"I don't know what you're thinking...... Duel?Okay, I'll take it!"

That said, he hated Portsar too. The fighting spirit overcame the doubts in his heart and made him agree loudly. If he was sarcastic like he had before, he had challenged him head-on, so Kidd had no intention of hiding his attitude.

"Your mouth is so unclean...... It seems to be a little uneducated. Let me look forward to how long you will be arrogant. 」

They didn't care about going to class anymore, so they rushed out of the school building with a large group of people watching the excitement.

The Dreiser Academy forbids students to fight each other, after all, it is too unreasonable for knights to protect the people to fight each other. Violators are subject to a variety of penalties, with the exception of a battle known as a duel.

There are rules for dueling: they must be held one-on-one, and participation in duels must be agreed upon...... A third party must act as the referee...... There is absolute obedience to the referee, when one side loses consciousness or indicates defeat, the winner is decided, and there are also the use of wooden swords for practice, the prohibition of the use of magic to avoid harming the innocent, etc., in short, "you two will solve it for yourself".

From the point of view of nature,It is inevitable that there are many strong students in the knight department.,It's not uncommon to use duels to resolve disputes.,There's even a fixed place called "Duel Square" in the school park.。

News of Potsar and Chid's duel quickly spread around campus. Because this was a long-awaited declaration of dueling in person, many people flocked to the square to witness the battle.

There was a student who had nothing to do with either of them who volunteered to be the referee. He read aloud the rules of the duel and confirmed the wishes of both sides in accordance with the procedure. As the two men came face to face, Portsaar pulled something out of his breast pocket. Kid's expression froze at the sight of the thing.

(That's not ...... Is Artie wearing a hair ornament this morning!?why...... Could it be that this guy ......!?)

Shocked, Kid looked at Potsar and met his gaze. With a deeper smile on his face than usual, Kidd understood the other man's purpose. Including why Portsaar proposed a duel to decide the winners, and why it should be done in public.

"You guy...... What did you do to Artie......

"Hmm? I don't know what you mean. 」

As if to restrain himself from laughing, the expression on Potsar's face was almost distorted, turning the doubt in Kid's heart into affirmation.

"By the way, I heard a rumor. As a junior student, you can even use high-level magic with ease, and your attainments seem to be very good, right?

Kidd reluctantly snorted. Portsal's purpose in deliberately mentioning this matter was obvious, he said it to everyone, and in turn to let everyone see that he couldn't do it, so that he could make a fool of himself in front of everyone. The proof is that as he spoke, he showed him the hair ornament from time to time to restrain his movements.

「...... I won't use ......."

Kidd replied as if squeezing air out of his lungs, and the audience tilted their heads in bewilderment. He was one of the three celebrities in the primary school, and the teacher agreed that he would not have to attend classes. The crowd was puzzled, how could someone who was already far ahead of the progress say such a thing? Could that rumor be false?

"What? What are you doing! Ha! Are the rumors fake? Really, they are showing their feet so quickly! Where is the momentum just now? Ha!"

If the sight could kill, Potsar would have been shot by Kid's sight. Potsar didn't care, laughed for a while, and then continued:

"Oops, hey, hey, he's going to lie and be in the limelight, what a disobedient guy. It's also the senior's job to completely correct the inferior nature of the junior? Okay, it's almost time to start. 」

Potsar raised his sword and wand, and Kidd just quietly installed Gandibal on the wooden sword. The next thing that began was no longer a battle, but a duel.

"What's the matter? There should be a limit to the disappointment. I don't think you know how to use magic, and you don't know anything about swordsmanship, do you!?"

While the two were fighting, Portsaar laughed. In a fit of rage, Kid wanted to fight back, but the hair ornaments that the other party showed him from time to time prevented him from acting rashly.

