All weapons, armour and spells are allowed. Victory or defeat leads to death for someone but you can give up and Ill determine the winner.

The voice of the owl flying above fills the arena.

Practical exam, start!

Zepes immediately whips out the sword that was hanging from his waist. The blade was burning brightly.

Are you surprised? demon sword Zefried. A sword born from an ancient fire thats been passed down through the Endou family. It will amplify my magic power tenfold. You seem to be good at anti-magic but the flame of this sword cannot be erased.

Fumu. Are you perhaps bad at maths?

Zepes openly shows his anger while cutting down the distance between us.

What are you trying to say?

One multiplied tenfold will still only be ten.

Bastard!

Zepes kicks the ground and in the next moment appears in front of me putting me in range of Zefried.

Die.

Fuwaa. I suppress a yawn.

Hes extremely slow.

If I had a sword Id have done 100 slashes by now. Well, adults should pay attention to children when they are playing.

Oh, it came.

The weapon aside, hes no sword master so I have no real need to avoid it.

The demon sword Zefried was swung in a horizontal flash and was about to connect with my neck when I absentmindedly looked properly at the sword for the first time.

This is bad! I quickly dodge out of the way.

Hou. You did well to avoid it.

That was dangerous. Several more millimetres and it would have connected with the weak anti-magic field I always have active on myself. It would have snapped the sword in half.

Its the Endou familys treasure thats been passed down through the generations. Even though its blunt I dont want to break such an important item of theirs. Truly a pang of conscience.

However.

Is that a demon sword?

Indeed. Is this the first time youve seen one? Its different from modern magic. Its true magic. Its an old sword from the time of the gods. Demon sword Zefried!

This is a demon sword?

If I had to compare it to the time of the gods just pick up any old stick from the ground and it would have more magic power than this.

If you were told that this is a product from the time of the gods you got a fake.

A true demon sword has its own will and such vast power that even its user would be ruined eventually.

The words demon sword are being used too carelessly as well.

Fuu.

I blow and the fire from the demon sword Zefried goes out.

Geh, Geeeeeeeeh!?

A wordless scream comes from Zepes and a surprised voice leaks out from the spectators.

I cant believe it. That person erased the flame from Zefried!

That old flame is said to not disappear until the end of the world. Also, I didnt see the activation of any magic!!

Zepes grits his teeth.

Bastard. Possibly..sealing magic!?

What? I just blew it out. With the amount of power hidden in that sword, it should reignite itself in a couple of years.

Zepes has a bitter expression.

Sealing magic, compulsion magic, you certainly seem to have acquired magic power at a terrible level. The magic that you use is not suitable for battle however, so how are you going to break through my anti-magic armour?

Fumu. That armour will break if I simply pat it though that would be a bit childish on my part.

I dont think I can feel proud if I break it though.

Hmm. Have you lost your nerve?

No, but I do have an interesting proposal. In the first place, its wrong that we are fighting over the same viewpoint.

Zepes stares at me cautiously.

Ill give you a handicap. I will not move a single step from here. I wont use magic and I wont empower my words or breath with magic. I wont move my limbs and I wont even use my eyes or hair. Ill defeat you without even blinking.

Ha! There should be a limit to bluffing. Is that your excuse for when you lose? Apparently, your magic really isnt suited for battle. Ha..

Zepes vomits out blood.

Impossiblethis is..

Can you hear it?

Dokun. A sound echoes.

Its a heartbeat.

Magic power was infused in the beating and the sound shook Zepes violently. Even though its an anti-demon armour its not a particularly good item. There are a number of gaps in the anti-magic formations. My heartbeat passed through them.

Ka..ha..

With blood seeping out from his whole body Zepes fell to his knees and then fell forward.

Fumu. I give up. So weak. If I get excited my heartbeat will kill everyone.