eep breath. "Aaron, you go inform Caspian later and tell him to be ready to attack at any time.""Let me go!" Edmund said. "Your safety is only assured if he stays here.""That's right. Miraz isn't a good person either.It's not out of the question, no, he will definitely pull some dirty tricks."Peter nodded slightly, then drew the longsword Edmund was holding, indicating to Miraz across from him that he was ready.Miraz sat on the chair, adjusted the wrist guards on his arms, and secretly gave a look to General Sopy, who was holding a crossbow, "Once you find the situation unfavorable to me..."Sopy looked down at the crossbow in his hand, then exchanged a subtle glance with Sopespian, "I understand, Your Majesty."Miraz felt slightly relieved, took the helmet from Sopespian's hand, "If I win, I hope I don't disappoint you too much."The general on one side presented the weapons and shield. Miraz slowly walked onto the platform and stood opposite Peter, "It's still not too late to surrender now.""You surrender!""How many more people have to die for the throne?""Just you." Peter pulled down his visor. "One."The next moment, both charged at each other simultaneously, their swords and shields clashing with a clang.Peter was young and strong, and Miraz was experienced. The first few rounds were a stalemate, but in less than half a minute, Peter slashed Miraz's back with a sword.Just as the centaurs and bears watching from close range showed a hint of a smile, Miraz slammed Peter in the face with a shield, knocking off his helmet.Peter leaned back to dodge the sword tip aimed at his neck, then quickly squatted down and swept, drawing a bloody line across Miraz's knee.Miraz grunted, retreated a few steps, and put some distance between himself and Peter.He hastily gave Sopy a look, signaling him to shoot an arrow immediately.But the general, holding the crossbow, showed no change in expression and made no move.Miraz didn't know if he genuinely didn't see it or was pretending not to, and roared in anger, raising his sword and lunging at Peter.In his fury, his combat strength instantly increased, and he quickly suppressed Peter, kicking him to the ground, then stepping heavily on Peter's shield.Peter's left hand was gripping the shield, and Miraz's kick caused excruciating pain in his left arm.Miraz pressed his advantage, hacking down with his sword again and again. Peter could only roll backward to avoid the attacks.After rolling a few times, Peteradvanced instead of retreating, raising his longsword to strike Miraz's shield, and simultaneously tripped him with a kick.Both stood up at the same time, watching each other warily, both panting and exhausted.At this moment, Edmund rushed over; he had already prepared Caspian."Does Your Majesty need a moment to rest?" Miraz adopted the posture of an elder, his voice sounding full of vigor, but beneath his visor, his face was contorted in pain; the wounds on his leg and back were truly agonizing."Five minutes," Peter said, forcing himself to speak. His arm was also struggling."Three minutes."Both dragged their weary bodies off the platform. Sopespian arranged the chairs, and Sopy also put away the crossbow.Miraz threw his helmet to the ground and fiercely chastised the general, "I don't think you'll let a dangerous situation happen again."The general nodded guiltily, then helped Miraz to the chair and bandaged his wounds.Peter was also helped to sit down by Edmund. He only had an arm injury, so his situation was slightly better than Miraz's."How do you feel?" Edmund asked worriedly."My shoulder feels dislocated.""Let me. I've studied medicine too." Aaron volunteered to step forward and examine him, carefully grasping Peter's left arm. "It might hurt a little."Crack!Peter cried out in pain, but his left arm no longer hurt as much as before."If I die here, what will the family think?" Peter asked, looking at Edmund. "You've always helped me, I really don't know...""You're not dead yet, so don't rush to make your last will and testament," Aaron said, exasperated. "Miraz is much more seriously injured than you.""I'm worried about 'what if'.""There is no 'what if'." Aaron threw open his cloak, revealing a flintlock pistol clearly to both of them."This... you have a fourth gun." Edmund's mouth opened, then he looked at Peter. "It seems your safety really isn't a concern, but I always feel like something's off.We should be the good guys, right? Attacking someone with a hidden weapon is a bit... underhanded."Aaron's mouth twitched. "Are you implying I'm the villain?Then I'll leave and let your brother and Miraz duel to the death.Oh, Peter, you should still make your last will and testament!I don't think the crossbow the general is holding is just for show. It's probably prepared for you. I hope your brother, the good guy, can block his crossbow bolts.""Don't." Edmund hastily stopped Aaron, chuckling, "It was just a joke, please don't take it to heart."Aaron gave Edmund a disdainful look, then pulled out a red Potion bottle and handed it to him.Edmund was about to take it when Aaron, quick as a flash, pulled the Potion bottle back, saying sarcastically, "Surely the righteous King Edmund would want his older brother to fight fairly, wouldn't he? Using Potion to heal injuries isn't fair to Miraz!""At a time like this, who cares about that?" Edmund said anxiously. "Just give me the Potion, I was wrong earlier, okay!"Aaron didn't make it difficult for him and handed over the Potion bottle.After Peter took a small sip, his injuries were completely healed."Good luck, King Peter.Your brother reminded me that I don't consider myself a villain, so I can't bring myself to shoot you in the back in a crisis.So, at most, I can help you block the general's sneak attack, but if you die in a formal duel, I'll... mourn you for a minute."Peter was stunned for a moment, and