Chapter 55: Duane Takes the Stage
Chapter 55: Chapter 55: Duane Takes the Stage
Kaelon had entered the fight ready to die, so long as he could inflict as much damage as possible on his opponent.
Bard, however, was different. When truly faced with a life-or-death situation, he did not want to die.
Their differing mindsets determined how they viewed the outcome of the duel.
So, when Bard realized he was at a significant disadvantage and faced a high risk of death, he decisively chose to surrender.
"There is no shame in surrender!"
Duane allowed him his dignity. He declared loudly, "I have witnessed your strength, Bard. I will be waiting for you to pledge your allegiance to me!"
As he spoke, he ordered, "Jack, John, help Kaelon back."
The two men acknowledged the order, dropped their weapons and shields, and rushed onto the battlefield to carefully help Kaelon back.
On the other side, Gaius of the Broken Wave Gang also led his men to retrieve Bard.
As Kaelon neared the group, Duane hurried forward to take Jack’s place, helping Kaelon back into their ranks.
"My Lord, I have not failed you!" Kaelon said, his voice firm despite his state.
Duane motioned for his men to bring out the prepared stretcher and had Kaelon lie down on it.
"You did very well. Now just lie back and rest. Leave the next fight to us."
Everyone who witnessed this was in awe of Kaelon’s strength.
When a group of people unites to achieve a common goal, their cohesion naturally grows stronger.
In that moment, Duane’s men were no longer just a loose collection of individuals. They had become a solid unit.
Meanwhile, Bard, being helped back to his own side, was met with a completely different reception.
"I can’t believe you actually lost."
Daniels’s expression was one of concern, but his tone dripped with schadenfreude. "Would you like me to use my Healing Technique to ease your pain a little?"
Bard snorted coldly without responding as his men helped him sit down among their ranks. "You’d better not lose!"
"Haha, Simone is no ordinary Warrior."
Daniels seemed quite confident. "Go on, Simone."
"Yes, sir!"
Simone dismounted and walked toward the three-way fork in the road.
Seeing this, Raymond couldn’t wait any longer. "My Lord, I’m up!"
"Wait!"
Duane stopped him in his tracks, causing Raymond to turn back in confusion.
"I’ll take the second match!"
As Duane spoke, he held out his hand to the side. Jack and John immediately brought him his Shield and Longsword.
"My Lord, this..."
Duane said, "Once my match is over, it will be easier for you to maneuver in yours."
Raymond nodded in acknowledgment. He turned to look at Simone, who was still walking toward the center, and shouted:
"The Baron is fighting the second match personally! You, the Knight named Simone, retreat at once, or you will forfeit!"
Simone froze.
’Shouldn’t the Baron be saving himself for last? Why is he in such a hurry to fight?’
He glanced back at Daniels, whose expression was ice-cold, as if he’d just been slapped across the face.
"Get back here!" he snarled.
Simone shrugged helplessly and turned back.
Bard shot Daniels a derisive smile. He suddenly found this Baron rather interesting; he never did things the way people expected.
"Iron Hammer, you’re up!"
Bard said with some difficulty, "Remember, teach him a lesson!"
"Yes, my Lord!"
Iron Hammer’s reply was loud, but inside, he was panicking.
They had all thought their leader would win. They never expected him to not only lose but also be so gravely injured.
’Does that mean this Baron is also incredibly strong?’
Iron Hammer’s scalp tingled as he thought of the punishment he would face if he failed.
The leader’s fury over his own defeat would undoubtedly be vented on him.
But he had no choice. He had to bite the bullet and go up. After all, wasn’t he the only one in the Broken Wave Gang who had one foot in the door of the Middle Level Warrior rank?
Iron Hammer, Shield in one hand and Sword in the other, walked to the center of the dueling ground. His eyes were locked on his opponent, who was approaching at a measured pace.
He considered taunting his opponent as he usually would, but the sight of the man’s fine equipment made him swallow his words.
This was no ordinary man. This was the Lord of Black Forest Island.
Duane planted his Sword in the dirt. This was his first real battle, yet he wasn’t particularly nervous.
"State your name."
"Iron... Iron Hammer."
