Investiture Examination (3)
Investiture Examination (3)
Irion, having seized an advantageous position from the very start of the duel with his characteristic quick wits.
He pursues Calben with a leisurely sneer. His sword traces a path as flexible as a snake.
-Jjeo-eong!
Two swords collide violently. Gold and purple mana intermingle, flashing with colorful sparks.
Calben tried to widen the distance somehow, but Irion didn't give him an inch, relentlessly pressing his attack.
How to deal with a mage.
Rule number one.
Never give them distance.
Rule number two.
Always stick to rule number one.
That applies not only to mages but also when facing a Magic Swordsman.
If he uses magic at this distance, Calben himself wouldn't be safe, so he cannot easily employ his spells.
A Magic Swordsman who cannot use magic is just an ordinary swordsman.
If it comes down to a clash of blades, Irion, who is plastered with physical enhancement effects, has the upper hand.
"Do you think such cheap tricks will work on me!"
However, Calben didn't occupy the position of Knight Commander by drawing straws.
He had cards he could play even in close-quarters combat, especially in ultra-close range where they could feel each other's breath.
-Pa-pa-pat!
Purple light condensed in the air within Irion's blind spots—above, below, left, and right—and dozens of small magic circles appeared.
The true power a Magic Swordsman wields lies in this ruthless unpredictability.
While the opponent pours all their focus into a single trajectory of the sword, the overwhelming difference in options allows them to create an attack from anywhere.
Having many cards in hand is synonymous with the logic of being able to dominate the flow of the battlefield.
"Drop dead!"
Calben's rage-filled shout served as the signal. The magic circles lined up in all directions simultaneously spat out awls of light.
A ruthless shower of flashes rushing in, aiming only for the blind spots outside his field of vision.
For an ordinary person, it would be nearly impossible to dodge these irregular strikes from blind spots while blocking the greatsword in front.
But Irion does not fall under the category of an ordinary person. His goal is to conquer the Edelheid family with a single sword.
At the very moment the streaks of light were about to pierce Irion.
-Hwirik!
Irion's body becomes a blur. He evades the magic fired from all sides with fluid movements, as if dancing.
Even so, the ones he can't dodge, he strikes down with his sword at the perfect timing.
-Ka-ka-ka-ka-kang!
He blocked the magical barrage, which rushed in at a speed that easily transcended human cognitive ability, using only a single sword.
Fragments of light that lost their direction and bounced off slammed into the floor and outer walls, causing a chain of explosions.
A living hell where stone dust soared from all directions and blue embers scattered.
In Irion's actions as he broke through the center of that chaos, there wasn't a single hint of hesitation.
He thrusts out the hand holding the sword.
With his left hand, he grips the blade.
So that the sword doesn't bounce away.
And he aims at Calben.
As if pulling a bowstring.
Or like the moment right before driving down a pickaxe.
A cluster of light begins to slowly condense over the suppressed blade.
"Kh...!"
Sensing that extraordinary aura, Calben hastily deployed a triple defensive barrier.
"You think I don't know the weight of this stage?"
At some point, the smile had vanished, and Irion wore a grave expression.
To survive.
For freedom.
He has run like crazy for three years. He never stopped once, and he never let his guard down once.
"I know the weight of this examination better than anyone."
The mass of those grueling years is overlaid onto the blade exactly as it was.
The air refracts like ripples around the sword, and the ground distorts as if being crushed.
And then.
-Ttak.
He released his left hand, which was holding the blade, as if flicking it.
A sword draw where his hand substituted for the role of a scabbard.
The moment the shackles restraining the sword were released. The condensed sword energy exploded all at once.
The slash swallowed the distance.
The gap that separated the two points vanished entirely. It wasn't that the sword energy moved forward, but as if space itself had folded in.
-Cheu-aaaa-ak!
The sound erupted belatedly.
And in the next moment.
He had already been cut.
Faint lines appear on the triple-layered defensive barriers. A very thin, and incredibly clean cut line.
