113 Fighting Against The Poe (1/2)
”Such magnificent form,” Horace took out his handkerchief and wiped the blood dripping from his nose. ”A red goblin that could reach my head with his arms. Me, a giant even for with my orc brethren was punched in the face by a goblin standing upright. You are just breathtaking. You are my muse! Come and show me everything you have! Show me what makes you a man worth fighting with!”
”What are you, a pervert!” Rock yelled as he charged forward and threw a straight jab that hit Horace chin, shaking his head like a toy rattle. Horace's legs shooked, and he nearly dropped on his knee. His brain danced back and forth in his skull, making him feel the numbness all over his body.
”That's what I'm talking about!” Horace wind backs his arm to deliver his attack. Rock raised his guard in front of his face, but Horace wasn't aiming for his chin. ”Here, I come!”
Horace delivered a backhand across Rock's belly and his hand left a bright red mark. But to Horace's surprise, Rock did not fly away like most of his opponents. Not only can Rock perform such impressive strikes, but he could also withstand all kinds of attacks. ”Is that all you got? They felt more like an ant bite.”
”You really are my muse.” Horace straightened his back and puffed out his chest. ”Ahem!” Horace cleared his throat.
'All men are strong,
Like A-O-K,
But Rock is stronger,
And that's O-K!'
”What?”
”It's my first attempt in a poem dedicated to this battle,” Horace grinned, ”What do you think? Please, I must know if it's any good.”
”No, it's not good!” Rock yelled and began counting his fingers. ”First off, your poem rhymes by repeating ok. Second, why are you talking about men being strong? What does that have to do with the fight? And third, why are you giving a speech about your poem in the middle of a fight?”
Horace's chest deflated, ”I see. The diamond is still far too rough.
”Diamond?”
”But I must say that your first point is wrong,” Horace said while making odd gestures with his hand. ”You see, I played with the rhyming scheme by calling men strong as an oak, but instead of saying oak, I spelled it.”
”But oak is spelled as O-A-K. Not A-O-K.” Rock pointed out.
”Oh,” Horace said, ”then that means I need more inspiration! Come to me!” Horace lightly bonked his head, ”Hit me with all your might!”
Rock clenched his fist and punched Horace on the nose, and faceplanted him to the ground. But just as he fell, Horace raised his hip and used the momentum to roll back on his feet. Despite his large size, Horace moved with great agility, slipping past Rock's flurry and landed a side hook on his liver. Rock fell on his hand and knee while covering his side with his other hand.
”Such a burst of energy.” Horace raised his fist to the sky while blood and mucus poured down his nose. ”A new set of words have come before me!”
I am alone,
But strong alone!'
”What the hell are you saying?”
”That must be the greatest verse I have ever envisioned.” Horace looked down on Rock, ”Don't you agree!”
”No,” Rock swept Horace off his feet, but Horace sent a blast of mana from his palm, pushing back upright. Rock did not slow down, and he too launched his body off the ground and followed Horace.
With Horace's hands busy trying to stabilize his balance after landing back on his feet, Rock punched Horace across the face without anything blocking his way. The weight of his punch felt heavier than before, and Horace smiled because of it. ”That punch was full of vigor.” Horace spat out a large ball of blood. ”That means you agree, that poem is the best one yet!”
Rock turned in dismay seeing Horace still standing from that attack. But he could only respond at Horace's ridiculous claim of his current verse's validity. ”That was the worst one!”
”But I did not make any errors.”
”You literally repeated the same word to make it rhyme.”