Chapter 90: CH 93

In team matches, the rule is that the match time is 20 minutes per match.

If both have not received warnings and penalized, if they didn’t reach a settlement by then, there will be an extension of 10 minutes.

And if still by then they didn’t reach a settlement, it will become a draw.

The Northern Dormitory had had 3 wins as their goal, but when it came down to it, it turned to fulfill the goal of getting even a draw in one of the matches.

In the case that the number of wins for both teams was the same, the rule was that whichever team the winner of the last match belonged to will be the winner.

His opponent, Remie, even while attacking him, he did not step in deeply to the shown openings.

That was the same as throwing away victory. Yet why did he continue fighting, while showing a composed face?

The reason was obvious.

While locking swords with each other fiercely, Kerio and Remie glared at each other.

“I see, you understood that you wouldn’t win, so you aimed for a draw. It’s quite a rational strategy.”

Kerio was most proficient at counterattacks.

This was, the more the opponent felt like he would win, the more it worked. This is because a gap in their defense would appear when putting their strength behind the attack.

However, if the opponent pretended to attack, and concentrated their senses on defense, he wouldn’t be able to finish him that easily.

“But, I’ll tell you that that is a naïve thought!”

A side sweep with increased speed struck Remie.

Remie guarded against it right away, but the timing was just barely.

“I might certainly be most proficient at counterattacks, but I’m not bad at initiating attacks by myself, either!”

Kerio’s fierce attacks assaulted Remie. Remie received the desperately.

“You guys are fools if you thought that you would be able to reach a draw by only thinking about defense!”

Kerio showered Remie with attacks. Even if his counterattacks were sealed, he wouldn’t lose to such an opponent.

Even if he was left behind by Rizil and the others right now, he will show them that he will sooner or later catch up.

Such was his pride.

However, contrary to that, the match was prolonged.

(Argh……, tough……! And it’s difficult to attack……! It’s the fault of those large steps…… . The distance between us changes frequently!)

Kerio would drive Remie into a corner at a good place, but just in the nick of time, he wouldn’t be able to finish him off.

Once it gets dangerous, he moves away with large steps, and Kerio’s attack doesn’t continue.

Kerio himself was also a powerhouse who was strong and agile. However, Remie as well wasn’t slow, and there wasn’t that much difference between their speeds.

Even though on this side, he was maintaining the distance between them with fine steps, it was harder to do than he thought when the other side ran away while roughly gaining distance with big steps.

More than anything, Remie’s defense techniques exceeded what Kerio expected.

Even though it was by a hair’s breadth, he defended against the attacks from Kerio, who estimated that if it was a no-name opponent, he would easily defeat him.

The moment his attack hand rests for a moment, Remie would hit over here.

Kerio receive that.

(Grr…… Again……!)

On top of that, in order not to get a warning, he would aim for the break in this side’s attacks, and precisely strike with his sword.

It’s an attack without any power or intention to win. That’s why it’s easy for him to defend against it. However, that went for his opponent as well. His opponent was prepared to defend immediately even if there was a counterattack.

He was just showing to the referee a will to attack. (TN: In case this needs explaining, it’s probably against the rules to just sit by idly not attacking, in order to buy time, while just waiting for the time to be up. Only if both sides aggressively attacked and yet no conclusion was reached, will the rules for a draw apply. That’s why Remie “attacked” on these occasions.)

This countermeasure was taken more firmly than he thought.

It was only at this time that Kerio realized that for the first time.

The boys of the Northern Dormitory who were watching the match, said proudly while watching.

“We were accompanying him during practice all this time. Even if it was against Kerio, he definitely won’t go down that easily!”

“It was really tough, you know? One person attacking intently with all his might for 2 minutes!”

“Though well, Remie probably had it tougher.”

Alone, each and every one of those knight apprentices didn’t have the strength to equal Kerio.

Still, in order to simulate the match against Kerio for Remie’s practice, those guys crossed swords with all their might with Remie for 2 minutes, using a pace that was many times the usual, and by having 10 people doing this while rotating, they managed to reproduce the situation of a match against a strong opponent such as Kerio.

