"Hey, junior, don't stare at them too much," Burleigh told Vlad, his voice as weak as ever.
"Those people over there get offended when we look at them."
"..."
The boy knew it too.
That Burleigh's words were true.
"It's just a road, but we don't deserve it."
"Deserve what?"
Leaning against the wall, carving a piece of wood with his dagger, Burleigh lifted a lip and smiled.
It was a laugh that contained a small amount of anger and an uncontrollable sense of pity.
"It's never enough, anything."
"We don't have enough of anything."
Burleigh chuckled at Vlad's response.
"Well, you're trivial, unqualified; you've been like this since birth, and you know it."
"..."
The boy didn't ask this time.
He just turned his head to look at the gleaming buildings on the other side of the street.
There, there were sparks and laughter.
And those were things not allowed for those in the streets.
The boy was always hungry for it.
***
When Vlad tilted his head in a greeting, he heard something reaching his ears.
"… You're not qualified."
Pablo, the knight from Arnstein.
A knight known for his shield skills, threw his shield.
"You're not worthy to hear my name."
"…"
Pablo declared, tossing his shield.
I'll do my best.
"This is not an honorable duel, from the moment you, unworthy bastard, stepped forward."
A battle between squires and knights.
It's something others would mock.
And he was the one involved in the absurdity.
"You can ignore what the priest said. Fight him with everything you have. You can try to kill him."
Josef trampled on Pablo's honor to save Alicia's and his own chances.
And it was Vlad who had to bear the brunt of his anger.
"…"
Vlad looked up silently, a chill in the air that even a priest wouldn't dare to sanction.
And he asked.
"What am I lacking?"
"…What?"
Pablo was momentarily surprised by Vlad's confident attitude.
Far from being intimidated by this battle between knights and squires, the boy's blue eyes were ablaze.
A man holding something honorable, noble, and bright in his hands.
I want to ask him.
"What makes me different from you?"
Why is it that all the good, beautiful, and bright things are always hoarded for bastards like you.
I hate it.
"Now, both of you, return to your places and…"
Despite the priest's restraint, the two remained locked in eye contact, not moving an inch.
A dialogue through the eyes.
For that to be possible, they would have to have at least the same zeal, but the boy was getting there.
He might come from a place without means, but he wasn't going to end up with nothing.
"You said it yourself first, you can do anything."
"…Bayezid has degraded."
This guy is crazy.
He's an arrogant person who doesn't know who he is and doesn't know who he's talking to.
"I'll cut it off at the root."
If he ever grows, he'll only harm the honor of the knights.
So it's better to trample on him here.
"Please… go back to your respective places. Please."
The two walked to the end of the battlefield, responding to the plea from the priest, who was having a very difficult day and had unwittingly uttered a plea.
"A faithful lad."
"He's got the basics."
There he was, holding his sword and muttering quietly, and they thought Vlad was praying.
This was a good enough situation to seek God's favor.
But, as always, the boy didn't address God.
[If your goal is to endure, I can't help you; if you rely on me, you'll collapse in ten seconds, let alone ten minutes.]
'…'
Vlad had a secret weapon: his inner voice, but right now he couldn't use it.
[After ten minutes, you must abstain, not force yourself. Because last time you had to risk your life, but not this time.]
"I'm not asking for help anyway."
[If…]
The help of the voice was wonderful, but it wasn't his.
Vlad knew that to shine fully, he had to have something that was his alone.
"Can I do it?"
[Only time will tell.]
Vlad was nervous, but so was his voice.
The boy promised a lot, but he didn't have time to refine it.
He trained as best he could, but he had no experience.
And now, before the boy matured, he had to face a knight.
"Are you ready, Vlad de Shoara?"
He was a true knight, one who knew how to handle the aura.
"That…"
The time to drag him into a ready position had ended.
All that was left was the clash of swords.
"Yes."
Satisfied that both sides were ready, the priest stepped back and raised his hands.
"This day, under the sun, is granted by the gods!"
People looked at the duel field with excitement when the signal was given for the duel to begin.
"…"
Suddenly, there was no trace of the boy standing where he should have been.
A duelist swordsman, specializing in close combat.
It suited the boy's temperament, always liking to take the initiative.
"Hmph!"
A linear sweeping motion.
An assertive movement that says you won't let anything stand in your way.
Therefore, there was no hesitation in Vlad's sword as it struck like lightning.
There was only a intention.
Bum!
The boy took the initiative as planned.
Whether given or taken, Vlad's intention succeeded.
".....!"
It was a swift thrust that would have gone unnoticed by a normal person, but Pablo effortlessly stopped Vlad's sword.
'Always think about the next move. Unless you want to attack once and die.'
".....!"
The attack was blocked, but Vlad didn't lose momentum.
As if he had been waiting for it, just as he had learned from Zayar, a succession of attacks began to fall on Pablo.
The constant clash of swords echoed in the hall at precise intervals.
It was the signal that the duel was progressing, following the current of the boy leading the attack.
".....!"
Although it was Pablo who had yielded the initiative, there was no panic on his face.
He observed calmly.
Naturally.
It was just a glance, but Pablo believed he glimpsed why Josef had sent this brat as his opponent.
[Aim for the left, where the shield was raised, because convention is something terrible.]
"Hmph!"
Vlad nodded, following the voice's advice and striking at Pablo's weakness.
It was an attack that could have been easily blocked, but Pablo could feel something sparking on Vlad's sword.
The boy's sword was like a voracious wolf.
