[Adam, I think he's trying to enrage you and trigger your fighting spirit.]
'Well... he just did.'
Springing up from the dirt, Adam was about to turn when Endevil alerted. [Sword to your waist.]
Instinctively, he leapt upward and felt the sharp blade of the knight captain's weapon skimming right below his feet.
'He wants a fight, I'll give it.'
Twisting in the mid-air, Adam's hindlimbs delivered a powerful kick. Edgar was stunned after taking the hit on his chest and staggered backwards by the force behind the seemingly simple execution.
The crowd went silent.
What kind of move is that?
This was the query that the mass had in their hearts.
Witnessing the glory of the Iron Turtle, they expected a one-sided slaughter. But who would have thought that the unforeseen twist where the nobody standing against the legend would deliver an astonishing kick?
Furthermore, the sheer beauty of the dark-green coloured Deity Of Doom with its cape dancing in the gentle breeze was a sight to behold.
The crowd was in a true dilemma; should they cheer for the legend or the rookie?
But...
This tug-of-war proved beneficial to the audience as they could hear every single detail of the fight. Every time the sword slashed the air, they experienced goosebumps. Whenever the duo charged at each other, they were on their toes. When the brutal melee spike at certain moments, those seated were at the edge of the chairs.
...
[Adam, fatigue is accumulating. It's best to stop the fight early.]
'You tell this damn psycho.'
Helpless at the moment, Endevil could only convey his thoughts to the earthling. The consciousness was unable to communicate with the opponent.
As a person who spent most of his golden years subjugating beasts and clearing missions, Edgar was known by his alias 'Iron Turtle'.
Though his moves were reckless and lethal, his primary concern was always defence. Thus there weren't any more than a handful of people who could put him in a stalemate.
At the moment, Edgar was savouring each and every second of his life as he simulated his rusty bones and muscles while Adam was relentlessly dodging his strikes.
"Stop dodging and fight!" In awe of the insane agility the young man possessed despite wearing the armour, the knight squad captain kept on taunting Adam to put up a fight but he refused.
"Okay then."
And it was at this moment that Edgar lost his cool.
Swiping his sword at Adam's waist, the second sword charged at the latter's neck.
Clang~
Both the attacks were stopped by the sturdy gauntlet of the armour.
But...
Dang~
Edgar's foot rose and came in contact with the opponent's chin!
"..."
The audience was absolutely silent as they saw Adam rising into the air by a foot or two only to fall on his back, motionless.
Celestina, standing among the crowd, was also shocked.
Not because Edgar delivered such disorienting blow but... she could sense a subtle change in Adam's demeanour.
The young man's figure fell flat on the ground and was unmoving for a moment as her face darkened.
Rumble~
The reined killing intent suppressed by Adam's rationality was perceived by Celestina a second ago, but she never expected it to be so dense!
The wave that swept past Edgar and the audience was bone-chilling!
"..."
While the entire arena was silent as a cemetery, the source of the killing intent sprang up on his feet and dashed at Edgar.
Dang~
The agility powered by the strength channelled into his legs created a massive momentum with which Adam's figure flashed from where he was. A moment later, his gauntlet was already right before Edgar's chest piece.
But the knight captain was fortunate to bring his sword to dull the impact.
"Keuk..." Everybody heard Edgar's muffled moan, trying to suppress the force of impact.
But that wasn't all.
He couldn't steady his figure as he staggered backwards a few steps when Adam's enormous grip caught the former's headgear.
With a swift pull, the earthling collided his opponent's helmet with his!
Deng!
And that was the beginning of a lop-sided battering.
With the ferocity of a wild beast, untamed and undefeated, the earthling threw Edgar around the arena like he was a tin can while dealing massive amounts of damage. The Grey-Mythril Carapace protecting the latter was displaying the bottom line of its durability.
"..."
The audience who came to see the invincible Iron Turtle thrashing a rookie witnessed the latter pummelling the former. A peculiar sensation of excitement, surprise and encouragement was involuntarily coursing through them.
