Kate wiped the last of her meal from her mouth on a napkin she held under her plate. "This way will there is a tent for guests beside mine. There are outhouses set up down the hill. Do you need anything?"

"I think I should be fine for the night. Still, I am in your debt for your hospitality," Will said, "I will try to pay you back as soon as I can." He stood up and walked to a guest tent. From his pack he took out a bedroll and set it up inside the tent. With one last look up at the stars, he crawled into the tent and fell asleep almost immediately. The day's events took a heavy toll on him.

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Jonathan passed Kate on his way to the tent with other knights.

"Why did you give your favor to a man you barely know, Kate. I will defeat him."

Kate held Will's plate and mug and gave them to a servant. The servant took Jonathan's dishes.

"I know him better than you think. I am sick of hearing you brag about being undefeated every day. It is time you were bested. You have proved you skill on the battlefield against orcs. Is is time someone new took your place. Father knows his skills are enough and did not get a swollen head. You still act and do not use you head. Johh, you have forgotten what Papa taught you. You cannot fight with your emotions."

"What do you know Kate?"

"Plenty to know you practice until the moves are flawless and the sword it part of you. I make sure I know how my challenger uses magic. Yes, we have duels with magic too. I watch you spar and practice. I know more than you think I do. Get some sleep. Tomorrow is a grueling day."

Johnathan went into his tent grumbling. Kate packed a few things to take to Will and went to bed. The next morning she was up early and Will kept farmer's hours and brought him hot cider and plate of scrambled eggs, toast with butter and strawberry jelly, and bacon. Outside was a fire "Good morning. This is for you"

Will took the plate.

"Thank you, Kate. Even though I had a big dinner, I feel starved," he said and began to eat. With the food and drink, he stood and walked outside to the fire. Guards were roaming around on patrol, but it was mostly quiet. Not many people were up at this time of morning, and that was what Will liked about it. The fire crackled and embers burst from it, then settled back down. At the fire, Will sat down and finished the rest of his breakfast.

"Kate, do you happen to know when the tournament will continue today? I don't feel injured anymore and I'm ready to face Jonathan again," he asked.

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"Please let me check you wound" Kate took her last bite and faced Will. The mage moved closer to Will. There was hardly one up. The camp was quiet. Katherine loved this time of day, she was up early enough to watch the sunrise. Kate hoped the day would be sunny and cool.

Will lifted his shirt and revealed the wound. A bandage was wrapped around the wound. He decided he would remove the bandage quickly rather than slowly. As the bandage was taken off, Will winced from a bit of pain. There was a little bruise leftover, but most of it had gone down thanks to the treatment that had taken place the day before.

"Well. Here's the wound," he said. "Is it still bad?"

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Kate agreed that removing the bandage quickly would be best and he was brave. The mage lightly touched the bruise and healed the area with her mana. "In a few hours you will be ready to face Johh, my brother. You asked when you fight Johh. That should be at 10:00 if the weather is nice. The mages will help block any rain if possible."

"Sounds good," Will said. "I better start training for the archery portion." He stood up and started walking towards an archery range when he realized he forgot to bring a bow.

"Kate? May I borrow a bow around here?" Will said, and he scratched his head.

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Kate led him to the arsenal tent. She found a bow and quiver of arrows. Quickly the mage whispered a spell and waved her hand over the quiver of arrows and the bow.

She handed the bow and arrows to Will. "These are for you. Best of luck. Kate handed him two vials from her pocket.

"This blue vial is for making your sword double your strength and this red one you take before entering combat. It will protect you for up to 20 minutes. I will be close if you need me. Remember this..."

Kate leads him away from the camp toward the tournament grounds.

"Remember this Johh strongest swing is downward and to the left. He always steps forward on his right foot when making both a downward swing and parrying. He is weaker after 15 minutes. I will wave my glove after 10 minutes have past. Hold on. I know your family need money for the back 40 acres. You will need helpers to ready the field and seeds. Drink lots of water, in this cool weather, you need to stay hydrated.
Kate placed her hand on his cheek. "Best Johh for me."

Will nodded and said, "I'll do my best." With that, he stood and walked back to the archery range. As he arrived, he took an arrow from the quiver and nocked it. The target was about 10 meters down the range, but it was large enough for Will to hit. Holding the bow with his left hand, he drew the arrow back to his cheek. After a second or two he let it fly towards the target. For a moment, Will thought it was going to hit the target, but he was promptly proven wrong. The arrow missed the edge of the target by 13 centimeters. He sighed. It would be a long few hours of practice.

