However, even though Delin was young, he was still a level-one Knight.
Panicking, he instinctively pushed off the ground with his arms, landing on his feet again as if doing a somersault.
However, Lin Ke rushed over right after using a smooth spell.
Just as Delin landed and stood firm, Lin Ke stopped in front of him and shouted loudly: "Ha!!!"
Delin, who hadn’t yet steadied himself, was instantly stunned by Lin Ke’s shout, his head spinning, and his eyes turning white in shock.
Lin Ke didn’t make any extra moves, but stood there with his arms crossed and smiled at Delin.
This Delin was so foolish. Even though the key to facing a Scholar was to close the distance,
Delin charged in without any protection, not knowing Lin Ke’s skills and background, recklessly rushing over at an uncontrollable speed.
The inertia, coupled with Delin’s inability to keep up with it, meant he was bound to lose.
The onlookers’ expressions turned strange, especially the servants of Azanen.
Could a professional warrior be defeated so effortlessly?
In their imagination, shouldn’t a professional warrior be using fireballs here and sword qi there?
How did that noble run and trip himself, only to be knocked out by Young Master Lin Ke’s shout?
The servants of Azanen couldn’t understand and felt their perception of a professional warrior shatter.
"Tsk, Little Lin Ke is quite impressive..." Watching Lin Ke’s use of magic, Ove couldn’t help but nod slightly.
With Lin Ke’s magic power, he could easily cast a small fireball, or even a small flame.
But the damage certainly wouldn’t be much.
Yet Lin Ke’s smooth spell combined with the amplification spell, though not dazzling, proved very practical. However...
"It just feels a bit underhanded..." Ove, lacking extensive combat experience, usually relied on his deep magical power to win against enemies. Besides, he was a researcher, not a combat mage and didn’t need to advance through battles.
"Indeed, perhaps I should consider developing a crafty approach in the future." Lin Ke thought to himself while looking at Delin.
The smooth spell is usually used to make carts and carriages run faster on the ground, not to trip warriors.
The amplification spell is typically used to announce things, not to shout at people.
However, Lin Ke’s combat application of it was indeed very effective.
Once Delin regained consciousness, Lin Ke then turned to walk towards the castle, loudly saying, "Young Master Delin, on behalf of the Azanen family, I thank you for your birthday wishes from Deep Blue. If there’s nothing else, why don’t you stay for dinner?"
They weren’t sure if people here understood the "tongue-in-cheek" art of speech from Huaxia.
If they really stayed for dinner, wouldn’t it be a waste of food? It would be best if they left soon.
Especially when entertaining heirs of such great nobility, one usually has to use those expensive and rare ingredients.
Lin Ke himself hadn’t eaten them many times.
"You... you cheated!!"
However, to Lin Ke’s surprise, Delin recovered from the amplification spell, realized he lost, and immediately turned red, raising his sword and charging at Lin Ke again.
Attacking from behind!
The people around gasped in surprise.
As a noble, and especially as a descendant of the Deep Blue Duke, how could he do something so undistinguished?
"Young Master!" Fidel the steward exclaimed.
He wasn’t worried about whether Lin Ke would be killed since he was just a small-town minor noble.
If killed, Deep Blue Duke would likely think more highly of Delin, considering his son to be extraordinarily brave.
But if Delin attacked from behind, especially after Lin Ke had already won,
This would harm the reputation of the Deep Blue Clan, and who knows how other Deep Blue progeny might reproach him!
If the Deep Blue Duke found out, he might very well strike Delin dead and do the same to Fidel too.
Thinking of this, Fidel the steward moved and rushed to the field, his hands bursting with white light.
The first skill slot of a Chief Steward!
He intended to control Delin!
After all, as two level-one professionals, they couldn’t compare to him, a seasoned professional. He even had the leisure to wonder why Ove wasn’t acting to stop it?
Ove stood nearby, watching with a smile, unlike Fulon and Antova, who were tense.
His disciple, he knew him best.
If it were a silent sneak attack, that would be fine, but with someone like Delin yelling and causing a scene, it would be strange if Lin Ke had no defenses.
"Water flow!" Delin shouted.
A layer of pale blue water appeared on his rapier, a use of professional energy.
However, just as Delin’s rapier was about to pierce Lin Ke, a gentle breeze appeared around Lin Ke.
