The transformation of the courtroom in such a short amount of time was astonishing.
The once political gathering of nobles had now been cleared and turned into what resembled a ring.
Now that Lilo had time to reflect on it more, the structure of the courtyard had resemblances to a coliseum.
The pillars, the sculptures, the high ceiling, the new formed crowd of intrigued faces.
'Wow, this is making me reminisce my glory days.'
It was only a couple days ago that Lilo had lived this life; and yet it felt like a lifetime ago.
All eyes were drawn the scrawny petite kid who had lured out a duel with the almighty Pop shepherd king.
Lilo could read the confused expressions on all the audiences faces. What kind of harmless child was able to provoke such a challenge?
It made his heart flutter with jubilance. This is what he missed. Being the underdog was always his favorite position.
Once he became a world champion, when he defended his belt, it was rare to feel this type of unbelief within a crowd.
Pop's cape flowed like water behind him and the crowd split as he made his way to the center of the empty cleared space for the duel.
Lilo was already waiting in the make shift ring.
Mello was prepping a table loaded with weapons for the champion's choosing.
Soda was biting his nails, his anxious attention split between his brother and Lilo.
'Oh yeah, I forgot to ask Soda about that... Where's his brother again?'
Sure enough, in the distance was that wiper with the lazer focus, studying Lilo with those lost eyes laced with disbelief.
He had a darker shade of red hair and a chiseled face, showing marks of several years of aging. The tunic he wore was of bright yellow, blending in with the rest of the wipers.
Lilo was lost in thought, studying Soda's brother and completely oblivious to the menacing giant choosing which weapon he would use to break his opponent.
"Lilo, lock in! I'll fill you in on my brother later. You're about to get your ass handed to you. Please, for the sake of both of our bodies, take this seriously!" Soda's voice was laced with anxiety.
Lilo rolled his eyes and approached the table. There were many enchanted weapons, but none of them caught his eye. Most were too heavy for him to wield and to be quite frank, he had never used weapons to fight in the past.
He expected this spar to be done hand to hand, anything else was thought to be lethal. Unsurprisingly, it seemed this society was eager to witness a gruesome fight. They were all let down though, seeing that the great shepherd Pop's opponent was a child.
"Have no fear child, a kite rider will heal you if mortally wounded." Pop's deep voice was dripping with malice arrogance as he picked up a whip from the table.
The whip was long and thick, with barbs of diamond spikes running along the entire length of it. The handle was adorned with gold embroidery and at the tip of the whip was a silver bell that jingled a pitched eerie sound each time it moved.
A murderous grin creased Pop's lips as he stepped away from the table. Lilo understood why it was enticing for himself to challenge such a menacing foe, but he found it disturbing that Pop actually enjoyed picking on a child to face as an opponent. Only an evil coward would do that.
'What the hell is wrong this guy? Is his ego really that fragile?'
Mello, who was still mending the table of weapons, looked down at Lilo with pity.
"Sir, would you like my suggestion?"
Lilo shook his head and reached with his petite hand for an item. He pulled out a cape, and wore it around his shoulders. It was white, just like Pop's, but the runes that glowed on the enchantments were of a sinister red hue.
However, the cape was a bit too large for Lilo, sitting awkwardly lopsided on his shoulders and dragging a bit too much behind him.
"I can't be the only one without a cape right?" Lilo's comment made Mello's face grow a few shades paler.
The crowd grew silent as the table was pulled out of the arena and the sounds of whispers echoed in the vast courtyard. The two fighters stood opposite of each other, on the farthest ends of the circular ring, glaring at each other with murderous intent.
'I wonder if Wonka and the crew will ever hear of this.'
Just as that thought crossed Lilo's mind, he saw Jawbi in the crowd, watching them with a lazy expression.
He seemed unbothered. Bored even. Lemon, Pepper, and Wonka were nowhere to be seen; but for some odd reason Lilo expected Jawbi to step in and save him.
Not that he would want that to happen but he at least expected Jawbi to not want to see a child enter such a brutal duel with a savage like Pop.
