The fight starts quick, Welnar throwing two jabs followed closely by a right hook, all blocked. Derlock responds with a straight punch, Welnar ducking to the side… But Derlock is already upon him with an overhead punch from his other hand. Welnar forms a solid barrier of mana to block the punch, yet even still it pushes through and causes him to slide back a bit. A roundhouse kick flies for his head next, but he narrowly leans his head back to avoid it. With a wave of his hand, Welnar sends the scarlet knife forward, slashing at Derlock. He blocks with his forearm, strengthening the arm with his mana but Welnar dashes for his side, throwing a hook to the body! It connects, yet at the same time it doesn’t feel like it ever really hit.

  {“He negated the force of the blow using his concept.”} Monarch concludes. Regardless, Welnar keeps the scarlet knife attacking Derlock, making him unable to counter attack. It doesn’t stay long, as eventually Derlock blocks a strike of the knife, having been storing the force of every attack… And unleashing it in a sudden blast that sends Welnar and the knife back! Immediately, Derlock closes in and throws a flurry of punches that leaves little time for reaction, forcing Welnar to weather the storm as he blocks the strikes.

  “So, figured out your concept yet?” Derlock says casually as he throws punch after punch.

  “Uh… N-not really.” Welnar says, grunting as another punch resonates through his body.

  “That is a shame.” Derlock shakes his head, before throwing a sudden uppercut that pushes Welnar’s arms up and away, forcing his guard open! Derlock throws another punch, but in the blink of an eye his fist clashes with the scarlet knife, teleporting just in front of Welnar to block the blow. Then, Welnar grabs hold of the knife… And is immediately caught off guard by a sudden, strange feeling. An incredibly acute sense of the blood in his body, much like how he feels the mana in him. “What the-” He tries to say, but a punch to the jaw sends him reeling back.

  “Something happened when you grabbed the knife.” Derlock’s keen senses seem to tip him off.

  “Y-yeah… Yeah something did happen.” He responds, looking at the knife in his hand.

  {“The powers of the Scarlet Heart become imbued into the weapon they forge. By grabbing the weapon, you become attuned to their power. It only lasts for a short while after letting go though.”} Monarch explains.

  {“And you didn’t think to tell me this sooner?! Sheesh Monarch, you really like keeping me in the dark about things!”} Welnar mentally responds with annoyance.

  {“You’d have figured it out eventually, so I didn’t see the need to until it was relevant! I mean, I was right.”} Monarch defends.

  Welnar sighs. So then, if he’s feeling his own blood while holding this knife… Does that mean he gained blood manipulation, like the psycho? Hesitantly, Welnar decides to test his theory by pressing the blade to his palm, and making a small cut… As blood drips, Welnar wills for the blood to stop.

  And it does, the droplet stopping midair. Derlock raises an eyebrow.

  “How interesting… You have blood manipulation now? It looks as if your mana has binded to your blood.” He says. “Well, show me what you can do.” Derlock beckons Welnar forward with a wave of his hand. And Welnar obliges, gripping the scarlet knife tighter and dashing at Derlock. He slashes once, twice to no avail, then throws a stab! But it’s deflected to the side easily. “Go on, try to kill me. Really.” Derlock taunts.

  Welnar thrusts his still bleeding palm toward him, and out of the wound shoots a thin spike of blood towards his chin! It’s narrowly avoided as Derlock tilts his head off to the side. Then, he strikes Welnar’s chest with his palm, causing him to gasp as the force passes right by his ribs, hitting the lungs and knocking the wind out of him. Welnar drops the scarlet knife, the blade landing in the soft grass as he tries to recover… Until suddenly, the knife flies upwards, leaving a shallow cut up Derlock’s chest! He jumps back a small distance, smirking.

  “Okay, not bad.” He says as Welnar stands up, the Scarlet Knife returning to his side. He may not have been able to swing it by himself, but he sure as hell could control it mentally.

  “Thanks…” Welnar responds. Then, he reels his hand back, the knife following his motion… And throws the hand forward, the knife flying forward in kind! But in the blink of an eye, Derlock dashed under the long ranged stab and towards Welnar, throwing a devastating uppercut. The next moment, wind is rushing past his ears. {“I’m… Airborne?”} Welnar thinks, still dazed from the blow. His body slowly turns, and he sees the ground pretty far beneath him, and what looks like Derlock? He crouches low, and for a moment disappears… The ground cracking all around where he once was. Where did he-

  A foot smashes into Welnar’s cheek, and he begins to rapidly descend. His eyes dart to the side, and in his peripheral he sees Derlock. How the hell did he get up here?! {“I thought he said he wouldn’t kill me?!”} Welnar thinks in a panic.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  {“Well maybe he thinks you can survive this?”} Monarch says, although still calmer than Welnar… There’s a hint of worry.

  His brain scrambles for options as the ground gets closer and closer. He’ll just have to harden his entire body and hope for the best… For good measure, Welnar even forms a barrier of mana at his back.

  And soon enough, he crashes to the ground! Welnar’s body is dug halfway into the dirt by the crash, and he slides forward for a good distance before finally slowing to a stop. He groans as he sits up, Derlock standing where he had first hit the ground. Welnar shakes his head, dirt and debris falling from his hair before he stands up slowly. His entire body is sore,

  “Let’s start the final act.” Derlock says. Welnar is a little confused for a moment, before he realizes that Derlock means to end the fight soon. He grits his teeth… Like hell it is.

