The next day, after finishing classes at the academy building, I headed straight for the Duel Arena. To be honest, I didn't know if this method would actually awaken Brian's power. But... there was no harm in trying.
"Hey, hurry up! The fight between Raul, that rotten noble, and Brian the Monster Hunter is about to start at the Arena."
"You're right, I can't wait to see Brian smash that arrogant face to pieces!"
I overheard the students' conversations. It seemed they were desperate to see me lose to Brian. Well... it's not like I wanted their support anyway.
Upon arriving inside the Arena, the spectator stands were already packed with students from all years. Even several instructors had come to witness the duel.
From a distance, I saw Brian entering the Arena alongside Ariel. They seemed to be discussing something. Moments later, Ariel gave Brian a dazzling smile—the kind that would make any man envious of him.
It looked like Ariel had just given Brian a few words of encouragement.
After picking up a wooden sword, I walked to the center of the Duel Arena. Brian did the same, though not before suddenly embracing Ariel in front of the many students present.
Seeing that sight made my heart burn slightly. At the very least, I had grown accustomed to Raul's jealous heart.
"I'm going to defeat you and make you apologize to Ariel, Raul!" Brian said, looking confident.
I ignored his words. Instructor Torun was approaching; it seemed he would be the referee this time.
"Are both Duelists ready?" the Instructor asked, standing between Brian and me.
"I'm ready!" Brian answered.
I simply nodded, signaling that I was prepared to fight.
We did not bow to one another to show dueling etiquette because we harbored a mutual hatred.
"Begin!"
The moment the Instructor started the match, cheers from the spectators erupted throughout the Arena. Most of the students supported Brian, while only a small fraction of the nobles cheered for me.
Brian's wooden sword began to glow, a sign that he had activated the Temper reinforcement magic. I did the same to my own sword.
Brian lunged toward me, utilizing a combination of Acceleration magic and the Charging technique. It was the same method the Disciplinary Committee senior had used against me before.
Brian appeared before me instantly, unleashing a diagonal slash that I parried with ease. However, Brian didn't stop his assault. He suddenly transitioned into a rapid thrust aimed at my chest.
I responded to his swift attack by leaping backward.
"Tch, you avoided that too?" Brian muttered, looking annoyed.
The technique he just used was Lunge Attack, a rapid thrusting strike that students of this academy aren't supposed to learn until their third year.
Had Brian been training in secret with one of the instructors? In the game, Brian shouldn't have mastered that technique yet.
This was clear proof that my presence in Raul's body had slightly disrupted the world's established story route.
"A weak technique like that won't work on me."
Hearing this, Brian rushed at me again. Judging by his body movements, it looked like he was about to unleash one of his signature techniques—Dancing Sky Dragon.
"Take this! Dancing Sky Dragon!" Brian shouted as he began his combo attack.
I dodged slash after slash with ease because I knew the attack patterns of Brian's technique. Once Brian executed his final strike, I immediately countered, aiming for his left ribs.
"Agghhh!" Brian screamed in pain, his body sent flying by the counter-attack I had just delivered.
"Defeat that commoner, Lord Raul!"
"Nobles are supposed to be stronger than commoners!"
I heard the noble students shouting their support. But I didn't care; I wasn't fighting for gloomy people like them.
I walked slowly toward Brian, who was still sprawled on the ground.
"Is this all you've got? You have the nerve to challenge me with such low-level skills? Weak!" I tried to provoke him. I had to ensure Brian awakened his Blessing in this duel.
"Don't look down on me! I haven't shown you all my secret techniques yet!" Brian cried out as he slowly began to rise.
"Accel..." A faint yellow light appeared around Brian's feet.
Had he already mastered Accel magic? Even if it was Brian, I doubted he could maintain this magic for long.
Brian dashed toward me again, his speed twice as fast as before. He then jumped; it seemed he was going to use a Leaping technique.
"Leaping Slash!"
I raised my wooden sword to block Brian's attack.
Clack!
Our swords met, and my body was pushed back slightly by the momentum of his strike.
"Take this!" Unsatisfied with me blocking his attack, Brian unleashed a barrage of consecutive strikes.
How naive... He was just wasting stamina on such predictable attacks.
Well... I suppose it was natural for Brian, who still lacked significant combat experience at this point.
I easily avoided his strikes.
"Tch, you've been doing nothing but dodging! You're a coward, Raul!" Brian shouted, trying to provoke me.
I'm not as naive as you, who can only attack blindly without a plan. I suppose I have to teach you how to actually land a hit on an enemy.
"Acceleration..." I activated my speed magic. This time, I would be the one to initiate the attack.
Brian looked ready to respond, shifting into a defensive stance.
I pulled back my right hand, which held the sword, to give Brian the impression I was going for a Lunging thrust.
My plan worked. Brian began to square his feet, intending to shift his body to the right because he thought I was launching a thrust.
I immediately spun my body clockwise, executing a Spinning Slash toward Brian's right shoulder. His face twisted in shock as he saw me suddenly change my attack pattern.
"Aggghhh!" Brian screamed in pain.
I then followed up with a right kick to Brian's chest, sending his body tumbling several meters away.
See? That's how you're supposed to attack an enemy. If you can't break through an opponent's defense with Power or Agility, then you must use feints or tricks to defeat them.
This was common knowledge for veteran players like me.
"Damn it!" Brian cursed as he stood up again.
He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. This time, he gripped his wooden sword with both hands. It seemed he was going to unleash his ultimate move.
Glimmering particles of light began to emanate from his hands and feet.
"Raging Blade..." Brian whispered the name of his technique.
Raging Blade was a technique that utilized both Power and Agility. I had designed this as Brian's ultimate move to finish off his enemies in the game.
