After the 6 hour mark, knights started to get out of stamina. If you see how the whole spar went, then I can divide these knights in 3 stages.
One's who were green, with low experience, they were nothing, even if they were only starting… I think their aspiration needed more life to it. Giving up too early just because you're new… yeah those guys can't go far. You have to have a will strong enough to endure the pain and go the distance, even one more minute was enough and that one extra minute was their growth period.
Then came the ones who were pretty good and had even the strength to endure… but… they were potentially weak. Having low potential was a very big reason to not be able to go forward. But… if they had lower potential to achieve techniques… I believe they could have strived to achieve raw power. I know that technique can't be overpowered with strength, but strength was needed more to grow the techniques.
And finally… the potentially strong ones who were filled with not only desire to fight but even the desire to win. Those who didn't see this spar as a training but a challenge to overcome. These guys… yeah… these guys were far removed from the others. Even with lower strength and techniques some of them exceeded others with sheer will to face the challenge. No matter their standing or potential; thus I say that desire to win… yup that was frightening.
For people like them.. They grew endlessly in a fight like this… and that they did.
Now, they all look exhausted, the ones who were standing were probably at the forefront of humanity, they were swinging their swords for 6 hours straight. Moreover, counting all of them, only a single unit of knights were left, so they couldn't even have a single break.
Even after all of that… they had this fire in their eyes as if burning like a phoenix.
After 30 more minutes, only a couple of knights remained and soon the last pair of knights came attacking me too. These 2 were the last ones standing after my last strong punch. The field was now littered by knights who were down for the count.
"You guys are the last one… So I will try to get you to retire together."
"If you can take 2 of us down at the same time, then I will have to acknowledge your strength sir Rekka." Paul the male knight said.
"That is right, I am in awe by seeing you still breathing normally…." the female knight who said so looked ragged herself... not to mention blood was dripping all over their bodies…
since they took quite a lot of heavy hits that pressured their body enough to even say they were hit by blunt weapons, they may not have cuts that loosed blood, but they had inter injuries, that's why were coughing out blood constantly.
"I am not underestimating you, you 2 always hit me all this time… I couldn't block your attacks...so I have to say, you are one of the best knights I fought."
"Thanks for your Words!" Both of them attacked at the same time but I punched Paul and used my leg to do a roundhouse kick. I didn't move from the spot so it was fine.
Before, too many soldiers were around, so I couldn't lose my ground but the last attack was different. Paul taking a punch straight to the face and the girl taking a kick straight at her stomach groaned in pain.
As both the punch and the kick struck them at the same time...
"Fight is over!" Rin said and they slumped on the ground. It was a real pain just standing for over 6 hours.. And I was thirsty too. I couldn't take a break at all.
Carla ran towards me with water. She looked like an angel to me after this long fight.
"Thanks so much Carla." I emptied the glass followed by the flask of water too.
"Sir had a hard fight too it seems." Carla looked with slight worry… she really was a good maid.
"Yeah, I guess fighting straight for 6 hours is a bit too much, if I had a few minutes of break in between, I could continue longer… but I guess that would be too much favour for me…"
Rin on the other hand was getting the knights to gather themselves. She was a strict one. No one even came to help the knights. They carried themselves to the medical staff.
"Aren't you being a bit too hard on them?" I asked from behind.
"That is not true, in a war or a monster subjugation, there will not be separate personnel around to help them get healed. This is also a part of the training. Apart from that, you really did a number on them… even I would have been done in after a fight that long."
"Well, in the Edge of the world you can only get a few minutes of rest in a long battle. If you kill a monster, the blood will make the other monsters follow to the fighting scene. Not to mention, the numbers will only grow from there, once I had to fight for a day straight. I was close to death at that time really…" I shivered remembering that crisis… even Rin looked pale hearing that.
These guys may have gone to the edge of the world but it was only the beginning. Whereas I was stuck smack dab in the middle of the place, so you could say I had been through the deepest part of hell.
[That day was very fun, you were so covered in blood that even I couldn't believe it was you.]
