It had been a year since I first met Seraphina, and despite the distance between us, we'd kept in touch. Her letters were a constant reminder that not everyone in this world looked at me with disdain. Her sharp wit and genuine curiosity about magic often brought a smile to my face, even on the worst days.
I'd just finished my morning practice, mana still crackling faintly in the air around me, when Damien barged into my room uninvited.
The door slammed open with enough force to rattle the hinges, and there he stood, sword unsheathed, his face twisted in fury.
"What did you do, Lloyd?" he spat, his voice a low growl.
I blinked, completely caught off guard. "What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb with me!" he snapped, pointing his blade at me. "I know you've been scheming, sneaking around behind my back!"
"Scheming?" I said, raising an eyebrow. "If I were scheming, you'd already be out of this house."
Damien's grip on his sword tightened, but before he could lunge, the door opened again.
"Damien, stop it!" Ariana's voice rang out as she stepped into the room, her arms crossed in disapproval.
"Stay out of this, Ariana," Damien growled.
"No, I won't." She marched forward, holding a letter sealed with the Duke's stamp. "This is why you're angry, isn't it?"
Damien's jaw clenched as he glared at the letter.
"What's that?" I asked, genuinely curious.
Ariana smirked and cleared her throat dramatically before reading aloud.
"'To the esteemed Baron Lionheart,'" she began, "'I was wonderfully surprised to hear that my daughter Seraphina has befriended someone with such immense talent in magic. She has spoken highly of Lloyd, and I must admit I am intrigued by his abilities. It would bring me great joy if Lloyd and Seraphina were to remain friends—or perhaps something more.'"
The room fell silent.
I stared at her, my mind blank for a moment. "...What?"
Damien, however, was anything but speechless. "This has to be a mistake!" he shouted, his face red with rage. "How could someone like him—"
"Because he's more than what you think, Damien," Ariana interrupted sharply. "The Duke sees what Father and you refuse to."
+
Damien turned back to me, his fury now boiling over. "Enough of this!" he roared. "I challenge you to a duel, Lloyd. In front of everyone."
I frowned. "What's the point, Damien?"
"The point," he snarled, "is to prove once and for all that you don't belong here. If I win, you leave this house for good."
I leaned back in my chair, considering his words. His anger was almost comical, but there was something more beneath it—suspicion. He was starting to piece things together.
"And if I win?" I asked, my voice calm.
"You won't," he spat.
"But if I do," I pressed, "you will apologize. Publicly. For everything you've done to me."
His face twisted in disgust, but he nodded. "Fine. But don't think for a second that you stand a chance."
"I accept," I said, rising to my feet. "Let's settle this once and for all."
+
The courtyard was packed. Servants, guards, and even my parents gathered to witness the duel. The air was thick with tension, and all eyes were on us as we faced each other.
Father stood at the edge of the field, his arms crossed, his expression a mask of impassivity. Mother sat nearby, her delicate fingers idly tracing the rim of a wine glass as though this were a casual diversion.
Damien stood opposite me, his sword gleaming in the midday sun. Confidence radiated from every inch of his being. The crowd whispered among themselves, already assuming the duel's outcome. After all, Damien was a Magic Swordsman, a natural talent honed by years of training.
I, on the other hand, was calm. My mana thrummed beneath the surface, steady and controlled, waiting to be unleashed.
"This ends today," Damien said, pointing his blade at me. "No more hiding behind tricks."
"Agreed," I replied, my voice steady. "Let's begin."
The signal was given, and Damien charged. His movements were swift, his blade cutting through the air with practiced precision. The mana-infused edge of his sword crackled faintly, a sign of his skill in blending magic and martial prowess.
I waited until the last moment, then activated [Silent Step], vanishing from his sight as I sidestepped his strike. His blade sliced through empty air, the momentum forcing him to stumble slightly.
"Where are you looking?" I said from behind him.
He spun, his eyes narrowing as he swung again, this time imbuing his weapon with a surge of aura. The blade shimmered with a golden light, cutting through the air with enough force to split a tree.
I raised my hand, casting [Ward]. The shimmering barrier materialized just in time, absorbing the impact with a resonant hum. The force pushed me back slightly, but I held my ground.
"You've gotten better," I said, allowing a small smirk. "But not enough."
He growled, the aura around his blade intensifying. With a roar, he unleashed a wide arc of energy, the golden slash ripping through the air toward me.
I sidestepped again, using [Silent Step] to disappear and reappear a few paces away.
"Stop running!" Damien snarled, his frustration evident.
"Then stop missing," I retorted, extending my hand. "[Sunlight]."
An orb of pure, radiant fire appeared in my palm, its light so intense that the crowd shielded their eyes. The heat emanating from it was palpable, causing the grass beneath it to wither and blacken.
The crowd gasped, murmurs rippling through the onlookers.
Damien hesitated, his eyes narrowing at the glowing orb. "Magic?" he spat. "You think a light show is going to save you?"
He charged again, his aura-clad blade aimed directly at the orb. I let it hover between us, watching as he struck with all his might.
The moment his blade touched the orb, the metal began to warp. The intense heat melted the edge, rendering the weapon useless.
Damien stumbled back, staring in shock as molten droplets of steel fell from his ruined sword.
"What... what is this?" he stammered, his confidence cracking.
"Magic," I said simply, the orb of [Sunlight] growing larger.
But Damien wasn't done. Tossing his melted sword aside, he summoned two smaller blades of pure aura into his hands. The glowing constructs crackled with energy, and his movements became sharper, more erratic as he lunged again.
This time, I didn't move.
I summoned a second orb of [Sunlight], letting it hover beside me as I directed both toward Damien. The orbs moved with deliberate slowness, their heat warping the air around them.
He slashed at the first orb, his aura blades colliding with the searing light. For a moment, it seemed like he might succeed—the aura resisted the heat, pushing back against the radiant magic.
But then the second orb joined in, and the combined heat overwhelmed his defenses. The aura blades shattered, dissipating into sparks as Damien fell to his knees.
"You... you're not..." he gasped, his hands trembling as the orbs floated closer.
I stepped forward, letting the orbs hover above him, their light casting long shadows across his face.
"It's over, Damien," I said coldly.
His eyes flicked toward Father, then back to me. For the first time, there was no anger, no bravado—only fear.