Malowebi thinks twice he is the balance to the contest.
Once when he could let his ward drop and once when he could add a cant to Meppa. I suspect both times he is wrong.
I've read the scene several times now, and I just don't like the overall tone of it. Kellhus laughing, making jokes, porting about , seemingly not taking the shortest path to defeating Meppa and Malowebi, punching the latter in the face but soft enough only to bust his lip. Then finally casting his big metagnostic cant, that disables Meppa in one shot. Takes out Malowebi in one shot.
Seemed like a bit too much posturing for me for their to be actually any real danger.