Duncan was eager to leave Earth behind. While he would miss his family, he was craving something new. Something he knew was waiting for him out in the Realms.

  His musings were interrupted by the roar of the crowd piercing through the locker room walls. He knew they were anticipating the final fight of the tournament, but he couldn’t help but feel a bit put off by the disruption to his routine.

  Doing his best to tune out the rest of the world, he continued running the whetstone against his blade. Each “shinnnnnnng” was followed by a pleasant echo, and each echo was shadowed by the ring of stone on metal. The rhythm was steady, hardly wavering once since it started. Duncan often preferred it this way. Only him, his sword, and a whetstone. He had spent his life being honed into a sword. He felt it was only fitting for him to spend time maintaining his blade, even if magical wards would soon dull its edge.

  The pattern of rings and echoes was soon interrupted as the locker room door swung open, admitting the first-year Academy student assigned to Duncan for the tournament. “Mr. Tell, it’s time for the match to start,” the boy said.

  Despite how often Duncan told the younger students to use his given name, they would simply nod their heads and proceed to call him Mr. Tell. Even the younger nobles refused to show anything but deference toward the undisputed strongest in the Corvelin Preparatory Academy.

  “Thank you, Victor.” Duncan set his whetstone aside and sheathed his sword at his hip. With one final check of his equipment, he left the locker room with the young student escorting him to his starting tunnel.

  “Good luck, Mr. Tell. Watch out for Sofia’s mana strings. My mother always tries to get me to copy her style and won’t shut up about them.” Duncan stared down at Victor Romero as they rounded the final bend in the tunnel. Victor, who had gotten used to Duncan’s serious yet kind manner throughout the tournament, looked back with only a slightly sheepish expression.

  “I know more about her style than your mother does, kid. I’ve sparred with her enough times over the years. Besides, shouldn’t you be rooting for your cousin?”

  “You think I want mom to have more of an excuse to force that boring style down my throat? No, thank you.” The corners of Duncan’s mouth twitched up into a slight smile. He had grown to find Victor slightly less intolerable than most other nobles he knew.

  “All right, Victor. I’ll make sure your mom changes her mind on that combat style.” With one last look at the smiling boy, Duncan pushed through the doors leading to the colosseum’s main field. He was met with a rush of noise from the chanting crowd, and the announcer began to make introductions.

  “Welcome, everyone! It’s finally time for the final round of this year’s Corvelin Preparatory Academy combat tournament here in London, England. We have watched two combatants fight their way through their fellow students for the past week and rise to the top of the pack. Each of them has proven their ability. Only one question remains. Which of them will have the honor of being named the primo of this year’s realm shift class? Without further ado, let me introduce this year’s finalists.” A roar from the crowd answered the announcement, and Duncan could swear the colosseum held double the audience of his last match, even if it had been sold out since the start of the tournament.

  “First, you know her well. She uses her fine control over her mana strings and pure mana to string along her opponents like a puppeteer, giving a masterful show. Please welcome Sofia Romero of house Romero!” Across the large field, Duncan could make out Sofia’s form as she appeared from the opposite side of the colosseum. The crowd cheered even louder now at the first sight of a finalist. Duncan didn’t need to see her face to know she had a smug look of confidence. No matter how many times he beat her, it was always there.

  “Now, we welcome this year’s favorite since the beginning. He is a true elite and the very embodiment of grace and physical might. Many say Earth hasn’t seen his match with a blade for a century. His sword is his brush, his opponents his canvas. I give you, Duncan Tell!” It was Duncan’s turn to make his way to the center of the ring. Each step heralded growing roars from the crowd. A commoner rarely made it to the finals, and the crowd couldn’t help but praise him for doing so.

  Coming to a stop at his starting point for the duel, Duncan took in his opponent, as was his habit. He noted the same dueling wand she had used the previous round in its sheath on her belt. He knew its abilities and mana capacity well.

  He still couldn’t believe Mikael had lost to her in their semi-final, but Duncan would have to tease his best friend about that later.

  When Duncan couldn’t find anything unusual about Sofia’s gear, he finally met her eyes. Yup, smug confidence.

  “Duncan, I think something is wrong with your mother. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Professor Tell look so nervous,” Sofia yelled to Duncan over the audience’s cheers. “She looks like she’s about to faint.” Duncan ignored the obvious attempt to throw him off. He knew the only thing he would find if he turned to find the professors in the stands was unwavering confidence.

