Ventelu dropped before Befehlnadir. His armored knee dug a small hole in the ground, which slowly revealed itself as he rose to confront Befehlnadir.
His Sky Beast circled over them in the sky, predatory eyes glaring down at the opposing pre-Noble. It screeched quietly, causing its entire body to slowly go invisible.
"Bravo, bravo! I learned how to do a Sky Beast's descent long ago as well, I just never used it. So what's your deal with Nestres?" Befehlnadir began.
Despite not being aware of Ventelu's true potential, Befehlnadir still acted confident. It was widely known distanced marksmen tend to do poorly in hand-to-hand combat.
However, Ventelu was different. After all, he would embody Order and Nature after Nestres claims King-hood.
"What? That birdy thought your tongue was a worm and bit it off?" Befehlnadir chuckled. "Maybe you can kindly point to Nestres' location and -"
A powerful shock-wave pushed Befehlnadir back. His ears rung after the destructive power clashed against him.
Instead of recovering, Befehlnadir morphed into a Yonie. He landed on his knees before quickly tunneling underneath Ventelu.
Yet he wasn't hidden, just sheltering from Ventelu's arrow. The Sky Beast saw it all, including Befehlnadir's movements.
"Here he comes..." Ventelu thought to himself. Upon feeling the vibrations get stronger, he jumped over Befehlnadir as he emerged to strike. "And now."
A jade arrow careened through the sky, lodging itself right into Befehlnadir's forehead. Despite the lethal injury, Befehlnadir didn't care. He rose out of the hole, wide grin over his face.
"Is that all you can do? Come down and put me down properly!" Befehlnadir taunted.
"What are you?!" Ventelu yelped.
Befehlnadir charged right at him. "I am Hitirus' warrior - his pre-Noble."
Ventelu jumped over Befehlnadir, launching another arrow at him before landing on the other side. Unlike last time, this arrow struck his shoulder.
The Sky Beast overhead forced itself to stay in place. Despite seeing Befehlnadir quickly turn around and kick Ventelu in the jaw, it knew its importance.
"Look at how you grip your jaw! Do you see how I grip my shoulder or forehead? Of course you don't, I don't need to. Why would Nestres pick you as a pre-Noble?" Befehlnadir pressed on.
Ventelu pulled back his bowstring. "Because I fared well against a Servant, creature. He saw my eyes reflecting the arrows as they stormed at them, and promptly struck! If it wasn't for me, Vereshkigo would've broken Coshire!"
Befehladir grinned, knowing he finally gotten the quiet boy to speak. "By fighting a Servant? How does that matter?!?"
Another blinding green light erupted out of Ventelu's bow. Befehlnadir charged straight towards Ventelu, careless if the arrow struck him.
When it did, he felt a huge chunk of his hips go missing. He suddenly felt a storm brewing in the air. As if something nasty was threatening Koroth.
Ventelu broadened his keen gaze, realizing something was happening with Befehlnadir. Dark clouds loomed overhead with thunder rumbling faintly.
Flashes of lightning struck the open sky, nearly hitting Ventelu's Sky Beast. The creature soared closer towards the ground, only for a precise bolt to strike it.
"What the..?" Ventelu thought to himself.
His eyes panned down to Befehlnadir, who held a sinister smile. The lightning and storm was his command. That's when Ventelu realized 'order' stood as something to equal out the chaos. And Befehlnadir was the surging chaos meant to rival Otres.
"So this is what I'm capable of? Not bad. Come here, pretty boy!" Befehlnadir roared.
Ventelu charged another arrow within his fingertips, which was futile as Befehlnadir crossed the gap within the blink of an eye. He felt the deafening strike of a tyrant's fist against the side of his head.
Instead of careening across the field, Ventelu felt a powerful gust of wind yank him back towards Befehlnadir. In response, Befehlnadir drove his knee into Ventelu's back.
His spine cracked and bent, sending an overflow of emotions throughout his body. All air he had in his lungs quickly escaped with a harsh exhale before dropping to the ground.
Befehlnadir chuckled. "This is great. Nature IS chaos! While you control the wildlife, I control the unpredictable weather."
Ventelu groaned as he struggled off the muddy forest floor. He felt Befehlnadir's foot shove him onto his back, before he stomped down onto his stomach.
"Y - you fight so bravely... but w - why?" Ventelu coughed.
"Now you speak?" Befehlnadir laughed. "For some reason, I am the Chaos Enabler - Hitirus' pre-Noble. I need him to become King so we can both rest peacefully."
Ventelu gasped his labored breaths, charging a counter attack within his chest. "Such a... destructive viewpoint. Why not m - make Koroth prosper?"
Befehlnadir shook his head. "You don't get it. Neither of us wanted this life."
"Then let me take yours -"
A jade arrow erupted out of Ventelu's chest, whizzing right up to Befehlnadir. The arrow pierced his right lung and left a basketball-sized hole in Befehlnadir's body.
Ventelu took the opportunity to sneak from under him. When he rolled onto his knees, he realized the world around him changed drastically.
Floating purple stone slabs decorated the arena as thunderclouds rumbled overhead. Brisk winds kicked his light orange, braided hair east.
When he rose to his knees, Ventelu knew where he was. Befehlnadir watched from the summit of his arena. Wind spun around endlessly like a tornado around him.
Thunder roared furiously around him, reflecting his attitude. Befehlnadir looked down at himself, realizing all wounds were completely gone.
He chuckled upon seeing Ventelu struggling back onto his feet. Even from so far away, Befehlnadir noticed his shaking limbs and unsteady facial expressions.
"Haha - ah... this is great, y'know. All I had to do is get a fancy name and I'm suddenly in charge of the elements. Hell, I feel like a fictional character right now. Let me try this -" Befehlnadir aimed a hand at Ventelu, then lifted it slowly. "Rise, Strident Archer!"
Ventelu manifested his bow in his left hand. "All right, whatever you say."