"No! You can't!"

Kirito froze in his seat, eyes shooting to his best friend beside him. However, that voice had been far too feminine to have been his. That prompted him to turn his head behind this time, and it was to his shock that Aunty Sadina had been the one to shout, standing at the section between the dining table area and the living room as her chest heaved back and forth.

'Aunty..?'

"Oh?" His head turned back towards the pontifex, who didn't look all that amused by the interruption. "And why not?"

"H-He's just a child! With all due respect, milady, it is no less than suicide to force them into a fight against an Integrity Knight, who is a hundred times stronger than them!"

"And you speak of a child who has bested a monster almost as large as the Gigas Cedar with nary a trouble," she scoffed back, talking as if she was speaking to a child.

"But, but..! This is just unfair!"

"Unfair how?"

"Because it's clear that he hadn't fought the Million-Eyed on his own, did he? If you make him fight alone, then it just wouldn't be—"

"You are right in that sense, of course. But this is nothing more than a mere assessment into his capabilities and potential," she said with a raised hand. "And of course, I'll instruct Synthesis One to take it easy on the boy. And it will be a contactless duel, so that would be much safer for him."

"Ah… But still…"

Kirito looked between the two women, biting the inside of his cheek as he tried to figure out some way to diffuse the situation, before ultimately realizing there was only one way. "Aunty," the blonde perked up as she looked to him, and he simply shook his head. "It's okay. I can do this."

"What..? But—"

"I just want you to know that my skills are practically non-existent. I've never trained with a proper style, I don't know any «Secret Techniques», and I am really weak. Even so," black eyes met crystal purple. "Are you sure you want to watch me fight?"

Somehow, his words seemed to make her grin. "Of course. If it's not too much trouble to you and Synthesis One."

"It's none to me. Any orders, and I'll just carry 'em out," the knight said with a nod, smiling calmly all this time.

"And it won't be any to me. So please, Aunty," he nodded to the woman. "Trust us. Everything will be fine."

She was still understandably against this, and he found comfort in this. Guilt, too. After all, he'd taken her daughter away from him. For her to try and protect him now was just incredible.

Eugeo was fortunate to have Sulinea, while Alice and Selka have Aunty Sadina. Both women were pillars of support for them, and were oh so kind.

It reminded him just how glad he was that they'd managed to fell the Million-Eyed. To protect the people of the village, and those important in their life so that they could see another day…

"I'll fight as hard as I always do. So please watch over me."

Aunty Sadina did not say anything for a very long time, eyes looking into his. And eventually, as she swallowed, she nodded. "Okay…"

Chapter 16

[ Steel-blooded ]

Rulid Village was small, and it did not have a proper duelling grounds for matches between fighters. It made some amount of sense, since there aren't actual knights in this village, but rather hunters and guards that help to watch over this village from the occasional wild monsters and the like.

Still, that didn't mean they'd have to take the fights beyond the village. The chieftain had told them that they could fight in the clearing in front of the orphanage, where it would be wide enough for the two of them.

It was also wide enough that the other villagers could then form a circle around them to watch the fight—which was exactly what they did; almost all three hundred people were there in the clearing, staring at the black-haired boy and the steel-haired man facing one another. Drawn by curiosity and excitement to witness an Integrity Knight in action.

But Quinella wasn't looking at her knight. Instead, her attention was focused solely on the child.

He was a boy, and a child of Vector at that. Nothing more, nothing less. And yet, for how calm he seemed as he carried his sword in its sheath, she almost mistook him for a hardened warrior.

That didn't last very long. The visage shattered quickly enough, and she could finally take in his true form; a little boy who looked rightfully nervous, his jaw set and his eyes staring at his opponent. His hold over his sheathe seemed unusually tight, his posture rigid. Not even the calming words of his friend beside him was doing much to help.

'Still,' she mused, hiding her grin behind her hand. 'He isn't running from the fight. He's actually decided to face Synthesis One.'

