His right hand caught Nightbreaker as it returned, the weapon slamming into his grip with enough force to make the internal supports in his arm protest.
He barely cared. Pride had not dodged the little spell. He had not blocked it either. He had simply allowed it to happen because it was beneath consideration. A tiny thing, meaningless by damage, enormous by implication.
"What is the meaning of these foolish acts? They serve no point in this… battle."
Pride's voice carried a faint break before the last word, not hesitation exactly, but distaste. As if calling this a battle while Ludwig was flicking weak fire at his face offended some sacred definition.
"Oh, but they do," Ludwig said, already gathering another pathetic little flame. "You couldn't dodge it. Something that small."
"It is insignificant, unimportant, not worth the effort to dodge or block. It simply washes away."
