Chapter 17: Dragonblood Warrior
Since you threw such a dirty blow at my family, don't blame me for what happens next.'
At the same time, the blonde-haired child was thrown out of the ring, spitting a mouth of blood.
"Whose next?" Wharton said disdainfully, looking down at the other children like he didn't put any of them in his eyes.
"I wouldn't mind trying my luck against the Baruch Clan's elite." Ace said with clear sarcasm as he jumped to the stage.
"Who's that child?"
"I don't know, but he's courting death. That Wharton kid has defeated god knows how many talented ten-year-olds who had already started making a name for themselves in the city, yet he still dares to challenge him. He doesn't look to be older than eight either."
"I know you. You're that cocky kid, Ace, who thought he was too good to be my brother's personal guard." Wharton said with righteous indignation.
"That's me!" Ace said with a disdainful smirk.
"Older brother? As in Linley? This kid said he was too good to be Linley's personal guard?" One of the crowd members asked, unable to believe what he had heard.
"Which Linley? Linley Baruch, the genius dual element magi?"
"Is there another Linley Baruch?"
"Where does this kid get his arrogance from? Linley's talent is one in a million!"
"I heard he's already been crowned as one of this generation's two leading genius mages."
"He's just another kid overestimating his ability."
"Exactly… Wharton crush him!"
"Do you hear that? Everyone already hates you and wants me to crush you, but I'll give you a chance to prove yourself. Since you said you're too good to be my brother's guard, why don't you defeat the person who ended up being chosen." Wharton said with a menacing smirk.
As soon as he finished, a red-haired boy about 11 years old gracefully jumped on the stage, showing his elegance.
"You remember Biliora, don't you? He'll be your opponent. If you can beat him, then you can challenge me!" Wharton said arrogantly
"Fine by me." Ace said as he calmly threw a pouch of 10 coins over to the Guard holding the money for the challenges.
"Billi, make sure he can't leave the stage on his own two feet," Wharton whispered.
"It'd be my pleasure, young master Wharton," Biliora replied, licking his lips.
"Aren't you worried?" One of the men beside Killian asked him.
"I am," Killian replied indifferently. 'Just not about Ace.'
"That night, you acted so arrogantly. Today I'll show you why that night is destined to be the biggest mistake of your life. After training with Lord Hogg these last two years, I've reached the peak of the 1st rank." Biliora said proudly, expecting to see a mix of fear and shock on Ace's face.
"Are we here to talk or fight?" Ace asked with an uninterested yawn.
Biliora, no longer able to stand still, rushed in, wanting to squash Ace's arrogance.
"AAARGHH, WATCH ME POUND THAT ARROG…"
Before he could finish his sentence, he felt a crushing pain in his gut. It was only then that he realised Ace had somehow appeared before him and buried his fist in his stomach.
"I guess I was right not to take that position." Ace said condescendingly as he looked at Wharton, half expecting to see some fear, but instead, all he saw was rage.
'Does he really think he can win? He's clearly only an early rank one warrior. What could he possibly have to rely on.'
Whilst Ace was lost in his thoughts; the crowd realised they were looking at a monster no less impressive than Wharton.
"That speed, that strength…"
"He's a rank two warrior!"
"An eight-year-old rank two warrior?"
"His talent is no less than Linley."
"No wonder he refused to be a guard."
Hearing the crowd's reaction only served to enrage the Baruch family's second young master, but before he could jump back on the stage, he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't let anger cloud your judgement on the stage. He's definitely a rank-two warrior. If you want to beat him, you'll have to go all out." Lina said to her calmly to her enraged son.
"I understand what to do, Mother. Don't worry." Wharton replied as he forced himself to calm down before walking back to the stage.
"Ooh, and Wharton," Lina called out. "Crush him!"
Ace had been able to read their lips as they spoke, but instead of fear, Ace felt excited to find out what Wharton's secret weapon was.
Wharton eyed Ace as if he were his prey as he jumped back into the ring. "I guess you're not all t-"
"Are you sure you want to let your son stand against me? I'd hate to face the Baruch family's wrath for injuring their only lizard warrior." Ace said teasingly as he looked at Lina, completely ignoring his next opponent.
"Don't worry; we in the Baruch Clan understand that injuries are common in a battle between warriors. In fact, I promise to pay for your medical expenses from my own pocket if little Wharton injures you too badly when you lose." Lina said with a sadistic grin.
"You're too kind!" Ace replied before turning back to face his angry opponent. "What were you about to say? Can you keep it short, though? I don't want to deal with your chit-chat for much longer."
"Don't worry; I won't let you down," Wharton replied as his body shook in rage at Ace's blatant disregard.
As soon he finished speaking, the crowd started gasping as they saw his muscles expand, but if that wasn't enough, they saw crystalline blue scales magically form over his body, shredding his clothes.
"ROOAAARRRR!"
Seeing the young Wharton turn into a dragon-type creature, an uproar broke out.
"Drag…
Dragonblood Warrior!"
"Wharton awoke the Baruch bloodline…"
"He's the first Dragon Warrior in the family in the last thousand years."
"Between Wharton being a Dragonblood Warrior and Linley being a dual element mage, the Baruch Clan is about to rise again!"
Hearing the crowd, Killian couldn't help but start to worry, but that worry disappeared when he saw Ace's indifferent expression.
Ace watched calmly as Wharton charged in his direction.
'So this is a Dragonblood warrior. It actually increased his strength by a whole realm. Impressive…
But it's not enough!' Ace thought to himself as he calmly evaded each strike with little effort.
The crowd was speechless as they watched Ace dance around the Baruch Clan's little prodigy. It was clear Ace was barely trying.
"ARGHH, BE A MAN AND STOP DODGING!" Wharton bellowed as he saw the disappointed eyes of the crowd.
"If you insist!" Ace said calmly, dodging Wharton's wild and predictable punch.
Before Wharton could respond, he felt Ace's little fist crash into his side like a hammer, forcing him to stumble three steps back, clutching his side.
Seeing Ace's emotionless face looking at him as if he was never his opponent to begin with riled him up. It was he who looked at others like that, never the other way around.
Ignoring the pain at his side, Wharton once more darted at Ace, wanting to regain his face, but Ace was done playing around.
Closing his eyes, he remembered seeing Lance's stab wounds as he fought two assassins to protect them, Killian's bloody body as he kept swinging his axe to defend his mother, and lastly, he remembered his mother's crying face as she watched on helplessly.
Just as Wharton's fist entered range, Ace's arm shot forth, wrapping itself around Wharton's like a snake and squeezed until the sound of bones breaking rang through the air.
"AHHHHH, MY ARM!" Wharton roared in pain.
Ace ignored Wharton's pain as he grabbed him by the throat and coldly stared at the guards preparing to rush him.
Killian jumped onto the stage, ignoring the pain from his wounds that were yet to heal completely, as he prepared to fight to the bitter end to protect his friend.
Ace smiled at Killian's bravery before turning his attention to back to Lina. "Wasn't it you who said, 'The Baruch Clan understands that in a battle between warriors, injuries are common?' Don't tell me that was all fiction. If so, I'm truly disappointed."
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