His left hand caught Kunther's sword wrist as the older man dispatched a fourth serpent, and he drove his knee into the back of Kunther's, buckling the joint.
Kunther went to one knee and twisted, pulling Jake with him, converting the takedown into a grapple that brought them both to the courtyard stones in a tangle that had no elegance in it whatsoever.
The sword was trapped between them at an angle that made it useless and Kunther was fighting to free it while Jake was fighting to keep it trapped, and they were a meter apart wrestling with each other's limbs while three remaining shadow serpents circled them looking for openings.
Kunther headbutted him again.
Jake absorbed it with Scale Armor this time, the scales distributing the impact, and responded by slamming his forehead into Kunther's nose. Less elegant than everything else he'd done, thoroughly effective.
Kunther's grip loosened for the half-second Jake needed.
He broke free, rolled away, and came to his feet.