About thirty minutes after the duel began, anyone with a discerning eye could see that the battle was one-sided. Kidd was slow to move and almost always took the attack one-sidedly. Several times he tried to fight back, but his strength was completely insufficient. Seeing the rumored student so embarrassed, a wave of disappointment floated through the crowd. "Rumors are just rumors after all", "I don't know where I got it wrong", "The final outcome is at most an arrogant junior who recognizes reality", "It's not interesting to watch" - some people even get impatient and leave early.

However, some students began to feel that something was wrong. Kidd was hit quite a few times, but he still maintained his stance. Didn't he get hurt? Potsar, who was immersed in overwhelming superiority, didn't notice this, and was only happy to repair Kidd a little longer.

Unable to defeat Potsar, Kidd had to endure constant attacks, not knowing how long he would last. Even so, he has been waiting for the moment of counterattack that will eventually come. He wasn't sure if that moment would ever come, but there was hope. Kid's most trusted friend wasn't here, and he must have heard of the duel commotion when things were so big. In this way, it is impossible for him to go without action.

(Please, good friend...... I can only rely on you now!)

Kidd gritted his teeth and staggered to catch Potsar's sword.

At the same time, El Nesti walked quietly in the hallway. After listening to his childhood friend Baftson's explanation, he searches for Artie's whereabouts. It's just that because he has no clue, he is feeling a little troubled. At this time, someone coldly hugged him from behind. Al was startled, and when he looked up, he saw Stefania rubbing her hair with a happy expression.

"Ahh 」

「...... Uh, Sister Stefania?"

"It's all caused by this supple hair~~ You hateful little demon. 」

Stefania just rubbed her cheek against his hair and poked him in the cheek. Al was dumbfounded at her usual appearance, but it immediately dawned on her that she might have a clue.

"Senior Sister Stefania, you've come just in time. Do you know where Artie is?"

Stefania, who was originally smiling, quickly calmed down, with a hint of worry on her face. She met Al's confused gaze.

"Artie looks like she was called out by Potter. 」

"Potter...... Brother Ling, is it? He ...... to Chid and Artie."

Al was a rare stopper. He'd heard of Portsaar—and he did. If Artie was taken by him, he wouldn't have to think about it to know what was going on. Having said that, Al hesitated, after all, it was their housework. Al couldn't tell how far he could intervene, but Stefania's next words blew Al's hesitation away.

「...... Moreover, Potter also brought quite a few people with him. 」

"I don't want to make irresponsible remarks about other people's families, but it just gives a very bad feeling. 」

Al's heart wasn't as calm as he said it. If it's still within the range of "brother and sister quarrel", forget it. However, bringing a group of people is a different matter, which means that Artie is in danger.

"As far as the position is concerned, although I can't ask you...... But I want you to go to Artie. 」

「...... Isn't that all right? Didn't I mean, if he tried to harm Artie, even if he was your own brother, I might not be able to forgive him?"

Al's normally steady-looking eyes flashed a dangerous light. Kidd and Artie are his best friends in this world, and he doesn't plan to show mercy if someone brings a large number of men to hurt them. Stefania looked at him quietly angry and lowered her beautifully shaped eyebrows.

「...... Please keep it to a non-lethal range. 」

"You're so blunt. 」

"If it's Potter's personal actions, fine. No, I can't say it's good...... But I always got to stop it. However, this time it was different, and as the student council president and his sister, I couldn't ignore it. 」

Stefania muttered, slowly hugging Al. He couldn't imagine her expression, and only asked:

"Can you tell me where Artie was taken?"

Some of the many school buildings in Dreiser School are not in use. Artie and Portsal's men were in one of the vacant classrooms.

The group sat Artie in a chair with her hands tied behind her back and her feet tied. About an hour after she was knocked unconscious by Tessar's Jean, she still hasn't regained consciousness. The four men who had surrounded her just now gathered around her, as if arguing about something.

"Whew, stinky little ghost, dare to knock me unconscious!"

