Dignity - 2

Despite the derisive statement from Carter, only Norman looked slightly uncomfortable at the clear disrespect towards the prince. Neither Beren nor Clifford batted an eye.

"So, you accept?" Called Carter.

"Select your weapon." Repeated William.

Ehem!

Damon's cough interrupted their exchange.

The men in the training field turned towards Damon and saw him produce a small golden bell from his trouser pocket and ring it.

A few seconds later, Alan shimmered into view.

"To my knowledge, Alan, insulting a Prince can be classed as an affront to the royal family and is punishable by death. Is that not so?" asked Damon.

"You are correct, young master." Said Alan.

"Good. Seeing as William is eager to fight for my honor, I will add a simple caveat – this fight is a trial by combat. By rule of the Kingdom, should Carter lose, he will also lose his life. Should he win, I will overlook this incident."

It was strange coming from a five-year-old, and though Carter and Norman grew worried, both Beren and Clifford remained calm.

Beren whispered something to Carter and Norman, and although Carter visibly relaxed, Norman still looked uncomfortable.

Clearly, they were aware of this law, but in a situation like this where they held the majority in terms of witnesses, it would be impossible for Damon to enforce anything. If anything, this was to their benefit, as it allowed for the duel.

Still, it was better to avoid such an issue.

"A thousand apologies your highness. Young master Carter is young and passionate, for the future of the Kingdom, please consider overlooking this slight." Said Clifford, bowing towards Damon.

Damon ignored Clifford and addressed Alan again.

"Alan, to my knowledge, defense of one who has lighted the Royal name falls under the same severity of crime, does it not?" Asked Damon.

"You are correct your majesty, though such a law is difficult to enforce as 'defense' can be loosely interpreted," Said Alan.

Damon nodded.

"I hope that Carter is truly a rising star, as both of your lives now lie in his hands." Said Damon.

This drew a cold stare from Clifford, but Beren interrupted.

"My apologies, your highness. We will proceed as you have suggested." He said.

Clearly, he wanted to get on with the Duel, paying no mind to Damon's threat. Damon smiled internally at how flippant they were acting. It seemed that Beren had gotten too used to flouting the law with the first Queen's influence.

"Carter, select your weapons and join William on the dueling field." Said Beren.

Carter approached one of the many weapon racks, picking a normal sword and shield. He tested their weights and balance with a few maneuvers and then made his way to the dueling platform where William stood waiting for him.

The plan that these men had hatched was honestly quite solid, but they failed to take one thing into account – William's physical stats and natural battle sense.

Norman had tutored William for almost five years now, and in all that time, William had refused any duels. To Norman, he has aware of William's physical level and technical skills, but he was sure that someone of a similar level would be able to beat him just based on the difference of battle experience.

That would indeed be the case, except Damon knew that William was blessed by a natural sense that went beyond common sense. Not only that, at Ariel's instruction, William kept his physical level in check, so Norman's assessment of his physical stats did not match what they truly were.

Norman walked up to the side of the platform and raised an arm.

"I will assess the Duel. Protection is cast on the platform, so you can use your weapons at will – the edges will remain blunted." Said Norman.

Both Carter and William nodded.

"We shall go by classic rules – three rounds of combat with each round lasting five minutes. Leaving the ring counts as a loss for the round. Suffering a would-be fatal blow counts as a loss for the round. Being knocked out or injured beyond recovery counts as a loss of the Duel." Said Norman

Both Carter and William nodded again.

"Good, you may begin round one." Said Norman, activating a small metal stopwatch.

Carter strode towards William, the confidence he held was evident in his stance. He used what looked like a variation of the Northern Royal stance, which was centered around broad, powerful strikes.

His shield was at mid-guard position, there to counter the odd attack that a less skilled opponent might luck in on. It was a stance primarily used when you were confident in your armor and facing an opponent you could overpower. That, or when facing a much less skilled opponent.

It seemed to Carter, that as a child of noble heritage and a squire of the Royal Guard, he had better training and was much more skilled than William.

