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Chapter 5: Duel

“Rein Gray, I, Damon Mick, challenge you to a duel in the name of a Warrior!”

Damon’s words immediately made Rein stop in his tracks.

Duel!

This was a term both familiar and strange to Rein.

Duels among nobles were divided into death duels and honor duels.

A death duel, as the name implied, meant the victor lived and the loser died.

They usually arose only when the enmity between two parties could not be resolved.

An honor duel, on the other hand, did not endanger either participant’s life, and the victor claimed all the loser’s honors.

Furthermore, the victor could impose on the loser any single condition that did not harm the interests of either their house or the Empire.

The loser could not refuse; otherwise they would be abandoned and scorned by the deity before whom they had sworn, and their strength would never advance for life.

Rein and Damon did not share such deep hatred.

Damon would not demand Rein’s death simply because Rein had confessed to Sophia, and the Mick family would not allow him to do such a thing.

Therefore Damon’s challenge was clearly an honor duel, although he had omitted the word honor.

Damon’s shout attracted a crowd of students who gathered around, whispering.

“Rein and Damon… they’ve actually come face to face.”

“Of course, Rein’s grand public declaration of love to Sophia the day before yesterday… who in the academy doesn’t know about it? Damon is her number one suitor. I wonder what kind of sparks will fly.”

Everyone loved a spectacle, and the murmur among the crowd grew louder and louder.

“Duel!”

“Duel!!”

“Duel!!!”

Rein stared at the sword tip pointed at him and was about to speak when suddenly a figure dashed out of the crowd and blocked his way.

It completely concealed Rein’s figure.

“Damon, what are you doing? If you have business with me, don’t you dare lay a hand on my Young Master.”

The person blocking the way was Blair Rivera, one of the commoner students House Gray had recruited at the academy.

Because Rein had once unintentionally saved Blair’s mother’s life, this gifted warrior had been following Rein around the academy ever since.

He acted as a lookout whenever Rein peered at a female teacher bathing.

When Rein got into a fight, he was the one who struck first.

As a result, Blair was nicknamed “the Rogue Hound” at the academy.

Blair’s imposing figure completely shielded Rein from view.

Furthermore, Blair’s warrior talent was formidable; he was a top-rank genius, just one step below someone like Sophia.

With the support of House Gray’s resources, Blair had already reached Rank 1 Advanced Warrior.

Damon looked at the hulking Blair, feeling at once trapped.

He was no stranger to getting beaten by Blair, and he said to Rein, whom he could not see behind Blair, “Rein, I’m challenging you to a duel, not him, you coward who dares not step onto the field.”

Rein shoved at Blair in front of him; when he could not move him, he had to step out from behind Blair.

Blair looked at Rein and began to advise, “Young Master…”

Rein waved his hand at Blair.

Everyone watched as Rein calmly emerged from behind Blair, and they could not help but remark that Rein truly had a handsome face.

No wonder Rein was infamous, yet some junior and senior female students still liked him.

Then, in full view of everyone, Rein slowly removed the white glove from his left hand and threw it toward Damon, thrilling the crowd.

“A duel? I’ll give you one.”

Damon looked at the glove thrown in front of him and could not help feeling delighted; reverse psychology still worked.

Then he quickly tore off his own glove and threw it at Rein.

With that condition met, the duel was set.

Rein paid no attention to Blair’s anxious gaze and said to Damon, “See you tomorrow at noon at the dueling arena.”

The challenged party had the right to choose the time and place of the duel.

Damon sheathed his longsword and said, “Fine,” then turned and walked away.

Rein, accompanied by Blair, also set off toward the Mage Tower.

The surrounding crowd immediately dispersed and each began to spread the news that the two would duel tomorrow.

Even some professors and teaching assistants were stirred into action and began cleaning and preparing the dueling arena for tomorrow.

In the dean’s office.

Dean Cliff Ever was taking a nap when he was suddenly awakened by a chorus of students’ cries from downstairs.

“Jenny, what is happening outside? Why is the academy so lively today?”

Jenny Hines was the dean’s secretary.

She opened the office door and reported to Cliff.

“It seems Damon is going to duel Rein and Rein has accepted; they are scheduled to fight at noon tomorrow in the dueling arena.”

After listening, Cliff immediately perked up.

“Oh? That brat Rein again, and he actually agreed; it looks like there will be a good show tomorrow.”

Cliff commented, “But fortunately it’s because of him; every time the academy livens up it’s thanks to him, or else it would be dead every day.”

He did not consider Rein an irredeemable villain; when he was young he also enjoyed peeking at girls bathing and getting into fights, which was not such a flaw.

Suddenly a little white mouse climbed onto the desk and Cliff placed it by his ear with his hand.

The mouse chattered something to Cliff.

Cliff listened and nodded, “Oh? Is that so? Today it’s white lace.”

Jenny’s face turned crimson as she hastily pressed her legs together to keep down her short skirt while glaring in embarrassment at the leering pair whispering, human and mouse.

Bang!!

She stormed out of the office and slammed the door shut.

Jenny’s face still crimson, walked quickly down the corridor, looking very angry.

Passing students looked helpless.

“Miss Jenny must have been peeped on by the dean again.”

“Yes, he never shows respect for his age.”

As Rein and Blair made their way to the Mage Tower, Blair anxiously said to him, “Young Master, why did you agree to duel Damon? You’re not even rank 1 yet.”

Blair did not know Rein’s current rank.

Because Rein had learned a kind of magic called Silent Magic from that pile of magic books.

By continuously expending a small amount of mana, he could conceal his rank.

Unless someone used a special detection skill or confronted a person of extremely high rank, it would not fail.

Rein dispelled Silent Magic and used mana to pat Blair on the shoulder, and Blair, being a Rank 1 Advanced Warrior, immediately sensed Rein’s rank.

He was a Level 1 Junior Mage.

Blair immediately raised his thick bushy eyebrows and said, “Young Master, you have ascended a rank?”

Delighted, Blair’s expression then fell again.

“Young Master, although you have upgraded to rank 1 Mage, that fellow Damon has also lingered at rank 1 Intermediate Warrior for a long time, so…”

Blair did not finish his sentence, but Rein knew what he meant.

It was merely a question of whether he could win.

Rein nonchalantly patted the big guy and said, “All right, all right, trust your Young Master; tomorrow I’ll make sure you see my true strength.”

After hearing this, Blair could not say anything and could only pray silently that Rein would perform exceptionally tomorrow.

Having accompanied Rein to the Mage Tower, Blair then departed, after all, he was not a mage and did not have classes here.

Although magic was not a mainstream cultivation path, magic devices still had a profound impact on the Empire.

To attract other mages, the Empire had constructed the Mage Tower to be extremely lavish.

The Mage Tower was constructed entirely from dark blue marble.

It was also inlaid with many magic crystals that gleamed in the sunlight and emitted dazzling multicolored light.

When Rein entered the tower, he saw a spacious hall paved with smooth obsidian flooring that reflected his handsome face.

At the center of the hall was a very large ancient magical core from centuries ago.

The magic core floated in the air, rotating slowly and rhythmically.

Bypassing the hall, he ascended a spiral staircase whose every step was carved with exquisite patterns that spoke of its extraordinary origin.

Arriving on the third floor, Rein entered a familiar research chamber.

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