But seeing his serious face and his fixed gaze on the wooden sword, I just mentally shook my head. Perhaps my first impressions of Filier weren't entirely accurate.
It was clear to me that he wanted a fair fight and not to use my weakness in weaponry against me. I shook my head, indicating that I refused his offer. The young man pointed his blade at me and covered his chest with his shield.
- Have it your way, I hope you don't take back your words after your defeat! - the young man shouted at me, slowly starting to approach me.
His gaze shifted from me to the wooden sword, approaching me warily. Filier apparently expected me to take a defensive stance or try to attack him first, taking advantage of the opportunity.
His demeanor and the fact that he didn't rush me immediately indicated that the young man was still wary of me.
I remembered my wives telling me that Filier was interested in Samantha. I had no reason to blame him.
Cassandra and Samantha would always attract attention, but after tonight, they were both mine. Having comfortably grasped the wooden sword, I began to walk toward the team captain.
I didn't try to hide my movements, unlike Baron Folo's sons. The young man didn't act arrogantly toward me, which gave him a chance to survive.
Seeing my movement, Filier stopped, holding his shield forward and touching the blade of his shield, pointing the tip at me.
I could see he was ready to strike. Unlike many tales and legends, nobles do not always place a blade to their head, as the teacher in the Cray Empire said; such descriptions are made so that representatives of the races believe even more in the correctness of what the heroes of these tales did.
Raising my wooden sword and continuing to walk to the side, I awaited Filier's attack with interest. I could see his frown, trying to hide his gaze on the ground and at me.
He was trying to gauge the distance to strike with his blade while remaining covered by his shield. The warriors and knights of the Cray Empire were making similar attempts, only they were better at concealing their movements.
Perhaps the team captain would learn to conceal his plans better in the future. Sighing, I didn't hide from him that I saw him attempting to calculate a strike against me.
Having approached close enough, he attempted to stab me in the chest with his blade. His movements were swift, but after finding my own style and frequent training battles against Veliona and Ni'Lim, I had mastered it better.
My movements were faster than the young man's, striking the side of the blade, forcing it to move to the right and exposing Filier's unprotected shoulder to me. Under his surprised gaze, I struck him in the shoulder.
I had hoped that he would throw away the sword, instead he tried to strike from the side, aiming at my hand in which I held the wooden sword.
Feeling the air moving toward my right side, I quickly stepped to the left, striking his shield, forcing Filier to stop his blow and concentrate on defense. His gaze showed that he hadn't expected my actions and that he was now taking the duel seriously.
Smiling at him, I began attacking his shield and dodging his sword strikes. My goal wasn't to defeat him with a single blow or to demonstrate my swordplay; I saw this duel as an opportunity to better understand my strengths against races my own age.
The young man's blows became increasingly unrestrained, and his gaze increasingly showed his anger at not having the chance to hit me.
As I struck the shield, I deliberately struck the right side, forcing the arm holding it to tense even more.
With one blow, I struck his arm, a crunch was heard, and Filier's arm hung limply, shield in hand. Surprised voices came from the rest of the team, but neither the young man nor I had a chance to glance at the speaker.
The team captain struggled to raise his shield through the pain in his arm, while he was slashing at me with his sword.
Avoiding Filier's blows, I landed several blows to his chest before he could shield himself. From the sweat streaming down his face, I could tell he was doing this through intense pain.
Pressing my shield to my chest and slashing toward me, I struck his sword again, slashing downwards, just as he was attempting to strike me.
I could see my wooden sword was no longer in the best condition; it wasn't designed for fighting steel weapons. Thrust into the hand holding his sword, to my surprise, Filier thrust his shield forward and attempted to strike with it.
Whether his decision was dictated by his style or simply his own thoughts, I couldn't tell. The young man's gaze flickered across me, revealing a variety of emotions.
I heard the wooden sword giving way to Filier's weapon, taking quick steps back and glancing at my training sword, which was about to fall apart.
The young man didn't want to give me a chance to prepare and attempted to attack as soon as he saw me move away from him.
His gaze was fixed on my wooden sword, and I knew where Filier was aiming. Apparently, the emotions that were driving him now made him forget all about caution.
If he'd previously concealed his intended strike, now he made no secret of it. I held the wooden blade hilt first, waiting for the young man to approach me.
I could see opportunities to attack Filier, but I wanted to give him a chance to demonstrate everything he could. The young man didn't take his eyes off my wooden sword, even when I held out the hilt.
A look of surprise crossed his face. He wasn't afraid of it, knowing that unlike the tip of a regular sword, the wooden one was thicker and heavier at the hilt, which wasn't heavy or large, posing no threat.
Reaching my side, Filier held his blade forward and lowered his shield slightly, revealing his neck. Trying to hide my smile, I held the hilt of my training sword forward further.
During our fight, I felt a variety of emotions welling up within me that I hadn't felt in my fights with the major and the professor.
Waiting for the young man to strike, I dodged to the right and, without waiting for the shield to strike, slammed the hilt into the center of his shield.
I heard the wood crack, and the remains of the sword hilt fell from my hands. The surprised young man lowered his shield even lower, his blade trying to catch up with me as I stabbed Filier in the throat with the remainder of his training sword.
Feeling a strong blow to his throat, the young man wheezed and tried to cover his throat from another blow. I could see the team captain's gaze trying not to lose me. Not giving him a chance to recover, I struck him in the side, causing Filier to step to the right, and his blow missed me.
The young man tried to turn toward me when he felt two blows to his legs, and his legs buckled. Filier held his shield up, placed his blade under it, and tried to turn.
I could tell the team captain had already lost; from his demeanor, he also understood he was in a difficult situation and was trying to find a way out.
Because he raised his shield above his head, he only saw my legs and part of my body, not my arms, so he tried to strike the part of my body that he had seen while on the ground.
His attacks did not cause me any threat or discomfort, finding myself behind him, I delivered one strong blow to his back and I heard a scream from Filier's throat, falling to the ground, he tried to get up but stopped and froze when I put the rest of the training sword to his throat.
- You lost, Captain Fillier. Never underestimate your opponents. - I said seriously, sitting down next to him. - If I hear from my wives again that you're trying to show them any attention, I'll kill you.
Rising and turning my back on the still-lying Filier, I walked toward the remaining teams. I could see the surprised looks of some team members, while the rest looked at me as if I were a criminal.
The looks they cast at me meant nothing; being on the same team as them, their opinions were irrelevant to me.
In Samantha and Cassandra's gazes, I saw a question they didn't want to voice. Shaking their heads, I saw them relax as I approached them. I saw those who had been casting judgmental glances at me begin to retreat.
- Stufon Trey, that last blow was dirty, you owe Captain Filier an apology. - An irritated girl's voice was heard from the side.
Looking from Samantha and Cassandra towards the voice, I saw a tall girl with long red hair and black eyes, for many, as I noticed, she was pretty, in her look it was clear that she was dissatisfied not only with the outcome of the fight, but also with the way in which I won it.
- I have nothing to apologize for. In a duel, you'll land any blow that will allow you to defeat your opponent. - I said in a relaxed voice, not taking my gaze off the girl. - If you don't take advantage of this opportunity, your opponent will, and then you'll be mourned, not him.
The girl tried to speak, but her words were stuck in her throat. The other team members nodded understandingly at my words.
Our world wasn't a place where honor ruled. While I'd previously understood this thanks to my studies in the Cray Empire, after the mission, I began to better understand why strength was so highly valued.