his gaze towards Edmund held a hint of helplessness.Why couldn't you keep your mouth shut when everything was fine?Now, a situation that was originally a sure win had a bit more suspense.Edmund gave an awkward laugh, also speechless."Oh, and as the brother of a good guy, it's best not to hit someone's injured leg. Winning that way isn't glorious."Upon hearing this, Peter looked at the bandage on Miraz's right leg, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes, but it quickly solidified."You... is it really necessary?" Edmund said, exasperated, reminding him while still subtly mocking him.Aaron patted his shoulder and said earnestly, "You're still young, and it's right to have a sense of justice.But if you had experiences like mine, encountering various insidious villains, you'd know that to deal with bad guys, you have to be even more cunning and sly than them.I'm going up to prepare now. The outcome of this duel can already be seen, but the big battle afterward is hard to say."With that, Aaron turned and walked towards the bunker; a heavy sniper rifle was waiting for him up there.The three minutes quickly passed, and Peter and Miraz stood up from their seats.This time, neither of them wore helmets, opting for lighter gear.They exchanged no words. After stepping onto the platform, they charged at each other.Miraz struck first, swinging his sword with full force from the start. Peter was caught off guard but quickly adjusted.His arm had been reset by Aaron, and he had drunk Lucy's Potion. Aside from some physical exhaustion, his condition was miles better than Miraz's.After a few rounds, he grabbed Miraz's sword, took it from him, and began his formal counterattack.Having lost his weapon, Miraz could only raise his shield in defense.The quality of the King's shield was, of course, beyond doubt. Peter's furious hacking was blocked by him, and even the sword in his hand was knocked away when Miraz found an opportunity.The two began close-quarters combat. Miraz still had a shield in his hand, giving him a slight advantage.Miraz's face was contorted in a ferocious expression. He slammed the shield heavily into Peter's face. As Peter recoiled, he pressed his advantage, landing another punch on Peter's face.A somewhat dizzy Peter saw the black shield pressing down on him. He immediately grabbed the edge of the shield and began to wrestle with Miraz.After a brief stalemate, Peter, holding the shield, spun and flipped behind Miraz.His left hand was twisted, and Miraz let out a scream of pain, immediately using his free right hand to elbow Peter, pushing him back.He flung Peter onto a rock, turned to pick up his sword, and brought it down fiercely on Peter.Peter rolled over to dodge the first sword strike, and the second was blocked by his wrist guard.Seeing Miraz about to bring down a third strike, he immediately grabbed the rising longsword and punched Miraz in the jaw.Bang!Miraz staggered back a step.But before he could create distance, Peter straightened up and punched him on the bandage of his right leg.The intense pain instantly robbed Miraz of his fighting ability. The longsword fell from his hand, and he half-knelt on the ground."Pause," Miraz said.Peter was unmoved, clenching his fist, ready to strike down.Seeing this, Miraz immediately bent the knee of his other leg, his voice now laced with a plea, "Requesting a pause.""This is not the time to show chivalry," Edmund reminded from outside the platform.The Narnians also shouted, urging their King to act quickly and not to be soft-hearted.Peter struggled for a moment, then slowly lowered his right hand and turned to walk towards his seat.Miraz watched his retreating back, a fierce glint in his eyes. He grabbed the longsword on the ground and stood up."Watch out!" Edmund shouted.Feeling the danger from behind, Peterinstinctively bent down, dodging the sweeping sword blade.He quickly turned, and as Miraz lunged at him again, he grabbed the longsword, twisted it with both hands to disarm him, then spun and thrust the longsword in his hand fiercely.Pfft!Miraz felt an intense pain in his abdomen and opened his eyes wide in astonishment.He hadn't expected the sneak attack to fail, and the cost of failure was so heavy, nearly his entire life.Peter pulled out the longsword. Miraz's side abdomen ached again, and he fell to his knees.He looked at Peter, who held the longsword aloft but was slow to strike, and said coldly, "What's wrong, kid?Too timid to strike?""It's not me who should kill you," Peterresponded, then looked at Caspian outside the platform.Caspian immediately understood, took the longsword from Peter's hand, and walked up to Miraz."Perhaps I was wrong. Perhaps you are the true King of the Telmarines," Miraz said sincerely, then closed his eyes, quietly awaiting his death.Looking at his father's murderer, Caspian roared and thrust the sword down fiercely.Clang!The longsword plunged into the ground. Miraz heard the sound and opened his eyes in bewilderment."I will never be like you," Caspian said. "I don't want your life, but I will return Narnia to the Narnians.Also, I want to remind you that your throne is not secure. Sopespian and the others have been watching coldly from behind, with no intention of helping you at all."With that, Caspian turned and left, and the victorious Narnians erupted in deafening cheers.Sopespian quickly walked over and helped the kneeling Miraz to his feet, "My King.""I'll settle the score with you after everything is over." Miraz glared fiercely at the smirking Sopespian. He wasn't a fool; a fool couldn't have successfully assassinated his brother and usurped the throne.He had felt something was off yesterday, and with Caspian's reminder, he was 100% certain that Sopespian had designs on his throne, and General Sopy and some other generals had probably secretly joined his ranks.
