Chapter 25 - Talent

Half a second after his father declared the start of the fight, Zaos blinked several times. He suddenly heard the sound of something falling nearby him, and then he wasn't feeling his wooden sword anymore. After a few seconds, Zaos also began to feel a throbbing pain in his right hand.

"What…" Zaos muttered in shock when he noticed that he had got hit.

Zaos couldn't help but think that Drannor used magic, but he saw in his arm a circular red bruise that had the same shape as the staff's point. It hadn't been magic. Even magic can't be activated that fast.

"What are you waiting for?" Laiex asked. "Accept that you got hit and didn't see the attack and grab your weapon."

Zaos shook his head before he picked his wooden sword. As expected, Drannor wasn't just an ordinary kid. While he didn't have a single mark in his body that showed that he had been training a lot in any fighting style, he certainly has skill. However, Zaos won't fall for the same trick twice.

After strengthening his grip, Zaos entered his defensive stance. Drannor looked at his right hand with a slight frown while he was holding his staff with both hands. Zaos wanted to see the speed of the attack, but Drannor was too cautious of him… no. Zaos wasn't within his range. That was why he wasn't moving.

Zaos suddenly stepped forward since a staff was obviously useful at the middle range but extremely weak at the close. However, Zaos was stopped. Drannor's staff hit the middle of his shield, making Zaos feel as if he had hit his body against a rock.

"What the heck is this kid?" Zaos frowned.

Drannor was smart enough to understand that his attacks wouldn't have enough power and speed at close range, so he attacked Zaos with the butt of his staff several times and succeeded in stopping the charge every single time. The boy wasn't that strong, but he had a sharpness in his attacks that Zaos had been looking for in the past months.

Zaos decided to give a break to his left arm since it was already throbbing due to the continuous attacks. However, his sword attacks were also stopped, even when he tried to fake a shield attack and switched to his right hand at the last moment. Zaos knew every single time that Drannor would aim for his hand, so he never dropped his sword but never landed a single attack as well.

"I am not going anywhere like this…" Zaos thought while he was frowning.

It was time for some improvisation. While the goal of the spar wasn't a victory, using tactics would help Zaos in the long run, he should get used to them, after all. Since he knew Drannor was faster than him, surprising the boy with speed was impossible. So, Zaos charged with his shield raised and ready to endure the weight of Drannor's attack. Zaos had planned to make the other boy lose his balance by making his staff move to the side, and then he would use that chance to attack. That kind of strategy worked before, so it should work again. However, Drannor just jumped to his right side and dodged the charge.

"What the heck… this kid is too smart," Zaos frowned.

Drannor shouldn't have enough battle experience to react that fast to a type of attack he hadn't seen before. Yet, he did it. In the end, the blood rushed to his head since he felt pretty humiliated for not landing a single hit in half an hour. So, Zaos became unable to use his head.

Forty-five minutes after the start of the spar, both kids were covered in sweat, but Zaos had received so many attacks that it was obvious who was the loser. And Yet, he didn't give up. The pain in his arms only strengthened his will to keep trying. Finally, however, Drannor fell on his butt and then raised his arms.

"I give up," Drannor said.

"… What?" Zaos asked.

"I told you, Drannor… you should have improved your stamina," Drian shrugged. "If only you had the same amount of focus that you put in those etiquette lessons in your training…"

"Sorry, dad," Drannor said. "I will try harder from now on."

"That is what I wanted to hear," Drian said with a smile on his face. "I guess that is it, Laiex. Thanks for today, and let's do this again in a month. I am pretty certain this will be very good for our kids."

"… Yes, you are right," Laiex said.

"That was fun," Drannor said and then approached Zaos before offering a handshake. "It is the first time I managed to lose to someone in terms of stamina. Let's spar again."

"… Yes," Zaos said.

In the end, Zaos accepted the handshake and even forced a smile. However, the bitterness in his face was as evident as it was in his father's. At least he managed to keep his cool after such a humiliating fight. Getting angry and shouting at a four years old kid would be beyond disgraceful.

Zaos thought his father would leave with the visitors since he already had his armor. Still, in the end, he just watched father and son going through the gates of the residence. As much as that was annoying, he needed to talk with Zaos about the spar.

"It looks like you are frustrated enough to use this embarrassing spar to help you in your training," Laiex said. "Until now, you managed to keep standing thanks to your willpower alone, but even that isn't at the level where it can grant you the chance to defeat geniuses. Unless you truly pursue the warrior's path with all your might, you will never win against someone like Drannor. Magic isn't allowed in duels or even spars, so that certainly won't help you even a little bit."

After saying that, Laiex crossed the residence's gates in a hurry since he was probably late for work.