Chapter 211
Chapter 211
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 211
Chapter Title: Sword and Rose, and Lion (3)
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Among the Teuton knights, only four remained standing without a scratch.
The severely wounded had been carried off long ago, while those with lighter injuries had received only basic first aid and stayed in the training ground, watching as the duels hurtled toward their conclusion.
Even including those who had already been defeated, their numbers didn't reach half.
The faces of the forty-seven Teuton knights were etched with despair, as if they had suffered a grave insult.
In stark contrast to the mere four Teutons left unscathed, more than thirty from our side still stood strong.
The kingdom's knights remaining in the training ground numbered exactly one hundred, the same as at the start.
Even one with half his forearm nearly severed had received treatment from the royal physician and stayed to watch the duels. The lightly wounded went without saying.
The sight of the kingdom's knights stood in sharp relief against the Teutons'.
It was the difference between battle-hardened knights who had endured countless wars to reach this point and those who had merely honed themselves through spars in the training yard.
By now, even the Teuton Duke must have realized it.
That they were nothing more than flowers blooming in a well-tended garden. No matter how sharp the thorns of a rose, they could never match the fangs of a savage wolf.
I grinned wickedly.
It was utterly delightful. The fact that this duel hadn't ended yet, that the most tantalizing dish was still on the table—it filled me with uncontainable joy.
"Stop this!"
A commotion broke out as I savored the Duke's expression.
"We've repeatedly stated that the purpose of this duel is harmony between our nations! Yet I cannot fathom why Leonberg's knights fight with such murderous intent, as if facing lifelong mortal enemies!"
I glanced at the training ground as the princess lost her composure and ranted.
There stood a woman splattered in blood.
Adelia, her eyes blazing with their individual lights.
And beside her, the Teuton master equally drenched in blood.
One covered in others' blood, the other in her own.
I cried out in dismay.
"When the hell did she get back in there?!"
I moved to drag Adelia down forcibly, but Duncan Seymour Tudor stepped forward.
"How could there be no wounded in a clash of swords between knights? This is only natural, so as captain of the Rose Thorn Knight Order and Duke of Teuton, I, Duncan Seymour Tudor, raise no objection."
"Duke!"
The princess furrowed her brow to protest, but the Duke spoke with an unprecedented gravity.
"If you do not wish for Teuton's knights to be known as cowards who fear wounds, then hold your tongue."
His expression and tone left no room for compromise.
The princess clamped her mouth shut, her face rigid.
With the princess pushed aside, the Duke glanced at Adelia, then turned to me.
"We shall continue the duel."
Clear rage and killing intent burned in his eyes.
"Duke Seymour of Teuton, captain of the Rose Thorn Knight Order, Duncan Seymour Tudor. I challenge the kingdom's lady knight to a duel."
With that, the Duke drew his sword and stepped into the training ground.
Adelia reacted to the destructive aura cloaking his blade.
"Adelia!"
I shouted at her as she went berserk.
But it was too late.
Slash.
Duncan Seymour Tudor's sword cleaved into Adelia.
Sliced from shoulder to opposite hip on the diagonal, she tumbled to the ground in the same charging pose.
The Duke raised his sword again.
A blue flash hurtled toward Adelia's back as she pushed herself up with both hands.
I kicked off the ground.
And blocked her path.
I swung my sword.
Boom!
The sword light Duncan Seymour Tudor unleashed scattered harmlessly.
"What is the meaning of this? The duel isn't over, yet a third party intervenes."
Instead of answering, I scooped Adelia into my arms.
"Adelia."
The radiant glow in her eyes faded back to normal.
Her lips moved.
But what escaped through her clenched teeth was not words, but a mouthful of blood.
"It's fine. Don't say a word."
At my words, she opened and closed her mouth several times before closing her eyes.
Her body went limp in my embrace.
"Where is the royal physician?!"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
"Save her. If you fail, I won't forgive you."
The royal physician rushed over and took Adelia, then hurried from the training ground, pouring healing magic into her.
I watched silently before turning to face Duncan Seymour Tudor.
"This is perplexing and lamentable. For a third party to interfere in a sacred duel—could there be a more brazen act?"
A base sense of superiority flickered at the corners of his eyes. His lips curled in a sneer at me.
"Very well. I admit my fault."
Rather than quibble over his sword aimed at Adelia's unguarded back, I apologized readily.
Adelia had intended to keep fighting anyway, and attacking an opponent who hadn't dropped her sword wasn't the Duke's fault.
"Fault, you say. Spoken so easily."
I spoke lowly to the mocking Duke.
"To make amends for my error, I have one proposal."
His eyes gleamed at my words.
"Regardless of the score, we end this duel with a single bout."
"You mean...?"
