The light from Marcella's explosion had certainly made it easier to see, the field was set ablaze even with the pouring rain and lack of fuel, burning off Marcella's remnant magic like it was oil. 

Tammy and Belle could be seen peering out the front door cautiously, clearly startled awake by the explosions near the house. Marcella and Gawn's presence letting them know exactly what was going on.

If they had any sense they'd hide, them coming out now could only be a bad thing for me. I almost felt like yelling, but bringing any more attention to them would just make them bigger targets for Marcella and Gawn. I didn't peg those two as being ruthless enough to target defenseless women, but they had shown they were not above night-time assassinations, so it didn't really seem like that much of a stretch. 

Unfortunately for me, Marcella seemed to have pretty good observational awareness, being a mid to long-range fighter that was part of her role after all; making eye contact with the girls for the briefest of moments. Clearly now aware of a possible weak point that would allow them to break the current stalemate. 

They were already starting to panic, given it had been several minutes since the fight began and Marcella's magic wasn't exactly subtle. 

Even so, after having committed so fully to their plan, bailing out now seemed inconceivable to them. Gawn openly brooding at this point over the loss of his friends, cursing me as he tried to get in range. Struggling to run on the unsteady ground while I avoided him with ease, backing away from every swing and bringing him further away from the house. 

"Stop running you bastard." Gawn uttered angrily. Looking like he was almost on the verge of crying out of frustration. No matter how good of a swordsman he claimed to be, he was only human. 

He already had a grudge against me from the start, the whole ordering his execution business and all, but after killing his friends tonight, it looked like he wasn't going to stop until one of us was dead. 

"Gawn, I've always wondered, what's your deal anyway? If you're trying to skip town, what exactly are you doing here right now? Seem's a bit counter-productive. Don't tell me you just wanted to see me?" Dodging another swing with ease and stepping wide. 

The man ignoring me as I mocked him, not rising to my taunts. It's true I was genuinely curious about what his motives were.

Gawn proceeding to throw a ball of mud at my eyes as he charged in again. A little surprised at this unorthodox move. 

"You're a really dirty fighter, you know that Gawn? This is our first real fight, so I was hoping you'd show me something a bit more interesting than this." Getting a bit angry at his fighting style that heavily relied on petty tricks and cheating. 

Trying to kill me with a monster, trying to kill me while I sleep, fighting with a numbers advantage, and now dirty tricks on top of that. Now that I thought of it, this guy was pretty low. 

Raising my shield in time to block a number of rapid-fire explosions, Marcella still trying to snipe at me whenever she saw an opening. 

The fight bringing us back past the bodies of his companies as I led them away. 

"Where'd you find these guys anyway, they look like criminals." Just openly speaking my mind at this point, seeming to have struck a nerve this time around.

"They're better men than you'll ever be." Gawn spat testily.

Acting as if I was considering his reply thoughtfully while I defended another round of Marcella's mini-explosions. 

"They tried to kill me in my sleep, that makes them criminals. They died, so that means they weren't even good criminals."

Successfully pissing him off as he responded by faking a slash before dropping down unexpectedly to try to sweep at my legs, extending his reach as much as possible to try to deal with my superior mobility.

 Only managing to react in time due to an agility level that put my reflexes at just beyond human capability.

"Sometimes criminals are the only ones willing to do what's right," Gawn said while getting up. 

"What are you even getting at, you trying to say killing me is the right thing to do?" More than a little annoyed by his insinuations. He tries to kill me and I'm the bad guy in this scenario?

"I wish you were a better person Keaton, I really do. I've never seen anyone as favored by the God's as you are. Rare magical talent combined with this fighting capability; you are undoubtedly the most talented person I've ever seen. But talent can also be a curse, geniuses that act selfishly and cruelly will be nothing but a plague upon the people. I've heard how you treated Marcella, and I've seen how you treat others. The people of this country have enough problems already, I'm going to kill you before you grow into a disaster."

"What a great rationalization, Gawn, but I'd appreciate it if you were a bit more straight with me here. Just admit you want to fuck Marcella."

"You..!" Gawn exploding again in rage, letting off a series of furious stabs. My advantage in gear coming through, as the thrusts I couldn't fend off just scraped by harmlessly against my armor. 

Trying to play a game of skill with him wasn't working, if I tried to block his attacks he always left just enough space that he could get away before I did any harm. Even with my advantage in speed and strength, he was somehow managing to hold his own. The difference between our swordsmanship showing through even with my sword mastery skill acting as compensation. Was my base swordsmanship really that bad? I might not have been the most studious child, but I still did receive a martial education. 

Thanking myself that I had the foresight to switch out my useless alchemist class after killing the lookout they left back at the horses. If swordsmanship alone couldn't do it, then I just had to play to my own strengths. Readying my [sword edge] skill for the killing blow, holding the blade up to my chest like a rapier as I locked my aim onto his heart.  

"Well Gawn, it's been fun. " Saying my good-byes while giving him a genuine smile.  

Hearing a distressed shout from Marcella just as I sprung forward, lunging within range. 

Gawn raising his own sword in preparation with a focused look in his eye, and before he knew it he was already hit. 

Enjoying the confused look on his face as he stared uncomprehending at the translucent glowing blade impaling his chest. His sword snapping as if it were a twig, bisected by the ghostly blade that had already materialized cleanly through his body out of thin air. 

The ephemeral blade crumbling to dust before long, leaving a trail of blood through his body where he had been shot. The man still in disbelief as he collapsed shakily to one knee without warning. 

"What... what just happened."

"Don't try to steal my wife, that's what happened."