The first thing that I understand about the dagger is just how sharp it is. The wound it inflicts is deep, and I can feel the dagger echo against my bones. Waves of pain emanate from the wound traveling from my toes to the tips of my hair. The first thing that I do is to pull my arms down sharply. (Even as the electric shock of pain causes my mind to blank for a second.) The blade will do less damage to me near my legs than my heart. (Thankfully it is not my sword hand.)

  It hurts, but I focus my mana on my other arm and punch the enemy's head. Attacking the head is one of the best ways of causing damage, I find. It can disorient the enemy, even if it does no damage. The enemy is caught off guard as he stumbles back. The way he does so is enough for me to put up my guard.

  This is no amateur mage who will panic at the first sign of an attack. Even as I am thinking of ways to sneak in an attack through the man's defenses, I feel an attack from my right. This time, I am a bit more prepared as my other arm rises to block the sword. I sustain fewer injuries as my channeled mana bolsters my defenses. The strikes draws blood, but not enough to be a concern. Before I can attack him, he retreats.

  Right now, there are two enemies taking position around me. I can't attack one without the other attacking me. It looks they have no desire to engage me. This is either a very wise or a very foolish decision from their side. (I haven't decided which yet.)

  I charge towards the dagger wielder. The sudden movement spooks him as he takes on a defensive stance. I don't attack him, though. The goal is to cross him into street beyond. With this, I will now be able to run away from these two if it comes to it. (Not that I will this early in a fight.)

  As I record this, I have managed to create some distance between me and the enemy. Both of them are now in front of me, still in a position where attacking one will mean attacking another. More importantly, I have them locked to the street. They will have to go through me to escape now.

  Well, the main threat in this narrow street is the dagger wielder. The short range of his weapon is a major benefit in this place. The sword wielder's blade is just a bit too long for this street. It would be quite easy for him to get his sword stuck on these walls.

  Still, it is now clear that I am the target. If either Eric or my money pouch was the target, they would already have moved towards the shop. They certainly would not be staring at me like a viper studying its prey.

  I normally would have taken this chance to run away, if I could. The only reason that I am not doing so is that this is not an area I am familiar with. That reminds me, where in the hells is my guide? I don't need to strain my mana sense much to find the mana flowing inside the shop. Looks like Eric has been kept busy by something in the shop, most likely the shopkeeper. The sound of clanging swords is proof enough of that, I guess.

  As I record this, there is something of a stalemate in the street. The two men opposite me are studying me to find a weakness in my defense, while I am doing the same for them.

  To speak of the two men, they are clearly not of this area. The clothes that they are wearing are new and freshly torn to fit into this place. It is so clear that these men are not from this area that it should have been impossible to miss them. At least for a man that is familiar with this area. (By which I mean Eric.) I wonder if I have been led into an ambush. (Well, you can never say what a noble whose pride his hurt can do.)

  Other than that, the sword wielder is taller than me with thin and long arms. He would have quite a range if it were not for this street. The other is quite unassuming and has no features that I would be able to recognize him with. This just tells me that this man is the one that I have to be especially wary of. No man who cultivates mana would be this unassuming if he did not have a reason to be so. (The act of cultivation perfects the body, which usually means that people become more beautiful as they do so.)

  There goes my moment of peace as the two men finally attack. The sword wielder aims high, trying to strike my head, while the dagger wielder aims for my chest. I do not move. Instead, I finally release the two thorn I have been making.

  I duck down, dodging the sword strike, and aim one thorn at the throat of the dagger wielder. I use the other to block his strike. The dagger wielder manages to react at the very last second as he brings down his dagger. I can feel the thorn being cut into by the dagger, but it will hold for now. Meanwhile, the thorn meant to block him bites into his arms. (My injured hand sends shockwaves of pain through me on blocking the dagger. I can't focus on it now, though.)

  The man doesn't retreat as he keeps moving in spite of his injuries. I can feel my heart drop as he passes me by. The damn asshole is using the same trick that I did. (Doing this means my thorn is digging deeper into the dagger wielder's arm by the way.) His goal wasn't to attack me. It was to get behind me.

  We both take a moment to assess our losses in this brief clash. I am again trapped in between of these two. Behind me at the moment is the sword wielder. Even now, I can now hear the sounds of the clash that is occurring in the shop.

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  I will have to leave that fight to Eric, who I am sure would be able to win it. (The man is a cool fighter. He will do well in a fight.) Still, if he fails, it would be quite disastrous for me. I can't fight three people this skilled on my own. The two men seem to realize my position at the same time that I do.

  They have entered into a defensive position. Their goal is to keep me bound to this street while the shopkeeper wins his fight against Eric. A sense of despair assaults me with this thought. There must be a reason that they are so confident about their colleague. These are clearly trained assassins. (They won't attack an enemy without a plan.)

