Now it's Michael's turn to laugh a mirthless laugh, patting his companion's shoulder in return.
"As impossible as it may seem," he says, sobering up, "It may seem that way at first, but eventually you'll run out, and you can't always find new pleasures every day if you restrict yourself to the pleasures of the mind."
With that, he takes a look around at the ruined bar, at the mountain of shattered bones and armor, "Fighting, however, never gets old."
With that, the immortal's voice seems to take on an almost reverent tone, "Fighting, can't get old. Every day, you can always fight someone new, or you can fight an old foe, whatever catches your fancy. You can take on those weaker than you, toy with them, see how they adapt to your strength. You can take on those stronger than you, pit all your mettle and all your skill against their raw strength and power, push yourself to your absolute limits, and then beyond those, just to know that you can! You can take on someone whose strength equals yours, and see whose mind falters, whose technique slips, and how long it takes. The first kind of fight is what you might do if you're feeling bored and in need of a quick fix. The latter two, however, are and always will be the best. In the end, you aren't really challenging your opponent in those kinds of fights, so much as you're challenging yourself. You're daring yourself to last longer, strike harder, think faster, push yourself further. No matter what kind of delusions you may have about yourself, you will know who you are without any such falsehoods when you fight. You will know your opponent for who they are, no matter what falsehoods they might hide behind, when they fight."
At this point, Michael takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly before allowing a smirk as he leans back in his chair.
"That child, Neo," Michael starts, "He hides behind bravado and no small measure of belligerence. But, truly, he is rather...immature. He cannot start his own wars, rather he waits for them to come to him in a vain attempt to claim the moral high ground, thus why he is always so abrasive. The mystifying part, however, is how he seem surprised when someone actually lashes out, like he is blameless, but I suppose that's part of the act. He is a bully at best."
"That girl, Yukina," Michael continues, "She hides behind forgiveness and trying to please others. Truly, she is...haunted. By the ghost of her dead mother, no less. She feels that she must live up to her mother's image, but in doing so sacrifices herself and...I couldn't really get much more."
"Anyway, as to your question," the immortal says, "It may sound like it would be wonderful, and it is, at first. After a while, though, it tends to get rather...boring. Coming here, though, should be worth the drudgery back in Orthos. This new place ought to hold plenty of new things to experience, plenty of people to meet, and plenty more to fight. All in all, I can't say ending up here is all that bad."
