The True Nature of a Knight's Duel
The true nature of a duel between real knights felt something like this. Every single glance, every gesture, every step carried countless layers of tactical warfare. Even with my gigaam raised to its absolute limit, I could barely read any of it.
CLANG!!!
“Ugh.”
Every time their swords collided with that terrifying whoosh of air, a deafening roar echoed through the entire space, enough to send chills racing across my skin. Of course, there was no doubting Melissa’s strength. But the skeletal knight’s monstrous power was beyond anything I could have imagined.
What if I had to face something like that?
“……Gulp.”
Just thinking about it made cold sweat break out on my back. The gap in skill was so vast that even staking my life on it wouldn’t be enough, and no one knew that better than I did.
Just how much more training and effort would it take before I could even think about standing against something like that?
I swallowed dryly and wondered.
“Janice, Liz. Isn’t there anything we can do to help?”
“If we jump in now, we’d probably just get in the way…!”
“……”
She was right. Melissa and the skeletal knight had already exchanged blows multiple times, their swords dancing in a deadly rhythm. If we tried to “help,” we might only end up hindering her instead.
Even so, I desperately followed their fight with my eyes, racking my brain for options.
“Then what should we do?”
“……For now, let’s just watch the situation. A knight of that young lady’s caliber is incredibly rare. But if things get dangerous, I’ll use this.”
“??”
After thinking for a moment, Janice pulled something out as she spoke. Our eyes—mine and Liz’s—followed her hand. There, pinched between her fingers, was a single small coin that you could find in any marketplace. Not even a gold coin. Just a copper one. In other words, a single 1-copper piece.
“……?”
I stared at it blankly, starting to feel genuinely angry. Given the situation, how could I not?
I glared at Janice with fire in my eyes.
“What exactly are you planning to do with something like that? This really isn’t the time for jokes.”
“Hehe. Do I look like the kind of woman who would spout nonsense in a situation like this?”
“……”
“Guess I do. Anyway, just trust me a little. I didn’t expect things to turn out this way either.”
Janice bit her lip, looking anxious. She kept fiddling with the 1-copper coin in her hand. Her gaze was fixed on Melissa, who was locked in a desperate struggle with the skeletal knight.
“But… at this rate, Melissa might…”
“Kid. Then hold onto this for me.”
“??”
Janice handed the 1-copper coin to me. I could only stare at it with a dazed expression.
CLANG!
“Haa…”
Melissa exhaled slowly. Had her skills grown rusty over time? Or had she underestimated the opponent before her too much? No matter how many exchanges they traded, the enemy’s momentum refused to break. If anything, it seemed she herself was the one being worn down physically.
Grind.
“I’m growing curious about your name from when you were alive.”
As if it had no words to answer with, the skeletal knight’s sword came flying in. Melissa swung her own blade like lightning, deflecting it.
CLAAAANG—!!
Every clash between their swords sent sparks flying. But continuing like this would only lead to a battle of attrition. Melissa grew impatient. If she couldn’t stop it here, there might not be a next time.
She gripped her sword with both hands and settled into a stance. The most destructive sword technique she could wield, coated in aura. Holding the blade with both hands, she drew it back, shifting her center of gravity forward. Then…
“?”
Suddenly, Melissa’s movement stopped. Was it because she had pushed her body to the point of straining her mind? Or had she truly grown that dull?
Her next motion didn’t flow naturally at all.
“Tsk.”
Grip!
Her posture twisted unnaturally. But Melissa still kicked off the ground. Even if it wasn’t a proper sword technique, a blade wrapped in aura carried power on its own.
But…
…….
Clatter!
The skeletal knight was like an iron fortress. It allowed not even the slightest opening. The sheer pressure of its presence was enough to make even the charging Melissa flinch in surprise.
If this was someone who had reached such heights while alive, they must have been a knight whose name had once shaken the world…
Whoosh!
With that question still lingering, Melissa brought her sword down. But in that instant, she felt as if the empty eye sockets of the skeletal knight had flashed.
The skeletal knight smoothly parried her imperfect strike, then swung its blade in a clean arc that sliced toward her torso.
SLASH!
“Kugh!”
“Melissa!!”
A boy looked ready to leap forward at any second. Melissa stopped him with nothing but a sharp glance and a slight shake of her head. Fortunately, both Liz and Janice seemed to understand the situation as well; they grabbed the struggling boy and held him back.
“Haa…”
A sigh of relief. This plaza was clearly riddled with the enemy’s traps. If the strongest among them fell so helplessly, it wouldn’t matter who else came. In that case, the only option was to buy as much time as possible and uncover their schemes.
Step.