That was far from the case. Even with the unbothered expression, Lilo could see the curiosity within Jawbi's eyes.
'He wants to see how I'd fare.'
The whip cracked and jingled as Pop taunted Lilo.
"Don't worry kid, I'll make it slow and extremely painful." Moments after those words left Pop's mouth, he appeared in front of Lilo with lightening speed; his cape glowing with intensity.
Lilo speed alone was not fast enough to dodge the whip but he used his fight iq to anticipate where the strike would go. He jumped, even before Pop flicked his wrist, and successfully maneuvered a whip that was aimed for his legs.
Unfortunately however, his cape got caught in the barbs of the whip, and ensnared him as the whip was brought back to Pop. His head slammed into the ground as he got dragged back.
There was no pain, but there was loss of consciousness for a brief moment. His vision blurred and blood trickled into his eyes from his forehead that was split open by the impact of colliding with the floor. Lilo did not allow the wound to close, knowing how many eyes were watching him.
The deep laughter of the menacing shepherd could be heard and Lilo's once even breath grew rapid.
'Damn... this is humiliating.'
His body ended up at Pop's feet, and Pop was currently reeling back the whip for another blow.
Lilo had an inkling of a suspicion that he would lose, a thought he never had before when facing an opponent, but this circumstance was just simply too at odds with his favor.
He was significantly smaller, less experienced with fighting with weapons, and just unaware of what Pop was capable of.
In the past when he fought in the cage, he studied his opponents extensively and they were more or less similar in size; having to weigh in the day before at the same weight.
This situation was simply not meant to be a fair fight and Lilo was not stupid enough to expect it to be. He simply wanted to leave a mark.
A single devious strike to remember him by. He deemed that alone to be victory enough.
Afterall, if a child was able to land a blow or even cause the slightest discomfort to the most feared shepherd in this spire, the audience would know who lost respect within this match.
He quickly scrambled to his feet and lunged at Pop's legs before the whip came down on him. He was not trying to dodge the blow, he was prepared to tank it, but he wanted to give a blow of his own.
He opened his maw of small sharp teeth and with his enhanced craver capabilities, bit down on an ankle with all the might his little frame could muster.
He felt the flesh tear and blood spill into his mouth, but he also felt the terrifying whip on his back. His own flesh tore and his back was mercilessly flayed open.
A cry of pain escaped Pop's mouth but Lilo remained clamped down on the ankle, unwavering and not willing to show any sign of pain from the whip.
The crowd gasped as they witnessed one of the most powerful men cry in agony. This urged Lilo to bite down even harder, relishing the humiliation he was causing the pompous shepherd.
Another cry of pain, escaped Pop's mouth, but this one was a bit more muffled than the last. Pop's anger boiled at the child's attempt to hurt him.
"Such a beastlike way to fight don't you think?" Pop was addressing the crowd. "Where is the honor in biting down on an ankle like a dog? Is that what you are? Do you belong in the den, muzzled like those animals called cravers?"
'Honor? You're literally whipping a child with a barbed weapon you hypocritical bitch!'
Lilo clenched his jaw down even harder, fighting back tears from the sheer strength he was using to crush the ankle.
The pain was tremendous, causing Pop to desperately try to get him off. At first he tried to kick him, but it caused him to trip and fall onto the ground; bringing both of them down.
Then, he relentlessly brought the whip down on Lilo. Again and again, countless strikes rained down on Lilo. His skin and cape was getting ripped to shreds and he allowed the wounds to remain open.
Blood was visible but it did not escape his body. To the naked eye it might have looked like Lilo was losing blood but he was not allowing that to happen. That would not be the cause of him losing this fight.
With each whip, the bell rung, and Lilo clamped down even harder; his vision being covered in his own blood and his jaw locking up from the cramps of sheer torque he was inducing.
Pop was on the verge of tears, nearly bawling from the pain on his ankle. Murmurs of muffled mockery washed over the crowd as they witnessed the pitiful sight.
Lilo could even hear Soda openly letting out mad laughter at the sight of such a bizarre fight.
Finally Lilo heard a crunch. The bone broke.