"Let's see if these two can match up to the incredible display shown earlier."
Drakos didn't want the previous fight to end. Both of the competitors had a bright future ahead of them. Siegfried was relieved that the council member was satisfied with the trials so far.
"On the left side, we have a student from the Ulysses house."
"Arthur's student? This could be interesting."
The old man said that, but he remained unimpressed by the kid's body language.
"His name is Arnis Casper, and he is the fourth seed. The underdog in this fight."
As a fellow Ulysses house member, he was rooting for Arnis.
"What about him?"
Carrying the longsword by placing the dull side on his right shoulder, his expressions and movements reeked of arrogance.
"Hugh Fitton. The second seed from Ares house."
"Hmm. His attitude..."
Drakos went into deep thought. Laurent arrived in front of them. After going through the rules, they both took positions.
Arnis had a scabbard tied to his waist. He took his stance, with his hand hovering over the black hilt.
Hugh was standing casually. His sword was still on his shoulder.
'A taunt.'
Drakos observed the two competitors very closely.
"Ready?"
Laurent extended his hand.
"Yes."
Arnis was serious.
"Sure."
Hugh shrugged his shoulders.
"Begin!"
After raising his hand, Laurent quickly retreated backward.
'Decent pace.'
An outburst of speed to close in. He could score the first points, given how Hugh was being so laid back.
"Ha."
Arnis swiftly drew his saber from the scabbard. A slash towards his chest.
The longsword was finally raised from its spot, and it was pointed downwards. The aim was to expose the flat surface of the sword to block the saber.
'Ding!'
The first strike had been blocked. Hugh's forearms had absorbed the brunt of the impact.
The saber didn't wait for him to recover. Arnis was moving in for the win, and he raised his trajectory while striking with a backhand slash.
"Cute."
Hugh jerked his hand upwards and let go of his sword. The slash hit the sword and was supposed to send it flying back. To his dismay, however, something completely bizarre happened.
After leaving the sword, Hugh moved to the side. As soon as the strike connected, he grabbed the sword before it could be slashed away. Moving his wrist horizontally, he brought the blade closer to the now open and unguarded neck.
"5 points, Hugh Fitton!"
Drakos smacked his forehead with his palm.
"Are you alright?"
Siegfried showed concern. In response, he raised his hand.
"I am fine."
Internally, he was screaming.
'So embarrassing!'
There was a reason why his attitude felt familiar to the former prime knight. He could see his past self in the boy, which was a good and bad thing at the same time.
'Good because it isn't too late. Bad because it is useless.'
Being arrogant was unacceptable on the battlefield. He had learned that the hard way after almost losing one of his eyes.
"Sir?"
'Cough!'
"As I said, I am fine."
He closed his eyes. Many of his memories of youth resurfaced, most of which was mortifying.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"I am sorry, master."
Placing the longsword on the ground, Tomoe got down on her knees.
"I didn't-"
"You don't have to apologize. You tried your best, and that is all that matters."
William interjected.
"But-"
He had placed his faith in her. In her heart, she couldn't help but feel guilty.
"I don't want to hear anything else. Your capability isn't dictated by one loss. You lost, and that is all there is to it. From now on, it should be your mission to improve yourself and correct your weaknesses."
She bowed.
"Yes, master."
William crossed his arms.
"Look here."
In front of the shrine, Tomoe raised her head to look straight into her master's eyes.
"You are going to be the vice-leader of this house in the future. I want you to be confident in your actions, and strong in your beliefs."
He smilled.
"I believe in you. You have immense potential. Don't let a single loss set your mindset back."
She nodded.
"I understand."
The fight with Gawain had not been a detriment to her. It had created an immense hunger for improvement inside her, something that William was going to exploit to his advantage.
A few minutes back-
"She lost."
Kiso was fuming, and his target for release was William.
"And?"
William was acting like his normal self.
"She was supposed to win this competition. That was your assurance."
"She was a strong favorite."
He took a sip from the cup. He was drinking alcohol made from fermented grains today.
"This might be a problem."
They had a contract in place, and the key to it was Tomoe. If she couldn't become as good as he had hoped, then all of this would be for nothing.
"If her potential wasn't good enough, I wouldn't want her in my corps in the first place. Don't jump to your conclusions, Mr. Kiso."
A warning. It was obvious that William held the power in this deal.
"She will become a black knight. I am responsible for that. All you have to do is sit tight, and let the money flow."