Chapter 23. Giving the Braggart Knight a Real Lesson (1)
The three knights who served Renes were known collectively as the Three Knights. Handpicked by Renes herself, they were the elite of the elite, with skills unmatched anywhere in the city. They truly lived up to their title as the pinnacle, the strongest of all.
Martina took pride in having risen to such a position, but at the same time, she felt a twinge of regret that this was as far as she'd climbed. The world saw the Three Knights as equals, but personally, she believed she deserved to be treated as the top among them. Yet her contributions in the territory barely edged out second place, just behind Helia.
She'd volunteered for the monster extermination expedition near the city out of inferiority and impatience toward the one who stood above her.
"Good work on the expedition, Martina. As expected of my favorite knight—your work is always thorough."
In the office after returning from the expedition, Martina met privately with Renes and flashed a confident smile.
"Heh, no big deal. If there's anything else you need done, call me first, ahead of anyone else."
"Hehe, that's what I love about you, Martina—you're so diligent. Petunia could learn a thing or two from you."
Petunia. One of the Three Knights, just like her. But even though they'd reached the same rank, Martina didn't see her as a rival. Petunia was inherently lazy, overconfident in her abilities, and half-assed even Renes's orders. Martina had no time to waste on someone who could get booted from the Three Knights any day for lack of contributions.
'Yeah, the one I need to surpass is still that woman, now and always.'
Helia. That frustrating woman who was always so haughty and obsessed with rules. Her meticulous nature made her handling of tasks superior, giving her a slight edge in contributions. But now that the expedition was done, Martina was sure she could force Helia to acknowledge her and crush that arrogant nose flat.
"By the way, I didn't see Helia on the way here. Do you know where she is?"
"Hehe, still obsessed with Helia, I see. Well, if that rivalry drives you, I suppose I should welcome it."
Such blatant fixation was nothing to Renes. But what came next seriously ruffled Martina's feathers.
"Still, you won't be competing with Helia for a while. She's handling the most important task in the city right now."
"The most important task...?"
Important task? Monster extermination had been the top priority before she left. What the hell had happened in her absence?
"You just got back, so you wouldn't know, but we recently threw a male gladiator into our arena."
"A male gladiator?"
"To revitalize the city, we needed something more stimulating. And this new recruit drew a roaring crowd from his very first match."
A man, who society deemed in need of protection, stirring up the arena? Was it some public gang-rape show with him as the star?
"But Helia couldn't just leave him alone."
No, what mattered to Martina right now wasn't what kind of show the guy put on—it was that her target was involved with him.
"I told her to train him herself if she could... and get this—the male gladiator she trained beat Lennox."
"Lennox? That spoiled brute?"
"He crushed him, right in front of a packed crowd. Sigh~ You should've seen it; you would've been shocked. Now I need to pick his next opponent more carefully..."
Renes smiled in satisfaction, brimming with anticipation for what was next. To Martina, who'd served her for so long, this was unexpected. She'd thought Renes had zero interest in men, yet here she was, pinning real hopes on one.
"Heh, is that so?"
And the one who'd hyped those expectations to the max? None other than Helia. Sensing it instinctively, Martina flashed a sly grin and made Renes a proposal.
"Lord Renes. Mind if I train that male gladiator too?"
If he was as important as Renes thought, she needed to get involved to boost her own contributions.
****
'Not that that's the only reason I came here...'
At the training ground she'd sought him out for, Martina spent a moment sizing up the man standing blankly before her.
He was taller than her, his body a mass of muscle—like a pig made entirely of beef. Nothing like the scrawny, pathetic men she'd seen before. He clearly had some real substance.
'I get why Lord Renes is interested.'
But that was as far as appearances went. Sure, he had standout physical prowess among men, but that alone didn't prove he was anything special. In this society, women held power because they were naturally superior with mana.
'Beating Lennox? Probably Helia taught him some dirty trick.'
Yeah, no way a man beat that savage without cheating. As Martina roughly concluded that, Adrian—facing her—bowed his head tensely in greeting.
"Ah, you're Martina, right? What brings you here?"
"Mm~ Heard the rumors about you and came to check it out."
"Rumors... so you're interested in me?"
His retort carried some inexplicable eagerness. Martina sneered, unleashing full mockery.
"Yeah~ Heard there's this pathetic whore-prisoner who became an arena gladiator and sold his body to Helia just to survive."
His body flinched. Recognizing his humiliation at her jab, Martina's eyes gleamed with scorn as she pressed on.