"Hey, she's not awake yet, don't mess around. 」

Even though Artie's consciousness had not yet regained, so many people were left to guard her, just to prevent her from making a big fuss when she woke up. And the one who couldn't hold back his anxiety and shouted loudly was the boy who took an elbow from Artie when she broke through the encirclement. He didn't regain consciousness until just now.

"Why? She passed out and was tied up? There's no need to be so afraid of her. 」

"The guy who was put down all of a sudden, still dares to say big things. 」

"Ahh

He grabbed Artie by the hair, forcing her to look up, smiling brutally and clenching his fists.

"Seeing that she is a little ghost, she will be arrogant to me after a little release. I can't swallow this breath if I don't give her a good look!"

Even the other subordinates can't stand it anymore. He will be put down not because of any release, but because he is too careless, he will be killed by one blow. Besides, it wouldn't be nice if he beat him down and caused Artie to wake up. After all, their purpose was only to watch her for the time being, and it would be better for her to continue sleeping like this. At the moment when another subordinate intervened to stop him—

"Hello—is anyone there...... Oh, yes. 」

Suddenly, a figure appeared from behind the classroom. The crowd naively thought that no one would come to this place, so they were a step slower to react to the invaders. When they turned back in surprise, they saw a silver bullet coming out of a strange wand and flying towards them.

As soon as the intruder, El Nesti, saw his men in the classroom, he should have known that he had "guessed" when he saw Adercus tied to a chair. Well, all that remains is to eliminate the enemy. Without hesitation, he pulled out Winchester as he fired the wind-based mid-level magic, the Wind Rush, left and right. The wind bomb hit the two people at the back of the classroom, and before they could scream, they were bounced away by the impact. Al didn't even confirm the fate of the two men, so he activated the body strengthening acceleration technique, slashing at the boy who was about to beat Artie. Although the boy panicked for a moment, he still tried desperately to meet the attack, but he couldn't catch up with Al's speed in the strengthened state. The Mercedes-Benz Al cast a vacuum shock spell on the barrel of the gun, sending the boy flying out of the way.

Seeing the other three companions being knocked away in the blink of an eye, the remaining one simply gave up understanding the situation. Regrettably, the opponent was not kind enough to let go of this fatal opportunity. The wand that the last of his men had raised was broken entirely, and another Winchester swept past him—the last thing he could remember.

After killing all four of his men in a storm and making sure that they were all unconscious, he ran to Artie's side as he was tied up. Cut the rope off her body to see if she was injured. Artie seemed fine, breathing normally, and seemed to just pass out. Knowing that she was safe, Al finally let go of the big stone in his heart before tying up his unconscious men who had fallen to the ground. Thankfully, they had ropes ready – though not for themselves. As soon as Al restrained everyone's movements, he glared sharply in the direction of the atrium.

"There's probably not much time. 」

Judging by the commotion he heard on the way here, Al could probably imagine what was going on over there. First Artie was caught, and then Potsar appeared in front of Kidd's eyes, and his actions were too easy to guess. Because of this, he was worried about Chid at the center of the commotion, but he didn't think he would be slaughtered. Al believes that if you move fast enough, everything will be in time. That's why he wanted to get there as soon as possible, but—

Al looked down at Artie who had fallen to the ground, and his heart was tangled. Should he feel pathetic, because she was tall, and it would take a lot of work to move her there. That being said, you can't just let her lie here. Hmmmm, he groaned for a while and finally gave up, and reluctantly hugged her sideways. Although it was very difficult to maintain his balance, he still used the magic he was good at to force his way through.

"I have to catch up......

And just like that, in order to get to Kid's side as quickly as possible, Al strode to the center of the commotion.

Between the school buildings of the Dreiser School Park, there is an atrium commonly known as the "Duel Square". There, the duel between the two students continued, and an hour had passed since the duel. Although the situation has always been one-sided, it still does not look like a winner.