His slashes would become much stronger and heavier without reducing his attack speed. This was Brian's original technique that he created himself.
"Get ready, Raul! I'm going to make you apologize to Ariel this time!" Brian shouted as he lunged toward me.
As Brian said, I prepared to face his ultimate attack. A single hit from that strike would knock out any ordinary student.
"Haaaa!"
Brian launched his first strike, swinging his sword toward my legs.
I immediately dodged by jumping into the air. However, Brian quickly followed up. He swung his sword vertically from bottom to top, forcing me to block it with my blade.
Clack!
Our swords clashed, and my body was shoved far back by the force of his swing.
I landed on the ground with both feet. However, Brian chased me down instantly, giving me no room to initiate an attack.
With Brian's increased Power and Agility, I could no longer dodge every strike and was forced to defend with my sword.
Clack!
Our swords clashed again. I parried Brian's attack once more with my wooden sword.
This wasn't good. If this continued, I would lose because the weapon I was using would be destroyed by him.
I had to break the chain of attacks Brian was unleashing.
"I will defeat you, Raul! Take this!" Brian launched a horizontal slash.
I ducked my body to avoid it and then executed a Sweep Kick toward Brian's legs.
"Waaa!" He fell.
I immediately kicked his left ribs hard, sending his body flying and rolling across the ground.
"Cough... Cough..." Brian coughed, and blood was visible coming from him.
"Is this all the strength you have?" I said, walking toward Brian as he lay on the ground.
I then stepped on Brian's head with one foot.
"You weak loser!" I kicked Brian's body hard again.
Come on, Brian. How long do you want to remain weak and be insulted by the enemy you hate most? Hurry up and awaken your Blessing and defeat me right now.
"Ughhh..." Brian groaned in pain.
The match would not end until one of the participants surrendered or lost consciousness.
"Agghhhh!" Brian screamed in pain. I continued to kick his body like a soccer ball.
"How cruel..."
"Isn't he already helpless? Why won't he just finish him off?"
The spectators began to sympathize with Brian. It seemed they no longer expected Brian to win against me.
I then looked toward the audience, specifically toward a beautiful white-haired woman who was watching Brian's body with worry.
"Ariel! Why did you leave me for a piece of trash like this!?" I asked her while kicking Brian's body hard once more.
"Look at this pathetic man of your choice!" I stomped on Brian's head to provoke Ariel.
I hoped that by involving Ariel, Brian would be able to awaken his Blessing.
Ariel began to cry, her fists clenched tight. Suddenly, she jumped into the Arena and ran toward us.
***
[Brian's POV]
My whole body hurts so much...
Since when did Raul become this strong?
I had even trained with Instructor Torun to become stronger beforehand. Yet, for some reason, none of the attacks I launched at him were successful.
It was as if Raul already knew what I was planning. It was as if he knew exactly what attack I would use. It was as if... he could see the future of how I would strike.
I don't want to lose...
"Brian!"
I suddenly heard Ariel's voice.
The white-haired woman had jumped from the spectator stands to enter the fighting arena. What was she thinking, coming into the arena like that?
"Get up, Brian! Didn't you promise me you would defeat him!?" Ariel cried out, her cheeks wet with tears.
What was I doing? I had promised myself I would never let Ariel cry again, hadn't I?
"Don't give up, Brian! If you lose now, your dream of becoming a Knight will vanish, won't it?" Again, Ariel's words echoed in my ears.
I tried to stand, enduring all the pain wracking my body.
"Thank you, Ariel... I promise I won't give up against that man!" I reached for my wooden sword.
Yes... I had promised to achieve my dream of becoming the strongest Knight in the Empire. To defend the weak from the oppression of the nobles and protect them from the attacks of terrifying monsters.
That dream would vanish if I lost to Raul here...
I won't let that happen!
"Hooo~ You still haven't given up? Even though you know all your attacks are futile," Raul said coldly.
"I won't give up, and I won't take back my previous words..."
For some reason, the pain I felt in my body suddenly vanished.
"I will never surrender to any challenge I face..." A strange light began to illuminate my body.
On my left hand, a strange mark suddenly appeared. What did this mean?
I didn't know, but one thing was certain: I would defeat him and make him apologize for making Ariel cry!
"Raaahhhh!" I screamed at the top of my lungs to ignite my body with the fire of spirit.
I ran toward Raul again.
It was strange; my body felt incredibly light, unlike before. What was happening to my body?
I channeled mana into the wooden sword I held to reinforce it. A golden light began to envelop the blade.
Right in front of me, Raul appeared to be smiling... What was he actually thinking?
Raul tried to block my attack with his sword.
Crack!
But with this new strength of mine, I managed to shatter his sword with a single slash.
Raul's defense was wide open. I then launched a flurry of consecutive attacks on his body. This time, he couldn't respond to my strikes.
"Take this, Raging Blade!" I unleashed my strongest technique upon him.
Raul's body was sent flying until it crashed into the arena wall. Cracks formed on the surface from the impact.
Instructor Torun rushed to check Raul's condition after my ultimate move hit him.
"The winner of this duel, Brian!" the Instructor announced.
A moment of silence followed...
"Woahhhh!"
"You're amazing, Brian!"
"What kind of move was that!?"
I heard the spectators start to cheer. But there was only one person's voice I wanted to hear right now.
I turned around and saw Ariel, who was crying while covering her mouth with both hands.
I walked toward her.
"I won, Ariel..." I said weakly.
"Yes... You really were amazing, Brian," Ariel replied with a dazzling smile.
Suddenly, my vision blurred. My body felt weak, and I let myself fall into Ariel's embrace.
"I'm so tired, Ariel..."