Chapter 302 - Better

On any other occasion, Zaos would take his time to study Camus techniques. Still, since his soldiers were fighting and dying just a few meters behind him, he couldn't afford to do it.

If Zaos hadn't used all his bolts in the last few days, he would have had some ideas, but in the end, he didn't have any. Not to mention, his mana and stamina weren't recovering. So he couldn't rely on any of them to help him on that bind. Maybe Zais could retreat and take a few potions from Nyana, but he doubted that it would work. The poison drains the energy the more he uses it. So each potion would only grant him a single-use in Detoxification, and considering how fast the poison worked, a few uses won't solve the issue.

"You are running out of time, Zaos Sielders," Camus said. "At this rate, the battle will end sooner than you will be defeated."

"Boy, you love the sound of your voice, don't you?" Zaos said, an extremely annoyed expression on his face. "You have a pretty big mouth for a coward who stayed behind thousands of mercenaries.."

"You will have to try better than that to taint me," Camus said.

Zaos assumed his Ox guard again because he still had a trick up his sleeve. Hopefully, it will be enough to solve that situation because Zaos really had no idea how to defeat someone with lightning reflexes like that. He dashed again and began to thrust his sword toward the enemy. In the middle of one of his attacks, he suddenly grabbed three knives hidden in his armor and threw them toward Camus. However, he finally used his sword for something and then blocked the knives that were aimed at his head and neck.

"Hmm, throwing knives," Camus said while looking at the knives on the ground. "Quite the suspicious weapon for one of the knights of Sairus kingdom."

"I am not… whatever," Zaos said and then sighed.

It was a bit risky, but Zaos couldn't waste any more time with that clown. He assumed the Ox guard again and began to attack even more fiercely than before. As usual, Camus dodged each attack by a small distance, but then he didn't notice one of Zaos's attacks. He let his sword go while he was finishing the thrust, and the weapon flew toward his head. Camus was forced to use his sword to block the weapon, and by doing so, he lost sight of Zaos for a second. When he blocked the sword, Zaos suddenly appeared in front of him and then punched his face, but then with the same lightning speed, he blocked the attack with his weapon.

Zaos' fist began to bleed, and his face distorted in pain, but he still kicked Camus in the stomach and made him roll on the ground for a few meters. Zaos' had was hurt, but he still managed to recover his sword with it.

"I knew that you would fall for the same trick as that idiot," Zaos said, recalling his fight with Drannor in the tournament. "You two have a lot in common. No wonder you piss me off so much."

Since Camus was wearing light armor, Zaos was absolutely sure that his kick caused some damage, even though he quickly gave up. He was still smiling, but Zaos could tell that the smile didn't reach Camus' eyes.

"Why so serious?" Zaos asked. "It looks like you never got hit like that, so I am going to give you a hint. After getting hit in the stomach, it gets kind of hard to move your legs like before."

Zaos attacked with his sword again, but even he lost some speed because his right hand was hurt. Camus was still dodging the attacks, but one could see that he was struggling to maintain that speed. He began to use his sword to parry Zaos's attacks at some point, but he could only do so much with a weapon of that size.

"That is why I use a freaking big sword!" Zaos said and then assumed his tail guard again.

Dodging an attack from that stance would be hard, so before Zaos could dash, Camus dashed first and then tried to cut Zaos's throat. He moved his body backward and escaped the attack, but only because Camus didn't go all out since Zaos could split in half at that distance. He advanced but quickly retreated… not all that quickly considering his wounds, but quick enough considering Zaos' condition.

"Now that is better," Zaos said. "This looks more like a proper fight."

Camus knew that he couldn't let Zaos assume that stance again, so he assumed the offense once he had the chance. He tried to hit Zaos's neck as if he had given up on the idea of convincing him to join his side, and despite the fact that he probably had some broken ribs, Camus was fast enough and forced Zaos on an entirely defensive stance. Camus aimed for his hands whenever Zaos tried to link his blocks with a swing and forced him to stop the motion.

That same scene repeated itself several times until Zaos noticed that his condition was worse than Camus again because his stamina was being drained. Just like the offer Camus gave him earlier, Zaos now had to choose between insisting on a tactic that wouldn't lead him anywhere or sacrificing something for the sake of victory… in the end, Zaos took the high road.

When Camus dashed toward him again, Zaos tried to kick his stomach. However, he reacted fast enough to dodge and change his tactic. At the same time, he aimed at Zaos's right leg, Zaos aimed at his head with a one-handed downward strike.

As if his reflexes had no limits, Camus jumped to the side and used his sword to block the strike. While he blocked the direct attack, his sword still cracked but protected his shoulder from being cut down. Zaos felt some bones cracking and smirked, but his smile soon disappeared when he felt a sharping pain in his back.