Chapter: 289
I knew Kal was strong.
He was a familiar opponent with whom I’d had countless sparring sessions before. I had often watched him train with other knights while staying at the Alrn estate.
But facing that strength head-on was a completely different story.
“Gah!”
As I blocked his swing, my body got pushed back, and the distance we had so carefully shortened was once again widened.
Damn it. While I can fend off the attack, being shoved back is just annoying.
How can that guy, who’s not even buff, be this strong!? Is he a mix of external and internal muscles or something?!
“You managed to block that too? Your skills have truly skyrocketed with real combat experience. You really are something, Young Lady.”
Kal, standing a few paces away, expressed sincere admiration, but to me, it felt more like he was tea-bagging.
I mean, what’s the point of praising me when he’s the one who’s just been overwhelming me all along?
“Are you pretending to compliment me because you’re embarrassed you couldn’t break my shield?♡ Your swordplay is just pathetic!♡”
“Haha! What would I have to be embarrassed about? It’s your shield we’re talking about!”
What was even more irritating was that Kal wasn’t biting the bait I was throwing at him.
Usually, at this point, he’d show some sign of getting angry, but that guy remained calm as ever.
Maybe he’s built up a tolerance from receiving my insults all the time.
Here he comes again. A strike starting from above on my right side.
The blade was real yet fake at the same time, aiming to deal some serious damage.
If I don’t handle this right, he’ll swing with full intent to break me, and even if I try to counter it, he’ll just make that a diversion and aim for the next strike.
He has enough confidence in handling me that he can play around like that.
As the one being attacked, it’s frustrating as hell.
I know I should move my feet and go on the offensive to avoid this, but I didn’t.
It wasn’t an emergency situation that required me to take such a gamble.
“Wow.”
After dodging his two strikes neatly, Kal’s eyes widened in surprise. He probably didn’t expect his plan to be foiled so easily.
Honestly, I was surprised too.
For sure, my proficiency with the shield had increased rapidly, but more than that, my body felt unusually light.
“With such a pathetic sword, what are you planning to cut?♡ You couldn’t even give a decent hairstyle to anyone!~♡”
“I wouldn’t know, I’ve never tried! Want to give it a go?!”
“No way!♡ How could I trust a creep like you?♡”
The back-and-forth continued.
Kal swung his sword to break through my defenses. I desperately blocked each strike.
From an outsider’s perspective, it looked like an intense battle of wits, but I knew better.
Kal still had a few tricks left up his sleeve.
The feints he had shown during sparring with Possell,
And the best he displayed when facing Duke Burrow not long ago—
It all had to be more than this.
“You’re blocking this too!”
How long had we been stuck in this static standoff? I began feeling the changes within me as my divine power surged.
Controlling the divine energy inside felt way too comfortable.
I didn’t even have to think about it. It flowed through me naturally, like breathing.
And that’s not all. I could feel an overall boost in my physical abilities.
Things I couldn’t see before now came into view.
Things I couldn’t block before, I was blocking now.
Things I shouldn’t have been able to react to, I was reacting to.
It was clear.
Strength. Agility. Reaction speed. Hand-eye coordination.
They were all on a whole new level.
Is this what it means to have my divine power enhanced?
I couldn’t notice it when looking in a mirror, but facing a strong opponent made the change pretty clear.
Armadhi! I’m sorry for calling you a pathetic lolicon creep without reason! How would I know my body had improved without a status window?!
I mean, just give me a status window! A status window! Anything that makes understanding easier, just give it to me!
“It’s pathetic, really. Is this all you can do?♡”
As I started to get used to the changes happening to me, one thing became certain.
If Kal keeps fighting like this, I’d surely find an opening soon.
If I leverage that guy’s leniency, I can definitely land a real hit.
Not a hit that would just leave a bruise, but one that would knock his spirit out of him.
“Our little loser is so considerate!♡”
But that’s not what I wanted.
“Are you afraid to show your teeth to your master?♡”
Right now, my goal isn’t to take down Kal.
I want to know how far I can push myself in dire situations.
I want to know just how much I can block.
So, Kal, I’m gonna dig into your insides a bit.
If you had been perceptive enough, I wouldn’t have had to go this far.
What can I say? You’re a pathetic little pup who can’t even grasp your master’s intent.
“A loyal little pup, huh?♡”
“Thank you for the compliment!”
Seeing Kal smile even at being called a pup made me grin back at him.
While the sparring continued, he must also have been reading me, but the same went for me.
By identifying my weaknesses, he revealed what made him awkward.
Not just the lacking parts of Kal’s sword but also the things he didn’t want to hear.
“What a shame!♡ I don’t want such a cute pup, though~♡”
“…Huh?”
For the first time, a flicker of emotion crossed Kal’s face at my words.
Using the gap created by that moment, I aimed to strike him with my shield.
However, he was Kal.
As soon as he saw my movement, he hurriedly moved to block my attack.
“I want a fierce dog with sharp fangs!♡”
I pondered as I spoke.
His stance seemed a bit off, should I decide to drive in?
…No. If I go too forward, I’ll get hit.
Let’s back off and regroup.
“You’re not the neutered loser I’m looking for!♡”
“Lady, that….”
“Why?♡ Are you perhaps telling me your best shot was this?♡ Ha ha! So you really are just a neutered pup!♡ Poor thing!♡”
“…Fine. I’ll pick up the pace.”
Kal’s sword was now imbued with magic.
An aura.
Haha. Right. It’d have been great if you’d started like this.
