Self Taught

"Don't be a child, Big Brother. I know what kind of a person Samuel is. There is no need for a duel like this." Sarah panicked. She was confused about the strength of both the people who were standing in front of her. Samuel was strong, But he had not even used his weapon against Maverick which made it harder to discern how strong he was. Her brother on the other hand was Easily one of the top 10 experts in the kingdom. She could not risk Samuel getting injured at a crucial time like this.

"Do you have any problems with the duel, Samuel?" Brian asked Samuel honestly. He was willing to give up on the idea of having the duel if Samuel said 'yes'. But he wanted to know what kind of a person Samuel was.

"No." Samuel answered.

"OK, then where do you want to fight?"

"I think right here and right now, just to save some time."

Brian was surprised by the calmness Samuel showed during this conversation. But he was able to Identify the anger that he wanted to release before. That rage was terrifying.

"Rules are simple. there will be 5 rounds in which the person who is able to strike at a vital point of the opponent before the opponent can do the same wins a round. The first person to win three rounds wins. However, you cannot strike below a person's hip. Also, your sword should not injure the body of your opponent."

Sarah took a sigh of relief. She was no longer concerned about the outcome of the match. She was happy to hear that Samuel won't be injured. As for the condition set up by his brother, he can be easily persuaded to take it back by his beloved sister.

"Let's get started then."

Samuel took out his Holy Failure sword from his backpack and got ready in his stance.

"Sarah, will you be the judge for this duel?" Brian took out his wooden sword which he carried around for safety.

"Sure." She said.

"Are the both of you ready?"

"Ready." Both of them said simultaneously.

"Duel Start!"

Samuel changed his stance and got ready to take the impact of Brian's sword. At the same time, Brian charged at Samuel with the sword aimed at Samuel's throat.

Samuel successfully parried the first attack, but then the second attack was executed with the difference in time between the two attacks being less then a split second. Brian changed the direction of his sword to Samuel's stomach.

"First round to Samuel. Score, one-nil" Sarah said.

"How?" Brian asked. Then he saw it.

While Brian was attacking, Samuel had used slash, and his attack was aimed towards Brian's

Heart. It was the most precise move Sarah had ever seen. It was faster, and more elegant than Brian's strike.

Next round:

This time, Brian chose to be on the defensive. He was standing away from Samuel, And solely focused on defense.

But this was the biggest mistake he could have made. Samuel was not an amateur. He was faster than Brian, And was able to read how he would defend next. After blocking 3 chops, Brian tried to go on the offensive, But that was the time when Samuel played his trick. He used caught the blade of his sword, and attacked Brian's arm. When Brian saw this, he was enraged. He thought that Samuel was getting too cocky, so he continued his thrust towards Samuel's Lungs, but at that moment, Samuel flipped the sword in his hands and caught the hilt, all while dodging the hit Brian attempted.

Because Brian had his guard down due to the attack he attempted on Samuel, Samuel used his blade to attack towards the back of his head. It was a successful move.

"Second round to Samuel, Score two-nil."

After losing all the rounds after that, he was exhausted.

"I give up. I am no match for your techniques. Where did you learn them? Who taught you?" Brian asked. Honestly, he was impressed by the talent that Samuel showed.

"Self Taught." Samuel answered.