Ireya’s battle with the Earth Bear was a thrilling rollercoaster, full of twists and turns. In the end, the Lady, drenched in blood, chopped off the Earth Bear’s head, deeply shocking everyone present.
However, today wasn’t only about this upset in the Duel Arena; the Silver Knight, who had been ranked second in the odds until the day before being surpassed by the Lady, also lost.
Unlike the Earth Bear, he lost to an unknown opponent—a Foreigner nicknad Cal.
Cal’s background was very mysterious; before this Duel Tournant, nobody had heard his na. He seed to appear out of nowhere, cutting through his opponents one after another.
Although there were underdogs in past Duel Tournants, they were usually flash-in-the-pan winners. It was quite rare for soone like Cal to make it into the top eight, and even more so to defeat a hot favorite for the champion, the Silver Knight.
In his battle against the Silver Knight, he displayed unbelievable agility and exceptionally outstanding footwork.
The Silver Knight did not go easy on him and could even be said to have perford above his usual level. His offense and defense were impeccable, including his spectacular performance of anticipating the opponent’s moves, earning applause from the Knights of the Royal Knight Order.
However, after sparring for over a hundred rounds, the Silver Knight still couldn’t defeat Cal; instead, his actions began to slow down due to the loss of stamina.
As the most legendary Knight of the Empire, this instructor of the Royal Knight Order was almost beyond reproach in terms of martial arts and morality, with only his age being a slight issue; he was over two hundred years old.
Even for the typically long-lived Half-Beast, this had entered his twilight years, and his body was beginning to decline. Furthermore, he had gone through several battles these days, and the Silver Knight was not willing to take his opponent’s life.
This led to his inability to use many of his fatal techniques, and so had specifically planned their strategy around this weakness, although in the end, they were all thoroughly defeated.
Yet, to win these battles, the Silver Knight had to expend more energy and ntal focus than others. It was only natural for him to feel exhausted.
If he were to lose the duel like this, people would lant yet acknowledge Cal’s prowess.
However, what Cal did next caused an uproar among the onlookers.
He didn’t take the opportunity to launch an attack and win the fight. Instead, he also slowed down his pace, drawing out the battle with his opponent like a cat toying with a mouse.
He would even intentionally reveal one or two flaws to lure the Silver Knight into attacking, yet each ti, at the last mont, he’d masterfully display his agility and quickness to dodge the old knight’s lethal strike.
By the end of the battle, those close by could even hear the Silver Knight’s panting; his chest heaved continuously, his gray-white hair clinging to his forehead.
He was aware that his chances of victory were slim, but the knight’s persistence and pride did not allow him to give up the fight.
The more earnest he got, the more his opponent’s relaxed and carefree attitude stood out. Cal could hear jeers coming from around him.
From the corner of his eye, he even caught a glimpse of a few Knights from the Royal Knight Order wanting to rush in and cut him down, but they were stopped halfway by the guards responsible for maintaining order.
A smirk ford on Cal’s lips. Far from being frightened, he revealed a faint smile, "When I first ca to this Continent, I asked the people here who had the best swordsmanship.
"I heard many nas, but you and Essos were ntioned the most.
"Yet, Essos was a bit of a disappointnt to . Not only did he lack the courage to participate in the Duel Tournant but he was also defeated by a corpulent, over-drinking fat man right at the start.
"But luckily, you’re here. You’ve got quite a bit of courage," Cal said, "a pity that your skills can’t match up to it. With such strength, you can still beco an instructor for the Empire, which goes to show that this nation really lacks any true powerhouses.
"My father always said that peace is our greatest enemy, and you all have been peaceful for far too long, becoming exceedingly weak. Allow to show you how to fight."
After Cal finished speaking, he stepped forward with his right foot and delivered a downward slash. The Silver Knight, seeing this, imdiately countered with a glancing strike, using the strong side of his sword to block the weak side of Cal’s blow.
This attack from Cal ultimately landed on the Silver Knight’s crossguard, after which the Silver Knight swung the weak side of his own sword towards Cal’s head.
Even though the old knight’s body was extrely fatigued at this point, the instincts honed by countless battles drove him to execute this set of movents.
This textbook counterattack from him made the onlooking knights once again cheer uncontrollably.
But this cheer lasted for only a brief mont before it abruptly ceased.
Because Cal rely tilted his head slightly to dodge this determined strike from his opponent.
"Too slow," Cal said, as he dropped his shoulder and bumped into the old knight’s chest, causing the latter to stagger.
Then he kicked the Silver Knight in the abdon. Despite the heavy blow, the Silver Knight still clenched his teeth, retracted his sword aiming to push Cal back, and stabilised his stance.
But Cal didn’t even glance at the longsword slashing towards him, and instead threw a punch that landed on the old knight’s chin, forcing him to retreat another two steps back.
The Silver Knight was now swaying like a drunk, barely able to stand steady.
Without any ability to maintain his stance, he could only lean on his longsword to barely support his body and keep from falling.
Yet, Cal’s voice once again rose beside his ear, "That’s enough, it ends here. I’m also tired of this ga."
After speaking, Cal raised his sword and lightly thrust it forward, piercing into the old knight’s throat.
Blood trickled down the blade, and the light in the Silver Knight’s eyes slowly faded away.
"I’ve heard you dislike killing. Surely then you must have been prepared to be killed," Cal stated indifferently. His action had now thoroughly enraged the crowd—first there was a commotion among the knights of the Royal Knight Order, then people in the stands started shouting, commanding their retainers to fetch their weapons.
The Silver Knight held great respect and esteem within the Royal Knight Order. Many had received his guidance or sought advice in swordsmanship from him.
Witnessing him being slain, moreover in a near-execution manner after the outco of the duel had already been determined, left them all unable to sit still.
This was different from the battle between Ireya and the Earth Bear, as there was already enmity between them, and they had the Emperor’s permission to resolve their conflict through combat.
Moreover, during their clash, both Ireya and the Earth Bear had co close to being killed by the other, they fought fiercely with no reason to hold back.
Yet the Silver Knight had always practiced the knight’s path of rcy, never killing anyone in a duel till now. But such a knight, respected by all as a legendary figure, now lay tragically dead in the Duel Arena.
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