9 Mysterious Swordsman

I rubbed my shoulders as I left the Mayor's room. 'Ahhh dammit… didn't they say it wouldn't hurt?' Imprinted on my shoulder was a minimalistic circular line that was disconnected at the top, a symbol of my loyalty. Despite my new stylish tattoo, they still don't trust me entirely given how they didn't answer any of my questions regarding Ouroboros. I was just sent off after getting told that I should focus on getting stronger. It reminded me of voice in my dreams, just as I was forgetting about it too…

'Whatever…' It seemed like it was still around noon, so there's still a bit longer until my first training with Caladan. You'd think if a watch can control time, it could also… well… tell time, but it's been acting up lately. Whenever I look at it, the form flickers and the hands seem to stutter in its movement.

I began to head towards the dueling area. I can just sit there for a bit if need be. As I strolled through the Guild Hall, there were still some people who turned around as I walked by them, but not nearly as much compared to outside.

As I arrive at the spacious dueling area, I see a few people already dueling. This time, instead of walking into the dueling area, I took a right, up the stairs to an elevated area for spectators. It was quite empty except for a few people who were resting up or eating a snack after being drenched in sweat. I found a seat hugging the wall hoping to stay away from their stench and turned my attention to the duelists below.

Six marked boundaries were set up and two of which are occupied. In one of the boundaries, two spear wielders were sparring. Although they were using wooden training spears that weren't sharpened all the way, the strength and speed with which they fought completed disregarded their weapons. Their acrobatics and moves were very flashy, but all the spectator's eyes were on the other pair.

It was Anne dueling with an unfamiliar swordsman. To say they were dueling would be an understatement. Unlike the previous duo, they were both using their actual weapons instead of practice ones offered in the arena. The previous duelists were quite standard and static in their move sets, but not only was Anne using a bow against a sword, both parties also seemed absurdly abnormal in their movements and techniques as they were empowered by magic. Anne was a marksman, but her aggressive style let her keep up in a short-range duel.

Using her air magic, she was able to dash around the unfamiliar swordsman. Whenever he tried to close the distance, she'd stop his momentum with an arrow. However, the swordsman has been able to block or dodge every single one creating a temporary stalemate. I had to use my time powers in order to stop the arrow from the goblin, and Anne's arrows were much faster than the one I caught which just goes to show how skilled this swordsman was.

Although Anne was doing well, her arrows were limited. Even from the spectator's seat, I could see her supply dwindling as the duel carried on. As the fight was reaching its climax, Anne once again distanced herself from the swordsman, but this time, she took out three arrows instead of one. As she placed the three arrows on the bowstring, the entire bow along with the arrows began to emit a faint white glow. Anne then sent all three arrows at the swordsman, all with newfound speed and danger.

However, during the whole process, the swordsman's sword also began to emit a faint red light. Seeing the arrows coming towards him, he thrust his sword forward to meet the onslaught of danger, but how can a single sword fend off three arrows? My question was answered as a red phantom double of the sword appeared alongside the real one and cut down a second arrow. However, he couldn't entirely avoid the third one as it grazed his left arm tearing off a portion of his shirt sleeve.

Not leaving a second to waste, Anne knocked her last arrow. "I grant you wings!" she declared as a wave of air emitted from her position traversing throughout the entire arena. She let her last arrow fly and this time the arrow carried a visible aura of air magic that enhanced the speed and strength.

The swordsman, watching the event unfold, didn't flinch. As the arrow begins to soar through the air seeking his flesh, the swordsman did the last thing I expected, he dropped his sword. "Fire, devour!" he yelled as he raised his left hand. A miniature fire sphere expanded into existence from the palm of his hand and flew towards the arrow. The two forces of nature clashed in the air creating a small explosion, but in the smoke, the arrow persevered. The magic surrounding it was gone and it lost some momentum, but its aim was true. As the arrow closed in on its target, the swordsman raised his other hand, which hid another fireball identical to the first one he threw out.

