The battle between Indra and Lakshman erupted with a blast. The moment the commentator gave the signal, Lakshman rushed towards his father at blinding speed. Then he swung his sword down, but was blocked when Indra quickly raised his sword in defence.

Sparks violently exhibited from their furiously clashing swords as they fought for control. That was when a flash of blinding light erupted and caused a massive explosion to send wind and dust everywhere.

All the people that were seated high in the watching space covered themselves as the shockwave hit them. For a moment, the arena was covered in dust. As people coughed and sneezed, the dust cleared and the field came into view.

When the people looked down, they were astonished to see Indra and Lakshman were not fighting. They stood, meters away, and stared at each other.

The commentator, recovering after the sudden strong wind and cloud of dust, started commentating excitedly.

“Wow! What a flashy start! As soon as the signal was given, Lakshman rushed in for a quick takedown, but it looks like Indra defended against him well! The force of their clash was so strong the whole place erupted in dust!”

At the stands, Ondine and Mariana were covering Lakshmi. They moved over and let her sit properly. Lakshmi looked around and at them with a confused expression on her face.

“What happened?” she asked in a confused voice.

“Master attacked Indra and that caused a massive amount of wind and dust to hit us all,” Ondine said proudly as she looked down at Lakshman.

Lakshmi widened her eyes and, a moment later, sighed before saying “Those two... really...!”

She sounded annoyed, but she suddenly started to smile. Mariana looked at her and nodded in satisfaction. She knew Lakshmi would not like this battle, but she also wants to see her son win.

Just then, Lakshman leapt forward and started fighting against his father. Indra and Lakshman furiously exchanged swords at each other. Each time they swung, it made contact with the opponent’s sword. Each impact caused a loud sword clashing sounds.

“What a fight! Look at them! Now both warriors started attacking each other with all they got!” the commentator’s voice was heard loud and clear.

Indra and Lakshman swung at each other with great strength and power. Their clashes could be heard loud and clear even when the commentator was speaking. Both of them were challenging Energy Force through their swords which caused energy to go everywhere.

“You surprised me! I didn’t expect you to start attacking me so quickly!” Indra said in their next sword slash.

“You know, dad... If I strike first, you wouldn’t have the chance to defend yourself or anything,” Lakshman said as he fought back.

Indra widened his eyes in amazement and started to laugh which caused Lakshman to make a perplexed expression on his face.

“What’s so funny, dad?” he asked once they broke away.

“Oh, nothing... It’s just... I finally see that my son has... finally grown...” Indra said with a happy smile on his face.

Lakshman blinked at him in surprise as his father sifted his armour slightly and took on a fighting stance. Sensing danger, he quickly took a fighting stance of his own and readied himself.

“While I’m happy that you’ve grown, I still won’t let you face the outer world if you can’t even defeat me!” Indra said and he looked very seriously at Lakshman.

The next instant he disappeared and, a moment later, reappeared directly in front of Lakshman. At the looming appearance of his father, he looked surprised and stepped back instinctively.

Lakshman suddenly widened his eyes and said “Gah!”

He clutched his stomach at the sudden pain. It was then he realised that Indra landed a powerful blow in his stomach. Then he looked up at him just in time to see the raised fists.

“If you want to win, defeat me first!” Indra shouted and landed a powerful blow to the side of his son’s face.

Lakshman yelled in pain and was sent flying. He sailed across the field and smashed into the wall.

“Oooo! A punch to the face! That must hurt!” the commentator’s voice was heard.

From the seats, Lakshmi suddenly flared up angrily and started shouting while Mariana tried to calm her down.

“Damn you, Indra! Don’t hit my son like that! Fight fairly dammit!”

As the broken rubble fell down He ssand the dust cleared, Lakshman stepped out with a grunting noise.

“I thought we’re...  fighting with... swords!” he said in a complaining voice while he rubbed his face.

“Yeah, we are, but I wanted to give you some motivation into fighting me seriously!”

Lakshman looked surprised at his father’s words. Then he looked angry and rushed at him. Just as he reached Indra, he disappeared which surprised Indra.

“He... vanished?!” he exclaimed in astonishment.

He suddenly felt a strong force from behind and exclaimed “From behind?!”

As he turned, he caught sight of his son about to attack him from behind.

Lakshman smiled as he said “This is payback for punching me in the face, dad!”

As he finished speaking, he landed his sword against the amour his father wore. His smile suddenly vanished and was replaced by a shocked expression.

“W-What’s going on? Why isn’t your armour breaking?”

Indra smiled and said “That’s part of my armour. You could call it my shield.”

“S-Shield?!” Lakshman exclaimed in surprise and said “I thought you didn’t have one.”

