Showdown

"To make things interesting, for today's competition, we will be aiming for the apple on the slave's head."

Mikel's voice boomed and the man teleported from one end of the courtyard to the other end in an instant.

Sylvia looked up in dread. This man… He was going to use me as a live target dummy?

Her eyes reddened and gradually turned frosty. Her lips trembled but they as well calmed down.

The woman clenched her fist tightly until her knuckles turned white.

Sylvia looked up and stared at the two men in the distance. They seemed to be pleasantly joking and chatting.

One of them pointed towards her and suddenly thick wines started sprouting from the wall behind her.

The wines tightened around her and held Sylvia firmly in place.

They closely imprisoned her against the wall and extended all the way up to her neck.

Sylvia couldn't even turn her head slightly.

If an arrow was to misfire and come close to her head instead of the apple on her head, she wouldn't even be able to move an inch to save herself.

At this moment, the young woman simply bent her head down.

Her silver locks covered her face and no one could see what she was thinking.

At the other end of the courtyard…

"Aha Ha Ha Ha. Brother, what joke is this?"

"Don't you dare damage my girl!!!" Nicolas patted his back and chuckled.

Mikel smiled casually and picked up a dark red bow from the ground.

It was not really anything special, just a simple wooden bow with a metallic string.

It was a piece of common equipment that most trainees used for practicing archery.

"You are not using your black thunder?" Nicolas curiously rubbed his chin.

Black thunder was Mikel's famed personal bow which he used exclusively used for hunting and combat training.

"Feeling cocky, are we?" Nicolas nudged and teased his brother.

Mikel, however, only shook his head without any answer. A charming smile hung on his lips.

He stretched his limbs and then nonchalantly placed an arrow across the middle of his bow, a wooden arrow with a metallic head.

He then pulled back the bowstring and the arrow in one quick swift motion, releasing them in a second.

Peng!

The first arrow zoomed past them and headed straight for Sylvia.

It cut through the air with an impressive speed and within a fraction of a second, it reached its target.

Bang!

The arrow hit the apple on her head with pin-point accuracy and the fruit cracked into two halves, right down the middle.

"Tch. Tch. Why are you this good?" Nicolas sulked and rubbed his temples.

He then flicked his finger and replaced the apple on Sylvia's head with another apple from a basket nearby using elementary wind magic.

Mikel, however, did not need to wait around to see the results.

He already knew that the arrow would meet its target as required.

So he promptly loaded the next arrow onto the bow and pulled back once again.

The man exuded confidence from top to bottom, which added elegance and allure to his broad frame.

His muscles visibly strained under his loose dress shirt, the top two buttons undone, revealing his chiseled chest.

A bead of sweat dripped down his neck as another arrow whooshed past them.

Bang!

And once again, the arrow hit its target accurately, splitting the innocent apple into two perfect halves.

"It's my turn now." Nicolas loudly exclaimed, rubbing his hands together.

Mikel chuckled lightly and took a step back, giving Nicolas enough space to maneuver.

Unlike him, Nicolas took out an extravagant golden bow with exquisite engravings on it and special arrows tailor-made for the bow.

The bowstring also seemed very unique, made from the guts of a magical beast.

"I am going all out here brother. You better rethink your decision to not use black thunder."

Nicolas chuckled.

He, as well, was no lesser than Mikel and his figure sparkled with a charm as the arrow was elegantly released.

Bang!

The apple on the slave's head was once again split into two.

"He He. Did you see that? Brother, have you forgotten? I am adept at archery as well!"

"Let me quickly jog your memory."

Nicolas grinned like a mischievous child and sent another two arrows in a row, both hitting the apple simultaneously, even though they were shot one after the other.

Mikel casually applauded his brother's skills and smiled, one end of his lips pulling higher, revealing a subtle smirk.

"Hmmm… This is far too easy and far too boring. We should take this up a notch. What do you think?"

"Bring it on. I am just getting warmed up!!!" Nicolas gave him a thumbs up.

The man had almost forgotten the bet and was having more fun showing off his game.

Mikel smirked and mumbled some words under his breath.

Instantly a dozen small wind tornadoes surfaced near them.

The sheer force of the wind whipped their hair into an unruly mess and almost affected even their grounding.

"How about this?" Mikel looked at his brother challengingly.

"Now, this is what I am talking about!" Nicolas grinned.