Duel With Rejected Lukas

With Ishma's fake romantic remark, many of the guys among us clicked their tongues. Just say you're jealous. Okay, let me add some fuel to the fire.

With a fake smile, I said, "Of course, I'll do my best, darling."

'This is so cringe!' I thought with disgust.

Ishma's expression showed a slight hint of surprise. Though it was subtle, I could see it. I then took off my jacket and handed it to Ishma.

With a soft, fake smile, I said, "Hold this for me."

After that, I walked towards the duel area. Of course, I intended to win this. But since I was tired and my Arkium hadn't recovered, I wasn't sure if I would. After all, Lukas was ranked 9th. It's not easy if we just compare stats.

'I can only balance this with my combat experience,' I thought.

I was now in the duel area.

"Student Edward Kazan Vallois?" Alzor asked.

"Yes, professor." My gaze was empty as I answered Alzor.

"You're not carrying your weapon?" Alzor asked.

"Is the use of special skills allowed?" I asked back.

Alzor looked at Balzaq, who had his arms crossed over his chest. Meanwhile, Balzaq glanced at Lukas, who had proposed the duel.

"Of course, that's allowed!" Balzaq replied firmly.

After some agreements, Lukas and I stood facing each other closely. It was like a martial arts greeting, bowing to each other and then standing apart. This suggestion was made by Balzaq, the martial arts maniac. Knowing I wasn't using a weapon seemed to excite him a little.

I bowed as a greeting, and Lukas did the same. We did it simultaneously, and after that, we stood straight.

"Stay away from Miss Bahraeel, Edward. You're just trash with bad manners at the academy. You're also weak. You don't deserve to stand beside her." He said with a sneer and a mocking tone.

The Arogant Aristocrat Trait was active at this moment. However, I held it back for a moment. I remained silent, just as I did when Lenos said something similar in the main cafeteria. Because it's a fact. But it wasn't me who did those things. It was all Edward's doing.

But unlike in the cafeteria when Ishma defended me, I was now standing in the duel area. In the cafeteria, I had to keep my composure because it was a public place in the academy. But now it was a duel with only me and Lukas. And this duel was approved by the professor. So, why should I let myself be looked down upon? After all, I'm not the old Edward; I'm Dark Saber Edward now.

My gaze became empty. Then, the Arogant Aristocrat Trait I had been holding back, I released and maximized with Arkium. I could see Lukas flinch a bit, and his eyes widened.

"Well, that's true. But who do you think you are to decide what I want? And who are you to Ishma to determine who is worthy of her? Oh, I know, you're the guy she rejected. How pitiful." I let Arogant Aristocrat guide my words while slightly controlling it.

And also, the height factor was quite influential. Lukas's height was about the same as Lenos, so I could look down on him. Honestly, it was a strange yet satisfying feeling.

Lukas's expression grew more annoyed.

"You—"

"Enough! Take your positions!" Lukas's words were cut off by Alzor.

Lukas clicked his tongue and turned his back on me. Then he walked to his place. However, I didn't move. I stayed in place and looked at Alzor. Alzor seemed about to say something, opening his mouth slightly, but I cut him off.

"Is this skill of mine allowed?" I asked while extending my right hand.

"What skill?" Alzor asked, confused since I was just extending my right hand.

But then, my skin was quickly covered as if by a protective layer of cloth, and a gauntlet made of training iron material appeared. Quantumorph Artisan was activated. I deliberately made the protective layer first to hide my blackened skin.

"Weapon summoning skill." I replied.

Weapon summoning skill? Of course, I was lying. Quantumorph Artisan was more like weapon and item crafting. But I couldn't reveal that just yet, could I? And as for weapon summoning skills? They existed, but only a few people used them. Besides, there were other ways, like using storage rings or storage bracelets to summon weapons.

Alzor wasn't too impressed with what I showed, but he soon approached my gauntlet and tapped on it. And as for Balzaq, he also approached. Of course, as a martial arts maniac, he loved gauntlets.

"Hmmm. Nice design. Ahem. This is made from the same iron material as the training weapons here. So, okay." Alzor said, straightening up.

As for Balzaq, he nodded with satisfaction after examining my gauntlet.

"Hm Hm! A good weapon, human!" Balzaq exclaimed, arms crossed over his chest.

"So, stand in your place." Alzor said.

I nodded and walked to the opposite direction of Lukas. After stopping, I stood still and stared at Lukas. His expression was still annoyed. Indeed, a fiery personality is somewhat troublesome.

'I guess my Arkium is about 50 percent recovered, right?'

(Your Arkium is about 48 percent recovered.)

'I guess that's enough to keep me balanced.'

- - -

[Lukas Ziegler]

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Age: 16

Familiarity: Not close~hostility

Affiliation: Heroes Department of Sveitmann Academy, Zeigler House, ???, ???

Kekuatan: 56

Pertahanan: 56

Stamina: 68

Agility: 54

Mana: 52

General Stats Assessment: 57.2 (Champion)

Traits: Sword Wielder, Knight Attitude, Half Hot Headed, Fire Spirit Blessing, ???, ???

Note: Increase familiarity to learn more detailed stats.

