Orion woke to the familiar pale glow of the Site of Grace, breath hitching as if his body still remembered dying.
For a moment, he just sat there. Still, silent, and pretty much unresponsive.
No shouting. No swearing at the dungeon. No dramatic vows about revenge or cursing the divine as Marika puts it.
He just sat there, like he just accepted the outcome.
His hand rose to his neck, fingers brushing skin that should not exist anymore. He remembered it too clearly—the cold flash of Beldia's blade, the effortless arc, the world turning sideways as his head left his shoulders.
"…Its just me," he muttered at last. "Or I'm getting too used to this shit."
Uncomfortably fast.
He exhaled and leaned back, staring at the wavering light of the Grace. The fight replayed in his mind, not as panic this time, but as a slow, cruel analysis.
Turns out that once you have died enough, it doesn't matter anymore. He didn't make much fuss this time around, majorly since he knew he likely died the moment those undead soldiers were summoned.
Beldia himself wasn't the real problem. The Dark Knight was dangerous, yes—but he believed that he could manage him after learning his movements and attack patterns. Heavy swings. Predictable patterns. A boss that could be learned.
It was the undead.
Wave after wave of skeletal soldiers clawed out of the ground at Beldia's command. Since they are undead, normal attacks wouldn't work on them either. I have to use holy magic.
Magic is a limited resource unlike stamina.
By the time Orion reached Beldia in earnest, or more like the bastard came to him when he finally burned the last undead fucker, his legs were heavy, his breath ragged, his magic bone dry.
He wasn't ready to tackle the Dark Knight in that state, it simply wasn't possible for him to do so.
Not to mention, without holy magic it was impossible anyway.
[You're unusually calm for a man who just died…]
Marika, who was silent until now, finally spoke. She gave him time and only spoke when he was ready.
He snorted softly. "Yeah. That was never going to end well."
No holy damage meant the Dark Knight's defenses might as well have been a wall. No magic meant no Discus of Light, no burning the undead for good. And without burning them, they just kept coming, meaning he couldn't focus on the Dark Knight himself.
A self-feeding problem led by the lack of blue.
Kill minions to survive, run out of magic, lose to the boss. Save magic for the boss, get buried under bones.
'And here people think I cursed for nothing…' He grumbled.
Marika stood nearby, arms folded, golden eyes watching him with quiet patience. She didn't comment. Just let him think and figure out the problem himself. Her Tarnished finally seemed to be growing up, and she wouldn't have it any other way.
She simply let him think.
Orion scratched his head, then dragged a hand down his face. "I really hate this kind of two phase boss fight." He grunted and finally got up.
He opened his flask interface and stared at the settings like they had personally betrayed him.
Two healing flasks.
Zero magic flasks.
He stared harder.
"…I walked into a necromancer fight with no mana recovery," he said flatly. "I deserve that beheading." With a grumbling tone, he muttered to himself.
The solution was actually pretty simple, just change the allocation of the flask. So, he adjusted the balance.
One crimson flask for healing. One cerulean flask for magic.
Less forgiveness for mistakes—but more control over the fight. Enough magic to burn the undead properly. Enough left to actually threaten Beldia instead of tickling him with just steel.
Orion stood, rolling his shoulders, resolve settling back into place.
"Alright," he said, gripping his sword. "Time for round two. This time that bastard is going down…"
[Uh… that was quick]
—<>—
The fall this time was quieter, he counted it in his mind before swiftly landing on the same grassland he was earlier at.
The Dark Knight did not waste time.
Beldia's blade struck the ground with a hollow clang as he raised one gauntleted hand.
Cracks spider-webbed through the ground. Rusted helms pushed free. Swords scraped stone. Once again the undead soldiers hauled burst forth from the ground.
"…Oh, not wasting any time are we…," Orion smirked. "Good, I don't have time for your bullshit either. Let's skip to the good part."
"Haaaa…." He turned and ran.
And behind him ran the entire undead army.
"Dicus of Light."
"Dicus of Light."
"Dicus of Light."
Golden light flared, radiant rings slicing through the pack. Skeletons burned, collapsed, and stayed down this time. Orion didn't slow, already rolling away as another sword whistled past his head.
The plan was exactly what he did the last time. Chip away at the numbers of the undead slowly before facing the headless knight.
"Whoever designed this fight," he panted, "was a fucking spammer."
Again and again he cast the incantation—run, chant, throw, dodge, swear. The Discus carved glowing paths through the undead ranks, holy magic reducing soldiers to ash. His magic dwindled steadily, each cast heavier than the last.
By the time the final skeleton collapsed in a smoldering heap, Orion skidded to a stop, hands on his knees.
"Hah… hah…" He straightened slowly. "Motherfuc... Okay… okay, step one complete. Step two—"
A heavy footstep rang out behind him.
Beldia emerged from the gloom, sword dragging along the floor, sparks hissing as it scraped stone. Silent. Imposing. Patient, in the way only something immortal could afford to be.
Orion glanced at his empty magic reserves and then at the approaching knight.
"…Right. Magic restore… come on."
He fumbled for his flask, uncorked it with his teeth, and shoved it into his mouth just as Beldia closed the distance.
Blue light flooded his veins. This was the first time he honestly used a magic flask. Felt different, almost felt like he had unlimited magic for a second. His mind felt clear, more focused and sharp.
And he felt his mental fatigue all but was gone.
'Awesome…'
Magic rushed back in a cold, rushing tide, clearing the fog from his mind.
Orion rolled aside as Beldia's blade slammed down where his head had been a heartbeat earlier.
"Ahhh," Orion sighed mid-roll, rising to his feet. "That's the stuff."
The duel truly began.
Steel rang against steel as Orion met Beldia head-on this time.
Just as their blades collided, Orion realized that he still didn't have time to cast the golden incantation with the knight so close.
Damn.
"Welcome back, warrior. I never thought we would meet again. I was assured I killed you, but it seems like you were revived.
Good… cause this time I will complete the job thoroughly." Beldia said, with his eye shining red.
Orion's lips pursed hearing that. 'So, he is one of those enemies who remember me… even more troublesome.'
Beldia's strikes were heavy, deliberate—each one capable of ending the fight outright. Orion answered with speed, dodge-steps blurring him out of danger by fractions of a second.
There was no reason to even compete in terms of strength, the Dark Knight was superior in this regard.
Orion by no means could face off in a direct fight against this enemy.
And there was more, every time he tried to make some distance, Beldia closed the gap, not giving him any chance to use his Golden Order incantations.
'This fight's gonna be tougher than I anticipated it to be.'
xXx
A/N : Let me tell you... Beldia or Dullahan as most would call him, was actually pretty strong. It was only cause of Aqua that he lost. Otherwise, I doubt anyone can actually kill him.
As for whether he is strong than Nomu... if you guys are wondering. No he is not. However, Nomu is a mindless monster, Beldia is a seasoned warrior. Orion will have more trouble against Beldia type over Nomu's type.
Though no matter what type we are talking about, I only like one type of readers. Who throw share their stones with me...
Be me favorite and send some over please...
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