Chapter 45: Greed
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 45: Greed
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
When I returned with the handkerchief, Zaenbold launched into a tirade. I calmly checked my equipment and replied.
“Don’t make a fuss. I simply received a token of support from a lady.”
Zaenbold slapped a hand to his forehead.
“You think I’m making a fuss? You just smeared shit all over a jewel the Baron has been saving for a marriage alliance. You have no idea how fiercely he’s glaring at your back right now!”
“It was necessary.”
I wanted to take everything the Baron possessed. The problem was how. Simply killing him wouldn't grant me all he owned. In fact, it was more likely to corner me.
A noble's family tree is so complex that even they can hardly grasp it. For instance, the Baron's father-in-law, Count Dresden, would leap at the chance to kill me. He could use avenging his son-in-law as a pretext to swallow up the Baron's territory.
In other words, I needed a proper justification to achieve my goal. The easiest way was to become part of the Baron's family line.
“You… don’t tell me. Are you planning to use the young lady?”
Zaenbold’s forced smile hardened.
“Why? Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”
“The young lady has nothing to do with the conspiracy surrounding the Tobalts estate. As it is, she lives like a prisoner because of a father who treats her as nothing more than a useful card to be played.”
I narrowed my eyes and stared at Zaenbold.
“Don’t tell me you like her.”
“Ha, it’s because I feel sorry for her, that’s all. Anyone who knows her even a little would react the same way.”
It seems she takes after her mother and has a good personality. That was good news. If she was popular, she might be able to help me later on.
“Don’t worry. She’ll be happier by my side.”
“You son of a…”
I left Zaenbold, who looked like he had much more to say, and stood up. The Baron, who had been glaring in my direction, had just risen from his seat to announce the start of the match.
The knights had retreated to the edge of the training grounds. I walked past them and stood in the center. A gaze as sharp as a well-honed sword fixed on me. I, however, simply smiled.
“Allen, son of Maxim Tobalts. I am ready.”
“I look forward to your display of valor.”
The Baron nodded to a man waiting below the spectator seats. The lavishly dressed man walked to the center of the grounds, bowed to the crowd with an exaggerated gesture, then pointed at me and shouted.
“Allen, son of the Baron's right-hand man, Sir Maxim, has stepped forward to prove his valor! My, my, his looks are almost more captivating than his skills. But do not be fooled! He is the mighty warrior who cut Sir Adrian in two with a single strike! Now, who will be the one to test his prowess—!”
“I will test him!”
Someone stepped forward the moment the words were out. He was a knight as tall as me but with a thicker build. His frame was wide, as if his very bones were massive. He looked like he could pack a punch.
His weapons were a flail and a shield. The spikes on the iron head of the flail created a small impact area, making it an incredibly effective weapon against chainmail.
With his strength behind it, he could likely shatter chainmail with ease and land a fatal blow.
“Oh! The one to face the handsome young knight of House Tobalts is none other than the renowned Sir Maxis, who is said to have strangled a lion with his bare hands! The Doran family has produced strongmen without peer for generations!”
So that’s why he stepped up so readily, even after seeing how Adrian died. He must be confident in his strength.
“A family of strongmen for generations, you say?”
“Hmph, did you think you were the only one who could tear a man in two? Enough talk! I will kill you here and prove once again that I am the strongest man in these parts!”
Before the starting signal even sounded, Maxis charged at me like an enraged bear. He swung his flail back wide before bringing it around, the added centrifugal force making it fly with vicious speed.
By then, I had already entered the slowed world. I took half a step back to dodge the flail, leaving his side wide open. I didn't miss the opportunity and immediately thrust my sword.
As if he had been waiting for it, Maxis angled his shield. My sword scraped against the tilted surface and slid downward. His skill with a shield was top-notch.
So he’s not just a brute.
He was a knight who hid the cunning of a fox behind a bear-like exterior.
“Hah!”
As my sword pointed toward the ground, Maxis seized the opening and swung his flail upward from below, aiming for my side. I retreated, retrieving my sword to block.
In that instant, the chain of Maxis’s flail wrapped around my blade. I gave it a slight tug, but the sword didn't budge.
“Just a brat with brute strength, are you?”
It was a mistake born from my inexperience fighting a flail. Having bound my sword, Maxis smirked. He pulled on the flail, intending to wrench the sword from my grasp.
“Huh? Hmm?”
But the flail didn't move an inch. The chain connected to the iron head trembled, but that was all. Even when he dropped his shield and pulled with both hands, nothing changed.
Maxis didn't know. He didn't know that I was controlling my strength to avoid breaking my sword again. He hadn't bound my sword; I had bound his flail.
“Care for a taste of that brat?”
“You…!”
I pulled the sword with all my might. The weapon that hadn't budged when he pulled came flying toward me in an instant.
Maxis refused to let go of the flail's handle to the very end. As a result, his body was dragged along with it. I greeted him with my foot.
“Keuk—”
They say a kick has three times the destructive power of a punch. So, what would be the power of a kick backed by the monstrous strength that could tear a man in two with bare hands? Maxis personally demonstrated the result.
His chainmail tore with a sharp crack. The sensation of bones snapping one by one traveled up my leg. He collapsed, clutching his stomach, and looked up at me with a contorted face.
I unwound the chain from my sword and approached him. He desperately looked toward the Baron and tried to open his mouth, intending to surrender. But why would I let the experience points get away?
Besides, wasn't he also responsible for condoning my father's death and the Baron's attempt to seize my estate?
He had to pay the price. I lifted my leg.
