Novel Full Chapter 165 : Chapter 165
Chapter 165. I Need to Get a Little Serious (2)
The day of the duel.
Count Spike’s training ground was crowded with many people due to the public duel.
The training ground, wide enough for soldiers to conduct group training, was packed with people, leaving no room to even set a foot down.
As he had told Patrick, Count Spike had opened the training ground.
“Do not cross the line.”
“Anyone who causes a disturbance will be taken away. Everyone, maintain order.”
The Count’s knights surrounded the training ground, controlling the crowd of citizens.
In that atmosphere, the citizens whispered among themselves.
“He’ll win, right?”
“I hope he wins.”
“I’d have no other wish if he wins.”
“I really hope he wins….”
The subject was missing from their conversation.
They couldn’t speak their true feelings because of the Count’s knights glaring at them from the front.
But the meaning of their words was clear enough.
They were hoping that the young hero named Patrick Schneider would relieve the exploitation and oppression they had endured under Count Spike’s rule.
They were the ones who had come to watch this duel with that one heart.
Even if Patrick defeated Count Spike, nothing would change.
They knew that too.
It was impossible to reclaim their lost country, and they would still suffer under harsh tyranny, branded as people from a defeated nation.
But….
Still….
‘Please…. please win.’
‘Let me see it just once.’
‘I believe in you, Double Dragon.’
People need hope.
Just like these people now.
And receiving the gazes of all these people, the parties of the duel revealed themselves.
***
Patrick Schneider.
Calvin Spike.
Two giants who had achieved the supreme realm stood facing each other to determine their superiority.
And Count Spike was the first to speak.
“I wonder if you’ve been well.”
“Oh, thanks to the good-hearted people of the fief, I ate well and lived comfortably.”
“……”
At Patrick’s words, Count Spike bit his lip hard.
Patrick was the one he, the lord who ruled this city, was about to duel.
He wasn’t so clueless as to not understand the meaning behind the fief’s residents feeding and treating Patrick well.
He instead gritted his teeth and said.
“I’ll acknowledge that a talent has emerged from a minor country.”
“Hmmmm….”
“But you are far too ignorant of your place. No matter how young you are.”
Count Spike shook his head.
And he looked down at Patrick with a solemn expression and said.
“This is a good opportunity. I will make you realize the fundamental difference between us.”
“Well now….”
Patrick let out a short sigh and said.
“I don’t really like talking much before I start swinging my sword, but let me ask you one thing.”
“What is it?”
“The soldiers and knights before were like this too, but is everyone in this country like this?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean the stupid act of judging people by their nationality, calling them from a minor country and all that.”
“I am merely stating an obvious fact.”
“Ah. I see. You do. Alright.”
“Your four eastern kingdoms are the weakest nations on the continent.”
“Huuuh….”
“They are only left to function as a breakwater against the Great Forest. In reality, if we just put our minds to it….”
“Yeees. Yeeees. Yeeees. I understaaand perfectly weeeell.”
“……”
“Now let’s stop with the pleasantries and just start trading insults and swords.”
After saying that, Patrick stepped back to create some distance.
Count Spike’s expression twisted as he watched Patrick, and he said.
“Arrogant bastard.”
The difference in national power he mentioned was an undeniable fact.
In reality, even at the same 7-Star realm, one would start with the rank of Marquis in the four eastern kingdoms, but in the Kaisar Kingdom, he himself, a 7-Star, was only a Count.
The playing field was that different.
He had only pointed that out, yet to get such a reaction….
“I’ve changed my mind.”
Originally, he had planned to send him back with just one arm cut off.
But now….
“I’ll kill you.”
A cold killing intent emanated along with Count Spike’s decision.
Patrick then smirked and said.
“Go ahead and try.”
And the two men drew their weapons and took their stances.
Count Spike drew his giant battle-axe and held it diagonally in front of him.
Patrick, on the other hand, held his twin swords in both hands, his arms hanging loosely as they faced each other.
