Classless Awakening; My Dragon Is Legendary-Chapter 45: The Duel Begins

The crowd had gone silent, and the performers were nowhere to be seen.

A customary tradition in Dravania was a compulsory 1-hour silence before any duel commenced.

Derrick was currently at the end of the eerie hallway. Sir Thompson could no longer accompany him past this point.

Facing him was a gate made with metal bars which gave off enough space to allow Derrick to see the colosseum grounds

Now that everyone had left and thanks to the silence, Derrick finally had time to reflect on his decision.

He had come a long way from the awakening ceremony, but he didn’t exactly know how far.

Others who awakened magical talent had most likely gone to Dravania’s school of magic to learn more about their powers.

Derrick hadn’t exactly sparred with any of his peers, so he couldn’t tell his strength or where he stood amongst them.

[You have nothing to fear]

The system finally spoke.

’Where have you been?’ The system had been silent for almost a week now, and no matter how much Derrick tried to speak to it, it didn’t respond.

[You wouldn’t understand even if I told you, but I’m back now.]

The system’s response was vague as always.

The system’s disappearance didn’t affect Derrick’s skills or the inner workings of the system, just its voice.

’I see you haven’t checked out your new skills?’ The system was right. Derrick intended to check out the new skills he got from defeating the doll earlier, but ultimately forgot.

[Skill Name: Dragon Claws.]

[Info: Fires ten, thin red claws made of dragon energy]

[Cost: 1% energy.]

[Skill Name: Dragon’s breath.]

[Info: Unleashes a stream of dragon fire.]

[Skill Name: Dragon Fortress.]

[Info: Creates armor made of hardened dragon scales.]

[Duration: 5 mins.]

[Cooldown: 10 mins.]

Derrick quickly integrated these skills into his fighting style using nothing but pure intellect.

The drums began once again, followed by war chants, signifying that the duel was about to begin.

The black knight appeared beside Derrick once again.

"Take off your shirt, all enchantments and weapons are allowed, but armor is forbidden," the black knight explained.

Derrick did as he was told. In one swift motion, he took off his shirt, revealing his rock-hard and well-sculpted abs.

The gears began to turn, and the gates lifted, followed by the loud cheers of the crowd.

"It’s your time to shine!!" The black knight shouted while trying to push Derrick forward.

Derrick stepped into the colosseum, and the cheers grew even louder.

While many were cheering, the king was struggling to control his emotions.

Yes, he had given Derrick the Nullspire sword, but there was no guarantee it was enough to defeat Ivan.

Hell, Ivan himself could afford very decent weapons, and could very well change the tide of the fight.

"Relax my king." Sir Thompson could see the tension on the king’s face.

"It is in the hands of the gods now." Despite his words, Sir Thompson was more than confident in Derrick.

Derrick had displayed exceptional aptitude in every form of combat. He didn’t care how long Ivan had practiced magic, he knew Derrick would take him down.

To Sir Thompson, it wasn’t a matter of if, but when Derrick would win.

Ivan stepped out of the other gate, his golden blonde hair reflecting the sunlight beautifully.

He had an arrogant smirk on his face as always, one which Derrick hoped to wipe off his face as fast as possible.

[He didn’t take any weapons?]

Ivan had come to this duel unarmed.

’And he is without any enchantments,’ Derrick confirmed after scanning with his dragon eyes.

Derrick’s face brightened up, Ivan’s gross underestimation could be capitalized by his victory.

The drums began to quiet down, and two black knights stepped forward, one behind each man.

"We gather here today to witness the duel between Prince Derrick and Prince Ivan Dravania." Both black knights shouted simultaneously, their voices magically amplified.

"As we all know, these two agreed to a duel on the day of the awakening ceremony, and they are here to settle their disputes." The black knights continued to explain.

This process was also mandatory, to allow the crowd to know why they were fighting, and what they were fighting for.

It was seen as a distinguishing custom between Dravania and the barbarians.

They didn’t want it to seem like both men fought and died for nothing, it needed to have meaning.

"Before we proceed, we would like to make sure certain conditions have been met." The black knights turned to both men, facing them.

"In the event of your death, who inherits all your belongings, debts and earthly possessions?" the black knights asked.

"My father." Both men gave the same answer.

"Are you being pressured to fight in this duel, or is your participation not of your own volition?" The black knights continued.

"Are you fully aware that this is a duel to the death?" The black knights asked.

Life and death were not something to be toyed with. They wanted both men to understand the gravity of their situation.

"Yes." Derrick and Ivan gave the same response once more.

"This is your last possible chance to forfeit this duel. After now, only death lies ahead," the black knight said while observing both men. None showed any indication of quitting.

The black knights turned. They looked at each other in the eyes for a few seconds, while tapping the spears on the ground softly.

The black knights went through all these processes to ensure enough time passed.

With each second that went by, both fighters were able to reflect on the upcoming duel. These customs were done to ensure a clean fight and avoid any sense of unfairness.

The black knights bowed to one another before walking back through the gates they came.

Derrick and Ivan stood about three feet away from each other.

Ivan with his cocky smile, and Derrick remained cold and calculated.

His mind was replaying multiple scenes in his head, analyzing every possible outcome of the fight that he could draw.

A loud gong was struck, and a low but powerful voice traveled through the colosseum.

"Let the duel begin." With those words, everything changed.