Chapter 116: 27th Floor: Smashing
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 116: 27th Floor: Smashing
A moment ago, in the banquet hall, just after Kalisha (Lee Do-hee) had left.
The murmuring returned to the once-quiet hall.
“Lady Kalisha… seems different, doesn’t she?”
“Hmm, if she’s like this, she might actually have a chance…”
“Was she hiding it on purpose?”
“The royal bloodline…”
“The blood doesn’t lie, I suppose.”
The nobles began to whisper amongst themselves.
What Kalisha had just shown them was not the reckless villainess they knew. For a fleeting moment, they saw the image of a dignified female sovereign superimposed over her.
It was only for an instant, but they had been undeniably overwhelmed by her.
In truth, Kalisha herself didn’t possess such an ability. It was the result of a fusion between the battle-hardened Lee Do-hee and the habitually arrogant Kalisha. Lee Do-hee alone would have struggled to exude such an aura.
With everyone reeling from the shock, the banquet came to a swift end.
The image of Kalisha arrogantly looking down on Lady Hindaz was seared into the minds of the nobles as they returned home.
Of course, this one incident wasn't enough to completely turn public opinion, and Kalisha was still the wicked villainess. But that's just how the world works.
Do well a hundred times and fail once, you're an idiot.
Fail a hundred times and succeed once, you're a genius.
It's all about the impact.
Meanwhile, the trio of women, sensing a crisis, gathered once more and headed to a private room.
The three candidates for Crown Princess!
The first, a blonde woman with a dazed expression, was Hayla Hindaz. She was the daughter of Duke Hindaz and the woman who had just been thoroughly crushed by Lee Do-hee.
Then there was the woman who still wore a bright smile, her poker face unbroken.
Her name was Elina Luminous.
The very reason for this competition.
She was the woman the Crown Prince truly loved, a success story from a poor count's family. She had hair as blue as waves and clear, transparent eyes like a lake, possessing a lovely appearance that anyone would find endearing.
And the last woman was Kesira Hanover, the vice-master of the Red Magic Tower.
A red-haired mage.
In truth, she had little interest in the competition.
All she wanted was to return to the Magic Tower and research magic.
She was only participating, half-reluctantly, because her father had promised to stop bothering her about marriage if she just took part this one time.
“Hayla, don’t worry. I have a solution for the honor duel.”
At Elina’s words, a flicker of life returned to Hayla’s eyes.
“R-Really? But with our family’s knights, that woman…”
“No. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a knight from the Hindaz family.”
“Huh? Now that you mention it…”
“That’s right. In an honor duel, another knight can step forward to fight for a lady’s cause. You’ve heard of the ‘black knight’ system, haven’t you?”
It was a rule created to prevent powerful families from simply crushing others with force in honor duels.
It was the black knight system, which allowed anyone to participate on behalf of a lady by staking their own life.
Financial compensation was forbidden in any form, so the rule was designed for knights to participate solely for the honor of protecting the unjustly weak, or for the lady they admired.
A knight who would risk his life for a woman he loves, even if she's not from his own family—isn't that romantic?
Of course, since most people prioritized their own lives, it was rare for a black knight to actually participate in an honor duel, but it wasn't impossible here.
Besides, they had the justification of punishing the villainess for her evil deeds. They had more than enough reason.
“But… will there really be a strong knight willing to step forward for me?”
“That’s why I said I’d help. Hayla, just trust me.”
Elina’s blue eyes curved into crescents. The corners of her mouth lifted high, as if she were imagining something wonderful.
“This duel will be the end of that bitch. Absolutely! Hahahahaha!!”
“……”
“Ah, ahem, my~ I just got so excited~ Anyway, that bitch is finished now, so you don’t have to worry about a thing. I’ve waited a very long time for her to grow complacent in her own martial prowess~”
Elina’s blue eyes gleamed.
Of course, Elina had no idea that the moderately strong Kalisha had been replaced by Lee Do-hee, the overpowered, dopamine-sex-addicted, S-rank Trial specialist hunter.
*
The next day.
Kalisha woke up and stepped out of her bedroom.
“Gasp!!”
A maid, who had been diligently cleaning nearby since morning, was startled to see me.
“I-I’m sorry, Your Highness!!”
She suddenly prostrated herself, apologizing. She was probably sorry for being startled by me.
It was another stark reminder of the fact that Kalisha was a villainess.
“…I won’t say anything, so get up and continue your work. And order my breakfast to be prepared.”
“Ah, yes, Your Highness!!”
She scrambled away, looking as if she’d just escaped death.
And with that, Kalisha’s mansion descended into chaos.
“What? Her Highness woke up early? S-Shouldn’t we call the physician, Head Butler?”
“O-Of course! We absolutely must call him!!”
“Did you hear? They say Her Highness woke up early today and is having breakfast~”
“Really? Surely nothing bad is going to happen, right? I’m so scared…”
I can hear everything, you idiots.
