His eyes had long since wandered around the now silent battlefield.
One and a half minutes.
'No, one minute and twenty-six seconds.' He lightly shook his head.
Not more, not less.
In fact, it would have been shorter if the ceaseless talking was to be removed.
Looking at that calm boy no taller than he, who stood above the stage, Rain wondered if he was aware of how ruthless he had been.
Like a broken doll, the man lay in front of him as the flames began to dissipate. His previous laughter was gone, replaced by the silence of his unconscious body. The previous brown rocky texture that had covered his skin had reverted back to the much earlier tanned skin tone. The leather armor that covered the chest of the figure was now nothing more than a charred waste, much less defending him from attacks, it couldn't even be worn as regular clothing in the near future.
Although the flames had previously covered the large area of the arena, all the person atop the stage did was snap his finger and they had dissipated in much the same way they had been birthed.
"Is there a reason he took it so far?" Rain turned towards the princess as he questioned.
"Hmm...I can't fully tell you...but..." Maria thought for a moment before revealing a bitter smile "do you ever wonder why, although he is a prince, he brings neither royal guards nor a personal guard?"
He realized, he had never questioned it, much less cross his mind. It was so natural, Arthur looked and acted not like a prince. His clothing was as casual as the clothe Maria wore, he also realized, this two-for the most part-did not seem like royalty.
Rain briefly eyed the emotionless guard that stood next to her, Ais, then turned his face to look at the boy that was descending down the stage.
There wasn't a trace of happiness on his face, nor was their excitement from having won the battle. His expression was the same as his normal state. It was as if he had expected such, and he showed no remorse for the state of the man atop the stage.
Was this the same person that had been playing with flames at the guild master's office?
Rain looked on the stage as the medical personals rushed to the crouching figure. Mages of the light element healed the man of the burns that crossed his body as golden light flashed in their hands. Then, they placed him upon a stretcher, before carrying him off the stage.
"You're next."
"Huh?" Rain regained his thoughts as he looked at the smiling face before him.
He thought to himself. This person that had just knocked a man unconscious, with that smile of his, he looked as if he hadn't even been there to experience it, much less been the actual culprit. Although a bit shorter than himself, Arthur still somehow gave off a small hint of a mature aura. Yet, most of the time, he liked to play the mischievous role his body's height had gifted onto him.
"It's your turn, remember the Rock Paper Scissors? It'd be Me, Then you, Then finally Ashe." The boy seemed more than glad to explain in full and, Rain was beginning to think, he was rather fond of doing just that.
However, this was one of the few attributes of the guy he didn't mind and, in fact, welcomed. Much rather than a person with no brain, he would be more inclined to talk to someone with swaggering smartness. Although, his smugness was a bit...
"Right." Rain nodded as he rid himself of his mindless thinking, his expression reverting to his original calm demeanor.
At the other side were the Howard trio, waiting to see their next opponent. He wasn't one to keep people waiting when there was no need.
He nodded towards the group then stepped upon the stage.
***
"You dare knock my older brother unconscious!!!?" The man flared with anger as he readied his bow in his right hand.
However, Rain had already stopped listening to him as he began to observe the situation.
Looking at the man before him, only one thought entered his mind: Thankfully the man didn't have a space ring to store his arrows, so they were in full display inside the basket that was strapped to his back and he didn't have an almost unlimited supply.
'Twenty Five arrows.'
Yes, he was a swordsman going against an archer. However, he wasn't entirely at a disadvantage. An archer held a limited supply of 'ammo' at a given time, and unless they could fight with other means, were utterly useless once those 'ammo' were fully used up or the distance was closed in and the battle became one of melee.
Rain unsheathed his two swords from his back as their blackened figures gleamed under the dome of light. Finally finalizing his strategy in his head, he was ready for battle.
Grasping the hilts of his blades, he stood in a slightly crouched stance, his legs prepared for a running start, and his purplish gray eyes watching the man before him in intensity.
'Last time, I wasn't of much use.' He had regretted it, stabbed in the back, he had left her to fend for herself against the assailant. And although his physical scar had long been melded with magic, he could still feel the pain.
