Chapter 2076 – 2076. The Fallen Empire
“How dare you insult me?! I challenge you to a duel, you goblin-like bastard!”
The sudden outburst drew everyone’s attention. Cotton flinched but then shouted back in an angry voice.
“You impudent fool! Do you think I’m afraid of a duel?!”
Duels between knights were common in the Empire, so no one tried to stop us. Everyone watched with interest, even Count Morck.
A dueling arena was quickly created. The center of the banquet hall was cleared into a circle.
Before the duel began, Count Morck spoke to both of us.
“War is just around the corner. I have no intention of disrespecting your duel… but I hope you’ll keep it moderate. It is forbidden to take the opponent’s life or inflict serious injuries such as cutting off limbs.”
I frowned. My plan to kill that Cotton guy fairly in a duel was thwarted from the start.
“Your Excellency. That’s not a duel, it’s a sparring match.”
“Sir Daycart, please understand me.”
“If rumors spread that I had a sparring match instead of a duel, my honor will be tarnished.”
“That won’t happen. I guarantee this duel in my name. That it was an honorable duel. Don’t you all think so?”
Count Morck asked the people gathered around. Of course, their answers were predetermined.
“As Your Excellency Count says.”
“This duel is honorable. We acknowledge it.”
With the situation unfolding like this, there was nothing I could do. I looked at Cotton. He seemed to know the value of his life and was quietly preparing for the duel.
‘I guess I have no choice.’
I clicked my tongue inwardly and, with the help of the servants, put on my armor. I held my longsword in my hand. Cotton held a large greatsword in both hands, which was disproportionate to his small stature.
“Let the duel between Sir Cotton and Sir Daycart begin!”
“Waaaaaaah!”
Amidst the cheers of the crowd, Cotton and I simultaneously leaped towards each other.
Clang!
The clash of sword and greatsword sent out a shockwave. It was heavier than I expected.
‘He not only infused his sword with mana… but his physical training is also considerable. I never thought he could withstand my strength like this.’
My physical abilities are slightly below the average of an A-rank hunter. That means the little knight in front of me is on par with an A-rank hunter in terms of strength alone.
He was much stronger than I thought.
‘What about his swordsmanship?’
I walked forward while our swords were still locked. Distance was very important in any battle. Especially with swords, being too close wasn’t always advantageous. If you were too close, there wouldn’t be enough space to swing the sword. This was even more true for greatswords.
Cotton seemed to have immediately grasped my intention, as he kicked off the ground and retreated to create distance. His movement was quite strange. It felt like he moved his body using the greatsword as an axis.
I immediately closed the distance and swung my sword.
Cotton was busy defending against the continuous sword strikes. Even though his strength was somewhat equal to mine, he couldn’t keep up with my speed.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
“To push Sir Cotton back with sheer force… impressive. Is that a greatsword disguised as a longsword?”
“It’s not just his strength, look at his swordsmanship. There are no gaps. He has reached a high level with swordsmanship alone. A knight with both strength and skill… impressive. I don’t know why he hasn’t been knighted yet.”
“Sir, hasn’t the outcome of the duel already been decided? Sir Daycart is completely dominating, so why hasn’t the duel ended?”
“You fool. That’s why you can’t escape being a squire. Neither of them has used their full power yet. They haven’t even used their sword aura. Oh, Sir Cotton’s aura has changed. Is he planning to use his secret technique? Keep your eyes wide open from now on. Sir Cotton’s secret technique is not something you see often.”
“Secret technique…”
“Yes. A knight without a secret technique cannot be called a knight.”
“Kuaaaaaaaah!”
Cotton let out a roar. Mana erupted from his body. I had no choice but to step back, swept away by the mana. A red sword aura flickered like a mirage on Cotton’s greatsword. But my gaze was not on the greatsword, but on his left shoulder.
A long third arm had sprouted from his left shoulder. Cotton’s third arm pulled out a longsword from his waist. Red sword aura also flickered on that sword.
“Sir Daycart! I admit it! You are an excellent knight! Try to block my secret technique!”
Cotton charged. A greatsword in both hands and a longsword in his third hand. Looking at his stance, it was well-organized. He was definitely not charging recklessly. Instead of being surprised by Cotton’s bull-like momentum, I stepped forward.
[Using Momentary Flash. Remaining stacks: 11]
Cotton couldn’t react immediately to my increased speed.
I used my sword, enveloped in blue sword aura, to deflect Cotton’s greatsword. Cotton’s greatsword and my sword were simultaneously raised above our heads.
Cotton’s third hand moved. I covered my left gauntlet with blue sword aura and blocked the sword.
Then, using my left leg as an axis, I put strength into my right leg. Crackle. Lightning gathered on my right foot.
[Using Momentary Flash. Remaining stacks: 10]
A blazing roundhouse kick! My right foot struck Cotton’s abdomen accurately.
“Cough!”
Cotton flew backward and crashed to the ground. He twitched and then stopped, as if he had fainted. It was a blow that could have killed him if he hadn’t been wearing armor.
Count Morck immediately intervened and declared.
“The winner of the duel is Sir Daycart!”
