Kichi, Hisa, and Whitebeard watched as Ujisue conjured Shining Armor and dominated the fight.
Hisa shook her head and tapped the stick against the bench. “It’s an unbalance of power. Ujisue is my strongest knight. I almost made him knight captain. He might hurt Masahide.”
Kichi worried about her companion. It sounded like he was outclassed, even if he were in prime condition. However, as far as she knew, he hadn’t slept. And no doubt his mind was preoccupied with Ema. “Can’t he hold back?”
The attacks by Ujisue pushed Masahide back to the middle of the square. Their swords clattered and sparked.
Hisa looked at Kichi. “It’s not that simple. To hold back would dishonor the Arcs Order. And, no one ever does, or should, go easy. Underestimating your opponent is a huge mistake. Take nothing for granted.”
“Ujisue seems like he wants to hurt him.”
“Ujisue doesn’t just fight for himself, but for his nephew. The People of Peace took his family after he became a knight. He found the lone survivor when he returned to rescue them. His nephew Gon had watched the slaughter, and Ujisue has vowed to raise him well and make the world a better place to grow up.”
A stem beside Whitebeard snaked upward and turned into a flower. He plucked it and tossed peddles. It was an absentminded display of magic and an impressive one. “The Duke gets to test Masahide and your best knight. He eliminates one and so has one less enemy to contend with. Everything he does is with purpose.”
Kichi bit her fingernails while she watched.
A sudden flash of light above Masahide rotated, and another land displayed from a small portal. Arrows rained through and hit Ujisue, and his Shining Armor dissipated.
Kichi watched intently. “Masahide is doing well against an archknight.”
Whitebeard raked his beard. “He has great potential. But I’ve seen a branch in his future. One way leads to greatness, and the other to death. I hope he makes the correct decisions.”
“Where’d the arrows come from?”
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“All magic comes from spirits. There’s usually a covenant of sorts where the power shared is mutually beneficial. There are lesser-understood abilities, such as prescience, but ideally, that’s how it works. Masahide acts as an extension of the mountain spirits, bringing an aspect of themselves into the world of mankind.”
They called a round, and the knights parted. Masahide mopped his face with his hands.
Kichi took the respite to quarry her teacher. “I can melt rock. What do they want with me?”
“From my experience, change. Take the mountains; They resist it and are little affected by the passing of the ages. Conversely, the air spirits are fickle, stirring things up but hardly causing lasting effects. But lava is quick, and no one knows its shape until it cools. It can create land or remake it. Only it can shatter mountains.”
It helped to talk so Kichi didn’t worry about Masahide. “What is your covenant?”
“Crann doesn’t care about mankind directly, but all life. I'm doing Crann's will as long as I work to keep corruption from all the things that crawl, fly, walk, or grow green.”
Round two began, and Ujisue didn’t reinstate his armor. He appeared winded and walked a circle to stay out of striking distance.
The crowd wasn’t happy, but Kichi was. Perhaps they could wait out the timer. Maybe both of them would remain unhurt. “Is it almost over?”
Whitebeard shook his head. “I’m afraid it’s always three rounds.”
Hisa tapped her stick loudly. “I can’t wait for it to be all over.”
Blood.
Ujisue's sword sliced along Masahide’s thigh. Red speckled the stone. Masahide’s leg buckled before he regained control.
Whitebeard leaned forward. “This isn’t right. The damn corruption below this castle makes everything unclear. I can’t see as I should.”
Kichi felt panic rise. If Dragon Sada was worried, she was doubly so. “Will he be okay?”
“It’ll slow him down, make him an easy target. I fear for his life unless he can pull off the arrows again.”
“Can’t he give up?”
“I don’t think he ever will. I might be wrong, but everything I know about him tells me he’ll never yield.”
Kichi
Level: 6
Focus: Prescience
Secondary focus: Lava+1
Weapons: pure sword - 3% pure
Items: Near Field Amulet (Prescience+2, focus)