'Is this out of pride?' Khan couldn't help but wonder before that stalemate.
Amox didn't falter nor move. He stood still and proudly in a stance that would intimidate any ordinary soldier. However, Khan had been in the Stal's trenches. Size alone couldn't scare him.
Instead, the fainted Ilqiex lying between the two was a far scarier sight. Khan had tested the monster's prowess first-hand, and seeing Amox taking it down so easily spoke for his strength.
Of course, things weren't that simple. Amox's first clash with the Ilqiex had carried his sprint's momentum. His sturdy body had handled the rest.
As for the blow that ultimately put the Ilqiex out of combat, Khan could only feel respect toward it. Those thick arms could crush any ordinary human. Still, even then, Khan had survived a frontal clash with a Bise. He couldn't feel scared.
The woods prevented the arrival of Acarro's pleasant breeze. Everything stood still in that relatively empty spot. Only the Ilqiex's heavy breathing disturbed the stalemate created by Amox and Khan's intense stares.
On the surface, Khan and Amox wore opposite stances. Amox was on fire, perfectly embodying intensity and pride. His very life was on the line there, and he showed it.
Instead, Khan appeared detached, cold, and almost uncaring. His presence would be barely noticeable without the natural tension leaked by his figure. His intentions were impossible to understand, but his insides showed a different picture.
The limitations imposed by the Ambassador and the overall political tension had put Khan in a tough spot, and his mana simply wanted him to let loose. He also wished to test himself against Amox, and a friendly battle that didn't involve killing was the perfect opportunity.
Khan tightened his grip on his knife but relaxed it right afterward. He probably couldn't defeat the Thilku without his weapon or spells, but nothing stopped him from trying.
"[I'm coming]," Khan warned, but the Thilku didn't spread his arms.
Khan released a tinge of mana in the environment anyway, and the Thilku lost track of him. The next thing he noticed was the heavy kick that landed on his right shoulder. His firm stance faltered, and his arms began to leave his chest, but Khan's offensive didn't stop there.
The direct hit told Khan about Amox's overall muscle density and structure. The alien was indeed strong, but nothing he didn't face before. Besides, his slow reactions put him at Khan's mercy.
Khan relied on Maban's technique to sprint again. Ground or air no longer mattered to him. He could keep the same inhumane speed while flying behind Amox. His body began to spin to accumulate momentum, but something changed inside the alien at that point.
The mana inside Amox grew wild, generating sparks that seeped past his uniform. Khan's heel was ready to hit Amox's nape, but the latter bent forward before the impact, and his body spun incredibly fast.
Thunder roared in the middle of the woods. Amox's body reached unfathomable levels of speed. It turned out that he didn't only bend. He had taken a proper step forward before twisting his torso and stretching his right arm.
Khan sensed that massive limb flying in his direction while his kick was still about to descend. Amox wasn't doing anything specific. His attack was merely relying on physical strength and speed, but his powerful body made it dangerous.
Thoughts had already abandoned Khan's mind, but he understood. Amox could only perform bursts of speed, and they weren't limited to mere sprints. He could enhance his reactions and gestures, surpassing anything Khan could handle.
The huge limb flew toward Khan while his leg was still descending. A clash seemed unavoidable, but Khan forcefully used his other foot to tap on the air and send himself upward.
That light tap couldn't disperse Khan's momentum. He continued to spin while flying upward, but his abrupt rise into the sky made him escape Amox's reach. The latter completely turned only to hit the empty air.
Khan adjusted his position, stopping his spinning motion and straightening his back. He stood a few meters above Amox, lightly tapping the air to keep hovering there. Ideally, the Thilku would follow him in his domain, but nothing similar happened.
Amox appeared excited at the fact that Khan could fly. He lifted his head and fixed his happy smirk on him without jumping after him. Khan had already shown enough flexibility in the air, so it made sense for an experienced warrior to choose to remain on the ground.
However, no stalemate arrived. Khan lifted his right hand, and three glowing needles appeared between his bent fingers. Amox also moved, stretching his left arm toward Khan and summoning more sparks.
Amox's two thumbs bent, creating a crackling black spark that connected their tips. Mana gathered inside it, thickening its figure, loudening its noise, and increasing its power before he reached for it with his right hand.
The sparks were still accelerating Amox's movements, which gained a stark fluidity Khan didn't miss. The Thilku had probably repeated that gesture thousands of times, achieving a certain harmony Khan couldn't help but respect.
Amox touched the thicker spark with his right hand, pulling it toward his chest. That crackling black thread stretched, gathering more power that shot forward as soon as he released it.
Khan had watched everything attentively, but his eyes widened in shock when Amox released the spark. After that gesture, something flew toward him, forcing him to kick the air to his right to fling himself away.
Khan's reaction had been instantaneous, but something touched his chest anyway. He was still flying away when he lowered his gaze and noticed that a long cut had appeared on his uniform. The attack had only grazed his skin, but burns had appeared on his clothes.
Amox summoned his mana again, following Khan with his stretched left arm. He was ready to launch another attack, but Khan didn't remain passive anymore.
Khan kicked the air under him to fly past the crowns. His ascension had been too fast to follow, leaving Amox clueless about his position. The Thilku waited patiently for his return with his left arm pointed at the sky, but something far different came down.
A glowing spear pierced the crowns before exploding mid-air. Amox kept his eyes open, uncaring of the purple-red color trying to blind him, but that didn't help.
