Chapter 111. Who Are You to Act So Friendly? (2)

“Begin!”

Simultaneously with the referee's command, Alex shot forward.

Kwaaaang!

The swords of the two, who had raised their auras from the very beginning, clashed, letting out a tremendous roar.

The two of them spread their legs slightly wide to find their center and began to exchange fierce blows.

Kwaang! Kwang! Kwaaaang!

Sword against sword, or sword against shield.

A relentless clash continued at mid-range with no retreat.

“Ooooh!”

“Nice. This is intense.”

“Fight!”

The crowd immediately erupted.

Although they had gathered talented individuals representing various nations to hold the tournament, relatively heated matches were rare.

This was because, on such a grand stage, everyone fought with caution, prioritizing prudence over boldness.

But this match was uncharacteristically fierce.

Both stopped at a dangerous distance from each other, moving ceaselessly and exchanging offense and defense.

To the spectators, it seemed like a good match-up between two fiery individuals.

But the reality was different.

‘This madman…’

Alex’s opponent was a representative of the Magellan Kingdom, a master who had reached the mature realm of the 4-star level.

The tournament was being held in his home country, and his family had come to watch him.

So he wanted to win at all costs and had planned to approach the match cautiously.

But that plan was shattered by Alex’s very first move.

Alex had rushed in quickly to close the distance and then unleashed a storm-like barrage of fierce, consecutive attacks at close range.

Being skilled to some extent, he knew.

He couldn't back down here.

Doing so would mean giving up the pace of the match and boosting his opponent's momentum.

In the end, he had no choice but to fight back.

Right now, this situation wasn’t a mutual fight; it was him being forced to face Alex, who was pouncing on him like a starved wolf.

‘I have to break the flow somehow.’

He thought while continuously exchanging blows.

It wasn't good to continue this exchange according to the opponent's will.

To turn the match to his own pace, he had to create distance somehow.

To do that…

“Haaaaap!”

With a powerful shout, the aura gathering on his sword grew denser.

Kwaang! Kwang! Kwaang!

Their swords clashed violently and separated.

But little by little, Alex was getting slower at correcting his posture.

He was being pushed back by strength.

Although it was a very slight difference, the opponent's aura was more powerful than Alex's.

Kwaaaang!

After a powerful attack connected, Alex's posture wavered slightly.

‘Good. Now’s my chance.’

Not missing the opening, the opponent immediately retreated, creating distance.

He didn't want to be part of this dogfight any longer.

Fighting from a distance, calmly…

“Heok!?”

It was then.

Alex threw a move his opponent could never have imagined.

“This madman!”

Literally, threw.

Alex had boldly thrown his kite shield at the retreating opponent.

For the opponent, who had been feeling relieved after creating distance, it was a horrifying moment.

A knight throwing his weapon?

What about honor?

What about dignity?

‘Does the Academy of the Atronia Kingdom teach this kind of bullshit?’

In truth, he had learned it not from the Academy but from Patrick.

To be precise, should I say he learned it during the hellish practical training Patrick had put him through?

The standard way is good.

It's excellent.

But in a real battle, you can only win by the book when you are stronger than your opponent.

For a relatively weaker person to survive in a real fight, they have to do whatever it takes.

Alex, who had firmly realized this point, did not hesitate to use the unconventional move of throwing his shield on this glorious stage called Arcana.

“Keuk…”

Kwaaaang!

The opponent blocked the powerfully spinning shield with his sword, but his posture momentarily crumbled.

And not missing that moment, Alex threw his decisive move.

‘It’s still incomplete but…’

It was definitely a feeling like this.

Hold the sword with both hands.

The center of balance must never collapse.

For the footwork, the left foot takes one step forward.

[ Samjae Sword Art: Mount Tai Crushing the Top. ]

-Mimicry-

“Haaaaap!”

This one move he had seen when he first fought Patrick.

This one move that never disappeared from his mind, awake or asleep.

That damn archdemon wouldn't teach him even when he asked, but he had continued to practice on his own.

The result.

Though still incomplete, the best strike Alex could muster fell towards the opponent's head.

“Not a chance!”

The opponent also met Alex's attack with an upward slash from below.

The result…

Kwaaaaaaang!

An intense sonic boom created by the collision of aura against aura.

Ting.

And what was heard a beat later was the sound of someone's sword falling to the floor.

“How could this be… I…”

The one who dropped the sword was the representative of the Magellan Kingdom, looking at his trembling hand as if he couldn't believe it.

Alex, looking slightly pale, pointed his sword at him and said.

“The match is decided.”

“……”

The representative of the Magellan Kingdom gritted his teeth with a shameful expression.

But…

“Alex Rowensky wins!”

Just as Alex said.

The match was decided.

“Wooo! Senior!”

“Alex, you bastard! You…”

“Congratulations.”

Congratulations poured in from his colleagues for the victorious Alex.

Isabella had already secured one victory, washing away the shame of the Atronia Kingdom.

But that didn't mean Alex's victory wasn't joyous.

Putting aside the monster named Patrick who had fallen out of nowhere…

Alex Rowensky was the finest talent produced by the Academy of the Atronia Kingdom right now.