Yeah and you laughed like a maniac the whole day.
"Sir, your experiences are so out of the norm that I can't even fathom it." Carla looked like fighting 24 hours was not even believable for her….
"You should go and have a rest, even if you have enough stamina to stay up now, mental fatigue is something else." Rin advised me and I went back to her mansion. I probably need a bath. Since I was wounded here and there, my clothes were also in a bloodied mess…..
"Carla, can you get me some new clothes? I think these are not usable anymore." I asked while I went to the bath, Since the system was working with Miasma, I couldn't ask it to make me clothes.
"Certainly, please enjoy your bath and I will prepare the clothes by then." After I entered the bath and took a long relaxing one, I got out looking refreshed. I wondered where Rose went, I saw her during the fight standing by Rin but I haven't seen her after that.
"Here Sir Rekka, I have bought 2 pairs: a standard black and a silver white. Which do you prefer?" Carla brought a black pair and a white pair, usually I would have chosen black since I always wore that colour but since it was long sleeved and now it was summer, I took the short sleeved white T-shirt and Black pants. White pants would be too shiny for my taste….
"Sir Really likes the colour black, doesn't he?"
"Yeah, even Amanori is black so it suits me well."
"Yes, Sirs hair is black too, since Black hair is very rare, you are like a rare existence, I have seen very few black haired people this strong." Carla said walking by me.
"Ooh really? I didn't know that."
"Black hair is Rare, so they get caught in people's eyes and soon most of them get influenced by some kind of higher order of people, every few get to grow up into adulthood before getting sold or even die in some cases."
"Wow, I didn't know that at all…" Who knew black hair was such a big thing here.
"I see, I have Heard that Sir knows very little about society; it seems to be true." Carla giggled sweetly seeing how ignorant I was even with my own body trait. it was a lovely smile, she had a beauty mark near her cheek that made her look cute with the way she smiles.
"Ha ha, that is true, so that's why I can't see any black haired girls….. They get caught before they can grow up huh…. It's a shame.." looking at my depressed face Carla got a bit worried..
"Sorry sir, I might have talked with the wrong subject.."
"No… I just thought you have black hair too so you must have been through hardships…" honestly Carla was beautiful enough that the maids at my home would also have run for their money, everyone had their own beauty and features sure, but I can't say if I could ever say just which maid was the most beautiful.
"Ooh… it was for a short time but Miss Rin saved me…. I was planning to be sold to the Empire when I was just turning adult… Miss Rin saw me and dragged me from there…" man.... just hearing her story made my blood run cold... Rin really is a benevolent lord...
"Oh man…. You really were saved big time… I am Glad that Miss Rin is like that…. That beautiful smile and long silky black hair would have suffered a lot... I wouldn't like your elegant air to be ruined." The empire was the worst place for any girl… even worse for a girl as beautiful as Carla.
"Sir… is too kind, I have already passed my prime…" Well, she might have been passing 25 from what she told me but she didn't look a day older than 20...besides that composed and peaceful air around her is really calming and charming. She felt very calming to be around. not only that, talking to her was quite easy.
Since in this world passing 25 was already seen as passing her prime, she was right, still on earth, she could be a stunning model and an actress without a doubt…
"Passed your prime eh…. You still look beautiful… not to mention that long hair makes you look even more attractive…. Like a free flower in the wild…."
"Ooh… Sir.. stop that, you really are a charmer…" she blushed slightly and walked ahead of me.. I wonder if I had started flirting…. I should apologize..
"Sorry, Carla, I got too carried away, forgive me if you felt awkward." as beautiful as she was, she must have many men hit on her, so adding me should make her worries worse. I saw Carla many times today but she interacted very little with guys, it might be just my thought but she also must be sick of guys, so I may have been very annoying.
I should certainly not do that. Annoying a girl is the worst thing you can do. Although I did annoy Rose just yesterday…..
