Could've eked out a win with the right spell.
Well, then I am at a loss.
This is a world that takes inspiration from JRPGs and their mechanics, with superheroes, ranks and all that. At least, that's what comes to mind first, with a single Overlord thwarting a team of 70 trained soldiers single-handedly while simultaneously covering for two kids.
Stats mean so much in this world - a character with a B rank can kill nigh infinite hordes of F mooks - that they seem to be a solid indicator of what one can and can't do, and vice versa - one's position in the pecking order could give us a good hint as to what their stats are.
So when they are talking about knights, and the best there are in the kingdom, too, I imagine someone of D rank at least. If it's someone who is the best of the best, I would place them at C. Elite mooks - like the paladins that fought us in Erise - could be Es, with the regular soldiers as Fs. That's more or less how I see the hierarchy of physical power in the setting.
When the numbers for the spells were shown (which, I know, is not 'canon' and is not supposed to be used as an argument in any way), each rank was 4 times better than the previous one. This somewhat ties in with the quality of the spells - we can summon 10 times more rank F wolves than rank D tigers, yet the tigers are supposed to be more effective (higher tier spell), making them better than 10 wolves. The rough math holds (D creatue ~ 16 F creatures).
Now, Arlin has his fighting skills firmly in mid-Fs, maybe in low-Es with a few buffs. And I would place Wisteria somewhere about D - she as a fighter seems to take about the same spot that Elmont does as a mage - and that one can cast rank C spells. There was just no way I could make myself believe that a kid who only took a sword in his hands a month ago could have beaten a seasoned warrior even with a moderate increase to raw stats. For me, their duel was not about quantity, but about quality - changing the game entirely rather than slightly modifying it. Being invulnerable for a brief instance, for example, would do it - an opponent would strike hoping to finish it in one move, and expose themselves, not expecting a retaliation. Being more sturdy, with, say the Mage's armor... I am unsure how much help it would have been.
Of course, that's not how it works in real life, where even a David can defeat a Goliath, but I didn't think - and am still not sure, to be honest - that the setting follows the same conventions. If one takes on someone two ranks above them, they'd better have a trick up their sleeve, artefacts up the wazoo, or a good party to have a prayer in hell.
