The duel

-Hey, you painted peacock! - Ben shouted, attracting the attention of the blond nobleman.

Sensing trouble, Louise quickly ran up to Ben and tugged on his sleeve: - What are you doing? Apologize immediately! - Louise was panicking because Ben had just insulted Guiche, the son of Count Gramont. She wasn't sure if she could provide protection for Ben, so she tried to get rid of the conflict before it escalated into something more.

Seeing the girl's concern, Ben smiled and put his hand on Louise's head, slightly ruffling her hairstyle: - Don't worry, I know what I'm doing.

It really was like that. During the time that he and Louise were sitting at the table, Ben carefully looked around. Although it didn't look like anything special from the outside, Ben actually applied legilimency to students in order to quickly assess the surrounding situation.

Based on the superficial thoughts and memories of some students, he came to the conclusion that Louise belonged to an influential family, since for all her mediocrity, she was still listed as a student at the academy. Which means Ben could also enjoy some privileges as her familiar. Ben was sure that until he killed Guiche or seriously injured him, no serious punishment would be applied to him. That was the reason he was acting so boldly now.

-How dare you!? I am the son of Count Gramont, General of Tristain's army! Someone like you should bow your head as soon as they notice me!

- Meanwhile, Guiche was furious, outraged by Ben's insolence. Since childhood, everyone treated him with respect and was afraid to do something wrong in his presence. However, the man in front of him not only behaved frivolously, but also insulted him.

-The general's son... How scary... Do you know how to do something else, or are you only able to hide behind your father? - Ben was indifferent to Guiche's bravado and showed it with his whole appearance. In his short life, he had seen many pure-blooded wizards who could only boast of their family's power. In fact, they were nothing of themselves.

Ben's words touched the young nobleman's pride. From the outside, it began to seem that Guiche was about to explode. However, he soon pulled himself together.

-I have no desire to talk to a barbarian like you. Louise, out of respect for your family, I will pretend that this incident did not happen, however, if I were you, I would better watch my familiar. - Guiche realized that he was starting to follow Ben's lead, so he decided to end this performance. In his opinion, getting into an argument with a commoner was beneath his dignity. Waving him off, he turned around and wanted to leave, but Ben didn't want to end up that way.

-The general's son is afraid of an ordinary commoner. I think your father can be proud of his son's bravery. - Ben had no plans to let Guiche go and continued to provoke him. And finally he got his way.

Enraged, Guiche pulled out a glove and threw it at Ben, shouting: -I wanted to spare you, but I think I should show you your place. I challenge you to a duel, worm!

-I accept your challenge. - Ben smiled coldly, catching the glove. In his eyes, Guiche was nothing special. Even if Guiche had some tricks in store, Ben was sure he could beat him easily.

However, Louise did not share her familiar's confidence. She didn't know much about Ben, but she knew what Guiche was capable of. Although he was not an outstanding magician, he could pose a serious danger to Ben, who knew nothing about this world.

-Maybe it's not worth it? - Louise looked at Ben pleadingly, hoping that he would stop.

To calm the girl down a little, Ben leaned over and whispered in her ear: - Trust me, don't you want to show everyone what you're worth?

Louise's confident demeanor gave her some peace of mind, and Ben's words made her completely give up. Louise always wanted to get rid of the many ridicule from other students. If Ben wins, it will also play into Louise's hands, because the familiar is considered part of the wizard's abilities.

-Hmph! Do whatever you want! - Louise pouted a little, then added in a barely audible voice: - But be careful...

-"Still, she's cute." - Ben thought in his head as he walked away from Louise.

-Let's get started. - Ben said to Gish, who was standing ready.

-Okay, but first... - After these words, Guiche waved his wand and a one-handed sword with a rather simple design appeared in front of Ben from the ground.

-I don't want to fight an unarmed man. - The young nobleman said arrogantly, to which Ben only smiled harder.

-"He's not that bad."

With a carefree smile on his face, Ben slowly picked up the sword that Guiche had just created. The moment his hand touched the blade, Ben found a faint glow of runes. At the same time, a pleasant feeling swept over his body. He began to feel the sword as if it had become an extension of his hand, and many ways of using the sword appeared in his head.

-Interesting... - Ben was genuinely surprised and interested, because he had never encountered anything like this before. Alas, he was currently engaged in a duel and could not thoroughly study this phenomenon, however, he decided to test his new abilities in the battle with Guiche.

As soon as Ben took a fighting stance, Guiche quickly increased the distance between them and with a light movement of his wand created about ten bronze golems in the form of valkyries armed with halberds.

-"And he's not a complete idiot... He has some skills." - Ben thought in his head, becoming interested in Guiche's magic.

At a wave of Guiche's hand, the golems began to act. The first Valkyrie rushed forward, aiming her halberd at Ben's legs. Ben saw everything that was happening very clearly, as if he was watching a video in slow motion. Not wanting to injure his legs, Ben dodged behind the golem. With a precise movement of the sword, Ben easily cut off the valkyrie's legs, as if she were not made of bronze, but of paper.

-It was easier than I thought... - Ben said, watching the golem collapse to the ground.

However, before Ben could enjoy his first victory, two other golems attacked at the same time. Dodging at the last moment, Ben jumped to the side and cut one of them in half with a swing of his sword. Right after that, Ben blocked the halberd of another valkyrie, which was aimed at his chest. Throwing the golem's weapon aside, the man struck the valkyrie with a powerful blow to the chest, which caused the metal shell to crack and the golem fell apart.

-If that's all you're capable of, I'm disappointed! - Ben shouted provocatively, continuing to destroy Guiche's golems. Every move was precise and deadly, Ben expertly dodged and counterattacked the Valkyries, crushing them in seconds. The golems fell one after another without even having time to react.

-Bastard... - Guiche said through his teeth, watching his creations fall one by one. He began to get nervous, as he did not expect that the one he looked down on had such a skill. Guiche knew that his defeat was already a foregone conclusion, but his arrogance did not allow him to give up.

By concentrating all the magical energy he possessed, Guiche summoned twice as many golems as he originally had. Expecting such a development, Ben did not lose his composure. He had already realized that he could easily handle such a crowd of weak golems. However, Ben was in no hurry to destroy them. He dragged out the fight just to find out what he was capable of in his current state. And now that the goal had been achieved, Ben saw no need to delay any further.

-It's time to finish... - saying these words, Ben focused his gaze on the place where Guiche was standing, and in a moment he was next to his opponent.

- You've lost. Ben said with a slight smile on his face, pointing his sword at Guiche, who fell to the ground, frightened by Ben's sudden appearance.

Guiche wanted to object, but he knew it was pointless. Guiche could only spread his hands, acknowledging his defeat and Ben's victory. Everyone was surprised by what happened, but most of all the girl who called Ben into this world was amazed. After all, she still had no idea how her life would change in the near future.

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Hello everyone! As you can see, I'm still alive. And this means that I will continue to write this story. I apologize for such a long absence. It's been a tough three months. In the future, I will try to release chapters more often. If you are interested in this fanfiction, I want to ask you to subscribe to my account in "x" (Twitter). There I will publish the release schedule of chapters, announce my other works, and answer your questions.

"X": @TPS_writer