Chapter 77
Episode 77
Henderson burst out of his assigned room the moment he finished unpacking.
His heart was pounding too wildly to stay still.
Perhaps it was because he was particularly hot-blooded by nature.
Thud.
"Ugh. What's up, squad leader?"
"You too?"
"Damn. Looks like we're all the same."
The members of Squad 18, who had practically kicked their doors open at the same time, exchanged awkward smiles as they saw each other's faces.
"Unless you're blind, how could anyone see those knights with the eagle crest and just sit still?"
His deputy, Dygrom, who had been assigned to rein him in, had finally said something that resonated with him.
And it wasn't just them—any knight would feel the same.
The Esperanza Knights. I want to test myself against them.
When speaking of the greatest knight order in Grandia, the first name that always came to mind was the Esperanza Knights of the Sword Duke's household.
Though the Royal Knights, counted among the three great knight orders, operated solely within the palace, and the Walterheim Knights were more renowned for their numbers than their quality.
But above all, what stoked their competitive spirit was—
Knights personally trained by the Sword Duke himself.
The greatest swordsman in the kingdom, the man every knight who wielded a blade aspired to be.
The Esperanza Knights, who had received instruction from the Sword Duke.
How could anyone not be curious about their skill?
"Alright. Let's go. Let's show the MacLaine Knights' strength."
Henderson, leading the charge, had eyes burning with passion—far more intensely than when he had first seen the refined noble ladies of the capital.
"Apologies, but we're mid-tier knights at minimum. Even if you don't mind, sparring with the others might be a bit... unfair. Unless you'd like to train with our apprentices?"
However, the words of the knight clad in armor emblazoned with the eagle crest instantly deflated the enthusiasm of Henderson and his squadmates.
"A lower-tier Force User is still at the stage where they're learning swordsmanship as an apprentice. By our standards, at least."
A mid-tier knight—a rank equivalent to squad leader in MacLaine (and most knight orders)—was merely the baseline qualification for a full-fledged knight in the Esperanza Order.
Two hundred mid-tier knights, forty high-tier knights, and two elite-tier knights.
The true strength of the vaguely renowned Esperanza Knights was staggering enough to make one's knees buckle.
Our lord was a high-tier knight until a few years ago, and he had no equal in the region! But here, they're just... damn it.
Still, they couldn't just retreat after coming this far.
"Fine. Henderson, squad leader of the 18th Squad of the MacLaine Knights. I request a spar."
"Agreed."
Though his pride-stricken comrades grimaced, Henderson surprisingly managed to hold his own against the Esperanza Knight—even exceeding expectations.
It wasn't a bad result, but something nagged at Henderson's mind.
"Damn it. Should I try sparring with their apprentices too?"
"They're all still kids. I heard they don't even accept apprentices who haven't awakened Force by their twenties here."
"Seriously? Even so, that's just... pride-wise—"
"Pride doesn't put food on the table."
Half-listening to his comrades' chatter, Henderson walked in silence for a while, his expression slightly dazed.
The spar with the Esperanza Knight, who wielded a completely different style of mid-tier swordsmanship, had left a deep enough impression that just reviewing it in his mind was immensely helpful.
But...
"Squad leader. That knight—did he really go all out? His swordsmanship felt a bit..."
"He probably did. That's what's weird."
Dygrom, whose sharp eyes were nearing the threshold of mid-tier, had noticed correctly.
The Esperanza Knight, who appeared to be around their age, wielded swordsmanship that was clearly inferior to the Iron Blood Sword Style.
Yet, whether due to sheer experience, he had fought evenly with Henderson.
But for Henderson and Dygrom, who knew the Iron Blood Sword Style had been brought to MacLaine through the Sword Duke, the sight was hard to reconcile.
"From tomorrow, how about we spar with their apprentices?"
"Ugh. Wouldn't clinging to our pride here be a bit...?"
"Yeah. Let's do it. Even if we end up humiliated."
Watching his comrades, Henderson and Dygrom exchanged puzzled glances, lost in thought.
Though they didn't voice it, they were thinking the same thing.
Perhaps the Iron Blood Sword Style Prince Logan had acquired wasn't something he had received from the Sword Duke after all.
Surely the Grand Prince didn't create it himself...
Where the hell did he get it?
Their thoughts branched in different directions, but the conclusion was obvious.
