49. The Fight!

"What the hell are you?"

Fulvio let out a startled cry, staring wide-eyed at Merlin as he closed in again.

With his rapier held level, he stepped forward with his left foot and immediately unleashed a series of swift thrusts that covered Merlin from head to toe.

Merlin's pupils contracted. Incredibly, he could see every one of Fulvio's thrusts clearly.

His body could react perfectly, too. Lightning Reflexes had improved him across the board, enhancing every aspect of his physical abilities.

Merlin didn't dodge. Gripping his sword with both hands, he reacted quickly and coordinated his movements precisely. His blade flashed out again and again.

Clang! Clang-clang-clang-clang...

He shifted his footing within the space of a few steps, sweeping his katana sideways, cutting upward and downward, blocking, thrusting. Clear, ringing clashes of steel erupted between them.

Fulvio stared in disbelief. Had his quick sword really been blocked so easily? Was Merlin truly just a beginner at swordsmanship?

But it didn't take long for him to notice the awkward transitions in Merlin's movements.

A flash of insight lit his eyes. He stepped forward and swung his sword in a circle, bringing it down.

That was just as Merlin shifted his footing and brought his blade down, leaving him a moment to recover.

Merlin's blade couldn't return in time to defend. He watched as the sword came slashing toward him.

But his expression remained calm. He bent his knees and leaned back, then sprang backward to open up some distance.

Fulvio seized the opening. The balance of offense and defense shifted, and he surged forward in the blink of an eye.

He thrust his rapier at Merlin.

Merlin had only just landed when the attack came. His expression didn't change. Fulvio wasn't physically strong enough to overwhelm him.

His sword was incredibly fast, but his body couldn't react as quickly as Merlin's.

So—

As Fulvio charged, Merlin had already raised his katana. With a sharp clang, the blade he held across his body met the rapier's tip precisely.

Feeling the considerable force transmitted through the blade, Merlin leaped backward again.

Fulvio's eyes showed that he understood. This guy's reactions really were astonishingly fast.

He immediately let go of his earlier mindset of merely guiding a junior. From now on, he would treat Merlin as an equal opponent.

His gaze unconsciously sharpened. Looking at Merlin, he asked quietly,

"Merlin, you're strong. How about a proper spar now?"

Merlin, already back on his feet, saw a glimmer in his eyes.

"Gladly."

The next moment,

they both pushed off the ground and charged toward each other.

In the blink of an eye, their weapons clashed.

The piercing ring of steel rang out again.

They each took a step back to gather their strength.

Fulvio's gaze sharpened. His sword grew faster still, his attacks surging forward in relentless waves.

Merlin felt as if he were a small boat caught in a storm.

One wrong move,

and he'd be sunk.

Thrusts came at him one after another like raindrops.

Points of cold light flickered in his eyes.

At that moment,

Merlin's pupils shrank to pinpoints. He gripped his sword hilt tightly, concentrating completely as he picked out the real rapier from among the countless thrusts and afterimages.

He stopped worrying about whether he would get hurt and suddenly took a step forward.

With a ripping sound, the training clothes over his shoulder were pierced. But at that moment, the katana hanging at his right side, charged with power, slashed upward in a streak of cold light.

A resonant clang rang out.

The rain of thrusts suddenly stopped.

Fulvio's eyes widened. Merlin had actually caught his sword—and broken through his flurry of attacks.

Merlin's powerful swing knocked the rapier and Fulvio's right arm aside. With his guard wide open, Fulvio saw Merlin's katana reach the peak of its upward arc before abruptly changing direction.

Merlin stepped forward with his left foot, gripped the sword in both hands, and fixed his gaze on Fulvio's chest. In an instant, a streak of cold light came crashing down.

Fulvio's pupils contracted. His leg muscles tensed, and he leaped backward.

Merlin's eyes shifted as he noticed Fulvio's movement. He considered it, but didn't change his attack again.

After all, this was only a spar, not a fight to the death.

So,

his sword struck empty air.

Fulvio landed three meters away, still shaken. That had been a close one!

Then he looked down at his collar. A palm-length tear had been cut into it by the gust from Merlin's slash.

His expression grew solemn. He no longer dared to be careless for even a moment.

The next instant,

the fight began again.

The two of them moved back and forth across the training ground, shifting positions as they struck at each other.

Their weapons clashed again and again with ringing force.

Merlin's swordsmanship was still immature, but thanks to Lightning Reflexes and his body's explosive speed, he could hold his own against a fully focused Fulvio.

Fulvio grew more and more shocked as they fought. Merlin's swings were getting faster—no, it wasn't that he was getting faster. His movements were becoming more refined as he adapted to Fulvio's rapid attacks, and he seemed to be fighting with ever greater ease.