Thanks to that, Remie’s defense techniques rapidly improved.

Also, in order not get warnings, at the same time he also practiced making a move while defending. In order to reproduce an attack like one from Kerio, because they couldn’t afford not concentrating every bit of their senses on attacking with all their strength, although the apprentice knights who didn’t think about things like defense, had felt pain many times as Remie’s wooden sword hit them, they earnestly cheered up Remie who made an apologetic face every time he hit them, telling him not to mind it, and continued on with the practice.

The bruises that those guys have on their hands and shoulders, are the testimony of key figures who brought about the current match situation.

Even the knights who came to watch the matches as well showed a slightly surprised expression at this situation.

Kerio, though not as famous as Rizil and the others, was also a well-known rookie in his own rights. His opponent could also be said to be unknown, and they thought that it would probably get settled quickly.

However, it unexpectedly turned into a long, close match. Of course, Kerio was the one who had the advantage, but his attacks as well were somewhat hard to determine.

“It kind of turned into a close match, didn’t it……”

“That Remie guy is sure doing his best, I see.”

They were a group of knights who came to watch because today had somehow became a day off. Especially for those guys, who were watching without having to cheer for either, they were truly surprised by this match development that went against their expectations.

At the time those guys were each saying their impressions about the match, one knight among them said with an expression as if not convinced.

“Aren’t they kind of moving too much in this match?”

“Eh?”

As the other knights who asked this as if they didn’t understand what he was saying, the knight who said that pointed at the stadium with his finger.

“Even though they were fighting at the right end of the arena earlier, their already fighting at the left end now, you know?”

Now that he mentioned it, it was true.

Even though the two, who were fiercely exchanging swords, had been until just a while ago at the right of where the captains were sitting, they were already at the left now. And before their eyes, the two who were exchanging swords were this time moving towards the top right side. Moreover, they were not moving in a straight line, but zigzagging.

“What in the world……?”

“Why are they moving like this……?”

Questioning voices leaked out from the knights’ mouths.

Just like this, the match was steadily prolonged, and then was stopped temporarily by the referee’s voice.

Before anyone was aware of it, 20 minutes had already passed.

They will be going into extra time.

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When they both have returned to their starting positions, the extra time will commence along with the signal of “Begin!”

(Damn it……, to think that it was prolonged till the extra time…… . No matter, I’ll defeat him here)

While Kerio was thinking so, along with the start signal, he made to leap at his opponent.

However, as if losing strength, his legs staggered.

(What the……!?)

Not knowing what happened, his legs that, against his will, didn’t move forward, staggered.

At that moment, a single strike from Remie assaulted Kerio.

“Argh……!”

Heavy…….!

Unlike the attacks from before the extra time that were only for appearance’s sake, this attack properly had the body’s weight behind it. Kerio’s arms trembled.

From there 2 hits, 3 hits, Remie struck with his sword over here.

(It can’t be……! My movements are the ones that are falling behind……!?)

The opponent’s attacks that he received were heavy. His defense was falling behind, and his opponent’s sword was drawing close to his body.

The reason why the attacks felt heavy wasn’t only because of the change in Remie’s intentions.

His body was slow…… . It didn’t move as he expected. Kerio’s body’s physical performance clearly plummeted.

(It couldn’t be that my stamina……!? No, the extra time had also just barely started. In the first place, I’ve never lost once before because I was tired)

Kerio as well was a champion. On top of that, he was considerably trained. Even his stamina was above average. Including the extra time, he had enough stamina to fight 30 minutes straight. And yet……

Other than that, he had no words that could describe this situation.

Striking over here with an attack that feels heavy, and while locking swords fiercely with him, his opponent Remie smiled once more.

“It’s because we ran a lot around the arena all the while during the match, you see. As expected, you’re tired, aren’t you?”

“It can’t be……!”