  “Let me briefly summarize the rules of the coming duel for those joining us for the first time for this year’s final. The winner will be the first combatant to cause wounds that would normally be fatal for their opponent. They are both wearing magically enchanted armor, which will simulate the effects of less-than-fatal blows and alert us when fatal conditions are met.”

  “As Ms. Romero is a mage combatant, she is allowed a wand loaded with abilities and stored mana to simulate the capabilities provided by a tier one combat Subject. She is famous for using pure mana abilities focusing on control over the battlefield.”

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  “Mr. Tell, on the other hand, is a pure melee fighter. While his future Subject will give him a variety of abilities that rely on mana, he and other melee fighters had to choose a single enchantment for their equipment at the start of the tournament. This helps even the playing field due to the lack of finer mana control all the mages face before gaining their Subject. Like most other melee combatants in the tournament, Mr. Tell chose to have the spell deflect enchantment added to his sword, allowing a limited ability to disrupt and deflect spells. We have seen Mr. Tell slicing through mana bolts and returning fireballs to their castors throughout the tournament.”

  “Now, without further ado….” Duncan cut the announcer’s final comments out as he drew his sword. The double-edged blade soon had a faint blur around the edges as magical wards blunted its edge. Deep breaths followed as Duncan inhaled and exhaled slowly. He took his ready stance and waited for the start of the match.

  Finally, the tournament proctor signaled to begin, and he was sprinting. His speed was one of his greatest assets, and he had closed the distance between him and Sofia before she could cast a single spell and retreat more than five steps.

  Duncan’s first strike cut toward Sofia’s legs. Even mages relied on their legs for survival. Mobility was their first defense. His sword was stopped by a solid wall of blue force surrounding Sofia’s entire body. To simulate the capabilities of a tier one magical combat Subject, Sofia’s wand wasn’t allowed much mana storage. Even the short activation of a full-body [Mana Shield] will have taken more mana than Sofia wanted to burn in the first move of the match. The high cost of the spell was necessary to prevent Duncan from disabling her spell with a quick activation of his sword’s enchantment.

  With a growl of frustration, Sofia cast [Quick Dash], sending herself backward at high speed with a brief blue flash of pure mana. Soon after, three orbs of pure mana were closing on Duncan. He was forced to slide under the first, his momentum carrying him under the spell before the small tracking effect built into the orb could adjust its flight path to intercept him. This, however, left him on the ground as the two shots following the first arced downward to intercept him on his new path.

  Now on one knee, Duncan sliced at the remaining [Mana Shot]s. It took little more than a thought for the spell deflect enchantment on his blade to draw on the mana storage built into the hilt. A slight blue glow emanated from his blade, and with nothing but a small flash, the spells dispersed into nothing as sword edge met spell.

  With a burst of speed, Duncan regained his feet and was once again closing in on Sofia. With a swift thrust of her wand, a large chain of solid blue mana shot out and cut off his advance. [Mana Flail] was a common spell used by combat mages at the Academy, allowing a close-range option for those who often specialized in ranged combat.

  Sofia swung the mana construct around her body, using her wand as a hilt to direct its movements and keep Duncan at a distance. Despite his best efforts, he was forced to periodically redirect the flail with his sword, doing his best to prevent Sofia from wrapping up and stripping him of his weapon. Sword met chain as he deflected the construct off his slightly angled sword. Each time their weapons met, there was a sound of metal clashing against metal, almost like the flail wasn’t made of magic. Duncan didn’t even try to disrupt the spell with his sword’s enchantment. The construct was too solid to disperse.

  Another quick dash carried Sofia out of his range, allowing her to send more spheres of pure mana in his direction. Each was dodged or dispelled with practiced efficiency. Duncan was a savant with his weapon, and he knew it was only a matter of time before Sofia’s wand ran out of mana.

  This dance continued to repeat itself. Every time Duncan closed in, he was met by a [Mana Flail] or was forced to pursue and evade after a combination of [Quick Dash]es and [Mana Shot]s.

  Duncan finally got inside Sofia’s reach by catching her flail with his left hand before it could gather too much momentum. He wasted no time in making a swift stab at Sofia’s exposed heart. This time, his stab was met by a concentrated [Mana Shield], which only covered the front of Sofia’s torso. A quick forward jab of her wand sent the floating shield rushing toward Duncan, and he was forced to allow the momentum of the shield to push him into a backward roll.