"Th-that is not the case…. N-no….. I.. um I appreciate Sir's compliment!" she looked back with a slight panicked look, it's not like I was angry, I was just apologizing… maybe as a maid, she doesn't want me to apologize to her.
"Then thank you for accepting my words." After that we walked slowly to my room. I should be able to leave tonight after Gramps comes back, so it was time to rest.
"Carla, I am hungry too, I did miss lunch." my stomach growled loudly and I asked Carla.
"Sorry for the Delay but Miss Rose is preparing your dinner. It should be ready in your room."
"Ooh.. so that's why she wasn't here." looks like she was off to prepare food while I was done getting a bath, she could really surprise sometimes… I told Carla to walk faster since my anticipation increased... the thing I love the most... food... new food, new taste, among the things a anyone can give me or do for me... food was... the 1st choice of delight in the list.
After Reaching the Room, I found Rose with a lavish dinner set up. She had gone all out and procured many types of dishes.
"Welcome! Since you couldn't try the restaurants in the town, I got their best dishes for you here."
"That is the best thing you can prepare! Rose, I love you!" saying so I hugged her, this looked like the loveliest thing she did for me. After that glare the whole day, today she gave me surprise after surprise. Even better than girls, money or reputation! It was a feast!!
"Eek! D-don't you have any shame! Even Carla is here!" Saying so she got away from me while blushing brightly.
"Don't mind me Mistress, I am only here to serve you." Carla ignored any such scenes and consoled Rose.
"Sorry sorry, now let's eat."
"This is what you always do! Making my heart beat faster and then doing something else!"
"Oh? You wanted a longer hug?" as I asked her if that was the case, Rose got flustered again.
"NO!" she refuted at the top of her lungs...
As the teasing was over, sitting down to eat, I didn't hold myself back anymore, although the food was in great quantity, I slowly finished the food. Rose herself ate only one dish. And then looked at me while I ate.
"I can never get tired of watching you eat." she said, sounding a bit happy.
"Ha ha! the food is great, so many new... flavors, I would have liked to have a drink too but if I were to use a portal it is best not to." Rose looked at me as if thinking how can I be soo happy with just some food. Sorry I am a bit weird.
"Here, try some regular juice, it is from a rare fruit which only grows here. I heard you don't drink much so I only prepared this drink." After pouring me the juice, Carla went back again.
I felt a little bad keeping her standing there but in this world, it would be bad manners if she were to sit with us.
In my home, I could easily get the maids to sit with me but I don't do that at other places. Every house has their own rules, we should abide by some of them at least as guests.
After tasting the juice.
"It's mango?" that is what I felt it was… it tasted like mango juice. It was sweet but not too sweet. And the fragrance was the same.
"Wow, you really do know." Rose looked a bit surprised.
"It is a seasonal fruit, so very few reach the other territories before they go bad, not to mention, since they are popular, it is hard to get them." Carla said so, giving me another glass of the juice.
"Hmm, I see, this is a very popular fruit then."
"Yeah, since it is summer, it is now in season. the productivity of the fruit is quite, low since many bugs and other creatures attack the tree when the mangoes are ripe, so the harvest is very tight." Rose said so while drinking some of the juice too.
It looks like I found a great fruit here. I should come back next season and collect as much as I can then.
"Haah.. the dinner was great." Since the couch was very comfy, I felt as if I could take a little nap any time now… a good dinner and a drink to remember the season of summer, really, Rose gave me something I never could have imagined from her.
"I really love it."
"What… the food?... or…"
"The food and you both, I can't get one or the other, I would take both." as I said while laying on the couch, not only Carla but even Rose looked shy hearing that. Man.. these girls were too pure, can't a man express his feelings truthfully?
I had no idea that the food wasn't only Rose's courtesy… Rose who didn't go out much didn't know much about restaurant… Carla was the one that procured the idea and collected the famous names of the dishes, after that, Roes moved around and got all of the dishes and served it here.
The blessing worked even when I didn't know a thing. Man.. the goddess of love… gave a blessing alright… it might be the salvation for all men… not like I knew that though… These were only unconscious thoughts.