Only after he said so, did Kerio realize the aim of Remie’s big steps.

The larger the step, the further the distance traveled is. And the distance Kerio, who kept up with that and exchanged blows, traveled also increased.

If one kept one moving frequently in such a state, the consumption of stamina wouldn’t be comparable to that of a normal match.

Kerio, who looked down on his opponent as a no-name, and was absorbed in defeating him, now that it came to it, couldn’t imagine just how much he himself had run.

Kerio had been thoroughly caught in Remie’s stamina draining strategy.

However, Kerio still had something that he couldn’t accept. It was Remie’s current movements. His opponent should have been running under the same conditions until just a while ago. No, as his opponent was the one guiding him, he should have been the one to be extremely exhausted.

Remie’s body was also dripping with sweat, just like his. Clearly, his stamina was exhausted. And yet, that sword still had strength behind it.

Remie spoke as if to answer the question that was inside of Kerio’s mind.

“I’m only good at long distances, you see. If it’s a contest of stamina, I won’t lose to anyone……!”

At the running in the current Northern Dormitory, Remie was number 1.

In the beginning, Gorms also gave it his all, but with that large body of his, he wasn’t suited for long distance running, and had long ago handed over the top spot.

And since that time as well Remie’s running record increased, and even within the Northern Dormitory, he had left Gorms far behind, and is at the top.

In other words, the one with the most stamina within the Northern Dormitory is Remie.

That’s precisely why Remie and the others put together this strategy.

They would use the fact that Remie was unknown, show Remie as a competitor with only large steps, and earnestly make the opponent move to drain his stamina. Fighting while consciously focusing on defense so that he won’t be done in by a counterattack, and mixing in attacks so that he won’t get a warning, he would spend the time running around, and would bring it down to a battle of endurance.

The fact that his opponent thought that he was aiming for a draw and got worked up on that also worked as a huge advantage.

And so, as soon as they went into the extra time and his opponent’s stamina ran out, Remie used that large stamina of his and went onto the offensive at once.

“Guh…… Damn it…… That’s impossible! That someone like me would be pushed back……!”

While being pushed down by Remie’s attacks, Kerio let out a shout like he couldn’t believe it.

“I’ll correct only one thing that you had said during the match.”

Unchanging from before the extra time, while attacking with movements that weren’t fast, Remie smiled for the third time.

“I was intending to win from the beginning!”

The situation was completely reversed.

Kerio whose movements were becoming slow due to having his stamina almost exhausted. Remie who was using just as much or more stamina and yet could still move.

Continuous attack that wouldn’t make one think that he had been running all this time assaulted Kerio.

“Damn it all……! As if I’d lose at such a place!”

Kerio mustered the last of his strength, and crossed swords with Remie.

A close battle more fierce than any during the extra time unfolded.

And after 10 minutes, the result of the match was decided.

“A draw!”

In the end, there was no winner or loser.

By the time the end of the match was announced, both Kerio and Remie were short on breath.

Their expressions were the opposite of each other. Kerio who was relieved that the match was over had a pale face. Remie who was thinking that even though he only needed a bit more had a frustrated expression.

In fact, if they had a little bit more time, Remie might have just won.

With each passing minute, Kerio’s stamina was exhausted more, and it was a situation where he managed to hold out because of some techniques he had saved. On the other hand, Remie’s movements did not falter until the end.

They both saluted each other, shook hands with each other in silence, and both went to return to their own seats.

Remie returned to where everyone from the Northern Dormitory was, and with his usual gentle smile that was a little apologetic, he apologized.

“Sorry. Even though I needed only a little bit more.”

“No, no, you were really amazing, you know!”

“Yeah, yeah! With Kerio as an opponent, to get him this much is already a lot!”

It was only natural, but nobody blamed Remie. He had fought splendidly with all he had.

Everyone was delighted and had bright expressions at the results of Remie’s match.

And more than anything, he had brought the result of a draw that was more than enough to the Northern Dormitory.

The match moved over to Gorms magnificently.

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