He stuck out his right palm to meet the arrow with his fire. He was pushed back some distance, but the fireball consumed the arrow on contact and as the arrow disappeared into the vortex of flame. The swordsman clasped his hand onto the remains and as he loosened his grip, the burnt crisps of the arrow fell from his palm onto the floors of the arena like gray particles of snow.

Not giving in, Anne cried out once more, "Forward!" She vaulted herself towards her opponent with magic, but her powers were depleting. Even as a spectator, I could tell her speed wasn't the same as before. However, this time her eyes weren't on the swordsman, it was on his sword that was still laying dormant on the ground, but even with magic, the sword was simply too close to its owner. The swordsman dove forward and grabbed his sword a good second before Anne arrived and he killed her momentum instantly with a sword held up against her throat.

"You run out of arrows and you decide to dash into melee range of a swordsman? You're as barbaric as always Anne…"

"Tch," Anne replied as she moved the sword away from her neck. "If my arrows weren't entirely made of wood, you wouldn't have won. Flashy jerk."

"Haha, maybe." smirked the swordsman as he sheathed his sword.

Anne sat down and tried to catch her breath while the swordsman stood unfaltering while checking his injury. Entering back into reality, I realized I was holding my own breath as well, what a duel. Unclenching my hand, I let the rest of my body relax as I sat back a bit more.

"That was intense…" I murmured to myself.

"It was quite the spectacle…"

"..."

Wait, I turned to the sound of the voice and Master Caladan was casually sitting next to me also observing the duel.

"Master Caladan! When did you get here?"

"Just Caladan is fine. I got here about… halfway through? You seemed pretty into it so I didn't want to distract you."

"My apologies for making you wait."

"It doesn't matter. Tell me, what are your thoughts on the fight?"

"My thoughts? Well, it seemed pretty close on the surface but… the swordsman was always in control, right?"

"That's correct, why do you think that?"

"Mostly body language I suppose. He seemed pretty calm and prepared for the entire fight. He always had an answer for everything Anne could throw at him. Plus, in the end, he wasn't nearly as tired compared to his opponent…"

"That's correct. He is a B rank warrior after all, albeit a low B. Anne is currently peak D rank, but only because she hasn't tested out of it yet. In reality, I'd say she's probably low C or even mid C rank. It's close but Lucifer did hold back, he just has a lot more experience fighting."

"Is Lucifer the swordsman?"

"Yes. I'm surprised you don't know about him, he's quite famous around these parts, but I guess he does travel a lot too."

"By the way, during the duel, their weapons were glowing. Is that also magic?"

"It's physical art…. I heard you're from the middle of nowhere, but shouldn't you at least know that much? I might start regretting taking you on as a pupil..."

"You're the one that offered to be my master... but how are physical arts different from magical arts?"

"The most obvious difference is how individuals don't have to use chants for them. Additionally, it relies on your stamina in addition to your mana, whereas magic only drains mana. Come on, let's go into a private room and begin training." said Caladan as he got up.

I stood up and followed him as we walked down the spectator areas towards the private rooms in the back. As we walked, we got closer to Anne and Lucifer who were still talking. Anne finally noticed us and gave me a wave.

"What's up Arden! Wait… how long have you been here?"

"Uh…. I guess I've been here for a good while."

"So... the duel… you saw it?"

"I did, both of you were really incredible."

"Well… it wasn't anything too crazy…" said Anne with a slight blush.

"So this is Master Caladan's new pupil," said Lucifer. "I've heard about you from Anne, nice to meet you. My name is Lucifer," he said as he held out his hand.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Arden."

As I shook his hand, I noticed it was still a bit warm from the previous battle. Caladan already walked ahead and was waiting for me to follow so I quickly wrapped up our greetings and started walking towards Caladan. When we shook hands, the sleeve of Lucifer's shirt moved a bit and I noticed some marking near his shoulder. As I walked by him, I got a better glance and confirmed my suspicions. He seemed to notice my gaze and adjusted his sleeve, but I had already seen enough. How can I not recognize it, the imagery was burned onto me just this morning. Lucifer was part of Ouroboros.