16 The Duel

A duel was different from any of the spars I had with Father or Mark.

As I walked towards the Training Grounds I saw many people that were normally busy with other matters in the house, like the Young Miss of this Household I currently work for!

The House Master's daughter was indeed a girl with Rank B Magical Talent alright... Looking at her pure silver hair that signified the strength of her Light Attribute, my eyes couldn't help but twitch a little as I felt my inferiority. She truly has the looks of a 'Genius' who had great swordsmanship and ranged magic that far surpass those of her own age.

Her talent was the strongest in the kingdom's current youngest generation of nobility. Even if she couldn't compare to my parents right now, the potential she showed already indicated that she will definitely be able to surpass them in the future. This is especially true considering her attainments in Fire Manipulation and Sword Arts.

She looked at me curiously as I made my way towards the temporary arena made by the servants of the Swordwick Household. All of them looked like they were looking to see a good fight... and I was determined to live up to those expectations!

I didn't really hide much of my abilities in the past five years and probably caused a debate among the servants about my ACTUAL battle prowess. I'm about to battle against a strong opponent like that arrogant prick, which made many unable hold back their curiosity towards what an Rank F Magical Talent of this Noble Household could do on his own. There were many of them that were probably secretly placing their bets on who would win this match.

I made my way to the Arena with a confident stride despite my inward cautious nature. My parents, who were walking beside the House Master, watched the battle from a seat that was prepared beforehand.

Only they had the right to sit with the Swordwick Duke of the Drakeyol Kingdom due to their special position in the household's servants.

The Swordwick Duke was also known as a Rank C Magical Talent just like my parents but the overall ability of this sharp-eyed, well-built man in combat far exceeded my parents by a large margin. Even the Royal Family would be cautious around him...

The reason was simple: That grey-haired old Swordsman has his own unique Intrinsic Art that can be used in sync with his Aura Manifestation.

Aura Manifestation can be said to be more of a passive ability created by the Sword God. Since most humans couldn't bring out the technique's true strengths, the only way for others to increase their power was by making their own 'active' type Arts instead.

Aura Manifestation was the first Art to be made in human history... and after the weak Human Race saw the potential of intricate Arts, many more were created after it through countless experimentations.

Duke Swordwick's 'Infinite Swords' was one of such Arts that was passed down through his bloodline through every generation. Although I haven't seen it myself, it is said that when he uses his Art, a large amount of swords are able to be formed using his Mana in order to cut down his enemies.

Even though I already had the eighty years of memories from my past life since birth, I wasn't easily able to create Arts that others had never seen or heard of before. No wonder my parents said that Arts were hard to create Arts without a clear goal!

Well... at least I was able to bring my strength up by a notch through mixing magic and science together in a unique way. Looks like it's time to test if my abilities can be used in an real battle against a strong opponent.

Both of us stood centre stage, awaiting to hear the rules of the challenge.

In this duel, we were each given strict orders to not use any magical equipment and to not lethally injure our opponent using our abilities.

I looked at that massive prick that was holding his wooden spear in disgust while warming up by swinging my wooden knife and wooden sword.

The weapons we were given were also blunt just in case we actually ended up gravely injuring each other while fighting. You could even say that they went all out regarding different safety measures.

The Aura Clad I wore seeped into my flesh and bones but didn't release out of my skin into a 'flame'. The reason I did so was because this was the only way an Rank F Magical Talent like me could cover my entire body with Aura. The only downside to this method was having less physical and magical resistance than others...

I didn't want to use the Secret Arts I've been saving up yet, not because I doubted his abilities, but due to how I was waiting for him to underestimate my strength. I mean, how could a weak person earn the chance to become that little girl's personal butler? The fact that he wielded a spear at his age gave me even more of an impression that he would be able to gain the upper hand in physical power.

However, what disgusted me to point of not wanting to have anything to do with him was the fact that this prick was actually looking down on me!

It doesn't take a genius to understand that he was probably the most talented among the younger generation of servants when it came to pure Magical Talent. His disdain towards me isn't something new because I've seen many people consider me as a weakling just because I've an Rank F Magical Talent. The other kids gathered around him were always sarcastic when asking how my regular training regimen with Father was going...

Now that I think about it, looking at him in disgust is a waste of my time. I should just bash his face with my wooden sword then be done with it.

"Are both of you ready?" Mark asked as he was refereeing the duel from the side. A Wind Specialist like him that focused his efforts into speed was usually required for duels because sometimes only a swift person could stop things from getting out of hand.