  As Duncan rose from the roll, Sofia had a growing web of glowing blue [Mana String]s waiting for him. Each string began at the tip of Sofia’s wand. She wanted to surround him with an inescapable maze, cutting him off from advance. Even one landing on him meant he would have to take the time to dispel it or risk leaving a point of contact for Sofia to exploit.

  ‘Always the same trick,’ Duncan mentally shook his head as he began to backpedal, forcing the strings to pursue. He could use his speed and reflexes to cut through the web of strings, but each use of his sword’s spell deflect enchantment would drain its mana stores until nothing was left.

  With each retreating step, Sofia’s strings grew longer, forcing her to use more mana to extend them. She was soon running towards Duncan to reduce the strain on her depleting mana. Scowling, she continued her pursuit as he refused to let the mana strings catch him. His speed kept him well out of their reach, and the limited magical control given by her wand wouldn’t let Sofia cast another spell until she let go of her current spell.

  After close to 15 seconds of playing cat and mouse, Sofia had had enough and stopped in the center of the arena. With a wide sweeping motion of her wand, the mass of threads she’d constructed spread around her, stretching out towards the edges of the field in a circle with Sofia at its center. She then cut off the mana she had been supplying to the strings.

  Each string lost most of its glow and descended to the ground. Despite their increased transparency, Duncan knew they were anything but gone. Sofia would have no problem grabbing control of them again with a quick feed of fresh mana. With Duncan's superior speed and reflexes, the mage had evidently decided a defensive battle was her only option.

  Duncan stayed at the edge of the strings, dodging Sofia’s renewed barrage of low-powered [Mana Shot]s. He would need to cross 30 meters to reach the mage, but every meter would bring him in range of more strings. With a quick upward quirk of his lips, Duncan entered the trap.

  Sofia’s obvious glee at his decision did nothing to dissuade him from speeding forward. Each step he took was followed by more of the previously innert [Mana String]s rising around him. Each thread was struck down by Duncan’s sword with an apparent disregard for the mana cost to do so. His blade slashed and flowed from string to string, and his momentum never wavered away from the center of the web.

  With ten meters separating them, Sofia began to retreat while continuing to concentrate on her spell. She had now taken control of all the remaining [Mana String]s around her and was moving them to cut off his advance with a veritable wall of blue power.

  With just five meters between them now, the slight glow of Duncan’s spell deflect enchantment dimmed, and the first of Sofia’s strings connected with his sword's edge, this time wrapping around the weapon instead of dispersing.

  A mirthful grin took over Sofia’s face as she sent a flood of power down the attached string. The blade and Duncan’s right arm were forced to the side as he refused to let go of his weapon. A shout of satisfaction leaped from Sofia’s mouth as she sent the rest of her spell at Duncan’s exposed body.

  Before they could find their target, Duncan’s sword glowed one last time, slicing the single thread restraining it. With a grunt of effort, he swung his now manaless sword in wide, upward cut, catching every string Sofia sent his way on the blade. Each string reflexively wrapped around the sword. Finally letting his sword go, he dodged around the cocoon of glowing blue thread.

  In just two strides, Duncan closed the now clear space between him and Sofia. Before she could react, she was on the ground with a warded dagger centimeters away from her blinking eye.

  “Combatants, cease. The match goes to Duncan Tell.” The proctor's booming voice invited the crowd's cheers to again flood Duncan’s senses. Shouts of praise and disappointment both filled the stadium, drowning out the announcer’s attempts at congratulations.

  With a quick flourish of his dagger over Sofia’s head, Duncan rose from his crouch over his opponent and moved to retrieve his sword. He didn’t offer the girl a hand up, as he knew she wouldn’t take it. With his blade once again in his possession, Duncan raised it above his head in acknowledgment of the cheering crowd.

  Duncan quickly looked to where many of the professors were spectating the match. Donna Tell was there, smiling down at him with a look of pride he would miss when he left for a new realm.

  Duncan turned back to Sofia as she regained her feet. “Looks like my mother is doing just fine despite your earlier concerns.” Duncan couldn’t help but let the final taunt loose as he spun around and made his way off the field.