I had focused divine power into my ears to filter out any potential spies or suspicious individuals, but all I could hear was this ridiculous fuss.
My face flushed slightly with embarrassment.
Why am I the one feeling secondhand embarrassment?
And so, the villainess Kalisha’s day began.
Maids rushed over and immediately began to wash me gently.
The key word was gently.
They were never to scrub hard.
My breasts, gently.
The insides of my thighs, even more gently.
“Hnngh… hah, nngh. Uuhn…”
My pussy and asshole, very softly.
“Hnnng… there, a little more.”
They even massaged my breasts, kneading them.
Being a villainess is the best…
It felt like my body was melting with pleasure.
Looking through her memories, I saw that Kalisha had also moaned just like this while being bathed. So I no longer felt embarrassed or held back.
Come to think of it, the maids who attended my bath didn't seem as scared of me, as if they received some kind of special treatment.
They said nothing about the womb tattoo or the breast milk, acting as if they already knew everything. When you enter a Trial, a kind of perception shift occurs, like a common sense alteration based on your appearance. It seemed the maids who had seen my naked body before were unaffected by it.
Of course, it would be a huge embarrassment if anyone else found out.
After being washed in every nook and cranny, even my most private places, I had my breast milk pleasantly squeezed out. The feeling of the maids’ hands milking me was truly wonderful.
A lavish meal was served immediately. The food was slightly sweet.
It was a menu tailored to Kalisha’s tastes rather than my own, but I didn’t mind it.
Now that I was full and had no schedule for the morning, I decided to train in preparation for the duel.
“Y-You’re going to train, Your Highness?”
The captain of the royal guard spoke to me for the first time.
The lazy Kalisha never trained. But now that I’d suddenly announced I was going to, the mansion was in an uproar again.
Murmur, murmur. Whisper, whisper. Buzz, buzz.
Breaking news~ The villainess is exhibiting strange behavior~
“Sigh… Fine, all of you, come at me.”
“My goodness, Your Highness. How could we possibly point our weapons at you?”
“Hmm, you will if you don’t want to die, won’t you?”
And so, I spent the time until lunch beating up the perfectly healthy royal guards as part of my training. Thanks to the villainess’s notoriety, I was actually praised for training.
Of course, just because I beat them didn’t mean they were unskilled.
They’re just below the level of a Swordmaster.
When the guard captain and his three vice-captains attacked together, even I found it challenging. They fought well. On second thought, it made sense. My doting father would never assign a shoddy escort to his only daughter.
For the record, Kalisha’s father was currently at his fiefdom due to a border dispute.
“Hoo… You are incredible, Your Highness. Have you been hiding your skills?”
“Yes. I have.”
It was a lie, of course, but it wasn't like I could explain the truth anyway.
“At this level, it seems we won’t need to step in for the honor duel.”
“Speaking of which, what are the rules for the honor duel?”
“He happens to be right over there. I’ll ask.”
The head butler, who had rushed over to the training grounds worried after hearing I was training, was there.
“We have agreed to the standard duel format.”
The format for the honor duel was simple.
A 3v3 winner-stays-on match.
Each side would put forth three combatants, and the winner would continue to face the next opponent.
“They’re not going to send out some small fry, are they?”
“Of course not. Anyone who pulled a stunt like that in an honor duel would never be able to show their face in public again.”
That should take care of one of her helpers.
The problem is that blue-haired bitch…
She was vivid in my memory.
In fact, I barely remembered the other candidates; my mind was just filled with hatred for that blue-eyed, blue-haired bitch.
Elina Luminous.
This woman had built her own reverse harem, just like a true romance fantasy protagonist.
She had won the favor of every powerful man as if she had the world’s protection—the Crown Prince, of course, but also the Magic Tower Lord, the Mercenary King, the Wolf Knight, the Ruler of the Back Alleys, and so on.
Naturally, Kalisha hadn’t discovered this herself; it was information the Crawford intelligence unit had barely managed to uncover.
This was also part of the reason Kalisha couldn’t give up on the Crown Prince. She had clung to the slim possibility that Elina might choose another man.
Looking at it this way, it was incredibly unfair.
All Kalisha wanted was the Crown Prince, but Elina was in a position where she could choose anyone.
And among them, the Crown Prince must have seemed like the most valuable prize.
Besides, how thrilling must it be to steal the man loved by the kingdom’s most prominent princess?
Choosing men like she’s picking out a nice car… You’re the one I’ll never forgive. And I’ll crush those bastards who’ve been bewitched by that fox, too.
This Trial might seem to involve many people, but it was really a 1v1 battle.
A showdown between the villainess Kalisha, hated by all, and Elina, loved by all.
If the story followed its original course, Elina’s complete victory would be a given. But of course, that wasn't going to happen.