Perhaps feeling his presence was a bit weak, Iron Hammer puffed out his chest and challenged, "You can’t bring another person into the dueling area!"
Duane chuckled and glanced at Raymond. "Inspect him."
Raymond nodded and walked toward Iron Hammer.
Just then, Gaius, the Vice Leader of the Broken Wave Gang, shouted, "Baron, what is the meaning of this?"
Raymond responded for Duane, "We’re naturally checking to see if he has awakened a Fighting Qi Seed. If you people try to pull a fast one, don’t blame us for being merciless!"
Gaius snorted but didn’t argue, only saying, "Don’t you dare use this inspection as an excuse to pull any dirty tricks."
"Rest assured. The one standing before you is not some common bandit, but the Lord of Black Forest Island!"
As he spoke, Raymond walked up to Iron Hammer and pressed his hand against the man’s chest.
A surge of Fighting Qi flowed out, then was retracted.
He turned and nodded to Duane. "He hasn’t awakened a Fighting Qi Seed. He’s a Basic-level Warrior."
"Good!"
Duane smiled. "You may step back."
His gaze shifted to Iron Hammer. "Don’t be nervous. I hope you’ll fight at your absolute best."
Iron Hammer pulled his gaze away from Raymond’s retreating back. He took a deep breath. "I will!"
"Then, let us begin!"
Duane pulled his Longsword from the ground, waiting for his opponent to make the first move.
Iron Hammer gritted his teeth. "Don’t blame me if you die!"
With his Shield in one hand and Sword in the other, he charged forward to attack.
Duane raised an eyebrow.
Although he had no real combat experience, having achieved Mastery in both Basic Swordsmanship and Spirit Swordsmanship had given him a wealth of theoretical knowledge on fighting opponents.
Iron Hammer’s movements weren’t fast, and they revealed numerous openings.
Duane had a feeling that if he went all out, he could win in less than five moves.
BANG!
The two shields crashed together. The echoing clang of metal sent a jolt of adrenaline through Duane.
’A real battle feels completely different from sparring.’
[You have engaged in Shield Skill combat. Basic Shield Skill Level +3]
’Huh?’
Duane keenly noticed that while sparring only ever gave him +2 Basic Shield Skill Level at most per action, a real battle had given him so much more in a single exchange!
’Good! Good! Good!’
He was ecstatic. He abandoned any thought of ending the fight quickly and instead engaged his opponent in a back-and-forth exchange.
Shields crashed, Longswords clashed, and his Body Skill was fluid and ever-changing, increasing the Skill Levels of his Basic Swordsmanship, Basic Shield Skill, and Spirit Swordsmanship.
Kaelon struggled to sit up. After watching the battle for a moment, he lay back down, relieved.
Raymond also relaxed. The Baron had this fight in the bag.
The others, however, had a different reaction. Not many of them had personally witnessed the Lord sparring with Kaelon and Raymond.
They never expected the Lord to be this strong.
The Holy Hand Association and the Broken Wave Gang both fell silent.
"Simone, your thoughts?" Daniels asked gravely.
Simone shook his head. "He’s lost."
"Hmph!"
Daniels shot an angry look at Bard. "This is the man you picked?"
Bard’s expression was so dark it looked like storm clouds were gathering. He glared at his Vice Leader, Gaius.
Gaius didn’t look too happy either.
"I’ve been giving Iron Hammer special training recently. His combat strength is definitely on par with an average Middle Level Warrior."
Gaius watched Duane with a strained expression. "This Baron... he’s something else!"
Whether on offense or defense, Duane was completely at ease. Iron Hammer, in contrast, was full of openings, and the longer the fight dragged on, the greater his disadvantage became.
Bard and Gaius both had a discerning eye for combat. They could see the chances of winning this fight were practically zero.
’In other words, in a best-of-three duel, we’re about to lose the first two matches?’
’That means, even if we win the third match, Duane will still walk away with eighty percent of the profits from the iron ore and other resources!’
’That’s even higher than the seventy percent he asked for in the first negotiation!’
’Looking at it now, after all this trouble, would it have been better to just accept his initial demands?’
The moment this thought crossed Bard’s mind, he couldn’t stop himself from spitting out a mouthful of blood!