The Grand Prince had bestowed upon their house a swordsmanship superior to that of the Esperanza Ducal Family.
The two knights couldn't help but feel their expectations for their future lord grow even higher.
The superficial reason for coming to the capital was to meet his master, the Sword Duke, and remain until his successor was born.
But beyond that, to achieve his true objective, he first needed to build trust with his master.
Thus, Logan willingly threw himself into the training that began the very day he arrived.
However, what had started as lighthearted training soon forced him to bitterly reflect on his mistakes, and Logan lost himself in the regimen, forgetting all his calculations for a while.
By the time he remembered his initial resolve—to discipline his knights thoroughly the moment they arrived, lest they cause trouble—a full week had already passed.
Please tell me these idiots haven't gone and stirred up trouble somewhere.
But as he searched for them with that worry in mind, he was met with an entirely unexpected sight.
"Grand Prince! Loyalty!"
"Your Highness! Loyalty!"
"We revere you!"
"...Uh, sure."
What the hell? Why are they like this all of a sudden?
Their reaction upon seeing him after so long was excessively fervent.
Even considering his status within the household, it felt over the top.
"Dygrom. Did something happen?"
"Nothing to report!"
"And your duties?"
"We've been continuously sparring and training with the Esperanza Knights!"
"...Oh? You've been working hard."
Indeed, despite the chilly morning air, beads of sweat were visible on their brows.
His initial concerns seemed pointless—they were already training diligently—but his lips curled up regardless.
"Then keep up the—"
"We'll train even harder from now on!"
"We'll never forget Your Highness's consideration!"
"Thank you!"
Still, their inexplicably fervent reactions remained a mystery.
With his knights already rolling without being pushed, there wasn't much left to say.
If anything, it gave him another moment of reflection.
If even the regular knights are this motivated... I really have been...
Logan exhaled softly and picked up a sword beside his knights.
"Huh? Your Highness?"
"I'll train with you all today."
The knights nodded with bright expressions, and Logan's sigh soon turned into a smile.
After finishing a satisfying training session with his knights, drenched in sweat, he encountered something utterly absurd on his way out.
"...A marriage meeting?"
"Yes. A noble household's heir at twenty-one without a single fiancée—what kind of pathetic sight is that? And for my own disciple, no less! So I've decided to find you a match myself."
"Didn't you tell me to focus solely on training while I'm here? Why the sudden—"
"A peaceful heart leads to better training. It's something I only realized after meeting my own wife."
"..."
In a few months, a civil war will sweep the kingdom.
Your disciple plans to be the most active participant in that war.
...Not something I can say, damn it.
What kind of sudden lightning bolt was this?
Logan struggled to maintain his composure as his face threatened to twitch.
"Still, this is too sudden. May I ask why you're bringing this up now?"
"Well... let's just say I was asked. And I'm also concerned about my beloved disciple's future."
There was only one thought that came to mind at the word "asked."
"Was it my family?"
"What parent wouldn't worry when their grown heir hasn't even gotten engaged?"
The Sword Duke spoke as if it were the most natural thing, but Logan had to fight hard not to grimace.
Damn it all.
Logan understood the situation in an instant.
It's pointless. Soon enough...
His mind knew it, but he couldn't just dismiss his master's words.
"...I'll meet her."
A single day wasted—he told himself that much was fine.
"Good. You won't be disappointed. I made sure to find someone who'd suit you. She's quite a famous beauty in the capital, you know."
His master's mischievous smile was slightly unsettling, but...
"Huh? A marriage meeting? You still haven't given up?"
Count Roberts Floyd suppressed the urge to snap at his daughter's retort and replied as calmly as he could.
I'll make sure you understand the happiness of being a woman, no matter what.
The sweat-drenched black training garb and the sword in her hand—
Neither suited the eldest daughter of a count's household, but to her father's eyes, she was still as lovely as ever.
(Of course, he was objectively certain she was beautiful.)
"Yes. Our lovely daughter's popularity remains as strong as ever. This is a recommendation from none other than Duke Felix Esperanza himself."
"...Esperanza? You mean the Sword Duke's family?"
A faint flush colored his daughter's face.
But knowing it wasn't due to the marriage proposal, the bitterness in the count's expression deepened slightly.
Still, at least she was showing interest.