- - -

'Another blessing? It seems the top ten have blessings? And Half Hot Headed? What? He's hot-headed but also not? It seems this trait is contradictory to Knightly Attitude.'

Ignoring Lukas's traits, it's better to focus on myself. Knowing his strength level is enough.

My expression became flat, and my gaze became empty. My body turned to the left, taking a martial arts stance, then closing my eyes with my right hand in a gripping gesture in front.

"The duel will begin, mana usage is allowed. Student Edward and student Lukas, get ready." Alzor said loudly.

Hearing this, Lukas assumed a sword stance. He looked like a knight. His gaze was serious, and a calm flame aura emerged from his body.

As for me? Well, no dramatic display like that. Arkium didn't manifest visually impressive effects. But when I exerted Arkium to the maximum using the Gallean Stance, the ground around me trembled.

I slowly opened my eyes. My gaze was empty again, and my face expressionless.

I could see Alzor, standing between us, raise his hand, then disappear from sight. His voice then echoed with a clap.

"Begin!"

Lukas in front of me didn't waste time. He immediately charged at me at high speed. Meanwhile, I just stood in my stance, focusing on Lukas's movements.

"Feel this!" Lukas shouted.

Lukas lunged at me, slashing his sword from my open left side. I had no intention of dodging. I quickly placed my right hand to block the slash.

When Lukas's sword struck my gauntlet, it felt heavy. But compared to Ishma's attack, which had higher strength stats, Lukas's attack was nothing. Only because I was exhausted did it feel stronger than Ishma's.

"What?" Lukas said, eyes wide open.

He seemed surprised that trash like me could block him.

I focused my Arkium around my legs so I wouldn't be thrown back when blocking Lukas's sword strike. Quickly, I swung my right hand, which had blocked Lukas's sword, forcefully, causing Lukas to step back a few steps.

Then, in that momentum, I slightly advanced while spinning my body to the right and delivered a back kick aimed at his chest. I also used Quantumorph Artisan quickly on my leg to create some sort of foot protection and iron shoes. Just in case my foot hit Lukas's sword blade. Although it was a blunt training sword, still, in a real fight, your foot would get injured.

In that brief moment, Lukas managed to realize my attack and blocked my kick with his sword. The sound of metal clashing resounded loudly, indicating the strength of my kick. This time, Lukas was thrown far back.

Not waiting for Lukas to land on the ground, I once again used Mach Momentum Dash with more Arkium, making my speed faster than before. In an instant, I was in front of Lukas, who was still in the air.

I launched a flurry of punches while in the air. Lukas could block all my attacks, sometimes getting hit once or twice. My attacks continued until Lukas managed to land on the ground. At that moment, I immediately swung my right hand down like a sword.

But again, Lukas managed to block it with his sword, using both hands. The shockwave effect of the attack caused a strong gust of wind.

Lukas, who blocked my attack, flung my right hand away, making my body bounce in the air again. Not wasting the opportunity while I was still in the air, Lukas thrust his sword upward, targeting my head. I could have blocked it with my hand, but, I used Short-Range Telekinesis on myself to make it easier to dodge.

Once I managed to dodge a bit, I grabbed the blade of his sword and pulled it upward, intending to disarm Lukas.

"Take my sword? I won't let it happen!" Lukas said, annoyed.

Unexpectedly, Lukas's grip was strong enough that his body was also lifted into the air. At that moment, I used Short-Range Telekinesis on myself, bending my body downward and kicking Lukas hard in the stomach. He took my blow without being able to block it with his hands. He was thrown quite far. After a few moments, he managed to land on the ground, holding his stomach.

His expression was bitter and shocked when he landed.

An opportunity. I immediately advanced at full speed using Mach Momentum Dash. With the help of Air Step, I didn't need to wait to land and used the air as a stepping stone to accelerate. In an instant, I was in front of Lukas, delivering a punch to his neck. But again, the sound of clashing metal was heard. Lukas managed to block it again. He also managed not to be thrown and only slid slightly backward.

With an annoyed expression, Lukas pushed my punch away forcefully, causing me to jump back. He then thrust his sword at my chest. My left hand, ready to block, caught Lukas's sword blade stronger than before. His strength pushed me, who was still in the air.

When I landed, I stomped my foot and used Arkium Shock Wave. The ground trembled, and a transparent wave swept over Lukas. I intended to loosen his grip on his sword with the shockwave.

The next move was Arkium Shock. I punched Lukas in the stomach, intending to hurl him backward and make him release his grip on his sword. But contrary to my expectation, he avoided my punch by jumping back. Strangely, my strong grip on his sword blade slipped. Lukas pulled his sword out of my grip while jumping back.

'That strong grip again. Is it just a strong grip, or is it the Sword Wielder Trait?' I thought.

My punch struck empty air, causing a strong gust of wind. Taking advantage of that, Lukas advanced again quickly, and his sword attacked me repeatedly with strong flows. Each slash unleashed powerful strength. The situation had reversed.

'This is some sort of sword technique,' I thought while dodging all his attacks and blocking one or two strikes. I was pushed back.

I couldn't keep blocking because my Arkium hadn't fully recovered. And also, physical and mental exhaustion from taking care of Yolina worsened it. However...

'It's fun to be cornered.' I smiled without realizing it.