NOVEL WEB Chapter 134: On the Field
The moment the match began, Lu Chen and his opponent both bent one knee forward, cautiously testing each other's movements.
While Lu Chen could easily have scored before his opponent could react—thanks to his speed—he chose to play it out for appearance's sake.
He moved carefully, probing as he retreated step by step.
His opponent took the chance to press forward. During one exchange, their blades clashed with a crisp metallic sound.
Lu Chen remained composed, eyes fixed on his opponent's every move. But from the sidelines, the coach couldn't hold back any longer.
"Press forward! Push him! You're almost at the baseline!"
Lu Chen's steady retreat made it hard for his opponent to predict his strategy. Seizing an opening, the opponent lunged forward in a deep lunge, thrusting the tip of his sword toward Lu Chen's head.
But Lu Chen reacted even faster. With a clean, fluid motion, he struck his opponent's blade aside, exposing the left side of his torso.
Then, with momentum on his side, Lu Chen followed up with a decisive strike—the blade slammed into his opponent's mask with a heavy thud.
The scoreboard beeped.
11:40
Cheers erupted from the crowd. The coach shouted, ecstatic.
"Number four scores! Beautifully done, Lu Chen!"
As the timeout ended, Lu Chen made no celebratory gesture. He simply returned to his mark, calm and collected.
His opponent, stunned, stood frozen for a moment, still processing how Lu Chen had scored.
When the match resumed, the opponent was noticeably more cautious, probing without making the first move.
Clearly, Lu Chen's lightning-fast counter had shaken him, prompting a strategic shift.
Now it was Lu Chen who took the initiative, steadily pressing forward.
Seconds ticked away quickly. Lu Chen did the math—there wasn't much time left to close the gap.
So he launched a straightforward thrust.
It looked ordinary, almost dull. But by the time his opponent reacted, it was too late to block or retreat.
So fast!
That thought echoed through everyone watching—even the opponent.
12:40
The coach was overjoyed. "That's it! Speed advantage! This is the rhythm we needed!"
Seeing his attacks and counters turned into points for Lu Chen, the genius fencer—Li—began to crack.
Something's wrong...
From the Normal University bench, their coach began yelling.
"Stall him! If you have to, just stall! We've got a big lead!!"
Stall? Li's face twisted behind his mask.
He'd been saved for last, the trump card meant to suppress the enemy's strongest.
Now his role had changed—from suppressor to staller. As long as he could buy time, victory was within reach.
That's unacceptable!
Li gave up on defense. With aggressive footwork and surging momentum, he charged in for a fierce, full-force overhead strike.
It was a reckless move—exactly what Lu Chen wanted. Had Li turtled up, things might have gotten tricky.
Their blades collided violently, bending under pressure.
Lu Chen responded with another deceptively simple strike, swiftly following it with a slicing blow to the head. Smooth and fluid, the move drew gasps from the crowd.
It was rare to see such crisp, clean counterattacks—especially against a professional athlete.
The coach's voice was going hoarse from shouting. Captain was on the sidelines again, yelling his usual anime-style slogans of unity, while the other team...
was dead silent.
13:40
Lu Chen was reeling the score in, one point at a time. Amid the crowd's cheers, he could feel his opponent's breathing growing ragged.
He's panicking.
Li attacked again, fast—but to Lu Chen, it felt like slow motion.
He wasn't aiming for the head this time but the lower torso. So Lu Chen switched things up too.
He met the attack with a textbook parry, exposing Li's scoring area once again.
But instead of a slash, this time Lu Chen delivered a precise thrust straight to the center of Li's mask.
Though slashes were more common due to the rules, Lu Chen opted for this elegant thrust.
14:40
Energized by the crowd's roar, Lu Chen let himself soak in the moment.
During the next timeout, he removed his mask, basking in the applause—and caught sight of the women's match on the opposite side of the arena.
Though all the athletes wore masks, he immediately spotted Ei—her poised and upright figure unmistakable.
Even masked, her presence was so distinctive that Lu Chen didn't need to think twice to recognize her.
Ei gave a small wave toward his side. Lu Chen blew her a dramatic kiss in return.
She promptly turned away.
"Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing?! Focus on the match!"
Li had already put his mask back on and returned to position. Seeing Lu Chen so nonchalant—and even flirting—made his blood boil.
Not only could his opponent easily beat him, he was using breaks to flirt. Who could stand that?!
If Lu Chen had heard his thoughts, he would've replied:
Why mess around with a bunch of guys when flirting with Ei is way more fun?
The match resumed.
And then, something strange happened on the field.
No matter what attack Li used, Lu Chen's sword would land on his head within a second—every time.
Sometimes a thrust, sometimes a slash.
It was as if no other scoring zone existed but the head.
This was almost humiliating—an attack pattern that blatantly showcased their skill gap.
No matter how furiously the opposing coach yelled, Li couldn't regain his composure. Even if he tried to slow things down, it wouldn't matter anymore.
Lu Chen was an opponent that made him feel helpless.
And Lu Chen wasn't doing this out of spite—it was a calculated move. Rattling his opponent was a good way to shorten the match.
In the final round, Li deliberately slowed his pace—but it was already too late.
Lu Chen charged with a flurry of attacks, racking up point after point. In the most absurd moment, he even forced Li out of bounds.
The scoreboard froze:
45:41
The genius player had only scored one point on Lu Chen. As the arena erupted, he removed his mask and slumped to the floor.
Lu Chen took off his own mask. Dodging the overzealous hugs from his coach and Captain, he quietly walked over to his opponent.
"You alright?"
This wasn't sarcasm—he genuinely thought the kid was talented.
Word was he'd already been selected for the national youth training camp. It was only a matter of time before he made a name for himself on the global stage. It'd be a shame if he lost confidence because of this.
"I'm fine..."
Li's face was hard to read. The strength of the person standing before him filled him with awe—and envy.
With a bitter smile, he extended his hand, which Lu Chen firmly grasped and pulled him up.
"I could talk to the higher-ups—maybe get you into the youth team early?"
Lu Chen shook his head.
Li was confused.
"The World Youth Championship's coming up. With your talent, you shouldn't be wasting time on some amateur school team!"
Lu Chen shook his head again.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Li grew more agitated. "You're just gonna waste your time and talent? You're insanely strong—if you hadn't gone easy on me, I wouldn't have even scored!"
"I'm not wasting anything," Lu Chen said calmly, his gaze drifting toward Ei, who had also just won her match.
Between them stretched several lanes—so far apart...
And yet, as their eyes met, the noise of the crowd and the heat of the match all faded away.
In that moment, the distance between them felt so incredibly close.