Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Rise in Status (4)
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Chapter 7
The first day of travel passed without incident.
Whether those called the Dragon Shadow had completely given up on kidnapping Arietta, or whether they were avoiding action within the Western Border Guard's sphere of influence after one failure, was impossible to know. In any case, with nothing happening all day, Azel inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
The group, who had camped by the roadside for lunch, arrived at a nearby small city by evening. Arietta didn't reveal her identity, but anyone could tell at a glance that they were a high-status party, so they passed through the gates without issue.
After securing relatively luxurious lodgings, Azel asked,
"Will you not inform the lord?"
"I plan to. If I do, the journey will definitely be delayed."
If the Dragon Princess revealed her status, the lord would have no choice but to host and entertain her. It wouldn't end with just an overnight stay; various tedious events would be arranged.
That was the custom of noble society—unless there was an extremely urgent reason, there was no pretext to refuse. Thus, Arietta chose to hurry along without revealing her identity.
Arietta said,
"Then I should wash up and rest a bit."
"I need to spar with Sir Zail for a while."
"Spar?"
Arietta asked, puzzled. She couldn't grasp what that phrasing implied.
Azel answered,
"We agreed to a match."
"Oh."
Arietta showed interest. Though her innate mana as a Dragon Demon Hybrid stood out, she too had trained in swordsmanship and various martial arts since childhood, making her a seasoned warrior.
"May I watch?"
"It doesn't matter to me. Sir Zail might feel a bit pressured, though."
"He's a knight, so he would surely consider my observation an honor—of course, and seize it as an opportunity."
"Hmm? It works out that way, huh."
Appealing one's skills to the Dragon Princess Arietta could lead to advancement. Arietta fully understood the significance of her position.
Arietta said,
"Besides, since the commander personally recommended you, I'd like to see your skills. And you're still such a young man..."
"......"
"Why look at me like that?"
"No, it's just... hearing Your Highness call Sir Zail 'young' feels incredibly out of place."
Arietta was a 17-year-old girl, while Zail, though young for a knight or soldier, was 19. Hearing her say that was bound to feel off.
Arietta gave a wry smile.
"It might sound that way. But when I judge people's ages, I compare them to my own less often than not."
"I suppose so."
"Sir Azel, what do you think?"
"Of Sir Zail's skills?"
"Yes."
"They won't fall short compared to Sir Boer. I can't say for sure about real combat, but purely as a Spirit Order practitioner."
"I thought he had considerable mana. An astonishing achievement for his age."
"And hearing that from Your Highness makes it all the more..."
"Quibbling at every word would be insolence worthy of a reprimand in the royal palace."
"Even now, I feel a piercing gaze from the side."
At Arietta's laughing remark, Azel glanced sideways.
Enora was glaring daggers, practically bursting to say something. Had Arietta not seemed unconcerned, she would have surely spoken up.
Arietta said,
"I'm not a Spirit Order practitioner myself, but..."
As a Dragon Demon Hybrid, she couldn't become one. Spirit Order was fundamentally a technique humans created for humans.
However, Dragon Demon mana wasn't used solely as a base for magic. Among Dragonkin and Dragon Demon Hybrids, the technique called Dragon Spirit Art—which could be seen as the progenitor of Spirit Order—was passed down: something more instinctive and sensory than magic.
Arietta was a Dragon Spirit Art practitioner. That was why she often channeled her Dragon Demon mana through spirit chants in battle.
"I've seen many Spirit Order practitioners around me, so I have some eye for gauging their skills. At Sir Zail's age, achieving that level is rare even in my memory. I've never heard of the Vince viscount family, but they must have raised their child well."
"So Sir Zail's family isn't well-known."
"Not to me, at least. There are noble houses as numerous as grains of sand, so unless there's a connection or they're particularly renowned, you wouldn't know them."
"I see..."
How many things did someone of Arietta's stature need to remember? If the Dragon Princess remembered a house, it meant they were famous or significant to the royal family.
Hearing that explained why Zail, born to nobility and knighted, served as a soldier in the Western Border Guard. If his family's status wasn't high and he lacked connections, no matter his skill, securing a proper position was difficult.
Arietta said,
"Then let's go watch. Where do you plan to do it?"
"This inn has a garden in the back."
Azel headed to the garden with Arietta and Enora. Zail, already there, was startled.
"Your Highness?"
"I heard you two are sparring."
"Th-that's true, but..."
"I want to see the skills the commander praised. Can you show me?"
At Arietta's question, Zail's flustered expression hardened. His eyes changed as he said,
"Gladly."
That attitude surprised Azel a bit.
'He has ambition after all?'
