Charles twisted his body and rotated his legs, kicking toward Baki's head.
Baki tilted his head to the side and the kick passed by. Charles's second kick came from the opposite angle and struck Baki in the eye.
Baki clutched his eye and slammed Charles into the ground, creating a crater. Charles rolled away and stood up.
Baki removed his hand, revealing a blood-red left eye. Charles attacked from his blind spot. Baki dodged and countered with a punch that connected with Charles's leg.
Charles's body flew backward and crashed through the wooden wall, splintering it into pieces. He rolled across the muddy ground outside and stopped near a tree.
Baki stepped through the hole in the wall, his blood-red eye gleaming in the darkness.
Charles pushed himself up and wiped blood from his mouth. "Impressive, but you'll need more than that."
He rushed forward. At the last moment, Charles moved behind Baki and kicked toward the back of his skull.
Baki had already turned his back toward Charles deliberately. As the kick came in, Baki spun and his heel connected with Charles's temple.
Charles stumbled sideways but immediately recovered. Baki closed the distance and brought his elbow down on Charles's shoulder. A shockwave rippled through Charles's body, but he used the momentum to spin away.
Charles rolled his shoulder and tested it. "You and I have no enmity. There's no reason for you to fight me."
He circled to Baki's left side and kicked toward the damaged eye. Baki tilted his head and the kick grazed past.
"Who are you to decide we have no enmity?"
Charles had anticipated the dodge. His other leg came around in a brutal arc and slammed into Baki's damaged eye socket. Blood sprayed and Baki's head snapped to the side.
Charles landed smoothly and kicked the back of Baki's head. Baki stumbled forward a step. Charles vanished from sight and struck the back of the knee, the lower spine, and the base of the skull in rapid succession.
Baki's legs buckled slightly. Blood ran down his face from the reopened wound.
Baki leaped into the air and his body flipped forward. His leg came down like a guillotine blade. Charles threw himself backward and the kick struck the ground where he had been standing. A crater exploded outward and the shockwave knocked Charles off balance.
Baki's knee struck Charles in the ribs before he could recover. Charles's body lifted off the ground and he flew backward, crashing through a wooden fence.
Charles stood up slowly and felt several cracked ribs grinding with each breath. "You're strong. Why don't you live a prosperous life as my bodyguard?"
Baki laughed as he walked toward him, blood still dripping from his damaged eye. "That's the best joke I've heard in a while."
Charles waited until Baki entered range. "I'm not joking."
His body blurred and he attacked from three different angles in rapid succession, targeting Baki's blind spot. The kicks landed against Baki's head, neck, and spine before Baki could react. Baki's body jerked from each impact and blood flew from his mouth.
Charles circled around Baki at high speed, striking the back of the head, the spine, and the kidneys repeatedly.
Baki stopped trying to track Charles's movements. His leg shot upward in a vertical arc and his body rose with the momentum. The kick caught Charles's chest and broke several ribs. Charles was lifted off his feet and his body spun in the air before crashing into a tree. The trunk cracked from the impact.
Charles slid down and coughed blood. He stood, his movements slightly slower but still controlled, and spat blood onto the ground.
"Not bad. My offer still stands. I'm thinking of replacing one of my bodyguards."
Baki approached with heavy footsteps. Charles feinted left and attacked from the right with tremendous speed.
Baki's hands shot up and grabbed Charles's leg mid-strike. Baki spun and used Charles's momentum against him, bringing both elbows down in a brutal double strike.
"I don't fucking—"
Charles crashed into the ground face-first and the earth cratered beneath him. He rolled immediately and Baki's foot came down where his head had been, leaving another crater.
"—care about your bullshit!"
Charles used the roll to create distance. His body was breaking down with multiple broken ribs and internal injuries, and his amputated arm threw off his balance.
He moved in again and targeted the damaged eye, the back of the head, and the spine. He vanished from Baki's sight and reappeared behind him, kicking the base of Baki's skull. Baki's head jerked forward and Charles moved to the opposite side, kicking the damaged eye. Blood sprayed and Baki stumbled.
