Judgment Duel.
Gawain was the judge.
First up was me against Lindell.
Next would be Richard against Argon.
It’s a duel tangled in very personal feelings, but it was still officially part of the class.
Gawain emphasized that.
“I know both of your private feelings are involved, but this duel is part of the lesson. Keep that in mind.”
“Yes.”
The four of us replied in unison. However, except for me, the other three seemed to have forgotten it was a lesson at all.
Their expressions were deadly.
“The rules are simple. The duel ends immediately if one side surrenders or if the judge, acting as the referee, thinks they can no longer continue.”
Lindell glared at me intensely before scoffing.
He probably envisioned a future where I cowardly surrendered.
Such big dreams.
“The loser will have to grant the winner’s request based on the results of this judgment duel. What does each of you wish from your opponent?”
“Argon.”
Richard opened his mouth immediately.
“I want that jerk… no, that guy to sincerely apologize for insulting Judas.”
“If I win.”
Argon quickly countered, “You’d have to apologize for disregarding me and Lindell.”
Gawain calmly took note of both requests.
Then Lindell added, “Judas, you’re the same. If you lose, you should grovel and beg.”
I barely managed to suppress a laugh.
This judgment duel is a truly brutish way to determine a winner based entirely on strength.
In reality, who’s right or wrong doesn’t matter.
So, after overpowering someone, all sorts of demands can arise.
Like how much money they owe you or hand over their parents or daughter’s marriage partner.
Or even make them submit completely for the next few months. Etc.
But these guys are only looking for the apology of their opponent.
‘Such simplicity shows they really are just kids.’
I thought they were adorably out of place.
I even remembered the little ones I used to watch in the gym.
“Judas. Now it’s your turn to state your request.”
Gawain urged me.
After a brief moment of contemplation, I replied.
“If I win, I want you to acknowledge your reality.”
“What do you mean by acknowledge? Requests must be specific.”
“Lindell needs to acknowledge his reality, that’s all.”
“…Got it.”
The first duel was my turn against Lindell.
In the middle of the training ground.
Other candidates circled around, creating a large ring, as Lindell and I faced each other within it.
This was undeniably part of the training.
But the candidates witnessing the actual fight didn’t care about that.
They all shouted with excitement.
“Anyone can win!”
“We’re killing each other from now!”
“Both of you just die fighting!”
These guys were simply thrilled with the situation.
“Step on that arrogant rookie!”
“Teach him that this isn’t a walk in the park!”
Lindell’s supporters shouted.
“Newbie, win! Show us like last time!”
“Break him right in half!”
The crowd was hoping for an underdog rebellion.
The stage. The players. The audience. The cheers.
A familiar feeling enveloped my entire body.
My heart raced while my brain remained calm.
I intentionally slowed my breathing.
“You arrogant brat.”
Lindell growled.
“Do you really think you can beat me at your level? There’s a limit to underestimating someone… You only got lucky against Kale, anyway.”
I ignored his words.
Just brushed them off.
This was an emotionally charged fight.
But emotions needed to be set aside.
Adrenaline dulls the pain and draws out the body’s strength.
As a counter-reaction, it also makes the body sluggish and incapable of rational strategy.
What I needed was just enough adrenaline to keep me energized. That would do.
I needed to keep my wits about me for the way I intended to fight.
I spun my loosely gripped sword and raised my shield.
‘Lindell is armed with a spear and shield. He has an advantage in reach.’
Doesn’t matter.
Being at a disadvantage doesn’t mean losing.
Gawain dropped the raised gloves high in the air.
As soon as they hit the ground accompanied by the cheers of the audience, the duel began.
*
Richard crossed his arms and clicked his tongue.
‘Tch.’
A judgment duel right from the first fight, huh?
It wasn’t that he was underestimating Judas’ skills.
Earlier in the morning, he saw that, despite being awkward, his basic stance wasn’t bad.
But practice and real combat are different.
‘Why is he so reckless?’
He was a strange one.
Sometimes acting impulsively, yet reacting with an astonishing level of rationality.
He was showing a somewhat overly mature side for his age.
Not that Richard had any place to criticize, but kids more mature than their peers tend to grow up in environments that require them to be.
That’s why he felt the urge to look out for him.
He recalled the siblings he left behind at the orphanage.
This kid, who was now two days in, was noticeable for always doing things that stood out.
That didn’t bother him.
He hadn’t done anything to be hated.
He had even brought cookies that he’d never thought about in his life.
‘Losing doesn’t matter.’
Lindell believed in Argon.
In other words, if he could beat Argon, Lindell would have to bow his head too.
‘But… why do I feel like he won’t lose?’
Not sure why.
Judas’ fighting skills weren’t anything to rave about.
Considering it was his first duel, though, it wasn’t bad.
Just about that level.
Pretty comparable to Lindell.
