Harbinger: The Four Knights

A Knight's Warning

The duel with Marcus and the student were suppressed and is not spread to the other classes so as to prevent the classes to be disrupted by the sudden duel that is taking place so only a few handful of students are able to get a hold of the news.

               “You better give me a good show weakling.” The student said as he grips his weapon, two longswords. “I was thinking that you are brave but to think that your weapons would reflect your cowardice.” Marcus said as he takes out the shield made with dragon’s bane ore and is emitting a red color just as Amon and Abel’s weapon did. The student immediately realizes this and started to hesitate his decision for a duel after seeing his shield but then he realize that Marcus is only taking out a shield and then taunts him for it.

               “What? You are only going to use a shield? How am I going to humiliate you if you are only going to use that?” Marcus flashes a smile as his shield engulfed in flames and takes a form of a dragon’s head. “Yeah? Well, this shield is going to hurt more than a sword.” Marcus happily responded with a smile. “Are you both ready?” the referee ask as both sides nod their heads and in that instant, the student sprinted towards Marcus with his shield up high.

               CHING!

               Marcus is able to block the sword flying towards his chest and bashes the student away from him.

               TUGG! SHHHHHHH!

               [Bastard! He lightly burned my skin just by a little bump?!] he thought to himself as he kills off the remaining flames on his head but to his surprise, the flames could not be dispersed and continues to burn. “What the hell is that flames? It did not get extinguished?!” one of the students exclaimed after seeing Marcus’ flames continue to burn and irritates the student greatly. “Ah! Kill these flames immediately!” the student shouted as he points his sword at Marcus who had the expression of someone that is wrongly accused.

               “What are you talking about? This is a duel right? I can use things however I want. And I am not going to hold back since I learned not to underestimate an opponent.” Marcus said as the flames started to grew larger and larger on the student’s arm. Unable to get Marcus to extinguish the flames, he grit his teeth in anger and lunge at Marcus who welcomes his sudden attack by powerful bash of his shield. The student aw this and immediately stops his attack midway, thinking that he will have more flames burning him if he continues.

               Looking at the other student getting cautious on how to approach him, Marcus leisurely stands while leaning on his shield and taunts the student to attack him. “What are you doing? I thought this is going to be a duel and not a staring competition.” The student gets agitated by his remark that even the other students who are watching are waiting anxiously what the outcome will be after seeing that Marcus is not the same as he was back then.

               “Instructor, is it possible for a flame not to get extinguished?” one of the students gets intrigued by Marcus flames and wants to understand the thing behind it so she asks the instructor near them but the instructor doesn’t know how Marcus is able to achieve such a thing. “There has nothing like that at all and even his father’s flames are extinguishable unlike his. There are only a few remarkable persons that were able to use flames to their advantages but none of them were able to make their flames undying.” The instructor added as the mystery of Marcus’ flames deepened.   

“I will definitely take you down you demon.” The student declares as he bites on to Marcus’ taunt. Then without a moment of hesitation, Marcus press his feet on the ground and put all of his strength on his legs to propel himself forward with strong force which greatly surprised the student as he tries to defend against Marcus’s attack but to his disappointment, one of his sword melted the instant it made contact with Marcus’ shield as it consumed the metal that made the sword unto it’s own.

The student and everyone else is dumbfounded by what just happened as he stands in a daze while Marcus takes his time and make the student savor the despair of not being able to fight on the same level as him. Clouded by his will to take revenge, the student unleashed his trump card towards Marcus.

“Secret Art: Isaac’s Vanity!” the student cried as he produces a series of pulses with everything around him breaking into pieces and covered the entire arena in dust. [That secret art is passed down from generations by our ancestors and is deemed to be our family’s strongest technique and should not be used on other people except if we are in war. Be honored in dying before my family’s sacred technique demon.] the student smiles in his momentary victory over Marcus then then the smile on his face disappeared as scarlet flames appear in the distance where Marcus stands completely unscathed.

The instructors were about to stop the duel since the technique that the student just unleashed is one of the techniques that is banned from getting used in duels but seeing that Marcus is unharmed they stop at the headmaster’s command. “Let the duel continue. I want to see the result myself.”

“You-! How are you unharmed?!” the student grumble in anger that even after using his family’s sacred secret art, Marcus remains unharmed. Marcus looks at him in complete confusion but soon lets out a sly smile. “What are you talking about? Am I supposed to lie down because you used something like that?” Marcus asked leaving the spectators even more confused. After taking a clue at the atmosphere, Marcus lie on the ground just as the student wanted but then shouted at him for making fun of him.

“Eh? Is this not what you want? I’m a simple person and easy one to talk to. I just complied to whatever you want.” The student bit his lip in anger as he grips his sword tightly. “Wow- I thought that his strength is the only thing that improved but to think that his attitude also changed.” The students as well as the instructors firmly remembers him clearly when he was still the innocent Marcus from two years ago. “To think that he also improved that much, he was different from when we met him back then.” Prince Japeth said to his sister who also agreed to his remark. “I think I am getting interested as to what they did to improve themselves this much.” Princess Joanna added while observing Marcus.

[Was that supposed to be a final technique or something? -! Oh! Yeah, that must be it. Otherwise this guy will not be as intimidating right now.] Marcus thought to himself as he summons the flames that he used to block the series of pulses that should have destroyed him instantly. “Want to know why I’m unscathed? Well, its not that you are weak. I’m just build and focused my training on defense.” Marcus said as he flashes before everyone the number of barriers around him made with his mana. Everyone is astonished at the number of barriers that flashed before their eyes only for a second before disappearing as the student drowns in despair. [I did not have a chance from the beginning. What a monster.] he told himself as he fainted in shock and then fell to the ground.

