“I heard from the general while I was doing my report yesterday,” Sir Erik explains. “I heard how you won the tournament and you managed to defeat a demigod.”

“W-What!?” the other members exclaim behind the captain.

“I think it only worked because I took him by surprise,” Arthur smiles wryly.

“Hey, a win is a win,” Sir Erik shrugs. “Accept it for now. Just don’t get complacent.”

“Y-Yes.”

“And in that regard, I want to see how much you’re capable of,” Sir Erik says.

“So… you want a spar?”

“Yes,” he nods. “Not against me, though.” He turns back and looks at the other two guys in the group. Sir Luis and Sir Edward. “How about it, guys? Do you feel like taking him on?”

“What? The two of us at once?” Sir Luis asks, skeptical. “I have no issues with a light spar, but two on one, especially against a trainee, is too much, captain.”

“I agree,” Sir Edward nods firmly and crosses his arms. “You sure you’re not looking down on us, captain?”

“What if I told you the kid here is also a demigod?” Sir Erik says with a smirk.

“…What did you say?” The eyes of everyone present turn towards Arthur, and he starts feeling self-conscious again. Even Lianne is looking at him with wide eyes and a half-opened mouth.

“Well, it’s not confirmed, but the general and vice-general seem to strongly believe he is.” Sir Erik shrugs. “He has the power to beat a young demigod, at least.”

“Please, Sir Erik…” Arthur wants the captain to stop talking, because there’s now a fire in the eyes of Sir Luis and Sir Edward as they look at him.

“Tell you what,” Sir Erik says, clapping his hands again and looking like he just had an idea. “Hold out against him for 30 seconds and drinks tonight will be on me.”

“Ha! As if I wasn’t sold already!” Sir Edward laughs excitedly and goes to grab a shield and a training sword from the rack.

“Very well. This is a good chance to test his skills.” Sir Luis nods calmly and grabs a sword and a shield as well.

“There you have it!” Sir Erik grins. “Sorry Arthur, but this is my first order to you. Have a spar with your seniors and show us what you’re capable of. We need to have a better idea of your strength if we want to know which role you should take in this team.”

“Erik, the boys are tired from our previous mission,” Vice-Captain Eliza says with a sigh. “We could at least wait until tomorrow.”

“No, this is a good handicap, ma’am,” Sir Edward smirks. “This is a two-on-one, after all. Besides, holding back isn’t in Luis’ dictionary.”

“It would be an offence to Arthur not to give everything I have,” Sir Luis nods. “And I expect the same from you,” he tells Arthur with a small, kind smile.

“You heard them,” Sir Erik smiles, satisfied. “And Arthur. You understand what I meant about 30 seconds, right?”

“…” Arthur sighs. “Very well. I think I see what this is about.”

As Arthur goes to grab a sword from the rack, the captain stops him.

“It’s okay to use your own sword. Don’t worry about it,” he nods towards Vice-Captain Eliza and Lady Mary-Beth. “This brigade is small, but it has two of the best healers in the kingdom.”

“…” Arthur’s hand rests on the pommel of his sword at his waist. He takes a deep breath and nods. “Okay. Then please let Sir Luis and Sir Edward use their own weapons as well.”

“Heh. I like the kid already,” Sir Edward chuckles. “But don’t you think you’re getting a little too confident?”

“If we fight on equal grounds, I’ll have a better understanding of how much weaker I am,” Arthur says. And he can’t stop the small, but still arrogant smirk that creeps into his lips. “Or how much stronger I am.”

“Hey!” Lady Lianne exclaims, her brow furrowed and clearly annoyed at that comment. “How dare you insinuate that!?”

“It’s fine, Lianne.” Sir Luis chuckles. “I understand where he’s coming from. I once asked the same of Captain Erik after I won the tournament.” He then turns to the captain. “Sir?”

“Alright, use your swords.” Sir Erik sighs. “At this point I’m more worried about armor repair fees than your injuries, but you do you.”

The two younger knights nod, put away the training swords and unsheathe their own from their waists.

“Then remember, the spar will only last 30 seconds. If Luis and Edward can come out unscathed, they win. If Arthur can get a single blow in on either of them, he wins,” Sir Erik says as the three women step back and sit at the bench. “Everyone ready?”

Arthur unsheathes his repaired sword, takes a deep breath and takes his stance holding his weapon with both hands.

“Ready.”

Opposite to him, his two seniors also take their stances with their shields in front.

“Ready,” they say.

“Begin!”

With Sir Erik’s signal, Arthur makes his move.

The prana flows in his body. It makes his blood flow faster, strengthens his muscles, his senses, his reactions.

Now take it further. Open the dam’s gates and let all the energy out. Not in a constant flow, but in a burst. His body grows hotter, his muscles tense and a colorless aura comes out from him. Prana so intense it leaks from the body and can be seen by the naked eye.

“What on earth…!?”

[Prana Burst]. His new trump card. Exceed current limits for a short amount of time. 30 second is his cap right now. Who knows if he’ll ever be able to make it longer? But for now, this is his biggest advantage against those more skilled and experienced than him.

Arthur kicks off the ground. A long jump at insane speed. He swings his sword, making Sir Edward block with his shield. But the strength behind the blow, combined with the weight of his sword, is greater than a sledgehammer.

The knight is pushed back, his feet dragging as the shield and the sword clash.

Arthur grits his teeth. His feet touch the ground again. He turns around and parries the sword coming after him from behind.

“Tsk!” Sir Luis clicks his tongue. His arm was pushed to the side along with his sword.