Melissa tried to reset her stance again, only to tilt her head in confusion once more.
I can’t remember…?
Melissa frowned. This was impossible. It felt as if the experiences and memories she had built up over the years were slowly fading away. Only then did she realize what kind of “trap” had been laid in this plaza.
“Ruines! Everyone! Do not come down! You will lose your memories!”
A cursed sorcery that continuously erased people’s memories. It was likely some form of witch’s curse. The moment Melissa shouted, a splitting headache began to throb inside her skull.
And the skeletal knight was not one to miss such an opening.
SLASH!
“Kugh!”
“……!”
Melissa was gradually being driven into a corner. The once-clear paths of her swordsmanship had long since vanished. Her strikes had become nothing more than simple, brute-force swings. Everything she once knew, everything she understood, was slowly growing hazy as if shrouded in fog.
Cold sweat poured down Melissa’s face. If this was truly a witch’s curse, it should have required not just a single knight, but the full strength of an entire knight order to handle. So why was she the only one left here?
Where was that damned captain…? What were her other comrades doing?
The deeper her doubts grew, the heavier her sword became. No—more than that. Why had she even come to this place in the first place?
Her memories were growing increasingly blurred.
STAB!
“Haa… haa… haa…!”
Melissa drove her sword into the ground. She clutched her head, gasping for breath.
“Melissa! Get a hold of yourself!”
A voice called from afar. Melissa lifted her head and looked toward the boy. But his face felt unfamiliar. Who was he again? That’s right… he was the child of ■■■■…
Grip!
Even in her dazed state, Melissa tightened her hold on her sword. Losing her swordsmanship did not mean losing her sword. She steadied her mind once more and glared at the enemy before her, recalling the boy’s face from just moments ago.
CLAAAAAANG—!!
Sword met sword. But the composure Melissa had shown earlier was nowhere to be found. Her movements looked almost desperate. Her breathing came out in harsh, ragged gasps.
At the sight, I clenched my fists tightly.
“I’m going.”
“Where to?”
“Down there, obviously!”
“Tsk. If she can just hold on a little longer…!”
Janice was saying something incomprehensible. What more could she possibly endure in a situation like this? It might be true that Melissa was losing her memories, but if we left her any longer, it might become irreversible.
“Melissa looks like she’s almost at her limit…”
“Ru-Ruines! Look over there!”
“?”
When I turned around, monsters were pouring out from the entrance we had come through. The same was happening at the other entrances too. We were trapped like rats in a cage.
“Run!”
“Damn it!”
We began sprinting toward the lower floor. It was better than trying to fight the endless wave of monsters coming from above. But that naïve thought was shattered the moment we reached the plaza.
Thud!
“Ugh.”
“The air is incredibly thick…!”
“Everyone, cover your noses and mouths with cloth!”
Just breathing made my lungs and head feel numb. And in this place, Melissa had been fighting the skeletal knight with everything she had. Or rather, she had been.
“Melissa!!”
“……”
Thump.
Melissa’s body collapsed. She hadn’t been struck by the skeletal knight’s blade. Even if her swordsmanship had faltered, her strength, stamina, and speed had still completely overwhelmed her opponent. If there was a cause, it had to be the air permeating the plaza.
Step. Step. Step.
The skeletal knight slowly approached the fallen Melissa. At the sight, I hurriedly stepped forward.
“You two, please take care of Melissa!”
“What about you?”
“I have to do something about that thing.”
Srrrng!
I drew the iron sword Liz had given me. A monster that had even brought down Melissa. Obviously, all I could do was buy time. But if I could at least buy that much…!
…….
The skeletal knight noticed me and stopped. In that moment, our eyes met. As if it possessed some will of its own, it even gave a slight shrug of its shoulders.
“Haa?”
A clear provocation. I never thought I’d be taunted by a skeleton in my lifetime. But if this was a skeleton capable of crossing blades with Melissa, perhaps I should consider it an honor.
Vrrrrrm!
“Come.”
I leveled my sword at the skeletal knight. At the same time, I expanded my gigaam to fill the entire area around both me and my opponent.
SWISH!
The skeletal knight struck first. Its sharply thrusting blade flew toward me. I raised my sword with extreme tension and met its attack.
CLANG!
Next came a thrust. Then a slash. Then another horizontal cut. But… huh?
It’s… dodgeable?
The skeletal knight’s sword wasn’t nearly as fierce as I had expected. I skillfully dodged, blocked, or deflected each incoming strike, searching for an opening. And then, in a fleeting instant, a paper-thin gap appeared.
I didn’t miss it. I thrust my sword straight toward the skeletal knight.