It was more than obvious Samuel wasn’t done talking. However, if the commentator let our little verbal battle continue the real battle would never start. Thankfully Samuel dropped into combat as soon as the start of battle was announced. Me on the other hand nonchalantly yawned. I wasn’t faking it either. Last night I had been so excited for the battle that I couldn’t sleep well.

With a swift dash Samuel closed the gap, his two handed sword above his head for a downward slash. To tell the truth, his speed was quite something. One would think that heavy looking armour would slow him down. On the contrary, it seemed to improve his physical proes through the myriad of enchantments it held.

I could easily dodge the incoming attack but I decided not to do so. Instead I held my wooden sword in such a way it would collide at a thirty degree angle with Samuel’s. The next moment, Samuel’s sword slash was redirected away from me. Unfortunately I heard my poor wooden sword screeching due to the strain. I might be able to pull this trick two to three more times before it broke.

Since he had just missed his attack an opening was bound to happen. However, to my surprise, Samuel made another slash in the exact opposite direction the last had ended. It was as if his sword was as light as a feather for him. Looking closely I could see magic circuits in his sword as well, go figures.

No wonder the cocky bastard always won. His equipment is top notch and his skills aren’t all that bad. If I were to compare him with that knight aspiring guy in skills the knight guy wins but add to that their gear and Samuel will beat him to a pulp. Of course there are others that far surpass Samuel in gear as well but I guess he won’t go looking for a fight with them.

I sidestepped his sword swing resulting in an easy dodge. With this small exchange I already understood how strong he was and so I knew how much strength I needed to use. This time, Samuel opted for a thrust instead of a slash. Once again I tangled my wooden sword redirecting the thrust upwards by a little.

Here is where the fun begins. Since his sword had been deflected upwards, Samuel opted to follow up with a downward slash. However, before he could start the slash I stepped forward and punched his chest. I expected him to lose his balance and fall but against my expectations he stood there like nothing happened.

I quickly took evasive actions and rolled out of the downward slash that was coming for me. That is when I realized why my attack had been ineffective. Or rather, that's when he told me why, either way I had already figured it out before he did.

“Surprised, this armour can absorb and redirect the energy from attacks. With those weak attacks of yours you will never even scratch me nor my armor!”

“Cocky are we? I was just testing the waters to see how hard I could hit you without killing you”

“You!”

This idiot had stopped his chain of attacks to brag, giving me enough time to make my next move. I closed the small gap that had formed in between us and slashed at him. Of course he used his sword to parry my own. What he did not expect was for me to put close to zero strength behind that slash.

With my free left hand I sent a quick jab to his elbow. I had calculated how much energy could that armour absorbed before being overwhelmed and so the attack managed to harm him. My idea was to render his elbow imobile and reduce his ability to handle that sword of his but I had missed a crucial factor.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Due to the sacrificial dolls, Samuel’s elbow received no damage. Therefore, this kind of tactics were useless for this duel type of combat. I quickly stepped aside dodging a sword swing. Since I couldn’t render him imobile through by attacking his joints then I would just trip him.

In the next moment I made a faint as if I was planning to once again hit his chest. After the damage his elbow received, albeit it being minimum, he became more wary of my attacks. Because of this, he stepped back falling into my trap. I instantly lowered my posture and made a swing kick at his legs. Since he had just stepped back there was no time for him to jump as his posture was somewhat unstable.

With that, he fell to the ground on his back. At this point, I had the advantage and could attack in whichever way I wanted. Instead I just stood up and yawned, this time on purpose to trigger his anger. Best part was that the commentator aided me in this aspect at this moment.

“Lord Samuel has fallen! And look at that miss Amelia isn’t even bothering to attack but is instead yawning again! Could it be? Is this battle so easy for her that she finds it boring!? Is Lord Samuel’s undefeated streak going to end today!?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle a little at the commentators' antics and samuels frantic movements to get up. Having heard the commentator and looking at how relaxed I was his anger shot through the roof. Now with blood shot eyes he once again rushed at me. His armour shone slightly due to the large amount of mana that was being pumped into it.

His strength and speed increased suddenly and I couldn’t help but remember those rpg games I used to play back on earth. When a boss got low on health or you did something they would become enraged and gain extra stats. Of course, unlike the games, this increase in stats had its price for Samuel, his mana. If he continued like this, his mana would run dry in about five minutes.

The rest of the match was uninteresting to say the least. Samuel was stronger and faster but his blind rage made his moves obvious and easy to dodge. I continued to trip him from time to time. I would also push him around whenever I had the chance. The commentator also enjoyed making fun of Samuel at this moment.

Finally his mana started to run dry and I decided to make my last move. I waited until Samuel made a downward swing and then I used all of my strength powered up with overload to hit his sword with my own. As expected, my sword snapped instantly. However, it managed to transmit enough force into Samuel’s sword to not only knock it off his hands but also crack it.

I wasn’t done though. I moved forward and punched his right side in such a way that only his armour would suffer the impact. With a loud boom my fist broke through the sound barrier as well as Samuel’s armor. Due to the angle and location of the punch he was mostly unharmed but the same couldn’t be said for his armour.

The two moves had been made in the span of a single second and a few seconds. The sound of Samuel's armour hitting the ground could be heard a few times as he had been sent rolling on the ground. A moment later, the clanging sound of the heavy two handed sword could be heard as it hit the ground, visibly damaged.

As for Samuel’s sacrificial doll, it was still standing albeit barely. He wasn’t out just jet, and that was precisely what I wanted. I walked towards his sword and picked it up. The thing felt scorching hot in my hand as a sizzling sound could be heard. It hurt a little, but it was nothing I couldn’t handle.

“You idiot, that sword is a minoken that has been passed down in my family. Anyone who is not from my bloodline will be rejected and suffer while holding it. Not to mention it will become ten times as heavy!”

Like a comical villain from a manga he began explaining with a shit eating grin on his face. As for me, the thing felt super light in my hands, Naru and Pyrka were at least ten times as heavy as this thing. The heat was annoying as it burned my hand but my healing was taking care of it even before the damage could be transferred to the sacrificial doll.

Both Samuel’s sword and armour were in bad shape but could still be repaired. I wanted to trash them completely. I had read in the rules that any damage the gear took during combat was the owner’s responsibility. As such I won’t be held accountable as long as I destroy his gear in combat.

As Samuel stood up once again I dashed towards him. His precious sword in hand. With a swift move I hit his abdomen with the broad side of the sword with all my might. The sword shattered alongside his armor and perhaps a few ribs as well. The three sacrificial dolls exploded instantly as his body flew across before hitting a wall.

“This! This is amazing ladies and gentlemen, Amelia has won with absolute strength! Not one, not two, but all three dolls got destroyed! I think we have a rising star in our hands ladies and gentlemen and let me tell you, I am hyped to see Miss Amelia in the ring once more!”

I couldn’t help but smile at the commentator’s words before throwing the now bladeless hilt in my hand over my head before waving at the crowd. With that done, I placed my hinds inside my coat’s pockets and walked out of the ring with a satisfied smile. Who knew how much that gear was worth, and with the amount of damage I had dealt to it, there was no way to save it.

“With this, no more nobles should come to pick a fight with me, and if they do, well, I will just make a show of them as well”

I said that out loud while walking through the corridor out the arena.