They collided at the centre of the grass patch in the woods. Oren's movements were impossibly refined, but since the leader's were equally precise and disciplined, neither was injured.
Striking at Oren's rod, the leader smiled darkly, his intent clearly to break it.
Knowing his intent, with his unarmed hand, Oren pulled on the leader's arm, dragging him forward forcefully.
In the next moment, Oren pushed his foot down on his lower thigh, hard enough to hear a small, noticeable sound, but not hard enough to break it completely.
"Aghh."
The leader jumped back and spat on the ground.
Then, surprising Oren, he jumped forward again, his weak facade fading under the pressure.
"Hahaha... you truly fell for such a child's trick, O Immortal Demon. I expected far more from you."
He struck for Oren's eyes again and again, missing each calculated attempt.
"A child's trick suits a child, don't you think?"
Oren laughed coldly, seeing the leader's face glow red with anger.
Stepping back, then stepping to the side, Oren tilted his head slightly.
"Tell me, child... where is my rod?"
He immediately retorted mid swing. The leader frowned and glanced at Oren's hands, only to see the rod resting there firmly.
"What nonsense are you saying?"
Oren raised his voice sharply.
"Keep your eyes on your enemy."
In the next swift instant, Oren delivered a single, deliberate strike.
The brown rod rose and swept across the man's handsome face cleanly.
Blood trickled down the leader's fresh wound. An uneasy smile lingered on his lips, as though he had yet to fully comprehend what had happened.
That the rod had carved across his face, stealing the sight from both his eyes in an instant.
A delayed, horrified scream tore through the air.
"Aghhh!"
How pathetic...
The leader's collapsed body trembled helplessly before Oren's feet.
Dismissing the leader as one would discard something insignificant, Oren faced the silent adversary, then the oldest, and chuckled softly.
"You see? That is why you should have let me leave. That is why you should flee. This fate will greet each and every one of you."
His thoughts, however, were confused.
Where is she, the girl...?
Had she run away? Was she scared... no, or was she hiding?
Standing on edge, Oren turned back around to the pitiful sight of the leader.
He smiled as he watched the young man caress the bloodied scar engraved into his face.
His movements were frantic and pitiful.
Should I keep him alive? He thought.
Oren had made a deal. But the deal did not mean killing and surrendering. If he did kill the leader, the others would join the fray immediately.
So in the end, Oren decided not to kill him. Instead, he would use the leader, then break him slowly.
Oren lowered the rod to the man's bloodied neck and pressed it lightly against his pale skin.
He asked with a dim smile, "Any last words?"
What answered him instead was laughter, a broken, pathetic sound that made Oren briefly pause.
"You think a mere rod can end my life? You would need something far sharper to wound me, damned psychopath!"
A fool... Oren thought.
Little did they know that these sticks had been carved sharp enough to pierce and stab through flesh effortlessly.
They did not have to know that truth.
Oren gazed into the man's newly blinded eyes, then laughed quietly.
"You are quite right. I intended to let you live, grow old, and die peacefully. To spread the name of the Immortal Demon. To speak of the one who blinded you whenever you were asked."
Before Oren could continue, his grip loosened on the brown rod. It slipped from his fingers and clattered against the forest floor harshly.
Had he missed something? What happened?
Blood erupted from Oren's mouth as he suddenly staggered backwards.
Pain radiated through his back as his unshod feet ground into the dirt, only to be stopped by the jade dagger that had plunged into his flesh, held firmly by the young woman.
As he suspected, she had been behind him.
The blade kept Oren upright, pinning him between her grip and the weapon lodged through his body securely.
"Go on then," she whispered, venom lacing her voice as she leaned closer into Oren's ear.
"Try to kill the boss and see what will happen to your so-called immortality."
After saying those words, Oren did not freeze. Instead, he laughed quietly.
He felt her freeze in sudden confusion.
She was looking at the stab wound on Oren's back. She froze momentarily, her fingers instinctively tightening around the hilt.
The wound was healing rapidly.
The torn skin knitted together before her eyes, pushing against the blade.
Stunned by shock, she failed to pull it out in time, giving Oren enough preparation to twist forward.
With the momentum, his right hand hooked at her jaw, snapping her head sideways, making saliva fall out of her mouth as she fell back.
She shook off the pain and shouted loudly.
"That's it, his immortality. Every wound will heal, even if an object is in the way."
She pondered then shouted, "Use your weapons to pin him down."
