Edward took the first round easily with an impressive hand of four of a kind, but admittedly it must’ve been some beginners' luck, because for the rest of the evening the cards didn’t smile at him anymore. He managed to lose everything he gained the first round and then some.

He was surely glad that they weren’t playing for real, although he suspected this was just a bow in his direction.

It was already after midnight, when the group stopped playing, and started making their way for the exit, one after the other squeezing through the crowd. Ed was just about to reach the door, when a piercing sound of breaking glass came from the rear, and the shouts behind him suddenly became louder.

“You got a problem fucker?”

“Me?! You’re the one who poured his drink on my shirt!”

The crowd started forming a circle around two jacked guys arguing over a broken glass.

The taller man with a buzzcut, and a guy wearing a mullet almost touched each other with their foreheads.

“And you’re the one who hit my glass!”

“Then watch where you’re going asshole!”

Some people started walking out from the crowd, silently taking their spots behind each side of the conflict.

Edward was about to ignore the whole situation altogether, deeming it beneath him, but Marcus smiled radiantly, waving him over.

“Come on Ed! It’ll be fun, I promise.” Before the young warrior had the time to refuse, his friend already grabbed him by the shoulders leading him right towards the middle of the confrontation. John, Pork and Callum didn’t follow the duo, shaking their heads and watching from a distance.

The two sides were about to clash, when Marcus slipped in between, pushed the fighters away from each other, and pulled Ed into the middle of the circle.

“Hello friends! How about we all just hug it out instead, what do you think?” The brown haired youth wore a charming smile on his face, but Edward could see the mischievous glint in his eyes.

“And who are you kid?” The man with a buzzcut frowned.

“Oh I’m your friendly neighbour John, and this is my husband Callum. We were about to celebrate our wedding, but your argument ruined the mood. Very unkind of you two might I add…”

Ed tried to sink back into the shadows, but Marcus didn’t let him leave easily, hanging his hand around his shoulder, as if to confirm his earlier statement. The bar turned silent for a moment, before the mullet man exclaimed loudly.

“The fuck you talking about faggot?!”

Marcus winked towards Edward, before approaching the man, looking straight into his eyes.

“I’m saying you can kiss my ass, apologize, and get the fuck out.” The smile didn’t disappear from his lips for a single word.

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Edward dragged his palm over his face and exhaled loudly.

‘So that’s what he meant by fun…’

Marcus dropped down, dodging the fist aimed for his face. With that, the two groups jumped forward. Glasses started flying overhead, hitting some poor souls in the crowd, who had nothing to do with the fight.

“Oh wow, I think you had a few too many, you can’t hit a thing.” Marcus kept avoiding his opponents punches, making him angrier and angrier with every moment.

Unfortunately Edward had to turn his attention away from the spectacle, when one of the men from the buzzcut soldier’s side started running towards him.

Ed kept looking forward, pretending to be oblivious to the enemy’s approach, but when a fist was about to fly into the side of his head, he bent his body backwards. The man hit the empty air, stumbling forward and barely catching his balance.

He turned angrily towards the young man, growling as he launched another punch towards his face. Once again Ed easily dodged the feeble attempt.

‘So slow…’

The attacks kept coming one after the other. At one point Ed had to suddenly move to the side, dodging a wooden chair that flew in his direction for some reason.

Bored of his opponent, Ed lightly slapped him on the face, and when the enraged man charged forward, Edward jumped to the side at the last second, making the soldier knock himself out by rushing head first into the edge of a table.

The young warrior cringed at the sound of the skull hitting hard wood. That would leave a painful bruise…

‘At least there wasn’t much inside this head anyway.’

But still, there was something weirdly satisfying in a fight, where the odds were overwhelmingly in your favor. It was different from the usual exhilaration Edward felt during a duel. This one felt satisfying in a more twisted, unfair way.

Guessing this was what Marcus had been talking about, Ed let the feeling carry him forward, looking around the chaotic scene around him for another opponent.

Seeing a prime candidate, who just knocked out another fighter, Ed grabbed a small shot glass from the nearby table and sent it through the air, right into the man’s forehead.

The impact shattered the glass, pulling his attention in the direction it came from.

They fought all over the room, if you could even call it a fight. Edward was escaping his opponent in more and more creative ways. Jumping over the tables, somersaulting over some of his punches and slapping others away.

After a while, they moved back towards the center. There, some of the guy’s friends joined the challenge, finally bringing Ed more fun. He also passed Marcus, engaged in his own bit of fun in the middle of the bustling atmosphere. He sent him a smile, and received one in response as well.

They positioned themselves back to back. By now almost everyone was focused on the seemingly unbeatable duo.

Together, over six men surrounded them from all sides. But the two warriors stayed unmoving, meeting each of the opponents’ punches with one of their own.

Finally, when the soldiers started getting exhausted, and the two Marked had enough fun for the night, Edward caught the opponents fist, twisting it to the side, and chopping one of the guys’ necks. The large man crumpled to the ground, hitting the floor with a thud. A moment later, a similar fate met all of his comrades.

Edward, together with Marcus, stood in the middle of a circle full of passed out, snoring men. The duo were professionals, and were careful with controlling their strength, so all of the victims should be fine, after a good night's sleep.

Marcus stepped over the lying bodies, coming up to the shocked bartender, and leaving him with a generous tip. He then joined Ed, and they walked together towards the rest of the group, standing next to the door, ready to leave.

“Man… you never change…” said Pork, turning around and leading everyone out.

Once outside, Ed finally turned to Marcus, shaking his head. “You really are crazy, you know that right?”

“Of course I am!” He puffed out his chest. “But you enjoyed it like I said, didn’t you?”

“Alright I guess I had some fun after all…” A corner of Edward’s mouth rose slightly.