What did that tell her about him? That he was in over his head? That his arrogance was boundless? Hardly. From his current expression, it was very clear that he was doubtful of his chances of victory. His initial shock to her request earlier in the chieftain's room was evidence enough.

And yet, here he is, choosing to stick true to his promise to face Bercouli in a one-on-one combat, where many more veterans would have obviously faltered. He'd even persuaded that lady (not even his mother, but it was very obvious that she cared about him very much) to let him go.

That alone was a kind of courage that she rarely saw in any other person, much less so a young child as him. What kind of unshakable will does he possess? How could he fearlessly accept to clash swords with a man who held every possible advantage over him? His life as a simple tree-cutter couldn't possibly have prepared him for something like this.

Not unless he'd fought for his life before. And, according to Fanatio's accounts, that was indeed true. He had, after all, played a role in the Million-Eyed's demise.

Frustration bubbled in her. If only she'd gotten to witness the beast herself in real time, though she supposed it was enough to imagine how it was like to herself.

Someone's shout drew her attention back to the ensuing moment. It seemed as if they were trying to cheer for Kirito, one spark alone enough to get everyone into the momentum of cheering, but no amount of home advantage would be changing the outcome of this battle.

"He's really not what I expected," beside her, Synthesis Sixteen spoke with a scrutinizing tone.

"True. He's incredibly small, and young no less."

"Eleven years old."

Eleven. That it came down to two boys that age to save an entire kingdom was a kind of statement that boggled the mind. Sure, there was no denying that there was another fighter and an Integrity Knight that assisted them, but two children would draw more attention than the others. That's just how it works.

And speaking of that third fighter, it seemed that she was standing beside the child of the Zuberg family, her expressionless look slightly broken by the way she was obviously holding on the Zuberg child's shoulder firmly. As if trying to steady herself.

"Milady, if you don't mind me asking… why are you asking Sir Bercouli to fight against the boy?"

She had a feeling that plenty of people are wondering that exact thing; why she was pitting such an experienced knight against a boy whose calling wasn't even related to fighting. It seemed unnecessarily cruel. Some might think she was trying to publicly humiliate him in his own hometown.

But such couldn't have been further from the truth.

"I said it, did I not? It's all because of my curiosity."

If anything, she was genuinely interested in seeing his potential for combat, and forcing him to go against a much more dangerous opponent would truly enable him to shine best. That was one explanation for why he'd been part of the skirmish with the Million-Eyed.

She hadn't been lying earlier when she had just about ordered him and his friend to join the Integrity Knights (honestly, she'd more focused on Kirito than his friend, who didn't look like he was in a state to fight at all, what with that arm of his). If she could see for herself just what kind of power he possessed…

Her fingers dug into her arms. Could he prove to be one in a million? Could he very well become the one that can save their kind?

'Show me what you can do, boy.'

"Hey Eugeo."

"Yeah?"

"Wake me up from this dream."

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but this isn't a dream."

If he was feeling disappointed, he wasn't sure who or what it was aimed at. Kirito simply drew in a breath and stared ahead to where his opponent stood, hand on the pommel of his sword and looking all too relaxed while he was internally panicking and the sword in his hand felt like lead.

This is not a good situation that he'd found himself in. And he didn't mean that because he was facing off against the first Integrity Knight, who could easily be considered the strongest in the entire order.

Then again, he did accept to fight the man.

The bigger worry he had on mind was the fact that he would actually be displaying his skills openly to the rest of Rulid. Sulinea, Uncle Gasupht, Selka—practically everyone and their uncles and aunties would be watching him, and if that wasn't terrifying, he didn't know what else. Damned nerves.

'That's a really big sword that the knight has,' Eugeo commented. 'I don't see how you'll be able to parry his sword swings, let alone block them.'

'Block that? ' He could feel his face going pale. 'If I did that, I'm pretty sure the bones in my arms would just break or snap. It literally looks like it weighs twenty times my weight.'

