I'm impressed !

Both looked practically ready for what would come next, the strength of each of them was fully in their gazes, the manifested aura making everyone around impressed. Such power on a battlefield by two knights was always beautiful to watch.

Dante had the first move, his body leaping forward heavily with the axe behind his body, coming towards Morrigan. Unable to dodge, Morrigan defended with both arms, beating against the axe, the force of the blow pushing him back, making the boy's hands tremble.

The moment of impact made him feel as if he had received a headbutt from a furious boar against his body; the ground around him subtly cracked as Morrigan was pushed back. Another attack came from the side, and Morrigan remained on the defensive, being pushed to the side this time.

The boy then took a deep breath and pushed the axe with a spiral movement with both arms, making a C above his head. He spun his entire body and struck Dante's axe, causing the ground to crack with the force of the blow. Without letting him rest, another attack, this time up and down, broke the ground even more.

Only then was Dante's first phase heard. "You compensate for your lack of technique with the strength of your Aura. But with just that, you can't disarm me. You need to have strength in your arms; Aura is an extension of that!" He said this, causing green flames to emerge from the back of his axe. It was a common weapon, with a boar's head carved on the back of the wooden handle. When he concentrated, it seemed like the weapon came to life in his attacks.

A second descent trapped Morrigan in a loop of attacks, all horizontal from side to side, dragging the boy as the attacks happened. It was difficult for Morrigan to dodge; his axe was very heavy.

Morrigan felt his fingers trembling; his strength was draining away. A big problem was coming to the boy; if that pace continued, he would lose. There was no problem in losing; the biggest problem was that Dante's figure didn't seem interested only in disarming. It was like a territorial animal, trying to show that he was the strongest there, and maybe that would really cost Morrigan a piece of himself.

Morrigan's vision was getting darker; his strength fading, causing him to grow weaker. His mind then entered dangerous thoughts. "Maybe if I stop now, it's no problem; he'll beat me anyway." "There's nothing wrong with throwing in the towel; I'm new to this. The end result won't change." Thoughts like these made him diminish more and more in the brightness of his Aura.

Before he could simply start releasing his grip on his blade, he held everything gritting his teeth, intensifying his gaze, impressing Dante. The horizontal attack was completely stopped, blowing a gust of air back, leaving everyone open-mouthed. "I won't stop trying; I'll never abandon the true path. Even if the final result is unknown or too obvious. I'll give it my all, until the last second!"

Swallowing his exhaustion and intrusive thoughts, his blade filled with colors, and he then pushed Dante back with a vertical attack, throwing the man's body backward. "Don't dodge, Dante!" he said confidently, putting a lot of force on his forehead, veins bulging. His mind had entered maximum intensity. A sigh from Dante indicated that he didn't need that, but Morrigan's attack was different. A mysterious force pushed Dante's arm, nearly making the axe fall.

Raising his weapon again, Dante respected Morrigan's intensity, and several colorful attacks, mixing intense green and light blue from Morrigan, made both of them ignite the hearts of the other knights present. Morrigan, in a brutal top-to-bottom movement, hit Dante's axe, making his last effort. His hands were red and swollen, about to start tearing the skin.

The gleaming sword then seemed to shake Dante's axe, impressing him. "Where does so much strength in this Aura come from? What did you do to change? You seem like a different person!" Impressed, Dante seemed to laugh at that, at a wrong moment. Morrigan quickly pulled his blade, making a precise attack, straight against Dante's axe, towards the handle, between his fingers. "Let's go!" Morrigan shouted, making everyone rise from where they were sitting. However, at that moment, Dante jumped back, causing the captain to raise his arm on the side where Morrigan had started the fight, the right side.

"Dante dodged; only one dodge is allowed in disarm duels... You can se—" The captain then realized that Morrigan's mental state was critical, and his hands were dripping blood. "For today, that's enough... You are the winner, Dante!" A deadly silence was in the place; for all the newcomers, it was clear that Zi'o had won. Even among the veterans, the message of "If this were a real duel, maybe Zi'o would have won" was conveyed.

Several claps were then heard for the show they delivered. Morrigan then suddenly dropped the sword, with his hands bleeding. July and Cedric ran towards him, and some of the veterans went to congratulate Dante and celebrate his victory, after all, his title was intact.

Nevertheless, some newcomers applauded Morrigan, and the captain himself looked impressed at that scene, to the point that he approached Zi'o, saying, "I'm impressed! You, as a freshman, forced a dodge from a veteran; that expression on Dante's face is the feeling of defeat... You may have lost, but your Aura was clearer than his..."

Restless, Morrigan stared at the ground semi-unconscious, his mind still working well for the fight; however, only after realizing that he was very injured did he come back to himself, with July tapping on his head to try to bring him back to reality. Cedric was bandaging Morrigan's hands, while Cassius brought medicines from his bag in a small cabin where the soldiers' things were kept.

"You forced Dante's dodge; he shouldn't be able to sleep tonight... You're completely crazy; he'll become addicted to challenging you until he achieves your defeat," Cedric warned the boy, while Zi'o smiled. "He'll try several times until he realizes he's not stronger than me. He may be more muscular and handsome, but I believe in things, to the depths of my soul," he said smiling, while July tightened the bandage on his hand, making him say, "Ouch," it was hurting a lot.

"Does anyone know where I can find a good house to rent? I need a place near the recruitment center..." July then said, "Look, I know some places if you want, I can show you!" She then took a deep breath, and he then thought, "This could end up being a problem; if I'm seen with her by Goddess, maybe I shouldn't accept it," Morrigan shook his head negatively afterward. "No need; I just wanted some tips. I'll look for something when my hands are better..." he thanked her, and then Cedric said, "Well, the knights' day ends after the disarm duel; you have the rest of the afternoon free. If we need to call you, you'll receive an invitation from a Wyvern or Griffin pup... Enjoy!"

Cedric said while July seemed a little saddened by Morrigan's response but resolved everything with a simple sigh, returning to her normal expression shortly after.

"See you tomorrow then!" Morrigan said calmly, bidding them farewell. He now needed to find his travel companion; riding a horse was something he was curious to know how it would be...