Seeing Jackson, John calmed down and said to Lucian, "You haven't had formal training. Remember, don't panic. Stay steady and accurate. They'll only have daggers at most. As long as you use the length of the club to your advantage, you can keep them from getting close. And don't stop moving. Run and fight. There are many of them. If they surround you and attack from different directions, you won't be able to defend."
He tried to keep his advice simple, so Lucian wouldn't panic or rush in recklessly.
Lucian actually understood this very well from experience. He nodded in agreement and replied humorously, "Relax, John. I'm the brave soul who braved the Witch's Chamber."
John said no more. They held their clubs behind their backs to avoid attracting the attention of passersby, then quickly closed the distance to Jackson and the others.
This was a street in the Market District, only a ten-minute walk from one of the Allen Gang's strongholds. It was bustling with merchants, adventurers, and mercenaries, so John and Lucian's approach went unnoticed by Jackson's group.
When they were just a few steps away, Lucian and John exchanged a glance, drew the clubs from behind their backs, gripped them tightly with both hands, and charged toward the two gangsters lagging at the rear.
Lucian recognized the one who had kicked him earlier, the one who had almost ruined everything. He rushed up, swung the club, and aimed a vicious blow at the man's head.
*Not enough strength, not enough training.* That was what Lucian had learned from recent fights, in addition to staying calm, steady, and accurate: you had to be ruthless. Once you struck, you absolutely couldn't think about holding back. That would only make you hesitate.
The whistle of the club alerted the gangster, but at such close range, he could only turn his face slightly before the club struck.
*Thud!* The blow landed hard just below the man's ear, blacked out his vision, and knocked him unconscious to the ground.
Meanwhile, John, who wasn't as savage, didn't aim for the head. Gripping the club like a greatsword, he struck the other gangster's right arm.
Even though it wasn't a vital spot, as a formally trained Knight Squire, John's strength far exceeded Lucian's. The single blow sent the gangster flying through the air. He landed with his arm grotesquely swollen, his right hand temporarily useless.
Lucian didn't stop after felling the first gangster. He circled around the perimeter, running, then swung at the head of another gangster who had turned at the noise. The club smashed into his face with a heavy impact.
The gangster toppled backward. Two trails of blood arced through the air, painting jagged lines.
He didn't lose consciousness immediately, but the searing pain and ringing in his head left him rolling on the ground.
By now, the gangsters at the front had fully reacted. Jackson, seeing only two opponents, his eyes turning vicious, signaled the remaining twelve to surround them.
Daggers were drawn, reflecting the morning sun with a cold glint.
Lucian clung to the principle of *never stop moving*, dashing irregularly around the outside—sometimes forward, sometimes left, sometimes doubling back. But whenever he spotted an opening, he counterattacked instantly, using the club's reach to strike hard at heads, necks, and other weak points.
The key to this tactic was avoiding panic and greed, even as the enemies split up and tried to encircle him.
The main street was wide and long. The bystanders had scattered and fled. As long as you didn't cower in a corner and didn't get bogged down fighting one enemy, plus with the ones John had drawn away, the four or five gangsters chasing Lucian couldn't possibly lock down his running path.
Of course, this was a severe test of stamina. An ordinary person would collapse after a few minutes at most.
Soon, another gangster went down. But Lucian noticed something else: John over there was actually surrounded!
Although far stronger than Lucian or the gangsters, John hadn't been ruthless at first. After knocking down five or six gangsters in succession, he hadn't incapacitated them. Instead, they lay on the ground, drew daggers with their left hands, and stabbed at his ankles and shins. Trying to dodge, he was encircled before he knew it. His running space shrank rapidly. If not for his agility and superb swordsmanship, he would have been stabbed by the five or six blades around him already. But his situation was already dire.
Seeing this, Lucian hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and charged straight toward them, swinging the club at the back of one gangster's head.
"Watch out!" "Johnny!" The three gangsters chasing Lucian shouted warnings to their companions.
The gangster named Johnny reacted quickly, immediately diving forward. Lucian's club swung through empty air.
But this also gave John his chance to break out. He swept the club horizontally in a circle, forcing the others back, and was about to dart past Johnny.
Johnny sprang up and lunged with his dagger at John's back, while the three gangsters chasing Lucian were almost upon John.
However, after forcing Johnny to dive, Lucian didn't dash away as before. He held his ground. So his club rose just in time, landing with a heavy blow on Johnny's back.