Duel

All of the council members looked on in shock as their elite foot soldiers were completely wiped out.

Ezekiel frowned.

"If just his knights can do that, just how powerful is Damon?" Ezekiel whispered to Cassandra with a worried look on his face.

Cassandra, in comparison, showed a radiant smile that seemed to assuage all doubts.

"He wouldn't have come to join forces with us if he could win by himself. At most, he's a Saint. We can handle that if it comes to it."

Damon interrupted their conversation as he flew over to them.

"How was it? Are my knights up to par?" Damon showed a knowing smile.

Cassandra's mouth twitched as she struggled to continue smiling.

"Your knights were more than satisfactory. We were wondering, however, if we could test you yourself. In the coming battles, we would need to protect you from harm if you are too weak." Cassandra reasoned.

Damon shrugged. "I don't mind. Summon your best Psyker and we can have a duel."

Cassandra asked him to wait for a bit while she picked a suitable candidate.

While he was waiting, Damon thought of the coming battles. Ever since his revenge against the seagull, battle has begun to excite him. The immense control he felt when he was fighting exceeded all kinds of comprehension. It was like a taste of what he always wished for, but was always out of reach.

"They are ready for the duel." Cassandra interrupted his thoughts.

"Any rules?" Damon asked seriously.

"Don't kill or maim. That's it." Cassandra said evenly.

Upon hearing this, Damon descended onto the platform.

As he drew his sword, Damon noticed that a young man landed on the platform as well.

The man had a greatsword just like his own, but unlike Damon, he did not wear any armor.

Clad in leather clothes and covered in runic tattoos, the man looked similar to a Gaelic Barbarian.

"Are you both ready?" Cassandra asked.

"Yes." They both answered.

"Begin!"

Upon the declaration of the start of the duel, Damon created a myriad of golden weapons above his head. From golden swords, to spears, to even javelins, he truly wielded a deadly arsenal.

SHEEN

Matching his preparations, the Gaelic warrior summoned something. His creation, however, was far different.

GRRR

A giant tree rose up from the platform. It dwarfed both men as it rose up into the sky.

'That is very bad.' Damon frowned as he inspected the tree.

It's main weapons seemed to be it's many vines, branches, and leaves that it was preparing to strike with.

It's summoner was not standing still either, as after he had summoned the tree, he had jumped into the canopy. He looked down on Damon from far above, as if challenging him to come after him.

Before he did rushed into anything, Damon decided to make a quick plan.

'I've got it. I can create tendrils of fire surrounding my body. These tendrils can defend me against the various projectiles while I deal with the troublesome branches and the Gaelic warrior himself.' Damon planned.

BOOM

As he summoned the fiery tendrils, Damon launched himself towards the tree as fast as possible.

WHOOSH

Tens of vines and serrated leaves flew towards him, desiring to cut him to pieces.

Damon felt his blood thrum as he began wildly manipulating the tendrils to destroy the projectiles.

BAM

BAM

BAM

Blue fire flared as Damon dodged countless projectiles and destroyed those he couldn't.

As Damon was dodging the projectiles, he was rapidly nearing the top of the tree. And the awaiting Gaelic warrior.

Damon destroyed a massive branch using an arc of fire when...

WHOOSH

Out of the corner of his eye, Damon saw the Gaelic warrior disappear from sight.

Feeling his instincts flare, he rapidly swung his sword to the left using all of his accumulated momentum.

BOOM

Like a baseball, the Gaelic warrior was sent flying into the distance.

When he finally was able to stop himself, the warrior's hands were covered in blood as he clutched his sword.

During his swing, the warrior had intended to two-hand and barehand the blade in order to project more force. Unfortunately, he was forced to block and the sword subsequently cut deeply into his hands.

Caught up in his excitement, Damon dashed towards the injured warrior.

Seeing his opponent draw closer, the warrior's face hardened as he prepared for his last stand.

Behind him a giant projection of a brown bear roared as it prepared to meet Damon's swing.

Damon's eyes glowed as he simultaneously released all of his golden weapons and made a massive downward slash.

SHEEN

The golden weapons tore through the bear's claw as Damon beheaded the projection.

Just when victory seemed within reach, however, Damon's back was pierced by a massive greatsword.

Shock reflected in Damon's eyes as pain filled his mind.

BOOM

Damon landed on the ground and the sword dug even deeper into his chest.

HA

Damon spat out a mouthful of blood as his body had begun internally bleeding profusely.

Refusing to give up, Damon pulled the sword out of his chest and created a sticky gauze over it.

With flames of anger burning in his eyes, Damon created a giant hand of golden energy.

As Damon flew towards him, the Gaelic warrior was horrified.

How could he still be able to fight?

Unfortunately, the warrior did not have the time to contemplate as Damon was still out for revenge.

BOOM

He was once again sent flying as the massive golden hand stuck him.

Blood flew out of the warriors mouth as he promptly passed out due to severe blunt-force trauma.

With this, Damon felt his anger recede as horror took over.

'I did this? To another person? What did he do to deserve this?' Damon continuously questioned as he found himself in turmoil.

Suddenly, James's voice resounded in his head.

'It's natural to feel guilty, Damon. You may have begun to adapt to your new life, but part of you still holds yourself to Earthly morals and values. You both aren't trying to kill each other, merely dueling. The time will come when you will have to kill somebody, though, so don't think that every fight will be a friendly duel.'

Hearing James's words, Damon slowly calmed down.

'Even though James was harsh, he's right. Did that "Almighty One" or the countless beasts I've fought before stop to consider my feelings or opinions? Of course not. It is life or death in this cruel world, and I need to adapt if I want to stay alive.' Damon affirmed to himself.

Interrupting his thoughts, Cassandra yelled down from up above.

"Congratulations, Damon! That was a wonderful duel. Although you had some rookie mistakes, I'm sure we can fix those in no time." She had a bright smile on her face.

Afterall, who wouldn't want a powerful artificer, who can even defeat Pskyers, on their team?