Clumsy movements that couldn’t lock in distance.
Off-target attacks and defenses that were either too weak or overdone.
“Uuugh—!”
The audience jeered at the dull fight.
Lindell, who started off aggressive, hesitated when things didn’t go as he expected.
“Fight hotter!”
“Is that enough to kill your opponent?”
Lindell even shrank back in response to the jeers.
On the other hand, Judas was awkward, but didn’t get swept up in the chaos.
He seemed focused on establishing a sense of distance.
Richard found himself admiring, almost unknowingly.
And Gawain, acting as the judge, thought the same.
‘He has good concentration.’
He had anticipated it would look like little puppies floundering about.
Given that, he accepted it.
The reason was simple.
Real combat was very different from training.
You could get seriously hurt by recklessly going at it emotionally.
Like this, an awkward skill set could lead to a foolish fight.
“Aah, this is so frustrating! I’d do better than that!”
“Hey, just give up! Both of you!”
Sarcasm and jeers poured down.
Eliya was a noble with many enemies.
If he became her knight, he might have to fight in this environment to uphold Eliya’s honor.
He’d accepted this judgment duel to show that kind of environment.
Lindell, somewhat recklessly, charged in.
He thrust his spear wildly.
It was a move fueled by emotion.
He could no longer stand the reality of being mocked by the audience.
“That’s it! More! Hit harder!”
As the audience incited him, Lindell got heated.
“Newbie! This isn’t fun! Just surrender!”
On the flip side, Judas remained composed.
He let the spear slide by and successfully blocked.
He was occasionally hit.
He did look for openings to counter but didn’t actually retaliate.
The knocking of wooden spears and shields, or swords made clumsy sounds.
This was a childish fight.
“Uaaah—!”
Lindell screamed as he charged in again.
“Surrender! Just give up!”
Squeak, the spear grazed his shield and went wide.
In that moment.
Thud. The tip of the sword touched Lindell’s chest.
Judas had pressed his sword against the side of his shield and stabbed it into the charging Lindell.
It was an integrated motion of attack and defense.
The sword tip pricked Lindell and withdrew.
“Wahhhhh—!”
“Newbie! That’s it! More! Ride the momentum!”
The audience rocked the stage with their cheers.
In contrast, Judas remained calm.
Lindell’s face flushed red from being swept up by the audience.
“You bastard—!”
From then on, the tables turned.
As Judas blocked or let things slide, he swiftly jabbed and retreated.
Lindell began taking effective blows one after another.
Richard observed this and frowned.
‘Is he a lunatic…?’
Facing an enemy charging right at him, with cheers all around.
That composed demeanor in such chaos made him seem almost insane.
His fighting style was frustrating compared to Richard’s, but it fit Judas perfectly.
Gawain was the one who caught onto the notable change.
‘…Training?’
Judas was blocking Lindell’s attacks and countering effectively.
It was remarkably standard movement.
Like someone well-trained.
What was odd was that he was holding back against Lindell just right.
He could have ended it long ago if he really wanted to.
But instead, he prolonged it almost as if he were educating Lindell.
“You, bastard!”
Lindell had vaguely sensed that Judas was holding back.
But he thought it was just mockery.
“How dare you! How dare you look down on me!”
Lindell spat each word bitterly while stabbing his spear randomly.
Judas didn’t block every single attack.
The lower half of his body, the shield couldn’t protect him, took several hits.
Lindell realized that too.
Aiming for the head with his spear tip.
The moment Judas lifted his shield, Lindell withdrew and jabbed downwards.
“Ugh—!”
With all his might, he extended his arm like it would explode.
Judas knew that if he got hit, he wouldn’t be able to stand again.
But.
“…….”
Thwunk, the spear struck the ground.
Judas stepped aside and stomped on the spear shaft.
Crunch… Crack!
The spear broke.
“Ah….”
Lindell groaned.
And.
“Waaaaah—!”
The audience’s cheers collided.
Right after that, Judas swung his shield like a fist.
A startled Lindell took the full brunt to the face.
Judas relaxed his neck as he looked down at Lindell, who had fallen, holding his bleeding nose.
The plan was successful.
‘Make it look like I can’t block his lower half while accidentally taking a few hits, then counter when he swings big.’
Ever since finding his sense of distance, everything had gone according to plan.
“How….”
Lindell muttered in disbelief.
He’d lost all will to fight, yet Gawain didn’t call for a stop.
He wasn’t incapacitated, after all.
“Why….”
His empty muttering was drowned out by the cheers.
Judas approached coolly and struck Lindell with his shield again.
Lindell didn’t resist and took the hits.
Blood dripped from his nose.
Judas’ gaze bore down on him coldly.
“Get up.”
“…?”
“Are you ready to quit at this level?”
Despite the rudeness of his words, Lindell couldn’t refute.
“Pick up your weapon and get up.”
