The Path of Ruin-Chapter 99: Progressing Faster Than Expected

Matthew was a good opponent for a duel. He had a significant advantage over Kael because he wielded his sword like a general, and he made good use of those advantages. He might not have been as good as the general, yes, but he was effective in helping Kael see his own problems and even think of solutions to the problems he faced in his duel with the general.

However, Kael was also a formidable opponent. He was aware of his disadvantages and did his best to work around them. Matthew was also learning a few things from him.

This dueling session was beneficial for both of them. They both enjoyed it when their weapons clashed, each time their opponent put them in a difficult position. They were both lost in the moment, focusing all their attention on each other, detached from the outside world. Their skill levels were close, and a single mistake by either could be the first step towards defeat.

As it had been many times before.

Yes, this wasn’t their first duel. Neither knew how long it had been since General Loukan had left them, but since this was their seventh duel, at least half an hour must have passed.

And... the end of this duel was near.

Kael was being pushed further and further into a corner. Every second he didn’t use his speed, Matthew pressed him. And finally, the inevitable happened.

Kael took a deep breath as he looked at the sharp edge of the sword in front of his eyes. Drops of sweat fell from every part of his face as he stepped back, gathering the hair that had fallen in front of him, then turned to Matthew, who didn’t look much different from himself.

"Five to two... I lost again."

He had only won two of the seven duels. And even those two were quite... by chance. Matthew was truly far superior to him in direct combat.

"It was close. It could have been four to three if I’d been a bit slower. Or if you’d been a bit faster."

Kael couldn’t help but glance at Matthew. He had a more muscular build.

Naturally, of course. Matthew had been training longer, and his body was more resilient for that reason. He must tire almost twice as fast as Matthew.

He rolled his eyes shortly after.

So what if he was more resilient? He was faster than him, more agile.

Their strengths were different.

"I’m tired... And I would still be on a loss even if I won. Four to three, you know."

He was talking like that, but his mind was elsewhere.

Could they duel again? Was he too tired, or did he have enough energy left for one more round?

What about Matthew?

"You don’t seem to care much."

Yes, losing didn’t matter to him. Even if the score was seven to zero, it wouldn’t matter. Each duel was beneficial for his development separately. That’s why he already wanted to continue.

"I don’t. But I wouldn’t say no to one mor-"

His words were cut off abruptly as he quickly turned around.

It was so sudden that even Matthew was startled and quickly reached for his sword.

Kael had sensed something.

A presence.

A presence watching them, listening to them... a presence that was uncomfortably close.

It didn’t take him long to see it.

He wasn’t hiding himself, after all, he was the owner of this ’presence’.

"Oh, I didn’t expect you to notice me. You’ve really improved, Kael! Well done."

As these words echoed in the arena, Kael rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Hakon..."

He couldn’t tell if he should feel relieved or even more uncomfortable when he saw him.

"Matthew is here too, what a coincidence! Hi Matthew!"

When Hakon raised his hand and waved at Matthew, he, not knowing what to do, responded in the same way, but clumsily. His awkwardness was obvious.

Hakon descended to their side without dropping the smile on his face for a second. And just then, Kael noticed something.

’His presence... is much more distinct.’

When he first sensed him, his presence was so faint that he could barely feel it. But when he thought about it a little more, he realized something else.

It was as if... he hadn’t appeared suddenly. He had always been there, but he had gradually become aware of his presence.

’Was he... testing me?’

Had it gradually stopped hiding its presence to test when he would sense it?

’...’

"You two look like you’ve just come out of a fierce fight. You also seem like you want to continue. But, unfortunately, I have to interrupt."

He turned his eyes to Kael, fixed them on him, and placed his hand on his shoulder.

"I need to take this guy with me. You can continue your duel later, okay?"

Kael and Matthew looked first at Hakon, then at each other.

The words came out of Hakon’s mouth like a request. However, it was actually an order. He was good at softening his words.

Matthew sighed softly, sheathed his sword, stretched slightly, and began to slowly make his way towards the arena exit.

"Thanks for the duels, Kael. See you next time."

"See you."

And so, after a while, Matthew left the arena completely. Kael, still feeling Hakon’s hand on his shoulder, moved away from him uncomfortably. After sheathing his daggers, just like Matthew, he focused all his attention on Hakon.