“So they use a trademark in their weapons and even have the same level of strength?” one of the students mutters as Marcus leaves the arena leisurely and unscathed with a dumb look in his face. [Why did I even asked him for a duel if he is only on that level but his last attack, if I did not use up that much barrier, I would be in trouble. Thankfully I learned from Amon. Geez what a day!] he thinks to himself as he strolls on the hallways back to his room.

The students who saw his duel stares at him intensely, be it a boy or a girl and whispers to themselves as he pass them by. “You are quite the figure now Marcus. I did not think that you are that strong, it makes me want to fight you too.” Amber said to Marcus which only irritated him. “Strong? What are you talking about? I’m just high on defenses, defense is sometimes the best offense you know?” Marcus clearly showed the irritation on his face as Amber looks at him. “I saw the duel with your acquaintance as well. They are quite the duo and if you add yourself to them, you would be an unstoppable force.” Amber said recalling the things that he saw in the earlier duel.

“Well, they are quite a handful if left alone but their fighting sense is top notch. We even spar with each other when we get the chance.” Amber’s complexion brightens after hearing that they also spar with each other and wonders if that is the reason for their explosive strength and Marcus nodded and confirms her thoughts.

[We reach the point that we did not feel any stronger thought.] he refrained from telling her about what she just thought since she might pester her to join them in their future training.

The day ended with the three blowing up everyone’s expectation and walks together back to their residence as watchful eyes stares at them.

“How is this possible, there is no way my son would suffer that much injury without the student doing anything!” the father of the student who dueled Marcus raises his claims to the headmaster who I sitting calmly in his chair and reassures the father that there’s nothing like a foul play during the duel. “I was watching the entire duel, the other party just defended against your son’s attack. That’s all there is to it.” He headmaster said but the stubborn father refuses to listen when all of the sudden, the guardian from both nobles that went down from the first duel appears.

“We are also here to raise our concerns headmaster. How students like them be left in the lower class if they are able to take down nobles at ease? This is just absurd!” one of the guardians exclaimed as the headmaster stares at them blankly and then shook his head. “Calm down everyone. The result of the evaluation is due to the faulty artifact which is why I am planning to do something about that fact since some of the students are systemically stronger than the other and they are such examples.” The headmaster explained but the three refused to listen and continues to push their claims and the situation becomes bad.

“They should be punished! Making the nobles look bad in front of so many people is not only bad for their name but to the entire nobility as well.” The headmaster’s expression then turned serious after hearing the demand of the guardian which the other two immediately agrees and plans what to do but the headmaster stops their madness at once. “This is stupidity! Have you all forgot the essence of duel and it’s sacredness? And you dare to taint it because your boys got trampled down by people who are not even that known? You lot are disrespecting the duel that I put up!” the headmaster’s furious tone startled the three who immediately fell silent on to his anger.

Then a laugh suddenly echoes throughout the entire room and the headmaster shook his head in dismay thinking why did it have come to this while the three turns their head to where the sound seems to have came from and found Razel leaning her back on the wall with a smirk on his face. “What a blunder, you are all willing to taint the royalty’s name just because your boys are weak? And you, are you sure that you are willing to mess with the person that the guild and the head merchant is vouching?” Razel asks in wonder as the three froze after seeing Razel in person.

Knights are people that not everybody can meet and the only fortunate ones are who have either fought with them or serving them. “No way, there is no way that the guild and the head merchant would vouch for anyone. That has not happened before.” The father of Marcus’ opponent mutters in disbelief. “Hoh~ so are you saying that I am lying? But that would not be the case. To be honest, all three of them are vouched by the guild and the head merchant but they only show that they are vouching for Marcus on the surface.” Razel explained as she stares intensely at the three of them who did not bother meeting her eyes.

“There is no reason for them not to be strong, we have been sparring for a long time so I can tell how strong they really are to the point that I, myself admitted defeat.” Razel smiles after remembering the moment that she was defeated for the first time as she left the three and the headmaster in shock after what she just said. “I advise you all to stop aiming for the three, if you are willing to bet on your names as nobles then I’m afraid that you will not be facing only two knights but three.” Razel said as she disappeared in plain sight.

 “You three just have to make hat blunder right on the day where she decided to visit her students. I hope you don’t make any rash decisions and think about what she just said, I trust you all know what a single knight is capable of.” The headmaster’s words struck deep into their minds as they thought of the destruction if three knights were to join together and wreck havoc.

The three then left the office of the headmaster silently and swore not to touch the three and forget the incident. Razel then visits the three in their residence and surprised them by knocking on the door and masked her presence but the three were not surprised and had already seen her coming.

“I was just visiting the place and thought that I should at least visit you three and see how you are doing but to think that you would get a place like this near the academy. That’s sneaky of you.” Razel looks at the large residence with only 8 people residing in it. “Well, the head merchant was the one that bought this place in our stead and we did not expect something like this at all this is good. We can make the other rooms as library and other things, we also had installed a wide training room and its great.” Marcus explains as they show them the rooms but most are empty.

“Well, I am not going to stay long since I have been away from my land for a long time. I’m sure there is a lot or work waiting for me there.” She told the three then Amon immediately takes out a pack of food from his void ring and handed it to Razel. “You should take this with you aunty. You might get hungry on your way back.” A smile rose from Razel’s face as he gladly accepts the pack and leave after saying their good bye.