Chapter 97 Beaten 2.0

Zayn's face flushed red because he had been defeated so easily.

Right now, neither of them used a single soul particle to fight, which meant that they were fighting with their respective physical strength and combat experience.

It was only obvious that he was worse than Merlin in every aspect, but that was the last thing Zayn could think about right now. He wouldn't use petty excuses to make himself feel better. That would make him oblivious to the bitter truth and it would make things harder when it came to adapting to his opponent's fighting style and overcoming the hurdles ahead.

He had to learn a lot, and he understood that very well!

Zayn got up from the ground while eyeing Merlin carefully. The One-armed Adventurer had retreated to give Zayn some space.

However, now that Zayn had gotten up from the ground, Merlin inched closer swiftly. His eyes were filled with vigor, yet ice-cold as they stared down at Zayn. He slashed the large Saber downward, slicing through the air with a ridiculous speed. Zayn's eyes widened once again, but instead of charging forward, he backed off and slashed out with the intention to hit the flat side of the large saber.

His move was quick and precise, just enough to evade the attack. However, he couldn't create an opening to initiate a counterattack because Merlin changed the trajectory of his attack all of a sudden. Due to the change of trajectory, Zayn's blade didn't even come in contact with Merlin's large saber. On the contrary, Zayn ended up slashing through the air once again, while Merlin used the opportunity to get closer.

Merlin's altered attack didn't hit Zayn but it created an opening for him to move, and an opportunity to initiate a follow-up attack without the loss of the momentum he had accumulated.

Zayn sensed that something was about to happen. Zayn chose to make use of his own momentum to slash with both sabers at Merlin, forcing him to react as he shot forward, adding additional momentum to his attack.

After training for several years, in an attempt to move nimbly and with rapid acceleration, Zayn ended up being able to do exactly that. He charged forward rapidly and slashed at Merlin. The situation seemed to be in his favor for a moment because there were only centimeters between the azure-blue blades and the remaining arm of the Adventurer when the loud clang of metal colliding against metal rang through his ears.

The large saber had lunged out, whizzing through the air with an even higher acceleration than Zayn's attack. The force behind his attack was manyfold higher as well. Merlin was able to push the Dragontale Twin Sabers away and press the cold blade of his large saber against Zayn's neck just a moment later.

Zayn swallowed his saliva as warm blood trickled down his neck. Merlin didn't show a change in his expression as he removed the large saber from Zayn's neck. He stepped back while continuing to stare at Zayn.

"Again!" He ordered, giving Zayn only seconds to catch his breath and digest what had actually just happened before attacking once again.

Time passed extremely slowly, and Zayn found himself in a more miserable state every single time he landed on the ground, or with the tip of a cold blade held against his neck, or just about to pierce into his chest.

Despite this miserable state, Zayn got up from the ground every single time. He didn't want to accept this humiliation, and wanted to deliver at least one successful blow at Merlin.

"Again!" Merlin repeated over and over again. However, Zayn couldn't even hear him anymore. Blood continued to ooze out of his ears in rivulets, preventing him from hearing anything but the sound of the battle. His entire focus was on the battle ahead, and the adrenaline that pumped through his body like torrents were doing its own work as well.

He felt that he was slowly getting better but he could also easily determine that his attacks were still not good enough. They were far from good enough, in fact.

Nonetheless, Zayn never gave up. He got up from the ground whenever he was pushed down, ignored the blood that trickled down his neck and chest, and his desire to win kept intensifying.

"Again!"

"Again!"

"Again!"

After an unknown period of time, Zayn found himself lying in a small puddle of his sweat. His chest heaved up and down and his ragged breathing rang through his ears. Zayn was barely able to hear anything due to the blood that rushed into his ears. His head ached heavily but the rest of his body was in an even worse condition.

He had bruises and cuts all over his body and he had pushed himself way beyond his limits. He really didn't want to continue fighting, and his body was of the exact same opinion. Zayn found himself incapable of moving even if his mind wanted to force him to get up.

"It's fine, stay on the ground and rest a bit," Merlin's voice resounded in his head all of a sudden. He could barely hear it, but the voice sounded like that of an angel.

The words caused Zayn to relax in an instant. He sighed in relief, happy that the battles seemed to be over. No matter how much he thought to have improved in the short spars against Merlin, Zayn couldn't help but think that he would have to rest for quite some time before he could fight once again, let alone train.

But Merlin had something else in mind. He put two vials down next to Zayn's resting figure, and said, "Take these and you will feel much better in no time. The potions will supply you with warmth, will soothe your soreness, and heal the shallow cuts and bruises in the next few hours."

Zayn forced his arms to move. He picked up the two vials, removed their lids with some effort, and led them to his mouth with trembling hands. In the next few seconds, he nearly killed himself by gulping down the liquid of the two vials while lying down. He forced himself to swallow the liquid rather than throwing up.

The struggle was real, and Zayn could only calm down once he had swallowed everything more or less neatly.

**

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