"Uh…no?"
I was staring at Lionel Stuart in disbelief. What the fuck was the middle-aged patriarch trying to play at?
"This is my very own magic…well, not exactly mine, but it belongs to my Green Dragon."
The chibi Green Dragon reappeared and floated above me, growling…cutely. I mean, his current form looked like it belonged to a stuffed animal. Not exactly very convincing or intimidating.
Stuart watched me, fascinated. "Really? Those wood-element spells look very similar to the techniques of my clan. The one you just used…Spring of Hellebore, and the one from earlier…Dance of the Sakura Blossoms, if I'm not mistaken…those are extremely advanced wood techniques of the Stuart Clan. Where did you learn them from?"
"It's just a coincidence, I assure you," I assured him while trying to suppress my irritation. "The element of my Celestial Guardian, Green Dragon, is wood. And so his spells are wood-based. It just happens to resemble your techniques, but I created them myself. By your logic, every wood magician must have learned their spells from the Stuart Clan."
"The issue isn't that you used wood magic. It's that your techniques are extremely similar to the secret sword techniques passed down our clan." This time, Cecilia had joined in, rising from her seat as she explained. Folding her arms, she stared at me intently. "Forgive me, but it's very difficult for Father and me to believe that this close resemblance is merely a coincidence."
I pushed my glasses up my nose as I sighed. "I'm telling the truth. If you don't believe me, then I don't know what to say."
"Where did you learn those techniques from?" Stuart repeated his question firmly. "I must really insist that you tell me."
"I made them up myself," I replied stubbornly. "I don't know anything about the Stuart Clan's wood magic or sword techniques. Not unless either of you admit to teaching me your techniques, but that's impossible, right?"
Father and daughter glanced at each other, and then shook their heads.
"This is the first time we've met," Stuart pointed out.
"Other than that match all those months ago, I have never shown him any of my techniques," Cecilia said as well. "And we never really had a chance to encounter each other. It's not me."
"That's because I didn't learn it from anybody!" I exploded, a vein bulging in my temple. Just how thick were these people? "I just scraped together whatever skills I learned from school, combined it with whatever wood magic I read from books, and used my imagination to create Green Dragon and his wood spells!"
"I hardly think Jing Tian Academy has the staff capable of teaching you such advanced wood magic," Cecilia remarked skeptically.
"What books did you read?" Stuart asked, still not giving up. I paused for a moment, racking my memory.
"Five Clover Mysteries by Woody Allen, The Essence of Wood Element by Elliot Wood, The Hidden Secrets of Forest Magic by Fred Forrester, and Encyclopedia of Hundred Flowers by Cassandra Flowers."
"Ah. I personally know Cassandra." Stuart leaned back in his golden throne, nodding as he looked convinced. "Her book is an excellent one, and is certainly not one meant for beginners. But you've also read Wood's Essence of Wood Element, which is the must-have book on basic wood magic for beginners, so I can't say I'm surprised."
"You can't be saying that you seriously believe him, Father," Cecilia protested hotly. "We need to find out how…"
"Are you saying someone from our family taught him, Cecilia?" Stuart asked. She hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.
"We have to consider that possibility and track down who is leaking our clan's techniques."
"Even if there is, no one is leaking them to me," I snapped in annoyance. "I'm telling the truth. You can cast a truth spell on me if you don't believe me."
Stuart raised a hand. "There is no need to go that far. I will take your word for it. You have no reason to lie. If you meant to keep the identity of your teacher a secret, you wouldn't have displayed it right in front of me and my daughter of all people."
"…that's true," Cecilia conceded reluctantly.
"But I must say…those wood spells are really impressive. It's amazing that you can create such spells that resemble my clan's ancient techniques so closely…techniques that have been secretly passed down my family for generations."
"Bah!" it was Franklin. Apparently, he was agitated that everybody was focusing their attention on me and leaving him in the sidelines. "I hate to interrupt this conversation, but who cares if this lowly commoner has learned some wood magic or not. As long as the winner has yet to be determined, our match isn't over."
"Oh, but it does play a critical role," Stuart corrected him. "If Richard has mastered such advanced wood magic, then he has a much greater claim to becoming my successor. His techniques, while impressive, are still raw and flawed. If I personally teach him the Stuart Clan's sword style, I'm sure he will reach greater heights, especially as a mage."
Franklin seethed in frustration, but I quickly held up both hands.
"I appreciate your sentiment, Lord Stuart, but I am unable to become your successor. I wish to follow in my father's footsteps, and I have my own set of magic I wish to focus on." Green Dragon floated above me, growling silently. "My main theme is constellations, and not wood magic."
"Ah…the ancient Chinese constellations from over millennia ago." Stuart nodded in understanding. "That explains your Green Dragon. And the Vermillion Phoenix and White Tiger you used against my daughter during your match against her."
"Well, are we going to continue the fight or not?" Franklin demanded impatiently. I could see that he was getting desperate.