'Yeah… So how will you fight him? '

'No idea. I'll just have to play it safe and run circles around him—well, that's hoping that he's slow to begin with, which I doubt he is. Even if he doesn't have any armour on and is wearing that bath robe thing, he doesn't come across as a slouch. In fact, the fact that he doesn't have armour on at all makes him lighter. That's not good.'

He supposed the only silver lining he could find relief in was the fact that this would be a contactless fight, so he wouldn't really have to worry about getting cut down by the knight. If that did, he was guaranteed to die. And he can't let that happen.

He exhaled slowly. This was obviously just a test to gauge his skills and potential in the pontifex's and knights' eyes. Nothing more, nothing less.

Hopefully, both the pontifex and the knights wouldn't be too disappointed in his performance.

Kirito recognized that his prowess was all too raw, too unpolished. He had no actual experience in proper duels with another person (bloody hell, all the enemies he'd ever fought weren't human, though he supposed goblins counted as humanoids), and he'd never had the opportunity to properly train his skills or learn techniques. It would be nothing more but instincts.

'Be cautious of his weapon,' Selena's warning came out of nowhere that he almost leapt out of his skin. 'It seems to be a «Divine Object». Then again, I do think that all the knights are granted one upon being knighted…'

'«Divine Object»? ' The boys questioned in unison.

'Ah, you are unaware of what «Divine Objects» are? ' Their denial prompted her into a quick explanation. 'Basically, they are objects that were created when living or non-living entities bearing high amounts of resources are converted into a high «Priority» item. Some are natural, like the Blue Rose Sword, or through high-ranking Sacred Arts ritual. Alongside bearing high «Priority», they grant access to unique abilities called «Armament Full Control Art», which you had used before.'

What the—Seriously? So the sword from Selena's cave and the knight's sword are likely the same?

Well, to call them the same would be inaccurate. There was no knowing what allowed the creation of the knight's sword, be it naturally or through the church's efforts. But it told him enough to know that he had his work cut out for him.

'Still, I doubt that he'd use a «Armament Full Control Art» against you.'

'That's totally comforting…'

'I guess you just have to do your best. You'll… Well, you won't win, but at least go out fighting, right?'

He would have felt betrayed by his friend's lack of trust in him if he himself knew that he had no chance of winning. This was just a test, and nothing more. No reason he shouldn't do his best, and he'd still at least learn something from this. Valuable experience is the best teacher.

"Cheer for me?" He said out loud, grinning as he raised a closed fist in front of his friend.

Eugeo smiled back, bumping his fist against his. "Of course I will. Give it your all!"

Nodding, he drew his sword from its sheathe—drawing a couple of curious looks and sounds from the crowd. This is the first time he'd openly showed it in public—and passed the sheathe to Eugeo, who grabbed it with his good hand and walked away to join his sister and brothers in the crowd. Kirito watched him leave before he eventually looked back to his opponent, who was doing light stretches with his arms.

"Your name's Kirito, ain't it?" The man's sudden question made him go ramrod stiff. The knight just smiled back calmly. "At ease, boy. I give you my word that I won't hurt you in the slightest. It's contactless, after all, so I'll stop myself before landing a hit on you."

"Ah… Thanks."

"But you still look pretty worried there. What's that about?"

"I've never fought a person before," he admitted. "So this'll be something completely different from anything else."

"Is that the full picture?"

"Honestly, it's just frazzled nerves just because," he shrugged back, honest. "Nothing else to it. It's not everyday someone important comes to your little village out in nowhere, then asks you to fight an Integrity Knight. It's insane."

The man let out a laugh. "Hah! Yeah, you're not wrong there. Well, whatever the case, just do your best. I wanna' see what you're made of as well, so leave the worrying to someone else, okay?"

He nodded back. That was the least he could do.

"And hey, you just come right at me with everything you've got. I'll try and protect myself just to make it easier for you."