The prana signals of these two are very similar to those of the nobles he saw in the tournament. Like a wave of constant heat coming from red-hot metal. But there’s more to them.

As Arthur is about to strike again, Sir Luis puts his shield forward, stopping the blade.

Then, a familiar sensation from behind. A quick blast of prana flowing. A [Martial Art]. Arthur is hit in the back with a shield and pushed several meters forward. He rolls on the ground twice before he uses the same momentum to roll and stand up seamlessly.

The faces of the two knights are serious, making Arthur smile. They’re taking him seriously. At this point, Arthur can make two skilled warriors take him seriously.

Go further. Take victory!

He kicks off the ground again, this time with a wide swing from the right. His sword meets Sir Edward’s shield, but that’s fine. What he wants is to stop him from moving, even if for a second.

Then, with his left foot, Arthur kicks Sir Luis’ shield. The kick has enough strength to open up the knight’s defense. There’s a look of astonishment in Sir Luis’ face. That’s the moment Arthur needs to take advantage of. A single second of confusion.

He slides his sword along Sir Edward’s shield and goes for a strike along Sir Luis’ chest.

But with the feeling of a [Martial Art] activating, Sir Luis’ shield returns to position in an instant, blocking his attack. The Martial Art reset his position, forcing his body to return to a defensive stance after being wide open.

A thrust from Sir Edward’s sword forces Arthur to jump back again.

How long does he have left? 15 second? To think that they can stop his sword with their shields even with all his strength. But because of it, there’s a small frame of time where they can’t retaliate.

When Arthur is about to jump back in again, something unexpected happens. Sir Edward throws his shield! The round shield travels swiftly and accurately, making Arthur swat it away with his sword. But instead of falling to the ground, the shield starts returning to his owner.

‘A kind of [Arcane Art]?’

Sir Luis dashes forward. And it’s here that Arthur can see the extent of his swordsmanship. The senior knight trades blows with Arthur. Their swords meet and create sparks. Sir Luis is pushing Arthur back despite the disparity in physical ability. It’s like he’s being read.

It’s just like Sir Samuel said. He can’t brute force his way against an experienced swordsman.

When Arthur swings his sword down again, it meets Sir Luis’ shield. Then the knight drops his sword. He lets it fall to the ground and uses his free hand to firmly grab hold of Arthur’s right arm.

And in that same instant, he feels a sharp pain in his back that brings him to his knee. Without him realizing it, Sir Edward snuck behind him while he traded blows with Sir Luis and hit him in the edge of his shield.

His [Prana Burst] ends just a couple of seconds after. In those 30 seconds, not only could he not land a blow, but he was soundly defeated.

The two knights relax their shoulders and let out a heavy sigh, Sir Edward being more dramatic than his partner.

“Hoo, boy! No wonder this kid won the tournament!” he laughs. “My shield arm is going numb,” he says, giving said arm a shake.

“You’re certainly no amateur,” Sir Luis nods. “But your shoulders have too many tells.”

“M-My shoulders?” Arthur asks, groaning a bit from the pain in his back.

“Once you’re experienced enough, you can tell what your opponent will do by the movements of their legs, hips and shoulders,” he explains.

“I-I see.”

“There, there,” Lady Eliza says, walking up to them and kneeling next to Arthur. “Let me see your back.” She puts her hand on his back and there’s an odd sensation right where the shield struck him. It’s like foreign, yet soothing prana is entering his body and numbing the pain.

“There we go,” Lady Eliza smiles sweetly. “It should be healed in about an hour, but you’ll still feel a numb sensation in that spot for a while. Please bear with it.”

“I-I will. Thank you,” Arthur nods.

“What did I tell you? Best healer in the kingdom,” Sir Erik nods with crossed arms and a proud smile.

“What about me?” His second wife, Lady Mary-Beth, pouts while looking up at him.

“Cutest healer in the kingdom,” Sir Erik just keeps nodding proudly, earning himself a kick in the shin that probably would’ve hurt if he wasn’t wearing greaves. “Come on! I’m kidding!”

Lady Mary-Beth just sticks out her tongue at her husband, making Lady Eliza chuckle.

“Well? How are you feeling, Arthur?” Sir Erik turns just a bit more serious as he asks that.

“I’m… tired. Very tired. I can still move, but it’s like my body is several times heavier than usual,” Arthur says, taking a hand to his chest. “My soul is also a little numb, but it’s nothing like what happened after the tournament.”

“Good,” Sir Erik nods in approval. “That means it’s a weapon you can use, but not one you should overly rely on. As you can see, it’s not invincible.”

“…” Arthur’s lips curl into a small, honest smile. “Yeah. Thank you, captain.”

“So long as you understand,” Sir Erik smiles in satisfaction.

“What? What did I miss?” Lady Mary-Beth asks, puzzled.

“I was starting to think of this… skill as something that could overcome anything. But in the end, I still lost,” Arthur chuckles.

“Captain… You thought that far ahead?” Lianne asks after having been silently observing the spar.

“Well, I got worried when I heard he’d beaten a demigod. I didn’t feel like dealing with an arrogant brat.” Sir Erik sighs and scratches the back of his head. And despite his harsh words, Arthur doesn’t feel offended. “I was planning to knock him down a peg or two, but it seems that wasn’t necessary.”

The captain holds out his hand to the still kneeling Arthur, and he takes it. Sir Erik pulls him up with ease and gives him a warm smile.

“Welcome to the team, Arthur. We’re happy to have you.”

“Thank you very much, captain.”