"I was thinking we were going to do this testimony thing tomorrow..."

Hakon widened his smile.

"That would be the case in normal circumstances. But things have changed. You won’t just be testifying; you’ll be meeting someone important. And we want you to do certain things during that meeting."

Kael couldn’t help but narrow his eyes slightly.

"Like catching the attention of this ’important person’ I’m meeting?"

Hakon clapped his hands twice. The sound echoed throughout the arena.

"You hit the nail on the head! Dealing with smart people is really something else. You wouldn’t believe how many morons there are around me!"

He turned around and started walking towards the arena exit, paying little attention to Kael.

"Follow me. We need to hurry. We’ll talk about that meeting."

But, then, he paused for a moment. He glanced back over his shoulder, directly at Kael. It was as if he had noticed something he hadn’t seen before.

"Also... take a shower. You’re sweating way too much. You also stink."

"..."

*******

First, Kael washed himself as Hakon had said. Then he changed into more... presentable clothes that Hakon had given him. After that, he found himself in Hakon’s room, standing before him.

Hakon looked him up and down. Seeing that there was nothing wrong with his appearance and that he looked good for the meeting, he nodded his head once with satisfaction. Then he fixed his eyes on Kael’s.

"Now... under normal circumstances, you would be meeting with someone sent by the Empire to investigate the Lockhend matter. You would testify, explain what you experienced, and that would be the end of your involvement with this matter. However, as I mentioned earlier, things have changed. One of the marshals has personally taken charge of the matter and wishes to investigate it himself. Therefore, the person who will meet with you will be that marshal."

’A marshal?’

He paused for a moment.

"Wait... a marshal?!"

Naturally, before going on his first assignment, he had been taught about ranks and important people. And a marshal... If he remembered correctly, it was the title given to the most important people in the Empire’s military, after the Emperor himself.

There were only two marshals in the Empire. And one of them... wanted to talk to him...?

’Holy shit!’

Could he really deal with this...?!

"Calm down. You know what to do and where to do it. As long as you don’t do anything wrong, there won’t be any problems. In fact, this meeting will be extremely useful for you. You remember what I said when we talked about your rewards, right?"

No matter how confused his mind was, he did remember.

"You... mentioned you’d make me noticed by the Empire."

"Yes. And this marshal you’re meeting is a great opportunity for you to take a step in that direction. Not just for you, but for us too. You know, we’re not exactly fans of the Empire."

’Ah...’

"Are you... going to make me some kind of an agent?"

Hakon’s smile grew.

"That’s exactly what we’ll do. Not only will you start climbing the ranks faster, but you’ll also provide us with information directly from the inside. Although our information network is quite extensive, thanks to the General, if you gain the Marshal’s trust, the amount of information you can access will surpass ours. That’s why you need to capture his interest as much as possible during this meeting. Therefore, we’ll make you appear even more important than you actually are."

More important than he was...

As long as his curse wasn’t involved, he had no problem with that. He was also fairly certain they wouldn’t use him that way.

If they really wanted to use him, the curse was something that had to be kept hidden, no matter what.

"I can see your concern. Don’t worry, we won’t leak anything about your curse. If it’s taken from us, it won’t do us much good."

"I know, that wasn’t my concern. I can’t even say I’m worried, even though what you said crossed my mind. More like... I was thinking."

Hakon paused, looking surprised, one eyebrow raised slightly.

"Hmm, what were you thinking about then?"

"I’m... just progressing faster than I expected, I guess? I’m going to try to get the attention of one of the only two marshals, and I’m not even seventeen yet, you know."

Hakon paused once again at what he heard, then leaned back in his chair, and...

"Hahahahahah!"

He started laughing.

Kael watched Hakon laugh without changing his expression in any way.

After a short while, Hakon stopped laughing. His smile was bigger than usual as he turned back to Kael.

"You will rise much, much faster than you think, Kael. If we don’t run into any problems, at least. So you better get used to it."

Kael just nodded without saying anything. Hakon finally took his eyes off Kael and turned them to the files on his desk.

"Now... let’s talk a little about that meeting. We’re running out of time."

And so they began to fabricate the lies Kael would tell.