The Rank 3 captain stepped off the assault bridge with the slow confidence of a man who had ended many battles with his own hands. His troops parted around him like water splitting around a blade. His spear lowered in a smooth, deliberate descent that made the air itself seem to tighten.
Leonidas answered by planting his feet in the dirt and raising his own spear. His breathing was steady. Controlled. Rank 2 qi pulsed faintly under his skin, strengthening his movements but not overwhelming them.
The two warriors locked eyes.
A coil of tension wound through the battlefield.
Then the captain moved.
His spear thrust forward with a speed so sharp that those watching barely saw the blur. Leonidas caught the attack with the haft of his own spear, the impact jolting up his arms and into his shoulders.
Metal scraped metal.
Leonidas shifted weight—redirected—turned the force aside.
The captain's brows lifted a fraction.
He struck again.
Leonidas blocked.
Again.
Leonidas deflected.
A third, faster strike.
Leonidas twisted just enough to avoid it, the spear tip grazing his ribs.
Liam, fighting at the rear wall, felt the clash vibrate through his bones even from a distance. "Holy… he's actually keeping up!"
Orin braced her shield, smashing another climber off the ladder. "For now!"
Below the bridge, the Shield Core fought desperately to hold the line. Spear thrusts stabbed through gaps; shields rammed into enemy legs; bodies toppled into trenches. But they were exhausted—barely standing. One slipped. Another fell back. The pressure increased.
Sun Tzu shouted from above, "Shift right! Funnel them toward the trench mouth! Do not fight them on open ground!"
The militia tried to obey, stumbling into new positions, pushing enemy soldiers toward the narrow space where their lines thinned.
Meanwhile—
Leonidas and the captain exchanged another flurry of blows.
THRUST
CLASH
GRIND
SWEEP
Leonidas' muscles burned. Every strike pushed deeper into his strength reserve. The captain, meanwhile, fought with a frightening calm—controlled, efficient, never wasting movement.
He spoke his first words.
"Rank 2," he said, almost conversational. "A respectable breakthrough."
Leonidas said nothing.
"But raw strength does not compare," the captain added.
He pivoted sharply, spear sweeping in an arc too fast for most eyes. Leonidas blocked—but the force sent him sliding backward through the dirt.
The line behind him wavered.
Orin saw it. "Leonidas—!"
The captain closed the distance.
Leonidas ducked under the next strike—barely—but the captain spun, reversing the spear and slamming the butt into Leonidas' sternum.
Air exploded from his lungs.
He staggered. Knees bent.
The captain thrust for a killing blow.
Leonidas dropped to one knee, tilting just enough for the spear to skim his shoulder instead of piercing his heart. Blood sprayed.
The captain stepped back, studying him. "You are skilled. But you cannot match me."
Leonidas rose slowly, gripping his spear with both hands.
"I do not need to match you."
The captain's eyes narrowed. "What then?"
"I need to outlast you."
He surged forward.
Their spears collided again, sending tremors through the air. But Leonidas' strikes were different now—he wasn't matching power for power. He hit angles, redirected momentum, used the captain's own force to slip inside his guard.
A thrust nicked the captain's cheek.
Liam's jaw dropped. "He drew blood!"
The captain wiped the red smear, studying it as if surprised something so trivial could happen.
Then he smirked.
That was worse than anger.
He shifted stance—lower, balanced, ready to finish the duel.
Sun Tzu's voice carried from above. "Leonidas—careful! That stance is—"
The captain vanished.
Not literally—but his acceleration was so sharp that he seemed to blink forward. Leonidas barely crossed his spear into defense before a flurry of strikes hammered him backward.
The Shield Core saw Leonidas lose ground.
The village morale dipped.
The captain spun low, spear sweeping for Leonidas' legs. Leonidas jumped—too slow—and the spear slammed into his thigh, nearly dropping him.
He blocked another strike but staggered two steps.
Another block—shieldless—taking the blow on his forearm. Bone screamed.
Another strike—this time he deflected weakly, the force nearly tearing the spear from his hands.
The captain's voice was a whisper of judgment. "Rank 2 is not enough."
Leonidas braced for the next blow—
But he wasn't the only fighter on the field.
A dagger flashed from the side.
Vlad appeared behind the captain, blade aimed at the gap in his armor.
The captain twisted without looking, knocking Vlad's strike aside with casual precision.
Vlad grinned wide. "Ohh… you're good."
The captain struck with the back of his spear, sending Vlad skidding across the dirt.
Leonidas took the opening—attacking with a sharp thrust that forced the captain to redirect.
"You fight dishonorably," the captain said.
"No," Leonidas growled. "We fight to live."
Behind them, Liam slammed his spear down on another climber, panting. "We're getting overwhelmed!"
Orin, bruised and bleeding, shoved another enemy off the ladder. "We can't break! If we fall, Leonidas falls!"
Sun Tzu shouted, "Shift left! Support the stairs! Kill the climbers before they reach the parapet!"
Militia repositioned desperately, pushing against the chaos.
The battlefield groaned under the strain.
Leonidas ducked another strike, retaliating with a jab that clipped the captain's ribs. The captain countered with a spinning slash that forced Leonidas to roll aside.
They rose simultaneously.
Sweat dripped.
Breath burned.
Strength faded.
But neither stopped.
The captain ended the pause.
He struck with a killing blow—so fast even Vlad hissed in appreciation.
Leonidas blocked—barely—but the force drove him to one knee.
The captain pressed harder.
Leonidas' arms trembled violently under the pressure.
His spear bent.
His knees sank.
His breath hitched.
He was losing.
Orin screamed from the rear, "LEONIDAAAAS!"
It didn't give him strength.
But it gave him clarity.
He angled the spear. Shifted his weight. Redirected force instead of contesting it.
The captain stumbled a half-step forward—
Leonidas drove his forehead into the man's chin.
A brutal, raw, unrefined strike.
The captain recoiled.
Leonidas surged up, spear thrusting for the heart—
The captain twisted—barely—and the blade gouged his shoulder instead of skewering him.
Blood sprayed.
The battlefield froze for a heartbeat.
Then the captain stepped back, breathing heavier.
Leonidas' chest rose and fell like a hammer bellows.
The duel had changed.
The Rank 3 captain was no longer untouchable.
From above, Sun Tzu whispered, "Good… good… now the blade has a crack…"
Liam's eyes widened. "He can win… he might actually—"
But the captain shifted stance again.
Faster.
Sharper.
More lethal.
Leonidas recognized it instantly.
A finishing stance.
The captain charged.
Leonidas braced.
The final clash rushed toward them—