Thanks so much JimB0.P44 for our conversations about "Witcher of UA". Your ideas got the gears in my head working. You're the guy!
Chapter 14
Step. Step. Step.
Vesemir walked down the long, empty corridor right behind Hound Dog. He walked without fear. Years of training and actual fights had allowed him to control his emotions, or at least not show them in public. This would be just another fight, or even more training than a fight, remembering the previous fight with Mr. Brave. Geralt would probably say that Vesemir had done something stupid. He would be right. The young witcher had acted in a fit of emotion, challenging the hero to a duel, but... once given, you can't take your word back. What kind of person would he be if he agreed to Hound Dog's proposal to call off the duel? Maybe in this world no one would think of him as a forswearer, but Vesemir would have trouble looking at himself in the mirror later.
Step. Step. Step.
Hound Dog glanced over his shoulder at Vesemir, who was walking calmly, with a poker face. He knew these kinds of faces from the therapy rooms. Masks built over the years. Armor that doesn't crack right away, but bears traces of past blows.
"Listen, boy. It's not too late. You don't have to fight anymore."
Vesemir didn't answer. He just nodded slightly. Not out of spite. Not out of pride. With conviction in his eyes.
Hound Dog sighed and turned back. This kid wasn't like any of the others he'd had to work with. He'd never had a protégé who'd killed... and repeatedly. Did all the kids in his world have it like that? Or was he an exception?
They walked out of the hallway and out, walking through the P.E. Grounds toward Gym Gamma. A few people were waiting by the entrance. Aizawa, Midnight, Yui.
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Yui looked at Vesemir, who was walking right behind Hound Dog. He was dressed exactly the same as the day she met him..... the day he killed... she shook her head slightly. The most important thing now was to support him. She wasn't sure who would win.....
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Midnight looked at Vesemir as soon as he stepped out of the building. She had heard the boy's words about the heroes. Aizawa too. She didn't know how yet, but she was sure that he would change the boy's mind.
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Aizawa looked at his son. Now that he had time to look at him..... the boy really reminded Ciri..... and it wasn't just the hair. The boy's eyes were the same as his mother's. If Ciri had a quirk that allowed her to teleport to other dimensions..... and her dimension was downright barbaric..... then why didn't she come here... or at least leave Vesemir here with him. He would have been fine. After all, the boy wouldn't be here alone. He has a grandfather and grandmother here who don't know about his existence yet. Here's the question - how was he supposed to explain to his parents that he was Vesemir's father? How to talk about it with his own son? Did he have a father there, on the other side?
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Vesemir walked up to the entrance of Gym Gamma. He bowed slightly towards Midnight.
"Miss Midnight. Miss Kodai. Mr. Aizawa"
He marked each of them separately, making slight bows.
From this place he could hear people in the building. From the sounds he could tell that quite a few people had gathered.
"Has Mr. Brave already deigned to arrive for the duel?"
The young witcher asked, avoiding looking at Midnight because of her..... provocative attire.
Aizawa nodded.
"He's waiting inside. Remember that you can use all your skills. This is not just a fencing duel. This is a duel of quirks."
"In that case, let's go inside. It's rude to make someone wait for an appointment." Vesemir said, then walked past the group and opened the door. He was greeted by the audience's cheers. About two hundred people gathered on the balcony built around it. Most of them were students. A few people dressed strangely... they had to be heroes.
"Vesemir-kohai!!!!! Good luck!!!!!!"
A girl with blue hair known to Vesemir shouted. The boy just nodded to her. He went to the very center of the hall, where Mr. Brave was already waiting. Aizawa followed right behind him, as he was supposed to be the referee of the duel.
Mr. Brave was waiting for him with a grimace and a gaze that sparkled with self-confidence. He grabbed his black hair and formed a sword out of it. Vesemir didn't even stop. He stood about ten steps in front of Mr. Brave and waited for Aizawa to stand in the middle.
"This is supposed to be a fair fight. No killing blows" Aizawa continued, but Mr. Brave interrupted him.
"No! Let the boy show what he's made of. He won't be able to hurt me anyway."
Everyone heard him. The students began to talk quietly. A few pro heroes did nothing. They just watched the young witcher.
"Everyone will now see who you really are" Mr. Brave hissed, but Vesemir remained calm. He slowly raised his hand, and grabbed the steel sword on his back. The sound of the blade being pulled out echoed through the hall.
Aizawa stepped back to a safe position.
