"D-Duels?!"
Doran stepped forward and firmly grabbed my shoulder to push me toward the arena.
"That's right, my boy. Excited, huh?"
The shock must have been obvious on my face because Doran and the others burst out laughing.
When I said I wanted to train, it was true that I wanted to learn how to fight at least a little, but dueling Doran was hopeless.
I was already struggling just to keep my sword raised, so in a duel… there was no point even talking about it.
Once I stood at the center of the circle, Doran grabbed a wooden sword from the pile stacked to the side and positioned himself in front of me, his blade raised upward.
I awkwardly imitated him, placing my legs slightly sideways.
My trembling blade pointed in his direction, both of my hands firmly gripping the hilt of my sword.
Even though my stance was identical to Doran's, judging by the worried looks the soldiers were throwing my way, mine probably looked far less impressive than his.
Doran signaled to me with his eyes.
"You ready?"
I nodded in agreement.
"Oh! One last thing…"
His left hand released the hilt of his sword and moved behind his back. His determined gaze settled on me.
"I'll only use one hand."
The moment those words left his mouth, he instantly reduced the several meters between us to barely half a meter.
In panic and fear, I raised my sword above my head.
Doran's sword crashed down onto mine with a loud impact. The force of the blow made me stumble backward.
I raised my eyes toward him, my mind still dazed.
He gave me a mocking smile before lunging again, the tip of his sword shooting toward my chest.
Remembering his advice from the previous day, I stepped aside and raised my sword upside down over my shoulder to catch his blade.
Doran's sword screeched loudly as it slid across the flat side of my blade.
Before he had time to recover from his attack, I threw my body forward, spinning my sword above me before bringing it crashing down toward Doran, who barely managed to block it.
I stopped, out of breath.
Doran looked at me, a smile forming on his face. He was breathing heavily.
"Not bad at all!"
At the same moment, he charged once more, his sword raised high in the air. He was going to do it again.
I lifted my sword to block the strike that was about to fall.
But the blow never came.
Instead, Doran shifted to my right just before striking.
"Don't think fighting with a sword is the only solution."
His voice brushing against my ear made me jump.
Before I could react, I felt a powerful blow slam into my right side, and I was sent flying onto the ground farther away.
I raised my eyes toward Doran, my jaw clenched from the throbbing pain in my ribs.
Doran lowered his outstretched leg back to the ground.
"Come on, get up."
I stood back up gritting my teeth, trying to hide the pain as much as possible.
These people were counting on me. I had to prove myself worthy of their trust.
[The system reacts to your determination.]
[Temporary authorization granted.]
[The skill MONARCH'S FLAME (Lv.1) has been activated.]
Huh?!
I felt an intense heat spread throughout my body, as though I had a fever. But strangely, I felt full of energy. It was as if my body had forgotten all pain.
I looked at my hands.
Small dark cracks were beginning to form. Flames seemed to escape from them. The cracks were so tiny that I had trouble noticing them at first glance, but now there was no doubt.
It was just like last time in the forest.
"So, are you coming or not?"
I could feel power surging through me.
I pushed off with my legs, and in an instant they launched forward. It was as though running no longer exhausted me.
Doran's surprised face barely managed to block my strike at the last second, causing him to stagger slightly backward.
He smiled faintly.
"Now it's getting interesting."
We both rushed toward each other at the same moment.
The courtyard filled with the sound of our blades clashing together.
Even though, thanks to this new power, I could almost rival Doran in terms of strength, he still far surpassed me in footwork.
He moved like a dancer, narrowly dodging every strike. Twisting his body to reinforce the momentum behind each of his attacks.
He lunged again just like before.
This time, I saw his foot coming toward my right side and jumped over it while spinning through the air.
His sword brushed against my back.
I was flexible and light, sure, but I had forgotten to take into account the pathetic coordination of my legs.
Unable to regain my balance, I crashed heavily onto the ground.
When I looked up again, Doran's sword was resting beneath my neck.
He smiled broadly and extended a hand to help me up.
"You did well."
It was the first time he had spoken to me informally.
I grabbed his hand, and he firmly gripped mine before suddenly pulling me upward.
Once I was back on my feet, he gave me a hard slap on the back that made me stagger.
"I had no idea you were this agile!"
He took a stance and tried to imitate the way I moved.
"Impossible to hit you, you looked like a wild animal! Ahahahaha!"
"Ahahaha!"
"Ahahaha!"
"Hehehaha!"
Doran and the other young soldiers laughed loudly.
I smiled.
"I didn't know I was capable of it either."
Above my head.
A glowing window flickered.
[Condition fulfilled!]
[The skill MONARCH'S FLAME (Lv.1->2).]