05.03.297 — tournament in honor of the birthday of Deus Mariarnelia
Round 8, fight 6.
Milord Ambrose Turbon V vs. Milord Lester Vargas
A unique battle in many respects. Despite having Mordred as an advantage, it was Ambrose who suffered the first successful blow. Lester wounded him in the hand holding the lance, thereby significantly weakening his grip. The Knight of Dawn Steel has pulled off such a trick more than once, but against the Knight of Hegemony it looked particularly cruel.
Ambrose was forced to retreat to drink a healing potion. This did not save him from bodily weakness, but the wounds generally closed up. Without waiting for Lester to decide to start hiding in the shadows, the Knight of Hegemony struck him. In response, the Knight of Dawn Steel made a triple thrust but only managed to land one hit.
After that, the incredible happened. Instead of continuing the fight or taking a break to heal, Ambrose stepped back a little, pulled out a book from somewhere, and started reading!
Surprised by this turn of events, Lester was taken aback. The man looked at the watching crowd to confirm from the expressions on all our faces that he wasn't imagining this spectacle. After a brief thought, the Knight of Dawn Steel shrugged and continued attacking. The tournament rules do not forbid turning the arena into a reading room, but neither does anyone forbid striking a reader.
Ambrose nearly fell off his horse from Lester's attack. The Knight of Hegemony was forced to retreat to take two sips from his flask while Lester unsuccessfully tried to catch up with him and Mordred. And when he did, the Knight of Dawn Steel not only dodged his opponent's attack but also wounded him again with a dagger.
Ambrose retreated again, restored his health, then returned and struck Lester with his lance. He hit the arm but could not knock the dagger out of it. The Knight of Dawn Steel did not appreciate such a trick and decided to retaliate by landing two precise strikes in a row. He did not defeat his opponent but again forced him to retreat and use the last of his flask's contents.
After healing, Ambrose struck Lester in the arm with particular ferocity. Exactly in the same spot as before. This time, the Knight of Hegemony achieved his goal; the opponent nearly dropped his dagger — his grip weakened just like the lancer's had earlier. Ambrose had not pulled off such tricks in battle before, surprising not only his opponent but also everyone else present.
Lester retreated to restore his health. Ambrose caught up to him and delivered another blow. The Knight of Dawn Steel did not retreat a second time. Instead, he lunged at his opponent and successfully stabbed him with the dagger twice. After a successful dodge, a third thrust followed. The Knight of Hegemony fell.
Note: reading a book in the middle of a battle seemed to make him fight more effectively. It didn't bring much benefit in the bout with Lester, but who knows what the future will show.