“What kind of damned situation is this?”
Steam seemed to rise from Mirt’s anger. His opponent had not allowed him a single proper attack until now. Never had he encountered anything like this. It took two hands to make a clap. Since his opponent refused to attack at all and focused solely on defense, there was no way for Mirt’s own attacks to gain any real momentum.
His opponent had not attempted to attack even once. Mirt had deliberately exposed openings several times, but the other man was more seasoned than he had expected. Since he refused to be drawn in, Mirt was left with no recourse. It was truly enough to leave him dumbfounded.
‘Does he mean to end this by defending the whole time?’
Though it looked as if he were unleashing attacks in a frenzy, Mirt was in fact paying meticulous attention to his defense. Since he could not afford to lose before the king, he had focused more on defense than offense. But his opponent’s defense was so solid that the attacks he had painstakingly launched had only ended up draining his own strength...
Determined to bring his opponent down somehow, Mirt caught his breath and prepared to attack once more. Never had he resented holding a wooden sword in his hand as much as he did at that moment. At the very least, in terms of pure swordsmanship, his opponent did not fall behind him in the slightest.
‘If only I could draw up an Aura Blade, I would split him in two with a single stroke...’
‘Now.’
Gerald’s eyes flashed for an instant. Just as his opponent was about to begin his attack, he had found the opening he had been waiting for. Of course, it was not that he had failed to find openings until now. But Gerald had quickly given up on attacking them. It was because of the experience he had gained from clashing with the Death Knights.
Realizing that the openings had been deliberately exposed, Gerald had refused to be drawn in and continued to focus on defense. And at last, he had discerned the moment to attack. Once he identified the opening, Gerald began his attack without hesitation.
“Gah.”
When his opponent’s sword slipped in and artfully cut off the flow of his attack, Mirt was horrified. To think he would discover and exploit an opening so exquisitely that even Mirt himself had not been aware of it... But there was no time to think. Mirt’s body was already moving almost by instinct.
Whoosh.
He managed to turn his body and avoid the attack. But his posture inevitably crumbled, and seizing that moment, Gerald’s attacks poured in like a flood. It was the terrifying chain assault that had even left Krovitz at a loss. Like Albert not long ago, Mirt had no choice but to focus frantically on defense. But he had no leisure to worry about his posture as it continued to collapse.
“How can this be...?”
King Tezeros sprang up from his seat. It was all well and good that the Duke Knight, who had been focusing solely on defense, had gone on the offensive, but the problem was that his own knight was being beaten one-sidedly. The fact that one side was being attacked unilaterally was no different from earlier, but the problem lay in the process.
His own knight was blocking the attacks with such difficulty that anyone could tell at a glance he was staggering. His body looked as if it might topple over at any moment, and his stance had already completely fallen apart. In short, he was being overwhelmingly pushed back.
‘No. He has to win.’
King Tezeros watched the duel anxiously, unable to tear his eyes away. But unlike the king, the captain of the Tezeros Royal Guard Knights was frantically observing the swordsmanship used by the Duke Knight. At first, even he could not understand why the Sword Master under his command was being pushed back.
As the one who had recommended Mirt to the king, he knew his subordinate’s ability better than anyone. But before long, he was able to understand the reason. Exclamations repeatedly escaped through his lips.
“To think such swordsmanship exists in this world... Amazing. Truly amazing.”
Duels between knights had their own fixed forms and rules. The swordsmanship used by knights had long ago been standardized into the most efficient methods. Thus, it rarely strayed from its framework. But the swordsmanship of the Duke Knight currently engaged in the duel was utterly shattering that framework. It was unconventional, entirely unstandardized, and yet its level of completion as swordsmanship appeared extraordinarily high. No wonder Mirt, a Sword Master, was being one-sidedly overwhelmed.
“His footwork and reflexes are by no means inferior to Mirt’s. It is astonishing that such a man has yet to become a Master.”