"But that wouldn't be fair," the man hummed back. "If all you do is just defend when I attack, then it's not really a fight, is it? Her, uhh, Eminence?" Kirito didn't miss his amused snort. "She wants to see me in a fight, and that involves both of us going at each other. Otherwise, it's just pointless."

That could have easily not been the words he'd wanted to hear, but the fact that he smiled at all must have been right to begin with. "Alright, alright. But I promise that I won't go too hard on you."

"Yeah… Okay. You got it."

With their piece said, Synthesis One finally allowed himself to enter a proper sword-wielding stance. The massive sword was daunting, light dancing off its edge as it was aimed dangerously towards him. Just the sight of it alone is making him feeling heavy, like facing off against a wall.

This feeling… It was no different from all the times he'd faced against Gabura, or Selena's apparition, or the Million-Eyed. But this pressure was still different, a kind of its own. Bearing down on him.

Still, Kirito brandished the sword like he does an axe, spreading his feet wide and lowering his body. His hands clenched the hilt tight, sweat already on his brow as he stared past his hair to his opponent, whose calm demeanour was a testament to his years of experience and battle.

'Do not think too hard on this. This isn't a battle for your life, so just do your best, okay?'

That's right… Unlike all the other times before, when he'd been forced to fight to protect himself and his best friend, this was nothing more than a spar. The threat of danger was completely mitigated by the pontifex's criterion of them not needing to land a blow on the other person, so no one was getting hurt.

Still, that wasn't reason for him to just be lax. He had to give it his all, no matter what.

'Kirito.'

Black eyes were closed. And when they opened once more, they met his best friend's green orbs.

'Watch over me, yeah?'

'Mmhm. Go all out!'

With Chief Gasupht acting as referee between the both of them, letting out a shout as he swung his arm down, there was no more room for doubt.

Kirito wasn't going to win.

It was clear from the very first moment; when he'd chosen to rush straight at Synthesis One in a straight run, screaming at the top of his lungs before finally making one small lunge to bring his weapon down in an overhead slash. Against someone unaware, it could have easily cut through them or stunned them.

Integrity Knight Synthesis One did not even blink an eye when he slapped the attack aside with his own sword, deflecting the lunge with such ease that no one in the area seemed all too surprised by.

Somehow, Kirito wasn't thrown aside like a rag doll. He seemed to use his smaller stature and leaned into the shift of direction, spinning to dig his feet into the ground before he rushed back towards the knight, initiating a barrage of wild swings that are clearly telegraphed and all too easy to predict and avoid.

'It had been easy enough to fight against monsters that couldn't really read your movements, but against someone clearly used to fighting, he has no chance of winning.'

Charlotte wasn't going to feel bad for the boy. Anyone with a solid head on their shoulders could see how this battle was going to end. And he did too.

This fight reminds her of the night she'd seen him go up against Gabura. That had been less of a fight between the two of them and him jumping in at the last second to land the killing blow, and he'd chosen to dodge more than actively fighting.

He couldn't afford to do that here. He needed to fight against the knight, but he wouldn't be winning any time soon.

Still, that didn't mean he was going to give up from the very start, though. He was clearly trying to get in close with the man, who backpedalled and sidestepped his attacks whenever necessary. His own attacks were far and few in-between, forcing Kirito on the backfoot every once in a while to shift gears and focus on evading than actual blocking.

That was one good thing he had about him. He was nimble on his feet, helped by all the running he'd done and his small body. Made him a tricky target to hit, though she doubted the knight was missing all his blows on accident.

Clang. Clang. Metal rang like a hammer upon the anvil as both swords clashed against one another. Each one was a blow that sent reverberations that she could feel through her bones, highlighted by sparks that danced across the battlefield. The swords did not stay separated for long before the blue charged in for the grey once more, pushing the man back not from sheer strength, but simply because he was opening the distance between themselves to keep himself away from getting hit in any blind spots.

