Chapter 22: Blind Trust (4)

When the sparring match first began.

Kevin heard a familiar voice in his ear.

"Raise your sword and block the front. Chris will attempt a surprise attack."

It was Roman's voice.

Kevin, who did not understand the nature of the voice transmission through mana, was unsure of what judgment to make in that moment.

A moment of hesitation.

Although he could not fully understand what was happening to him, he instinctively followed the voice's command, knowing that the speaker was Roman.

At that moment.

Snap!

"…!"

A tingling shock ran through his hand.

By simply blocking the front as Roman had instructed, he unknowingly deflected Chris's preemptive attack.

"Take one step to the side. And aim for Chris's chest where he will attempt a kick."

The next command.

Kevin wanted to follow Roman's words.

However, his reaction speed was slower than expected, and before he could react, Chris's kick, which Roman had predicted, had already struck his abdomen.

Thud!

"Ugh!"

He screamed.

Suddenly, his breath was cut off, and Kevin, who had fallen to the ground, clutched his abdomen.

Thick saliva dripped from his mouth.

Although Kevin had cut off his own arm just a week ago, the pain was still far from familiar.

At that moment.

"Jump to the right."

The voice that penetrated his mind.

Kevin knew he had to follow the words to survive.

Swallowing the pain, he leaped, and as expected, he saw Chris swinging his sword towards him.

"Aim for the left side of the opponent's chest."

There was an opening.

Chris, while swinging his sword widely, exposed a weakness, and Kevin could see that attacking that spot would land a decisive blow.

However, due to Kevin's lack of ability, the attack failed.

The speed at which he swung his sword was so slow it made him yawn, and his steps were clumsy, making the attack range too short.

A complete failure.

Chris was unaware that his opponent had targeted his weakness.

The attack was so easy to dodge, and Chris's counterattack struck Kevin's abdomen once again.

Smack!

"Ugh!"

It was a one-sided match.

Kevin, unable to mount any significant counterattack, was thoroughly beaten, and the intense pain made him want to collapse on the spot, blood rising to his throat.

Despite this, the words to give up the sparring match did not come out of his mouth.

Apart from the fact that Roman had not given the order to stop, the situation unfolding before him was incredibly amusing.

'Young Master Roman is omnipotent. Chris is moving just like a puppet, following Young Master Roman's words.'

Roman's voice.

It was a prophecy.

When Roman said Chris would attack from the right, the same thing happened in reality, and the weakness Roman pointed out seemed to be a real opportunity to bring Chris down.

The only problem was that Kevin lacked the ability to execute it.

According to Roman's advice, Kevin should have defeated Chris long ago, but his weak body did not cooperate.

It was a funny situation.

A second-rank Aura Knight.

An object of admiration for ordinary people like himself, Roman treated Chris like a toy, manipulating him as he pleased.

Only then did he understand.

Why he had been put into this sparring match.

Roman had sent him a message.

'This is the level of Young Master Roman. Even Chris, called the greatest genius of Dmitri, cannot match Young Master's true abilities. This person is the lord I will serve for the rest of my life, and even if his words are incomprehensible, I must follow them blindly.'

The path ahead.

The goal ahead.

Young Master Roman's image appeared before his eyes.

Just as he had cut off his own arm based on Roman's words, a blind certainty that following him would make him stronger took hold.

One sparring match.

Roman had given him the basis for his trust.

A reason why he must follow.

A reason that instilled a sense of reverence.

Kevin was completely absorbed in the sparring match, oblivious to the physical pain, and thus Chris's warning did not register.

"For the last time, if you show any more will to fight, be prepared to lose a limb."

The final warning.

Kevin smiled.

'Give up the sparring match?'

That was impossible.

The opponent did not know the truth.

That he was a puppet.

If Young Master Roman could toy with a great knight like Chris, then what could a 15-year-old boy, who had nothing, use to establish himself as Roman's follower?

There was only one answer.

Trust.

Loyalty.

If his body was weak, he needed to show mental strength.

"Let's go to the end."

Those words.

Kevin's resolve.

Even if the sparring match was to be drenched in blood, Kevin wanted to prove his only value.

Different perspectives.

Different worlds they saw.

Chris did not understand Kevin's resolve, and thus, he exploded at Kevin's refusal to give up.

Thud.

His patience snapped.

The sympathy he had for his opponent turned into anger.

"You insolent…!"

Thud.

He kicked the ground.

Chris thought Kevin was uninvolved in this matter.

But if he showed the indomitable spirit of a warrior by not giving up, it would change the situation.

He needed to end it decisively. Kevin would regret his mistake for life, as the gruesome result of losing a limb would serve as a harsh lesson.

Chris was fast.

A streak of light.

It pierced the space in an instant, and at a speed Kevin could not react to, Chris swung his sword at his opponent's shoulder.

One arm.

The price of a mistake.

Just as the wooden sword was about to cut through his arm, Kevin took a step forward.

"Step forward."

Thud.

"…!"

Chris's eyes widened.

One step forward.

It was a dead end.