Clap clap clap clap!
Everyone applauded.
“I heard Sir Daycart was arrogant… but there was a valid reason for his arrogance.”
“Sir Daycart suddenly became faster. It must have been a secret technique.”
“Didn’t sparks fly from his foot when he did that roundhouse kick? Was that magic?”
“You fool! Can’t you distinguish between magic and a knight’s secret technique?! There’s no rule that a knight can only have one secret technique! Oh, just in case, let me tell you. Don’t ask a knight about their secret technique. That’s as incredibly rude as insulting their parents to their face!”
The unconscious Cotton was taken to the infirmary, and the banquet continued. Instead of being dampened by the duel, the atmosphere became even more lively.
Knights who couldn’t fight directly made their squires fight.
“Don’t lose. The moment you lose, you’re no longer my squire!”
“As my squire, offer me victory!”
“Is that all you can do with a sword?! I didn’t teach you that way!”
“Fight! If you truly want to become a knight, don’t fear death!”
The banquet became more violent as time passed. The floor was stained red with the blood spilled by the squires, and just as I was getting annoyed by the vibrating stench of blood and alcohol, Count Morck stepped forward.
“Let’s end the banquet here. Keep in mind that the war is not far away, and get some rest today.”
And so, the banquet ended at dawn.
• • •
The next day at noon, I met Cotton. Cotton had come to find me. He didn’t come alone. He came with a young woman. She was quite beautiful, but she didn’t look like a prostitute.
“What’s the matter? Couldn’t you accept the result?”
“No, Sir Daycart! I came to apologize for my rudeness yesterday!”
Cotton immediately bowed.
“I thought you were a fraud. A knight without a knighthood. I thought you were a knight pretending to be a knight. But through the duel, I realized I was wrong. You are a knight among knights, even without a knighthood! A knighthood is not important to a true knight! Please forgive my rudeness yesterday!”
It was unexpected. I never thought he would come to apologize so quickly.
“Anyone can make a verbal apology. Did His Excellency the Count order you to do this?”
“No. His Excellency the Count didn’t say anything to me. And it’s not just a verbal apology. I heard from my fellow knights that you like women.”
“It’s natural for a man to like women.”
“That’s right. So, as a token of my apology, I brought my concubine. I’ll lend her to you for about a week, so feel free to do as you please.”
“……?”
For a moment, I didn’t understand what Cotton was saying. So, he was going to lend me his concubine next to him so I could do whatever I wanted with her?
“……Are you sure it’s okay to lend me your concubine?”
“She’s not my main wife, so it doesn’t matter. She’s a former slave, so there’s no problem with the aftermath. If you get tired of her, you can throw her away and replace her with another slave.”
“…….”
The woman’s expression was dark. The fact that she couldn’t say a word meant she understood her situation well.
“Ahem. Sir Cotton, I accept your apology. You are a knight who knows loyalty.”
“Haha. Thank you for accepting my apology! Have a good time. Ah, please don’t break her. Even though she looks like this, she was hard to find.”
“Don’t worry. I’m a gentle man in bed.”
“Hahahaha. Have a good time!”
Cotton really did leave his concubine with me and left. I took her into my room. The bed creaked.
“Haaah!”
Listening to the woman’s moans, I thought. The Empire is a pretty good place.
• • •
A few days later, uninvited guests came to Count Morck’s territory.
Park Suho, the mayor of Veroprin, came with the mediators of the territorial war between the Empire and the Republic. Considering the distance from Veroprin, it seemed they had used teleportation magic to arrive so quickly.
The knights, including myself, greeted them with Count Morck.
Park Suho didn’t even glance at me. He only glared at Count Morck as if he wanted to kill him. Count Morck also glared at Park Suho with murderous eyes.
“I’ll get straight to the point. Let’s postpone the territorial war by two weeks.”
“Do you think I have to listen just because you came here and blurted that out?”
“Hundreds of soldiers have died because someone poisoned the well. Moreover, the poison has contaminated the water supply used by ordinary citizens. We need time to purify the well.”
“So why should I listen to that? Isn’t that your problem? Are you perhaps afraid of losing the territorial war?”
“The citizens of Veroprin suspect you of poisoning the well. If you accept my proposal, that suspicion will disappear.”
“You impudent fool! How dare you disregard our honor! We are not as petty as you! Poison the well? Why would we? Even if we didn’t do such a thing, we would still win this territorial war! And you. If you are the ruler of the city, don’t act rashly over the deaths of a few hundred soldiers! It diminishes the dignity of a ruler!”
“A few hundred?! They all trusted me and decided to take up arms for me! They didn’t become soldiers to die in vain from poison!!”
Park Suho exploded with anger.
“How dare you raise your voice here! Are you trying to kill me, not satisfied with killing my son!”
Count Morck also became furious.
Clank. Swish.
The knights drew their swords at once. Except for me. I rolled my eyes around, observing the situation, and then drew my sword a beat late.
A tense, volatile situation.
“Please calm down, both of you.”
“Count Morck. Do not forget the rules of the territorial war.”
The mediators from the Solit Republic and the Empire intervened.