“……”
“……”
Gulp.
A heavy and quiet stillness, so much so that the sound of someone swallowing could be heard.
In that stillness, the two men faced each other, staring intently.
As if sealing each other with their gazes.
Here, Count Spike had his own thoughts.
‘The brat’s advantage is his speed. If I move first, I’ll be at a disadvantage.’
He was tensing his entire body to be able to react the moment Patrick moved even slightly, aiming for an attack after a defensive move.
But then….
Whooosh!
A gust of wind blew from somewhere, carrying a few fallen leaves.
And one of them momentarily blocked Count Spike’s view of Patrick.
That moment was very brief….
A fleeting moment that didn’t even last 0.1 seconds.
But right after that leaf passed….
‘Huh?’
Patrick’s figure had vanished from Count Spike’s sight.
And….
“Over here.”
A voice came from behind Count Spike.
At that moment, he immediately turned and tried to swing his battle-axe at the fastest speed he could muster.
But….
KABOOOM!
Before that, Patrick’s attack struck his back.
He didn’t know what or how he was hit.
But the moment the attack landed, a terrifying impact that felt like his spine was breaking washed over him.
“Keo heok!”
Count Spike flew forward.
He rolled on the ground a few times and then got back up, aiming his weapon forward.
But there was no one there.
Instead….
“Take another one.”
This time too, a voice from behind.
Simultaneously, another impact exploded on his back.
KABOOM!
“Keoheok!”
Hit by the same attack twice, Count Spike spat blood and went flying and tumbling forward.
‘Damn it.’
After flying and rolling on the ground again, he hastily got up.
And at the same time, he fiercely swung his battle-axe.
“Uwaaaaaaaah!”
Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwang!
A storm of ferocious Aura Blades swept all around him.
It was a pre-emptive defensive attack to prevent a third surprise attack.
The 2 meters around him were instantly devastated.
But he felt nothing connect with his weapon.
And….
“What are you doing?”
“……”
This time, Patrick didn’t attack.
He was just watching him from a distance with a pathetic expression.
Patrick shook his head and said, as if it were pathetic.
“Look before you swing. Look.”
“Keeeuk….”
Count Spike’s face turned completely red.
He had swung his weapon wildly, frightened by an attack from an opponent who wasn’t even there.
Isn’t this the typical behavior of a beginner sparring with a much more skilled opponent?
The realization that he, a man who had achieved the supreme realm, had shown such a sight, made it impossible to suppress his shame.
The shame that he couldn’t suppress soon turned into anger and burst out.
“Patrick Schneideeeeer!”
Seeing Count Spike charging at him while emitting the maximum amount of Aura Blade he could muster, Patrick said indifferently.
“Come on and try me.”
And the clash that followed.
Patrick met Count Spike’s attack head-on and began to block it.
Boom! Kwang! Kwang! Kabooom!
The fragments of the shattering Aura Blade and the vibration of the air, a roar so loud it could be felt on the skin.
In the brutal exchange where a single mistake would lead to death, the two superhumans clashed fiercely.
“Ooh…. Ooooh….”
“So that’s the 7-Star, the supreme realm.”
“They’re monsters.”
People who had never seen a duel between 7-Stars watched the duel blankly, showing astonishment, admiration, and fear.
Even the knights and soldiers who were supposed to be controlling and restraining the people couldn’t suppress their turning heads and were staring blankly at the duel.
‘Is that… is that really a person?’
‘Such destructive power from just a duel….’
Even for a knight, it was not often that they could witness the 7-Star realm with their own eyes.
And it was even rarer for a 7-Star knight to duel with all their might.
They couldn’t take their eyes off the clash of masters they were seeing for the first time in their lives.
“Keuk……”
Due to the explosion of aura and the rising dust, it was difficult for those far away to observe the details of the exchange.
But the two men facing each other could clearly feel who had the upper hand.
At first, Count Spike was the one attacking one-sidedly, and Patrick was in a defensive position.