“Wa, wait—”
Those were the last words Maxis ever spoke in this world.
Crack.
With the sound of bone being forcibly twisted, his neck snapped around. One side of his face was caved in, exposing the white bone beneath.
I wiped the blood and some unidentifiable white fluid from my boot on the ground, then calmly raised my head and looked around.
The spectators, including the Baron, and even the knights who had been cheering for Maxis, were all holding their breath, watching me.
I let out a smirk.
“I trust this isn't all you have to offer.”
Because I had leveled up so much, I didn't level up again despite defeating two knights in a row. I still needed more experience points. The Baron, too, likely wanted to trim down more of his useless vassals.
The Baron gave a subtle nod, and the announcer, who had been watching nervously, stepped back onto the training grounds. The man who had been fawning over my looks and youth was now sweating profusely, unable to even look me in the eye.
“Blood will out! The son displays a valor that surpasses his father! But the depths of his power remain unseen! Who will be the next to test him!”
The knights just exchanged glances; no one stepped forward. By now, everyone knew my strength was beyond merely impressive, and a few seemed to have realized it wasn't just about strength either.
The Baron's expression began to sour, but the knights still wouldn't even meet my gaze. When the announcer's constant provocations proved useless, the Baron finally intervened.
“Begins!”
“Yes, my lord.”
A knight clad in chainmail with a stylish purple surcoat, belt, and cape stepped forward. He was a handsome man with his helmet tucked under his arm and his long hair tied back like a horsetail.
The announcer began to gush.
“The Baron's champion, Sir Begins, steps up! The one favored by God! The undefeated knight who has won countless trials by combat! It is Begins of the West Wind!”
The crowd erupted in cheers. Among them were Baroness Adeleade and Eusebia. A surge of irritation washed over me. Oblivious to my feelings, Begins approached with a smile.
“I won’t be as easy as Sir Maxis.”
“Well, from where I'm standing, you don't look much different.”
“I didn't expect you to. A brat wouldn't have the eyes to recognize a true warrior.”
Begins raised his sword and pointed it at me. It was similar in length to a longsword, but the blade was thinner and the tip sharper. It was a sword specialized for thrusting. It also seemed light, as his movements were nimble.
I tensed my body. A champion was an expert in one-on-one combat, a substitute for duels. There was a high chance he was more skilled than anyone I had faced so far.
And he was.
“Hah!”
The moment the signal sounded, Begins kicked off the ground and thrust his sword. Even in the slowed world, it was little more than a point of light. It was the fastest sword I had ever faced.
I took half a step back diagonally, twisting my body. At the same time, I swung my sword outward, intending to parry his blade.
With my monstrous strength, this should have opened up his torso. My plan was to counterattack immediately after.
But the feel of our swords meeting was too light. Not even a spark flew. It wasn't simply because his sword was light. The smile I could see beyond the blade was proof of that.
A trap?
The thought had barely formed when he closed the distance. His sword, touching mine, rotated 180 degrees. The tip of his blade was now over his shoulder, the hilt pointing toward me.
In an instant, my own sword was pushed outward. The greater danger was the pommel at the end of his hilt, which was now hurtling toward my face.
I could tell this wasn't improvisation by the way the end of the pommel had been sharpened to a point. What had first appeared as a dot was growing larger. If it hit, it would be a critical blow at the very least.
If it hits, that is.
The man who could so skillfully execute such an unorthodox and deadly move was clearly an experienced champion. However, it seemed he, like the others, had no experience fighting an opponent with unimaginable, superhuman strength.
That was his fatal mistake.
I focused all my strength into the hand gripping my sword. His blade, pressed against mine, flinched and then slowly began to give way. Beyond the swords, his eyes trembled as if shaken by an earthquake.
He belatedly tried to retrieve his sword and retreat, but it was no easy task to pull back a blade that was hooked with mine like a grappling hook.
In that time, the pommel aiming for my face passed under my right armpit. Conversely, his own sword, which had been over his shoulder, could not withstand my strength and began to press down on his shoulder.
“St, stop…!”
His sword dug into his own chainmail. The links buckled and twisted under the force of my strength added to his blade. Unsatisfied, I pushed harder. The chainmail broke, revealing the cloth tunic beneath.
“A brat, you said? Who?”
“You fucker, I surr—”
Before he could get the word ‘surrender’ out, I took a diagonal step forward and lifted my sword hilt. My blade slid up along his and swept past his neck.
“—ender.”
His severed head fell, uttering the word he couldn't finish. His neck, the cross-section ragged as if torn by a saw, rolled across the ground. The headless body spewed blood before collapsing like a puppet with its strings cut.
“Kyaaah—!”
With the screams of startled maidens at my back, I looked down at the wide, disbelieving eyes.
“It seems you were the one who lacked the eyes to recognize a true warrior.”
No answer came.
There were no more brave knights willing to test me. The announcer no longer provoked or coaxed them either.
Hot steam rose like a haze from the blood on my sword. I gave it a light flick to clean it, sheathed it, and bowed to the spectators.
The Baron, who had shot to his feet at some point, began to clap slowly. Having finally confirmed my abilities, he had decided to use me instead of killing me.
Soon, other spectators joined in, clapping along. Among them was Eusebia. Her eyes fixed on me, she clapped harder than anyone else.
I met her gaze and used the handkerchief she had given me to wipe the sweat from my face. Then, I grinned.
It was a bright smile, one that didn't suit the training grounds being stained red with warm blood, but Eusebia didn't seem to think so. Her face flushed as red as a beet.