Until the duel, I spent my time at the mansion planning my next moves.
I gathered information about this kingdom from the viewers, and I brainstormed with the head butler, the royal guard, and the intelligence unit.
They were… not completely, but still, they burned with enthusiasm seeing how I had changed and become quite diligent.
Strangely, the servants in the mansion had never cursed or ignored me, despite all the villainous things I’d done in the past.
*
Before I knew it, the day of the honor duel had arrived.
The entrance to the grand dueling arena.
I peered out through the gap in the barred gate.
They’ve really set the stage, haven’t they.
It was the final day of the Founding Festival banquet. All the nobles were gathered, and even the non-hereditary nobles were in attendance, as this marked the official start of the competition for the Crown Princess.
The evaluations would begin in earnest with this event.
It wasn’t as large as the Colosseum, but a massive crowd had gathered in the spacious dueling arena.
In the best seats with a clear view of the arena sat the Emperor, the Empress, and the Crown Prince, as well as all the other members of the royal family.
Even for an honor duel, a crowd this large was unusual.
But since it was related to the Crown Princess competition, wasn't it the perfect picture to cap off the final day of the festival?
Moreover, both sides were confident of victory. They had both promoted the event heavily, telling everyone to come and watch their opponent be humiliated, so a small crowd was out of the question.
Of course, our side had almost no influence; 99% of the crowd was from their connections.
I had wondered where that bitch from the Hindaz family got her confidence, but now I saw it. It looked like all the fish in Elina’s pond had shown up. I could feel the formidable aura of the waiting combatants.
And after the Emperor’s address, the duel began in earnest.
“Now!! At last, we begin the long-awaited final event of the Founding Festival~~!! A fierce, bloody battle between two women vying for the title of Crown Princess!! On whose side will the goddess of victory smile?!!”
They’d even hired a clown of an announcer to commentate through a voice-amplifying magical tool.
What a fucking circus.
They probably planned to use him to mock me relentlessly if I lost.
“Our first match! The combatant from House Crawford is none other than the lady herself! The one more famous by the name of the Empire’s worst villainess, Kalisha Crawford!!”
““Booooooo~~””
“Evil villainess!!”
“Boo~! Trash!!”
Pfft.
A dry laugh escaped my lips. It was just too absurd.
This is going to be more fun than I thought.
It was true, I suppose, but it seemed they had completely framed this confrontation as good versus evil.
I wondered what kind of faces they would make when their apostles of justice were brutally slaughtered by the villainess.
For today, I’ll play the part of the villainess perfectly.
I was planning to take it easy, but they deserved to be punished for using such cheap tricks before we even started. I’ll give them a taste of the dark Lee Do-hee.
The announcer continued, introducing my opponent.
“He cannot stand for injustice! He shows no mercy to his foes!! He has come to defeat the wicked villainess! Her opponent is~!! The man who has volunteered as a black knight for the delicate Lady Hindaz, the greatest Mercenary King on the continent!!! His name is… Lukerickson~~~!!!”
A decidedly different introduction from mine. But the crowd went wild.
“Waaaaaah!!!”
“The Mercenary King! He’s so cool!!”
“Go, Lukerickson!”
“Please give that evil villainess a harsh lesson!”
“Defeat the villainess!”
“Now!! Let the match begin!!”
Bang!
With the starting signal, the iron gate on the opposite side of the arena opened.
A very handsome and reliable-looking man emerged, holding a greatsword and wearing leather armor reinforced with steel plates.
He walked out leisurely with a smile, basking in the crowd’s thunderous cheers.
He was handsome enough to be at least a supporting character in a romance fantasy, if not the main lead. His appeal was likely his rugged, wild charm and his muscular, bronze-skinned body. In the R-19 uncut version, it might have been his massive dick.
Anyway, seeing that smug face of his just soured my mood even more.
I would use my full power.
The thought of going easy on him vanished.
[Haste]
[Strength]
Both stacked five times.
Following the principles of the Straight Heart One Spear, I spread divine power throughout my body, reinforcing it.
Kwwaaaaang!!
The ground where I planted my foot caved in, and my body shot forward like a beam of light.
It was over in an instant.
Just as I saw the Mercenary King’s eyes widen slightly,
Splat!!!
My spear pierced through his head, sending a spray of crimson blood in all directions.
The Mercenary King’s head was impaled on the spear, and the shockwave caused it to explode completely, scattering fragments of his skull everywhere.
Splat… splat… splat…!
The audience.
And especially the three Crown Princess candidates sitting in the front row right behind the Mercenary King. Bits of blood and brain matter splattered across their faces. They hadn’t even registered what had happened yet; their faces were still smiling.
“Uh…?”
The fervent cheering from moments ago came to an abrupt halt.
As if on cue, thousands of people suddenly fell silent.
The announcer, unable to even declare a winner, just stood there with his mouth hanging stupidly open.