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Kate waled into the medical tent she mage sure the supplies were full and the duty roster was to her liking. There would be six mages on standby. Kate had chosen only mages that were the best in her class. That did not always mean they were the best students with top grades. One of her favorites, Genna, had below average grades but outstanding bedside manners and followed instruction to the letter. Kate was able to depend on Genna and she kept thing neat and tidy.

The early morning was finishing up the last remaining jousters and the call for sword masters first. The 10:00 call was made for Will and Jonathan to enter the fighting field. The master of ceremonies explained the rules.And the king said a brief speech. Then the trumpeters horn dust for the challenge to begin. Kate waked toward the fence.
Johnathan was dressed in a heavily quilted doublet and gave a few practice swings in mid air. He saluted the crowd to deafening cheers. Then Sir Lyons faced Will and extended his sword to the farmer's son. He took a defensive stance; his weight was equally balanced on both feet.

Will took the next couple hours to train with a bow, and in the end was fairly good. He could at least hit the target, but not quite get a bullseye. At 10:00, he heard the call for the sword fight. His sword was lying on the ground next to him, and he bent down to pick it up. Worry struck Will suddenly and he had his doubts. Would he be able to defeat John? Will he even be able to stand against him? No- he could not think of those things. He made his way over to the fighting field to face Jonathan.

Once he stepped in, he unsheathed his sword. Both his and Jonathan's sword were supplied by the tournament hosts. They did not want to take the chance of cheating. The fight began. Will spotted Jonathan's defensive stance and looked to lightly slice from the side but also be prepared for a counter attack. After finding an opening, Will swung.

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Jonathan swung to parry and took a forward two gliding steps keeping his left foot forward. He hit Will's blade and recoiled back to his previous position, taking a defensive stance.
"Come on farm boy. Lets see what you got."

Will grunted. All he was trying to do was hold off for 15 minutes until Jonathan was weaker. He might have not been skilled, but Will had enough stamina from farming to hold out. He kept swinging at Jonathan, stalling until 15 minutes.

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Jonathan was actually enjoying Will's skill. Every strike was parried as steel against steel would create sparks. The two men were well matched. Beads of sweat dotted Jonathan's face. He was accustume to his chain mail tunic. But he did not wear it. He really under estimated the farm boy's skill. Blow for blow Jonathan was not able to find the man's weakness.

"I have not met you in battle. Who's trained you?" Jonathan was becoming frustrated an began an attack forcing Will to fight on the defensive. Jonathan's choice of waring his quilted doublet allowed him free movement. Jonathan was finding Will to be a worthy swordsman.

Ten minutes into the challenge the crowd was divided and Will was receiving cheers. Kate was happy for Will. The mage said under her breath, "Come on Will five more minutes." She raised her hand and waved as promised.

The spectators began to place bet between each other. Bards began to make up songs to this epic challenge. The out come was anyone's guess.

Sir Edmond was the local blacksmith. He was a formidable warrior until a near mortal wound forced him to retire as an elite Knight. He agreed to train William and left the forging to his son. An arrangement was agreed upon between Edmond and Will's father.

"The local blacksmith trained me, and he did a good job," Will grunted as he parried blows and returned them. He saw Kate raise her hand and wave. 10 minutes had passed. Only five more to go until he could finish Jonathan off.

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Jonathan saw Kate in the corner of his eye. Jonathan side stepped and was forced to be cut. He turned his trunk to the side. Sir Jonathan was covered in sweat and breathing hard. His sword arm was aching. He drooped his sword downward. The crowd was on their feet ahhs and quiet hush was whispered. Would the fight be a draw or would the king allow the fight to continue. Kate remained at the fence in anticipation of Will's move. The mage leaned forward.

15 minutes had finally passed. It was Will's chance, and he thrusted his sword towards Jonathan's neck, but he was prepared not to injure Jonathan. He only wished to hold the point of the sword an inch or two from his neck.

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Jonathan lost his footing and tumbled backwards. He was stunned to find Will's sword at his throat. The crowd stood quiet in disbelief for a second. Jonathan had been defeated by the farmer's son. Then those that supported Will cheered. Those that lost their bets groaned loudly. Kate looked at Will and smiled. Jonathan hit the ground with his fist and slowly knelt to one knee and then the other. Jonathan grabbed his sword off the ground; faced the King; and bowed as he swept his sword out to his right side.

Breathless he spoke, "Your Majesty. Is a true honor and pleasure to have fought you."

King Atrius stood, "We have a new comer in our midst. A absolute pleasure lad. What is you name?"

Will was stunned for a moment that he had bested Jonathan, but there was still archery to compete in. It was only thanks to Kate's tips she had told him. He noticed her smile at him, and he blushed a little. The king asked for his name.

"William Pires, Your Majesty," he said, and bowed a little.

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