The captain of the Tezeros Royal Guard Knights was now deeply admiring a knight from another country.
Gerald, who had been fighting furiously, suddenly came to his senses.
‘Right, he told me to end it in moderation, didn’t he?’
The outcome had nearly been decided. Because of the attack he had just launched, the defensive movements of the Tezeros knight had completely collapsed. His opponent, staggering as if drunk, would surely fall if Gerald so much as pushed him lightly. Moreover, Gerald still had forms remaining in his chain assault. Though he seemed slightly more skilled than Albert, he was still no match for the Left-Hand Sword Technique. Deciding that this was where he should end it, Gerald withdrew his sword and smoothly stepped back. This much was enough to prove the standing of the Duke Knights.
‘Th-thank goodness.’
When his opponent withdrew his attack and retreated, Mirt quickly regained his stance, as if relieved. He felt as though he had fallen from a thousand-foot cliff and barely managed to grab hold of a tree branch. He had already acknowledged the fact that he had lost. If his opponent had not withdrawn his attack, there was a nine out of ten chance he would have fallen in an unsightly heap. But his opponent had shown mercy at the final moment, and Mirt had barely been able to come back from the brink. After finally catching his breath, Mirt cast a grateful look at his opponent.
‘Thank you, truly.’
If he had lost... As Mirt thought about it, he felt chills run down his spine. A Sword Master defeated by a Paladin. Had that happened, his life would have been over that very day. His family’s honor, too, would surely have fallen into utter disgrace, so Mirt gripped the hilt of his sword tightly and clenched his teeth.
‘What truly astonishing swordsmanship. But now that I have grasped his sword path to some extent, I will not be beaten so helplessly as before.’
Without a word, Mirt burned with fighting spirit as he waited for his opponent to take his stance. He, too, was a Sword Master possessing outstanding skill. He was not the sort to fall for the same attack twice. In his mind, several methods for blocking his opponent’s strange and incisive attacks had already surfaced. They were methods he had devised based on the experience of having suffered through them once. Unfortunately, however, there would be no rematch.
“Will you continue?”
At Krovitz’s question, King Tezeros shook his head as if he had been burned.
“No. Let us stop here. This is enough.”
The only thought in his mind was that he had to stop the duel. His faith in his own knight had already vanished without a trace. He had sufficiently witnessed the Duke Knight’s ability. The small-statured Duke Knight possessed truly astonishing swordsmanship.
Since he had pushed back his own Sword Master so overwhelmingly, there was no room for doubt. If the Duke Knight had not held back, the victor would already have been decided. King Tezeros honestly had no desire to continue the duel and suffer the taste of humiliation.
Moreover, this was a duel in which victory would bring them nothing more than what they had already had. If a Paladin lost in a duel against a Sword Master, there would be nothing shameful about it. But if, conversely, the Sword Master lost... If such a thing occurred, the prestige of the Tezeros Royal Guard Knights would surely fall into miserable disgrace, so the king resolved, for the time being, to stop the duel.
“I have seen enough of your knight’s ability. I do not think there is any need to see more.”
At those words, Krovitz wore a deep smile. He had already anticipated this situation quite well.
Bam-ba-ra-bam.
When the trumpet sounded to announce the end of the duel, Mirt wore a stunned expression. If they fought again, he was confident he would not show such a disgraceful sight as before, yet the duel had suddenly ended. He looked toward the platform with regretful eyes. His gaze was filled with longing, asking to be allowed to fight again. But the captain of the Royal Guard Knights ignored his request with a cold look.
“The duel has been concluded as a draw. You both worked hard.”
At his words, Mirt’s shoulders drooped. The way to restore his fallen dignity had completely disappeared. As if there were nothing he could do, he looked at Gerald.
“Your swordsmanship was truly astonishing. I sincerely admire it.”
“You flatter me. Rather, I was the one hard-pressed.”
Mirt looked at Gerald with a certain longing in his eyes.