"Oh, yes. I'm sorry for interrupting the both of you. Please go on." Stuart looked as if he had just only remembered that the two of us were in the middle of a duel.
Franklin bowed in thanks before turning to face me. He grinned. "If all goes well, I'll settle this match with my next attack."
"Then do it instead of…telling me of your intentions?" I asked, confused. What idiot went and told his opponent what he intended to do or how he was going to attack during a match? Was he trying to get himself killed or something?
"I don't need you to tell me that!" Franklin's face darkened in fury. The idiot really talked too much. Rearing his hand back, he began accumulating a large amount of mana into his sword. Waves of mana began washing across the room like tidal waves and surging toward him. "Franklin Ultimate Style: The King's Ultimate Royal Requiem."
He dashed across the room at superhuman speed, thrusting heavily with his sword. White, vicious tongues of energy lanced from his blade, slicing and tearing into everything that was in his path. They headed straight for me, predictably enough.
"Green Dragon," I called out. My chibi Celestial Guardian nodded once, and then transformed into a serpentine strip of green mana that coiled around me and my blade. Raising my sword high, I then completed the casting of yet another new spell. "Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms."
Suddenly, the air was saturated with pink fruits. The green and brown mana coalesced into rows of peach trees that stood on either side of me. Peach blossoms began drifting away from the branches, filling the air with a sweet scent. The white tongues of energy were sucked into the burgeoning peach blossoms, which swelled at a terrifying rate.
The expanding peach blossoms then drifted toward a stunned Franklin. Try as he might, there was no way he could escape from tens of thousands of peach blossoms that surrounded him on all sides. I caught one last glimpse of his terrified face before the vibrant sea of peach blossoms engulfed both his vicious tongues of energy and their owner like a tidal wave, greedily swallowing them up.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Franklin's scream tore across the room as he unleashed every ounce of mana he had in him in order to break free from the sea of peach blossoms. The myriad of pink flowers and fruits were blasted apart and withered away as the force of the explosion ripped them apart.
"Damn." I sighed in disappointment. "That Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms didn't even reach a tenth of its original strength. If I could just use its full power, then he would never be able to overload them like that."
A loud, splitting sound drew my attention to my sword. A huge chunk of metal had just fallen from the blade. Chipped and cracked everywhere, it seemed that my sword wouldn't be able to withstand another spell. Despite my caution and apprehension, I was still unable to prevent the poor weapon from falling apart.
"That was an interesting attack."
Franklin stumbled out of the smoke and fell to his knees. Thrusting his half-broken sword into the ground, he leaned on it to prevent himself from collapsing. His entire body was red and bloody, with numerous cuts and bruises lining his face and arms. Even his suit was not spared, huge gouges and rips prevalent over the expensive fabric. I doubted that any professional tailor would ever be able to mend it. Despite his beleaguered state, Franklin continued to taunt me defiantly.
"But is that all you've got?"
Ignoring him, I tossed my ruined sword to the side. It struck the polished, marble floor of the arena and bounced off several times before finally laying still.
"What is the meaning of this?" Franklin spat breathlessly. Panting, he struggled to his feet and pointed his blade at me. "Don't tell me you're giving up? So…you're admitting defeat, aren't you?"
Wow…this guy was truly delusional, wasn't he? I shook my head and watched in amusement as he sank back to his knees, unable to remain standing for even a few seconds.
"Really? Is that what this situation looks like to you?" I tried my best not to laugh. "I'm the one standing while you're the one on your knees. And you're in a much worse condition than I am. So which of us do you think will win if this fight goes on?"
Franklin gnashed his teeth in fury and frustration. "You've discarded your weapon. Isn't that as good as saying you're giving up? Even if you claim that you're not giving up, then what the hell are you going to fight with now?"
I raised both my hands in the air and grinned.
"My bare hands will be more than enough to deal with the likes of you," I replied as I slowly strolled toward him, keeping my hands raised. "Noble."
"Why, you…! Know your place, scum!" Franklin yelled. With a sudden explosive burst of strength, he jumped to his feet and lunged at me with his sword.
I calmly waited for him to draw closer. Once he was within range, I reached out and grabbed his blade with my right hand. Squeezing the metal tightly while simultaneously casting a simple physical reinforcement spell, I increased the pressure of my grip…
…and shattered the blade.
"W…what?" Franklin stumbled back, stunned from the impossible sight. "You…you…how…? This can't be possible!"
Ignoring the rambling "noble", I turned to Stuart and bowed politely. "If I recall correctly, Lord Stuart, you said that you wish to see our true abilities. Am I right in remembering so?"
Stuart nodded. "Indeed, I did express my desire to see the true abilities of both of you. And the two of you have not disappointed me in that aspect. This truly has been an entertaining match."
I smiled darkly and shook my head. "You haven't seen anything yet. I mean no offense, but if I may make a request…"
"Oh? What sort of request?" Stuart leaned forward, intrigued. I lowered my head respectfully.
"If you do not mind, I hope you can lend Mr. Franklin a far better sword than the ones you gave us for this match."