Since he was young, he had inspired to be like his father. Training in the arts of swords, not only because his rank in mana was of the F rank, but also because it was the weapon he was drawn to. Since he was young, he had always been drawn to it, the beauty of a sword. A crude weapon since ancient times, yet, it was one of the most reliable of the bunch. There was no need for arrows like that of the bow nor mana in the case of magic. All one needed was the full concentration of their mind and body, and the resolve to trace his blade and use it to draw blood. Thankfully, he had inherited the gift of swordsmanship from his father, however, he still has to push his limits to continue to advance.
In this world, the more you fight and push your limits, the stronger you would become. It was a simple rule, yet it was one that kept many people from ever advancing in their lifetime. Not only was it hard to meet a truly fearing opponent that could catch your attention and force you to use your full abilities, it was also very unlikely for anyone to willingly brave danger and risk losing their lives. Rain felt it, since that day his blade clashed with that assassin, his swordsmanship had grown by a bit. Yet, he was still aways from a rank up.
What he inspired for was rank S swordsmanship, because, his father had once said "Why do you think swordsmanship is one of the few arts that show up on the skill plates? When you reach S rank in it, you'll naturally find out."
'It's not enough.' He gripped his blade tighter.
"Listen, boy!! I'll go at you at my best!!" The man finally nocked an arrow against his bow as he aimed towards him.
The bow of bronze wood stood steadily against his hands and the silver arrowhead was pointed directly in Rain's direction without any excess movement nor shaking on the man's part.
'Looks like I have to change my strategy.' Rain decided to watch what kind of trick the man would pull before jumping headlong.
If the man said he was going at it in full, then he had some kind of ability or skill that he was seemingly proud of.
"I, Larry, will avenge my brother!" The man seemed to be burning with fury as he released the arrow.
All Rain saw was a flash of dull silver, all he heard was the snap of the bowstring. However, that was enough for him.
His body moved with but a thought as his blades rose out in front.
A clank rang into the air, and Rain felt the resounding force of knocking an arrow away.
He did not stop for a moment as his feet kicked off the cream-colored surface of the arena.
He was closing the distance between himself and the man.
However, Rain saw something he didn't expect.
'Why is he grinning?'
It wasn't one of cockiness, he could tell, it seemed as if the man was well aware of a plan in motion. As if he had expected Rain to not only knock the arrow away but also chase after him.
As the man nocked another arrow against his bow, aimed, his lips whispered: "
At that moment, Rain saw the image of a bird descend onto the man. It looked like a phoenix except, instead of glaring red feathers of flames, it's feathers were of a jaded green and highlighted by a swirling wind. A hallowing screech escaped the beaks of the bird before it flew into the bow at the man's grasp. Providing it with a hazy light of jaded green.
'Wind Spirit!' His eyes widened.
Rain instantly shifted his weight as he jumped.
"Fly!"
He didn't see, no, he felt it. He felt the whistling wind hallowing at his ear as he evaded to escape the clutches of death.
Even as he had jumped away in time, the arrow flashing with a green light had whistled past his ear.
The arrow sped past his location, and hit the walled dome that was the light barrier.
A small ripple spread along the defensive structure as the light flashed a gleam and it was soon stopped in its track, dropping down in a motionless struggle.
"Oh? You dodged? Seems you know what a
As he staggered to reclaim his balance, Rain heard the man's voice and the pulling of the bowstring.
Raising his sights, he saw the man nocking another arrow against his bow.
His eyes immediately gleamed and followed the man's movement. He watched the man's aim, he watched the tension in the man's muscle shift, and he saw the man's hazel eyes follow its target.
'There!' Rain moved his blades just as the arrow left the man's bow.
With the twag that came from the bow, and released the arrow, he moved.
He still couldn't see the arrow's path, but he could predict. He could very well predict where the man's aim was directed.
His body moved at the highest speed his rank A speed could grant him.
'My leg!'
His swords crossed in front of his right leg and he heard the metallic sound of the arrowhead hitting his dauntless blades.
As the arrow fell down, he didn't stop for a moment and immediately dashed forwards.
The man nocked another arrow coated with a hazy light of green and fired once more.
