Ready when you are ready." Diablo said.
Those words further ignited Kingsley's anger; he stopped holding back and rushed forward, throwing punch after punch while Diablo stayed on the defensive, using his hands to block lethal blows.
Due to his Ascendant stats, Kingsley had control over his fat build; as he kept performing fighting skills and stunts he would never have dared before, it became clear he focused on strength rather than speed. His speed was slow, but his blows were destructive and whenever he punched and Diablo dodged, his punches left marks. Still, Kingsley grew frustrated because his strikes couldn't land cleanly on Diablo.
"Don't dodge like a coward!" Kingsley spat angrily when he couldn't land a clear hit on Diablo.
"Is this all you got? I thought you were strong but it seems my imagination was too much." Diablo replied, equally frustrated. At first he thought Kingsley was holding back, but the longer it went on the more Diablo realized Kingsley was fighting with everything he had, and Diablo began to feel bored.
"Let's end this." Diablo said, and he stopped defending; he began to counterattack.
Unprepared for the sudden shift in Diablo's fighting style, Kingsley was caught off guard. A series of heavy punches landed on him, sending him flying back; he spat a mouthful of blood.
The other elders were taken aback. Kingsley was the same level as they were, yet he couldn't best the brat standing before them.
"That brat must be level 6 or even higher than us!" Mrs. Samirat shouted.
"Are all of you coming together or should I come?" Diablo taunted.
"Cocky brat, take this!!" Mr. Miracle and Mrs. Samirat joined hands to face Diablo.
Though the pressure increased, it still wasn't enough to Diablo. After a flurry of trades, Mr. Miracle and Mrs. Samirat realized they were close to losing if they didn't change tactics.
"Adogun! You have to join us beat this brat!!" Mr. Miracle called to Adogun, who had been watching the fight.
These were faction elders and Eleso faction still needed them. Adogun, despite his past and imperfections, cared about the faction; to him it represented a starting point to rebuild something worth protecting. He had decided to grow stronger to guard humans from the gods, and the selfishness of the other elders irked him, even while he recognized their utility.
Adogun stepped into the fray. With his military experience and training, he was the one who could put real pressure on Diablo.
He threw a punch. His fist connected with Diablo's stomach; Diablo jumped back, clutching his belly.
The first clean hit since the fight began and it hurt.
"YES! THAT'S IT!!" Mr. Miracle and Mrs. Samirat shouted in unison.
Dennis moved as if to join, but Diablo stopped him.
"Don't interfere, this is my fight."
"Well, you are right because you are the one that caused this situation in the first place." Dennis backed away and said.
"You should have allowed him to join you. Well, it doesn't matter since it will still end the same way." Adogun said.
Diablo laughed. "You are overestimating yourselves too much. If that guy," he pointed at Dennis, "interfered, you guys wouldn't even last three seconds."
Dennis turned his face away at Diablo's exaggeration.
"Bastard!!"
Diablo's words made Mr. Miracle's and Mrs. Samirat's became even more angry. Both lunged forward, bolstered by Adogun's participation. They stopped looking at Diablo with mere contempt and attacked with full intent.
Diablo decided to up the ante. He began to dodge more fluidly; a punch came from his side out of nowhere but he twisted his body unnaturally and slipped the blow, surprising Adogun, who was the one who had emerged from Diablo's blind spot.
"Woah, you nearly caught me there. I think it is time to end things." Diablo said, then released his level 7 Ascendant aura. That pressure pressed down on Adogun, Mr. Miracle, and Mrs. Samirat.
Raphael, who had been watching with interest while smoking, immediately stood up and joined the fight immediately. He couldn't let harm come to the elders while he was here, since he still owes Niniola and the elders were with her.
"This boy is stronger than us," Raphael said grimly.
"Yeah. No wonder he was able to fight the three of us with ease," Adogun replied, tense.
"Not only that, although faint, I can sense the aura Niniola releases when she fights," Raphael added.
"How is that possible?! How can that brat be compared to Niniola?!" Mr. Miracle shouted.
"Young man, can we call it a truce here?" Raphael asked, trying to defuse things.
Diablo tilted his head. "What sort of rubbish are you sprouting? Call it a truce? Why didn't you call it a truce when that man," he pointed at the injured Kingsley on the floor, "said he wanted to kill me? Or when those three tried to kill me again?" Diablo's voice had anger in it.
"I know that sounds unfair, but you are the one who caused this trouble," Raphael retorted.
"Oh, yeah, you're right and that's why I'll only beat you guys up without killing you. You will never mess with people as if they are your property. This is just a lesson." Diablo said.
"Let's attack together without giving him chances," Mrs. Samirat urged.
"Woman, shut up, you were never a fighter, you wouldn't understand the difference in strength," Adogun barked.
"Well, if you are not coming, I am coming!" Diablo dashed forward, performing stunts that should have been impossible.
The reluctant fight began in earnest; this time Diablo didn't hold back. He fought with full force.
The elders felt like they were facing something not entirely human, more like a demonic, frenzied fighter whose methods were unnatural. Rapier-like, unpredictable, Diablo's style felt like fighting a crazy demon.
Despite Raphael and Adogun's experience, Diablo's techniques were strange to them. Mrs. Samirat was the first to fall; soon after, Mr. Miracle followed. Both were badly bruised and injured.
They tried to fight back, of course, but Diablo fought like a relentless bull that refused to stop. In time, both Raphael and Adogun were panting; they couldn't push forward. They bore heavy bruises but had protected their vital points, unlike Kingsley, Mr. Miracle, and Mrs. Samirat, that were badly injured.
Diablo, too, was tired. Fighting humans with learned techniques was harder than fighting mindless monsters because Raphael and Adogun had intelligence and could adapt, covering weaknesses in ways monsters could not. It wore him down.
Dennis, who had watched the entire affair from the beginning, finally stepped forward.
The elders' hearts clenched; they braced for another attacker. But Dennis did not strike. Instead, his voice cut through the tension:
"Let's call it a truss."