The Knight Commander and the Minotaur tore through the valley like two colossal behemoths fighting over sacred territory, their heavy weapons clashing with the primal ferocity of male rams locking horns in a desperate struggle for dominance. Each meeting of their blades resonated like thunder, carving trails of radiant light through the dim and trembling air.

Every strike, every swing, told a story, one of skill, will, fury, and pride, echoing an ancient dance of power that had existed since the dawn of war itself. The tension between them was almost tangible, burning with such intensity that even the winds dared not intrude.

Their weapons were like tongues of fire, consuming all hesitation, all mercy, leaving behind only destruction and purpose. Their movements flowed as though dictated by fate's own hand, each collision of blades ringing like the echoes of timeless rivalries.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The earth roared beneath their might, quaking with maddening succession, as though tremors had become a law of nature within Crymora.

Their blades met once more, with a tearing intensity that bordered on madness. Black and red eyes locked together, fierce and unbending, two beings united not only in hatred, but in understanding. For a fleeting instant, they seemed less like enemies and more like cursed lovers, bound by the cruel song of battle.

The Knight Commander's huge broadsword flashed like a comet streaking across a storm-dark sky, fast, precise, merciless. Yet the Minotaur was no mere beast to be crushed. Its muscles bulged grotesquely, veins darkening and thickening as it summoned the ancestral might buried deep within its bloodline.

With a devastating swing, its massive axe met the Commander's broadsword, and a violent storm of sparks erupted, painting the air in flickering embers. The wind howled in sorrow, the air screamed in agony, as though pleading to whatever gods still lingered above to descend and deliver them from these two monsters in human and beastly form.

Even the wind barriers shattered as they moved, unable to contain or withstand the weight of their power.

Like a symphony of steel, the Knight's blade sang forward without hesitation, slicing toward the beast's neck. But the Minotaur, in defiance of the inevitable, raised one of its hooves and stomped the ground with brutal force. A sudden quake split the battlefield asunder, the earth beneath them convulsed and tore open like a chasm birthed from the abyss. The ground split apart right beneath the Knight Commander's feet.

Losing his footing, the Knight Commander found nothing beneath him but empty air, the yawning chasm threatening to devour him whole. For a brief instant, time slowed, and in that fraction of a heartbeat, an image flashed through his mind: the figure of the Tenth Sun, radiant and powerful.

He acted without hesitation. In that instant, he summoned his thoughts into form, an Astra-forged foothold materialized beneath his feet, gleaming with golden energy. He balanced upon it as though gravity itself had bent to his will. Without breaking rhythm, without faltering for even a heartbeat, he continued his assault.

The Minotaur was caught off guard by the Knight's near-instant adaptation, by the sheer absurdity of such precision and control. It recognized the human before it, not as prey, but as a warrior worthy of remembrance. Yet it had no time to admire him.

The Knight's blade came down once more, tearing through the air like the breath of a dragon. The Minotaur moved, but too late. Though it stepped back in desperation, it could not escape the burning edge. The sword sliced through its chest, parting flesh and bone with the sound of rending thunder.

A wet, tearing sound echoed as the scent of blood filled the air for the first time since the battle began. Thick, brown blood splattered onto the broken earth below, hissing where it landed. But the Knight Commander did not pause. His Astra-forged foothold dissolved beneath him as he stepped forward, feet now meeting the solid ground where the Minotaur had once stood. His blade sang again, cleaving through the gentle haze.

The Minotaur, groaning, sidestepped with a speed that defied its massive frame. But the Knight Commander had already anticipated the movement. Pivoting sharply, he shifted his weight, yet instead of following up with another sword strike, his foot left the earth, arcing upward. With an ear-splitting crack, his armored boot slammed into the Minotaur's already wounded chest with devastating might.

Time seemed to freeze, then the air shattered. The impact hurled the Minotaur backward with terrifying force. Its body tore through the air like a broken kite, crashing into the side of a mountain with a sound that shook the battlefield. The mountain itself could not withstand the blow, it cracked, splintered, and crumbled. With a thunderous explosion, the Minotaur burst through the rock, tumbling violently as it struck the ground below, carving a long, deep trench through the earth.

Dust and debris billowed into the sky, swirling like a sandstorm, thick and suffocating. But to the Knight Commander, the haze was meaningless. He charged through it like a meteor, his enormous frame slicing through the dust storm as he surged toward where the Minotaur had fallen.

Pain tore through the Minotaur's mind and body, its consciousness fading beneath the agony. Blood poured freely from its chest wound. Unlike its Goblin partner, the Minotaur possessed no healing talent, neither racial nor innate. Its breath came in ragged bursts. Yet even in its suffering, its crimson eyes snapped open, instincts roaring to life. Through the dust, it saw a familiar silhouette, the human, charging toward it once again, broadsword aimed at its throat.

With primal reflex, the Minotaur rolled aside, the sword striking where it had lain moments before. The ground exploded in a shower of shattered rock and dirt. The beast rose to its hooved feet, chest heaving. It knew then, it could not win as it was.

And so, without hesitation, it invoked its bloodline.

The Minotaur's heartbeat quickened, thunderous in its chest, as though its heart now pumped blood ten times faster. Its entire figure began to shift, morphing under the strain of its awakening heritage. Its horns lengthened and darkened, its muscles swelled grotesquely, veins bulged and constricted before bursting into renewed vitality. It grew taller, heavier, its height surging from two and a half meters to nearly three, its power radiating like molten iron through the air.

Seeing this, the Knight Commander exhaled once and activated his own talent.

His ability was as fearsome as it was dangerous. When activated, it devoured every last drop of Astra within his Astra veins, consuming his reserves entirely. The toll always left him pale, weakened, a hollowed man when the power faded. But in exchange, it granted him unmatched physical enhancement. Strength, speed, stamina, agility, health, perception, regeneration, every aspect of his body surged to new heights, the amplification depending on how much Astra he had in Astra veins.

And he had literally all of it.

He had barely tapped one percent of his Astra, except for the foothold he created moments ago. That amount was negligible, and now, with the full depth of his Astra unleashed, his power erupted. His presence expanded like a raging tide, pressure rippling through the air.

The Knight Commander lifted his gaze. Moments ago, he and the Minotaur had stood at equal height, both towering figures, embodiments of power. But now, the beast stood a foot taller, its body transformed by its ancestral bloodline. But the Commander did not flinch.

Height meant nothing.

He stepped forward once more.

Both man and beast unleashed their presence, their wills colliding midair with a soundless explosion that cracked the very wind. The valley trembled as if the heavens themselves bore witness to their defiance.

And thus, with one final breath, the signal was given.

A battle like none other erupted anew.

Two behemoths; man and monster, locking heads beneath the eyes of the gods, beneath a shattered sky, where power itself bowed in reverence.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: I don't know why I was getting Escanor type vibes from this Knight Commander.

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