Gilgamesh's Strength

The fight between Gilgamesh, a boy nobody knew, and Arturo, an advanced standard practitioner about to take a ranking test, was intentionally spread by the disciples of the Royal Water God Style Academy. The word about this quickly spread through the academy without any instructors intervening, as the higher-ranked ones were in a meeting with Simon.

Arturo held considerable influence and popularity within the academy for achieving a stage that very few had reached - being recognized as a sword saint at the age of 18, which was a significant achievement considering he had trained within the academy for less than 8 years. In this month, he would be officially recognized as a sword saint, so everyone already knew of his strength. Here, he was considered a genius, whereas in other places, he might have been seen as unattainable. However, in Gilgamesh's eyes, he was nothing more than an incompetent.

Even the adults who heard about this duel were surprised.

"They challenged Arturo?"

"He's a nobody. It's said he came to disrupt the training of the younger ones and even called them dogs. Despite his unknown skills, Arturo possesses incredible combat physique. Does anyone have any idea if that boy stands a chance against Arturo?"

Some of the academy students who had never heard of Gilgamesh were highly intrigued.

It was normal. Not just anyone could enter the academy, let alone challenge one of the most promising swordsmen here with such confidence. No matter how crazy one was, they wouldn't face someone who could easily leave them crippled.

On the other hand, no one really knew Gilgamesh, as only a few had seen him in recent years. Furthermore, Gilgamesh's current appearance differed greatly from the previous owner of his body. Taking this into account, it's also worth considering that he had never been presented to the public at noble banquets or birthdays like his other two brothers.

"Hah, everyone is worrying too much. No matter who this boy is, if he's someone who accepted a formal duel, it doesn't matter if he's from royalty. He must adhere to the rules of the duel they've agreed upon. But since nobody knows him, he's probably just a piece of trash from a noble family. By looking at his hands, we can tell he hasn't practiced any sword usage because of them."

One student replied mockingly.

"Could he be a wizard?"

After hearing this question, the older individuals who knew nothing about Gilgamesh became even more perplexed. A wizard facing a swordsman in a confined setting? If that were the case, that wizard either didn't value their life or was severely misinformed.

Not only was the Water God Style one of the strongest combat styles, but it was also specialized in dealing with wizards and defending against various types of attacks.

"Should we interfere if things get bloody? Arturo is known not to stop attacking until his opponent surrenders completely."

"He's like a rabbit that has lived its whole life in a burrow, a complete idiot."

A significant number of people lost interest, believing that the fight would end after just one move. In their eyes, a single move from Arturo was enough to defeat Gilgamesh.

This news eventually reached the ears of some instructors who were not present at the meeting and guards from various locations. They ignored the issue, considering it a child's game that would be resolved through the formal duel.

One of the instructors who was well-informed about the situation remarked, "The fourth prince must be completely insane. Maybe this is for the best to prevent him from causing trouble in places where he can't be protected. Leaving someone crippled is nothing to be proud of, but if that prince, who hasn't left his room since birth, tarnishes his family's name, let this be a lesson."

This comment caused some instructors to furrow their brows. After all, it was still the fourth prince. In the present, they could kill you for anything, and if it turns out that this prince is a hidden talent who has concealed his strength since birth, the one who might end up in a bad state is the boy named Arturo. After all, they had heard about the incident at the inn where many had died, and the fourth prince emerged unscathed.

There are three factions supporting the princes and the princess, all vying for the throne of the Asura Kingdom. These three had been paying attention since Gilgamesh showed his teeth, waiting to see if it was wise to attack or better to stay on the sidelines.

Realistically, Prince Gilgamesh was just a boy destined to die at the hands of one of his siblings at any moment before the true Gilgamesh arrived in this world. This made many dismiss the matter as something not worth paying attention to, as at any moment, someone could take care of him.

Some instructors were nervous because they didn't know what might happen next. Others simply watched from the sidelines with smiles on their faces.

They believed that if this enraged the king, they could leave all this responsibility to Simon, his personal guard. After all, they were in this academy to evaluate the prince's abilities, and this required subjecting him to intense battles set up by Simon to determine how strong he was.

While the instructors were still contemplating, Gilgamesh was already in the central area of the battlefield. As expected, there was a crowd gathered to witness the beating everyone had been talking about. They just wanted to watch and bet on whether Arturo would defeat Gilgamesh with a single swing of his sword or if he would slowly injure him.

There were two sides to this battle: those who justified Arturo's actions and those who didn't like the idea as it would damage the academy's reputation. However, as this was a formal combat agreed upon by the two parties involved, they couldn't interfere.

When Arturo stepped onto the battle stage, one of his friends shouted loudly, "Arturo, leave him crippled for disrespecting us."

Another chimed in and said, "A strike from your sword is too merciful for him. He dared to call us dogs; make sure he suffers until he surrenders in disgrace."

"Severe injuries are not necessary; just fight honorably and defeat your opponent so he learns that he can't insult anyone without the strength to back up his words. There's no need for bloodshed today, especially with an important event in the afternoon."

