"Hmm, why didn't you dodge this one? Like you did earlier," Arthur said, grabbing Sato by the throat and lifting him up, then throwing him far away.
Sato's feet barely touched the ground before Arthur appeared again and kicked him with full force, sending him flying in the other direction. Sato crashed through a stone statue, breaking it, and fell to the ground. Blood poured from his mouth as he struggled to get up.
"Eh. What a shame. To reveal my name to such a weak human," Arthur said.
Sato staggered to his feet, swaying.
"Don't talk like that. Because I haven't even started yet," Sato said.
"Fine then, let's see your power," Arthur shouted.
Sato vanished into thin air and reappeared in front of Arthur, striking with Single Slash. At that moment Arthur was already preparing to block, but in the last second Sato attacked with Mana Wave. Arthur took the hit. Arthur seemed to stagger a little. Sato attacked again, this time combining Single Slash and Blood Serpent Lash. He wrapped the knight's sword with blood, restricting its movement a bit, and stabbed the Cursed Eye Dagger into Arthur's stomach from the side. At that moment Arthur shook Sato off with a powerful strike, throwing him away. Sato clutched his wound.
"So shameless… using such pity tactics in an honorable duel, employing poison," Arthur said. "If you want to see a real attack, accept this."
Arthur swung his sword through the air.
"Camelot's Moon!" Arthur shouted.
At that moment, from the cut in the air, a wide black wave formed—similar to Sato's Mana Wave, but larger and darker. Sato sensed it. This strike couldn't be blocked. He dodged. The wave destroyed trees and statues in its path, leaving deep marks on the walls.
"You can't escape now," Arthur said, sending three more strikes in quick succession, just like before.
Sato barely dodged them. But the third one injured his left arm. At that moment Arthur disappeared into thin air again and reappeared on Sato's left side, striking him with full force. Sato used Mana Wave in time to block. But even so, the impact of the strike sent him flying a little. Sato looked at Arthur. Arthur was slightly injured. Still, he was in much better condition than Sato.
"No wonder even your companions abandoned you," Sato said, trying to provoke Arthur and lower his guard.
But Arthur suddenly went silent.
"What did you say?" Arthur asked in a serious voice.
Sato grinned.
"I said your companions betrayed you because of your weakness. What's wrong with that?" he said.
Arthur didn't answer. Sato wondered what was happening when Arthur suddenly appeared right beside him on his left side. The Arthur who had been standing in place earlier had now vanished into thin air. Arthur struck Sato with furious force. Even though Sato managed to block the strike, the sheer power sent him crashing into the far wall, embedding slightly into the stone.
How? He appeared right beside me without even moving. No… he moved after I said those words, but his speed was so fast that I didn't even notice the shadow he left behind. What kind of monster is he? Sato thought as he crashed into the wall.
Sato barely moved, body trembling from the last blow.
[Warning: HP has fallen below 30%.]
[Bloodstained Steps (Passive) activated. Movement speed increased by 25%.]
[Golden Eye (Passive) activated.]
The notifications flashed across his vision like cold warnings. His body felt lighter — faster — but the pain in his chest and limbs screamed otherwise.
Arthur walked toward him slowly, each step deliberate, the grass beneath his boots withering to ash. His crimson eyes burned brighter, the black aura around him thickening into visible tendrils.
The knight stopped a few meters away.
His voice dropped — low, dangerous, every word dripping with centuries of buried rage.
"You speak of betrayal," Arthur said, almost whispering. "You dare speak of companions abandoning the weak?"
He raised Excalibur slightly, the blade humming with dark violet energy.
"I guarded Camelot for five years in my father's name. Five years of blood and steel while he sat on his throne, blind to the rot spreading beneath him. His arrogance poisoned the kingdom. When he died, my sister Morgan and I fought a ten-year war to save what remained. Ten years… and in that war, I lost Merlin — my closest friend, my brother in all but blood."
Arthur's grip tightened on the hilt.
"I won that war. I rebuilt Camelot. Seven years of peace. Seven years of prosperity. And then… my closest knights — the men I trusted with my life — plunged their daggers into my back. They sold me for power. For promises from shadows."
He took one more step forward.
"Before my death, a spirit — a being whose face I cannot even recall — appeared to me. It offered a vow: 'Guard this Rune. Protect it from the one fate has bound to claim it. And in return, I will give you back everything you lost. I will let you take vengeance on the traitors who destroyed you.'"
Arthur's voice turned ice-cold.
