Reincarnated with an SSS-rank Tamer System: My Harem of Villainesses-Chapter 15 - The Duel – Part 2

Adam and Dorian lunged at each other at the same instant, closing the distance between them.

Despite Adam’s deplorable condition, he was giving it his all. Every strike, every movement was executed with the martial arts techniques he had mastered in his past life.

Adam threw a hook to the liver followed by a low kick, then an upward elbow that Dorian blocked with his mana-reinforced forearm.

Physical attacks did little damage against someone like Dorian, who could strengthen his body with magic, but Adam did not stop nonetheless. He spun, dodged magic counterattacks, and returned to the fray with more blows.

He launched a spinning kick that Dorian deflected with his sword, followed by a low sweep that forced him to jump back. Adam seized that moment to throw a straight punch to the face, which Dorian blocked with an improvised magic shield.

But it was clear that time was working against him; with every passing second, Adam felt how his body grew weaker and weaker. The blood he had lost and the wounds covering his body, added to his leg that could barely support his weight... it was all starting to take its toll.

Dorian seemed to realize this as well, and already tired of prolonging the combat unnecessarily, he decided to end it once and for all.

He raised his right hand, and the air around him began to distort as he concentrated a massive amount of mana into a single point. The staff floating at his side spun violently upon itself as it began to glow a deep red.

It was a high-intermediate level fire spell.

Adam barely had time to react when he saw the compressed fireball launching toward him at a brutal speed.

He tried to move, to dodge, to do something, but his body did not respond fast enough.

"Stop!"

His father’s voice resonated throughout the courtyard with authority.

The attack stopped millimeters from Adam’s face, who could feel the searing heat burning his skin.

Dorian simply sighed and dissipated the spell with a flick of his hands before turning around and walking away without saying a single word, as if it had been a waste of time.

Adam stood there for a moment, somewhat surprised by how it had all ended. He expected... well, he didn’t know exactly what he expected, but definitely not that.

In the end, he could only sigh with weariness before sitting on the ground, completely exhausted. His body finally yielded to the accumulated fatigue and he simply let himself fall.

The first to reach him was his mother.

Liora knelt by his side with evident concern in her eyes as she checked his wounds with trembling hands. "Don’t move, Adam. Stay still."

Before she could say anything else, Seraphine appeared beside them with that calm smile she always wore. "Not bad, brother," she said as she knelt on Adam’s other side and placed her hands on his chest.

At that moment, a barely visible green light began to emanate from her palms as healing magic flowed into Adam’s wounded body.

The pain in his body began to fade gradually, the cuts slowly closed, and the deeper wounds stopped bleeding. However, the exhaustion remained.

"Thank you," Adam murmured as he felt his body relax under the effects of the magic.

Seraphine simply nodded. "It was nothing."

He glanced over to where his father was observing them from a distance. Adam did the same, and their gazes met for an instant.

Alden began to walk toward them with a firm stride, while the other siblings only looked at him for a moment before leaving one by one, clearly uninterested in staying for what would come next.

Seraphine said goodbye with a slight tilt of her head and also left, leaving Adam with both his parents.

Alden Shadowend stopped in front of him and observed him in silence for several seconds that felt eternal.

"It was reckless to drop your weapon in the middle of combat," he finally said with a firm voice, but not one of complete disapproval. "A mistake that could have cost you your life."

Adam nodded slightly as he listened; he had no excuses for that; it had been a risky decision to throw his sword like a spear.

"However," his father continued. "I did not expect you to reach this point in a month. At least you made Dorian get serious, even if he was only playing with you."

Adam swallowed hard but said nothing, simply limiting himself to waiting for the final decision while looking directly into his father’s eyes.

The silence stretched between them; Liora watched nervously from the side, not daring to interrupt.

Finally, Alden spoke again. "I will pay your tuition."

His words were simple, direct, and unadorned. But the weight they carried was enormous.

"Rest," he added before turning around and beginning to walk away without waiting for a response.

Liora followed him, but stopped for a moment to look at Adam one last time. Her eyes showed something Adam had never seen in her before: pride.

"I’m proud of you," she said in a soft but sincere tone.

Adam could only give her a slight smile, a small but genuine one.

Liora returned the smile before following her husband, leaving Adam alone in the courtyard.

Or at least that’s what he thought until he heard a familiar voice shouting his name with concern.

"Your Excellency!"

Ravenna appeared running from the entrance, clearly agitated and worried. She must have been watching the fight from afar because her eyes showed relief at seeing him relatively well.

Adam tried to get up on his own, but his legs barely responded. Ravenna arrived just in time to catch him before he stumbled.

"Careful," she said as she slid her arm under his to help him stay on his feet.

Adam was the first to speak as they began to walk slowly toward the interior of the mansion. "At least I won what I wanted."

Ravenna glanced at him with curiosity. "I saw your fight from a distance... it surprised me greatly how your training actually worked."

"Yes," Adam replied with a tired smile. "Though I still have a long way to go."

"But you got further than anyone expected," Ravenna pointed out in a soft tone. "Your family was surprised; I am as well."

Adam only nodded as they finally entered the mansion. His body was screaming for rest and his mind was beginning to cloud from exhaustion.

Ravenna noticed this. "We’re almost there," she said firmly.

Adam didn’t have the energy to answer her, so he simply let her lead him while he thought about everything that had happened.

He had lost the duel, obviously; Dorian was far too strong to beat in his current state.

But he had achieved something more important: he had shown that he wasn’t the same Adam as before. That he had changed and that he was worthy of carrying the Shadowend name.

And now he would go to the academy.

’Finally,’ he thought with satisfaction as Ravenna helped him lie down on his bed. ’Things are going to get a lot more interesting from now on...’

With that last thought, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.