Stephen dashed to his side, a javelin slamming against the ground. This time the gust of wind that followed almost large enough to push him down.
He turned across the house, still running.
Even if he'd been the one that had started the altercation, he hadn't actually expected it to go this far.
Just how goddamn important was that book!
Another javelin skimmed past his arms, and Stephen was blown away, this time slamming against a trash can.
Wind magic was probably the most powerful type, at least from what Stephen had seen so far. Its biggest strength was in its connotations, since it was invisible to the naked eye, that made it incredibly difficult to predict, and even harder to dodge. The only reliable way to avoid it was by tracking the mana directly.
But that only worked when you were looking, something Stephen wasn't doing now, with his back turned toward Rumm. He had to hope he was far enough out of range.
"I thought you wanted to fight?" Rumm called, mana gathering in his hand. "Don't back away now!"
He raised his arm, and suddenly Stephen was yanked into the air. Around his leg, a thin cord of mana shimmered, a wind whip and it dragged him backward.
Stephen twisted to look, but Rumm was already charging another javelin.
This was the most serious Rumm had been since they'd started these bouts. He wasn't throwing half-strength punches to knock him out, this time he was pulling out all the stops.
And maybe, that was a good thing.
His stats were definitely improving. His speed, strength, durability, and even though he couldn't put exact numbers to them, he knew they'd climbed over the past month.
Which meant there was value in this, and to that end. He needed to know how he measured up against people as strong as Rumm.
Stephen focused mana into his leg, the same way he would into his hands. He tightened the muscles until the pressure built up, and then, he swung downward. The mana burst acted like extra propulsion, breaking the whip's hold.
He landed, immediately ducking as another javelin hissed past his head.
"Perhaps it's time you understood just how strong a former mage knight is!" Rumm barked, mana gathering at his side before he hurled another spear.
"Don't need to!" Stephen shot back. "You still haven't hit me!"
Of course, riling up his opponent even more wasn't the best idea. But for the sake of his experiment, he needed to know how well he could hold his own against a fighter of Rumm's caliber or even higher.
"Catch me if you can!" Stephen stuck out his tongue before darting into the alleyways, cutting across the streets so quickly it would be easy to miss him with a blink. From the opposite side, he charged out at Rumm, fist outstretched.
Rumm pivoted, dodging Stephen's punch easily, but just before he fully went past him. Stephen spun into a roundhouse kick, but Rumm's arm swept upward and a burst of air robbed the kick of its momentum.
As Stephen's softened kick slammed into his rib, Rumm grabbed his foot underneath his arm, spinning around while consecutively using wind to push Stephen off the ground, making him lighter.
Stephen glanced at him, even though he'd noticed it before. It was only now that it was truly prevalent.
Whenever Rumm was about to use his magic, he grimaced a bit, a small almost unnoticeable pain on his face.
Stephen was flung into the air, flipping wildly before catching sight of the wall behind him. Quickly, he planted a foot against it, kicked off, and shot forward like a spring.
Rumm swung an arm, and a sudden gust blasted upward from the ground, knocking Stephen higher. Another swipe came, this one downward.
Stephen still barreled forward, and while Rumm had already used the wind the push him down. He grimaced once more.
Why was that? He'd already used his magic, why did he grimace now?
Stephen glanced over his shoulder. Two javelins were materializing in midair, spinning into shape before launching toward him like cannonballs, screaming through the air at impossible speeds.
"You have to be kidding me!" Stephen's face contorted.
An updraft carried him, a downdraft waited above, and behind him, those spears tore through the air like cannon fire.
He was no doubt in a pickle, but he wasn't out of it yet.
He had a solid grasp of mana and what it could do now, and because of that he knew exactly how to turn the tides.
All in one fell swoop.
The downdraft began, pressing on him like a giant's hand. He plunged toward the ground, every muscle straining, the tips of his boots barely ahead of the
javelins hurtling after him.
But just as quick.
He thrust his palms downward, mana surging to his fingertips and with a flick, he unleashed a mana burst. Small, but enough to kick him upward just enough to slip past both javelins.
And they shot past, their momentum carrying them straight toward Rumm, who didn't so much as blink when they struck.
"Of course he can nullify them!" Were Stephen's last words as Rumm swiped his hand again. Sending another crushing gust straight down.
Stephen hit the ground so hard he broke through an underground pipe. Water burst up from below, soaking his shirt.
"I assume you concede," Rumm said, standing over him with his hand outstretched, the wind still pressing him down.
"IIIAIAIIAIIAIAIA."
Stephen couldn't talk, his words were being muffled by the wind, though it didn't seem Rumm picked up on that, or he did but was still rubbing it in.
"What was that?" Rumm asked with mock innocence. "You'll have to speak louder."