Moreover, as someone who had access to Aura technique manuals, he assumed that he could exert more strength than William, despite the boy's larger build and potentially higher stats.

He was wrong on both counts of course, but his confidence amused Damon.

William, on the other hand, used a Southern Royal stance, which was more suited to defending and counterattacking.

Carter was the first to engage. He approached with his shield towards William's great sword, using aura to propel himself forward and get in close to counter William's reach.

Damon could see that he was using an aura technique to strengthen himself. This gave him a slight advantage in the first few exchanges as the two tested each other with the opening exchanges.

Sensing an upper-hand as William was being pushed back, Carter rushed forward, bringing his sword down in a heavy strike, aimed at William's shoulder. 

William stepped towards the strike, pulling his shield across his body to catch the blow, then leaning into it. 

Thump!

Rather than metallic ringing, the protection spell meant that there was a dull sound as Carter's sword struck William's shield.

Carter stumbled backwards slightly, pushed back by the unexpected force of William's block. A slight panic flitted across his face as his broken stance left him open to attack.

Beren frowned at this opening but relaxed again with mutters of "inexperience" as William sunk back into his defensive stance, not taking advantage of the opening.

Carter advanced again, and Damon saw the panic giving way to derision as he assumed William had been lucky in his block.

In Carter's in his mind, William was obviously inexperienced to have failed to take advantage of the opening.

To be on the safe side as he sounded William out more, Carter took a more conservative Central Royal stance, which had better balance between attacking and defending.

The spar continued for another few rounds of exchanges. It was mostly comprised of Carter attacking and William guarding well.

William did not break Carter's stance again, but he defended himself without giving ground. 

Beren and Norman nodded in appreciation at William's display of skill in actual combat. He was rough around the edges, sometimes giving up ideal chances to push forward, other times over-committing to blocks and almost losing his footing.

To those observing, it was clear that William was holding on through his natural reflexes, balancing himself and recovering quite well to avoid any openings.

It was also clear, however, that he was not great at causing opening's himself, and he seldom took advantage of opportunities to launch counterattacks.

As the spar went on, Carter's irritation increased, and he slipped back into a Northern Royal stance. He launched a barrage of blows which managed to push William back.

Carter gathered himself and activated another aura technique. The air around his body roiled as he exploded with energy.

Damon saw William shift his feet, bracing his weight.

The strike from Carter came swift and strong with almost all of his weight behind it.

THUMP!

William narrowed his eyes and stepped into the blow, bracing as he slapped the sword aside with his shield.

Carter stumbled to the left, forced to the side by the momentum of the block. 

William followed up with a sword strike aimed at Carters leg, forcing Carter to bring his shield down at an awkward angle to try and catch the blow.

"A fool" thought Damon.

Unfortunately for Carter, it was a feint.

With astonishing speed and agility, William pulled the blow up, then stepped through and brought his sword down again in a swift motion, striking Carter's exposed forearm.

CRUNCH!

There was a sickening crunch as Carter's arm broke on impact and the shield dangled, useless on the limp arm.

"Bastard!" A wave of pain covered Carter's face as he shouted out loud. 

"Carter!" exclaimed Beren, surprise painting his fate at William's turnaround of the situation.

Norman gaped at the display, shocked at William's agility.

Giving Carter no time to recover, William pivoted, bringing his blade down as he turned.

"Parry!" called out Beren.

"Don't even think about it." Roared Carter as he scrambled to adjust his stance, raising his blade to parry the incoming attack. His Aura came alive again, as he used an aura technique to fortify his stance.

William angled his sword as he swung it down, narrowly missing Carters sword. He then pushed upwards, bring the sword sharply up again, this time onto the hilt of Carter's sword. 

It was a deft maneuver that was difficult to pull off, but with William's strength and agility, and Carter being off balance and in pain, it was successful.

The power behind the blow forced Carter's hand open, and his sword went flying as his arm was jerked upward.

William then stepped forward, driving a powerful front kick into Carter's now exposed chest, sending him clattering backwards, flung out of the bounds of the dueling platform.

The silence on the training field was only disturbed by Carter's low, guttural moaning.