“I originally didn’t plan on using it. So I kept it back there in case I got... you know... back stabbed.”

He started to laugh and Lakshman, in frustration, said “It still won’t matter... what?”

Lakshman sounded surprised as the shield, on his father’s back, began to glow brightly.

Indra, as if just remembering something, said “You want to get away from there. Otherwise, you’ll be yelling in pain.”

“Why?”

“That shield is no ordinary shield. It’s called a Reflector Shield and is capable of reflecting the attacked power back at the attacker by doubling its power.”

Just then, there was a violent flash and Lakshman was blasted away. He yelled in pain as he soared through the air and landed sprawled on the ground. He winced slightly as he slowly rose back to his feet and looked towards his father.

“That hurt...” he muttered as he rose to his feet.

“Naturally it would, you used a lot of Weapon Force into that attack,” Indra said with a snicker.

“Mine, huh...” Lakshman muttered as he understood. Then he looked at his father and asked “But dad... How did you get that sort of shield? Wouldn’t it have been really rare or expensive to get?”

“Felix gave it to me, his best friend!” Indra said proudly while smiling happily.

As Lakshman wore an expression of surprise, amazement and disbelief on his face, Indra looked seriously at his son and spoke.

“Listen, Lucky. He gave me his shield to protect me so that I will be safe. He did it to protect Lakshmi’s happiness because of all the dangerous things I get involved in. He gave us many things, including the house we’re living in right now.”

As Lakshman widened his eyes in surprise, Indra continued speaking.

“He did a lot for us. For such a friend, I would do anything and even giving up my life to help him! So if you, my son, can’t do the same, then... I won’t let you go free, Lucky!”

“D-Dad...” Lakshman said with a sad expression on his face.

“That’s why! Defeat me! Prove to me you got more than just strong feelings!”

Indra and Lakshman looked at each other with his father giving him a serious look. Lakshman then sighed and stood up before looking seriously at his father.

“I’ll win,” he said in a firm voice.

He readied his weapon and then heard Tetra’s voice in his mind.

“Going all out, master? Should I lend you my help?”

“No. I’ll fight with my own strength. I want to prove to dad I am capable without help!”

“As you wish, master.”

Once the talking was over, he readied his weapon and took a battle stance. Indra did the same and they readied themselves to fight seriously. Then silence stretched for a few seconds Even the crowd became quiet as the tension slowly builded.

At that moment, the cry of a baby from the crowd triggered the attack. Indra and Lakshman rushed at each other at an incredible speed and clashed swords. Then they began a barrage of swings of their swords at each other only to get blocked by the other’s sword.

“Oh! Look at that, the fight’s finally got serious after a lengthy talk between father and son. Now it looks like those two are finally getting down to business! Look at them go! That power, strength and skills!”

At that moment, Lakshmi yelled “Hurry up and defeat that idiot, Lucky! Come on! Do it!”

“M-Madam, please... Don’t overexert yourself!” Mariana said in a worried voice and looked anxiously at her.

“I’ll be fine!” Lakshmi said as she waved her worries away with a hand.

“M-Madam...” Mariana said in a pleading voice.

Meanwhile, the intensity between Indra and Lakshman increased. Their battle became a lengthy one as each warrior fought with both their skills and strength. It excited the crowd as they were eager to see more from them.

The speed at which both Indra and Lakshman clashed at was incredible. Each time their swords made impact there was a loud clanging sounds followed by sparks littering the field.

A few times, Indra and Lakshman disappeared to strike at each other from their blind spot. Their disappearance and reappearance was almost like magic.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

The crowd watched the fight with great excited energy. Many were on their feet and shouting encouragements towards the respective warrior they supported. They were eager to see the battle go on, but the difference between them became clear.

Indra continued to fight at the same pace as always, but Lakshman was quickly becoming exhausted. He was delivering fewer attacks and was also looking exhausted. His breathing was shallow and he began to miss his target.

“What’s wrong? Don’t tell me you’re getting tired already?” Indra asked with a grin on his face when they took a break from fighting.

While breathing heavily, Lakshman said “N-Not... really...”

Indra laughed and said “You did well, Lucky. You did so much better than I thought and let me give you a well-earned rest!”

As he shouted the last word, he quickly rushed towards him. Lakshman tried to react, but he was slow and could not stop the next attack. Due to the barrier around the arena, all physical attacks, that also includes cuts and stabs, to the person’s mind.

Indra did several slashes with his sword at his son and kicked him away. Lakshman screamed from the pain as he flew through the air and smashed into the wall. He was then covered by dust and rubble from the broken wall.

