OLD-WORLD EXTRA

Not at all surprised, Emir deflected the strike with a sharp parry and immediately countered, his left sword arcing towards Blanc's midsection.

Blanc twisted his body, narrowly avoiding the strike, and retaliated with a quick upward slash aimed at Emir's chest.

Emir stepped back just in time, the tip of Blanc's sword grazing his augmented suit.

He then pivoted on his heel and swung both swords in a fluid, cross-slash motion.

Blanc barely managed to bring his sword up in defense, the force of Emir's attack pushing him back several steps.

"Tricks, tricks, tricks, a pathetic showing coming from a man of God-."

Blanc ignored Emir's obvious attempts at riling him up and they resumed circling each other, eyes locked.

He feigned a low strike, but Emir didn't fall for it, keeping his guard steady.

And when Blanc launched a real attack-a rapid thrust aimed at Emir's shoulder-he sidestepped it, bringing his right sword down in a diagonal slash.

Blanc blocked it, but the sheer force drove him down to one knee.

Seizing the opportunity, Emir pressed the attack, unleashing a flurry of quick slashes.

Blanc was forced to retreat, barely keeping up with the onslaught.

His swordsmanship was commendable, likely the same rank as Emir's, but the prince's seemingly endless stamina and relentless offense were more than he could handle. Whoosh!

He barely ducked under a horizontal slash and rolled to the side, coming up with a quick counterattack that aimed for Emir's legs.

Emir jumped back, avoiding the sweep, and followed up with a powerful downward strike. Blanc crossed his sword above his head to block, the impact sending shockwaves through his arms.

"Grah!"

With a grunt, Blanc shoved Emir's sword away and swung wildly at Emir's chest.

Emir blocked the blow with one sword, then stepped in close, using the hilt of his other sword to smash into Blanc's side.

Blanc winced in pain but didn't back down.

He swung his sword in a wide arc, forcing Emir to leap back to avoid the edge.

Blanc coughed loudly and stepped away from the corner he was about to get trapped in, appearing to be heavily exhausted, sweat dripping down his brow.

Emir, still composed, shifted his stance slightly, preparing for the next exchange.

Blanc's left hand quickly rummaged underneath his cloak, then took out some sort of small canister and shoved it in his mouth.

He took a deep breath, threw it to the ground, and charged, aiming for Emir's head with a swift, upward strike.

"How unfair-."

Emir deflected it with ease, then sidestepped to Blanc's open side, slashing with both swords. Blanc spun on his heel, bringing his sword around to block, but he was a fraction too slow. Emir's left sword sliced across Blanc's arm, drawing blood.

Blanc hissed in pain, retreating a few steps.

He was losing ground, and he knew it.

Emir pressed forward, giving him no time to recover.

Another flurry of attacks followed, each swing of Emir's swords faster and more precise than the last.

Blanc blocked and dodged as best as he could, but the relentless assault left him no room to counter.

Emir's final strike came swift and sudden-a powerful thrust aimed straight at Blanc's chest. Desperately, Blanc attempted to parry, but Emir's left sword interfered, striking his sword directly.

Clang!

The force of the blow sent his sword flying out of his hand, leaving him defenseless. Allowed free passage, the tip of Emir's sword stabbed into Blanc's stomach, stopping just shy of completely piercing through, gutting him.

Blanc gasped in pain, his body trembling as blood oozed from the wound.

Emir unhanded his embedded sword and crushed the priest's right leg with a vicious stomp.

Blanc collapsed, dropping fully to the ground, his mind still processing the loss, reeling from the pain.

"I wasn't going to win?"

Emir's other sword swung down, halting just before it sliced into the priest's neck.

...

For a moment, the room was silent.

Blanc's chest heaved as he struggled to control his trembling body, his eyes locked on Emir's

inky ones.

Even though he was one inch away from death, he couldn't move, it was as if he was

hypnotized.

Those eyes that swirled... they were mad, demonic.

He could feel it corrupting his mind.

"You... you really are a demon."

Emir chuckled softly at Blanc's words.

It wasn't the first time he'd been called that to his face, but hearing it from a man of the cloth

gave it a different weight.

At least one that took on the robes of one.

"Tell you're god I said hi."

Squelch...

Emir's blade plunged effortlessly into Blanc's throat, and he swung it to the right, silencing

the priest forever.

Blood sprayed across the ground in a crimson arc as Blanc's head fell to the ground, the light slowly fading from his eyes while his Aetheric Shield flickered and faded away.

Emir's inky gaze remained fixed on the dying man, his expression emotionless, save for a faint glimmer of satisfaction.

Blanc's now rotting body twitched once, twice, before finally going still, leaving only the eerie quiet of the room and the faint sound of dripping blood, and sizzling poison.

Emir pulled his other sword free with a casual twist, and wiped both blades clean against Blanc's melting robe before stepping back.

"First one down..."

He muttered, his voice steady but carrying a trace of anticipation, as though savoring the

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The fight had ended.

Once again, the challenge had been real, the fight intense, but he had come out on top.

And as if it was a reward for his success, the poison bathing the room began to dissipate until

none of the green remained.

Emir, still standing over his fallen opponent, waited for a few seconds, searching for the holy

relic, wondering if it would reappear.

It didn't.

'Hm... unfortunate. Was it a one-time use?'

He shrugged his shoulders at that thought.

It wasn't much of a loss.

His battles rarely occurred in inescapable prisons, rather quite the opposite.

While he certainly wouldn't mind acquiring another holy relic, this one was highly

circumstantial, so he didn't feel anything for losing it.

As he turned towards the door leading to the next room, his thoughts lingered on Blanc's final

words.

"A demon, huh?"

He let out another chuckle, this one quieter, more to himself.

There was a time when such words might have stung.

Now, they simply amused him.

In the end, it didn't matter.

Not to him.

His mind had already moved on.

This was nothing more than a necessary step-a brief pause before confronting someone that

truly mattered. "Now... who's next?"