'What? Is he bluffing or...?' Tobey wondered in shock. He wasn't expecting a response to come, he was still getting used to the fact that there was a demonic alter ego inside of his mind that knew every single thing he was thinking about.
[No, you sieged chicken. He isn't bluffing. Now that he said it, I searched through this floor, just to find that there is Divine Energy all around. Can't you feel it? I can even perceive the smell...] Mask had disgust in his voice as he said it. He, apparently, was very averse to Divine Energy. It made sense since he was a demon.
'I won't even question why are you just saying it to me right now... I bet that you like to see me suffering.'
[As I said, I just discovered it now. I didn't even know that I could feel these energies. Maybe it's instinct. I was born just some hours ago, remember? This alter ego here is just like a baby maturing at an incredibly fast pace.]
'Anyway, can I get out of this place?' Tobey thought as he grunted and pushed the man against the wall again by exerting all his force and weight forward. 'Give a response quickly! It's quite tricky to maintain someone way stronger than me pressed against a wall. It isn't the same as grappling.'
[I am impressed that you are managing to keep him like this even though he is struggling a little... In the end, having technique and skills really does make up for strength to some extent. Anyway, once he realizes your blade isn't harmful to him, he will unleash all his strength. At this point, you won't be able to make him hostage anymore.]
'Why are you explaining me the obvious instead of giving me my response you freaking useless demon!?'
Mask grunted in Tobey's mind, looking like an angry hellish dog.
[That's your response, sieged chicken. It's not a matter of being able to leave this place or not. You MUST escape this room if you want to keep alive. Also, even after leaving it, you will need to face a corridor of death filled with these Paladins that are sieging you. Actually, they aren't covering the entire building, but this floor is thoroughly occupied. You will need to go down to the floor below if you want your plan to succeed, and you won't be able to wait for the sun to rise further.]
'Yes, I figured the last part,' he nodded, taking a deep breath. 'I shall cross my fingers and root for the sun to rise enough so my plan will work perfectly. Let's see whether luck finally shows its grace to me after this wave of misfortune!'
[Don't count with it. Remember that you are just an unfortunate bastard.] Mask mockingly said, though he liked that bolder side of Tobey.
Tobey prepared himself, lowering his hips as he bent his knees. The muscles of his legs tensioned and he gritted his teeth lest get affected by the pain of the many wounds he had in there.
While he was too focused on those things, he finally gave the opportunity for the Paladin to discover his facade. He pressed his throat against the knife and didn't feel any wound opening there, it didn't even cause the slightest peeling. He was sure that the man behind him was a demon; the Dark Energy within him was strong and clear. However, he seemed too weakened to react as he did in the previous reports that he received from the troop of yesterday.
The Paladin was quick in his reaction after he made sure that his theory was right. He freed his right hand from Tobey's grip. That hand was still holding the mace that he brought, the Weaponry form of his Soul Mirror.
That mace shone brightly as he spun his body, turning back while swinging his mace.
Nonetheless, Tobey had already acted by that time. Before the Paladin could even unleash his attack, he had stomped the ground and charged towards the door. He just waited for enough time so his enemy would lose too much time preparing his attack to follow suit as long as he saw him leaving.
'That bastard! He used this opportunity to get me off balance and run away. I underestimated him a little after discovering that he is weak, but being weak doesn't mean that he got dumb!'
Once Tobey left that place, he slammed his shoulder against the wall opposite to the door of his room, such was his speed when he dashed out of there.
He had taken one of the last rooms on that floor, so there was an entire huge corridor in front of him to get covered. That corridor was square-shaped, ending just after three turnings to the right that would lead to stairs towards the floor below.
If it was in a less difficult situation, he would be able to cross that floor with ease in a matter of a minute or two. However, that calculation got severely altered after the doors of the neighbor rooms slowly opened, and from there came the Paladins trying to hunt him down.
'After only looking at their faces, I could tell that they are Paladins. However, the fact that all of them hold these weapons with Divine Power embedding them is the decisive factor...', Tobey narrowed his eyes at those weapons, feeling a chill run down his spine as he got a bit apprehensive.
'I am still trying to get used to the power within their bodies and enhancing their weapons. It's just too frightening, more frightening than killing people, more frightening than facing death... Alas, I feel like I am facing death when looking at these weapons...'
The detective could do nothing but clench his fists and shake his head strongly to brush off that strange feeling. He couldn't delay even a second in front of the door of his room, otherwise, that man would begin to run after him.
[I know that you are scared of them, chick. I am also a bit scared, but not because I am a wimp like you are. In fact, their Soul Mirror is naturally forged so they can use it to kill us, the same way ours is made to kill them. Just don't get overworked because of it and fight off this fear!] Mask shouted, prompting Tobey to start running forward while roaring.
The Paladins stood tall in front of him while holding their Soul Mirror, not willing to let him pass.
'Can these weapons shatter my knife in one go?' he quickly asked when getting into the range of one of those Paladins.
[Against the ones with light weapons and that are weaker, you have two chances. Avoid the strong-looking ones if you don't want to lose your weapon in one go!]
Tobey nodded as he dashed to the side, swiftly dodging the attack of that Paladin in front of him. The man wasn't expecting Tobey to have that kind of footwork even though he was injured and out of his Demon Form. They were underestimating the human side of Tobey completely.
Tobey yet spun his body to the side, dodging another attack and slamming his shoulder against the Paladin's chest as he was in a stance that sacrificed completely his steadiness and balance. The result was obvious: the Paladin easily fell to the ground, getting ran over by Tobey.
"Be careful! He is in his demon form, but found a way to disguise himself! Keep your guard raised, Paladins!" one of them shouted, which seemed to be the person leading that troop. He couldn't believe that Tobey would be able to take down one of his soldiers in his ordinary human form.
This time, as Tobey advanced across that corridor, he felt like the attacks of the Paladins were more relentless and had more strength and agility behind them. It wasn't good news to him since he didn't have the same excellent reflexes that he had in his Demon Form. Now, those attacks looked like flashes of light, his eyes couldn't follow them.
Tobey was getting scratched in several parts of his body as he zigzagged between the many enemies in the way, always holding tightly his knife in front of his face. His body was bent forward as though he was about to fall forward, but it was just so he could swiftly run and avoid being targeted so easily. He was using every fiber of his leg muscles, flexing its joints and ligaments to their fullest as well, so he would use every grain of strength and energy of his body.
Even so, to the Paladins that speed was nothing compared to what their eyes could follow. For them, Tobey was moving as slowly as an old man walking casually in a park. Their major problem was his unpredictable moves, exceptional footwork, and agility above average. If not for these factors, they would have executed him way earlier.
Tobey got to the first turning to the right, leaping forward, and kicking the wall in front of him, propelling his body to the side. Hence, he didn't lose speed in the turning and avoided being targeted easily by the enemies positioned there.
As he fell to the ground, though, he lost his balance for a moment. That brief second was enough for a flash of pure white light to appear in the side of his vision. It surely was an attack, and it was aiming at his head.