IV

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Arc IV Chapter 21

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13th Ignis Solar 753 AAC

“Here your sword~”, humming under her breath, Erika handed Aurora her sword together with giving her a little headpat for encouragement, ruffling her soft hair. “Good luck, time to give your best, Edelgart~.”

“Thank you, Sister Erika, I will.” Aurora raised her blade. Finally adequately armed and ready for combat, a happy girl was now a new wooden sword richer. Aurora was now the proud wielder of a proper wooden sword. May the enemy shiver in fear before her and her doll!

The weapon that she had been issued was a cute little wooden sword, a true practice sword. Ludolf and she were given the choice of weapon for their fight. They both chose the sword, the most noble of arms, be it for reasons of tradition, as in her case, or for reasons of perceived superior skill, as in his case. Much to her annoyance, though, she had been provided with a short sword ..., unlike her opponent. Her opponent was issued a blade of superior length, granting him a considerable advantage in terms of reach. A fact that her opponent clearly was aware of. The circumstances favoured him. No wonder that he was so eager to fight her, a little girl with her doll.

Ludolf was swinging his sword, already practising his swift strikes. His smug grin had never left his face.“Sir Hartman, I am ready, but I must ask, why are we using wooden swords and not steel?”

Hartman was quick to rebuke him. As it turned out, for good reasons. “Listen, lad, I am old, but I am not stupid. I don't need any of you idiots dead on my first day. Some of you might be already versed in the way of the sword, some of you less, but it's still far too early for you brats to wield real steel. At least, under my supervision. It would be far too dangerous. This is a training match, and not a real fight. You are not trying to kill each other.”

“True enough ...” Ludolf clicked his tongue, deferring to better judgement.

Hartman folded his arms behind his back, mildly annoyed. “But enough talking, we have already wasted enough time as things stand now. So get your arses moving and enter the ring. We don't have all day, lads.”

They both did as commanded and entered the ring to face each other. Powdered chalk cast a circle in the sand of the arena.

Ludolf scoffed at her and her doll in open derision, laughing. He thought little of her. “Trust me, Dolly, this will be over in a blink of an eye. Your sword won't save you. You won't know what hit you.”

“... ... ...” Aurora refrained from commenting. What an arrogant prick. The boy was really trying her goodwill.

“Present your arms!” Hartman shouted.

Aurora and Ludolf each raised their sword to perform a salute, holding their blades close to their faces.

“En garde!” Hartman raised his voice. “Assume your stances! Show me what you are made of!”

Ludolf adopted a posture. His hands gripped his wooden blade with his feet set onto the sand. His stance was solid and his footing firm. In the meanwhile, Aurora was hiding her face behind her cute doll. He wasn’t able to see her, right?

“Ready?”

“Ready!” Ludolf raised his blade to protect his head, forming a guard. He didn't appear to be a beginner, which was troublesome … His sword was prepared to deflect any incoming blow, prepared to counterattack at any moment.

“Are you ready, Dolly?” Hartman turned his attention to her.

“I am.” Light on her feet, Aurora was jumping around, switching between her right and left foot, putting her trust in her nimble footwork instead.

“Fight!!!” Hartman gave the sign to start.

Her enemy didn't waste any time and immediately went on the attack, pressing his advantage. Her body size and his pronounced physique favoured him. Ludolf claimed the initiative and struck first. Leaping forwards, his blade raced across the ring, slicing through the empty air. His strike was fast, yet Aurora dodged in time by ducking. His strike missed, and his sword passed over her head.

Aurora reacted and immediately retreated, backing off to put some distance between her and the opponent.

Ludolf levered the wooden point of his blade at her. A conceited smirk crossed his lips. “Seems like you are not a complete disgrace of a swordswoman, Dolly. Let's see if you can dodge this one!”

Ludolf closed the distance through a quick sprint. Fortunately for her, her footwork proved adequate for the challenge, allowing her to evade his barrage of incoming blows. Unable to defeat her footwork, each of his strikes missed their mark.

A diagonal cut was followed by a horizontal slash, followed by a straight thrust aimed at her chest. Aurora spun to shift her axis. Unabated, Ludolf recovered his footing and retraced his blade for a slice. Aurora bent backwards, letting his blade hit nothing but empty air. Ludolf resorted to a final blow from below, an upwards cut. Yet his attack met with little success. No doll or girl was harmed. Ludolf's blade sailed past Aurora's face. Once again, his efforts proved in vain despite his all out offensive. Once again, his evasive prey eluded him.

“Seriously, how are you doing this, girl?” Ludolf snarled with murderous intent, gritting his teeth and biting his lips in rage. The first beads of sweat were running down his forehead. “You are starting to annoy me!”

Aurora and her doll tilted their heads, her index finger leaning against her chin, thinking. “Really? How so?”

“Aargh!!!” Ludolf was fuming, his impotent rage fuelling his scream. His fingers gripped his sword to the point of turning white as all blood drained from them. “Stop dodging, girl! Stand your ground and fight!”

Aurora hugged her doll, patting her. “Why should I? You are taller, stronger, faster and more skilled than me. You strike harder and faster than me. You would slaughter me in a direct confrontation. It would be suicide to challenge you. So why on earth should I stand my ground and fight, Ludolf? After all, I have no intention of losing.”

“Hmm ...” Ludolf grumbled before falling silent. “... I guess you have a point there, girl. You are smarter than you look, but you can't dodge forever. I will catch you sooner or later. You will see.”

Aurora had her doubts. “Are you sure?”

Ludolf clenched his fist. His confidence returned, and so did his hubris. “Quite. You won't escape my blade! It's only a matter of time ... ... ... Hey, wait, what are you doing?”

Aurora fled the scene, running towards the edge of the ring, where she halted with her doll in her arms. “Then come and get me! Catch me if you can!”

A frown crossed Ludolf's face. “Don't take me lightly, I will get you!” He charged at her, storming after her. The great chase had begun.

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