[Author: Guys, since the moron (M.C) will be fighting, the story will be continued from my POV for a while.😁]
With unhurried and careful steps, Clark finally escaped from the cluster of traps and entered the free safe zone near the altar where Isaac was waiting for him.
The cave was eerily silent.
By this time, the two of them had already stopped trying to irritate and intimidate each other. Since they both knew that it wasn't working, there was no need for words.
And the moment Clark stepped onto the stage, the change in the ambiance of the situation could be easily felt even on the monitor outside.
The entire surrounding of the two was dead silent; the only noise that could be heard was the calm breathing of those two.
Even the lab outside was the same; some of the students outside even forgot to breathe, and only the sound of breathing could be heard from the speakers.
They both slowly unsheathed their swords and readied themselves for the battle.
Even though the word wasn't set, you could see that they had respect for their opponent. It could be seen from the expression on their faces as they stood before each other.
If it was anyone else from the class, Clark wouldn't have acknowledged and respected that person as a warrior, but after seeing the 'Status window' of Isaac, he had certainly developed a sense of respect for Isaac as a warrior.
In Clark's point of view, even though Isaac is an arrogant prick, he wasn't worthless like those other pieces of crap in his class.
As for Isaac's point of view, even though Clark is a senile old douchebag, as someone who was enlightened by the way of swords (even though it was only one move), Isaac has come to realize the way of the warriors {just a little bit}. And as such, he also developed a respect for such warriors.
[Isaac: Hey, you Author bastard, from now on, don't use any cursing words to describe the battle.]
[Author: Ok, from this point on, no more cussing until the fight is over]
The old adventurer and young Isaac faced each other, with their swords drawn. Isaac looked confident, with a glint in his eye and a steady grip on his blade.
On the other hand, old Clark appeared calm and bored, but there was a glimmer of something in his eyes that betrayed his years of experience.
Without a word, suddenly, Isaac lunged forward with a horizontal slash, hoping to catch the old man off-guard, but the old man was quick to react, parrying the blow with a diagonal slash.
Isaac jumped back, surprised at the old Clark's agility and reaction speed.
Even though they both had the same status, the difference in experience could be easily noticed in this one move.
After losing the first confrontation, Isaac wanted to step back a little and think for a second, but old man Clark seemed not to share the same thought. He quickly followed up with a vertical slash, aiming for Isaac's head, trying to finish it up in a fast manner and not giving Isaac any time to breathe.
Even though the sudden attack was unexpected, Isaac wasn't caught off-guard by it. He deftly dodged it and even tried to counter it with a diagonal slash of his own.
*Clang*
But the old adventurer blocked it with ease. His face still remained calm as it was before the fight, but on the inside, he was really surprised because his hands could feel the strength behind Isaac's attack.
After those fast exchanges, once again the two fighters slowly circled each other, each waiting for the other to make a move.
Finally, being unable to hold the pressure any longer, Issac lunged forward again, this time with a quick diagonal slash.
*Clang*
Once again, the old man Clark effortlessly blocked it and followed up with a vertical slash, hoping to catch Issac off-guard.
But unlike the first time, Issac was ready.
*Clank*
He skillfully parried Clark's attack with a horizontal slash and followed up with a diagonal slash of his own, which the old man blocked with ease, but he could feel the strain in his arms.
It couldn't be helped since this was the first time Clark fought with a status that was so low in his entire life. Even the status of his body at the age of 10 would be considered strong compared to his current status.
While Clark was experiencing hardship from his low status, Issac was feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount of pressure from Clark's battle experience.
The two fighters continued to exchange blows, each trying to find a weakness in the other's defense.
The fight was so intense that the entire audience was silent, not wanting to miss even a second of this incredible battle before them.
Issac was inexperienced but felt strong, while the old man Clark, even though he felt weak, still had his experience. They were evenly matched, and after so many exchanges, neither of them could gain the upper hand.
As the light around the altar flickered, the two fighters slowed down and faced each other with their swords drawn, smiling at each other.
Even though both of them were breathing heavily, it didn't seem like they were exhausted, but rather they looked excited.
Although we call ourselves humans and have civilization and all, deep down, we all know that we are nothing but a species of animals that can communicate and socialize better.
And just like every other animal kingdom that has its food chain, so does our society, where the weak get picked on by the strong.
But unlike the normal animal kingdom, our society's food chain doesn't consist of different types of animal species. So what do we do? We play roles.
And who decides these roles? The strong.
But since our society is made up of the same species, anyone can become strong and change roles in the food chain.
This makes people with power and strength uncomfortable, so what do they do? They use their power to control, chain, cage, and manipulate the weak.
Weak-minded people yield, Among these people, there are few who cannot be oppressed or subordinated by the roles of society; we call them "the caged beasts".
We refer to them as beasts because they can instinctively feel the fence and chain around them, and their instincts tell them that this is not where they are meant to be.
But as caged beasts, they have only one option: to be tamed or else they are dead; they must either get tamed or act tamed.
The method they choose to escape the cage may vary, but they are still the same beast inside; they are either sleeping or hiding.
The cage around them is the only thing that keeps them in check, and the moment the beast has the power to break out of that cage, it will do everything in its power to fight back for its freedom.
This time, it won't be just a mere beast; it will be an absolute monster.
And monsters don't walk out in peace after attaining freedom; they hunt.
Both Issac and Clark are among those caged beasts. Fighting seems to be ecstasy for Issac, who had never fought back in his entire life, and standing up and fighting for himself is the highest level of euphoria he could ever experience.
And as for Clark, the old guy has his own background story, but that is a story for another time.
After the fast exchange of swords, both warriors could feel the caged beasts inside them excited to meet one of their kind, which made them smile.