However, Rain had already became used to this. As the arrow sped towards his direction, he chopped out.
The arrow fell to the floor and he took this chance to lung forwards at a breathtaking speed, using the full force of the stamina and strength in his body.
He wasn't aiming for the man's vitals, just inflicting a bit of injury on any nonlethal area would do. Even if he made a mistake, there were light mages within the building after all.
He slashed out at a suitable distance.
"
A jaded wind picked up around the man as a cocoon of inclosure formed around him.
Rain's two swords stopped in a clank as they refused to penetrate the barrier of wind that now encompassed the man in their 'light'.
He looked up from his position to see the man loading another arrow and aiming directly at his abdomen.
However, Rain had more than enough time to escape.
He jumped into the air and evaded the arrows path, allowing it to burrow into the stone floor.
Within the air, he dropped his left sword and moved towards the belt around his waist.
Spirits; one of the few abilities born into people that could grant some semblance of magic power. Ranging from spirits of differing properties like those of Metal Spirits to elemental spirits like those of Wind Spirits. However, as powerful as they are, they all held a weakness that made it impossible for them to ever go against and rival magic.
'A person cannot move while using a spirit, or it will be automatically canceled. And a spirit, no matter how strong, has a cool-down period before it can be used again.' His mind was working in rapidness and his strategy was being formed by the second.
The man was already nocking another arrow against his bow and preparing to aim as soon as he made contact with the ground.
'Like a lesser version of magic, it has many flaws.' His left hand, which now held no weapon, flashed to remove a needle from his belt.
As his body dropped onto the floor, and has legs found contact once more, he had already threw the weapon.
A wind barrier was indeed strong, however, that was only in the case of blunt attacks. When it came to protecting against piercing attacks, it was utterly useless.
The silver weapon gleamed under the dome of light as it sped towards the man.
Although it wasn't as fast as an arrow, it was still quite fast thanks to the stats of the person that had threw it.
Rain saw the panic within the man as he contemplated his actions. Ultimately deciding to abundant his position as he dodged the needled from grazing against his leg.
Just like that, the barrier of wind was canceled as the man hurried to regain his balance.
'There!' That was the opening he needed.
Once more, he charged with that single blade in hand.
As he watched the hazy film of jaded light dissipate from the man, he had already covered the distance.
"You lose." Rain placed the blade of his weapon at the man's neck.
Larry revealed a bitter smile as he found his bearings "I guess I really am not as strong as I thought."
He had climbed onto this stage to take revenge on his brother, who was mercilessly burnt by a fireball. Now though, all his efforts were but in vain.
"No," Rain shook his head as he removed his blade from his neck "you're strong, this is the first time in a while where I've been forced to use all my assets in a battle."
"You might not become the best adventurers in the world, but I can guarantee, your names will spread when the time comes." He revealed his honest opinion.
The man nodded, and picked up his earlier dropped bow.
"Thank you," He calmly stated "I guess we shouldn't have picked a quest that we couldn't complete."
He nodded towards Rain and began to exit the arena.
Rain watched the steps of the man echoing off the stage, before finally sighing to himself in relief.
He began to walk out, and on his way, picked up his earlier dropped sword before shearing both the blades onto his back.
He was welcomed with a small smile by Maria who briefly congratulated his victory and a small huff by Arthur mumbling something about how he could have finished faster and in a better way. The other two, Ais and Ashe, didn't bother to even acclaim his presence.
He nodded towards the group and turned his head.
"Do you have a 'Orb of Seeking' or a priest here?" He asked as he looked at the guild leader.
"Yes, what do you need it for?" O'Brien responded.
"I would like to check the rank of my swordsmanship, I think I broke through to the next major rank." Rain smiled.
At that time, Maria spoke up with eyes gleaming in gold "No need for all that, you have indeed broken from your earlier C+ from fighting the assassin to B- just now."
There was a moment that ran through Rain, in fact, the surprise ran through the others as well.
"Not only can you check the skills but you can also check the ranks?" Arthur was the one to ask the question everyone was thinking.
"Yeah." Maria nodded as if it was a matter of fact.