Roberts tried to stay positive and brought up something that might pique her interest further.
"Yes. His disciple, apparently."
"The Sword Duke's disciple? He took one?"
"Indeed. It's still a story only a few know, but they say he's a talent who'll soon make waves."
Though he couldn't possibly match you...
Feeling the anticipation in his daughter's tone, Roberts swallowed the words that rose to his throat.
She had been lively since childhood, so he had assumed she might take an interest in swordsmanship.
Since sword training was grueling even for grown men, he thought she'd give up quickly—but when she instead began enjoying it, he could only laugh and think, What an unusual child.
That was, until his daughter awakened Force at twelve and declared she wanted to become a knight.
—A girl becoming a knight?! Absolutely not! Are you trying to disgrace our three-hundred-year family history?!
The late Count Floyd, his father, had roared as if coughing up blood—a memory still vivid in his mind.
And then, when his daughter was fifteen—
She beat her first fiancé, five years her senior, to a pulp, leading to the engagement's dissolution. His father collapsed shortly after.
The family, too, suffered severe repercussions for pummeling the grandson of Duke Walterheim—an Aura User, no less.
After that, his daughter Eileen's swordsmanship training was strictly forbidden.
Yet, just two years later, Eileen proved she was already beyond the level of most knights by single-handedly thrashing another suitor—this time, a fully qualified knight.
—I have no interest in marriage or anything like it!
By the time his daughter made that declaration to the family, Roberts had already half given up.
A maiden who beats knights to a pulp.
After earning that nickname, marriage proposals had stopped coming entirely.
Why won't she live like other girls?
It frustrated Roberts to no end, but his daughter remained unmoved.
Which was why he couldn't let this opportunity slip away—no matter what.
The duke assured me. He's an exceptional talent.
Perhaps he could handle Eileen.
No—perhaps he could break her.
Not because he wanted his daughter to be unhappy, but because he wanted her to know the same happiness ordinary women enjoyed.
Moreover, Roberts had one certainty.
No man could see my daughter and not fall for her.
Her healthy, slender figure—honed through swordsmanship.
Her striking features, inherited from her mother, who had been called the capital's greatest beauty twenty years ago.
And her cascading red hair, like silk—beautiful enough to enchant any normal man her age.
"The Sword Duke's disciple... I am curious."
Good. Stay interested. And if possible, in more than just that.
"Promise me you won't resort to violence this time! Understood?!"
But his daughter's response was lukewarm at best.
"...As long as he minds his manners."
Only the desperate father's heart blackened with despair.
"Eileen... Floyd?"
A clean-cut young man with red hair like hers—and eyes to match—made for a striking impression.
She had met countless men whose gazes wavered upon seeing her for the first time.
And not a single decent one among them.
—She's awakened Force, so she'll bear strong children.
The Walterheim ducal heir who spouted such nonsense still hadn't been beaten enough, in her opinion.
—What can a woman who's awakened Force possibly do? I'll take you on with one hand. Ah, feel free to use a weapon, miss.
The idiot who couldn't even grasp the difference in their skill levels had been knocked out with one hand—she still didn't understand why that was considered wrong.
And of course, the other suitors who suggested sealing her Force with magic and forcing her to live "properly" were no better.
Pathetic males who only saw her face and leered.
This man would be no different.
The faint hope she had felt upon hearing he was the Sword Duke's disciple began to fade.
Still, she had to maintain basic courtesy.
"A pleasure to meet you, Prince Logan MacLaine."
A beauty with emerald eyes that sparkled like jewels, her rose-like red hair accentuated by a cream-colored evening dress and a shimmering necklace—she was stunningly beautiful.
But the reason Logan's gaze wavered had nothing to do with her appearance.
Lower-tier Force at its peak—nearly mid-tier.
That such a rare beauty in the capital, Grandia, also possessed such astonishing Force was unbelievable for an eighteen-year-old.
And only then did a memory surface in his mind.
Right, the Floyd family. Why didn't I realize it when I first heard the name?
The three-year civil war had spawned countless rumors.
Among them was one concerning the Floyd family.
Eileen Floyd—the Steel Rose that bloomed in a ruined house.
One of Grandia's most tragic talents, lost meaninglessly in the war.
And now, one of its most prominent figures stood before him in an entirely unexpected form.