What a monster!

Yet that only stirred Fulvio's competitive spirit. At the same time, joy welled up within him.

During his three years as a bounty hunter out at sea, he had been through countless battles, big and small, but never once had he met someone who was his equal in swordsmanship.

Over the past year, his younger sister had finally grown enough to bring him some joy, but she was still too green and couldn't put up much of a fight.

Half an hour later,

their clothes were riddled with tears, and both had several bruises.

Even though the weapons weren't sharpened, they could still cause injuries.

They panted heavily,

staring at each other.

Fulvio grinned broadly.

"Merlin, let's call it a draw."

Fulvio had enjoyed the fight immensely.

He hadn't felt this kind of danger in a long time—not since he'd gone out to sea!

Merlin nodded, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth as well. "Sure. Whatever you say, Fohr."

Fohr looked unhappy and said helplessly, "Just call me Fohr.

"In swordsmanship, the more accomplished one takes precedence. We can treat each other as equals. At this dojo, the only person you need to show respect to is my Pops.

"Everyone else, including me, can just be called by name. It feels awkward hearing you call me senior this and senior that."

Fulvio knew perfectly well that for now, he only had the upper hand because his swordsmanship was more polished and his physique was stronger. If Merlin kept improving at this rate for a few more years,

it would only be a matter of time before he surpassed him. So it was better if they called each other by name. That way, Fulvio wouldn't feel awkward when Merlin did so later.

As his sister had said, strength was what mattered on the seas.

Seeing how serious he was, Merlin raised an eyebrow. After a moment's thought, he agreed.

"All right, Fohr."

Fohr nodded with a smile. "My sister and I will be staying at the dojo for a while to recover. Let's all train together in the meantime!

"Fundamentals are important, but so is experience fighting other people. I'm sure we'll all learn a lot."

Merlin smiled and nodded. After all, a suitable whetstone had come right to his door. How could he possibly turn that down?

He couldn't be happier!

You couldn't improve by training in isolation forever.

Just then, Yol and the other two came over. When they saw the tears in the two men's clothes and the bruises on their bodies, they looked a little helpless.

But Teresa soon let out an impressed chuckle as she looked at the two of them.

"Wow! Merlin, you're really impressive! You actually pushed my brother this far.

"He's always so full of himself, and he's always looking down on me. Now you've really put him in his place! Hahaha, serves him right!"

Merlin gave Fohr an odd look, but Fohr just said calmly,

"That's just how it is. Teresa can't beat me. She's skilled with her sword, but she's still a bit green.

"At sea, she isn't afraid of pirates with bounties over ten million, but even if she wins in a one-on-one fight, she'll still pay a heavy price.

"After all, she refuses to use underhanded tactics.

"And the other side will use things like grabbing her chest, spitting on her, and hurling filthy insults. That gets under her skin, makes her lose focus, and leaves her open to attack.

"I've told her about it, but she never listens."

Teresa glared at Fohr, grinding her teeth in frustration.

"How is that my fault? They use dirty tricks, but that doesn't mean I have to do the same!

"If I did, how would I be any different from them?

"I'm not a lowlife!"

After retorting, she turned to Merlin with an expectant look. "What do you think, Merlin?"

Merlin glanced at Fohr. Fohr gave him a look that said, "Go ahead, say what you want." Merlin grinned at her.

"Dead people don't get to complain about dirty tricks."

Teresa's face darkened, and she fell silent. But then she looked to Yol hopefully. "Yol?"

A smile played at the corner of Yol's mouth.

"If it were me, I'd crush him with overwhelming force. But after he died, I'd pray for his soul."

That wasn't an answer to her question.

Teresa said glumly, "What if you can't overpower him and he uses dirty tricks?"

Yol replied calmly, "Ignore them and beat him to death. Once someone's dead, all their sins disappear.

"As for his soul going to hell, that's not my problem."

Fulvio's mouth twitched. He leaned over to Merlin and muttered, "Is Yol always this ruthless?"

Merlin glanced at him. "Yol's very kind. If you don't provoke her, she won't do anything bad to you."

Fulvio sighed. He understood now. Both of them had a real taste for blood. No wonder they were survivors who had escaped from there.

But just then, he looked confused. After hesitating for a moment, he asked,

"By the way, Merlin, were the three of you the only survivors from Flevance who escaped?"

As soon as he asked, the atmosphere fell silent.

Yol's gaze sharpened without drawing attention to herself, and she moved to shield Lami behind her.

Noticing the change in the atmosphere,

Fulvio looked embarrassed.

He was just about to explain...