Sol looked at Leon, stunned. "Are you sure, bro? You do realize all my cousins are A-Class knights, right? I’m the only one still stuck at B-Class." He said cautiously.

Leon smiled faintly. "Relax. We’re only comparing skills, aren’t we?"

His eyes shifted toward Spencer. "Surely your cousin can limit himself to D-Class level."

"Yeah. That won’t be a problem," Spencer replied calmly.

Julia and Sebastian exchanged worried glances, clearly unsure how to react. On one hand, they were curious about what exactly made Leon special enough to change Emily’s attitude so drastically. But on the other hand... They were genuinely worried Leon might get seriously injured.

After all, the gap between a D-Class knight and an A-Class knight was enormous.

Sebastian walked toward the center of the training courtyard, clearly preparing to act as the referee.

Meanwhile, Leon turned toward Sol. "Can I borrow a sword?"

"Sure."

Sol immediately led him toward a large weapon rack arranged neatly beside the courtyard wall.

Different kinds of weapons rested there. Longswords, greatswords, spears, axes, and even wooden weapons made purely for sparring.

Leon carefully examined several swords before finally picking one up. ’This should do.’ His fingers tightened around the hilt naturally.

’Until now, I’ve only fought monsters with a sword. Monsters barely think. Most of them only rely on brute force and instinct.’ Leon slowly lifted the blade.

’But against another human... against someone trained... I can finally test my actual swordsmanship properly.’

A faint smile appeared on his lips. ’Maybe this is a little childish. And it may look like showing off.’ His eyes slowly shifted toward Spencer. ’But he shouldn’t have insulted me... or my country either.’ Leon’s expression remained calm. ’And no... he definitely wasn’t joking.’

With steady steps, Leon walked toward the center of the courtyard and stopped directly in front of Spencer.

Spencer tossed his shield aside and raised his double-headed axe onto his shoulder.

"Ready whenever you are."

Leon silently raised the wooden sword behind his back before suddenly sprinting forward.

Clang!

Both weapons collided.

Spencer remained standing firmly in place like an unmoving mountain. Meanwhile, Leon was blasted backward nearly ten meters, his feet skidding across the ground.

But he immediately rushed forward again.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

Several more exchanges followed in quick succession. Yet the result remained the same every single time. Leon kept getting pushed back.

From the side, Sebastian and Julia watched quietly as their earlier excitement slowly faded with each collision. The gap was obvious. Even with Spencer holding back, Leon couldn’t even hold his ground, much less land a attack.

Only Sol remained calm. Unlike those two, he had already witnessed what Leon was truly capable of.

Spencer smirked faintly. "Is that all?"

Leon lowered his stance slightly. ’Without a technique, strength alone can’t do much when someone is wielding a sword.’

The next moment... Leon leaned forward.

"First Form..."

His breathing calmed.

"Sword dance."

Whoosh!

Leon shot forward, the ground beneath his feet caving in a bit.

Spencer’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Leon swept his sword from the right. But, just as Spencer raised his axe to block...

Leon suddenly spun on his heel. The sword changed direction midway, slashing from the opposite side with a sharp whistle.

Spencer reacted instantly and blocked the strike. But unlike before... He was forced to take two steps backward.

’What?’ A flicker of surprise finally appeared in Spencer’s eyes.

Before he could process what had happened, Leon moved again. His body flowed forward like a wave, smooth and effortless, almost as if he were dancing instead of fighting.

Leon’s blade cut through the air once more.

Spencer immediately raised his axe to intercept it. But at the very last moment, the sword shifted its trajectory slightly. It wasn’t a large movement. But it was just enough. The wooden blade slipped past the axe and struck Spencer directly on the arm.

Thwack!

If the sword had been real steel instead of wood... That strike would have drawn blood.

"Oooh!" Julia flinched instinctively.

"That was fast..." Even Sebastian couldn’t help praising Leon’s movement.

Spencer gritted his teeth and suddenly started swinging his axe much faster than before.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The wooden axe whistled violently through the air. But Leon continued weaving between the attacks smoothly, his movements flowing like water.

One strike after another narrowly missed him.

Then...

Thwack! Another hit landed on Spencer.

And then another.

Yet despite attacking relentlessly, Spencer still hadn’t managed to touch Leon even once.

A vein bulged on Spencer’s forehead.

Suddenly, the muscles in his arms swelled slightly.

Julia’s eyes widened. "Don’t!" she shouted from the side.

But it was already too late. Spencer swung his axe with explosive force. The wooden weapon tore through the air with terrifying speed.

’Shit. It’s bad.’ Leon immediately raised his sword to block...

Crack!

The wooden blade splintered apart instantly.

Before Leon could fully react... 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Bam!

Spencer’s next swing slammed directly into his side. Leon’s body was blasted away across the courtyard.

Spencer immediately rushed forward, clearly intending to follow up with another attack.

But before he could reach Leon...

Whoosh!

A sword suddenly came flying from the distance like a silver streak.

Thud!

It embedded itself into the ground directly in front of Leon, the hilt trembling violently from the force behind the throw.

At the same time, Sebastian and Julia rushed forward and grabbed Spencer from both sides.

"Spencer! You went too far!" Julia hissed angrily.

"Yeah, man," Sebastian frowned. "Weren’t you supposed to keep your strength suppressed to D-Class level?"

Emily landed before Leon with a flip. Her hand rose instantly, a fireball materializing. "You have some nerve."

"Wait, Emily. It was just an accident, and Spencer is no enemy." Julia immediately tried to cool her down.

But Emily’s eyes looked determined, ready to throw the fiery sphere.

"Wait. I am alright. It was really just an accident." Leon’s voice echoed. ’Is she mad? If a real fight breaks out because of me, I can never leave this place in one piece.

At Leon’s words, Emily’s shoulder finally relaxed as she lowered her hand. She turned and walked up to Leon and helped him stand.

But this scene made the situation even worse. Spencer’s jaw tightened as he looked at Leon. ’Just you wait.’