I’m Just a Background Character, But I Used to Be a Delinquent, So Why Are the Girls Falling for Me?!

The next morning, I didn’t go to the private yard where Vara used to train me.

Instead, I walked straight to the main training fields, the same place where the other knights trained every day. Just like Vara said. Starting today, I trained here with the rest. She had already taught me everything she knew. What I needed now wasn’t more lessons, but real space and real eyes watching.

I took a simple wooden sword from the rack and stepped onto the field.

The knights barely noticed me at first.

But my cousins did.

Darren and Elias often stood at the edge of the field, watching.

The first day, they laughed. Elias pointed at my stance, mocking the way I held my sword.

One week later, the laughter stopped.

I wasn’t fighting anyone just practicing quick drills over and over. A young knight accidentally bumped into me, clearly expecting me to fall. I didn’t. I held my ground without effort. Darren frowned.

Two weeks later, I was practicing complex footwork. I was fast. My movements weren’t as clean as the trained knights, but they were sharp, hard to read and harder to hit.

“Look at him,” I overheard Elias mutter to Darren. “He’s actually… improved. He’s not shaking.”

“He’s copying,” Darren snapped, hate thick in his voice. “He’s just memorized moves. He’s still trash.”

But I was no longer the loser.

One afternoon, a tall, handsome knight named Sir Jalen was watching me. He was known for his loyalty to Darren and for trying to impress him whenever he could. He carried an expensive wooden sword and wore an arrogant smile.

Jalen walked straight toward me.

“Hey, little Lord Callen,” he called out loudly. “You’re getting quick. Why don’t you try that speed against a real fighter? Or are you too scared now that you don’t have a fountain to fall into?”

Darren and Elias looked pleased. This was their chance to humiliate me in front of everyone.

“I accept,” I said calmly, dropping into the low stance Vara had drilled into me.

The field fell unusually quiet that afternoon. Not a single sword clashed, not a single shout pierced the air, until Jalen stepped forward.

He raised his wooden sword with a confident grin and called for a training duel, the kind meant to test skill rather than settle grudges. The word spread instantly. Knights paused mid-drill, eyes narrowing in curiosity. Others set aside their own wooden swords, forming a loose circle around us. Some whispered, some laughed quietly, daring each other to make predictions.

“Against young master callen?” someone murmured, disbelief clear in their voice.

Even at the edge of the circle, I could feel the weight of dozens of eyes on me. The air was thick with expectation, tension, and the faint scent of sweat from the previous drills. This wasn’t just a fight. It was a performance, a spectacle. Everyone wanted to see whether the young master Callen would crumble or prove himself.

Darren and Elias lingered near the edge of the field. Their smiles were sharp and confident, the kind that promised nothing but mockery. Darren’s eyes flicked between me and Jalen, calculating, waiting for the perfect moment to laugh at my inevitable failure. Elias elbowed him lightly, whispering something I didn’t catch, but their excitement was obvious.

Jalen rolled his shoulders theatrically, letting the circle of spectators get a good look at his lean muscles and expensive sword. His confidence radiated in waves. “Let’s make this quick,” he called, his voice carrying across the field. “I wouldn’t want to tire the little lord before he falls.”

I didn’t answer. The sword in my hand felt familiar, steady, perfectly weighted. My legs bent slightly at the knees, finding the stance Vara had drilled into me countless times. Calm. Controlled. Ready.

The crowd murmured again as the distance between Jalen and me closed. Some were whispering bets. Others shook their heads, convinced this would be over in moments. I could hear their whisper

“Did you see how quick he is?”

“He won’t last.”

“Jalen!.”

I tuned it all out. The murmurs, the bets, the doubts. All that mattered was the next move the swing, the stance, the timing.

Jalen grinned one last time, then lunged. His first strike was a massive, overhead swing meant to crush. It wasn’t just fast it was arrogant, full of force, assuming I would stumble.

And that’s when the duel began.

Jalen laughed and attacked instantly, swinging overhead with crushing force.

I didn’t block.

Instead, I followed Vara’s first rule, dodge.

I stepped cleanly to the side, his powerful swing rushing past my ear. His own momentum pulled him forward. Jalen grunted in surprise and came at me again, faster this time.

I parried using only the thick hilt of my sword, letting the force slide away, then slipped inside his reach.

Jalen was strong, but I wasn’t fighting fair or pretty.

I slammed my shoulder into his arm, just enough to break his balance. In that single opening, I twisted my sword and drove the hard wooden handle of my swords straight into his chest.

CLACK!

Jalen shouted and dropped his sword. It hit the dirt with a heavy thud.

The training field fell silent.

To be continued…