Chapter 10

"Hey, Eito."

"Ah."

As I nodded in response to Serena's words—

"It's not fair that only Serena gets to talk to you. We want to talk to the hero too."

Several elves were surrounding me. From the redness of their faces, it seemed they had been drinking.

"Hehe, Eito is talking to me. If you're jealous, why don't you get kidnapped by a Bloody Ogre and have him save you?"

Serena leaned in, in a good mood. I stood up—

"Huh? What's wrong with Eito?"

"I'm just going to sober up a bit."

Uncomfortable with being surrounded by a large group of women, I moved away.

"Go! Go!"

"Don't lose, Phil!"

As I walked to avoid the female elves, I noticed a group of men getting excited. On a wooden stage, two men were engaged in a fight.

"That's—"

One of them was Phil, Serena's brother. The other was likely an elf from the village.

Both were gripping wooden swords, attacking each other in a fierce battle.

Out of curiosity, I started cheering for Phil, whom I knew, in my heart—

—Clang—

The wooden sword of the other elf was knocked away and rolled on the stage.

"I, I give up!"

The elf raised his hands in surrender. The crowd jeered, and Phil was praised as the winner.

"Damn, I was so close."

Muttering, the man stepped down from the stage. Then, Phil noticed me—

"Hey, Eito. Are you having fun?"

His loud voice made everyone turn to look at me.

"Yeah, thanks to you."

Not wanting to make things awkward, I gave a safe response. But—

"How about you give it a try? If you can beat me, I'll give you a prize."

He pointed his wooden sword at me. After a moment's thought, I picked up the wooden sword.

"Hey! The village's best swordsman, Phil, is going to fight the Ogre Slayer hero!"

His loud voice drew a crowd of elves from the village.

"Alright, let's see the skills that defeated the Bloody Ogre."

Phil raised his wooden sword, and I followed suit. The clash of the two swords signaled the start of the match.

"Ha! Ha! Ura!"

Phil's expression was serious as he swung his wooden sword continuously. His movements were sharp, and even though I watched closely, I almost lost sight of his sword.

"Whoa!"

I thought he was going to strike from above, but I realized too late that the sword was coming from my left blind spot. I parried it with my wooden sword.

"What's wrong! Strike back!"

This had been the pattern since the start. I accepted this match to gain some practical experience. Thanks to the difference in our stats, I could see all of Phil's movements.

But, I was on the defensive because I lacked practical experience. I needed to defend myself until I returned to my hometown.

I could use Evil Beam to defeat all enemies, but that skill couldn't be controlled. I needed a power that could be adjusted to incapacitate without killing.

"Is it time to turn the tide?"

Phil seemed to understand my intention and gradually increased his attack speed, but he reached his limit. I gathered my resolve to start attacking.

"Finally getting serious? Let me tell you, I won't let you attack so easily!"

Phil gripped his sword and smiled confidently.

"Huff, huff, huff... Damn!"

A few minutes later, Phil was leaning on his wooden sword, out of breath.

I watched him closely—

"Hey, the village's best swordsman, Phil, losing to a human in swordsmanship?"

"His movements are too fast. Is he really human?"

"Surely he won't get the prize, right?"

Some of the comments were concerning, but I could sense their unease.

"Is that what you've been doing all this time? I thought it was my sword technique. Did you learn by watching?"

Indeed, I had learned Phil's sword movements by letting him attack me. Then, I returned them in kind.

Looking around, I saw the entire village gathered. In the front row, I spotted a familiar face—Serena.

She crossed her arms over her chest, looking serious.

"Serena, you came to cheer me on!"

Phil seemed to regain his energy and looked at me with a smile.

"Really, you exceeded my expectations. Of course, you defeated the Bloody Ogre, but I didn't expect you to be this strong."

The elves around us seemed to be looking at me with intense interest.

"But, I can't afford to lose. I can't give this prize to anyone."

His expression was serious, and it was clear he didn't want to give up the prize.

"By the way, Eito. I assume you've heard from my father, but do you know the conditions for seeing auras?"

"No, I don't."

"The ability to see auras is called Spirit Vision. Elves who can do this can make a pact with spirits and use their power."

I could feel the wind gathering around Phil.

"So?"

"True, I may have lost in swordsmanship. But can you beat me when I use spirit magic?"

"Huh?"

I could see the wind swirling around Phil. Any attack would likely be blocked by the wind.

"That's not very mature."

"Are you going to this extent to protect the prize...?"

"Go, Phil! Defend it at all costs!"

The crowd's cheers made Phil turn his head.

"Serena! I'll get rid of any bad influence on my little sister!"

His words seemed to amplify the spirit's power, and a violent wind swept across the stage. I could break through with a full attack, but that would injure Phil.

With no other options, I was thinking about what to do when Serena spoke up.

She met my gaze and—

"Eito! Go for it!"

"Se, Serena!?"

The next moment, the wind stopped, and Phil stood frozen.

"There's an opening!"

I seized the opportunity, knocked Phil's wooden sword away, and pointed the tip at his throat.

"Match over!"

"Yayyyyyy!"

Serena jumped up and down happily. I hadn't expected her to cheer for me instead of her brother.