A moment later, Lakshman slowly walked forward weakly with broken armour. Then he slowly collapsed on the ground. His sword fell at his side and remained still and silent. It did not look like nighter he nor does his Contract Spirit have the energy to continue the fight.

For a moment, there was silence within the arena. Then the whole place erupted in loud screams of the crowd. They were clapping, yelling and screaming with mixed emotions while congratulating Indra.

Over the loud voices, the commentator’s voice could be heard as he tried to make his voice be heard above them all.

“There you have it folks! The long lasted battle has finally come to an end with an expected result. It looks like the young man, Lakshman, has much way to go in developing his skills to match his father’s.”

As the crowd went wild over Indra’s victory, there were three people that did not join in. Lakshmi, Mariana and Ondine were looking sad as they looked at the collapsed form of Lakshman. Lakshmi, especially, was looking unhappy at her son’s defeat.

“Lucky...” she muttered in a sad voice.

“Master...” Ondine said in a low voice.

She was distraught because she knew this would happen. She knew Lakshman was lacking in experience and pure fighting skills he needed to win against his father. While she indeed knew he will lose, a part of her wanted him to win.

While the crowd cheered and waved at him, Indra looked towards the sprawled figure of his son. Then he breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed the tension that built up in his body.

“That was good, but looks like you got more to learn, Lucky,” he said with a smile.

Lakshman was barely conscious. He heard the noises as if they were far away. There was a gentle blankness settling in and he felt comfortable letting himself. To him, it felt suiting and relaxing which also made him feel no concern for anything anymore.

Suddenly, he heard Tetra’s voice speaking to him in his drifting mind.

“Master... Are you giving up?”

“H-Huh?”

“Are you giving up?”

“What... are you talking about? Go away! I want to... sleep...”

“You want to sleep?”

“... Yes.”

“Then... What about Felix?”

“Who?”

“Felix. The man who saved your father’s life, the people around here and your life.”

 “What about him?”

“Aren’t you forgetting he needs your help?”

“He... needs my help?”

“Yes. He wants your help and only you can help him. Will you let him down? Won’t you return the favour of helping him since he saved your life?”

“I... I should?”

“Yes, master. You should. He is important, both to us and the world. If you don’t defeat your father, you cannot help him.”

“Okay, but... I lost. Dad defeated me. There’s nothing more I can do now. He’s right. I have so much to learn about the world when I couldn’t even defeat him.”

“Master... Are you giving up?”

“I think I should. I realise now I was overconfident with my skills.”

“So master... You’re a loser then.”

“A... what?”

“Loser. Loser!”

“...”

“Master, remind us again what your middle name is.”

“My... middle name?”

“Yes. What is your middle name?”

“It’s... Vijay.”

“And? It stands for?”

“It... stands for... Victory... Victorious.”

“Yes, master. Victory... Victorious...! So I ask... Are you a loser?”

“No.”

“Are you going to give up?”

“No.”

“Will you defeat your father?”

“Yes.”

“Will you lose?”

“... NO!”

The crowd continued to go wild, but some of them suddenly noticed something and began to draw attention to it. As the attention diverted, many of them were showing astonished looks and stared down at the battlefield.

Indra, who had turned away and began to walk away, felt the change in the crowd. He looked up and saw many of them wearing astonished expressions as they stared at something behind him. He turned around and, to his big surprise, he found Lakshman standing upright.

Lakshman was standing up unsteadily with his head hanging down. All damage is transferred to their minds which is why he did not have physical wounds. Indra, however, thought he imagined seeing his son with blood dripping down his face and onto the ground.

Then he heard his son say “I... won’t... lose...”

Indra, hearing his son’s words, chuckled and said “Lucky, come on. I just defeated you fair and square. So stop being a sore loser and rest!”

“I won’t lose...!” Lakshman repeated in a stronger voice as he slowly raised his head.

Indra became slightly irritated and said “Lucky, that’s enough! You lost! Now rest before you seriously hurt yourself!”

As if ignoring his words, Lakshman continued to say “I won’t lose!”

Indra eyes narrowed and he became angry as he said “What the heck is wrong with you, Lucky?!”

Up in the chairs, Lakshmi, Mariana and Ondine watched Lakshman in surprise. They were surprised that he got up after that painful attack from Indra.

“Lucky...” Lakshmi muttered in a low voice.

“Master...  What are you doing?” Ondine said in a low voice with wide eyes.

As everyone watched, Lakshman slowly straightened up and then screamed into the air.

“I... WON’T... LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!”

Once he finished screaming, there was a sudden surge of power. The next instant, a great surge of power erupted around him. The ground shook, the air became thick and the wind became wild. Then a tidal wave of wind and dust was sent everywhere.