Tallman began to change his stance. He lifted his left hand from the ground, straightened his hunched back, and equipped his left hand with a gauntlet featuring five claw-like blades drawn from his waist.
"(A claw gauntlet combined with a broad-bladed sword, huh...) It's praise from the enemy I'm facing, but I'm pleased. However, evaluating me after merely dodging a few attacks and blocking one strike... that's a bit hasty!"
A magic circle manifested from Gravel's outstretched left hand. He then extended his hand toward the ground below.
'Umbra Beast'
The black shadow summon that Gravel called forth revealed itself. It was a crocodile-like summon covered in black scales resembling armor, with a long and sturdy body, a lengthy tail, a powerful jaw, and numerous sharp teeth lining its elongated snout.
"Magic... Way of Mana. With magic. You cannot defeat me."
It was the very moment Tallman was about to charge at Gravel, leading with the five blades on his left hand.
"(Guard the mansion's perimeter, Umbra Beast.) Let's continue this elsewhere, Tallman."
As Gravel spoke, a blue magic circle appeared beneath Tallman's feet. It briefly glowed before scattering and vanishing, and along with it, Tallman's figure disappeared from before Gravel.
*****
The sound of waves crashing and creating white foam echoed. The air, heavy with the saltiness of the sea, tickled the nose, and a cool breeze brushed past the ears.
In the distance, a small rocky hill rose, covered in jagged rocks and green vegetation. Above it, two moons illuminated Gravel and Tallman as they faced each other.
"You moved the location. With magic?"
Tallman, who had turned to survey his surroundings, assumed an attacking stance toward Gravel once more as he spoke.
"Yes. I didn't want to make a big commotion in the middle of a quiet city. This is an uninhabited island far out in the northern sea. Here, I can deal with you without worrying about waking anyone from their deep sleep."
From the moment he first encountered Tallman in the mansion's garden, Gravel, out of habit from his mana training, had sensed and analyzed the mana flowing from Tallman. What appeared in Gravel's eyes was a wild, surging mana flickering in the quiet darkness.
It was mana of the same nature as that sensed from a beast stalking its prey. Yet, despite its roughness, it was highly refined through years of training and battles.
Seeing Tallman's mana, Gravel thought he was no ordinary opponent. The current location didn't seem suitable for fighting him. That's why he had relocated to this island in the middle of the sea, where they could face each other without concern for their surroundings.
"I see. But you've made a mistake. Gravel."
Tallman raised one arm to his face, removed the mask covering it, and tossed it to the ground.
The face revealed after discarding the mask was intensely striking, like a roughly carved stone statue. His forehead was broad with deep wrinkles, and his thick skin looked as rugged as a rock's surface.
Sharp fangs, an angular jaw with small scars, and wounds hinted at traces of numerous fights and the perilous struggles he had endured.
Tallman's eyes exuded a beastly aura, and from his mouth below, a cruel energy disguised as a smile lingered between his pointed lips.
"I can rampage freely now. The advantage. Is mine!"
-Crack-
Kicking off the ground, Tallman charged at Gravel standing before him. He raised the sword in his right hand high and swung it down.
"Well now. Who has the advantage... we'll have to fight more to find out, won't we?"
With a relaxed expression, Gravel dodged Tallman's strike, and from his fingertips, a small flame shot toward Tallman's shoulder.
-Whoosh-
"Urgh!"
The moment the tiny flame, small enough to fit in a child's hand, touched Tallman's shoulder, it transformed into a massive blaze, engulfing his body in flames.
'This level of magic probably won't do it...?'
Gravel stood watching Tallman enveloped in black smoke and red flames burning before him. But that doubt was fleeting; as the flames died down and black smoke trailed behind him, Tallman charged at incredible speed, leading with the five-bladed gauntlet on his left hand.
"You can't burn me with magic like this!"
Using his long arms, he delivered precise, lethal strikes reminiscent of an assassin from outside Gravel's field of view, targeting vital points. With his great height, he followed up with powerful downward slashes.
Though the fire on Tallman's body had extinguished, the scorched smell of his coat, which could no longer hold its shape, and the charred scent of his blackened skin still wafted around him.
Gravel leisurely evaded the flurry of fierce attacks while observing Tallman's form.
'His face and shoulder skin are regenerating.'
Tallman's blackened wounds were restoring to their original grayish-brown color.
An ordinary person wouldn't have been able to dodge strikes targeting vitals from blind spots, but thanks to the Mana Expansion Gravel had spread in a 10-cubit (5m) radius around him, he easily avoided all of Tallman's attacks and calmly analyzed his opponent's movements.