If any of us was to be in danger, he would always be ready to step in and stop us from breaking any rules. This was only natural in a fast-paced Duel on this household's high standards.

"Ready." The giant youth stopped talking those friends his age and stepped onto the stage with an innocent and yet strongly charismatic smile. If I hadn't seen the contempt he had for me before, even I would have been fooled by that honest-looking expression he wore like a mask.

"Ready." I declared after holding both my wooden knife and sword in reverse grip. Oops, I quickly changed them back in a hurry... A look of embarrassment appeared on my face as I pretended that didn't happen. I keep on forgetting I'm a Swordsman now instead of a soldier with knives.

Ah... looks like old habits die hard...!

Fighting like a 'Warrior' isn't really my style. After all, there's too many 'rules' when facing someone head-on. I'd rather be inside where I can use corridors for cover rather that out in this field...

"Then let the Duel start." Mark announced. The audience were in rapped attention towards us as they tried to probe both our strengths.

"Simon Rainglow, just give up. You can't win against absolute power I wield." The massive p- I mean, the 'innocent giant' asked in way that made him look magnanimous and kind-hearted. It was as if he was the kind and gentle older brother who was trying to advise his younger sibling to stop him from making a mistake. This is what I mean by how he's frickin' looking down on me!

This guy talks too much...!

My eyes couldn't help but gaze at him like he was some kind of mental patient as I switched to using one of my five Affinities with my widely-known F Rank Aura Clad.

An amethyst glow appeared under my skin and caused his words next to be swallowed back down his throat. His eyes narrow in seriousness as he found that I probably wouldn't be that easy to deal with. It wasn't easy finding someone like myself who could utilise the Lightning Affinity at such a young age... However, having a rare Elemental Affinity Aura Clad under my belt didn't mean much.

Looks like I underestimated him, it looks like he knows just how dangerous Lightning Aura actually was. He must have also trained at a very young age just like myself to have such an impeccably strong mind and will. Not that I'm surprised...

"I'm sorry for looking down on you. Let us have a good fight." He said while readying his wooden spear into a formal stance. The opal glow appeared on his released Aura that far exceeded the size my puny Lightning Aura, but his face didn't show its previous arrogance and instead had his eyes showed pure confidence of his abilities.

We didn't talk with our voices but instead used our weapons to exchange expressive attacks with one another. Both of us charged towards each other at the same time as we readied our Arts.

A bolt of purple electricity sparked out of the transparent Lightning Aura glowing under my skin as I clashed with him head-on. My unpredictable sword movements were quickly followed up by a swift knife that tried to poke a hole into his solid defences. He altered the Earth Aura around his body to conjure an Earthen Armour that blocked every one of my attacks after slapped away his spear.

Our figures moved everywhere around the stage as we clashed but none of us was able to gain an upper hand in any of our bouts.

The armour he created out of his Earth Aura was so thick that every one of my Lightning Aura coated attacks weren't able to pierce through deeply enough to cause any sort of significant damage to his body.

That said, his position wasn't any better than mine considering how vastly superior my experience actual life or death battles compared to his. None of his attacks could even damage my clothes.

His heavy wooden spear was always redirected using my sword no matter which angle he stabbed towards me using his Earth Aura covered spear. It was useless endeavour for him to think he could overpower me just because of his Magical Talent.

His spear was like machine gun as its afterimages stabbed towards my stomach. The increase in his physical abilities were quite outstanding considering how he wasn't using the right Elemental Aura for increasing speed of his physical attacks...

I had to keep my wooden knife close to my body as I parried every single one of his thrusts while taking steps back towards the edge of the arena. It looked like he was thinking of suppressing me and throwing me out of the ring using everything he had!

Too bad his expectations were going to be disappointed by the fact that I already predicted this situation. The Elemental Affinity of Lightning might not have the greatest potential when it comes to long and drawn out battles, but its extreme bursts of power after a few moments of storing energy was the strongest of all the attributes a Swordsman's Aura could produce!

Just when I got to the edge of the arena, I released all the excess stored energy of my Lightning Aura into a burst of power! I redirected his assault and sliced my wooden sword onto his Earthen Armour!

Although I wasn't able to break through his unreasonably strong defences, the force of my attack strongly pushed him back and threw off his balance... This gave me a great opportunity!