The wooden sword was about to strike, and Kevin was putting his head in the path of the blow, similar to the situation when Roman had defeated Chris.

Yet, Kevin did not hesitate.

Knowing he might die, he took a step forward, securing a position to attack first.

And then.

"Attack with all your might."

He followed the final command.

Kevin gritted his teeth and swung his sword from below, a crude strike that split the air and aimed at his opponent.

A critical moment.

Their bodies entangled.

The result.

Smack!

The sound of something breaking was heard.

Blood splattered, and a man's body, like a broken doll, fell backward.

A moment of decisive victory.

The winner was.

"Persistent brat."

Chris.

In his shocked gaze, he saw blood flowing around Kevin.

The sparring match was over.

Fortunately, Kevin was not in mortal danger.

The wooden sword had only grazed his forehead, tearing the skin, and he had managed to block the follow-up attack with the broken sword, narrowly escaping the crisis.

The wooden sword had broken under the powerful blow.

And with a kick to the abdomen, the accumulated pain caused Kevin to fall backward, his eyes rolling back.

A tough opponent.

The determination to see the fight through to the end, even with crude skills, stirred complex emotions in Chris.

Chris's victory.

Roman, tending to Kevin, said,

"If you want, I'll start teaching you from tomorrow. The choice is yours from now on."

That was the end.

Roman, seemingly oblivious to Chris, was busy treating Kevin's wounds.

A truly ironic scene.

Roman, who had pushed Kevin to the brink, was now treating him as if he were precious.

"…Why did I fight?"

Back in his quarters, Chris fell into deep thought.

Initially, he had intended to gain Roman's attention by defeating Kevin, but the unexpected turn of events had left him with a complex mind.

In fact, accepting this sparring match was a losing proposition.

Even in a fight where victory would not cover the costs, Chris had been momentarily overwhelmed by Kevin's determination.

Especially during the final exchange.

At that moment, memories of the past came flooding back.

'Young Master Roman was the same. Stepping into a dead end was both a perfect attack and a defensive move.'

If.

If he had not experienced the same thing with Roman.

Chris, though ashamed to admit it, was not sure he could have perfectly dodged Kevin's attack without mana.

The past memory became experience.

He could react quickly to a situation he had rehearsed countless times in his mind, and Chris dodged Kevin's attack and attempted a counterattack.

A strange thrill ran through him.

Despite being just an ordinary person, Chris found himself laughing in frustration at the realization that he had improved.

Roman had taught him nothing.

Yet.

He had been improving.

The single experience of fighting Roman.

It had become the foundation for his growth, and he had become a swordsman who could respond differently in the same situation.

Moreover.

'Revisiting Kevin's decisions now, each one was very appropriate. I thought Young Master Roman had given Kevin no instructions, but that was not the case. If Kevin had been a bit faster and stronger, that single decision could have made me the loser.'

He revisited the memory of the sparring match.

Imagining the failure of the surprise attack and the counterattack, Chris thought of other ways to handle it.

Those moments.

He analyzed them.

Examining each detail, he tried to understand how Roman viewed him.

'I thought Young Master Roman was just a fool in Dmitri, as the rumors suggested. But after losing to him and this proxy sparring match with Kevin, I am certain. Young Master Roman is not just a genius. In a way that I cannot comprehend, he has reached a level that even Sir Jonathan, my teacher, cannot touch.'

Roman's level.

It was beyond his imagination.

Not just physical strength, but the world of the sword that Roman's mind had reached was on a different plane.

What does he see?

Just by sparring with Roman once and trying to understand his judgment through this proxy match, his mind was filled with countless lessons.

A world he had never experienced while in the well.

The more he analyzed his experiences, the more pure admiration Chris felt.

Roman.

The meaning of his words became clear.

Not just to protect him, but to find a way to become stronger by observing him.

"Was I such a fool?"

A chuckle escaped him.

Thinking about it.

Roman had given many hints.

During the process of teaching Kevin, Roman had said many things that Chris should have listened to, but in the situation of teaching the basics, Chris had not been receptive.

It was a bias-induced rejection.

Despite being a swordsman of a certain level, he had not been ready to receive instruction, even though he had bowed his head to learn.

However.

Now he understood.

By observing Roman and improving himself, he could reach a different level.

"…I, Chris, still do not fully understand you. The Roman Dmitri I remember was a terrible person, called a fool in Dmitri, but your recent actions are beyond my comprehension. What I am sure of is that I recognize you. From now on, I will learn and steal everything from you until I surpass you."

It was his own resolve.

Speaking to himself, Chris set a new goal.

And the next day.

Chris went to Roman and said,

"I don't need any teaching. I will find a way to become stronger by following Young Master Roman."

That day.

Chris thought.

Until he surpassed Roman, he would live by Roman's sword.

But did he realize?

That this declaration, made in the heat of the moment, was a lifelong pledge to follow his lord for the rest of his life.

In the future.

The Flash of Cairo, who would make a name for himself on the continent, had decided his future at a young age.

And time passed.

A week later.

It was the day of the Barko social party.