"Makes sense, though. To survive a brutal place like the arena with a man's body, you'd have no choice. Lucky you~ Got such a hot bod, snagged the city's top knight's heart."
"...If I may, Helia was purely kind in training me."
"Oh my~ So the rumors are false? Nah, no way~ That woman's crazy for men—she wouldn't hold back~"
Grinning wickedly, Martina closed the distance. Her shadowed eyes bristled with malice toward Helia.
"She acts all high and mighty on the outside, but inside? Total slut. Her stiff personality means no guys like her, so she jerks off every night fantasizing about her crushes. Bet you felt her creepy stares during training, huh?"
All lies, of course. But who cared? She hated the woman above her and wanted to steal her chance at glory. If this made him distrust Helia, perfect.
Testing him with that expectation, he let out a small sigh and replied.
"And if that's true, then what?"
"...What?"
"I asked, if Helia really looked at me that way and we got that kind of relationship—what would you do?"
His sharp comeback caught her off guard. Martina blinked blankly, replaying his words.
Helia eyeing a man lewdly? Raping a frail guy under the guise of training to satisfy her lust?
"Pfft."
No way. No matter how much she despised her, Helia was rigid and principled—Martina knew that well.
"Aw, why so serious over a little joke~ Figures, men have such narrow minds~"
Yeah, it was just her being petty. As she tried to smooth things over, Adrian sighed softly and turned his back to her.
"If you're just gonna talk shit, leave. You're in my way."
"Hah~ Guess I've rubbed you the wrong way. Helia must've trained you real good, huh? Got attached already."
Martina scurried around to face him, tilting her head with a playful grin.
"But honestly, isn't she kinda suffocating? She drills new recruits till they're mush... Her training's gotta be too harsh for a delicate guy like you~"
"...What're you getting at?"
His voice edged with anger. Right on cue—Martina stated her purpose.
"How about training under me instead?"
"With you?"
"Yeah~ I'm Renes's most favored knight, after all. My skills, experience, status—they're a step... no, ten steps above hers."
Exaggerated, sure, but not entirely wrong. Her post-expedition contributions now topped Helia's. Even if Renes saw training him as key, she could cover it easily.
"...Hmm."
He didn't reject it outright, pondering instead. Perfect—he'd be tempted. Her training worked but was too brutal for a man. Highlight that, act sweet, and she'd win him over.
"What can you teach me, Martina?"
"Obviously, stuff more efficient and fun than hers. Martial techniques, mana usage, and..."
She couldn't half-ass it if she wanted results and contributions. Resolving to take it seriously, Martina decided to seize control with a light tease.
"Bedroom skills."
"...Bedroom skills?"
"Yeah~ Lying in bed together, licking every inch... Touching secret spots, teaching secret arts..."
Her hand slid toward him teasingly, groping softly—enough to feel lewd from his side.
"...Hehe, too stimulating for a guy?"
Chuckling mischievously, she brushed it off with an apology.
"Sorry~ Didn't mean to sexually harass you. Just got playful thinking I'd have a new pupil after so long."
Yeah, just a joke to tense him up. Packaging it that way, she moved to continue.
"Anyway, bedroom stuff crosses the line, so let's get serious about training..."
"Sounds good. Let's do that."
His response blindsided her.
"...Huh?"
Martina froze, eyes widening as she gaped at him.
"What did you just...?"
"I wanna learn bedroom skills from you, Martina."
Her body jolted. She hadn't expected him to say that. Especially since she'd never had real 'hands-on' experience herself.
"If you're that confident, you must have tons of experience with men, right? Perfect timing. I don't have much with women either—good to prepare."
"W-what...?"
"Huh? What's with that reaction...? Don't tell me you have no experience?"
Adrian eyed her stiffening form curiously. Taking his question as a taunt, Martina bristled and blabbered defensively.
"N-no experience? I've fucked hundreds of guys! I'm a total pro at bedroom stuff!"
"Oh, really? Cool then."
With that, he circled behind her. His hand planted on her ass, pressing firmly to urge her forward.
"Alright, shall we head to the bedroom then?"
"W-wait! Your hand—on my ass...!"
"Huh? With all that experience, a little skinship's fine, right?"
Another flinch. Martina averted her eyes, forcing bravado.
"Y-yeah, sure. Touch all you want~"
"Alright, no holding back then~"
Adrian kneaded her ass roughly as they walked. Heart pounding, Martina broke into a cold sweat.
'W-what do I do?'
Despite being a full-grown woman, she had zero real male experience. In this female-dominated society, that was deeply embarrassing—and for Martina, whose ego pierced the heavens, it was her one fatal flaw.