I didn't allow him to figure out what was going on as I switched my Aura Clad to the Wind Affinity in order to get closer to him before changing it again into the Fire Affinity in order to continue pressuring him. The shocked expression on Jack's face quickly faded as he swiftly manipulated the Earth Aura covering his body.

The Earth Affinity had the greatest capabilities when it comes to defence so it was only natural that Jack didn't have trouble defending himself from my attacks. The swordsmanship I displayed may have been strong but it wasn't enough to injure him at all.

This damn annoying turtle...!

Looking at how he was slowly regaining his footing, I frowned as I didn't want to lose the momentum I gained from my earlier surprising attack. Others might not be able to understand but I knew clearly that having 'momentum' in battle was advantageous in many ways.

"I have a SPEAR as well. Wanna see it?" I laughed while charging straight at him. One of the martial arts I had mastered in my previous life came to mind as I moved towards him. The experiences carved into my mind made my body move on its own!

Of course, Jack didn't have the mood or time to respond with a snide remark as he shifted horizontally wooden spear to slam my ribs. The usual scene between an Rank F Magical Talent and a Rank C one in these circumstances would be the weaker one being launched out of the ring uncontrollably. However, that scene never came to be...!

By fusing the unique 'Burst' quality of Lightning Aura with a specific martial art I learnt in my previous life, I was able to respond faster than my brain could react in order to meet his overwhelming attack head on! A large boom rang out as small cracks appeared on my wooden sword that had once again knocked his body off balance momentarily.

"Spontaneous Protection Enabling Accelerated Response... In other words: S-P-E-A-R... SPEAR! Like the pun I made?" I spoke just to annoy him. It's not that I was purposefully wasting my energy for no reason but that I was hoping he'd lose his cool and show any kind of weakness...

The SPEAR SYSTEM in my past life was a hybrid martial art which helped Detect, Defuse, and Defend in real life due to its lack of set forms. I benefited a lot from mastering this martial art since I am now able to respond to danger at speeds faster than even I myself can react to at any given situation. What I was aiming for now after defending was an opportunity to 'Defuse' him once he slips up...

Though it seems like my efforts were for nothing as he ignored my provocations without batting an eyelid. It looks like he can curb his arrogance in the heat of battle... This time, he was able to regain his stability and got to get into a stance.

I need to change my tactics...!

Instead of switching my Aura Clad's Affinity, I decided to patiently overlay my Lightning Aura on top of my Fire Aura in order to store energy.

Jack's mouth twitched at the scene of my Aura taking on two distinct hues and seemed a little panicked. This time he tried countering before trying to forcefully break my momentum by standing his ground no matter what was to be thrown at him.

"You can use two Aura Clads!?" He spoke for the first time throughout this duel in a disbelieving tone of voice. His eyes seemed to be turning crimson as he was unable to comprehend how I could possibly use two Auras simultaneously at once.

"Can't you... ask that after you've stopped defending?" I responded with a question. Though I was able to force a deadlock between us, it was really hard to block his spears and spare some time for idle chatter with him about the technique I was using.

"Not happening."

"Then how about giving me an opening I can take advantage of? Pretty please~"

"And why would I do that?"

"Hah... It was worth a try." I spoke after deciding to take some distance.

Although he wasn't perfectly successful in breaking my momentum, he was still able to fight back and put himself in a position where he would be able to stop me from storing too much energy!

The amount of energy a Lightning Specialist could store within his Lightning Aura was dependent on the user's control over their own Mana.

I was one of the best in the household when it came to control over Mana so it was natural I could've stored enough energy to throw him off the arena if he gave me enough time to charge... I need a new battle of action.

He made the right decision when it came to his next course of action, but how could I just let him stop me from charging my Lightning Aura?

I swiftly changed into a more defensive sword stance, the very same one I used against my father to block his attacks and parried with shorter bursts of Lightning Aura.

The people looking at my swordsmanship would only see me constantly changing the Elemental Affinities within my body while also keeping my Lightning Aura up at all times in order to store and release small to large bursts of power.

The unpredictability of my swordsmanship showed itself as I was able to hold my own against Jack without having to take any steps back!

Jack also wasn't able to forcefully push me towards the edge of the arena again, which allowed me to relax a little as we clashed. My mind was constantly sharpening as I focused on his moves.

It may look like we're even on the outside, but I knew clearly that his plan was probably to exhaust my inner supply of magical power. A confident smile etched across his face as the shock he displayed towards my skills slowly faded. I don't know whether to praise his stable mind or curse the fact that his assumptions were spot on!!!

Looks like it's time to get serious!