Synthesis One suddenly kicked against Kirito's sword, the boy's eyes going wide before he was knocked bodily backwards, rolling on the ground. The man took that opportunity to suddenly raise his sword above his head, body lowered slightly before he dragged his sword back.

And then, it glowed with life.

Her eyes went wide, the tell-tale signs of a «Secret Technique» on display. Everyone around the village practically watched with rapt attention now, some gasping in awe while others' gazes shot towards Kirito in concern.

'«Heavens and Mountains Break»,' she thought with dismay. It was one of the simplest yet most powerful two-handed sword techniques, passed down in the high noble families of Norlangarth. 'The strength behind that single attack is tremendous. There would be no way Kirito would be able to block that!'

And he didn't even have time to recollect himself, still on the ground as he struggled to pick himself back up. In the distance, the orange burned brighter and hotter—before, with a valiant yell, Synthesis One shot forth like a shooting star.

The sword could have practically cut through the air, orange light streaking behind his weapon. The technique made him surge forwards so quickly, effectively covering the distance to reach Kirito, who was still downed! Charlotte almost screamed for him to get up and out of the way.

And then, at the very last second, Kirito moved.

He didn't try to meet the man's sword. He instead chose to throw himself to the side. Logical move. What shocked her was how willingly he released his sword, watching it clatter away. But what he did next did not simply catch the man facing off against him by surprise.

His right hand shot towards the man, fingers spread wide. "«Burst»!"

Bright green light flashed. Wind suddenly shot outwards like a cyclone, aimed straight for Synthesis One's face. That alone would have done nothing—not until she saw how Kirito then threw his left arm out towards him, followed by the cloud of dust and pebbles that sprayed against his face.

"Aagh!" The man suddenly faltered, his «Secret Technique» fizzling out with a whimper as he staggered forwards and to the side. One hand rubbed away at his eyes to clear the irritants while his other clumsily swung his sword around him in semicircles to keep the boy away from him, who immediately went to retrieve his weapon.

No way… Had he planned for that? Had he purposely made himself look unguarded just to gather dirt to use against the man? It was such an unexpected move, so crude and so unfair in a fight, that had everyone spectating the fight gawking in disbelief.

And then, all around her, cheers erupted.

One—"How..! How dare he!" Was not as appreciative of the gesture. It wouldn't be too hard to guess who it was.

Kirito wasn't willing to let it end there, lips moving anew. He was chanting a new spell as he circled the man and rushed for his side. Synthesis One, though blinded, listened for his steps and turned to face the direction of the incoming footballs, readying his sword to attack when necessary.

He unleashed his spell with a loud, "«Burst»!", which released a greater outburst of wind. This was much more unfocused than the previous one, blowing all around them with such intensity that Charlotte almost thought she'd lost her hearing. And then, he ran past his opponent, then turned a complete one-eighty to aim for his unprotected back.

There was no knowing how he actually noticed the incoming attack. Only that he was then able to turn around quickly enough to block the two-handed swing, sword against sword that rung so loudly that one of them flinched.

"«Burst»!" Kirito yelled once more, unleashing yet another cyclone that Synthesis One was much more wary of than before, backpedalling far away to avoid any kind of tricks. He rubbed his wrist across his eyes one more time before he managed to look the boy in the eyes properly.

They were incredibly squinted, the whites of his eyes somewhat red from the prior irritation, though he'd proven that he'd finally recovered enough. Rather than be annoyed, he seemed to be grinning in what seemed to be pleasant surprise and amusement.

"Heh… You're one crazy kid… Didn't think you'd play dirty…"

"Gotta' take every advantage I can get!"

And he was pressing on the attack once more, rushing towards Synthesis One, who opted to meet the combat head-on. The massive blade went for a forward thrust, prompting Kirito to deflect the attack by adjusting the angle of his sword to let it scrape against the flat of his sword.

A feint, she realized too late, as Synthesis One spun with his momentum to let Kirito bypass him completely. Black eyes went wide and they shot towards the man, who switched to a one-handed grip and readied to make the non-lethal hit.