After fighting for so long, Portsal finally began to feel that something was wrong. As he expected, Kid became quite sluggish under his control. And from the beginning of the duel to the present, the number of times his sword has directly hit Chid has been uncountable. Even though it is a wooden sword, the average person who has been slashed so many times should be seriously injured that he can no longer move. However, while Kid's movements did slow down, he didn't feel the damage he'd ever had. Maybe he was worried about the hostages, so he didn't take the initiative to attack, but there was a strong light in his eyes. Clearly, he was looking for an opportunity.

(Why is this guy so durable?Why hasn't he fallen yet??Is he going to entangle until Yadelchu escapes by herself??Her skills are indeed quite flexible, and it is not impossible to escape, but...... ）

Potsar snickered again. Kidd didn't know that Artie was not only tied up, but that someone was watching. That said, Portsaar believes that his desired play was impossible to achieve from the start.

Seeing that his opponent suddenly stopped moving, Kid showed a surprised expression. Potsar smiled unnaturally and then smiled lovingly as he tried to ruin Kid's hopes.

"Archid, are you stalling for time?"

「......！」

"I think so. You think you're going to come if you wait, right? Then all I can say is that you're delusional, after all, that one is tied up tightly. 」

Kidd's gnashing of teeth was heard even by Portsal, a viscous sense of satisfaction in him.

"Hey, I'm tired of it, too. It's hard to give up, but it's almost time for us to decide the winner, right?"

He deliberately showed Artie's hair ornament again and raised the wooden sword again. Kidd grimaced. Honestly, he's not as casual as he seems. Even if the damage is minimized by using "a certain method", the burden will continue to accumulate. If you are attacked by the opponent's full force next, it is difficult to say whether you will be able to survive it. And from the moment now, Botsal's gaze strongly conveyed his purpose, which was to "not dodge". I guess I'm really going to make an end, and the next wave of attacks will probably be a blow with all his might. If he didn't dodge, Kidd didn't think he would be able to get out of it safely in his current state.

Both sides put up a posture with more force than before. The students who remained at the scene also felt the atmosphere of finally having to fight the winner, and watched the game with bated breath. Just as Potsar was ready to close the distance between them, the man who had broken into the duel appeared, and the two took place almost simultaneously.

A figure jumped over the head of the crowd and appeared in the front row. He jumped very widely, and when he looked closely, he landed smoothly on the ground, as if he were stepping on something soft, even though he was still holding a woman in his arms. Naturally, everyone's eyes focused on the short figure flying over their heads.

It was Al who was holding Artie. Potsal, who was on the field, squinted at them, and when he recognized them, his expression distorted with surprise. Artie should have been tied up, and he even sent someone to keep an eye on him. Did he break through those obstacles and get people out? What the hell were his men doing? More importantly, who was the silver-haired kid holding Artie? Potsar's head was full of question marks, but no one answered him.

Al slowly lowered Artie in his arms. She had regained consciousness in her movements, and stood up on her own. The first thing she did was glare at Potsar, then turn to Kid, slashing her thumb across her neck from her clenched fist with a ferocious grin. Seeing that she was safe and sound, Chid relaxed his strength, and suddenly felt like laughing. He immediately nodded in response, and then complained to Al, who was standing behind her:

"It's slow. 」

"I'm sorry, it's all too much harm in the classroom. 」

"What. Hey, forget it. 」

Kidd smiled and raised his wooden sword again, he had no worries, and the time for the long-awaited counterattack had finally arrived.

Potsar was on the verge of screaming. At this point, he had to wake up to the worst of things. But he thought about it, it was right that he had lost Artie, the trump card that contained Kid, but that didn't mean that the damage suffered by Kid would disappear, and it should still be too late to launch a fast attack and fight it out, so he slashed at Kid with all his strength again.

However, Kidd immediately unleashed his nimble skills - he looked as if he had just been beaten to the ground, as if he was pretending. He lunged forward. Gently separated the opponent's sword, and then slammed into Potsar with the key point on his shoulder, temporarily widening the distance between the two.

By now, Kidd had spent a lot of mana, but he had been training rigorously with Al since he was a child. Therefore, the magic he had left was enough for him to launch a final counterattack.

