It's no secret that in a fight, whether you have a weapon or not matters, and the type of weapon even more so.
Fists against fists usually wins if you have more strength, mass, or technique. Fists against a knife usually wins. Knife against sword, sword wins. Sword against spear, spear wins. Spear against bow, bow wins (usually). Bow against pistol, pistol wins.
Everything ultimately comes down to range; the more you can hit your opponent without being hit, the better your chances of winning. But this isn't always true.
If someone has a lot of technique, they can win where they would usually lose (except against a pistol, 8 people in 10 get hit; the other two are just pure luck). I can't say I have enough technique to say I could beat someone with a spear using a sword. I've practiced this in edged weapons classes but never thought I'd use it one day.
But the combination of having previous experience, albeit limited, my new body, and being pulsing with adrenaline but still keeping a calm mind at the same time, saved me from the very first moments.
My Sai have almost 1.5 meters long from tip to tip, while the kobolt captain's spear have at least 2 meters long. There's at least a 50 cm difference between the two, and make no mistake, that difference is significant and brutal.
I only managed to dodge his attack thanks to adrenaline, my ability to predict (bet) what the attack would be by seeing how he positioned himself, and my ability [enhanced senses]. If it weren't for that, I would have been impaled in the firsts seconds.
He made a basic but extremely quick thrust toward my chest—I think it was faster than the blink of an eye. But I managed to deflect the spear tip, making it slide past the Sai's tip while I approached with it, also thrusting toward the kobolt's thigh.
Of course, he wasn't going to let the blow land. As soon as I changed the spear's trajectory, he pulled it back and deflected my attack with the lower part of the spear. Since I was advancing with all my strength, I ended up being pushed back by his defense.
He didn't let the opportunity slip away and brought the spear down on my head. I blocked the blow with my right arm; even though it wasn't the tip, any part of the shaft could still deliver a fatal blow to my head.
[-4 HP]
Even though I blocked the attack, my arm bone must have been fractured at the very least. At least it didn't break immediately, which is a relief.
The force of the attack sent me flying to the left of the semi-destroyed UPA roof, almost to the edge.
[-2 HP]
I got up as quickly as I could, even taking damage from the blow when I hit the "ground," and still wasn't fast enough.
Before I could fully get up, remaining in a half-crouch, the kobolt launched a short, downward arcing attack with its spear, slashing a gash near my right eye.
[-5 HP]
If I hadn't stepped back slightly, which almost made me fall, the fight would have already been over.
He tried to impale my head, taking advantage of the situation, but my body moved almost instinctively, and I threw myself toward him, almost sliding on the "ground."
The captain wasn't expecting this and ended up giving me a good opening that I unceremoniously took advantage of. I hit him in the knee joint, or where his knee would be if he were human.
It didn't do as much damage as I would have liked, but considering the strike was only made with my right hand, it wasn't that bad. And as a little revenge for my face, I also cut him almost to the base of his tail with the claws on my left hand.
"Uuuuugggggaaaaa!!!!!"
I don't know if he was more irritated by the blow to his "knee" or his tail, but it was obvious he was quite irritated and responded ferociously.
As soon as I struck him, I rolled in the air to kill the momentum and turned as soon as I touched the ground. He didn't wait for me to fully steady himself before giving me a sweep to the right that pushed me a few inches, followed by the spear that came even faster and with more force thanks to the rotation.
'I won't be able to defend!'
In half a second, I threw myself back, doing a double roll as the kobolt attacked, narrowly missing where I was. After the second roll, I somehow managed to get up (barely) faster than him.
Letting my instincts take over, I delivered a diagonal strike from below, knocking the spear out of the way again just as it was about to reach my head. I tried to seize the moment and lunge again, but he wasn't fool enough to fall for the same trick.
Before I could lunge toward him, this time aiming for the vulnerable spot in the armor where the upper part met the part that protected the kobolt's thighs, he pivoted and, using his tail as a shield, threw a roundhouse kick at me.
Once again, my body moved before I could think, and I managed to block the brunt of the blow with my left arm.
Unlike the spear, the kick didn't make my bones crack. But it was still a good blow, and his claws still managed to make small punctures in the back of my shoulder.
[-3 HP]
[Condition: Light/Moderate Bleeding (-1 HP every 55 seconds)]
From a position no human could manage, he still managed to land three thrusts toward my head and chest. I managed to dodge them by moving my head and landing another blow with my Sai.
But this still left me with a few cuts, a superficial but irritating one near my ear and another near my ribs.
As impressive as it was that he could attack like that, it wasn't easy for him either, so with a kick of his tail, he leaped back and positioned himself again with his spear. Finally, giving me a chance to stand up completely.
Our initial clash must have lasted about 30 seconds at most, but that was enough to wear me down considerably, and it seems he wasn't entirely unharmed either.
I had a sore but functional arm, the other "fine" with slight discomfort in my shoulder, a slightly deep cut near my eye, and two superficial cuts on my head and chest.
Making my stats look like this.
[Name: Fernando Martins
Level: 7
Race: Dhampir (half-vampire)
Job: Fighter Lv. 4
SP: 5
AP: 13
HP: 59/75
MP: 40/60
Condition: Slightly tired, light/moderate bleeding (...)
Str: 13
Def: 11
Agi: 12
Int: 10
Mag: 8
Res: 7
.....]
'Tsk, and in comparison.'
The kobolt captain wasn't too bad, a slight injury to the rabbit that didn't seem to be noticeable and a moderate cut almost at the base of the tail. Other than that, he was fine, just studying me but not panting or otherwise showing fatigue.
But he was watching me more closely now; he didn't consider me as weak as before, apparently.
'That's something, but it won't help much from now on... No, actually, it'll hinder.'
Him not considering me a big threat was what let me catch him off guard before. Now he knows he can't leave too many openings; if I get close enough, he'll definitely suffer.
'He'll do everything he can to keep me away while he attacks. I need to break his rhythm and get in, and then... Wait, who said I need to do that?'
I remembered two important details, three in fact.
1. Regarding magic, I don't actually need to say the spell out loud to activate it; I just do it because... Okay, I'm not going to lie, it's just because it energizes my inner chuunibyou (and also because, apparently, doing this makes the spell "last longer," according to the explanation I'd read earlier).
2. I wasn't fighting alone specifically; I had Lumi and Impeto with me. The kobolt captain too have his henchmans, but he doesn't seem to have much regard for them, and I can use that to my advantage.
And 3...
[Your hired animal Impeto eliminated a kobolt soldier, experience gained shared.]
[Your hired animal Impeto eliminated an elite kobolt soldier, experience gained shared.]
….
The two of them were still whittling away at the kobolt captain's strength even now, sending some of their experience to me.
'It shouldn't be long before I level up again (probably) this way, so if I keep him busy longer, not only will I be able to strengthen myself during the fight, but Impeto and Lumi could also come and help me finish him off.'
It's unfair to rely on other people's help in a duel?.
Yes, certainly, but who said this has to be a duel?. My goal here was just the large magic bloodstone, not fighting the kobolts who were using it as a lure for lunch.
'If they want to fight for it, fine, but they shouldn't complain. I'll use any means I have to get what I came for, especially since my parents still need help.'
I thought with new determination, planted my feet firmly on the ground, and called the kobolt captain to fight with the classic "bring it on" hand gesture.
If he wants to fight then let's fight, but I'll fight dirty, Very dirty, if necessary to help my family.