Only for Kirito to outstretch his hand towards the man. "«Burst»!" And releasing a new torrent of wind, doing nothing to faze his larger opponent but flinging him backwards a great distance—exactly as he planned, as he was able to align himself to land on both feet, sword raised before him.

Someone hummed. Her head moved to the sight, watching warily as the pontifex eyed the fight with curiosity and, dare she say it, awe.

'To be fair, even I had not expected him to use the 'Wind' element so many times—and in such unpredictable ways.'

The first to distract the knight in order to fling dirt in his eyes, then the next likely to create noise to hide the sound of his movement. The third had failed, but the fourth had literally allowed him to put distance between themselves.

Where was he even getting these ideas?

Synthesis One wasn't willing to give him the time to chant another spell. He sped towards the boy like a bull, moving so fast that put his previous speed to shame. He had been holding himself back somewhat, but it seemed he was going a little harder this time.

Not like Kirito seemed to mind, as he ran towards the man as well. Just at the right time, he made a small leap upwards and used another burst of wind to propel himself over the man's head, prompting the crowd to howl in surprise. He spun in the air to land a blow against the nape of his neck, but for the knight to position his sword behind him to block the surprise hit.

Kirito landed—then switched to bobbing and weaving between all of Synthesis One's sword swings. He didn't bother trying to deflect a single attack, for each one was filled with a kind of vigour that would easily knock him down a peg.

He was beginning to breathe harder, strained past his limits. His teeth gritted and his muscles taut, the ravenette still continued to move, never allowing himself or Synthesis One an opportunity of rest. It would become a battle of attrition at this rate.

"«System Call»!" The shout had the effect of forcing his opponent into a hasty defensive stance, having over-extended at that exact timing to be unable to move backwards. His sword was raised to shield his face.

But Kirito never intended to finish the chant. He abandoned the spell in favour of aiming low, and that had Synthesis One wobbling backwards with every step to keep his feet away from contact.

Eventually, the knight was able to regain his balance well enough to properly swing at Kirito, who was too slow on the draw to deflect the attack. He decided instead to just smash his sword against Synthesis One's, their attacks cancelling each other and forcing the boy backwards.

But then, the knight's sword came to life once more. This time, it was a bright shade of verdant.

Both hands on the hilt of his sword, feet planted firmly into the ground, Integrity Knight Synthesis One spun in an anti-clockwise motion. His back was turned towards Kirito for just a moment before he rotated, and his blade travelled towards his opponent in a diagonal, upwards slash. Charlotte drew a breath through gritted teeth.

The ensuing clash ripped the sword out of the boy's hands, and sent it flying straight into the air. It dug into the earth a few moments later. Before he could do anything more, metal moved so fast that it was but a blur, tickling his throat a moment later.

The fight was decided.

"Well, well, well… You've certainly exceeded my expectations in basically every manner."

"I… Urk… Y-Yeah…"

Another sound came after. Muffled, though it seemed to have been an angry grunt, coming from the knight wearing the green armour. Even with the helmet on, Eugeo could very easily imagine the massive scowl on his face.

Not like that was something he was going to focus on. He'd made clear it from the start that he didn't like Kirito. A little too uptight, he is, though he supposed that was just a result of him taking his duties seriously and having a general dislike for people who are showing anything less than the appropriate amount of courtesy.

Speaking of Kirito…

"I… didn't thimb… many speels… tired…"

"It is no different from physical exertion, though it is more mental exhaustion than bodily fatigue," she didn't seem too bothered by his current state. "After all, chanting «Sacred Arts» requires mental concentration and imagination. Using them over and over will eventually wear down on you in some way."

"That, and from you running all around the field…" Eugeo added.

"Indeed. And I must say, you've certainly done much better than I expected. You lasted rather long against Synthesis One," she said, grinning in an alluring way that would have made the hearts of men throb. Kirito's heart was certainly drumming away, and more due to exhaustion than anything else. "Perhaps you could share a little regarding your ideas of how to use your «Sacred Arts»?"

