Chapter 22

I look at her for a few seconds, thinking about which character she is because I feel that I know her. She is one of the 108 Stars of Destiny, but I don't know what kind of character she is. I shake my head and say.

"I don't mind."

I look at my companion, who allows space between me and my opponent. I nod and take out my sword, Odenta.

"My name is Gerrald. Let's have a match."

I look at Nikea and nod. She nods in understanding and stands in between the two of us.

"Non-killing strike only! The first one to go down will be the loser! Are the two of you ready?"

Hazuki and I nod our heads.

"Start!"

The two of us dash forward and swing our swords. The sound of steel clashing against steel can be heard by the people around us, and I can already see people start to walk toward us to watch the fight.

The first hit let me know that she was strong, as her swing was as heavy as mine. It's not as heavy as Nikea, but it's almost there.

I try to twist my weapon to make her lose her balance, but she quickly gets ready and pushes me away before thrusting her sword at me. I block all her thrusting attacks and even do my counter-attack with a spin sword to do a reverse grip and swing it upward.

However, instead of knowing her sword, I hit the sheath that she used to block my attack.

"Oh? Using your sheath, huh?"

"Will that be a problem?"

"No!"

I quickly dash forward after saying that and thrust my sword at her. I release a flurry of attacks and watch her blocking every single one of them. I smirk a little and throw my sword at her. She widens her eyes and blocks my attack, but as she blocks it, I already appear in front of her and throw a flurry of punches.

I managed to land a good hit on her face, shoulder, and stomach before finishing it with a good kick to her chest. I take my sword on the ground and see her wincing in pain.

"You are a martial artist, huh?"

"You can say that. I did not focus on my style if it was what you wanted to know."

Hazuki nods, closes her eyes, and takes a breath. When she opened her eyes, a cold wind flew past me. Oh! This is getting intense!

I smirk and take a defensive stance. I let her come to me.

Dodge. Block. Rolling. Counter Attack. Thrust. Swing.

We continue to fight for who knows how long. She deserves her title as a sword master. Chrodechild is a swordmaster, but Hazuki can keep up with me even with the power of [Martial Talent] that keeps me improving the longer we fight.

However, it will change soon.

With my [Martial Talent] feeding me information about her fighting style and even her habit in a fight, I formed a plan.

I swing my sword upwards and kick her stomach to throw her away. I take a deep breath and dash once again. I release another flurry of thrusting attacks and see her blocking all of my attacks. I smile when she makes a counter-attack from the left side because it confirms my theory, and now I need to do my plan.

I continue to go all out and see her take a defensive stance. I make sure to always attack on her right side and leave my left side full of openings. When I slow down, she takes the bait, twists her sword, and swings from my left side.

I smile and throw my sword in the air, then thrust my fist on her wrist and make her lose her sword. I take her arms, move my body to twist her arms behind her body, and push her to the ground.

I caught my sword and put it next to her neck.

I release a tired sigh and say.

"I win."

Instead of being upset, she smiles a little and says,

"Yeah, it is my defeat."

I smile at her and get off of her. I help her get up and see her get back her sword.

"It looks like I still need to train."

"You are good, you know? If you decide to get serious from the start, I will lose the fight."

Hazuki looks at me for a few seconds and says,

"You are right. It looks like I'm still arrogant enough not to get serious from the beginning, even when I'm the one asking for a spar. May I know where you are from?"

"Me? I'm from the Eastern Continent."

"Ah, I see. But I thought that place is famous for its magic?"

"Let's just say that I'm an odd person."

I smile at her and continue.

"So! What are you going to do from now on?"

Her stomach starts to rumble before she can even talk, and she looks away in embarrassment. I smile at her and say.

"What about we go to the local restaurant? I hear they sell some of the best fried chicken in this part of the queendom."

"Um, yeah. I think I like that."

The two of us walk to the rest of my companion, but when she sees Gavaya, she points her finger and shouts.

"You! Why are you here?!"

Instead of looking surprised, Gavaya grins and says.

"Heh. The once more defeated princess is as loud as ever."

"Shut up, you pervert!"

I decided to separate the two of them before it escalated. I step between the two of them and say.

"Gavaya, you know her?"

"Yup! I once worked with her father to guard her, but that little princess fired me because she did not like my way of searching for a wife."

"Because your way of searching for a wife is to ask them to be your wife directly into their face! Not only that, he keeps bothering them to the point one of my servants decides to quit and leave the city to get away from him."

I look at Gavaya, who looks away in embarrassment and releases a sigh. I look at Hazuki and say,

"I'm sorry for his past behavior. However, I already take care of it, and he is improving."

"How can a man like him improve?"

"Well, you might be surprised that he got himself a girlfriend."

"What?!"

Gavaya gives Hazuki a smug expression and says,

"That's right! She might not be ready to be my wife, but I will make her the happiest woman in the world and take her as my wife someday."

She looks at Gavaya as if she found an alien instead of a human before looking back at me.

"How? How can you change him this much?"

"Nothing, really. I just showed him that his way of asking someone to be his wife is not the right way to do it. So basically, I just teach him common sense."

She looks at me for a few seconds before saying.

"Take me with you."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I want to come with you. I want to ensure that man is changed and not embarrassing my hometown."

"I don't mind, but I also need a favor."

I take out my stamp and show it to her.

"I need to stamp you first."