"And now… you stand here. The one fate chose. The one who dares speak of my weakness. Of abandonment."
He lifted Excalibur high.
"I will show you no mercy."
The air grew thick. The flowers dimmed. The glowing stones flickered as if terrified.
"Spirit of the Knights"
Arthur raised his helm slightly. The entire garden darkened. A wave of crushing fear slammed into Sato — his legs trembled, vision blurred, memories of his family flashed before his eye, accusing, broken.
[Fear debuff applied: Speed -15%, attack accuracy reduced.]
Arthur's aura flared — his own speed and power increased.
Then he spoke, voice like judgment.
"Camelot's Moon!"
He swung Excalibur through the air.
From the cut, a massive black crescent wave erupted — wider, darker, more violent than anything Sato had ever created. It tore across the garden, ripping up trees, shattering statues, carving deep scars into the walls.
Sato barely dodged — the edge grazed his arm, tearing flesh.
Arthur didn't stop.
He sent two more waves in quick succession.
Sato rolled, leaped, used Dark Steps to blink away — the waves missed by inches, destroying everything in their path.
The garden was in ruins.
Arthur lowered his blade.
"And finally…"
He raised Excalibur once more.
"Excalibur: Collapse!"
A blinding surge of black-violet energy gathered at the tip.
The entire cavern shook.
The wave that followed was apocalyptic — a pillar of darkness that split the air, the ground, the ceiling. Rocks rained down. The far door cracked.
Sato threw himself aside — the blast missed him by a hair, carving a trench through the center of the garden.
He rolled to his feet, gasping, blood dripping from new wounds.
Arthur stood unmoved, armor untouched, eyes burning.
"Now," he said, voice calm but deadly.
"Show me… if you truly deserve that Rune."
Sato wiped blood from his mouth.
He was bleeding. Low on HP...
And something dark inside him — the Rune — was beginning to stir.
Even after the debuff, Sato had become noticeably faster. He was almost on par with Arthur now — sometimes even slightly quicker. With Golden Eye, he could barely anticipate Arthur's movements a second or two in advance.
Then Arthur suddenly began to tremble. Black energy erupted from his body, pouring out like smoke from a volcano.
"Absolute Dominion," Arthur declared.
His speed exploded. His strikes became heavier, more ferocious. He relentlessly used Camelot's Moon, following each wave with Excalibur: Collapse. The cavern groaned, barely holding together as cracks spiderwebbed across the ceiling.
Sato could only dodge.
He weaved between waves of black energy, using Dark Steps to blink away at the last second. Occasionally, he slipped in with the Cursed Eye Dagger, landing quick poison stabs. But Arthur's armor absorbed most of the damage, and the poison barely slowed him.
Then the system window appeared.
[Golden Eye (Passive) – Second condition fulfilled.]
[Choose which skill you wish to replicate from your opponent.]
Three options flashed:
1. Camelot's Moon
A massive crescent-shaped wave of dark energy that cuts through everything in its path. Extremely wide area, high destructive power.
2. Spirit of the Knights
Releases a crushing aura of fear, reducing the target's speed by 15% and attack accuracy while boosting the user's speed and power by 15%.
3. Excalibur: Collapse
A concentrated pillar of black-violet energy that splits reality itself. Devastating single-target or line attack, capable of collapsing structures.
4. Absolute Dominion (Passive)
When HP falls below 30%, enter a berserk state: all stats +45%, speed and power dramatically increased. HP drains rapidly while active, but the user becomes nearly unstoppable for a short time.
Sato's eye narrowed.
It's time, he thought.
He selected.
[Absolute Dominion selected.]
The Rune in his chest flared.
Black energy surged through his veins. His speed skyrocketed. His strength, agility, everything — increased by 45%. The world slowed around him.
But his HP began to drop — fast.
HP: 28% → 25% → 22%…
Arthur noticed.
"So… you chose the same path," he said, voice almost respectful.
Both of them were now at the edge.
HP near 0% for both.
The true death match began.
They clashed.
Swords met in a storm of sparks and black-violet lightning.
Sato screamed with every swing.
Arthur roared with every block.
7%
6%
5%
4%
3%
2%
They moved so fast the garden blurred around them — grass incinerated, statues crumbled, waterfalls froze mid-fall.
Then—
The cavern could take no more.
The ceiling cracked.
Rocks fell.
The entire garden collapsed.
Both fighters froze for a split second.
Then the world came down on them.