, he found the man charging toward him again. Putting up his giant sword arm, the fighters met each other’s blades once more, clashing against one another furious series of blows.
Catching Azim exposed by knocking both of their swords off to the side, the knight sent forward another straight kick, but the robot rolled out of the way and off to the armored man’s side. With the tension of their blades softened, the two fighters picked up their weapons and swung again, this time clashing above their heads. The knight lowered his blade, allowing Azim to push his, and twisted his body to the side, sending out a sideways kick that managed to launch the metal man back. The android flew across the arena floor, about two feet off the ground. Before he could hit a wall, however, he bumped into a half-giant berserker who was engaged in a fight of his own. Having softened the metal man’s impact, Azim picked himself up and stood back from the warrior without much need for recovery. The berserker, on the other hand, did not want to let go of their encounter. “Watch it, tiny!” the large man growled.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
As he did, the half-giant reeled back the huge iron mace he wielded with both hands, preparing to crush the scrawny knight-looking guy before him. The berserker was not so successful.
Not having yet turned to face the half-giant, Azim spun around to his right, slashing his large, triangular blade in an upward swing. The cut sliced into the hulking figure’s lower abdomen, but left him staggered enough for Azim to follow up his assault. Not breaking stride, the robot swung his left arm back in a hammer blow, smashing the half-giant’s right kneecap and bending his leg backward. As the large man punched over from the pain, Azim brought the sword back up again, this time in the opposite direction, leaving an uneven “X” shape across the fighter’s chest as he fell over.
The robot looked back to see two lizardfolk standing in the way of the possessed knight, each jabbing spears at him and missing, but keeping him from getting closer to the metal man. Glancing over at the black-robed witch, Azim saw that the man was waving his scepter around, clearly miffed by the fact that other fighters were challenging his champion.
Picking up some of the metal scraps he had ripped from the knight’s armor, Azim wound up his left arm and flung the shards in a condensed projectile, which quickly split apart like that of a shotgun. The various shards whizzed through the air, showering the dark-skinned witch in shrapnel. He broke concentration and put up a Shield Barrier, abandoning whatever spell he had previously been casting. Azim was already running toward the knight as soon as he had thrown the scraps, leaving the witch to look toward where the shards had been flung from, only to curiously find no one.
The possessed knight was focused on the two lizardfolk blocking his path, oblivious to what was going on between the metal man and his new master. The man in armor weaved between the two reptilian women, chopping their spears into pieces as he slid through, leaving them unarmed and unnerved. He then turned around to face his disarmed opponents, his back now turned to Azim. Not giving up, the two lizard women ballooned their cheeks, reeling back their necks as they did. When they finished charging, they both shot out their tongues, which were not only flying fast but each covered in an electric charge. The knight bent backward, catching himself on his unprotected left hand. While parallel with the ground and the tongues, the armored man sliced the lizardfolks’ tongues above him, letting their tongues drop to the ground as the electricity dissipated from them. Propping himself back up, the knight swung his sword horizontally in front of himself, slashing the two lizards in the stomachs, leaving them to drop to the ground, helpless.
He stood over the defeated bodies of the reptilian women for a moment, relishing in his victory, before turning back around to look for the robot. He did not have to look long to find him.
Azim rushed the knight, coming within several feet of him by the time he turned around. With reflexes only fast enough because of the enchantments he was given with his possession, the knight barely managed to put up his broadsword in time to block the robot, a mere second away from being too late.
The man in armor struggled against the metal man’s blade. For such a thin adventurer, the possessed knight thought Azim had an irritatingly impressive level of strength. His rage-fueled eyes stared into the android’s. While the knight displayed intense emotion in his gaze, the purple wisps in his eyes flickering throughout, he noticed Azim showed none. The robot’s gaze was intense as well, though not for the same reason. As the two pushed against one another, their blades scraping and slowly slipping, the metal man’s stare never changed. His eyes remained stiff, staring intensely at the armored man, with no ounce of emotion behind them. It was unnerving. It did not help that Azim’s helmet covered his face entirely, leaving no expression anywhere on his face for the knight to read. All the knight had to go off of was Azim’s everlasting stare, with his glowing eyes dilating the knight’s own.
Azim hopped back, putting a couple of meters between the two fighters. The knight, however, did not want a break and charged at the robot once more. Holding his sword with both hands, he swung the blade wildly in front of him, resulting in Azim having to sidestep and dodge the flurry of attacks. Finally, Azim knocked the sword down, leaving both weapons pointed to the ground.
Not letting up, the knight let go of the sword with his right hand, widening his stance to lunge his right foot forward. Ready, the robot pick-and-rolled to the left, avoiding the armored man’s boot. Then, before the knight could pull his foot back, the android waved his hand over the man’s leg, casting Scrap Return and removing every piece of armor below the man’s knee. If that was not bad enough, Azim then incanted, “Metal Sway,” and chucked the wad of scrapped armor back in the knight’s face, knocking him back and cutting his cheek.
“Gah!” screamed the knight, who swatted at the scraps of metal he had been wearing just seconds ago flying around his face.
The metal man looked over at the robed bald witch and saw that he was smiling. It was not a happy smile, but more one of understanding or acceptance. The dark-skinned man had a watchful stare, as if the fight underway was one remarkably entertaining to him. Or informative. Azim did not have long to assess, however, because only a few seconds later, the metal scraps surrounding the knight's head burst away in all directions, smacking into the walls of the arena and some into other fighters as they flew.
Looking back at the armored man, Azim saw the broadsword now in his exposed left hand, and his right raised in the air in a fist. The wave of the aura around the knight’s hand was wobbling erratically, before finally settling to its normal state.
As the bewitched knight raised his head up once again, Azim paid close attention to his gaze. The armored man looked savage and angry, yes, but also… tired. He looked exhausted. Not just because of the labors of their fight, but because of his own internal struggle. As if the act of being possessed by the black-robed man was taxing, draining him of any willpower to keep moving. His sadistic smile was gone. He simply looked fed up. It was then that Azim was sure he had seen something deeper.
The furrowed brows of the knight. The intense stare of his pupils. The wrinkles surrounding his eyes. They all seemed to soften for a moment. Just for a moment. The purple hue of his possessed eyes even seemed to fade slightly. Not entirely, but still somewhat. Then, as quickly as his humanity had swam up to the surface, just another second away from breaking through in full, it all receded. The purple returned, the brows furrowed, and the contempt reemerged. Just like that, whatever ounce of will the knight had left in him dissolved, and the man returned to his entranced self.