The first round of competition came to an end with Wayne's victory. Vesemir did not show a happy expression on his face but sighed. He looked at the two members of the Wolf School who were frustrated because they lost money and said:
"Geralt, Eskel, which of you will compete with Wayne next?"
After losing the fifty Orens he managed to save, Eskel felt a little distressed. He turned to Geralt and said:
"I'll go for the second round, but do you want to bet again, who will win this time, me or Wayne?"
Thinking of the 250 Orens he lost to Vesemir, Geralt gritted his teeth and said:
"Lambert should have underestimated the enemy just now. Although the little guy's sword is fast, if it was you, I think you would be able to handle him."
"Let's continue with gamble, bet on Wayne's win, one for one, and bet for you to win, one for two."
"Eskel, how much do you bet?"
The scar-faced witcher thought for a moment, took out a ruby pendant from his pocket, handed it to Geralt, and said:
"This is a ruby necklace I found in a ruin, it should be worth two hundred Orens. I bet on myself to win."
Geralt whistled, "Good thing, it seems that your harvest last year was not bad."
He reached for the necklace, swung it around, then turned to Vesemir:
"How about it, old man, do you still want to make a gamble?"
Vesemir folded his hands on his chest, turned his head, and glanced at Geralt, snorted, and said:
"Put all the three hundred Orens I won just now on Wayne."
"However, if I win later, you don't need to give me six hundred Orens. I guess you don't have that many coins with you. This winter, I'm going to teach him how to make witcher potions. When the time comes, you will take him into the forest and teach him how to collect herbs and monster body parts."
Geralt breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that he wouldn't have to pay the gambling debts. He nodded at the old witcher and said:
"No problem, old man, even if you lose, I will take care of it."
After Wayne rested for about ten minutes, Eskel ignored Lambert, who had been complaining beside him and stood opposite Wayne with a training steel sword.
Due to a battle in the early years that left Eskel with a terrifying scar on his face, coupled with the status of a witcher who was discriminated against by many unscrupulous people, compared to other witchers, Eskel seemed more silent. He picked up the steel sword, assumed a defensive posture of the Wolf School swordsmanship, and said to Wayne in a deep voice, "Go ahead little one."
"I will use all my strength to deal with you."
However, Wayne, who was standing opposite him, did not immediately assume a combat stance. Instead, he made a pause gesture to Eskel, turned his head, and shouted to Vesemir:
"Teacher, I hope that in the next two rounds, I can use seals."
"Signs are also part of our witcher's strength."
Vesemir didn't agree immediately but turned to look at Eskel. After the scar-faced witcher nodded, he said to Wayne:
"Yes Wayne, you can use seals. But we are all companions, you have to be careful."
Wayne nodded respectfully to his teacher, then turned to look at Eskel and exchanged glances with the silent senior witcher.
He stretched out his left hand, twisted his fingers, and made the spell-casting gesture of Quen's seal. A few seconds later, under the blessing of his lvl 8 sign skill, a shield made of mana covered his body.
Although this shield did not look much different from the normal Quen shield, only Wayne knew that under the effect of his special professional skill, this layer of Quen shield had already consumed almost half of the chaotic magic power in his body. Eskel on the opposite side didn't know this. After he added a layer of Quen shield to himself, he assumed the defensive posture of the Wolf School swordsmanship again.
The second round officially started. This time, Wayne did not rely on his high speed to attack. In the previous battle training, he had already figured out Eskel's style. Eskel was probably the most conservative swordsman in the Wolf School.
Unlike the fiery Lambert and the talented Geralt, Eskel is very calm in character and fighting style. He would not be caught off guard by Wayne's speed like Lambert in the previous competition. So in this round, Wayne decided to use a strong attack. He held the training steel sword tightly in both hands and with steady steps, he approached the defensive Eskel.
After both sides entered their opponent's attack range, Wayne decisively swung the steel sword in a powerful overhead slash, aiming for Eskel with all his strength.
Bang! The two swords collided, and sparks flew everywhere.
Eskel's sword-wielding hand was slightly numb, and he retreated, showing surprise in his eyes.
Wayne's striking power was much greater than Eskel had imagined, it was not as weak as he had described. However, this level of strength was still within the acceptable range for Eskel. He relied on his powerful parrying skills to engage Wayne for two moves, then took the opportunity to knock Wayne's steel sword away, creating a weakness in his defense.
Taking advantage of this opening, Eskel spun around and delivered a powerful kick to Wayne's shield. However, to Eskel's surprise, Wayne's Quen shield did not yield or break under his kick. It resisted the attack, not affecting Wayne's attacking posture.
Eskel's eyes widened, and without thinking, he performed a somersault, rolling to the other side of Wayne, narrowly avoiding several quick and powerful slashes. However, before Eskel could regain his footing, Wayne made a sign-casting gesture with one hand, and the powerful Quen shield enveloping him expanded rapidly and then exploded.
The explosion sent Eskel crashing into a wooden dummy, catching him off guard. Wayne's blade was already at Eskel's throat.
The two locked eyes and Wayne smiled as he lowered his sword. He extended his hand to help Eskel up.
The scar-faced witcher rubbed his chest, still feeling the impact of the explosion, and said with a hint of envy in his voice, "What's the deal with that trick? Your Quen shield seems much stronger than ours. And it can explode?"
Wayne turned to Vesemir and Geralt, scratched his head, and explained, "It seems I have a talent for signs, and I can enhance my signs using more magic power."
Upon hearing this, Eskel gazed at Wayne's handsome face, not much different from an ordinary boy's, except for the amber cat pupils. He sighed and said with a touch of envy, "It looks like you, like Geralt, are one of the gifted ones. I lost Wayne, your strength is on par with experienced witchers."
Expert-level task: [Leadership] 2/3 completed.