Chapter 31: No Choice
Scorpion immediately frowned as he saw what Uhtred was playing at. A dark chuckle escaped his lips, and he was about to mock Uhtred for the attempt, but Uhtred refused to let the momentum he’d built stall. He cut Scorpion off before he could speak.
"Oh, is it because of this?" Uhtred said, holding his obsidian battleaxe out. Then he pushed it to the side, letting it drop carelessly into the dirt.
"Don’t worry. I’m not going to use this against the likes of you..."
Uhtred grinned where he stood, spreading both arms wide.
"...It would just be bullying at that point."
The biting statement made all eyes immediately focus on Scorpion, including those of his goons.
Uhtred’s words were exactly the perfect response to someone like Scorpion, whose entire sway and reputation revolved around an illusion of superiority. That perceived untouchability was the sole glue holding his violent gang together. The best way to dismantle a leader like that was to directly attack his reputation.
Scorpion knew exactly what Uhtred was doing, and so did every other smart mind in the various camps. But understanding the trap did not change the fact that Scorpion could simply not let the insult slide in front of his faction.
If Uhtred had stopped at a standard challenge, Scorpion could have likely wormed his way out of it. In fact, he had wanted to at the start before Uhtred cut him off. Now, however, coming out directly and saying those words so blatantly had forced his hand.
If Scorpion failed to make a move now, the image of superiority he had built in the minds of his goons and everyone in this sector would disintegrate. His orders might still be followed on the surface, but deep down, he would no longer be unreachable. His goons would begin to look at his position as something they could eventually take for themselves.
Scorpion clearly possessed enough real-world experience with street-level dominance to recognise the danger. It was for this reason that without hesitation, he roughly pushed the woman in his grip away, releasing her twisted arm as he stepped down from the stone ledge of his platform.
He strode out into the flat open area, heading towards the middle to meet Uhtred.
The moment he drew near, within the crowds of the other camps, Pioneers started to stride forward, intending to back Uhtred. In quick response, Scorpion’s goons also stepped forward, ready to match the incoming force like for like.
But Uhtred simply raised a hand and turned his head slightly.
"All of you should stay back. No one should come forward," he said to them.
They visibly hesitated, especially those from other camps who had not been present for Uhtred’s initial arrival. They still moved forward, so Uhtred turned his head and locked eyes with them, barking in a louder voice this time:
"No one comes forward!"
Because Uhtred had reined in his aura and suppressed his passive essence draw, he looked just like any other normal man, albeit one with a dangerous-looking weapon. So the other pioneers still seemed hesitant about whether to listen or not. To them, putting a single unarmoured person against Scorpion and his entire gang was like putting a lone man against a pack of wolves.
For a few seconds there was a slight suspense in the air. The pioneers kept exchanging glances, until eventually, after seeing Uhtred’s unwavering, calm gaze, they finally backed down and stepped back, though they stayed ready for anything.
The young Peak Level 3 Pioneer beside the politician was the sole exception. Throughout the exchange, he simply crossed his arms and watched the tension unfold without saying a word. Even after the other Pioneers backed down, all he did was move closer to get a better view, not bothering to offer help.
Somehow, his analytical gaze told him that Uhtred could take care of himself.
Uhtred faced forward again, anchoring his gaze onto Scorpion. Scorpion, in turn, also raised his hand, and his goons immediately stepped back, carving out plenty of space for the fight.
"So, what do you count as a win in this duel, seeing as the System won’t let us kill each other?" Scorpion asked, grabbing his chin and cracking his neck on both sides to warm up for the fight.
In the span of a few seconds, his entire demeanor shifted into one of deep focus and readiness, as if a switch had been flipped. The change was so jarring and sudden, it made Uhtred feel like he was looking at a different person.
Despite himself, Uhtred couldn’t help but nod internally at the rapid change. He could see why Scorpion had managed to reign supreme here within hours of arriving.
And there are others like him emerging all over the world right now, Uhtred thought.
From his title rank in some of his kills and achievements, he knew Earth was brimming with talent. These were people who perhaps had not fit well into society before the integration, but now that reality was raw and brutal, they had immediately adapted and were thriving.
Uhtred brought his focus back to the present and finally answered the question Scorpion had asked:
"You choose the terms. I was the one to demand a duel, so it would be discourteous of me to also dictate the rules... I don’t want to hear any pathetic excuses about being unfair after I beat you, so just choose yourself."
Scorpion did not let the blatant arrogance bait him. A soft chuckle escaped his lips as he finished his final lunges, bouncing on his feet and throwing his head side to side. He looked directly at Uhtred.
"In that case, how about the first to land five critical strikes?" Scorpion proposed, a sharp edge entering his tone. "Strikes that are dangerous enough to trigger the System’s automatic intervention barrier."
The rule seemed fine to Uhtred, but before he could open his mouth to respond, Scorpion smoothly cut in to deliver the caveat.
"...And whoever loses leaves this sector permanently, leaving everything behind for the victor... What do you say?" He looked at Uhtred with a light smile on his lips.
Oh? This guy is actually clever, Uhtred’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Right from the onset, Uhtred had intentionally left what would happen after the fight completely ambiguous, positioning it purely as a battle of ego.
He had hoped Scorpion’s pride would blind him to the fact that no actual stakes had been declared for the sector itself.
But Scorpion had already deduced that he was completely outmatched, and throwing this specific term onto the table gave him an immediate fallback option...