The fact that such an Alex had won held great significance.

Even Professor Leyte approached Alex with a proud expression and said.

“You’ve worked hard. Really… you’ve really worked hard.”

“Thank you, Professor.”

After receiving thanks from his colleagues, Alex looked at Patrick, who was watching him with a peculiar expression, and said.

“Don’t you have anything to say?”

“It was sloppy.”

At Patrick’s blunt words, Alex let out a small sigh and said.

“Is that so?”

Seeing Alex's bitter smile, Patrick thought.

‘This brat has imbued willful intent into his sword.’

This was truly unexpected.

Sure, he had shown it once.

In their first meeting, Patrick had shown what it meant to imbue will into a sword and project it.

But honestly, he hadn't expected anything.

No, just think about it.

If a sage whose knowledge reached the heavens preached his wisdom to a child playing in the dirt, would the child understand it?

For a martial artist, imbuing willful intent is by no means a simple task.

To put it bluntly, even Professor Leyte, who had reached the seventh-star realm, could do it unconsciously but not consciously.

This was because the level of martial arts in this world was still lacking.

‘But this brat did it?’

Of course, it wasn't done properly.

Even if he imbued willful intent, it was just a tiiiiny bit.

It was a feeling as if it contained an amount equivalent to a chick's tear.

‘But on the other hand, the fact that he did it at all is important… Ah, I don't know. Was this bastard more of a genius than I thought?’

It was a strange feeling.

A little bit proud, a little bit resentful, it felt good, but what was this feeling of mischief welling up from the depths of his chest?

To Patrick, who was seriously contemplating his emotions for the first time in a while, Alex spoke.

“Patrick.”

“What? I’m busy right now.”

“No, but still.”

“I said I’m busy.”

“The referee is calling you.”

“Huh?”

Only then did Patrick snap out of it and look at the tournament grounds, where the referee was frowning and looking in his direction.

“Patrick Schneider! If you do not come out immediately, you will be disqualified.”

“Ah… I’m coming now. I’m coming!”

Patrick hurriedly ran out.

And the representatives of the Atronia Kingdom sighed as they watched Patrick's back.

“Gosh, sorry for being late. I was lost in thought…”

Seeing Patrick grinning foolishly after getting on the stage, the referee also sighed.

And then he spoke as if he had just realized something.

“Where is your sword?”

“My sword is… Ah! My sword!”

Only then realizing he had come up empty-handed, Patrick spoke to his side.

“Senior, throw me my sword.”

“How can I throw a sacred sword?”

To Alex who shouted back, Patrick grumbled.

“Why can’t you? You threw your own shield just fine.”

“Keuk…”

Alex, his face flushed, grabbed Patrick’s twin swords and threw them with all his might.

“Dieeeee!”

Was that something to say while throwing a sword to a junior?

Clap!

“Thanks.”

Seeing him catch it so casually, it seemed okay after all.

Patrick drew both swords and said to the referee.

“Alright, I’m ready.”

The referee thought.

For the dignity of this sacred Arcana, it would be better if such a frivolous guy were eliminated quickly.

Fortunately, his opponent was suitable for the referee’s wish.

“Jayton Rude Magellan!”

As the contestant’s name was announced, the loudest cheers yet erupted.

“Waaaaah!”

“It’s the Prince!”

“Long live the Magellan Kingdom!”

The Sword Saint's grandson.

The youngest paladin candidate.

The magic swordsman of the Tower of Truth, and so on.

There were many strong contenders for the championship, but what the crowd wanted most was one of their own, wasn't it?

At this point, with the prince of the Magellan Kingdom appearing as a representative in Arcana, the cheers pouring down on him were only natural.

“Hoh… discrimination, is that it?”

Although there was also a guy who couldn't accept that natural course of events.

The feelings of petulance and displeasure were steadily rising inside Patrick.

In contrast to Patrick's sullen expression, Prince Jayton appeared, basking in the cheers that poured down on him.

‘Yes. This is it. This is exactly it.’

The audience chanting his name.

The glorious stage of Arcana.

It was for this moment that he, born into royalty, had trained, swinging his sword until his hands were torn apart since he was a child.

This moment, right now, would be talked about for years to come, even after he ascended to the throne.

‘Something like that.’

Just thinking about it was thrilling.

Even the offering on the stage right now was just too perfect.

“Kekeke… I didn’t expect to meet you again like this.”

“…Huh?”

“Don’t be too scared. I have no intention of decorating the first page of my legend with blood.”

“…Huh?”

“Just be prepared to lose an arm. Brat.”

Seeing Prince Jayton draw his sword with a cold smile, Patrick raised his hand and said.

“Wait, just a moment.”

“What is it? Are you planning to beg me to go easy on you now?”

“No, that’s not it…”

Patrick brought a hand to his head and scrunched his face.

With an expression as if trying to squeeze something out, the groaning Patrick said.

“It’s no use. No matter how much I think, I can’t remember.”

“…Huh?”

“Who are you? Who are you to act so friendly? Huh?”

“…Huh?”

Prince Jayton Rude Magellan.

His legend began to get severely twisted from its very first page.

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