Chapter 16

His eyes then panned over to the person standing in the middle of the arena.

This must be my opponent.

A plain black cloak covered most of the Adventurer's face and body. What little Yori could see peaking through the shadows was wrapped in white cloth. It almost looked to Yori like bandages. There was nothing about his stance or garb that gave Yori a hint of the man's combat style other than the wooden practice sword he held loosely in his right hand.

A large shadow was cast on his opponent by the larger man standing next to him. The Guild Master had his brow furrowed towards the Adventurer. Despite the man staring intently at Yori, the two seemed to be having a heated discussion.

That guy probably doesn't think it's worth his time to fight a Villager. Whatever, I'll just have to prove to him that I deserve to be his colleague.

As Yori approached, their conversation seemed to come to an end. The Guild Master turned to the boy and greeted him. His sky-blue eyes seemed weary from exhaustion. He turned to the crowd, and then to Yori.

"Good morning, everyone! This is the combat trial for young Yori Yoshinaga. Let us wish him luck. Begin when you're ready, lad."

The crowd cheered even louder for a moment as the Guild Master gave Yori permission to start the fight at his discretion, walking over to his seat at the opposite end as the entrance. Yori gave one more look around and saw that Elina had seated herself next to Kana. This was the time, he had to take advantage of his opportunity.

Yori knew nothing of this opponent. He knew that if he was going to have any chance at winning, he would need to approach carefully. He jumped towards his foe, in feigning an attack, hoping to provoke an attack, and then jumped back immediately. To his surprise, the opponent did not flinch. The pulse in Yori's chest increased.

He's good… but he's not going to move without me initiating the fight.

Deciding that he would have to attack in order to learn anything, Yori launched himself forward once again. With the butt of his knife, he aimed the man's throat. Yori had no intention of killing him, after all. Without moving the rest of his body, the Adventurer slashed into the boy's ribs. Air rapidly evacuated Yori's lungs as he was knocked backwards several feet. The pain was throbbed throughout the left of his torso. Clearly, he had made a huge mistake attacking an experienced swordsman without the intent to land a real blow. He was not strong enough to show sympathy.

Yori made a series of quick attacks, approaching from the front, attempting to learn more about the sword style of this mystery opponent. He jumped backwards to assess the situation and mull over anything he could glean. On each attack, his foe hit him in a spot that would both stop the blow and inflict pain. When Yori attempted a stab, he would get hit in the elbow, a slash and the blow would hit his stomach, a backhand and they would go for his ribs.

This guy is incredible at defending and attacking simultaneously. But he hasn't moved from the same spot. Maybe he's really heavy? Or perhaps his sword style requires a certain stance?

To put this theory to test, Yori tried his tactic from the cockatrice. Drawing his dagger up, he faked an attack from the left, then rolled to the other side to stab at the man's back. He had to fight off the impulse to dodge a non-existent tail.

Thunk

His knife stabbed into the wooden blade that the opponent had used to block it. Yori glanced down at his feet. The Adventurer had not moved once again and had managed to block Yori's dagger without looking directly at the boy. Another futile effort, but it was progress. He may have managed to block the boy's attack, but there was no counterattack this time.

Their stance must be important to them! Should I use Shadow Strike?

Considering this option for a moment, Yori soon realized that the sun was in a very impractical location for its proper use. The sun sat high now, and therefore their shadows were both very small. He would have to wait for the right time to arise.

Now that he knew where the cloaked adventurer liked to attack from, he could work on adapting his own fighting style. First, Yori tried faking a stab and then pulling back and slicing, but the Adventurer blocked the slash with the butt end of the wooden sword. Once again, a net zero.

If it ends in a draw, I need to at least land a hit.

This time he went for a slash but punched with his right hand at the same time, aiming for the Adventurer's face. Each blow on its own did not have as much momentum as a single strike, but maybe he would be surprised and not manage to dodge one of them. He did not get the draw he wanted. The incoming blow to Yori's ribs was expected, but his left fist connected with his opponents left hand, not his face. A frontal attack was clearly never going to work, so Yori started ducking and rolling around his opponent looking for an opportunity. Every one of his attacks was being blocked with ease. Yori growled quietly under his breath. Frustration was mounting. He needed to find a weakness.

Thwarted attack after thwarted attack, the young man finally had another idea to test.

If my opponent always uses his right arm to wield their sword, then if I try attacking low, towards his calf, and then redirect towards his shoulder, that might work to make an opening.

Gathering his confidence, Yori took a deep breath to regain some energy. Using as much power he could muster form his legs, he threw himself forward, launching towards the man's calf with all his might. The sun was at his back now, making it easier for him to see. The opponent predictably blocked the attack by placing his sword at his side, positioning the blade in between Yori's metal knife and his leg. This was all according to Yori's plan. Just before the blade connected, Yori pulled his legs under him and jumped upwards, swinging his arm in an arc to stab down towards his foe's shoulder blade.