The Zail Azel knew wasn't obsessed with promotion or power. Even in the Western Border Guard, he never asserted authority over someone like Azel of unknown origins, and today he showed no resentment toward Sir Boer constantly trying to take the lead.
For such a man to show eager eyes at Arietta's mere interest in his skills was odd.
'He wants to, but his personality kept him holding back?'
That could be it. Azel had seen many who were proactive on the battlefield and craved recognition for their skills but were clumsy at self-promotion or building connections for advancement.
As Azel watched with interest, Zail said,
"Azel—no, Sir Azel. May we change the plan a bit?"
"How so?"
Azel had dropped formal speech with Zail right after his own knighting. It was courtesy due to status, but otherwise unnecessary.
Instead, he'd told Zail to drop honorifics and treat him casually. Surprisingly, Zail adapted flexibly to the change.
Zail said,
"A full demonstration match."
"Very well. But to avoid damaging the surroundings, no techniques with major physical impact."
"Understood."
The two faced each other, swords drawn.
5
Watching Zail more serious than ever, Azel pondered.
'What to do?'
Zail still didn't know Azel's true skill. Azel had been holding back accordingly.
But Arietta knew Azel's abilities. She likely had more information on him than anyone in the current era.
'Can't do it halfway.'
After a moment's thought, Azel decided. But crushing Zail outright by going full force right away felt excessive, so he opted to heighten his alertness first.
"Sir Zail. I'll take the initiative."
"That's rare."
Zail was puzzled. In spars with Azel, Azel preferred waiting and countering; he rarely struck first. It stemmed from the impression Azel had given him: 'lacking mana.'
Of course, Azel's mana was still insufficient now. He'd rapidly digested the power absorbed via the Dragon Slaying Ritual, completing Dual Banding up to his second Life Ring and starting on the third, but compared to his prime, it was a drop in the bucket.
Even so, it was worlds apart from days ago. Not just the quantity of accumulated mana, but the efficiency had changed. Amplifying 1 unit of mana through one Life Ring versus two made a huge difference. With Dual Banding complete, the gap widened further.
And when wielded by someone as skilled as Azel, it went without saying.
Seeing Azel's eyes, Zail shivered.
'What is this?'
Never felt anything like it in all their spars. He acknowledged Azel's superior Spirit Order techniques, but this pressure—like being sliced just by facing him—was new.
Tzzt!
In the next instant, a blade slashed past Zail.
'Got me...?'
Zail instinctively felt he'd been cut. Without warning, a blade had emerged, precisely slicing him.
Yet reflexively, he backstepped while swinging his sword.
Clang!
Swords clashed, ringing sharply.
The sound snapped Zail back to reality. He gasped.
"...What was that?"
"As expected, Sir Zail has sharp senses. And whoever your teacher was, they trained you thoroughly. Extremely so."
Azel smiled before him. Seeing that relaxed grin, cold sweat dripped down Zail's face.
In combat, people predict foes' moves via sight, expression, breath, shoulder twitches— all sensory input fuels insight.
Thus, the skilled naturally disrupt that: feinting with bluffs, honing techniques to hide cues, minimizing tells to rob reaction time.
But Azel's attack just now... truly no prelude.
'He didn't move. No— he thrust after.'
Zail recalled the moment.
They'd been lightly probing with shallow mana extensions. Suddenly, Azel tempered his mana into a psychic thread that manifested in Zail's domain's center as a blade illusion, slashing him.
Then Azel lunged with a real thrust.
Zail blocking it was luck. Without family training in separating mind and body for defense, he'd have fallen in one strike.
Zail said,
"...Impressive. Even my father never showed such a technique. I really thought I'd been cut. Unless it's a mage's illusion magic, how is this possible?"
Azel replied like a teacher instructing a student.
"Spirit Order is the art of wielding the mind. Martial arts train the body, hone techniques, and temper the spirit. But Spirit Order reverses it: train the mind to sense and move mana, learn to apply it, then impose on the body."
"So mastering mind-wielding arts enables this?"
"Yes."
Hence the name Spirit Order. Evolved from Dragonkin and Dragon Demon Hybrids' Dragon Spirit Art into 'intuitive, sensory magic wielded through the body'—another form of magic.
Azel wondered.
'Techniques for handling mana and applying to the body aren't behind my era. Some aspects are even superior. That defense just now wasn't fluke; it's trained, established technique.'
Yet mind-wielding techniques were laughably primitive. Zail's inexperience?
'No.'
Recent events suggested otherwise. The enemy horde hadn't hidden intent during their ambush, yet allies failed to read it.
Still, Zail's mental defenses were advanced—not proactive, but a brute-force constant mental fortress. Its sturdiness was praiseworthy.
Just that techniques affecting others' minds seemed particularly lost. Considering Spirit Order's origins, utterly ridiculous.