Duel(4)

Vladimir was the one who acted first. Holding his greatsword, he started to run at high speed. Edward was watching him coming closer, but he remained motionless. The silver-haired youth was surprised that his opponent didn't even bother to take a defensive stance, but he shook his head clearing his thoughts. When he reached close enough to Edward, instead of attacking him, Vladimir did something unexpected. He let his body fall on the ground and slide towards Edward with his legs extended while aiming the blade of his greatsword at his opponent's body.

'He made use of the fact that the ground is slippery from the rain. Because I wear heavy armor, I can't be as agile as him, so he decided to attack from below' the middle-aged man analyzed quickly as he jumped backward. Vladimir didn't let the chance pass him by. He immediately stood up on his feet and assaulted Edward who was still in the air. The knight knew that his body was in a position that he couldn't defend. Vladimir was about to cut him down, but when his greatsword penetrated the middle-aged man's armor and touched his skin, the silver-haired youth felt as if he had hit a sturdy wall.

'Not good' Vladimir thought as he tried to move his weapon, but before he had the chance, Edward grabbed his arm, lifted him from the ground and threw him over the shoulder.

* * * * *

'Vladimir was careless' John thought as he watched his brother trying to stand up. Edward also didn't seem to have the intention to continue attacking. He was just waiting for the youth to stand up on his feet.

"Your brother seems to be struggling," Maria said to John with a smile.

"This is natural. His opponent is the 'Iron General' after all" John replied with his usual lazy expression on his face.

"But you don't seem to be worried"

"Honestly, I think that I had overestimated Baron Thundergod"

"You had overestimated him?" Maria asked surprised. She couldn't understand why the youth would say that.

"Well, even father wouldn't dare to fight against Vladimir without a weapon. Don't tell me that Baron Thundergod is stronger than the S ranked adventurer Antony when it comes to hand to hand combat?"

Maria's eyes became wide when she heard his statement. Without a second thought, she turned her attention again to the fight.

* * * * *

Vladimir looked carefully at Edward before opening hesitantly his mouth.

"May I ask you what was this power that you used?"

"Haven't you seen battle energy before? Truly, a frog in a well" Edward sneered.

'Battle energy? I see..... It feels similar to magic. That means that if my magic is stronger than the energy that protects his body, I can injure him' the youth thought. His eyes started to become transparent, but because of the rain, no one could notice it expect of Maria and John who could sense the manipulation of mana.

"Water magic? This is convenient with this weather" the girl murmured.

"Things will start to become interesting from now on," John said suddenly. Maria didn't miss the small smile that formed on his face.

"You seem to be confident, but I don't understand why. Even if your brother uses magic, Baron Thundergod can just attack him and disrupt his concentration. Knights hold the absolute advantage over magicians in single combats" Maria stated this as a matter of fact although she was a magician too.

"Just watch the fight. Vladimir may be reckless, crazy and without common sense, but he is by no means weak". As he said that, the silver-haired youth coincidentally started to run again. This time, he didn't use any tricks. Holding his greatsword, he just tried to slash Edward. The knight intended to remain motionless, but feeling that something was wrong he decided to avoid the strike. He made a jump on the ground, wriggling below the greatsword and arriving in front of the silver-haired youth. He was ready to counterattack, but a sharp pain in his back delayed his actions, giving Vladimir the time to react. Seeing his opponent lifting his right leg, the middle-aged man raised his hands to block the kick that was coming to his face, but a bright light forced him to close his eyes, leaving him helpless to the youth's attack. Three hundred knights watched dumbfounded their commander falling on the ground because of a boy much younger than him.

Vladimir didn't continue attacking. Like Edward did for him, he waited for the knight to get up.

* * * *

"What the hell! Martial Arts and Magic at the same time! He has even unlocked two elements!" Maria couldn't help but shout. The shock that she felt couldn't be concealed and she wasn't the only one among the spectators.

"Captain is injured!"

"Who the hell is this guy? How can he use martial arts and magic at the same time? I thought that only the Elite Squad was capable of this feat in our Empire"

"Did you notice the first time he attacked Captain Thundergod? He created frost around his greatsword so that he could hit Captain! God! He has unlocked two elements and he isn't even twenty yet!"

The voices of the knights who were talking were loud enough to be heard by everyone in the area.

* * * *

A few meters away from John and Maria, was standing the Imperial Princess, together with Father Jonas and Sophie.

"Teacher, why you didn't tell me that our Empire has such a talented individual. I would have stopped the duel no matter what!" The princess sighed dejectedly. The situation had proceeded to the point that she couldn't interfere.

"Because I didn't know, Your Highness" the old priest answered with a wry smile while he was cursing silently Antony who hadn't told him anything.

"I can't let him die. His potential is too big to let him die in a pointless duel. Sophie, do you have any idea?" Adriana asked her best friend with a ray of hope in her eyes. Seeing her face full of expectation, the female knight was speechless.

'If even you who are the princess can't do anything, what makes you think that I can? Do you think that I am a god? Two hours ago, I didn't even know what I was supposed to do and I decided to give up trying to... Wait, that's a good idea'.

"I think that Baron Thundergod is a rational person. Seeing the potential of the youth in front of him, he will probably show mercy for the benefit of the Empire. It would be better for us to act only if Baron Thundergod tries to give the final hit" Sophie replied quickly. The fact that the two of them didn't even think that Vladimir could win even though he injured the hero of the North, was evidence of how strong Edward truly was.

"Let's do that. I trust Baron Thundergod and his love for the Empire" the princess said after some thought. Upon hearing this, the ice-cold beauty clenched her fist triumphantly without anyone noticing.

* * * * *

Edward got up slowly while his face had an unreadable expression. He looked deeply at the silver-haired youth before opening his mouth.

"I made the biggest crime that a warrior can do on a battlefield. I underestimated my opponent, not only once, but twice. In other words, you spared me twice. The first time was when you didn't use magic at the beginning of the duel and the second was when you didn't go for the kill" the knight said slowly. At the same time, he finally unsheathed his sword.

Vladimir could feel that the aura radiated by Edward had changed drastically. He could see the killing intent in his eyes.

'So, this is the hero of the North... I am doomed! The previous him was a joke compared to him now' Vladimir thought. He gritted his teeth and held tightly the hilt of his greatsword.

'Let's go all out' he murmured and stepped forward.....