Claude regretted it the moment he stood on the straw mat. He shouldn't have fallen for Fitney's provocation.
If Aboyev and the others were sent back to the infirmary by Fitney in the name of training, he would not be able to explain why he had harmed them again.
However, Claude's rage burned brightly. Fitney's use of the four nobles' lives to threaten him had finally infuriated him.
During the one-versus-four combat practice, Fitney could use the fact that he couldn't go too hard on his opponents and let them realize the cruelty of combat in the future. That way, he could shirk his responsibility for harming the four nobles. However, he couldn't force Claude to spar with him unless Claude took the initiative to challenge him.
That was why he provoked Claude. Now that he was a sergeant major and on the verge of becoming an official officer of the kingdom, he couldn't afford to leave a stain on his record.
Even if he asked Claude to be his sparring partner, Claude would have the right to refuse. There was no way he could force Claude to do so.
Only if Claude took the initiative to challenge him would Fitney have a good reason to teach Claude a lesson for disrespecting his superiors and seniors. Even if he heavily injured Claude, he wouldn't be punished by military law.
That was also the main reason why he had endured for more than a month as the squad jarl of Claude's squad and resisted the urge to take revenge on them.
The month of combat practice was his best chance.
The two of them exchanged a few blows and Claude understood that he wasn't Fitney's match at all. He was indeed an expert fighter and Claude was completely at a disadvantage. He took quite a few punches and could only protect his vitals.
Fitney's attacks were swift and fierce. His punches were heavy and his movements fast. Claude couldn't hit any part of his body.
When he fought the thugs of Blacksnake in Whitestag, he mostly used magic to deal as much damage as he could to his enemies. He only used sneak attacks in melee combat.
So, when he fought with the veterans in the canteen, even though he managed to send six of them to the infirmary, he still ended up lying on the ground.
Now that he was facing off against Fitney, he finally understood how much his graduation result of being the top student in physical studies was.
Without using magic, he couldn't defend himself at all.
Fitney looked like he was toying with a raging monkey and easily used his fists to leave marks on Claude's face and body.
Claude's face was already beyond recognition. Even though he had his hands in front of his eyes to protect his vitals, he still couldn't stop Fitney's fists from piercing through the gaps in his defenses.
However, thanks to the protection of his arms, Fitney's attacks weren't able to deal any fatal damage to Claude for the time being.
The Fitney in front of him had already become a blurry silhouette. It was hard to tell which one was real.
However, Claude gritted his teeth and refused to admit defeat. He tried his best to remain calm and waited for an opportunity to counterattack.
Fitney seemed to enjoy torturing Claude. As long as Claude didn't admit defeat, he would have plenty of time to slowly torture him.
"Even though the enemy is at a disadvantage, we still can't be careless on the battlefield. We don't want the enemy to take advantage of us and cause unnecessary losses," Fitney even had the mood to explain to the spectators. He was in a rather good mood at the moment.
He stepped forward and dodged to the left, landing a vicious right hook on Claude's right rib.
Claude grunted in pain and his arms drooped to the side, leaving his chest exposed.
However, Fitney took two steps back and didn't attack recklessly. Instead, he let go of the chance to deal a fatal blow.
"You're wondering why I didn't attack his chest, right?"
Fitney explained with a smile, "This might be an opportunity to deal a fatal blow to the enemy, but it could also be a trap.
You have to be clear about this on the battlefield. If you face a lot of enemies, you can take the risk. One less enemy means one more chance of survival.
But in my current situation … "
Fitney pointed at the dizzy Claude. "Since the enemy is already in such a state, we have the absolute advantage. All we have to do is ensure our own safety and eliminate the enemy without suffering any losses. As long as there's a chance of danger, we shouldn't take it.
Just now, he put down his hands and revealed an empty space in front of his chest. This is indeed an opportunity to deal a fatal blow. However, you have to think this through. If the enemy still has the strength to fight back, then when you attack him, he can risk being seriously injured and use his hands to hold you in his arms. This is very likely to give him a good chance to turn defeat into victory.
That's how many people think they have the upper hand on the battlefield, only to fail miserably and become a laughingstock. "
Apart from the four Berklin nobles on the ground and Claude, who was beaten black and blue by Fitney, there were also seven other soldiers who were undergoing training in the same tent to watch the duel.
They were well aware of the grudge between Fitney and Claude's group. The blabbermouth Moriad had already announced it in the tent. However, they didn't think that Fitney would choose to take his revenge on them on this day.
Even though they sympathized with Claude's group, they were more thankful that they weren't involved in the incident.
Fitney's timing for his revenge was perfect. He could beat up Claude's group without being punished by military law.
Just as he explained, he didn't forget to teach the other soldiers what to do and what not to do in a melee fight on the battlefield.
Fitney swung his leg and kicked Claude in the abdomen.
