Looks Balanced?
'Even if Abercio starts learning about Mana, Vino's attacks aren't something a newbie like him can block,' thought Zola Morla.
And Zola stretched his muscles so he could move quickly if something untoward happened to Abercio. Even though Abercio was barely admitted by the family nor the people of the Bronka region, he was still the eldest son, and as a knight of this family, Zola couldn't just let Abercio die.
'Vino was too eager to attack Abercio because he felt he was superior. I really should have him undergo more training to take on the stance of a knight so as not to be so arrogant.'
Clangggg!
But the sound of iron rods colliding with each other woke Zola from her daydream. His voice was very high and sharp as if swords of equal strength were facing each other, and Zola immediately began to think again.
Zola gasped, 'This… how can?'
It was an extraordinary sight that filled Zola's eyesight, where Abercio and Vino were engaged in close combat, and Zola's eyes widened at the sight of a battle that for some reason now seemed balanced.
The two swords looked like they were dancing as the two participants sometimes swung their swords wide or immediately pulled their swords back and stabbed sharply into their opponent's vulnerable points again. Vino, of course, constantly launched his attacks with fairly aggressive movements.
The entire audience felt a strange mixture of tension, excitement, and confusion. They felt happy watching a fight that could easily result in serious injury if Abercio lost or felt embarrassed and humiliated if Vino who was a knight lost to Abercio who he always looked down on. The two of them could be said to knit their fate through this duel.
CLANG!
CLASH...
There were countless sword clashes. Vino swung his sword again with killing intent. As expected of an official knight, he displayed fine skills and swung his sword with great force.
Claaash!
Once again, Abercio's black sword stopped his sword.
'Shit! Damn you! Fuck it!' Vino grimaced, and in his heart, he hadn't stopped cursing at all. His plan to defeat Abercio as quickly as possible to restore his honor had been crushed to dust.
In the audience seats, Vino could feel the atmosphere spreading among the spectators of his duel.
'He hasn't even learned proper swordsmanship yet! But, how can he keep up with me?'
If Abercio can keep up with him like this, Vino's reputation will be tarnished even more.
Crash!
Vino took a step back to keep his distance and thought for a moment, 'I'll bet my victory with this!' Then, he tilted his sword horizontally and the tip of his sword was pointed at Abercio's neck.
"A big attack from him is coming," muttered Abercio as he readied his stance, spread his legs wide, and raised his sword straight up. Take a more mature position and be ready to receive Vino's attack.
Mana flows into Vino's body wildly, circled his body once like a turbulent wave and entered his sword then returned to his body again. A great stream flowed through his body and sword, and at that moment, Vino's senses extended from his body to his sword.
'That is…' Zola Morla's eyes widened.
Everyone who recognized Vino's condition became shocked, and even the Marquess leaned forward. Vino uses very advanced techniques. Even though it was a skill that most knights in Bronka could use, it was beyond what people in Vino's age range could do.
SHOOT!
Like a stream of light, Vino's body seemed to elongate, but that was just an illusion. Then, in the blink of an eye, the tip of Vino's sword edged against Abercio's neck.
'Got you!' Vino thought, his eyes sparkling with joy. He thought Abercio's history is over. Victory is in his hands.
Unfortunately, it was too soon for Vino to be happy.
CLANG!
After feeling the shock, Vino hastily straightened himself up again and held his sword tightly.
SRING!!!
Vino's sword slid down as it grazed the body of Abercio's sword and stopped because it was detained by Abercio, and Abercio smiled when he saw Vino's sword hanging beside his face.
"What did I tell you earlier? Remember?" asked Abercio in his usual relaxed tone.
Vino stood still from the shock of seeing his killing attack blocked so easily and he heard Abercio's voice in his ear.
"I told you that you were easy."
An eerie atmosphere flowed through the audience. The Marquess, Altezza, and all of the Knight kept their mouths shut, saying nothing. No, more correctly, they were at a loss for words.
On the other side, Marchioness and the others who didn't know much about military arts were shocked by the strange atmosphere. They sensed that Abercio had done something extraordinary to outperform Vino, but they didn't know to what extent.
Philip Walles, the butler of the Marquess family, "Contrary to people's expectations, Young Master seems fine. But looking at the reactions of the knights, it looks like he's doing better than I saw. Can you explain the situation to me?" asked to someone near him.
Walles had a fairly long beard neatly groomed and was an old man who had been helping the Marquess since the Marquess' youth. He was an important maid who took care of all sorts of things in the Marquess' absence. Furthermore, he was one of the few people who did not discriminate against Abercio. He treated Abercio like the son of this family.
Walles asked his question to the middle-aged man behind the Marquess named Valdi Domare, the deputy knight commander. Valdi's standing is not comparable to Zola, who is the captain of the group, but he is one of the three most influential people in Bronka.
"Geez. Abercio seems fine, but isn't Sir Vino still superior?" said Vivian.
Marchioness was personally offended by all the compliments Abercio had received and hurriedly praised Vino, the knight she relied on. Walles smiled kindly and responded to Marchioness, but that was not what Marchioness wanted to hear. She wanted people to give feedback on this duel, especially about how bad Abercio's abilities were.
"Since Young Master has never studied swordsmanship properly before, Sir Vino will naturally have an advantage in a duel. If not, then the teachings and training of the Bronka Knights group must be questioned," explained Valdi Domare. He breathed slowly. As the deputy commander, he felt very pressured by Vivian's words which seemed to want Vino to be praised more.
Philip Walles continued Valdi's words, "but Young Master Abercio indeed did much better than we expected. Looking at the reactions of the knights, it seems the skill is much higher than we can see. I am very happy to see that the Young Master of the Bronka family is so skilled even without proper training, considering that he is still a very newbie and self-taught."