Although she seemed to be just a few years older than me, her attire, which was...barely there, and her behavior suggested a level of maturity beyond her years.
I blinked in surprise. Where in the world could this woman have come from? And why was she sitting on a chair, sipping tea in the middle of the courtyard without a care in the world? And where did she get this chair, for that matter? It was a bizarre sight.
Despite the fact that she was sitting on a chair in the middle of the courtyard and sipping tea, conspicuously dressed in attire that could draw a lot of attention, no one even glanced in her direction. Did anyone else find this odd and perplexing, or was it just me?
Despite the oddity of the situation, I chose not to dwell on it and instead shifted my focus to the field. The young pupils, who were previously preoccupied with perfecting their sword skills, had now gathered around Marcus and Leon in anticipation of their impending duel.
As they prepared for their duel, Marcus raised an important question, "Before we begin, I just want to clarify something. Are we allowed to use magic during this match?"
Leon considered the query and responded, "Magic is permissible, but only at the basic and intermediate levels."
Marcus listened attentively and posed another question, "And what conditions must we satisfy to claim victory?"
Leon was quick to reply, "The duel can be won either by stopping short of a decisive blow or by landing a telling blow on a part of the body other than the face. Also, being disarmed alone will not count as a defeat."
"Sounds good to me. And who will be our umpire?" asked Marcus.
Leon turned his gaze towards Sirius, who was standing nearby. "How about you, Sirius?" he asked. "Would you be willing to oversee our duel?"
Sirius hesitated briefly, his eyes flickering with uncertainty, before he let out a resigned sigh. "I suppose I don't have much choice in the matter, do I?" he muttered. "Very well, I'll do it."
"Excellent," said Marcus, a smug smile spreading across his lips. "Then, I suppose we're ready to begin."
Sirius gazed at Leon with a questioning look and asked, "Are you truly serious about this, Leon?"
Leon responded firmly, "Yes, I am. Marcus insulted my parents in my presence, and I cannot let him get away with it. I am determined to make him take back his words, and I won't stop until I do.'"
From Leon's expression alone, it seemed that he truly meant what he said.
"Okay...Just...don't regret your decisions," said Sirius, before striding towards the center of the field. "Now, both of you, assume your positions," he instructed, gesturing for them to stand at their assigned spots. Leon and Marcus moved apart and positioned themselves to face each other in the courtyard.
I noticed some muted chuckles in the audience.
As I looked around, I could see that the onlookers were all quietly laughing at Leon. It was apparent that they found Leon's boldness amusing, given the vast difference in sword-fighting abilities between him and Marcus.
Marcus was widely admired as a natural swordplay talent, with no one his age capable of rivaling him. He was not merely exceptional but a cut above the rest. The Asura house had appointed Marcus as its heir due to his extraordinary skills in sword fighting, which made him the talk of the whole republic. At only eight years old, he was already a cut above the rest, a once-in-a-century genius with no equal in his age group.
In contrast, Leon had zero aptitude for the sword. In fact, he was outright incompetent in this area. It was clear that he would not stand a chance against Marcus, and the spectators' laughter was not unexpected.
The disparity between Marcus and Leon was immense, akin to the contrast between heaven and earth.
Marcus was a once-in-a-century genius, while Leon was deemed incompetent and devoid of talent. The discrepancy between their abilities was as vast as that between an adult and a newborn baby.
It was fair to conclude that when comparing their respective skills, they were worlds apart.
It was a battle between a prodigy and a talentless individual, which hardly seemed like a competition at all. The vast difference in their abilities was undeniable, and it was clear that Marcus had a significant advantage over Leon in terms of natural talent and ability.
Their contest would be nothing short of a complete mismatch, with Marcus destined for victory and Leon facing an inevitable defeat.
It was, therefore, no surprise that the onlookers found his challenge to Marcus somewhat ridiculous.
At this moment, I was reminded of a piece of advice that I had heard before—that it was unwise to enter into a fight against someone who possesses greater strength.
The wise course of action would be to focus on battling adversaries who are within one's abilities to overcome. Victory lies not in brute strength alone, but in making wise choices and employing strategic tactics.
In essence, the key to victory lies in choosing one's battles wisely.
