As the distance closed between the two army commanders, Vance found himself getting a better look at the man whom he now knew was a champion, of who, that was another question entirely. For now, his mind was focused purely on ascertaining why the man had challenged him or sought to challenge him-- if that was even the reason for this meeting. Either way, to buy his army time enough to form up, he had chosen to accept the call out, and to his surprise, he found the man stood just out of range of the enemy muskets. A brow raised, he looked down at the man from atop Magic, his eyes glancing down to get a better look at his opponent. Indeed, everything about this man screamed Shinsengumi, from how he dressed, to how he armed himself. It was a surreal sight to see another aspect from his original world here before him.

Undoing his harness, Vance hopped off Magic, sending him back to Estrid with a nod. Magic looked unsure if he should leave his rider alone but knew to trust in the blond, giving him a grumble that bordered on a growl before quickly striding off to relative safety, leaving the two commanders alone.

"So, you're the guy, huh?" The man started, throwing his hands behind his head as a sly grin spread across his face.

"Depends?" Vance replied, giving his gloves a few tugs to ensure they were on tight, "I can't say I'm one worthy of any news."

The other scoffed, letting out a small laugh as he seemed to be all smiles, "Yup, you're the guy, alright! I heard about you from the boss man back there. He was not too happy about your victory a few days ago, you know."

"I can't imagine he would be."

"No, suppose it's not too surprising," He shrugged.

Vance didn't know how to approach this man. While he was obviously working for the enemy, he didn't show any signs of hostility. Champion or not, this man was fighting for the side, trying to undo everything he had been striving for.

"Oh! Right, I haven't got your name yet! I'm not too fond of this whole deal about just outright trying to kill someone I don't know the name of. Leaves a bad taste in my mouth, you know?" He noted with a grin.

Vance shook his head, "Hardly honourable to go about demanding a name when one hasn't been given in turn."

Taken aback, the man blinked, "Oh! You're right, sorry!" Taking a deep breath in as though to prepare for something, the man stomped his right foot forward to announce his name, "Ami Matsuo! Samurai of Tavaria!"

Vance smirked, breaking out in a slight chuckle, prompting the other to feign offence, "Sorry, sorry. It's just-- well, it's not every day I run into someone trying to copy the Shinsengumi's look and style. But, my name is Vance Wulfram, Colonel of the Royal Dragon Marines."

At that, Ami paused, his smile fading as he straightened up, "What did you say?"

"What part?"

"The Shinsengumi. You just-- how do you know about them?!"

At that point, Vance nodded to his haori, "There used to be such a group where I was from," He replied.

"Was that place-- Earth?" Ami followed up, looking more severe than before.

"Toronto, Canada, to be exact," Vance added.

Ami paused, casting his gaze down to the ground, looking more confused than before, "So... I'm not alone."

"Hmm?"

"Nothing!" He immediately reverted to his previous tune, his cheeky smirk spreading across his face once more as he slipped his left foot back, taking a wider stance.

"Tennen Rishin-ryū?" Vance observed, noting the slightly wider stance compared to the one used in traditional kendo used for sports.

Ami paused again, "Wow, colour me impressed! I'm surprised you were able to tell." He noted with some astonishment, "First the haori, and now my stance? You're something; you know that? What were you back on Earth?" He asked, his curiosity taking over his want for battle.

Vance shrugged in response, "No one special. I was just your average history professor at the U of T."

"Oh? A bit disappointing, but nonetheless! I'm hoping your skill for battle is as good as your knowledge of Japanese history!" He started, quickly drawing his blade, holding it in a neutral guarded stance, "Come! Show me how one from Kendirewen fights!" Ami shouted out in challenge.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Vance slipped his left foot back as he drew his sabre free from its sheath. As the blade came free, Vance quickly pulled his sheath free from his belt, tossing it aside so it wouldn't get in his way or trip him up. He felt this wasn't going to be an easy fight based on how he was facing a fellow champion of the gods. Given how he was another summoned earthling, it stood to reason he likely had some degree of skill in combat. As he took a low guard, Vance watched for any signs of movement, his eyes locked on Ami's.

Eyes locked, the two began to pace around, gauging the other, looking for any sort of opening in an otherwise flawless defence. Sliding his right foot forward, Vance took a high guard, leaning back, blade raised. Ami replied in kind, taking a high guard as the two drew closer. Until finally, Ami jilted forward in a faint to try and force a reaction. Vance replied by sliding inching back a bit, his eyes still locked on Ami's. It seemed neither man would make a move. Both seem more to just circle around in the open field, locked in a deadly staring contest. Just as Ami began to lower his guard to a neutral one, Vance made the first attack. Throwing his lead foot forward, propelling the weight of his attack through with his back leg, he launched a quick lunge at Ami's centre. The Japanese man quickly slid back, slapping the heavy tipped blade aside with the flat of the blade, as he promptly came with a Riposte aimed at Vance's head, letting out a loud cry as he did so.