"This is what you owe me, and now I will give it back to you once and for all!"

Kid let out a cry from the dantian, firing the full power of the body enhancement that El had imparted. A violent force rushed through his body, causing him to rush out with the force of almost crushing the stone slab beneath his feet. Before Potsar, who was panicking to his feet, could defend himself, Kid's wooden sword struck him in the stomach, knocking out the air in his lungs, and he shouted "Quack" in a hoarse voice, and then was blasted into the air. Before he hit the ground, Kidd unleashed another wave of unstoppable barrage of attacks, forcing Potsar's body to unnaturally twist in the air. Then, while his body stalled and rolled, he gave him a roundhouse kick as a fatal blow. This time, Potsar's body spun and fell as if it were twisted into a ball, and finally collapsed limply on the ground several meters away.

It wasn't until Chid, who had done his best, took a big breath that the referee came to his senses. He hurried to Potsar, only to see him fall to the ground like a rag, rolling his eyes and foaming at the mouth. Either way, the outcome was clear, and the referee raised his arm and shouted out to the crowd about Chide's victory.

Such an unexpected ending made the previous duel seem to be fake. The people watching the excitement from the sidelines could not keep up with the development of the situation.

Clearly, Kidd was as good as the rumors had suggested, and the skills he showed in the end were not at all comparable to Portsal's. So, what was the embarrassment he had so far on the way?

The audience's gaze then turned to the girl running towards Kid. They're not stupid either, and the moment Kidd saw the girl appear, he showed a completely different skill from before. The truth of the whole thing speaks for itself.

Everyone looked at Potsar who had fallen to the ground, and their eyes gradually turned cold. For the students of the Department of Knighthood, although dueling was a means of solving problems by force, the honor bestowed on the victor remained sacred. If someone tries to win in the wrong way, it is tantamount to betraying the way of knighthood. Looking at Portsal, who was hurriedly taken away by his subordinates and taken to the infirmary, everyone's attitude was always extremely indifferent.

Kidd was badly wounded after all, and collapsed on the ground after uttering a cry of victory.

"Kid, Kid, are you okay?"

"I can't say it's nothing...... It was really badly beaten. 」

"Wow, my clothes are torn...... You're not going to dodge that idiot's attack, are you?"

"He's been holding the one dangling in front of my eyes, and he can't hide if he wants to. 」

"......I'm sorry, it's all me...... Too careless. 」

Seeing Artie's teary-eyed and depressed appearance, Kid rubbed her hair indiscriminately and said with a smile:

"Don't mind, it's all that idiot's fault. And Al, thank you, it was really dangerous. 」

"Just catch up. Don't talk about that......

Al unwittingly retrieved the hair ornament from Potsar, and as he handed it back to Artie, he asked:

"You were beaten badly, but you didn't look hurt. 」

"That's right, because that guy saw that I couldn't hide, so he just attacked desperately, and what tricks did he say. 」

Kidd said with a wry smile.

"I used instant body enhancement and external hardening to minimize damage where I was hit. 」

"I see...... Still, it's a shame that you have the means to do such a dangerous stunt. 」

"I don't need to think about it, so I can do it...... And thanks to him being so stupid, I was saved. If he had concentrated all his strength on my vital point, he probably wouldn't have survived. 」

"Does that mean that person ended up being too underwhelmed?"

As Al nodded, the audience who had been seeing the end of the day dispersed.

"Then I'll take care of the rest. Artie, can you take Kid to the infirmary?"

"Got it. Chid, can you stand up?"

"It's fine. My injuries are almost all bruises, so just walk slowly. 」

Al watched Artie and Kid, who staggered to his feet and walked to the health room, before turning his head after a moment to see Stefania standing there alone.

"Is that good? In every way, Brother Ling's injuries are not light. 」

「...... Yes, but what he did was so serious. 」

Instead, Stefania shook her head with a refreshed expression.

