The Undying Magician - Book 1 - Chapter 44.5 - Duel Part II
Added 2022-07-13 21:19:06 +0000 UTC Within the VIP Viewing Room of the Academy Arena
Year 2849 | Month 5 | Day 30 | Sunday
“This isn’t a damn battle between snipers!” Adrian complains after slamming his fist against the table. He then turns to glare at Leonidas as he says, “This is your damn spell’s fault, isn’t it?”
The man in question stays silent while keeping his eyes glued to the simulator and the zoomed-in screen showing Nathan on the edge of it.
Adrian scoffs in irritation before looking back at the simulator again. Meanwhile, the whispers that had started up around the room upon seeing the use of a fire mana barrier from a first year cadet only a few of weeks into the semester begin to grow again as the VIPs impatiently await seeing Leonidas’s ‘spell’ in action.
On the screen, Nathan can be seen climbing down the stairs for a few floors, only to stop at the sixth floor. He hides in a corner with his sword drawn and ready while at the same time, on the other screen, the other cadet can be seen climbing up the stairs to the third floor.
Leonidas glances over at Anabel with a frown before focusing on the screens again as the thinks, ‘Let’s see how well he does against another cadet in swordplay…’
Anabel notices his glance out of the corner of her eye and smirks.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the VIP room, three officers, each one of them men in their mid to late twenties wearing captain uniforms with the symbol of Class D magicians on their shoulders sit whilst quietly talking amongst themselves and sending glances over towards Leonidas.
“Do you think it’s true?” one of the three asks. The man has a thick mustache, with two brown eyes and a sharp-looking face.
Another of the three answers him, with this one having a much more laid-back appearance and tone. “We’ll know by the end of the duel. If it’s true, then we’ll have to report this to the family head.”
The third man in their group nods his head in agreement while the first one to speak glances at Leonidas again without another word.
Back on the screen, the cadet can finally be seen climbing the stairs up to the sixth floor. However, right as he is nearing the top, he suddenly hesitates as if sensing something before continuing onwards with his sword still drawn.
The exact instant the cadet reaches the top of the stairs, his eyes flick to the side and he hurriedly raises his sword to block Nathan’s strike, only to be pushed back.
“Shit,” the cadet grunts before moving to the side with Nathan following after him.
The VIPs continue to watch the fight in silence as Anabel casually sips from a glass of wine without any worry showing on her face at all.
At the same time, Leonidas’s frown begins to fade slightly at the sight of Nathan and Jarod’s swordplay.
‘I’m not sure which to be surprised about,’ he thinks without taking his eyes off of the two as they continue clashing swords, ‘the talent that Dawn’s son has displayed in both magic and swordplay, or how far Nathan has come in such a short time in his own swordplay.’
His thoughts are interrupted when Nathan makes a mistake and allows Jarod’s sword to break through his guard, striking him in the shoulder, only for the sword to be blocked by his barrier.
“Dawn’s training seems to have gone rather well, if Jarod’s current abilities are anything to go off of,” Adrian comments while smugly glancing at Leonidas. “Do you think your apprentice can keep up?”
Leonidas simply continues to ignore the man as he watches Nathan turn things around and land a strike against Jarod’s arm, causing his barrier to very nearly shatter from the impact. This almost immediately wipes the smug look off of the sniping instructor’s face.
‘Wait a second…’ Adrian thinks before a look of shock begins to cover his face and he practically shouts, “Does your student have an Arcadian Metal sword?!”
The instructor’s shout immediately draws the attention of the other VIPs in the room, first towards their table, and then towards the sword in Nathan’s hands.
Leonidas simply shrugs his shoulders and says, “I happened to have several spare Arcadian Metal weapons lying around and gave them to the cadets taking my Magical Warfare class this semester.”
Silence fills the room with the only noises being that of Anabel’s giggling and the clashing of blades from the simulator.
Before anyone can say anything, everyone’s attention is drawn back to the duel as a loud shattering sound echoes from it, followed soon after by another, signifying the destruction of both of the student’s barrier spells.
The first thing they see on the screen is the sight of Nathan with a sword run straight through the side of his stomach, and of Jarod with a large bleeding gash on the side of his.
Then gasps echo through the room as the VIPs all watch the sword in Nathan’s stomach get forced violently out of his body before the wound seals itself closed.
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Nathan
Year 2849 | Month 5 | Day 30 | Sunday
I grunt as the sword is forced out of my stomach before taking advantage of the guy’s surprise at being pushed back by his own sword to direct my blade straight towards his heart. Since he’s currently falling backwards, the cadet can’t do anything to stop it, so the usual blue and purple barrier appears around him, shielding him from my attack and teleporting him out of the simulator.
After feeling the force of the barrier disappear beneath my blade, I sheath it and take a couple of deep breaths to calm myself down.
Several long second pass in silence before a voice echoes out through the simulator.
“The duel has been completed. The winner is Nathan Fox, making his win ratio for the semester 1 wins to 0 losses. Please step on the red platform to exit the arena.”
I look around for a second before going back to where I started from and stepping onto the platform. The entire simulation then begins to shift back into its usual form and the platform beneath my feet begins to lower.
Why was the end of the duel different this time?
When I came here to watch before, an officer came in to heal the losing cadet, but this time he was straight up teleported out.
Was it because my last attack was going to be a fatal blow?
The platform continues to lower, uncaring of my current questions.
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