The force of it still threw him back a step, boots skidding across the dirt. He slammed his spear butt into the ground, caught his breath, and lunged again.
Steel screamed as their blades met again, the clash echoing like grinding metal. Lumberling's every strike carried weight enough to crush bone, yet Kaizen met him without flinching. Even wounded, the commander's movements were sharp, his counters clean.
Lumberling pressed harder, aura flaring bright. He could feel Kaizen's defense tightening, his will unbroken. The man was bleeding, but he wouldn't fall.
'Tch… this guy's no joke,' Lumberling thought, gritting his teeth. 'Even Daigo struggled with him…'
But Kaizen had noticed something too.
Lumberling's strikes, once like thunder, were slowing. His footwork, once blazing fast, faltered. The flames that fueled him began to dim, each breath harsher than the last.