On the battlefield, Gilgamesh looked at Arturo and cruelly mocked, "Do the cowards of this place join you to give you orders? No, wait, if they think they can speak, they should step onto the stage and be crushed alongside you. I'm disappointed; I never imagined there would be such trash in a knight's academy."

"You damn fool, I only need one swing of my sword to take your head from your body." In an icy tone, Arturo raised his head proudly and looked down at his opponent.

"Hahaha, you're a damn bad dog! Just for this, I must teach an important lesson to all the idiotic nobles gathered here." Gilgamesh walked to the side and took a metal sword. In normal circumstances or moments earlier in his life, he wouldn't have fought on equal terms with trash like Arturo. However, now he wanted to start being different from his childhood in Uruk. What he had discovered when facing the apostles of the gods was that if he was serious from the start, if he fought on equal terms and with all his strength right from the beginning, very few opponents could come out alive after facing him. Plus, he enjoyed seeing their expressions when he severed their limbs with his sword.

"Come on, my dog, if you want to fight, let your skills speak and stop spewing so many useless words." Gilgamesh responded with open disdain for his opponent. His left hand gripped his sword tightly, pointing the edge toward Arturo, and with a cold tone, he proclaimed, "Make your move!"

"Die!"

Enraged by the contempt Gilgamesh had shown him in front of everyone, Arturo made his first move without knowing his enemy's capabilities. With his fighting energy, a sword strike capable of cutting through anything materialized in the air, as fast as lightning.

The fighting energy coalesced at the tip of the sword and aimed straight for Gilgamesh's heart, accompanied by all the fury Arturo had mustered.

Gilgamesh restrained his strength to toy with Arturo, so instead of retreating, he took a step forward. With each step he took, the sword in his left hand glowed with a golden hue and spun like a vicious serpent. With a simple sword movement, he completely deflected Arturo's furious attack.

There was a scraping sound, indicating the contact of a sword's edge with clothing, and it reached the scene. Arturo's sword cut a small piece of Gilgamesh's clothing, narrowly avoiding any harm. Though it didn't injure him, it had damaged his attire, which meant a lot to Gilgamesh, who had matched his strength to Arturo's.

"Damn it..." Arturo smiled coldly until he realized that his still advancing sword had veered off, beyond his control, and his opponent's right hand began to move. With his vision obstructed, Gilgamesh's left hand, which held his sword, disappeared from Arturo's field of view.

In just one exchange of attacks, Arturo lost sight of what Gilgamesh did next. "Well..."

Gilgamesh's sword attack was ruthless and ferocious. Those who noticed it opened their eyes in horror. This attack doubled Arturo's speed, and with flexibility, he moved and appeared at his enemy's sword in the blink of an eye.

Those who didn't know what was happening cheered for Arturo, believing he had landed a hit on Gilgamesh's shoulder.

However...

In the same second Gilgamesh appeared on Arturo's back, his sword still spinning, several high-ranking instructors arrived. One of the instructors saw Gilgamesh's attack and shouted in panic, "Please, spare him, Fourth Prince!"

Yet, a second later, as if Gilgamesh's sword hadn't heard, it advanced toward Arturo's neck and forcefully pierced through, making its way into his mouth like a ferocious spear. Everything came to a halt, and the tip of the sword that had penetrated Arturo was dripping with blood. Everyone witnessed a brutal murder unlike anything they had ever seen before.

Without mercy, Gilgamesh lifted his foot and hurled Arturo's lifeless body forward. The force with which he threw his enemy's corpse was so great that it rolled several times, and parts of his body crumbled like paper.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

The position in which Arturo's body lay was so grave that everyone was horrified. Wasn't this supposed to be a formal duel? How did it end in a deadly fight?

Blood soon filled the arena. On the other hand, Arturo's eyes slowly closed with flashes of remorse and confusion. He didn't understand how he had been defeated. How was he supposed to know that he was facing a demigod with the intent to kill? What a joke, even the gods themselves avoided fighting Gilgamesh.

Although Gilgamesh was considered a god even by his own people, it held no sway in this world. Furthermore, Arturo didn't maximize the potential of his Water God Style technique, which involved waiting for the opponent to attack. Instead, he had rushed towards Gilgamesh with the intention of harming him.

At this moment, the entire battlefield was completely silent. Laughter and mockery had vanished. It seemed as though time had frozen.

"It seems I pushed my strength a bit more than I should have. An attack ended up damaging my clothing."

Recalling what had just happened, Lorian, who had alerted the higher-ups, was incredibly stunned. They had fought on equal terms, and Arturo had lost?

As for the disciples of the Water God Style Academy, their souls had not returned to their bodies. Arturo had stood out greatly among his peers, but he had been mutilated with a single attack by the mysterious fourth prince.

Simon, as Gilgamesh's royal guard, was the first to appear by his prince's side, confused by what he had just witnessed. What had happened here for the prince to engage in combat with a student from this place?

"It's not that big of a deal; that idiot thought he could overpower me and had clear intentions to kill me, so I responded with the same strength and coldness he displayed." Gilgamesh smiled contemptuously, as if the death of someone had not affected him in the slightest.