Meanwhile, in the arena.
Edgar's armour had sustained severe cracks and was on the verge of shattering when Adam picked the former up by his neck.
"Keuk~ You... win..." Rising above the ground, devoid of support, the knight squad captain was not doing good while hiding behind the armour. He could only concede when the rate of pummeling came to a halt.
"Thank you." Adam's impassive voice replied and released the grip. At once, the invincible Iron Turtle fell on his feet but ended up on his rear as he stumbled backwards.
Reflexively, Celestina leapt up and ordered a few guild workers to take Edgar to the infirmary.
[Thank goodness you followed my instructions. Or else, he wouldn't have been alive.]
'Thanks, I guess.' Taking off the helmet, Adam was about to head to the passage when someone from the crowd jumped onto the arena.
"Hey rookie, I challenge you." The feminine voice with a shade of arrogance roared as the young lady brandished her staff.
Adam turned around to see a girl in her mid-twenties staring at him with war spirit.
'What's with this girl?'
[Maybe she wants to test your strength.]
"Ok." Adam turned to the mage and pulled out his spear.
"Wait!"
The mage who took initiation to issue the challenge raised her hand and gestured to stop.
"Are you really a berserker?"
The doubtful expression on her face made Adam narrows his eyes.
[Yes, her innate skill seems to be 'Appraisal'.]
Comprehending the possibility, Adam gazed at the lady and asked, "Is there a problem?"
"You don't know?" The counter-question was instantaneous. But the next second, she shook her head and replied, "Nevermind, do as you please."
Sensing Adam's confused stare, she introduced herself.
"I'm Delina Gator. A Silver-rank mage." At once, she raised her staff and pointed at Adam.
"Freezing Breath!"
A dense beam of chilling cold charged at Adam as an unleashed beast. But before it could hit him, the earthling had dodged the strike.
[The staff is the medium through which a mage channels mana to cast spells. Seize it to win.]
Following Endevil's instructions, Adam closed the distance between him and the opponent. But the mage had already cast another spell.
"Firewall!"
With only a few metres between them, Adam was forced to retract his hand when a fierce wall of fire rose between them.
'Incredible.'
Though the armour insulated the earthling from all foreign variables, the beauty of the spell was one to behold.
[Don't just stand there and reveal the peculiarity of the armour.]
Instantly, Adam retreated backwards by almost ten metres.
Closing his eyes, he concentrated his senses and perceived his surroundings.
In his mind, a pitch-black screen appeared with vague white outlines of people around him.
'She's escaping under the veil of the firewall.'
Instinctively, Adam turned to where she was but saw nothing.
[She's using a camouflage spell.]
'Oh, there's something like that?'
Upon knowing the reason for her disappearance, Adam was surprised and quickly pulled out his spear.
With the assistance of Sprint, he closed the distance between Delina.
But just a step away from the destination, a fireball manifested out of nowhere and exploded at Adam with intense flames.
Boom!
The flames reminiscent of inferno engulfed the armour whole.
"..."
The audience were all stunned. Their mouths were agape at the ferocity of the flames.
"That's the Mountain Melter."
"What? You sure?"
"That's a spell that demands an insane amount of mana."
"You mean, 'The Mountain Melter'?"
...
A few seconds later, someone among the crowd recognised the spell. Shortly after, a heated discussion erupted.
Meanwhile, Delina had a pride smug on her face.
Hiding under thick plates of iron, anyone can be a hero. The real talent is braving the magic. You're still years away from becoming an adventurer.
With a victorious grin, Delina stated her verdict in her heart and turned around to step towards the passage.
But...
What's with these people?
The previously chirping mass was staring at the arena with horror. Their silence conveyed something beyond description. Those wide eyes were about to jump out of their sockets as the lower jaws hung low.
The pride and arrogance as a mage enveloped her immediately. Basking in the glory of defeating a rookie who luckily pummelled the Iron Turtle, she stood there with her chin up.
But it was after skimming her eyes through the crowd did she realise something.
Their ghastly stares aren't focused on her.