"What are you guys doing?" Gila muttered and Rumm instantly let go, the wind dissipating.
"Gila!" Rumm walked over to her. "How was your day?"
"Were you fighting him again?" Tello muttered, bending over next to a floored Stephen.
"I've got to protect us if we ever get in danger." Stephen muttered, pushing himself up.
"Is this because of what I said earlier?" Tello muttered, "C'mon you don't have to take it so seriously—"
"I do." Stephen said firmly.
Tello glanced at him for a moment, then laughed and helped him up. "There's still so much I have to learn about you isn't there."
"Luckily, you have all the time in the world to do so." Stephen said, then instantly keeled over, holding his chest.
Thankfully, his HP would refill in a bit, so the pain wouldn't last too long.
Thought for the time it did, it was gruesome.
"Dad, were you bullying this young man again?" Gila asked.
"He brought it on himself," Rumm muttered, then smirked. "He tore the book you gave me. So it was only fair I remind him why I used to be the strongest mage knight in the country. A man without peer... at least back when they still had honor."
He spat on the ground. "Now they're just a bunch of fools with no honor or code. Really shows how far we've fallen as a society."
"Sure, Dad," Gila said, giving him a light push. "Let's get home and clean all this blood off you."
"What about the boy?" Rumm turned to Stephen.
"Me?" Stephen blinked, then shook his head. "I'll be fine. Just a few bruises and sprains, nothing that won't heal."
"You heard him, let's go," Gila said, starting forward. But after a few steps, she turned back toward Tello.
"The furniture place said we should come see the table before it's dropped off tomorrow, to make sure we like it. Would you mind accompanying me? Maybe from there we could also find a place to eat or something..."
Tello stood, holding Stephen up by the arm. "Umm... do we have to? If it isn't good enough, we could just send it back."
"Oh, yes," she said, turning back. "We could. Of course we could."
"I'll see you at the site tomorrow, then." She walked off without another word.
"That was weird," Tello said.
"And I'm the one with no social skills," Stephen muttered to himself, then used the arm that hurt the least to smack Tello on the head.
"Ouch." Tello frowned. "Do you want me to drop you?"
"I want you to look at the signs."
"We're in a residential area," Tello said, glancing around. "Why would there be any signs?"
"Not literally," Stephen sighed. "Have you noticed anything yet... with Gila?"
Tello thought for a moment. "I guess she's been a bit weird lately, but I think she just has trouble keeping eye contact. It's hard for some people, you know."
"That's the head cannon you went with?" Stephen groaned. "Look, Tello. Gila likes you."
"N—no, she doesn't!" Tello stammered.
"And I know you like her back. It's as plain as day."
"N—no, I do not!" Tello muttered, then hesitated. "But in the... purely hypothetical event that I did... not saying I do. How would I go about it?"
"You can start by accepting that date with her tomorrow," Stephen said. "She went through the trouble of asking, too."
"But wouldn't that be too risky?" Tello asked. "I mean... the royal guards know my face."
"That is true," Stephen admitted, thinking it over. "I guess you can just leave it at that. I doubt she'll ever want to go on a date with you again though—"
"No!!!"
"I thought so," Stephen said. "as long as you don't draw attention to yourself, you should be fine."
"You make it sound so easy."
"It's either that or you blow a quick time event."
"What's a quick time event? Is it important? Should I be worried about—"
"Do you want to blow it?!" Stephen barked.
"...No, I don't?!" Tello replied, unsure what he was agreeing to.
"Good" he said. "Now, the first thing you have to do is..."
Stephen blanked for a moment. Giving advice was easy, when he had knowledge or even a bit of understanding of the topic.
But now, standing here about to give date advice, he realized he had no idea what the hell he was doing. He'd never been on a date, so how the hell was this supposed to work?
"Yes?" Tello said, eager to hear his words.
"Uhh... you'll want to take her somewhere nice," Stephen said slowly, nodding like he was sure. "Definitely somewhere nice. Also, take her out to eat. Yes, Take her to a restaurant."
"Anything else?" Tello asked.
"Uhh... Get her flowers. Compliment her dress. You know, stuff like that."
"And compliment her dress." Tello repeated, scribbling into his notes right in front of Stephen.
"Yeah..." Stephen muttered, before toppling forward and face planting into the dirt.
"Anything else?" Tello asked, hand primed against his pen.
"Gee, I wonder..." Stephen sighed into the ground. "I guess you could, you know, ask her what she likes. Getting to know her is good."
"Thanks, Stephen!" Tello said, already running off. "I'll tell her I can go tomorrow!"
"You do that," Stephen mumbled, spitting out dirt. "I'll just wait here... till my HP refills."
.
.
.
"Yep... don't worry about me... it's not like my legs hurt so had I can't walk..." He sighed. "I should've waited till he took me home."