Like a wolf that has smelled blood, it relentlessly gnawed at his weakness.
Hunger.
And an innate cruelty.
It was hidden in the boy's sword.
"I should probably stop now."
Pablo had yielded the initiative with his sudden attack, but he knew he had to stop now.
The boy's momentum was intense.
"What the hell...!"
"That kid doesn't even tire!"
Vlad's swift and abrupt movements had the same inherent extravagance as the boy's blond hair.
And people were mesmerized.
Vlad was carried away by the boy's momentum.
Bang! Kang! Kang!
Sparks flew as swords clashed.
"..."
Watching Vlad retreat, Pablo remained still, waiting for his chance.
Capitalizing on Vlad's momentum, but not his maturity yet.
"Hmph!"
He braced himself and struck.
With a rock-solid force that could crush a small storm.
".....!"
Vlad, who had been relentlessly attacking Pablo, instinctively raised his sword to the sudden weight coming down on him.
Quang!
"No!"
And with that, he was knocked to the ground.
The force of the blow was such that his body bounced as soon as it touched the ground.
"Out!"
Vlad blocked with his sword, but the sharp sensation of being hit on the back of the neck with a stone kept him alert.
A blocked blow, but not repelled.
Vlad absorbed all the force of the blow, but with his trained senses, he quickly halted and retreated to close the gap.
"Phew..."
His body reacted, but not his mind.
It was the result of practicing with Zayar.
[Wake up!]
"…Huh?"
Zayar's training swords had been intimidating enough, but Pablo clearly possessed a different kind of strength.
'I think I got hit with a stone.'
He had only blocked an attack, yet his entire body pulsed.
The blow wasn't strong, but it was impactful, and Vlad naturally shrank.
"Out of tricks already?"
"..."
Pablo in front of him was gaining momentum.
After being in a duel that was not only dishonorable but also a spectacle, Pablo didn't want to linger.
[He's coming.]
Even without a shield, Pablo's momentum was like a mountain.
"…Where?"
[He's trying to dominate the gap; you have to move wherever!]
Pablo, who had created a solid defense with just his sword, began slowly approaching Vlad with his usual mountainous strides.
It would have been an honor for Vlad to show such sincerity, but at this point, it was just a clumsy step forward.
[You have to dodge somehow.]
"That's easier said than done!"
The Voice's sword skill, defined by close combat and single-strike kills, was unusable in this situation.
'Footwork.'
For now, he needed the undulating movements of his other master, Zayar.
The boy mentally replayed Zayar's movements, preparing for Pablo's attack.
BANG!
"Out!"
But even if you're prepared, there are things you can't stop.
Vlad, who had just grabbed a sword, lacked the experience and skill to break down the enormous wall that was Pablo.
BANG!
Quang!
Vlad slowly staggered backward as the sound of sword clashing against sword was incredible.
The threatening sound and the precarious retreat that followed left Alicia breathless.
It was a punishment too harsh to endure for the determined but defeated boy.
[Wake up!]
The voice kept waking him up, but the shock was so great that Vlad had almost lost consciousness.
If this had been a duel, he could have said he had proven his worth by lasting so long.
But the boy hadn't come here to learn anything.
He was here to prove something.
"No!"
Vlad shouted, barely clinging to his fading consciousness as he somehow managed to drive his artless sword into the approaching blade.
It was a final effort.
Quang...!
But the weak-willed sword didn't give the boy any chance.
Chiiiit-!
The collision sent Vlad to the edge of the dueling arena.
"Crunch!"
Crimson blood spurted from Vlad's mouth.
He had long lost grip of the sword, and the drops of saliva running down his lips mingled with the blood on the ground.
"Excellent."
Pablo had been angered by Josef's belittling of his honor moments before, but now that Vlad and he had crossed swords, he felt differently.
He was a good kid.
A brat with potential.
Although it was still too early for a formal duel.
"Come back later."
Pablo held his sword high, ready for the final blow.
Vlad watched Pablo's strike with trembling and dizzy eyes.
[Well done.]
No voices were heard, no words from Zayar, who had prepared Vlad, or Josef, who had given orders to the boy.
The boy had done his part.
Now, he could rest.
Everyone in the hall applauded the defeated but determined boy.
Tung-.
Pablo's sword descended towards the boy.
With a dull sound.
"…?"
When no one understood what was happening in front of them.
".....!"
Colin sat up, startled by the sound of a nightmare.
"It's him."
Jubert, who had been eating nuts while watching the impulsive attack of the boy, couldn't hide his surprise.
"…"
Until Pablo saw Colin's silently shouting face, he didn't realize why his sword had bounced back.
Even for an experienced knight, it was too much to comprehend at once.
"Why, only you kids..."
Hearing Vlad's muted voice, Pablo sheathed his sword and turned to look at the boy in front of him.
Stunned, with half-closed eyes, as if he had lost his mind.
It was as if he were dreaming somewhere in his memory.
"I also..."
The unqualified boy has always yearned to shine.
He wanted ability, he wanted opportunities, he dreamed of being qualified.
To reach for brilliance.
And the boy has now shown that he is the one who deserves to shine.
Vlad of Shoara breaking Pablo's sword, Knight of Arnstein.
He had recreated the path of the sword shown to him by his master.
"I also want to be there."
The boy's eagerness was gradually creating his own world through opportunity, teaching, and crisis.
It was about to bloom.
A colorful flower that no one had seen before.
The boy's sword was weeping.