The force pushed her a few steps back, but the others were already attacking relentlessly, closing the distance in a tightening arc.
"So that's the devil's trick. That's how he beat our leader."
Oren grinned grimly. It felt like more of a curse.
Despite their words, they failed all attempts to pin Oren down.
Thankfully, they did not have four long-bladed spears. If they did, then he would most definitely be trapped.
One for each side, his back, chest, and both of his arms. They could keep him at a distance while dealing damage and intense pain.
He never let them get close, and when they did, he would overwhelm each with his immense skill.
Warding them off with a few blows.
Trying his best to evade the endless barrage of attacks, Oren jumped back and shouted, allowing one of the silent adversary's blows to land deliberately.
Oren shouted through the noise of the battle.
"Come on then, you treacherous warriors of Everdream. You dare dishonor our deal. You wanted this battle, and so I will bring it to you. Now fight."
Despite his words, this was what he wanted secretly.
He was immortal, thus he could not die, but he could feel pain.
Each strike felt like a scar that would never fully heal, like a memory that never fades.
A shiver ran down his spine when the blade of the young woman grazed his cheek.
She had only just rejoined the battle, and yet even before that, he had endured one fearsome blow after another.
Now, only minutes remained before he would be pushed back into the endless trees of Everdream Forest, off the open grassy area.
His movements would slow, his space shrink, as he fell deeper among the dense trunks.
Damned… if only I had taken the third route to Everdream, not the second.
Still, the deal he had made with the adversaries was only to prolong the inevitable confrontation. Selfish, perhaps, but now he would have to try.
He would have to get his hands dirty completely.
"Aghh."
Oren gritted his teeth, jumping back into the forest, away from the three champions.
He was loosing, but atleast he now had a weapon.
The corner of his lips lifted as his hand went to his back in one clean motion.
Oren's fingers curled around the jade dagger, then he gripped its silver hilt and pulled it cleanly from the healed flesh.
A thin mist of blood trailed behind it faintly as the girl lunged at him again.
This time it was one unhinged jump as she desperately tried to reclaim her weapon, but she was too slow.
Oren watched calmly as her auburn hair swayed back and her arms stretched outward.
Then, before she could process what happened, Oren pushed the hilt of the jade dagger into his left hand.
Using his right hand, he pulled her arm roughly.
In the next instant, his right leg kicked forward and brutally cracked against her lower ribs, forcing her to recoil backwards.
Then he spoke, his words invoking fear into the everyone but the eldest.
"All of you, I thought you all would be much more fearsome. It seems Everdream did not see me as a threat despite the rumours that come with my name."
Oren's eyes gleamed briefly, ominously.
But then, making him step back again, was the fearsome primal howl. It was the silent warrior.
What came with it was a pressure that closed in from every direction.
A fist cracked against Oren's ribs before he could fully turn, and the scent of iron filled the air as steel flashed at the edge of his sight.
He had severely injured their leader, blinded him even, and then attacked another one of their subordinates mercilessly.
It was to be expected. They were furious beyond restraint.
Before his thought could continue, Oren was met with a wild punch that snapped his head sideways.
Oren tried his best to evade the next attack, dodging begind the trees, but before he could dodge fully, the girl got up from the ground, junped forward and bear hugged him tightly, locking her arms around his torso.
This girl... how is she so strong, Oren thought as he felt his muscles tense and ribs crack.
Trying to twist out of her warm embrace, he shrieked sharply, then paled.
Looking down between their body's, blood flowed through his mouth, splattering against her shoulder.
"Another dagger." He muttered under a short confused breath.
She raised her voice, unamused.
"Yes, an assassin has many blades. Did you not know that. Well, these are no just any daggers. These are mine, and only mine, but you can have one."
A faint breath escaped her lips unevenly.
"I never liked jade anyway."
With her bestial strength, she hoisted Oren from the ground and roared thunderously.
"I have stabbed him. Everyone attack. He cannot move. The wound is nearly healed."
With her words, the leader ascended from the ground painfully, swaying yet resolute, and biting through peerless pain and unease, he shouted.
"Attack."
They all attacked but one.
The one Oren had said he would get rid of first was now out of sight.
Who would leave in the midst of a battle?
Why...?
Despite the barrage of attacks he faced at the moment, Oren was more worried about where the eldest of the adversaries lurked deeper in the woods.
Because Oren was quite sure the man was enlightened indeed...