Masahide felt awe as he knelt and prayed, surrounded by the majesty of the Great Divide. The spirit at Mount Templar had chosen him as one of its champions. He knew it as soon as he’d arrived. The peaks surrounding the arena were a part of the same mountain range that cut a sinuous line down the continent from north to south, separating the lush lands from the deserts. Here, he could hear the spirits sing.
Before Harumoto had left Mount Templar leaderless, while they’d sat on an outcropping of granite, he’d told Masahide that everything human-made paled to the grandeur of the mountains. “Once you listen to the Song, you will become one of their champions. Once you give up your worldly fears, you will become the Himaraja. You will be unmovable. This is foreseen.”
The spirits sang low from the bowels of the world and high to where they met the sky. Masahide had finally listened. He wanted to shout that he could hear the Song, but the crowd had not come for revelation but for sport.
He didn’t recognize ninety-seven. He appreciated the Arcs for their simple dress. They could fit in as commoners wearing simple wool and had a quiet nature. The knight moved with a dangerous confidence. The Duke had likely picked someone strong to take him out early. But why? Was it just because he was without his order and, therefore, an easy target?
Harumoto had trained Masahide in the altitude. “Fetch me water from Lake Larimar.”
Masahide ran from the house in the woods three leagues heavenward, gasping for air to scoop a bucket from the pool above the treeline. It was so high that snow often clung to the north side of the slopes while it was hot below. His lungs grew strong, seemingly limitless.
It may serve as an advantage against those who train in the lowlands.
Their swords clanked as they thrust and parried. Their swordplay carried them from one corner to the other. The crowd cheered at every near hit.
When ninety-seven saw Masahide standing calm while he panted, he jumped back and summoned Shining Armor. A blue energy snaked around his body.
They’d put him against an archnight? It was ridiculous. In every tournament, the knights whittled themselves down to the best among them. Only then would that knight fight an archnight.
He heard surprise in the crowd. Someone bellowed, “Knight in shining armor!”
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The problem with this is his sword was useless. Perhaps Harumoto was right, and all he had to do was give up his worldly fears, but that wasn’t going to happen in the time it took this man to kill him. And it wouldn’t happen while Ema was held captive.
He caused a quake to buy time and batted the sword away to kick the man in the chest. Shining Armor was only good against steel and magic, but his earth-shaking ability didn’t affect anyone directly, and his boot was leather. It sent the man to the ground.
How long would the armor last? Reportedly, some could hold it for minutes while others could for hours.
Masahide sent quake after quake to keep the man off his feet. If minutes mattered, then this was the right course of action.
A few in the crowd booed. They wanted blood.
Masahide had a harder time shaking the platform. “How long can you hold that shield?”
“Long enough. I disagree with this matchup, but we can do nothing about it.” Ninety-seven regained his feet.
They clashed swords, but this time, only one of them could be cut or stabbed. The quake was little more than a tavern trick and wouldn’t help any further. Harumoto had left Masahide handicapped, as his primary ability was to conjure the weapons of past champions, and all he’d ever accomplished was a few arrows.
Yet it’s all he had left. It was only a matter of when, not if, the sword struck him, and he would be defeated.
Masahide jumped back and concentrated. The mental link snapped together with the spirit housed at Mount Tempar. A light started as a pinprick and blossomed behind him.
Harumoto had promised it was a formidable power, but it didn’t feel that way yet.
Grandmaster, I don’t know what to do.
A flurry of arrows launched from the light and struck the archknight. The Shining Armor wavered at the hailstorm. Then, he looked up in surprise as the armor vanished.
Masahide came forward and brought steel against steel.
Masahide
Level: 30
Focus: Conjuring (conduit)
Secondary focus: Quake
Weapons: pure sword - 35% pure
Items: Heart of the Earth