“If the opportunity comes someday, would you grant me another chance to cross swords with you? I wish to fight you once without any ulterior motives.”
Gerald quietly met Mirt’s gaze.
“If the opportunity comes, I would be glad to.”
“Thank you.”
After giving a bow, Mirt walked away listlessly. Watching his retreating back, Gerald silently gathered his equipment.
The duel between the Duke Knight and the Tezeros Royal Guard knight was decided as a draw. But the knights who had watched knew well who had held the advantage. Though the victor had not been decided, the duel had clearly favored the Duke Knight.
As a result, proud satisfaction filled the eyes of the Duke Knights, while the faces of the Tezeros knights were filled with blank dismay. The two knights who had fought approached the platform where King Tezeros sat, according to the prescribed procedure. It was to receive the praise of King Tezeros. However, King Tezeros’s attention was, without question, fixed on Gerald.
“Your swordsmanship was truly extraordinary. Did you create that swordsmanship yourself?”
Gerald’s face flushed for an instant, but recalling Damon’s request, he did not deny it.
“That is so, Your Majesty.”
“Ohh. Astonishing. To think you created such powerful swordsmanship yourself...”
Krovitz, who was sitting beside him, added a word.
“Your Majesty. He created his own original swordsmanship in order to overcome his disadvantageous physical weakness. If that swordsmanship is learned, even left-handed people will be more than capable of becoming knights in the future.”
“So it would seem.”
King Tezeros wore a look that suggested he found it plausible. In truth, it was practically regarded as impossible for a left-handed person to enter a knight order. Of course, it might be possible if they learned to use their right hand, but a person’s habits were not so easily changed. Hearing that Gerald had personally created such powerful swordsmanship, King Tezeros felt considerable goodwill toward him.
“Then, where are you from?”
“I am ashamed to say it, but I was born in Tezeros.”
At Gerald’s answer that followed, King Tezeros looked regretful. It could not help but be a pity that such an outstanding young man of his own country had become a knight not of Tezeros, but of another nation. In his heart, he wanted to make him a Royal Guard knight of Tezeros by force if necessary, but the king knew well that this was impossible from the beginning.
Once a knight had sworn an oath, he could never transfer to another country’s knight order unless his affiliated order agreed. Moreover, there was no way the Duke Knights would willingly give up such an excellent knight.
‘What a pity. To think we let such an outstanding knight be taken by the Duke Knights while our eyes were wide open...’
The words asking how he had become a Duke Knight instead of a knight of Tezeros rose to his throat, but the king could not bring himself to say them. It was something he dared not utter in front of the commander of the Duke Knights. With a sigh, the king had to fabricate words he did not truly mean.
“As a man of Tezeros, you have become a Duke Knight and raised the standing of your homeland. I cannot contain my joy. For showing such outstanding swordsmanship, I wish to grant you a small reward.”
When the king turned his head and gestured, one of the palace ministers came running.
“Bestow one hundred gold upon that Duke Knight. It is compensation for showing Us such fine left-handed swordsmanship.”
“As you command, Your Majesty.”
King Tezeros quietly turned his head to the side. It was a wordless question asking whether it was all right to grant the reward. Since Gerald was nominally a knight of another country, it was a procedure that had to be followed. Receiving that gaze, Krovitz smiled and looked at Gerald.
“What are you doing? Pay your respects to His Majesty the King, who has bestowed such great grace upon you.”
Gerald bowed respectfully. Fortunately, on the way here, he had received basic etiquette instruction from his squad leader, Fadien, so he was able to return thanks without violating propriety.
“I scarcely know what to do with myself before Your Majesty’s grace, vast as the sea.”
King Tezeros nodded silently and quietly rose.
“Let us return to the palace.”
But the king did not so much as glance at Mirt, the Royal Guard knight standing beside Gerald. Poor Mirt could only stand there helplessly, at a loss for what to do.