-Pa-gak.
The axis of space twisted, and time arrived a beat late. The defensive barriers collapsed quietly, like cutting glass.
A diagonal bloodline was drawn across Calben's armor as he stood behind the shield.
-Kul-leok.
Calben coughed up a mouthful of blood. His two knees hit the floor with a thud in front of a mere slave.
The greatsword tumbled powerlessly to the ground, and the mana surrounding Calben scattered with a pat.
"......."
"......."
Irion's strike had even erased the sound. A heavy silence enveloped the training grounds.
The sharpest sword of Edelheid, Knight Commander Calben, had been defeated by someone who was a mere slave.
The mouths of the onlookers who witnessed that unbelievable sight hung open unsightly.
"Ha."
Only Renoa was smiling. Her lips, unable to suppress the leaking chuckle, drew a distinct arc.
A thrill ran through her.
From the first time she saw him in the arena until now, he has never disappointed her once.
Watching his performance by her side makes her heart pound incessantly.
'Irion. You really are.......'
Irion waves his hand toward his master. For a moment, Renoa, who was about to wave back, flinched and withdrew her hand.
There was something left to finish.
Quickly regaining her composure, she headed toward the Duke. The sound of her heels, ttogak-ttogak, was strangely light.
"Gaju-nim."
Duke Pascal turned his head at the voice. His face was filled with a look of dissatisfaction.
"The slave in my possession has won the duel."
"......."
"Please appoint him as a knight as you promised."
Duke Pascal's brow furrowed.
However, as the head of the family, he could not go back on a promise he had uttered.
The Duke slowly rose from his seat. His gaze, looking down from the platform, fixed on Irion.
"As the head of Edelheid, I proclaim. As of this moment, the slave Irion's status is emancipated."
The declaration continued over the balcony submerged in silence.
"At the same time, I appoint that man as Renoa's direct knight."
There were no voices of dissent.
Because the skill Irion showed was the real deal.
Right below the terrace where Renoa was looking down.
Irion knelt on one knee at that spot.
He drove the sword in his hand straight into the sandy ground and bowed his head.
"I shall follow your command."
"This is the room where you will stay while you are at the main house. If you need anything, please ring the bell at any time."
"You may go."
At Renoa's short reply, the servant disappeared soundlessly.
Only Renoa and Irion remained in the room.
Bibi was one of the few from the main house among the maids who came from the villa. She went to greet the maids of the main house.
Renoa moved to the terrace. With her hands on the railing, she quietly gazed at the view.
Irion approached her side.
"How is it, the view from here?"
"It's not bad."
The villa in Alderin was located in the forest, so wherever she looked, there were trees like iron bars, but it wasn't like that here.
An open sky and a garden that seemed endless.
Stars densely engraved.
Streetlights illuminating the road and well-manicured shrubs lined up at regular intervals.
For Renoa, who had spent her entire life in a small room at the villa, it was a different scenery.
"Though it's only this much."
This place where Renoa was granted permission to stay was a separate room located at the edge of the East Wing of the main castle.
It was an outskirts area that was blatantly distant from the central area where the direct legitimate heirs resided.
It was a location that indicated Renoa's standing in the Duke's family.
There were good points too. It would be suffocating to live while facing those people every day.
Renoa turned her head. Leaning her back against the railing, she looked at Irion.
"Good work today. To think you'd actually beat the Knight Commander."
She had told him to win before they started, but honestly, she didn't think he would.
She would have been satisfied with the best result even if he just passed the test.
But what do you know?
He crushed Calben with a single sword. It was a result that far exceeded her expectations.
"The expressions on the vassals' faces when you won were so ridiculous. I've never felt so refreshed."
"I should do at least that much for you, Agassi. Well, thanks to that, I've become a proper knight instead of a slave."
At those words, Renoa tilted her head.
"What are you talking about? Why aren't you a slave?"