  Fuck, I cannot remain passive anymore in that case. My present target then is the sword wielder. Properly managed, I will be able to get rid of the man quite easily. Then, capturing the dagger wielder will be a bit easier. (I want to be able to interrogate one of these fools at least.)

  As I am thinking this, I push all of my mana into the Armor on my sword hand. This won't be an ordinary thorn. While it still won't be as durable as an actual weapon, the thing will be able to be survive quite a few hits from the enemy.

  There I go getting distracted again. I don't understand how the others can manage recording and fighting at the same time like this. It is so distracting. Regardless, while I have been rambling, the thorn has been manifesting. It normally doesn't take this long, but the more mana you put into the thing, the longer it seems to take to build itself. (That is something I will have to work on later, it looks like.)

  The enemy also doesn't seem particularly inclined to attack me. They must think that they will be able to hold me back by just standing there. Well, I will prove them wrong soon enough. Being passive against a tiger is inviting a claw to your throat.

  Finally, the thorn gets built as I spring into action. Before they can react, I reach the sword wielder. He has already begun to raise his sword to block my strike. He is not fast enough as the sharp end of the thorn stabs into his chest.

  It is not a fatal strike, though, as the thorn strikes one of his ribs. I am not able to push my attack as a sharp pain assails my back. The dagger wielder had used this opportunity to strike me. I turn around sharply and try to get a strike in.

  I do not manage to do this as he retreats, and the sword wielder comes in to strike me. Thankfully, his sword sparks against the walls of the streets. (It is close enough that I can feel the spark on my skin.) I take this opportunity as a thorn pops in my other hand. (That hand feels like a burning furnace.) The thorn bites into his arm, leaving the man grunting in pain.

  Taking this opportunity I bend the thorn as it snaps in my hand. (The broken thorn is going to be harder to remove.) Meanwhile, the dagger wielder has retreated once more. He is looking for another hole in my defenses. He doesn't give me long to study him as his dagger flashes in my direction. I jump back dodging the dagger by an inch, as the sword wielder attacks.

  I can feel a pang of pain as the sword bites into my shoulder. The thorn pierces the man's leg. This makes him retreat, giving me a moment to breathe. I am not able to do so for long as the dagger wielder moves in.

  I automatically block his strikes, as I listen for any sign of the sword wielder. (He is right behind me, you see.) That is why I am able to catch the man sneaking up on me. My thorn flashes back as it feels like somebody has ripped my bones out of my leg. The man has pierced my leg with his sword.

  I glance back, looking at the sword wielder clutch his throat. Blood spurts out of the man. (I swear it looks like he has taken a bath in his blood.) This moment of negligence costs me as the dagger wielder plunges his dagger into my chest.

  It is mostly instinct as I thrust my thorn aiming at the man's hand. My aim is to stab his arm, affecting his ability to hold the dagger. The man retreats as my thorn hits the man's fingers. It cuts into his index finger and his thumb. He pops out of the range of my thorn with that retreat, though.

  He is far enough that I am not able to do anything as the man casually switches his dagger to his other hand. He has clearly not used the dagger much in that hand. There is a clumsiness to the way he holds it. He stares at me with a wary look in his eyes. I try to get closer, as the sense of someone pulling my bone out returns to my legs. (This much pain is still something that I can manage.)

  I am so focused on the battle with these two, that it takes me the look of panic on the dagger wielder's face to realise that the sound of clanging from the shop has finally stopped. The fight in the shop is now over.

  It is only my training that stops me from turning around. (That will just mean a dagger in my back.) No amount of training can stop the expectation of being struck, though. It's like a cold chill that I can feel crawling down my back. It is clear that the duel in the shop has finally ended.

  My life at the moment depends on who won. If it is the shopkeeper, then I am as good as dead. I can barely move due to the injury on my leg. I can certainly forget about running away. I can't fight against three of these guys in such a state. (Even if one of them is on his last legs at the moment.) At the same time, if Eric wins then I will survive. The man will be able to take care of these two with my help. (These draconic mages tend to be sturdy in an actual fight.)

  What I need to know about the duel comes from the men in front of me. Their faces have taken on a grim expression that men only have when death is imminent. They would only have that if it was Eric to come out of the shop.

  The two men in front of me look as if they have given up all hope in their lives. They are so steely in their resolve that I am not able to react for a second when they begin to run away. The pattering of his feet echoes behind as Eric runs to catch up with them.

  At that moment, I do the only thing that comes to my mind, which is to throw the thorn in my hand. (which had not come out unscathed from this battle. It is a wonder the thing hadn't broken yet.) to stop at least one of the guys from escaping.

  I am not able to tell whether I am successful or not, as the world around me begins to fade. Looks like my injuries were heavier than I assumed. Well, the thing with adrenaline is just how much it fucking numbs you. Still, this many injuries should not be enough to affect me in this mann.....