"If you defeat me, Teuton claims victory, and the sword is yours."
Duncan Seymour Tudor bared his teeth in a grin.
"I accept your apology."
The arrogant Duncan Seymour Tudor raised his sword and pointed it at me.
And I.
"I cut through dragon scales no famed sword can pierce, and drink its searing blood."
Swept my sword from left to right.
Rumble.
Aurum roared.
Shwick.
The Duke's sword light was sliced apart effortlessly.
The arrogant knight's eyes bulged.
Horror filled them.
Aurum advanced unhindered toward the Duke's throat.
Thud.
At the last moment, I twisted the blade aside.
Boom!
The errant Dragon Slayer Sword shattered the training ground floor.
Stone dust and dirt flew.
"One death."
I retreated with a cold smile.
"Again."
The Duke, who had stared blankly at my sword until then, snapped to his senses and shouted.
"...!"
One of the Teuton knights handed him a keenly sharpened longsword.
The Duke gripped it with both hands.
And assumed a stance, eyes brimming with wariness.
Slash.
I unleashed another strike at him.
The sword touched the Duke's chest.
He gaped at me in shock.
"Two deaths."
The duel resumed.
My sword touched the Duke's body countless times.
Chest, abdomen, groin. Head, throat.
Every spot a lethal vital point.
"Eleven deaths."
The Duke died endlessly to my sword.
Though not a single cut marred his flesh.
"What is the point of this farce?!"
Duncan Seymour Tudor growled at me.
I met his face—ruined by shame and rage—with a cold smile.
As if to say my knight had wounded their precious Teuton knights, so I couldn't hold back either.
The Duke bit his lip at the absurd nonsense.
Then readjusted his stance and rallied his aura.
The presence unique to a knight of lofty realm spread everywhere.
I released my own realm, crushing his aura.
It scattered instantly.
"Again."
"Grrraaah!"
The Duke roared like a beast and charged.
And met another bloodless death.
"Again!"
He charged once more.
I granted him death without mercy.
"Again!"
He died, and died again.
Shame, rage.
The emotions in the Duke's eyes gradually faded.
Then a new one surfaced.
Fear.
I continued swinging as I watched his trembling gaze.
"Sixty-seven deaths."
The fear in his eyes began to dim.
It soon vanished entirely.
And then.
"Eighty-fifth!"
As I raised my sword for the eighty-sixth death, the Duke no longer reacted to it at all.
He simply stared at me with empty eyes.
I lowered my sword upon seeing those lifeless orbs.
"Princess."
The utterly dazed princess startled and turned to me.
The West's finest knight, Teuton's strongest.
She couldn't recover from the pitiable defeat of the knight her people so prided.
"Tch."
I spoke coldly to her still vacant face.
"Do you want me to keep going? If so, I will."
I glanced at the Teuton knights who hadn't yet fought, and one flinched.
The princess finally stammered.
"W-We lost. We lost..."
Forgetting her role as impartial witness, she declared defeat repeatedly. I turned away.
"Teuton admits defeat!"
With her quavering voice at my back, I returned to my seat.
The kingdom's knights watched me.
Now with renewed respect.
Seeing their proud faces swelled my chest with pride.
But I didn't show it, merely jutting my chin arrogantly.
"Your Highness..."
Arwen, bandages wrapped around wounds on her arm and shoulder, bowed deeply to me, her eyes brimming with endless admiration.
"A real monster."
Ilai, hastily treated and back in the yard, muttered blankly to himself.
"Brother..."
Maximilian gazed at me with flushed cheeks. He called "brother" repeatedly but fell silent when our eyes met.
Just staring over and over.
Quean and the kingdom's knights watched me before erupting in cheers.
"Cheers to another victory claimed by Crown Prince Your Highness!"
"Long live Crown Prince Your Highness!"
"Long live the Leonberger Royal Family! Long live the Leonberg Kingdom!"
I quietly listened to the cheers and looked at Adelia.
Nod.
The royal physician nodded to me.
She had passed the crisis. With proper rest, no lasting effects.
"There will be a scar."
Regret filled the physician's face.
Still, it was fortunate.
Only then, seeing Adelia breathe softly and steadily, did I relax.
I let out a sigh of relief and looked across the training ground at the Teuton knights.
The arrogant Teutons who had strutted just yesterday were gone.
Only defeated losers, dazed by their wretched outcome, remained.
Clang.
Then the knights drew their swords and brought heels together.
Those with injured right arms gripped swords in their left; those with both arms hurt grunted in pain to lift them; the leg-wounded stood crookedly, forcing endurance.
Clang.
As if by agreement, the kingdom's knights raised swords at a slant. The Royal Knights joined too.
And shouted in unison.
"Infinite respect to the North's supreme knight!"