Khan dived back into the crowns, using the blinding pillar to hide his presence. His knife glowed while he flew toward that thick, stretched arm, and its tip soon pierced the back of that huge hand.
Amox noticed Khan only when the knife stabbed his hand, and his fast reactions kicked in. The Thilku pulled his arm away, jumping to his right to distance himself from his opponent. Still, as the pillar's glow waned, he noticed three purple-red needles flying in his direction.
The Thilku had to dodge again, which wasn't a problem with his speed. Amox jumped to his left, leaving the needles' trajectory and escaping their explosion. Yet, he suddenly noticed that he had lost track of Khan, and the pain spreading from his shoulder told him where he was.
Khan had used the spear and needles as distractions, which had paid off. Even with Amox's fast reactions, Khan still injured his palm. That wound wasn't deep, but it remained something.
Now, Khan had his knife stabbed into Amox's left shoulder. He didn't aim for a simple thrust at that time. He had performed a proper slash, and his weapon was still running through that strong flesh when the alien noticed it.
Amox didn't hesitate to perform another escape maneuver. Cracks came out of his figure as he stepped forward and prevented Khan from completing his slash. However, something flew after him and turning put his face in the middle of the conical Wave spell.
The Thilku's skin and clothes vanished under the effects of that destructive spell, but he didn't stay at its center for long. Amox quickly sprinted to his right to escape the chaos element but found Khan waiting with his knife pointed at his left shoulder.
Khan's strength was remarkable, and his spells were scary, but that alone wasn't enough to put him among the best third-level warriors. Still, his battle prowess remained terrifying.
Amox understood the reason behind Khan's strength very well during those exchanges. His flexibility, both on the ground and in the air, made his fast movements his greatest asset. That was the backbone of his battle prowess, turning even the simplest attack into a potentially fatal injury.
No one could match Khan in that field. Amox could only react and surpass his speed for a short time. Yet, now that he had lost the initiative, retrieving it without reckless actions was impossible.
Amox steeled his resolve at the sight of the incoming knife. He could dodge it, but that wouldn't change his situation. It would only add another injury that would further weaken his condition. So, he decided to step forward, driving his shoulder into the weapon to gain the chance to attack.
Khan saw everything, from Amox's move to his resolve, and the latter speed prevented him from doing anything about it. The knife stabbed the Thilku's left shoulder, digging deep into his flesh before far more sparks came out of his body.
Thunder resounded in the middle of the woods as scorching sparks flew in every direction. Amox had released a proper explosion to catch Khan in its destructive power and stop that incessant offensive.
Khan released his mana as soon as he noticed what was happening. Purple-red flares shot out of his body to create an uneven defensive sphere that clashed with the incoming sparks and delayed their advance.
The delay allowed Khan to retreat, but some sparks still managed to pierce his mana in the meantime. Charred dots appeared on his uniform, stretching toward his skin at times but without ever inflicting serious damage.
The clash between the two spells was stunning from the outside. Amox had created a crackling and black dome, and a foreign purple-red sphere slowly escaped its rage.
The ground and trees nearby ended up paying the price for that clash. Grass took fire as sparks fell everywhere, piercing trunks and digging holes in the terrain. That natural paradise couldn't survive the battle between two third-level warriors, but neither cared.
The sparks quickly lost power, but Amox didn't move. Khan also let his mana disperse and opted for a simple landing. The two stood still, refraining from attacking any further to inspect each other.
The long cut on the chest and the many new holes had made Khan's uniform baggy. It wasn't too torn but remained quite unfit for the situation.
Instead, Amox was far worse off. His sparks and Wave spell had damaged his uniform and cape, which barely managed to remain on him. Moreover, blood had covered his left shoulder, his skin had cracked in many spots, and the injury on his palm had yet to close.
Even with those injuries, Amox remained the embodiment of excitement. He liked that Khan had put him in that position, and the statement that followed confirmed that fleeing.
"[Blue hair is strong]!" Amox claimed before opting for a question. "[What's your name]?"
"Khan," Khan stated, unable to hold back the smile rising toward his expression. "Captain Khan."
"[Khan]!" Amox laughed, his right hand going for the cape to remove it. He threw that traditional garment away before reaching for the upper part of his uniform and ripping it off.
Khan's smile broadened at that sight, and his hand instinctively went for his uniform's buttons. He imitated Amox, exposing his chest to prepare for the imminent clash. His defined muscles paled before the Thilku's burly figure, but neither took that detail into consideration.
"[I'm coming, Khan]," Amox declared, using the same words Khan had spoken before the battle. That was a show of respect that Khan didn't miss, but something distracted him from that exciting moment.
Amox summoned his sparks, but Khan promptly raised a hand to shout the best "[Wait]!" he could muster. The Thilku stopped and tried to follow his gaze but couldn't see anything. After all, Khan was looking at the ground.
An earthquake arrived in the following seconds, and cracks spread on the ground, creating relatively deep fissures that continued to enlarge. Amox spread his arms, ready to fight anything that came his way, but Khan suddenly appeared on his chest and kicked him away.
Initially, Amox believed that Khan had used that distraction to attack him. Yet, the lack of pain from the push told him that there was more at stake, and the huge figure that shot out from his previous position confirmed that guess.
Khan had also pushed himself away during the exchange but was close enough to inspect the scene. A big, black creature had come out of the ground. The monster had the body of a worm, with a big circular mouth full of teeth and six long claws stretching from its edge.
The monster was only as strong as a third-level warrior, but more came out of the ground. Soon, seven different worms appeared in the area and released screeches as they waited for their bodies to land.