"Well, Gaju-nim said he would emancipate me."
"And?"
"And... what do you mean?"
Irion felt an ominous aura creeping in.
"I am your master. Do you think you'll become free just because that man emancipated you?"
"No, but still, those were the words of Gaju-nim......"
"Who is your master?"
"......You, Agassi."
Renoa smiled brightly.
"That's how it is. You were my slave then, and you are my slave now. Whether to let you go or not is for me to decide."
And Renoa had absolutely no intention of letting Irion go. Why would she release a slave who could even beat the Knight Commander for someone else's benefit?
She intended to keep him by her side until she died of old age, until Irion could no longer move.
Irion let out a sigh. Since it was within the realm of expectation, he just accepted it.
"What will you do now?"
"I wonder."
After looking around and confirming there were no other presences, Irion spoke in a low voice.
"This is something I'm only saying to you, Agassi, but that man called the Duke, I don't have a good feeling about him."
He wasn't saying this because he knew the future.
The moment he faced Duke Pascal, an unpleasant energy poured out from him.
Irion's senses rang distractingly.
"It seemed that way."
"Did you feel it too, Agassi?"
"Yes."
Renoa didn't feel something specific like Irion did. It was just a repulsion engraved in her instincts.
She didn't know the exact reason. She thought it might be the loathing toward the father who abandoned her.
"Despite that, he welcomed me quite grandly."
The Duke's personality that Renoa had heard about was similar to Renoa herself.
A person who liked being taciturn and pursued an efficient life.
But the Duke Renoa faced was completely different from the rumors. The way he made a fuss was no different from a doting father.
Because of that, Renoa was also unprecedentedly flustered.
"There's more than one or two suspicious things...."
Irion was agonizing with a serious expression, stroking his chin with his hand.
"What are you thinking about so seriously?"
After hesitating for a long time whether to say this or not, Irion asked with a small sense of anticipation.
"...If. This is just a 'what if'."
"Yes."
"What would you do if the family was researching black magic?"
"What?"
"If the Duke was secretly researching black magic and the family was on the verge of being exterminated. If everyone involved was on the verge of being executed, what would you do?"
"You, what are you saying right now......"
"If you were in such a situation, would you leave the family, Agassi?"
Renoa's brow narrowed.
She wondered what kind of nonsensical thing he was suddenly saying, but then the memory of Irion asking about black magic once before suddenly flashed through her mind.
Why is he so obsessed with black magic?
Did he catch some kind of delusional disease?
If not, does he know something?
For something said just for the sake of saying it, the topic was far too heavy, and Irion's expression was incredibly serious.
Because of that, Renoa also had a thought of 'could it be'.
The suspicion that Duke Pascal might be secretly committing some disgusting acts took shape.
"No."
However, even if that were true.
"I won't leave."
Renoa will not leave this place.
She looks at the distant scenery.
The vast territory of Edelheid stretches out. The fertile land that cannot be fully captured by the eyes and the numerous buildings prove the family's prestige.
The years spent stuck in a villa on the outskirts. This is the scenery she finally obtained after enduring those terrible times.
"I've only just reached the starting line."
If she tramples all her competitors and rises to the top, everything captured in her sight will be placed solely beneath her feet.
She can take revenge on those who confined her to the outskirts and used her as a target for their venting.
Running away is the same as kicking that opportunity away with her own feet. It wasn't even worth answering.
"But to throw all that away and live as a mere commoner. What kind of value is there in such a life? Is there even a point to living?"
Renoa declares.
That is worse than death.
So she will move forward.
Even if the end is destruction.
"Irion, you stake your life too. Who knows? If I become the head of the family, I might recognize your achievements and set you free."
Around the time Irion and Renoa were savoring their victory, in the Duke's laboratory.
A forbidden space where no one could enter without the Duke's permission.
"Where did something like that suddenly pop out from? As far as I know, there was no such guy?"
A woman with brittle white hair muttered while tearing at her hair.