The audience seemed to think this was mockery and a performance and cheered even louder.
On the other hand, Judas remained serious.
That serious demeanor only made Lindell angrier.
It felt as if Judas was genuinely looking down on him.
That gaze hurt.
“You—what do you know…!”
Lindell shuddered and protested.
“What do you know?! You’ve just gotten lucky with attention, and that’s all there is to your talent, and you act so high and mighty…!”
Uuugh, the audience jeered.
Judas said nothing.
Luck. Fortune.
Words far removed from his life.
Would it be the same even in this world?
This was a world he didn’t want to be dragged into.
Yet he knew this world’s future.
It was undoubtedly a fortune hard to express in words.
But to lump his experience in with luck felt a bit unfair.
“Shut up and decide.”
There was nothing Judas could say to him.
Telling him not to whine and to try harder was pointless.
Not every effort gets rewarded justly.
Some efforts, no matter how desperate, betray life.
Those who have desperately tried know that their efforts can sometimes be rendered meaningless.
He had lived such a life.
So he neither forced others to strive nor devalued the efforts of others.
He didn’t want to be like that.
Even now.
If not for the system’s ‘Swordsmanship’ could he have really defeated Lindell?
Saying he could do well in life would feel deceptive.
It’s not the deception towards the opponent that matters.
It’s the deception towards himself.
Deception easily turns into arrogance.
And arrogance eventually transforms into defeat and laziness.
Judas didn’t want that.
He just wanted to teach Lindell one thing.
“Either get up and fight, or surrender. Make it clear.”
“…….”
“Don’t escape into a fantasy; instead, face the reality. Are you embarrassed to be beaten by a junior? Then quit right now.”
Instead of telling him not to whine and to try harder, he wouldn’t give any false hope that everything could be achieved through effort.
But he could still tell Lindell not to freeze and just stand still.
There was a clear distinction between running from choices and consciously choosing to run away.
“Feeling wronged or frustrated? Want to beat me? Then go ahead. Get up, swing that broken spear around, charge at me and bash your head into mine.”
“…….”
“If you just stand still, you’ll achieve nothing. If you’re going to do it, do it for sure. Don’t be wishy-washy.”
The audience who had been cheering fell silent.
The little boy’s voice captivated the crowd.
It was simple, obvious, even a bit cliché.
Cliché to the point that everyone thought they knew it well.
They knew it well enough that they didn’t want to hear it again.
But humans can become numb to the familiar.
A dulled truth can sometimes be forgotten.
“…….”
Lindell staggered and pushed himself up.
He grabbed the broken spear.
The jagged tip now looked more menacing than before.
So he turned it upside down.
This wasn’t about killing; it was about winning.
Judas maintained his calm expression throughout.
Lindell’s heart, too, settled down.
He said nothing and simply charged at his opponent again.
The audience’s cheers grew hotter than ever.
*
“Winner, Judas.”
Gawain declared.
“Waaaaah—!”
“Judas! Judas! Judas—!”
The crowd chanted my name.
It was an easy victory.
After all, he had let Lindell go just for fun.
Not that he was underestimating him.
He just wanted to teach one lesson to a childish kid.
Watching someone blame others while escaping into fantasy felt like reminiscing about someone from his own childhood.
That was it.
“Huff, huff….”
Lindell lay sprawled on the floor, breathing heavily.
My punches had left his face covered in blood.
Seeing that made me feel somewhat guilty.
‘Did I hit him too hard at the end?’
I approached Lindell and offered my hand.
“I won.”
Lindell stared at my hand for a while before chuckling softly.
“…Yeah.”
Finally, he grasped my hand firmly.
“You asked me to acknowledge my reality.”
“Yes.”
“…Yeah. I understand. I get what you mean.”
That was the end of it.
Gawain suddenly called to me.
“Judas, are you satisfied with that?”
I looked at Lindell, who was moving away.
There was no strength in his steps as he walked through the crowd.
He looked like he might fall over at any moment.
Only the responsibility of standing on his own remained now.
“Yes.”
“Right. You’re a strange one….”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind. Next up. Richard and Argon.”
The audience, feeling a bit deflated, began to heat up again.
Richard dashed out as if he had been waiting for this moment.
“Argon! Come out here, you bastard—!”
“Shut up already….”
Argon stepped out holding a sword and shield.
In contrast, Richard only held a huge two-handed sword.
It was a genuine battle between two relatively senior candidates from the 5th cohort.
The excitement among the audience was palpable against their skin.
“I will begin.”
Gawain lifted his gloves high.
Around this time, a notification arrived.
[Hidden Quest Discovered.]
[‘Yesterday’s Enemy Is Today’s Ally’ is in progress….]
‘…In progress?’
Regardless of my doubts, the gloves dropped to the ground.
As soon as they hit the dust, Richard charged forward.
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