Myrcella’s POV
"This is really sothing..." Commander Lilia breathed out, her eyes fixed on the platform below as if blinking would sohow make her miss history in the making. There wasn’t even an attempt to hide the surprise on her face. It was written all over her, on the slight parting of her lips, on the way her brows lifted, as well as on the stiffness of her posture. "I didn’t think there could be anyone who could fight Veronica toe to toe. One on one, at that. And soone completely out of my grasp..."
She almost sounded offended by that last part.
"T-This person... is a Bronze Class?" my mother asked, her voice catching slightly. She looked even more shaken than the Commander, which, honestly, was saying a lot. "And this person is seeing my daughter? How did I not know about this the entire ti?"
The way she said it made it clear she wasn’t really asking . She was asking herself. Probably questioning her entire network of information, her intuition, and maybe her parenting all at once.
I didn’t answer. I just looked down.
The platform below was trembling from the force of the clash. Even from up here, I could feel it. It was like faint vibrations creeping up through the soles of my shoes.
Right now, Leon was fighting the Vice Commander of the Magic Knights.
Of course people were uncomfortable.
Leon had appeared out of nowhere, like a rumor that suddenly grew muscles and decided to start throwing punches. He had no noble title that carried weight here, no grand introduction, as well as no long-standing reputation in the kingdom. And yet, he was standing there with their blades flashing, matching the second-in-command of the Magic Knights. A woman known as one of the strongest fighters in the entire Milham Kingdom.
That kind of thing made people uneasy. It disrupted the order they had neatly placed in their heads.
"Huhuhu..."
The King of Bethlan’s laughter cut through the murmurs around us. It was low, almost amused, like soone who had just found a rare gem in a pile of ordinary stones. "So he wasn’t joking when he said he would show what he’s capable of."
The way he smirked sent a slight chill down my spine. It wasn’t malicious exactly, but it wasn’t comforting either. It was the look of a man who enjoyed discovering powerful things... and then deciding what to do with them.
Leon was displaying power he rarely showed anyone. Even so, I knew—deep in my chest—that this wasn’t everything.
Not even close.
He wasn’t going all out. Not yet.
"But this isn’t all you’re capable of, is it?" the King muttered, resting his fist beneath his chin as he leaned forward slightly. His gaze sharpened. "Show . Show if you truly possess the strength you claim."
He wanted more.
And sohow, I had the feeling Leon would give it to him.
***
King of Bethlan’s POV
The brat was good.
No—scratch that.
He was a monster.
And I don’t throw that word around lightly.
The Vice Commander of the Magic Knights wasn’t so pushover either. She was a weapon polished by battle as well as honed by experience. A monster in her own right.
But this boy... this brat... he was sothing else entirely.
From a distance, the fight looked balanced. Clean exchanges. Even pacing. A proper duel between two elites.
But I’ve watched enough battles in my lifeti to know when soone is holding back.
He wasn’t even serious yet.
It was like he was dipping his toes into the ocean, checking the temperature before diving in. Testing her. asuring her. Learning her rhythm.
And adapting.
That was the unsettling part.
Now I was beginning to doubt whether even my finest knight could defeat him.
A hundred of my knights? Perhaps not enough.
A thousand?
I wouldn’t bet on it.
The knight standing beside had been watching since yesterday. A proud man. Skilled. Loyal. The kind of warrior who believed in his own blade.
Right now, his jaw was tight.
He bit his lip hard enough to leave a mark, his hand clenching into a fist as the reality slowly sank in.
There was no probable way he could defeat this man.
And that realization tasted bitter.
I let my eyes linger on his frustrated expression for a mont before returning my attention to the platform.
This wasn’t everything.
The brat still had more.
I could feel it.
And because of that, I found myself leaning forward slightly, unable to look away.
It’s rare to see potential like this.
Rarer still to witness it unfold in real ti.
***
Leon’s POV
Veronica was getting faster.
Not just slightly. Noticeably.
Her movents sharpened and her footwork tightened. She was pushing herself. She was forcing her body past its comfort zone. For brief flashes, she outpaced .
But only for seconds.
Then I caught up.
I adjusted my breathing. Shifted my stance. Refined the angle of my blade. Every ti she changed her rhythm, I mirrored it. Every feint as well as every sudden acceleration and I was already anticipating it.
Adapting.
She must have realized it by now.
No matter how much faster she beca, she couldn’t out-adapt .
We clashed again with our steel eting against each other with a sharp, ringing sound that echoed across the arena. Sparks burst between us, scattering like tiny fireflies before vanishing.
We circled. Advanced. Retreated.
Outpacing.
Outmaneuvering.
But neither of us was gaining ground.
I guess it was ti.
Magic.
And judging by the way her eyes narrowed, she had co to the sa conclusion.
A massive blast of fire roared toward , heat distorting the air around it. The crowd gasped as the flas swallowed my position.
I let Ayuru absorb it.
The fire vanished as if devoured by the air itself. It was sucked into nothingness before the heat could even lick my skin. Without hesitation, I returned the favor.
She sliced my counterattack clean in half.
The battlefield shifted.
We weren’t just swordsn now.
Large magic circles flared into existence behind her. They were intricate, glowing patterns spinning slowly like burning halos. She pointed her sword at , and countless massive fireballs materialized in the air.
They weren’t small. These weren’t casual spells.
Each one carried devastating area-of-effect power. If even one landed cleanly, I wouldn’t just be burned—I’d be roasted.
No pressure, though.
I moved.
Dodged the first. Twisted past the second. The third grazed the ground and exploded, shaking the platform beneath my feet.
I even cut several apart midair, slicing through compressed flas as if carving through solid matter. The heat brushed against my face, singeing the air around , but I pushed forward.
Then I dashed toward her.
A magic circle ford in my palm, glowing cold blue. The air temperature around my hand dropped instantly, frost spreading outward like veins.
I summoned a massive chunk of ice. It was dense, jagged, and violent. It shot toward her with explosive force.
She canceled it.
Just like that.
The ice shattered into harmless fragnts, scattering across the platform in a glittering spray.
We paused for half a heartbeat, staring at each other through the drifting steam of evaporated frost and fading embers.
Even with magic added to the mix, it felt just like before.
Balanced.
Equal.
We were testing each other.
Probing for weaknesses.
Neither of us had shown everything yet.
The crowd probably thought this was the peak.
It wasn’t.
Not even close.
The air between us crackled with tension.
It was like the calm before a storm that hadn’t decided how violent it wanted to be.
Well...
Not yet, anyway.
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