Charles's kick came low, aiming for Baki's knee. Baki's own kick came up faster and met Charles's attack head-on. Baki's shin connected with Charles's leg with devastating force and the bone cracked. Charles felt the pain but his face remained impassive as he shifted his weight to his good leg.
Baki kicked twice in rapid succession, striking Charles's head and neck with the base of his feet. Charles's head whipped to the side and he felt his jaw dislocate. Blood filled his mouth.
He staggered backward but didn't fall. Charles spat blood and adjusted his jaw back into place with a sickening pop.
"You're good. Better than I expected."
Baki's expression didn't change. "You talk too much."
"Do I? I'm merely stating the truth."
Charles moved again, faster despite his injuries, attacking from Baki's blind spot. A kick connected with Baki's temple on the damaged side and Baki's head snapped to the side. Blood sprayed across the ground. Charles followed up immediately, kicking the same spot three more times. Baki stumbled backward and his vision blurred from the repeated impacts to his head.
Charles pressed his advantage despite his broken leg, fractured ribs, and dislocated jaw, moving with deadly precision and targeting the damaged eye and the accumulated damage to Baki's head.
Baki's foot suddenly scraped against the ground as he spun, and the kick came low and fast, striking Charles's injured leg at the knee. The leg gave out completely and Charles dropped to one knee.
Baki moved behind him and his leg shot out in a reverse kick that Charles tried to deflect. Baki's leg hooked around Charles's arm instead, pulling it down and exposing his entire upper body. A spinning kick came around in a tight arc and connected with Charles's ribs. Multiple bones shattered and Charles felt something puncture internally.
Baki released his arm and Charles collapsed forward onto his hands and good knee. Blood poured from his mouth.
Charles looked up at Baki with a calm expression despite the blood covering his face. "What a waste of potential. You're making a mistake. You can never reach your potential like this."
Baki stared down at him. "I don't think I need a lecture from someone who's about to die."
"Is that so?" Charles laughed and blood gurgled in his throat. "My empire will continue. My systems are already in place. Killing me changes nothing."
"Maybe, but you'll still be dead."
Charles nodded slowly. "True."
Baki flipped backward and his leg arced up, catching Charles under the chin and snapping his head back. Charles's body lifted off the ground from the impact and landed in a heap.
Baki walked over to him and balanced perfectly on one leg. His other leg rose without using his hands for balance and the kick came down on Charles's spine. Charles felt nothing below his waist.
"You don't want to kill me now?" Charles said clinically.
Baki crouched beside him. "I forgot to ask. Any last words?"
Charles thought for a moment as blood pooled beneath him and spread across the ground. "No. Words are meaningless now."
Baki stood and his leg swung around in a wide, spinning arc. The kick struck Charles's head with tremendous force and Charles's vision shattered into fragments. Baki's foot came down again in a semi-circular motion, slamming into Charles's upper body and collapsing his chest cavity.
Baki jumped into the air and both feet came down on Charles's chest. A downward kick from high above slammed into Charles's lower body. Through his fading vision, Charles saw Baki's silhouette above him as rain started to fall.
A knee strike came down and aimed at Charles's head. Everything went white, then dark.
Charles's last thought was calm. Everything was proceeding according to plan.
Baki grabbed Charles by the collar with one hand and lifted his broken body off the ground. His other hand cocked back and the fist rotated in a corkscrew motion. The punch connected with Charles's face and Charles's body spun completely around from the impact before crashing back to the ground.
Charles lay motionless and his chest no longer rose and fell. Baki turned his back to the corpse, then spun one hundred and eighty degrees and his leg whipped around. The kick caught Charles's head, followed immediately by another kick with the other leg. Charles's body rolled across the ground before coming to rest in the wreckage of the fence.
Baki stood over the corpse as rain washed the blood from his face. "I don't feel satisfied for some reason."
From a distance, a man with pink hair watched the entire scene. He smiled slightly and held the original copies of all evidence he had retrieved from Jichang's house in his hands. Seeing the rain falling, he got onto his bike and left."Interesting."