Claude finally couldn't stand it anymore and fell to the ground, clutching his stomach.
Fitney leapt into the air and kicked Claude in the back, knocking him out cold as he fell to the ground.
Fitney leisurely walked to the unconscious Claude's side and gave him a light kick. He then turned to the others and said, "On the battlefield, this doesn't mean that you've already won. There are many times when accidents happen. There are many self-proclaimed victors who fall right before victory because they forget that the enemy hasn't lost the ability to retaliate."
"What you have to pay attention to is the enemy's hands and feet." Fitney stepped on Claude's left hand and twisted it. The sound of bones breaking could be heard. "There are many abandoned weapons on the battlefield and there's a high chance that an able-bodied enemy will try to kill you when they wake up.
So, you have to be careful of the enemy corpses on the battlefield. There might be an injured enemy who woke up and wants to go to Battlegod's kingdom with you. "
Fitney moved his foot away from Claude's left hand and walked two steps to Claude's feet. He stepped on Claude's left calf with his right boot. "There's a veteran from Bluefeather who participated in a war against the kingdom 20 years ago and won. When he was cleaning up the battlefield, he didn't notice a heavily injured enemy soldier lying among the enemy corpses. He walked over to check if the enemy had any money in his pockets, but the heavily injured soldier took out a broken bayonet and stabbed him in the chest when he wasn't paying attention.
That veteran became the last casualty of that war. "
"That veteran's personal experience tells us that a dead enemy is the best enemy.
On the battlefield, if you can't be sure if the enemy is really dead, it's best not to get close to their corpses.
Or, do what I'm doing now and check if there are any weapons near the enemy's body before checking if their limbs are still intact. The best way is to step on them and see if they can still react. "
Fitney stomped down hard. All he had to do now was to cripple Claude's limbs in the name of instructing his men and send him to the infirmary for two to three months. He wanted Claude to experience what his old comrades had to endure.
The intense pain from the fracture in his left hand and his left calf jolted Claude out of his stupor. When he opened his eyes, all he saw was Fitney pressing down on his left calf and saying something to the other members of his squad.
Without a second thought, Claude bent his right leg and used all the strength in his body to stomp on Fitney's groin. His eyes rolled back and he blissfully fainted.
When he woke up again, Claude was lying on a bed in a wooden hut in the infirmary. What appeared before him was Berklin's swollen and deformed face with plaster covering almost half of it. Claude almost didn't recognize the face that was beaming with joy when he woke up. It took him quite a while to recognize who it was.
His chest felt like it was being pressed by a piece of iron that weighed more than a hundred kilograms. It was dull and painful, and his voice was dry and hoarse, making it difficult for him to speak. His head was also dizzy. As long as he stared at something, he would soon feel dizzy.
His left hand seemed to be in a cast and his left leg felt heavy and throbbing in pain.
Berklin was so excited that he couldn't even speak properly. All he could do was pull on the bell beside his bed with all his might. The hurried ringing of the bell filled the room.
Soon, the door was opened and Perunt walked in. "What's wrong? You're awake?
It's good that you're awake.
You've been unconscious for two days and two nights. If you don't wake up soon, I won't be able to save you. "
I was unconscious for two days and two nights?
Claude felt rather lost. He couldn't remember why he fainted.
All he could remember was the last kick he sent out with all his might. He even heard the sound of an egg breaking and a shrill scream.
"This time, your injuries are more serious than last time. You have a concussion, internal injuries, a fracture in your left palm, a fracture in your left calf, and three broken ribs in your right hand. As for your face that has been beaten into a pig's head and the contusions on both your arms, these can only be considered superficial wounds.
You'll need at least two to three months to recover, "Perunt informed him as he concocted the medicine.
Perunt finished concocting the medicine and brought the tube to Claude's mouth. "Drink the medicine and sleep. I'll feed you some herbal porridge at night.
Do you know that I've been feeding you two tubes of woodflower medicine from my collection for the past two days? It really hurts me. I only have three tubes on me and I only fed you two during the two days you were unconscious.
If you hadn't woken up today, I wouldn't have been able to keep the last one. "
Woodflower medicine was actually a concoction made from ginseng. Of course, it wasn't called ginseng. Instead, it was seen as the essence of plants.
For herbalists, the highest-quality woodflower medicine could bring back the dead.
Even though Claude knew that the quality of Perunt's ointment might not be the best, he was still grateful that the doctor used it on him.
Seeing Claude swallow the medicine he concocted with much difficulty, Perunt shook his head and clicked his tongue. "Fitney really went all out this time to beat you up like this. If your injuries were any worse, you would've been crippled.
But he didn't get off easy either. If the situation were reversed, I'm sure he'd rather suffer your injuries than take that kick from you.
How pitiful. He didn't think he'd become the laughing stock of Bluefeather. "