"The kid...... There really is only this kind of place like mother...... It's time to learn a lesson. 」

"You've worked so hard......

The thought of what happened to Chid and Artie's family made Al feel an indescribable feeling, but he shook his head, changed his mood and asked:

"Can you please help with the aftermath?"

"Well, I'll have to explain it to my family. 」

Al bowed to Stefania, who nodded in agreement, and left. As a result, some of the students were deeply interested in the commotion and began to discuss the relationship between Chid and the Serrati family in private.

A few days passed after the events of the duel.

The ugly Portsaar received a serious warning from both the school and the family, and after the meeting, he was asked to stay at home for a while and reflect. In order to completely change his bad roots, he also sent him to the coveted Scarlet Rhino Knights, and he had to give the members a good exercise, I don't know if this is a blessing or a misfortune for him. In short, for El and them, there is one less thing to worry about, which is still worth thanking.

Just after school when calm was restored, Adelchu found Al reading a book in the atrium of the school park. His presence was striking, and although he was not easy to find in the crowd because of his short stature, the silver hair was a conspicuous sign in a place where there were no people. He leaned against a tree in the atrium, holding a thick book as usual, and buried his head in reading. You don't have to ask to know that it's a textbook about Phantom Knights.

Artie walked up to him, but Al didn't seem to notice. As long as he starts reading a book, he doesn't care what is happening around him. Artie slowly sat down next to him, watching him intently. The blue eyes with long eyelashes at the edges lowered their gaze slightly as they looked down at a book, and a head of silver-purple hair ran down his face, shining in the daylight. He pursed his soft lips, and he could see how enthusiastic he was.

(Al is still just as cute.)

Artie let out a "hey" and smiled happily. She was about to hug him as usual, but a scene flashed through her mind that made her stop. That is the memory of the duel events of not so long ago.

When Al rescued Artie from Potsar's captivity, he carried her sideways to the scene, and finally rushed to the center of the crowd in full view. At that time, her heart was almost occupied by anger, so she didn't pay much attention. In retrospect, I realized that it was actually a very shy scene. Not only was it embarrassing, but the joy of Al coming to save her, and the feeling of being held by him, made her face turn red just by staying by Al's side.

(Woo, I accidentally remembered it again...... ）

For Artie, she was glad that Al didn't notice her feelings. All kinds of feelings were intertwined, making her hesitate to hug him like before. Artie was very dissatisfied with such a self, so she hugged her. However, for Artie who suddenly picked her up, Al still didn't look in a hurry, and calmly greeted him and closed the book.

Strange to say, Al has been used to being hugged not only by Artie but also by many people as a "doll" since he was a child. What's more, Artie was the first person to set off the "hugging trend", which is even less surprising for Al. Even so, he still felt that Artie's attitude was different from usual, and tilted his head in confusion.

At this time, Artie was puzzled by her unexpected reaction. In normal times, she would enjoy the soft touch of her hair while chatting with him. This time, when I hugged him, I felt my heart pounding at an unprecedented speed, and I really didn't have the strength to do that kind of thing. Artiso quickly buried her face in his hair so that he wouldn't notice the redness of his face.

(Ahh......h ）

Artie was probably too uncertain to think that there was this option to let him go. Al was a little surprised to observe her reaction, and seeing that she didn't move, he simply continued to read the book.

(I always feel like I'm the only one who looks like a stupid person, so I have a little reaction!)

In a sense, sometimes this inexplicable anger calms the mood, and Artie puffs up and begins to poke Al's cheek.

"Well, please don't poke someone in the cheek all of a sudden. 」

「...... It's so cute!"

Artie finally returned to her usual appearance. Al felt more comfortable in his arms than usual, and Artie began to touch Al's head. What the people concerned did not notice was that the sparse students in the atrium were smiling and watching the black-haired and silver-haired beautiful girls (?) frolicking with each other, feasting their eyes. Their days are like this, and every day is peaceful.