Lorenzo Remei
The pirate watched impassively at the destruction around, then noticed the boy. Just before he could do anything, he held his hand out and spoke gravely, ordered him with fierce authority that made his flames look like embers in compare.
"Stop, Mason."
As soon as he said that, the ground beneath the boy crumbled. The butterflies he had released hadn't been sitting around doing nothing, he had already considered the possibility of him interfering. With the ceiling of the floor under the boy shattered, Mason would fall under, only to be cushioned by the rubble. At the very least, the wall of flames he released around his opponent and him once more would completely split the kid from this fight.
"Heh, you're amazing. I didn't think you'd actually make it. But that was crude, even with your crazy strength you should've known better than to come at a swordsman bare handed." He scolded her, but there was no disregard for his opponent in his words. On the contrary, he had nothing but the deepest respect towards this stranger who kept fighting so fiercely, not only as a warrior or a pirate, but as a man.
But it was strange. With her body like that, all it would take would be one more shot to finish her off. Whether she was alive or not didn't matter in the slightest, he was only asked to deal with her. While he was cocky and confident in his abilities, he wasn't blinded by arrogance, he simply refused to take the victory laying bare before him. It's almost like he was striking up a conversation in order to buy time. Almost like he was letting her regenerate.
"I guess in this sorry state, you'll hardly be able to touch me. Looks this is the end of the line, huh?"
He took a combat stance, ready as ever. If this was simply misguided chivalry, he would certainly know better than to give up a decisive victory, even against a woman. But strangest of all were his words that he whispered to her, low enough that no one could overhear as they came right through the embers that surrounded the girl.
"Listen. I'll give you a single chance. The next instant we clash, jump to the right. My attack will fly right past you, use that chance to get in close and blow me away as far as you can. I won't get up for a bit after that. Surely I don't have to tell you what to do then."
Even the most hard headed would be shocked by these sudden words? Just what was that pirate planning? Was he serious, or was this simply an attempt to deceive her and make sure he would not fall into a trap? These questions meant nothing, in the end, only one thing would determine the outcome of this fight.
Would she trust him or not?
