Talon couldn't look Daru's way after he returned.
He had been curious about the young man for a long time now and so had always been observing him.
Even if the instructor couldn't accurately tell the level of Daru's swordsmanship, he at least could easily tell that the young man was as straightforward, honest, and earnest as a sword.
He felt uneasy at the sheer displeasure and disappointment reflected in the young man's gaze.
Talon didn't want to see it, so he just avoided looking at Daru as much as he could.
The fifteen-minute rest window soon passed. It was time for the quarterfinals to begin.
For the first battle, it was Zach against his underling.
The two faced each other with surprising smiles on their faces. Their earlier uneasy appearance seemed to have vanished like smoke.
After Talon left, the goon squad did, too, and everyone followed them with gazes, mutters, and murmurs.
It was quite clear that Zach was feeling the pressure just a dozen minutes earlier.