Unfortunately, Leon seemed to be making the exact opposite choice. Not only was he making an unwise decision by challenging someone who possessed greater strength, he also accepted the bet in which he had a disadvantage.
It was almost as if he was setting himself up for failure.
Leon and Marcus had positioned themselves five sword-lengths apart.
Leon tried to calm himself down by taking a deep breath before assuming a peculiar fighting stance. However, describing it as a "stance" would be overly generous as it was so terrible that the term "bad" wouldn't suffice.
"...Ha ha ha! Look at his posture, it's completely off!"
The spectators couldn't help but laugh at the sight of it. They seemed to find it so comical that they couldn't control their mirth.
However, despite the mockery and laughter, Leon simply ignored them, focusing instead on his opponent.
Sirius, who was watching Leon's movements with trepidation, could barely suppress a groan at the sight of Leon's awkward posture.
Marcus, on the other hand, held the wooden sword loosely in his hand, letting it dangle at his side.
Sirius took a deep breath and spoke with a commanding tone as he explained the terms of the bout. "The only permitted weapon is a wooden sword. Using hands or legs will result in elimination and the opponent being declared the victor. Please limit your attacks to a non-lethal degree. You may use basic and intermediate magic spells, but no advanced ones. The match will be decided either by stopping on the verge of a decisive blow or landing a telling blow on a part of the body other than the face. Being disarmed alone will not count as defeat. Do you both agree to these rules?"
A tense silence followed as Leon and Marcus remained quiet, but Sirius took it as a sign of their agreement. He then proceeded to explain the stakes that had been agreed upon for the duel.
"If Leon emerges as the victor, Marcus will be required to apologize for the derogatory words he said about Leon's parents. However, if Marcus emerges as the winner, Leon will be forced to leave the school immediately. So, I must ask, are the two of you ready to proceed with the duel?"
As he looked over at Leon and Marcus, Sirius sought to gauge their readiness for the upcoming battle.
Leon gave a firm nod, showing that he was ready to do battle. On the other hand, Marcus seemed nonchalant, holding his sword loosely at his side as he let out a bored yawn. Despite this, Sirius interpreted it as confirmation that Marcus was prepared.
"...On my mark—" Sirius raised his right hand high into the air.
As the battle drew near, Leon and Marcus stood facing each other. Though Leon had a more feminine appearance, his gaze exuded a fierce and intimidating aura. On the other hand, Marcus seemed disinterested in the situation, giving off an air of nonchalance.
"Let the duel begin!"
With a dramatic gesture, Sirius brought his hand down, signaling the start of the duel. However, much to the surprise of the onlookers, neither Leon nor Marcus moved.
For what seemed like an eternity, the two simply stood there, their gazes locked in a fierce and unyielding stare.
The surrounding onlookers stood in complete silence as well, so quiet that one could almost hear the sound of crickets chirping in the background. I half-expected someone to boo at how long they were dragging out this staring contest.
As the silence dragged on, Marcus finally broke the stillness, his voice laced with an air of smugness. "What's wrong? You're not going to come at me?" he jeered, cocking his head to one side. He had yet to adopt a fighting stance.
Sensing that Marcus was not taking the duel seriously, Leon spoke up, his voice firm and commanding. "Assume your fighting stance," he admonished. "If you don't take this seriously, you could end up getting hurt."
"Huh? What?"
"I said you need to take this seriously, or you might get hurt."
——————
As I was writing this chapter, I found myself lounging on a beautiful beach, soaking in the soothing sound of the waves and the refreshing night breeze.
The atmosphere was so serene that I almost dozed off right then and there! But, alas, my peaceful slumber was interrupted—not by a beautiful woman, unfortunately—but by a sneaky little crab! This cheeky critter snipped my skin with its pincers, causing me to yelp in pain.
I guess you could say a woman woke me up if we consider the crab's gender! I guess you could also say it was a female wake-up call, but boy did it hurt when it snapped my skin! Nevertheless, it was a funny moment and it definitely brought some excitement to my beachside writing session.
Well, if you enjoyed the story, why not add it to your library? It would help me if you do so. Well, that's all I have to say! See ya!