  Welnar begins to approach. Derlock takes a deep breath, crossing his arms in front of him… Slowly, he brings them to his hips, exhaling. As he does, an insurmountable pressure flows from him, barreling into Welnar. It stops him in his tracks, and he feels his legs buckle. It feels like last time, what he had started the fight with… But… So much stronger! Slowly, Welnar takes a single step forward. His feet grind against the dirt, pushing him two steps back.

  He takes another step. Then slides two back. Another one forward. Another two back. Is he too weak? No… He doesn’t want to be weak. He CAN’T be weak! He needs… To push forward…

  An invisible aura flows from Welnar, meeting Derlock’s with the same pressure. Welnar takes two steps forward. He slides one step back. Two forward, one back. Two forward, one back. {“His mana has spiked up even more than it did last time he did that move…”} Monarch says.

  {“Figured…”} Welnar says, clenching his teeth as he slowly gets closer and closer to Derlock, who tilts his head with a look of surprise. He’s unleashing the full power of… Derlock shakes his head.

  “I think… I understand your magic concept now.” He says, the pressure he was unleashing beginning to let go. Welnar does the same. “Wait, really? What is it then?” He asks.

  “I won’t tell you. But, I will at least give you a hint… It's something you've been doing all your life.” Derlock smiles. Welnar is… Utterly clueless.

  “The hell does that mean?” He says.

  “You'll figure it out, I'm sure. You're a clever man, Welnar… But, I'm afraid we must end things here.” Derlock responds, still smiling as he turns and begins to walk away. A few seconds later, he flickers out of view entirely, leaving the confused Welnar all alone.

  “Felt kind of anticlimactic… I thought he said he wanted to move onto the final act.” Welnar mutters, a little annoyed. It feels like that fight got cut shorter than it should've been… Even Derlock sounded as if he didn't want to end the fight. More like he had to, for some reason. Moreover, was it really a coincidence they met here again? Welnar scratches his head. It's not entirely impossible, but… He can't help but feel suspicious. There's something strange about that old man… Welnar’s thoughts are interrupted as footsteps rush over from behind. Welnar whips around to see Kali.

  “Dude, what the fuck have you been doing, what happened?! I was looking all over town for you!” She says, panting between every few words. “Then I saw you fucking flying through the air!” She says, pointing up to the sky.

  Welnar gives a nervous chuckle, trying to think of some kind of excuse… “Um… Training?” He says. Kali squints at him, her eyes alone giving off “Do you think I'm stupid?” Vibes.

  “I don't believe you in the fucking slightest… But I doubt you'll give me a straight answer either way, so whatever. Just say something next time you plan on up and leaving in the middle of the night! Thought you ditched me asshole.” She says, her confusion and concern turning to righteous fury as she lightly punches Welnar's bicep.

  “Okay okay, I will! Sorry, sheesh.” Welnar says, putting his hands up.

  “Would've beat you to a pulp if you did all that hero talk only to get cold feet and bail… Come on, let's head back before my parents wake up and start worrying.” She says, heading back to town with Welnar following behind.

  …

  Derlock looks around in the forest, and upon being certain that he's alone… Takes out a small medallion, putting his thumb on the center and pressing down. His body is utterly consumed by light, and in mere seconds he disappears from the forest…

  …Reappearing inside the Archon meeting room. Only the 2nd Archon is waiting, gesturing to the seat beside them as Derlock appears. He sits down. “You have no halo with you.” The 2nd Archon states.

  Derlock nods. “Welnar is alive. And he now has a scarlet knife.” The 2nd Archon is silent for a few moments, Derlock sensing their surprise.

  “How interesting… A mere nobody managing to acquire a scarlet heart?”

  “And he appears to be closing in on the second already.” Derlock states. The 2nd Archon clasps their hands together in thought.

  “This is truly unexpected… I had near forgotten that creation, considering it a dud… I planned on acquiring it after the man had passed and trying to deduce why it connected with him, but! Perhaps it’ll be more interesting to let things play out?” The 2nd Archon talks to themself, voicing their thoughts aloud. Derlock has seen this enough times to know not to bother interrupting them. He’s in his own little world now.

  “Maybe I’ll let it play out in full… Yes, that sounds pleasing. At the zenith of his journey, just as he creates the Zero Blade, I can simply take it for myself!” The 2nd Archon laughs. “Then, and only then…” They glance at Derlock, clearing their throat. “Anywho. Thank you for your efforts, Ten. But plans have changed… Do not interfere any further with Welnar. I will take care of things from here on. That is all.”

  The 2nd Archon stands, patting Derlock’s shoulder as they turn.

  “Excuse me Two-”

  The 2nd turns, their eyes glinting golden through their unnaturally obscured face. “You are not excused. Do NOT overstep your boundaries, Ten. Understand?” They say. A golden sigil has already formed in the ground beneath Derlock, emanating immense mana. A threat that Derlock is pretty sure the 2nd would follow up on without a second thought… He clenches his fist. The 2nd is all too obviously scheming something, something bad. But he cannot overstep… He is the newest Archon, by a long shot too. Yet despite that, he is pretty certain that if he fought the 2nd, he’d win… He’s pretty certain he could win against most of the Archon’s. All except the 1st Archon… Someone who’s probably as close to the gods as one could get.

  Derlock sighs. “...I merely wanted to tell you one more thing. Welnar is capable of resisting the pressure of my blessing.”

  The 2nd Archon stares for a few moments, before the golden glint in their eyes disappear, alongside the sigil beneath Derlock. “How interesting. I will make note of this…” Then, the 2nd takes out a medallion, the same as Derlock’s. Just like him, they push the button in the center and in an instant, disappear in a flash of light. Soon enough, Derlock does the same…