Victory Matters!

After choosing the weapons of our choice, it was now time for the sparring session to begin.

Arthur stood at the center of the training hall, prepared for hammering the art of combat in these rookies.

"Attention everyone! It looks like you have all took a weapon for yourselves, now it is time for you to test yourself. To feel how the combat is done.

There is a big difference between what you learn in your books and what you do on the battlefield in order to survive.

Remember my words like they mean your lives.

The true essence of combat is to kill and to survive. Each and every strike that you perform should be to kill your opponent. 

There is no room for mercy in a war. It is either to kill or to be killed. Now it is upon you to decide what you wish to do.

If you decide to show mercy to your opponent, then you should be strong enough to end his life, should he betray your trust of sparing his life.

Only two people survive till the war ends...One who are absolutely strong that no sword can pierce their hearts, and the other are cowards."

Hearing this the students started laughing. Arthur knew that this was just the ignorance of fools who haven't bathed in blood.

"Make no mistake... There's nothing wrong in being a coward. Should you face an opponent who is far stronger than you, then the best thing to do is accept your defeat and run, like your existence depends on it.

Being a hero serves no good to anyone. Heroes are the first one to die in battle. Fighting where you know you are bound to loose is utter foolishness.

And if you don't want to become such a fool, then you have to grow stronger.

Because many times, situations arise when you can't abandon your role as a warrior. You have to fight, even if you know you are going to die at the end.

You fight till the last drop of your blood remains, to protect those that you love.

But if you survive, then you have a chance to strike back. To get your revenge against those who had defeated you.

So choose for yourselves, what you have to achieve in this measly life of yours."

And so Arthur's awe-inspiring speech ended, or that was what someone would have said.

Honestly this man was impressive. He knew the importance of his life and the importance of being a coward. 

But what use does it serve to know all this, if at the end of the day he was just going to be a hero saving the masses and sacrificing his life for a foolish cause.

I didn't hide my contempt of his philosophies that he was bombarding on us, which obviously didn't go unnoticed by Arthur.

Man! Does he seriously have some problem with me... Why in seven hells, does he always keep staring at me. When I took the katana in my hands, this guy was just looking at me with those killer eyes.

I mean, it's my life, and can't I just experiment with it. I just wanted to have a feel of using the katana. I know that I lack every skill for wielding it, but still...

"Now it's time for your combat training. I will call out the names of students who will be sparing here in the center. You cannot refuse, and do not worry I will ensure that you are not killed." Arthur's voice brought lucifer back to his senses.

*********

"The first duel would be between Zeke and Lucifer. Please come onto the center." The announcer announced.

Dammit! This was meant to be a random draw for deciding the pairs. Why does my luck betray me every time. Even though I wanted to fight... Being the first one to do so and that to with that second prince Zeke...

Focus lucifer, for your future, for your dignity you have to fight...cough...cough...

I know I have to fight and that to with a weapon I can barely use to it's full ability.

*********

Two youngsters could be seen walking towards the arena, with confident footsteps.

One had a long sword with small curves at the middle, his black hairs were tied in a pony tail, with each step he took, showcasing and proving his existence of that of a royal.

Zeke took his place at the right end of the arena with his sword in his right hand, assuming a basic fighting stance. It wasn't like he didn't knew any other fighting styles, it was just that he didn't want to showoff before others, or prove himself as superior to them. 

His grey eyes were locked on to his opponent, who was casually taking a stroll towards the arena.

The way in which lucifer walked towards Zeke was so carefree that someone would assume he was wandering in a garden.

But no one complained anything, as every step that lucifer took had a dominating presence in itself. His every action shown his authority and position as the Heir to one of the pillars of the empire.

His raven black hairs which were tied in a pony tail similar to that of Zeke, the only difference being they were a little longer in length.

His golden eyes, which were as mysterious as his personality were scanning the entire area...

Being in his presence felt like he was an existence from a different world. 

Lucifer carried a shiny black katana in his right hand, casually playing with it's hilt.

Everyone present here knew that he was a swordsman, but seeing him controlling the blade of katana in such a casual manner surprised them.

For someone to achieve such fearless mastery over a katana, which is believed to be a difficult weapon to use, barely after a short period of time, was in itself an alarming thing.

Even Arthur was carefully observing the katana in lucifer's hand, and the way in which he was playing with it's blade. Not a single scratch could be seen on his hand, no blood either.

After his kingly walk, lucifer arrived at the left end of the arena, just opposite where Zeke was facing him.

He readied himself with the katana loaded back in it's scabbard, with his left hand holding the scabbard, and his dominant right hand on the hilt of the katana.

It was the standard form for holding a Katana during a fight, but in the hands of lucifer it looked even majestic.

Both the fighters waited for the instruction to begin, each eyeing the opponent with caution.

Seeing that everything was good, Arthur gave the signal to begin, and thus the dance began...

Blades clashed against each other, weaving themselves in a dance of death...

********

'He's skilled...

Although I knew that the second prince was a child prodigy, still his blade is lethal.

My katana was bouncing back form the deadly and precise strikes performed by Zeke.

The power behind the strikes and their precision was terrific. It took everything I had to just parry his strikes.'

Though on the outside lucifer's face appeared cold, he was sweating from inside.

Still he had to do something, so as not to appear weak before the people watching him. If he had used his regular sword from the beginning, then it would have been easier for him to fight.

'But after taking out the katana from it's scabbard my blood seemed to be reacting to it's blade. I felt like fighting with the katana was a daily routine for me. 

It just felt a part of me. Is it due to that mysterious devourer bloodline, which was mentioned in the system.

Why did I feel like, I had been fighting with a katana since a long time. This body is barely 16 years old, so it should not have been possible.

Still without knowing the skills to use a katana, I was able to wield it pretty easily. 

I just have to reach his neck for the battle to end.'

With this thought process lucifer retreated a few steps, and as Zeke took the opportunity to attack, he slammed his right foot using a back kick straight into the second prince's abdomen.

The impact from the kick threw Zeke a few meters back. The cheering of the crowd was silent for a moment, as they could feel the killing intent from the prince, as he placed his hand on his abdomen, and then something changed...

The easy going prince was long gone, and what replaced his face was a battle hardened warrior who had seen countless deaths.

Lucifer too noticed the change in Zeke's aura, but it hardly mattered to him.

For him the only thing that mattered was Victory.

The aura of these warriors clashed before their swords found their way to the other's neck.

And so their duel continued...