Sure, he’s loyal, but he should also consider what his master actually wants instead of just blindly accommodating me. Silly pup.
So, do I have to help you think?
Watching the aura gradually grow stronger, I infused my shield with divine energy.
And as I raised it, a smile reflected on the back of the shield.
Not a smile meant to mock him, but one that reflected my genuine joy in this situation.
“I will show you how sharp that loyal pup’s fangs really are.”
“Really?♡ Don’t overdo it!♡ If you lose the rest of your teeth, it’ll be too embarrassing!♡”
For now, my immediate goal is to put some color into that pure magic aura.
*
It’s common knowledge that Lucy Alrn has far surpassed the standard of a first-year at the academy.
She’s a monster among monsters, far from the norm. Viewed as the holy light that will bring glory to the kingdom after Benedict Alrn.
Of course, Arthur was well aware of the insane talent she possessed.
He harbored a longing to even surpass her once, and thus he took pride in knowing her strength better than anyone.
“…Hah.”
However, that was just an illusion.
“Did she hide so much from us?”
Now, facing her in combat, Lucy was anything but a simple student.
What the heck? The way she moves that shield.
Not only does she easily deflect an aura-imbued sword, but she also seems to toss it aside like it was nothing.
And it’s not like her opponent is just any regular knight.
She’s going against a knight from the Alrn family, one who is truly elite, someone even the first knight order in the capital can’t scoff at.
How can someone with such proven talent, a knight who is highly regarded by Benedict Alrn for his skills and assigned to protect his daughter, be laughed off like that?
Arthur watched from a daze, imagining himself opposite those two.
If I stood across from Kal?
It’s not a matter of winning or losing.
It’d be about how many seconds I could endure.
If I’d last for 10 seconds, that’d be quite the achievement for me.
And facing Lucy?
That wouldn’t even be worth discussing.
Instead of pushing Lucy back like Kal is doing, I’d probably get toyed with by her sharp tongue and end up coming across as someone not worthy of her time.
Hah. Damn it.
What even is a genius, huh?
A genius is when they label those monsters as geniuses.
I’m just a fool who thinks way too highly of himself.
This feeling of being crushed is quite unfamiliar.
It hurts—really hurts.
I thought I had grown used to watching my older brother shine, but it seems not.
“I’ll never beat that girl.”
“That’s not true.”
Uttering a weak remark founded on my sense of despair, I was answered by Frey. She was completely absorbed, focused on the back-and-forth of Lucy and Kal.
“Lucy is strong, but she’s not unbeatable.”
“Are you saying that after seeing this?”
“If you can infuse color into that aura, it’ll be entirely possible.”
Is she teasing me again?
For a first-year at the academy using an aura is already incredible, and now she’s also asking if I can imbue it with color?
Reality is, my little brother is getting to praise for his numerous mistakes only because of Lucy Alrn illuminating his path.
I turned to shut Frey down, but just the moment I glanced her way, I swallowed my words. Her eyes lit up with excitement as she was engaged in the scene before her.
“…Are you being serious?”
“Prince 2 did it, why can’t you? He’s worse with a sword than me and way dumber than Prince 3.”
Ah.
Right.
I see how it is.
It’s been obscured by the sudden emergence of that shooting star, but this girl is a monster in her own right.
Wasn’t she the one standing tall next to Lucy Alrn just a year ago?
As I let out an involuntary chuckle at the absurdity of it all, Frey slowly continued.
“Are you really not confident, thinking you’re worse than Prince 2?”
I gritted my teeth at the question of whether I was less capable than the second prince.
Did she just provoke me on purpose?
Nah. She shouldn’t know the bond between me and my big brother.
“Not a chance.”
Still, it turned out that even my offhand remark can get me heated.
“I’m definitely more capable than that silly big brother of mine.”
“Is that so?”
“I’ll show you.”
Having repeated arduous training, I had a grasp on the aura now.
I might not handle it perfectly yet, but it wouldn’t take long before I could use it in an actual fight.
“I’ll reach the color before you do.”
After that, everything else would be easy.
I’ll shove everyone—my little brother, her, everyone—under me.
“Prince 3? Before me?”
“Of course, I’ll be faster than a dumb loser like you.”
“But still, Prince 3, you’re just a slouch who’s lost to me.”
“I don’t know when you’re talking about. You sound like a person stuck in the past.”
“Wanna give it a shot?”
“Come at me!”
Arthur turned his attention back to the spar, feeling the tension rise between Frey and himself, as he observed Lucy and Kal’s battle unfold.
He was determined to catch the way the knights from the Alrn family utilized their aura.
*
At some point, Kal stopped playing tricks.
Instead of dilly-dallying to break my defense, he aimed to completely demolish my shield with his pure power, reminiscent of the way he fought when sparring with Possell.
That last play was just a joke; this time he was dead serious.
While I blocked his devastating strikes with my divine shield, I couldn’t help but laugh.
I was having so much fun.
It’s exhilarating knowing I’ve become stronger.
That I’m capable of engaging in such a fight.
That my shield is take in those blows.
And seeing the escalating worry in Kal’s brow!
“The fangs of a loser… are so dull?!♡”
“You don’t seem very relaxed yourself!”
“Just… you’re making me say this because you want to believe it!♡…”
While it’s getting tougher to fend off his strikes,
Not yet. I still haven’t faced his true color.
So I can’t afford to stop here.
“Even a leash is wasteful for a pathetic pup!♡”
I want to see your true strength so I can unleash all my power!
Hey! Awareness-challenged barely-competent knight!
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