Mr. Brave bent his knees slightly, taking an offensive position.
Vesemir held his sword in one hand, the blade pointing away from Mr. Brave.
"Begin" Aizawa said.
Mr. Brave was the first to move. He quickly thrust, aiming for Vesemir's ribs. The witcher turned sideways, allowing the hair sword to pass by him, and at that moment he casually delivered a slash towards the pro hero. He blocked the blow with a wrist guard he had created from his hair. Taking advantage of the open path of attack, he redirected his sword to slash the boy on the shoulder...
...but the blade only cut through air. Vesemir disappeared from his field of vision.
No, he didn't disappear. He simply went lower, balancing low to the ground, and made a smooth slash with his steel sword towards Mr. Brave's knees. He dodged at the last moment, but not without loss. The lower part of his outfit was cut open, and a thin line of blood appeared on his thigh.
Stepping back, Mr. Brave threw several hair needles towards Vesemir. The boy stepped out of the path of the first and second projectiles, and deflected the third projectile with his sword in one fluid movement, immediately taking advantage of the opportunity to cast a spell.
AARD
The witcher's hand shot out towards the pro hero. Mr. Brave had already felt the impact of the witcher's magic once before. He formed a shield from his hair, which allowed him to protect himself from the invisible blow, but despite this he lost his balance and fell backwards to the ground.
Vesemir could have jumped at that moment and ended the duel, but he stepped back. He took a few steps back, allowing his rival to stand up.
The audience reacted with sounds of surprise. Some were already talking to others about Vesemir's quirk. Controlling gravity? Maybe air? Others talked about how the pro hero had been knocked down with one blow by a boy not yet of UA recruitment age.
Mr. Brave stood up quickly and began attacking the boy from a distance, throwing needles at him.
He easily dodged the projectiles. What's more, he approached his opponent, moving smoothly. When he pretended to make a thrust, Mr. Brave covered himself with his shield. In response, Vesemir once again extended his hand, with a ready sign.
IGNI
A string of fire shot towards the pro hero, burning his hair shield. Mr. Brave, in shock, tried to jump to the side, which was caught by the boy. Vesemir threw a Samum firecracker at the place where Mr. Brave was supposed to be in a moment.
"Oh shi..."
That was all the pro hero managed to say when the firecracker's explosion made him dizzy. His ears were ringing. He couldn't focus his eyes.
Vesemir reached him in three steps, hit him in the solar plexus with the hilt of his sword. Not only was Mr. Brave dizzy, he also ran out of breath. He dropped his sword, clenched his fist and tried to strike his opponent, but he didn't have time. Another blow with the flat of his sword to the side of his head caused him to fall to the ground in shock.
Vesemir put the blade under his throat and looked at Aizawa.
He said with narrowed eyes.
"The winner is Vesemir"
The audience's cheer was almost immediate - a mixture of shock, admiration and anxiety. The boy defeated the pro hero in 20 seconds. Not only did he defeat him, not only did he do it so quickly, but he didn't even break a sweat! He did it without a scratch. Mr. Brave didn't manage to hit him even once.
Aizawa looked at Vesemir carefully. Despite his victory, the boy looked the same as he did at the beginning of the fight. No triumph, no pride. His face was a mask of calm. Maybe only his slightly accelerated breathing gave away that he had fought at all.
Mr. Brave lay on the ground, still trying to catch his breath, disoriented, eyes wide with surprise and shame. Humiliated by someone he saw as a murderer.
Yui looked at Vesemir with a mixture of relief and admiration. She felt proud, although she didn't know if she should. This wasn't an ordinary win. Vesemir could seriously hurt him, or even kill him. She was probably proud that she had influenced him in some way. But she immediately put on her poker face.
Midnight clenched her hands on her hips, watching as Vesemir lowered his sword and took a step back from his fallen opponent. The audience was seething, but all she could hear was her own breathing. Deep, slow, but controlled. It wasn't that Vesemir was brutal. Because he wasn't. It was what he didn't show. No joy, no satisfaction. None of the youthful optimism in his eyes that she saw in even the most serious students when they proved their strength. No. Vesemir was too quiet. Too calm. Too trained. And that was what scared her the most.
Hound Dog watched the fight from the hallway by the entrance. He didn't need a full view to know what was happening. He could hear everything—the footsteps, the blows, the breathing. And the sound of Vesemir retreating instead of finishing off his opponent. That was when Hound Dog clenched his teeth.