For the first time in the battle the cloaked Adventurer moved his feet as it was the only way to avoid the incoming attack. He spun to face Yori, squinting as he was now looking directly into the sun. Unfortunately, the bright light did not disorient him enough to stop him from blocking the boy's attack, but Yori was able to see a glint of colour under the hood of the cloak poking out from under the white wrappings. The cacophony of pigment seemed out of place, but there was no time to ponder this. It was time for his trump card. Yori whispered.

"Shadow Step."

In an instant Yori was gone, leaving the opponent to block the air, overextended in his stance. Yori now stood behind him, blade still flying through the air towards the cloaked figure. The Villager smirked. He was finally going to land a palpable hit. He could not imagine the Guild Master would want them to continue if he managed to stab the man in the back. If Yori's adrenaline was not so high he would have felt horrible for trying to stab a man who had done nothing to him, but at this moment there was no time for remorse. Inches from making contact with his blade, Yori heard a mumble. A large gust hit Yori's entire body. The force blasted backwards. He let out a yell as he was slammed into the stone wall under Elina and Kana. He heard them gasp as he hit the ground.

His head had been flung back rapidly in from the blow. The impact was so strong he barely held on to his consciousness. Yori sat with his back to the wall, his eyes threatening to fail him while he tried to breathe. He had misjudged his opponent. This was no swordsman - it was a wind mage.

Yori's arms felt as heavy as lead as his tried to lift himself from his seated position back to his feet. Rocking forward, he fell to his knees, both hands on the ground in front of him as he coughed up blood. Wiping the blood from his mouth, he continued to try and stand. He had to continue. He was so close. Yori's mind was spinning in panic and determination. With no way of countering the wind magic, he stood very little chance, but he had to find a way.

Dragging himself to his feet, using the wall behind him for support, Yori attempted to take a step forward. His whole world went black. The concerned voices of his friends calling his name was all he could make out. Falling face first to the ground, unable to move his body anymore, the world faded away as the boy lost consciousness. One final thought ran through his mind.

I lost…

* * *

Yori blinked as he awoke from his tormented sleep. He was not in his cave.

Where am I?

The familiar decorations on the ceiling soon gave him a clue. He was in the Church of Light. He became painfully aware of all of the presences around him. The scarred face of the Guild Master was the first frightening face he saw as he looked around the room. The man towered over his bed. Yori jumped at first, and then memories came trickling back as he came to the realization of what happened. Yori's shoulders slumped.

He must be there to reject me, I lost after all…

"You're awake now, are ya boy? That was quite the show out there."

"I'm sorry for wasting your time, sir."

"Hohoho! It's no waste of time to see this guy flustered!"

Chuckling in his booming voice, the Guild Master gestured with his thumb to a corner where Yori could see the cloaked Adventurer standing, leaning against the wall. His arms were crossed in front of him. The large man then put a hand on either of Yori's shoulders and smiled widely.

"Especially since it added a member to the Guild."

"Huh?"

What could he possibly mean by that? Was the cloaked Adventurer also trying to enter the Guild?

Complete confusion coated the young man's face as he attempted to comprehend what was going on. Elina stepped forward from behind the Guild Master. She was not wearing her regular Receptionist uniform, but had a simple lavender blouse and a knee-length beige skirt on instead. Her blonde hair was loose except for two small braids in the front.

"You dummy, did you really think the test was to kill him or something?"

"I don't understand."

What was the goal of the exam then? Didn't I failed to win? I didn't even landed a single blow.

"I'm saying welcome to the Guild, Adventurer."

Yori was in shock, he had passed? How could that be? At this point he did not care, he could ask those questions later. He was an Adventurer. He was no longer a Villager destined to work a farm, living in fear of the outside world. He was an Adventurer destined to explore the world he used to fear. Yori would continue to grow stronger until there was no one he could not keep safe. Never again would he have to endure the pain of losing loved ones.

"I'm guessing I'll see you at the Guild tomorrow. You seem like the eager type! Get some rest in the meantime."

With that the Guild Master patted him on the shoulder and handed him a card then left. Elina gave him a quick hug and also left the room, followed by the cloaked Adventurer, who nodded at Yori before exiting. Looking down at the card in his hands, Yori saw it was his Guild membership card. Tears streamed down his face as he was overwhelmed with emotion. It was official.

It seemed like he had been healed completely. Getting up to stretch his legs, Yori noticed a wooden plaque on the end of the bed.

Yori Yoshinaga -Reserved Bed

Kana came in the room in time to catch him reading the plaque and crossed her arms.

"I figured now that you're an Adventurer, I'd better live up to my threat and name a bed after you since you're gonna' be in it every day."