To be fair, even Eugeo was curious on that part. As far as he knew, Kirito had never been all that interested in «Sacred Arts», usually just pretending to listen to Alice whenever she talked to them about it, then quickly forgetting them later on. That never failed to annoy their friend.

But to see him using them now? And in so many different and unique ways? Rather interesting.

Kirito didn't answer immediately, making some gesture to ask them to wait. The woman was oddly patient, allowing him an opportunity to recollect himself before he pushed himself up into a seating position. His hair was ruffled, dirt and grass sticking to his tunic. Eugeo helped him along.

'Thanks.'

'Hey, don't worry about it.'

Sparing a quick nod at him, the ravenette then turned to look at the woman. "It was… during the fight with the Million-Eyed. Or while we were inside of it. There was a lot of running done, and I'd practically used all kinds of 'Wind' spells to help with manoeuvrability."

In the Million-Eyed..? Oh! His eyes went wide, recalling all the times Selena had used spells to increase their speed and allow him such inhuman means of movement. Those had been simple «Sacred Arts», and not that «Favour» that she mentioned before.

"Impressive. And to be able to chant them so quickly…"

"«System Call. Generate 'wind' element, burst». That's not exactly a difficult phrase to say."

"True, though I must admit that I'm intrigued by how each one took form. If what you were saying is true and they were all of the 'burst' form, then how was it that each one differed from one another?"

"They did?" He looked surprised.

"Indeed. In every situation that you used a spell, each one differed slightly from one another. Not to a great extent, I will say, but there's a noticeable variation in each spell."

"That's true," Eugeo nodded. "The first time was when you used it to distract Sir Synthesis One before throwing dirt in his eyes. Then the next was to make a really loud noise. And it was really loud. As in, it was like a really big boom followed by a loud storm."

"Urk," Kirito cringed. "Sorry. I was hoping to make it hard for him to hear me so that I could move behind him and get him that way."

"If you kept it longer, it certainly would have worked," is it just him, but does she not sound too disappointed? If anything, she sounded fascinated, in the way that a scholar was fascinated with discovering some kind of hidden mystery. "I suppose it is no fault of your own that you wouldn't be able to keep up the spell for too long. It eventually tolls away on your body."

"The third spell failed, but the fourth one propelled you away from Bercouli," Eugeo finished off afterwards, earning a nod from the pontifex. "So technically, despite them all being 'burst' spells, they were all really different. How is that?"

His best friend eventually hummed, looking down for a moment to mull over it. And then, he just settled for a shrug.

"You do not know?"

"I'm just not sure. It's… well, it was in the heat of the moment, you know? I wasn't exactly focused on how the spells worked," that was true. In a real fight, there would have been less time to properly formulate a spell to use. It would have been too risky. "But I think it all came down to imagining it."

"Imagining it?" The pontifex repeated.

"Mmhm. Whenever I wanted to do something with the spell, I just… imagine it in my head. Like when I wanted to distract him, I wanted a spell that wasn't so strong. Just enough to carry the dirt with the breeze. Then I wanted one to make a really loud sound, and another to just push me far away from him. I guess that's about it. I just imagine it, and it happened."

He just imagined it? That was… way more normal than he'd expected. Then again, since he doesn't study «Sacred Arts» as Alice did, there would have been no way that he could have cast high level spells to begin with.

It could apply to a lot of things, then. Like how a basic 'cryogenic' spell could be activated to just offer a cooling touch or freeze water without needing to 'discharge' them. Simple things that would, no doubt, be a lot of help in a lot of ways that he'd never imagined before. And it seemed like he wasn't the only one to notice that.