But as time passed, the situation changed.
Patrick’s increasingly fast twin swords delivered blows that couldn’t be ignored between Count Spike’s attacks, and Count Spike, whose transition between offense and defense was relatively slow, became more and more flustered.
“This… this brat….”
“Huh? Which X-sized bastard dares to call me a brat?”
As Patrick’s brow furrowed, the sword in his left hand completely disappeared from Count Spike’s sight.
Immediately after, a striking sound was heard.
Pow!
“Gah.”
Patrick had struck Count Spike’s head with the flat of his sword.
It was an attack with the aura suppressed, struck with the flat of the sword.
But it was enough to make Count Spike’s large frame stagger significantly to the left.
“Damn it….”
The staggering Count Spike gritted his teeth and regained his posture.
And then….
“Uwaaaaaaaaah!”
He swung his weapon again, so fast it felt like his arm would fall off.
That sight was less ferocious and more like a desperate struggle.
Like a cornered beast swiping its claws at anything and everything.
Of course, Patrick was not someone who would be harmed in the slightest by such a thing.
He simply took a few steps with an indifferent expression, and that alone made all of Count Spike’s struggles cut through empty air.
‘This monstrous bastard.’
He had no choice but to admit it now.
The brat was strong.
If he wanted to kill him, he could have.
And yet, Count Spike was still alive.
Because….
“Are you toying with me?”
He could only think of it that way.
And Patrick, continuing to swing his sword, said.
“That’s right. I am toying with you.”
“……”
His ready admission left him speechless.
To the dumbfounded Count Spike, Patrick said.
“So what? You got a problem, you weakling?”
“You damn brat from a minor country…. Heok!”
In an instant, Patrick’s swords vanished again.
This time, both left and right.
And right after that….
Powpowpowpowpowpowpow!!
An unmistakable impact resonated throughout his entire body.
He couldn’t even remember how many times he had been hit.
“Keeeuk….”
To Count Spike, who was staggering from the impact that exploded all over his body but still not falling, Patrick said.
“Remember this clearly, you brat. Whether it’s a minor country or a great country, that doesn’t make you stronger.”
“…You bastard….”
“If you don’t know that and don’t know your place, and you mess with someone stronger than you, you just die.”
He had seen this kind of thing to death in the Jianghu of his past life.
The Radiant Dragon Great Master Jin Cheon had entered the ranks of the strong, on a different level from ordinary rising stars, before he even reached the age of thirty.
But….
The so-called brats from prestigious orthodox sects, who were rising stars of the same age, didn’t know their place and thought they were on the same level as the Radiant Dragon Great Master.
They even acted as if they were superior.
Why? Because their sects were much larger, and their masters were much more powerful.
There were many who mistook the splendor of their background for their own skill and tried to imitate the Radiant Dragon Great Master Jin Cheon, only to meet an untimely death.
They would request a duel with a leader of the Unorthodox Alliance or recklessly challenge the Ten Great Evils, aiming for their heads.
They mistakenly believed that since the Radiant Dragon Great Master Jin Cheon, who was of a similar age, had done it, they could do it too.
And the harsh world of Jianghu collected the price for the recklessness of those naive fools with their lives.
“At least those brats were just immature.”
“What…?”
“You’ve eaten as many years as you should have, and you have a socially responsible position, yet you pull this crap?”
“So what on earth are you talking….”
“You still don’t get it after hearing all that?”
“……”
“You’re an idiot. You hopeless bastard.”
At Patrick’s blatant taunt, Count Spike gritted his teeth.
That condescending tone.
That tone, as if an adult was scolding a naughty child.
That stimulated Count Spike’s pride to the point of madness.
And the most infuriating thing was….
‘This son of a bitch….’
Somehow, that appearance and those words felt extremely natural and fitting.
That was the appearance of an overwhelmingly strong person.
Do you know what was the most infuriating part?
It was that in the depths of his own heart, as he watched that sight, a feeling of fear was beginning to sprout.