"A child shouldn't be able to make decisions like that. A child shouldn't have that kind of awareness at all." He thought.
The fur on the back of his neck quivered with anger. Not at Vesemir. At the world this boy came from. Who taught him to fight like that? Who made him practice until his movements became instinct? Who decided a child could be a weapon?
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"Vesemir-kohai!!! Good luck!!!" she exclaimed enthusiastically as the boy entered the hall. She waved him off energetically, smiling broadly. But he just nodded. No smile. No emotion. His gaze was strangely empty.
That first twinge of anxiety.
Nejire fell silent, which was strange for her. She walked closer to the railing and leaned over it, watching everything from above. She thought she knew what to expect. She thought Vesemir had simply gone through a hard time. That maybe he was withdrawn because he didn't know the school well yet. But when the fight started...
... Vesemir moved smoothly, as if every step he took had been planned in advance. As if he had seen Mr. Brave's moves before he made them. And when he fell to his knees and Vesemir could deliver the finishing blow... he stepped back. Like someone who no longer had anything to prove.
When the victory was announced, Nejire didn't clap like the rest of the students. She stood still, watching Vesemir take the first step towards the exit.
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In the privacy of his office, Nezu put down his cup of tea and rewinded the recording. Again. He played the moment Vesemir disappeared from Mr. Brave's field of vision, only to strike his knees a second later. The blow was precise. He could have easily ended the fight there, but he stopped the blade as soon as it cut through his suit and the first layer of skin, drawing blood. Vesemir hadn't shown his full potential, and he had easily defeated the pro hero that Mr. Brave was.
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Aizawa stood still, his arms crossed over his chest, his face as if carved from stone. If someone had looked at him from the side, they would have thought he was just an ordinary, cold teacher observing a sparring match. Typical Aizawa. No emotions. Just analysis. His heart was pounding.
"This is my son."
He couldn't tear himself away from that thought. He watched as Vesemir stood in front of the pro hero. Alone, without fear. His gaze focused. His movements perfect. And something else...
"He doesn't fight to win. He fights as if it were part of his nature."
When Vesemir put his sword to his opponent's throat and the crowd held its breath, Aizawa looked into his eyes. And he saw in them something that hurt the most. He saw emptiness. There was no triumph in those eyes. There was no pride.
"He didn't learn to fight for glory. He learned because he had to. Because otherwise he would have died."
"The winner is Vesemir"
As Vesemir took his first step toward the exit, Aizawa fixed his gaze on him. There was still time. Maybe the years could not be caught up. But maybe it would be possible to save what had not yet been broken.
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Present Mic was leaning against the railing on the balcony, his arms crossed over his chest. Despite being known for commenting on everything, he didn't say a word this time. His eyes were focused, the lines on his forehead betraying his tension. This wasn't just a duel. He could feel it from the moment Vesemir took a step into the arena.
When Vesemir used... air? Maybe telekinesis, he looked at Aizawa standing below. Eraser stood like a rock, but Present Mic knew him all too well—he knew from the clenched jaw and tense shoulders that this wasn't easy for him.
He'd only been away from UA for a few days and suddenly he heard talk of a duel? Midnight had told him it was about Aizawa's SON. Yes. A son. Present Mic was going to exact his revenge for not being able to become the best uncle in the world, but Nezu had said that Aizawa himself didn't know he had a son. Of course, that didn't change anything. As soon as Aizawa introduces himself to the boy as his father, Present Mic will introduce himself as the cool uncle, and from the looks of it.....the kid is going to need an uncle like that.
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Yagi stood in the shadows, his hands hidden in the pockets of his gray sweatshirt. He looked inconspicuous, like an ordinary, emaciated guy. He had come here to see the young Togata - a potential successor to his quirk. His eyes followed every movement in the arena with the precision of someone who had been fighting for his life for decades. When Vesemir deflected the first bullet, then attacked with his quirk and knocked Mr. Brave down... Yagi froze.
"Telekinesis? A powerful quirk. But then why does he need swords?"
When Vesemir used his quirk once again, Yagi's eyes opened even wider.
"Not telekinesis but fire!? Is it possible that this boy not only controls air but also fire!? What if he also controls earth and water? All four elements!?"
Yagi felt a surge of emotion. Things like this fight, with precise and fully conscious control of attacks, and then using the power of his quirk, didn't happen among children his age.
A smile appeared on Yagi's face.
It's him. It could be him.
My successor. The ninth.
End of Chapter 14