Be careful

"…Mr. Logick, I have to ask, in case you forgot, aren't you going to equip anything? We are going to spar, and I have every intention to do it seriously"

The full-equipped Latvian asked the most obvious question to Alfraed, the person he was going to test, who clearly lack any protective equipment on his body. As it happened, Elise and Vanessa also had the same question in their minds, and were extremely worried about what going to happen. Even the crowd was questioning this situation, convinced he must have a loose screw in his head.

"…Thank you for your concern Branch Master. But, I'm good like this"

Alfraed showed a refreshing smile to reply the elf's worry and question, and assured him that he was prepared, with no intention to take the test easy.

The only time he wore something like an armor set was only at the very early stage of practice with his demonic master. As soon as the practice progressed, the armor only served to weigh him down, and did not do anything slightly useful to protect him from his master! As such, Alfraed decided to throw anything that potentially be a useless burden away.

Fortunately, Alfraed came to master barrier magic in a desperate attempt to protect his life and utilized the magic to construct a weightless gauntlets and greaves for him. He had never compared them to actual equipment of the same type before, but since they were able to withstand his master's inhuman attack their quality ought to leave nothing to be desired.

The duration in which Alfraed could keep them materialized was unfortunately constrained by his not-so-great mana capacity. And, he would be in trouble if the battle prolonged or met opponent capable of dispersing magic like the mysterious and terrifying creature in the ancient ruin…Remembering that event always made him shiver because the result could go either way.

That being said, for the time being, these were his best equipment, wearing unfamiliar item would only cause discomfort and hinder his movement.

"Branch Master, better be careful (not to put too much strength, this is just a test, right?)"

"I see, I should be careful (of you), huh? How insolent"

Latvian felt like Alfraed just threw mockery to his preparation.

....Alfraed sensed a grave misunderstanding was born due to his assumption the other party would understand precisely the message with few words. However, before he could correct anything, Latvian already told Vanessa to be the referee and immediately begin the test.

"Both parties, are you ready?"

Vanessa stepped on to the ring to assume her role and asked the two contestants.

"Always!"

Latvian's answer was full of vigor and determination; he was raring to start the test as soon as possible.

"…Yes?"

Contrary, Vanessa felt no energy from Alfraed's answer, and asked him once again to ensure he was in a fit condition to take this test.

"Yes!"

A little too late for Alfraed to rectify anything, and with the misinterpretation still hanging heavily in the air Vanessa shouted the start of the test.

"BEGIN!!!"

Latvian took the initiative and began to charge at Alfraed. However, the young merchant already covered the distance between the two of them in a matter of moment and arrived in front of the unprepared Branch Master.

"..…?!!"

Unable to cope with the unthinkable that just happened in front of him like all the witnesses near the arena felt, Latvian was a step behind in reacting to Alfraed's punching motion, and could only raise his giant dark sword to shield him from the inevitable.

[SMASH]

The bursting sound that came from the collision of Alfraed's punch and Latvian's metal sword, two things that would normally never crossed path, was deafening. It reverberated throughout the training ground, causing the spectators to reflexively close both of their ears.

The two at the center probably had it worse, even more so for Latvian with his elf's superior hearing. Yet, it was no time to worry about his ringing ears, and fixed his thought back to test. In which, he just realized his armored body was pushed back by a clean five meters, his left hand which supported the blade and right hand holding the grip were numbed.

"What…power…teleportation magic? No, I didn't feel any magic flow like Salsahara's…So, that was his pure physical strength??"

[SMASH]

Having no intention to let up his attack Alfred ran toward his opponent, his sole intention was to push Latvian far enough to make him acknowledge he had what it take to join the quest. With that purpose in mind, Alfraed launched another punch and Latvian was again pushed back for five meters, unable to protect his ground despite trying to do just that.

"This, confirmed it, amazing...Hate to admit it. But, this fellow stronger than me. At least, in terms of raw power…"

Seeing this turn of event, Elise who feared for Alfraed's safety at the beginning was now cheering at her boss excitedly. On the other hand, adventurers betting on his inability to join the quest were trembling unhealthily because all of them knew at the end of this test they would definitely lose their money. Simultaneously, Vanessa, being a former silver ranker herself, was at a loss for words.

"Such power and speed…" was the only statement she could squeezed out from her distracted mind.

Feeling that his attacks worked on the gold ranker, Alfraed thrusted his fist for the third time, trying to make Latvian fall from the arena. However, this time Latvian had predicted the incoming punch, and dodged it by a hair's breadth. In an instant, he effectively rotated his body and swung his great sword horizontally toward the opponent. As a result, the blade successfully landed and Alfraed was flung by ten meters, returning him to his original position before the test started.

"...….."

For a moment, Latvian thought he went too far with his counterattack just now. No matter how strong Alfraed was, he was still a businessman with little battle experience, that supposed to be the case. But, the gold ranker felt something unquestionably hard, like a sturdy armor, protecting him when the sword made contact with his body.

Conforming his suspicion, a second later, Alfraed stood up without facing any difficulty.

"…Are you okay Mr. Logick?"

"…Well, I can still continue, is that okay?"

Alfraed inspected his own body to see if there was injury he unaware of. Fortunately, there was none. He felt the unforeseen impact from Latvian's earlier attack of course, but without the accompanying pain since he was able to guard against it in time. If not, the pain would be….better not imagined it.

Latvian was certain the attack he performed just now could easily make his usual opponent passed out and suffered broken bones having their armors destroyed. Yet, this merchant, or so he said, in front of him nonchalantly recovered with no injury.

'…How's that possible?'

Now that Latvian had become calmer, the elf finally noticed the existence of magic energy wrapping Alfraed's pair of hands and legs. And, though faint, that same magic was also on the spot where his sword hit him earlier. From their recognizable flow and construction, he deduced it must be some kind of barrier magic, a high-level one at that. This fact alone was surprising, and the young man's way in using them was unconventional.

"Now it all makes sense, no wonder he told me to be careful…"

Latvian, of all people, should had known to never judge a person by appearance alone, and he practically did exactly that when seeing Alfraed, even harboring negative thought to him. How immature of him.

That being said, what happened today was truly refreshing. It had been awhile since he felt this pressured and excited. Latvian's blood was boiling, and his spirit was on fire!

"Let's resume the fun!!!"

Latvian was eager to continue. He decided to abandon both his formal position as Branch Master and gold ranker, and be a simple challenger on the arena. Going up against a strong opponent was always a pleasure! It helped him to grow further!

…And, Alfraed knew the misunderstanding in the beginning had just grown bigger, and slumped his shoulders in response.

The sparring that would be hot topic for days to come had just begun.