Vance peeled back, pushing himself aside as he brought his hand up in time to push the katana aside with a quick backhand before he launching a counterattack with a sweeping motion. Ami quickly jumped back, blade raised high above his head, ready to strike at the blond.

Neither gave ground, and neither seemed to flinch as he slowly corrected their stances. Vance held his sabre with his right hand, his other acting as a shield of sorts, as the glove was thicker, allowing for him to grab hold of and or beat back any lethal attacks. Meanwhile, Ami had to rely purely on the deadly cutting power and speed of his katana. Both had their weak points, and both had their strengths. But yet, neither could seem to exploit the other's weakness.

Vance threw out a testing blow, the heavy edged blade coming down towards the other's shoulder. Ami responded in kind by swiftly side-stepping, his blade sweeping around in time to slid down the length of the divine metal before being pulled away and back in time for a quick thrust to the blond's throat. Vance tilted his head as he side-stepped with inhuman speed, barely dodging the deadly jab to his neck. Pulling the sabre back, Vance lashed out with a flunge, pushing Ami back, who tried desperately to evade the heavy blow. Gritting his teeth as he fell back into a controlled roll, Ami looked up in time to see Vance come towards him with a downward swing.

He didn't give him time to breathe as he launched another flung at Ami, taking advantage of his own speed and varsity. Ami let out a grunt as he brought his blade to bear the brunt of the next strike, locking the blades together for a brief moment. Blue and black eyes glared at one another, each seemingly showing no real hostility or desire to kill the other. Only mutual respect and thrill of the fight emanated from them. Breaking the lock, both launch a flurry of slashes, jabs, and strikes at each other's vitals, and each was swiftly parried and countered in turn. Their hands, arms, and bodies moved swiftly, faster than any average human could. Their faces were twisting into sick grins of glee as blades slammed into one another, each seeming spurred on by the other's skill. What was once a duel to demoralise an army turned into a dance of swords.

In that short exchange of parries and counters, a story was being told, and it seemed as though both were starting to come to understand one another on a deeper level. Neither seemed to want the fight to end. Ami began to laugh, his excitement getting the best of him as he lunged forward, his shoulder slamming into Vance's cuirass, forcing him onto the ground. Coming on top of him, Ami brought his blade up but received a quick punch to the jaw, sending him reeling to the ground, with the other now pushing himself towards the other, sword coming down with the same velocity as before.

Pulling his head back in time, Ami watched as the blade's edge cut a deep wound into the earth, prompting him to laugh even louder than before as he swiped his sword around at Vance's legs. Vance dove into a roll, barely dodging the swing to his legs. Coming out of his roll, he found Ami was already on top of him. Locking eyes with the other earthling, Vance waited, counting the seconds as the katana came down towards his head in a secondary attack. Considering his opponent's weight and the time needed to make a counter, he wagered a guess.

Feet swiftly turned to inches, with Ami driven on by the momentum of his attack as it closed the distance. There was no question in his mind now that he had won. He had bested Kendirewen's champion-- or so he thought.

A grin tugged at the edges of the blond's lips, and it was there Ami knew he fucked up. Pulling his left hand up, the gloved hand came up, slamming hard into Ami's jaw. Ami gritted his teeth as his own weight and momentum worked against him as the fist met his face. Time seemed to slow down between the two as each attack came to meet one another. But it was Vance who won the bet. As his fist came slamming into the jaw, it had just enough force to knock the blade off its course, sending both katana and swordsmen reeling to the dirt with a yelp, a cloud of dust being kicked up by the force of the crash.

The two armies watched on with bated breath. What had been no more than two minutes felt like a lifetime, as the display of skill and speed before them had both sides lost for words. Neither seemingly wanting their side to lose but feared cheering out for the other in fear they could throw off their champion. It was a waiting game, and as the dust settled, there sat Vance, looking up at the sky, sabre gripped tightly in hand, while Ami lay prone in the dirt, katana buried to the tsuba. Kendirewen had won, Askal had lost again. A hearty cheer echoed through lines of purple coated men and women who celebrated their commander's victory. Estrid let out the breath she didn't know she had been holding in, relief evident on her face as she focused on Vance.

"Whew~" breathed Vance, who threw his head back in relief.

"Was it good for you as it was for me?" Ami groaned, slowly rolling over onto his back.

Chuckling, Vance replied, "The most fun I've had in years."

"Heh... I'm glad. Now, can you help me up? I think my arms are broken." Ami smiled, prompting both to laugh.