Iria watched the lord step inside the open circle stage, his ashen blue eyes reflecting Lythian's red irises.
Every knight present, including Iria who is simply a maid and a healer, had a rough idea of who'd be the victor of this bout, the prodigy, Lythian.
Lythian had grown up being taught by his own father, and sometimes his grandfather, and the 'term' prodigy was simply unfit for him just because he's performing better relative to those of his age.
Hard-working, that term fits his background more.
After all, what does he have except his hard work? He was also a child of a hard-working man, and a grandson of a hard-working man, nothing about their bloodline was a product of talent.
Yet, the very lord they served had the 'talent' and 'privilege' but wasted it away. What more of a reason does he need to loathe Seven?
Iria knows about it too, that's why she couldn't help but fidget her fingers; she had seen Lythian train over and over again, be it while guarding the gate of the manor as a knight in training, or in the weekends where he's supposed to take a rest.
To put it simply, this was a bout between a genius and a common man.
"Please lose quickly, my lord," Iria whispered, though no one heard it. "Just two more weeks. Please don't force yourself until then."
Iria wasn't wishing her lord any ill, but just genuinely praying the bout would end fast before his stubbornness drove him past his limits.
Now facing Seven, Lythian bowed slightly.
"Sorry, young lord, but I won't be holding back. I'm afraid that'd be an insult for you."
"Yes. I'll be in your care"
Seeing both cadets (though Seven is an unofficial cadet) fired up, Edward smiled. He needed no more than this sign in order to start the bout.
"In your positions… begin!"
Upon signal, Lythian immediately dashed forward, aiming to achieve a clean first hit.
Blink!
It might have looked like a surprise attack for someone facing him for the first time, but not after seeing him start his previous two bouts with the same move.
As the wooden sword closed in on Seven's chest, he stepped forward… surprisingly! —instead of dodging or parrying.
Several of the knights stiffened.
Iria did as well, certain it was over, and a foolishly good move coming from the lord. After all, a direct hit like that would hurt badly, granting her whispered wish earlier.
However, Seven stepped aside at the last possible second and drove his wooden sword forward in a thrusting motion, a counter aimed straight for Lythian's eyes.
A high risk if missed, but high reward if connected.
But…
"O-ow…"
It wasn't a perfect dodge.
Lythian's sword grazed his right shoulder, while his sword was perfectly evaded by Lythian by pivoting ninety degrees, now aiming for his exposed back.
"My lord!" Iria yelled, worried.
Clank!
Shifting his grip mid-motion and angling his sword behind him, Seven was barely able to block the attack. He groaned, gritting his teeth, cursing inwardly. The impact rattled his arms as their swords locked!
In short, they were chest to chest, snow crunched beneath their boots as they were straining for dominance and locked in a test of strength.
But Seven was clearly losing, so he didn't try to win it.
He stomped on Lythian's lead foot.
The sudden shift forced Lythian to lighten his grip on the sword to steady himself. Seizing the moment, Seven slid his sword smoothly as he planned to slam the hilt against Lythian's face.
The plan didn't work. Lythian caught the hilt with his palm, stopping it before it landed.
With the hilt blocked, Lythian used the momentum to slam the handle of his sword into Seven's ribs, then followed up with a knee kick to his young lord's upper abdomen.
"Blurgh!"
Seven stumbled backward, coughing up a frothy mix of saliva and blood.
'Hah, that hurts! Feels like I got hit by a brick, damn it. I can't afford to take on another hit.'
"Oh no…" Iria gasped.
Iria's heart thumped in her chest as she watched the spar. It hasn't even been half a minute, but a lot of things have already happened.
She watched the series of exchanges that followed with such anticipation, 'please end it already,' as she pleaded inside his mind, couldn't bear watching her lord being pushed back, again and again.
Cling, clank!
Like water cascading down a cliff, Lythian's strikes poured in without end.
Seven could barely keep up— no!— he couldn't at all! Out of ten attacks, he could only manage to parry one, and dodge another one thanks to his clumsy footwork.
Truth is, bruises in his frail body began to grow in number, feeling a burning sensation on his wrists with each parry.
How much time had passed?
Honestly, no one present here knew. Their gazes were filled with expectation and worry, some looked at Edward hoping that he'd stop the bout already, as they might also be in danger if the young lord would suffer grave injuries.
Some looked at the beauty with tears threatening to fall from her eyes, her hands in a praying position, pressing against her fluffy chest.
Clank, clank!
The exchange still continued as both cadets pressed on.
Seven grabbed a handful of snow and hurled in forward like Perci did earlier, but his opponent was able to shield his eyes and countered him with a clean hit behind his head.
He tried blocking with his wooden sword, but the one that took the blows were his already wounded right shoulder, his bruises, and his ribs that were on the verge of breaking.
"It's over, young lord," Lythian muttered, swinging his sword down one last time with a disgusted expression. "It was a nice fight."
Clank!
Then, Seven was finally down, facing the ground.
But…
"My lord!" Iria stepped forward. "Stay right there. I'll heal you in a second, so—"
A firm hand stopped her.
"Please wait a moment, Lady Iria," a knight said. "The match is still in progress."
"What? But…"
Iria's words faltered as her eyes landed on Edward.
"What are you doing, Edward?! The lord is… the lord is…"
Edward still hadn't announced the winner, though it was painfully obvious. His expression was stern, unreadable, and something about the way he looked at the two cadets in battle was off.
Following his gaze, Iria froze.
Seven was still trying to stand up, his fingers grasping for something to hold but the snow crumbled in his grasp.
"Please, just stop… my lord…" Iria sobbed.
Edward gripped the handle of his sword. Being the highest ranking knight present in the scene, and having a total of three Zi rings orbiting his heart, only he alone could feel and see the intense pressure radiating out from the lord's body.
"Ahahaha…"
Seven giggled.
Even though he was getting beaten up, over and over, again and again, he was still smiling and giggling, a smile so wide that it reached ears.
He finally stood back up, engulfed with an intense pressure that the rest seemed like they were frozen in time.
"This…"
Thump, thump!
"This is way too fun, man…!!"
Seven's once ashen-blue eyes shimmered into gold, his gaze locking onto the cadet before him with a look of sheer terror.
ᆫSkill Activatedᄀ
[Self-proclaimed Genius] Temporarily slows down time, granting omnipotent perspective in a limited area.