The thin layer of breeze directly halted Delin’s advance.
"Young Master Delin, are you dissatisfied? Though I’m not sure why you like sneak attacks from behind. Is the Deep Blue Clan’s glory too dazzling, blinding me?"
Lin Ke turned around, still smiling.
The airflow shield around his body was precisely a pressure shield!
However, it couldn’t yet be considered a skill, only a little trick in using professional energy.
Of course, he was already studying the streamlined pressure shield for skill slots, and he would be able to have a skill slot once he reached level two.
"I...I...ancestors above..."
Delin held the sword without being able to move forward, while behind him, Fidel controlled his body with "command," staring wide-eyed and muttering to himself.
He suddenly realized what he had done just now.
He...brought shame to Deep Blue’s glory!
"Young Master Delin, even though you treated this sparring match as play with a friend, even though it isn’t a knight’s duel, still... such actions are not right."
Fidel quickly defined this sparring as "playing among friends," and looked at Lin Ke: "Young Master Lin Ke, to witness your friendship with Young Master Delin, we’ve brought you a precious level-eight Magical Beast Blue Smoke Owl Tail Feather as a gift."
Saying this, Fidel flipped his hand and took out a slender feather with a faint blue glow from his Space Ring, estimating about thirty centimeters in length, quite long.
"Thank you for this ’friendship’." Lin Ke felt the magical power waves on the feather and spoke with a smile: "I had a lot of fun and comforted myself today with Young Master Delin."
He particularly emphasized the word "play."
Hearing this, Fidel heaved a sigh of relief and marveled at how remarkably precocious this Azanen heir was!
However, just at this moment, Ove lightly "hummed," a sound that directly entered Fidel’s ears.
Fidel was shocked, looking at Ove’s unaffected face, and bitterly smiled inwardly, then spoke aloud again: "...Moreover, this piece of level-six Wood of the Sleepers is a gift for Young Master Lin Ke’s birthday, please kindly accept it."
In his hand, holding the feather, there appeared a small piece of what seemed an ordinary piece of wood.
Lin Ke looked back at Ove, deep in thought.
He had just seen that Fidel was indeed shocked when he glanced at Ove, indicating that this piece of wood was given because Ove expressed dissatisfaction.
Two magic-infused "gifts," a huge profit indeed!
Fidel, heart bleeding, came over, harboring extreme disappointment in his Young Master Delin.
He approached Lin Ke respectfully, with Delin, who had been controlled by the "command" skill, immobile and unable to speak.
Thinking of Delin, Fidel couldn’t help but ponder: Perhaps this time returning, he should apply to the [Chief Steward] and [Arbitrator] of the steward committee for transfer? To serve other young masters or misses?
Perhaps, the newly-born 138th daughter of the Duke would be fine.
"Thank you!" Lin Ke took the two spoils from Fidel’s hands and turned to wave at Fulon and the others.
"Yoo-hoo!" Fulon joyously pumped a pale fist, and nearby Antova also had a smile in her eyes.
"Young Master Lin Ke, our purpose here has been achieved, so we won’t stay longer. Looking forward to meeting you again in the future." Fidel said as he slightly bowed to Lin Ke in front of him.
Having lost face, but still eating in someone else’s home, would he suffer further humiliation?
"May the road beneath your wheels always be smooth."
Lin Ke nodded with a smile, saying something like "bon voyage."
So Chief Steward Fidel waved his hand, and the servants and guards dressed in garments of waves and swells all hurried towards the roadside deer carts.
The Deep Blue Clan used not ox-carts or horse-drawn carts, but a special breed of blue reindeer unique to their clan to pull the vehicles.
Young Master Delin looked at Lin Ke with eyes that went from angry to resentful, appearing like a very vengeful child.
However, he couldn’t say a word, and his body seemed like a puppet controlled by strings, being directed back to the deer cart by Fidel.
This group came hastily and left hastily.
Lin Ke stood at the castle gate, watching the "friends" who had traveled a long way to deliver magical materials, feeling: What good people!
"Little Lin Ke! You’re amazing!"
Fulon and the others gathered around, full of joy.
Lin Ke handed the feather and wood to John, just about to speak, when he suddenly felt a disturbance in his bloodline.
He... made a breakthrough?