The Aura Ascendant: A Knight's Unbroken Path

Thankfully, Hayden was able to get some information about the Painite's Eye. It was indeed a rare gemstone that could help Aura Users with the flow of their Aura.

After all, imbuing Aura in various weapons or pieces of equipment wouldn't be so easy.

If the quality of his weapon was low or it wasn't suited for Aura Users, the flow of mana imbued in that sword would probably be just around 50% of your original Aura or even lower than that. It could even break if you're not careful.

On the other hand, if you're using a higher quality item that suits well for Aura Users, it could reach up to 90%.

However, despite all that, just possessing a Painite's Eye would improve the wearer's conductivity by about twenty percent.

That means that even if you only use normal items, you won't have issues with your Aura Flow. It also means that even a knife made of paper could be a lethal weapon in the hands of Aura Users.

"You can win this… She's not as strong as Laxus. Just be careful with her movement technique. It can be tricky…" Headmaster Mensa reminded.

Grandmaster Fern, Claire's master, may not be an Aura Knight, but he was a known Sword Grandmaster and a second-level Aura User even at this age, unlike Mensa, who had dropped his level after aging.

"I understand, Master." Hayden replied as he looked around.

The Pit that was introduced to him was a circular arena lined with tiered seating. It was packed with mercenaries, nobles in disguise, and off-duty tournament officials placing illicit bets.

'Interesting… It may be illegal, but there must be some sort of consent from the officials.' Hayden thought as his Ocularis Lens studied almost everyone in this place.

As soon as they arrived, the battle between two warriors had just ended, and a few workers immediately started cleaning the stage. As for the crowd, they seemed to be counting their winnings or losses with the recent battles…

Soon, Hayden noticed that another betting round was going on. It seemed that the next battle was about to start.

"It's your turn." Mensa said as he noticed that Claire was already entering the stage.

However, Hayden just thought that Claire would have a warmup first but soon, she gestured at him to come up.

'I guess it's really my turn…' Hayden thought for a moment as he barely absorbed the surroundings, and he was already about to fight.

Everything was happening too fast, but in the end, he accepted it.

Hayden held his sword tightly as he entered the Caged Stage. He ignored all the shouts, insults, and other noises from the crowd as they saw a 'kid' entering the stage.

'This..'

Nonetheless, Hayden still noticed that the supposedly respectable Headmaster was betting a lot on his win. It was something they had talked about before going here, so he wasn't really surprised.

However, he still found it amusing to see such a reputable figure lining up to place a bet.

Fern was also there, and he seemed to be planning to bet on his disciple.

It was at this moment that the announcer finally spoke.

"Ladies and gentlemen! We have a special match tonight! Claire Solstice of Solaris Academy—versus—Hayden Gray of Dawnspire!"

The crowd cheered, although most of them had never heard the two. At the very least, they all heard about the two Academies and knew very well that the Dawnspire didn't have a strong reputation, and they would lose a lot in the yearly competition.

On the other hand, the Solaris Academy was quite popular and had won a lot of competitions. Aside from that, the fact that Hayden's appearance seemed too weak made the odds higher.

Hayden stood at the center of the stage and looked at Claire, who was taller than him.

"I don't know the rules here…" He said.

Claire chuckled at this as she explained the rules of the duel. "Defeat me… It's as simple as that."

Hayden shook his head as he decided to teach this young woman a lesson.

The two of them then waited for the announcer as they seemed to be finishing the bet placement first before giving the signal to start.

'I really don't like this kind of duel…' Hayden thought as he hoped that this would be the last time.

Thankfully, the wait didn't last for long.

As soon as the announcer confirmed that both were ready, he immediately announced the start of the fight!

"BEGIN!"

Claire had been waiting for a long time, so she made the first move and struck Hayden with her rapier!

It seemed to be even faster than Laxus' Quick Draw Technique.

Unfortunately for Claire, her muscle movements were read by the Lens and predicted her attack. Hayden easily sidestepped to dodge it…

However, Claire didn't stop and twisted mid-air. Her blade then grazed his shoulder!

First blood.

The crowd roared as they thought that they'd see blood and win their bets. However, there was no blood or injury after getting hit by the rapier…

"What a strong Aura… How can he gather this much?" Claire frowned as she didn't let up. She had to continue attacking fast since the Dawnbreaker Swordsmanship was made for counterattacks.

She couldn't allow him to read her moves.

Soon, she started using her special footwork and became unpredictable... She was now also faster than Laxus, so she believed that she had a high chance of ending this match really soon.

However, Hayden's Ocularis Lens could see through all of her tricky movements!

Hayden decided to simply use his Basic Sword Stances to fight! He realized that using countermoves wouldn't be so effective against a rapier user.

Overhead Stance! This stance was used for powerful downward strikes and though it's a simple move, it would force Claire to block if he timed it perfectly.

Claire's eyes widened as she also noticed how Hayden got closer so easily.

"Cheap tricks won't save you," She shouted as she burst with Aura… Since Hayden's sword techniques were too difficult to deal with, she might as well overwhelm him with her Aura, aside from her quick rapier!