"Incredible… So one's imagination is able to influence the effects and shape of a spell..?" She said that in a whispery voice, but those silver eyes that once held some allure to them were now filled with fascinated glee. "I suppose that would work the same way with «Incarnation» and the like, but for it to affect «Sacred Arts» to that kind of extent, even if minor, is big indeed. Could it actually apply for what might come off as complicated spells but then be simplified using mere base spells? Perhaps healing could work that way if one thinks of it…"

Both children watched her fall into a muttering spree, focused more on her thoughts than anything else at this point.

'She's sort of being a nerd, huh?'

'Nerd?!' His eyes went wide and he punched Kirito in the shoulder. 'Are you crazy?! You don't just call the pontifex that!'

'It was just a joke..!' He shot back, glaring at him through one eye. Vestiges of water gathered in the corner of his eye. 'And also, ow! What's that for?'

'For you being so rude! You don't just call someone so important like her a nerd, Kirito!'

'Oh, buzz off. It's not like she would know. And I'm not wrong. She's practically ignoring us at this point and mumbling to herself about «Sacred Arts». She's super enthusiastic about it, apparently.'

'Maybe it's her calling? Or like a hobby. Or just a subject that she's super interested in.'

'And that's not nerdy?'

He punched Kirito again, though a little gently this time. He might not be wrong though (though he would never say that in front of her, or even Kirito for that matter). Maybe that's a reason for why she'd won her position as ruler of the Human Empire?

"..then that could certainly… yes, that might just be possible. I might need to experiment with that later on to see what effects I could achieve with some minor tweaks in the spell. And imagining them—"

"So… um, is it over?"

That single question seemed to break her out of her line of thoughts, freezing for a moment before clearing her throat before nodding, the picture of calm once more. "Yes, yes. I would say that is all for now. And dare I say, you've given me much food for thought. Well done."

"Er. Thanks?"

"Right. In any case, with this done, there is nothing more needed from you. The both of you are free to pursue your calling as you so wish. What comes next?"

"Travel to Centoria, though we haven't decided on a proper calling as of now."

"Well, I'm certain you'll come around to making a decision of yours. And if you have no idea, the order of the knights would be pleased to welcome you," the offer was a welcoming one, but it didn't make him feel that well, to be honest. Thankfully, she didn't notice that. "In any case, I shall be taking my leave now. Do work on your sword skills in the time being."

"Yeah, we will."

She didn't say anything more afterwards, meeting Uncle Gasupht by the side for a moment to talk to him about something. Whatever it was, neither of them caught a single word, though for Uncle to nod back with a relaxed expression must have promised something good for them.

And then, with her riding on her dragon once more with the knights taking off to flank her on either sides, the people of Rulid stayed to watch their leave. Once they were gone for good, the village went back to the norm.

It was only then that Eugeo, with no one's eyes on him save for his best friend, let out a sigh of relief.

"I hear you," his best friend said with a hum. "That was a stressful day."

"True that. I didn't expect a visit from someone like her, of all people…"

"Guess it goes to show that we're just that bad at trying to be inconspicuous."

"Incons—Why do you know so many big words..?"

"Hey, you pick up something from listening in on another's conversations," he shrugged back. "Merchants and travellers, especially. They sure have some fancy vocab sometimes."

"Good on you," despite himself, he couldn't help but grin. "So, what now?"

Kirito stretched his arms above his head, letting out a groan. "Probably finish up where we left off on our calling…" He said, letting out a sigh at the end. "Ready?"

A few more hours away from the craziness that just happened, doing something so mundane that it drove him mad all these years ago?

Nothing sounded better.

Author's Notes:

A child going up against the oldest and most skilled Integrity Knight. It was practically a no-brainer as to who was going to come out as the victor.

But the moments where he'd shown ingenious use of «Sacred Arts», especially with the 'Wind' element, is primarily due to Selena's help. Recall how she had used special arts to boost his speed and allow him to propel himself in various directions in bursts of wind. He'd not only remembered them; he'd learnt to utilize them himself using «Sacred Arts».

In any case, this is obviously not the end of things. Quinella has taken an obvious interest in these two children. There's just no feasible way that she'll sit by the side and do nothing. That's just not her style.