-Shing-
As he dodged Tallman's sword, Gravel drew his own blade from its sheath, slicing through Tallman's thick skin and drawing blood.
"Not bad. But insufficient."
Tallman clutched the wound from the sword, his face momentarily twisting, but he bared his sharp teeth in a grin once more.
Tallman's attacks continued.
With a single strike, a blow strong enough to cleave both a carriage and its passenger in half was stopped by Gravel's blade.
The five blades on his left hand could easily carve a sleeping merchant on a bed into five pieces, but against Gravel, not a single blade landed, only cutting down the trees and rocks behind where he stood.
-Slash-
The sound of flesh being cut echoed again.
'As expected, he's regenerating. Maybe not as much as Kavnak...'
Watching Tallman's severed flesh reattach and the blood flowing down his skin stop, Gravel recalled the battle at the farm from before.
"Are you just going to dodge?"
Though his voice was low and gravelly, the sword Tallman swung at Gravel and the blades of his gauntlet carried impatience and irritation mixed with anger.
'Had there ever been an opponent who withstood my sword this long?' Tallman questioned himself, retracing his past.
Knights in armor, merchants cowering behind thick iron doors begging hired mercenaries to protect them, nobles surrounded by dozens of swordsmen and archers—none in his years of memories had endured his swung sword.
Let alone someone like Gravel now, who was blocking his attacks.
"I'm the type who ramps up power slowly."
Gravel spoke leisurely as he evaded Tallman's sword, which trembled with impatience. From Gravel's left hand, not holding the sword, two magic arrows flew toward Tallman.
-Whoosh-
As if the pain from the magic arrows piercing his abdomen and chest meant nothing, Tallman swung his sword widely at Gravel.
"(I need to boost the power a bit with short-incantation magic.) Beast of thunderous roar! Tear the enemy's will with your howl!"
-Boom boom boom-
Responding to Gravel's echoing voice, purple lightning bolts extended from several small magic circles, striking Tallman's arms, legs, and body all over. The lightning flowed through his entire form with a thunderous roar, delivering an intense pain he had never experienced before.
Blood vessels burst, tearing through his skin and splattering blood across the ground. Yet once again, Tallman's wounds and scorched skin slowly returned to normal.
'(At this level... it's regeneration on par with Kavnak? His appearance resembles a troll too... or not?) Impressive regeneration. And considerable resistance to magic... Except for not being weak to fire, your body is like a troll's."
If this were the game world, using the skill Appraisal would display a status window above Tallman's head revealing all his information. But Gravel knew that some skills usable in Grand World were no longer available here. To confirm the suspected identity of his opponent, who was enduring the pain and showing renewed fighting spirit toward him, Gravel spoke.
"I'm not a troll. I am the king of all trolls. Troll Sovereign. No fire, no lightning, no magic of any kind can kill me."
Tallman's words carried pride. Hearing that he was the lord of trolls, reigning over all trolls in this world, Gravel's expression changed.
'Troll Sovereign? Surprisingly forthcoming with his identity...'
Troll Sovereign. It was a name Gravel had never heard. But from Tallman's words, one clear piece of information was that he was a superior species of troll. Gravel thought that was likely why he had overcome trolls' weakness to fire and possessed a body that could withstand his magic.
"I see! The king of trolls, huh. In return for revealing your identity, I'll face you with my specialty, not swordsmanship."
With a 'sheath' sound, Gravel sheathed his sword, his voice brightening. A smile even formed on his lips and in his eyes. It wasn't a mocking sneer at his opponent, nor an arrogant expression of superiority.
It was simply the result of the joy from encountering an opponent to test his limits and the willingness to embrace a new challenge. Though there was a whisper in a corner of his mind about this being a chance to experiment with various magics, he resisted that temptation and spread his hands to cast a spell.
"Graaaah!"
Ice spikes manifested from a magic circle surrounding Tallman's body, extending to pierce him. Following that, stone spears erupted from the ground, impaling Tallman.
But Tallman's detached flesh regrew, and his gaping wounds healed. It was a wondrous level of regeneration. Seeing this, Gravel's eyes widened momentarily in surprise. And in Gravel's eyes, Tallman's mana decreased each time he used his regenerative ability, but it still seemed ample enough to sustain powerful strikes and swift movements for a while longer.
'He's not just regenerating repeatedly. His form is gradually changing.'
Tallman's regenerative ability countered Gravel's magic. Each time a spell hit, he let out a roar to overcome the pain, relentlessly swinging his sword and gauntlet blades at Gravel without stopping his attacks.
Meanwhile, his body's muscles swelled, and his bulging veins writhed more visibly.