Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Master (2)
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The woman who appeared hurled the shattered door frame aside, unleashing an overwhelming aura while thrusting out her massive breasts as if flaunting her stunning figure, and bellowed.
"Who the hell are you? That Yuno punk? Is the little brat already sniveling? He should just crawl into his mommy's arms and suckle on her tits instead of getting cocky!!"
"How dare you! Such insolence toward His Highness the Third Prince!!"
The four Imperial Guard Knights who had been protecting Yuno and the Empress inside the room charged at her all at once, but their swords were instantly knocked away, and they were grabbed by the collars and flung into the corridor.
"Guh... Th-this martial art... Are you... the one the Captain mentioned...?"
As the knights who had been guarding the palace were tossed aside, Isabella and Marie stepped in front of Yuno, activating their magic and spirit arts respectively.
"Oh ho~ Even at your young age, you can cast attack magic like Fireball, and you know how to wield a gnome aggressively? Impressive."
Isabella had loaded her Fireball and was ready to launch it at her, while Marie had summoned a gnome to grab her legs.
"But... it's still just child's play!"
Boom!!
"Kyaaah!!"
She stomped the ground hard with her foot, sending out a massive shockwave that obliterated the Fireball and the gnome. The impact knocked Isabella and Marie unconscious.
She glanced at the two fainted girls, confirmed they were unharmed, and slowly walked toward Yuno.
"Hmm~ Another unexpected talent? There's yet another promising one here?"
Eliza had secretly picked up a sword from the floor and rushed at her, gripping it with both hands.
"Die!!"
"You've trained quite a bit, but your skills haven't blossomed yet—they're stuck. Too sloppy!!"
Eliza's sword was snatched away in an instant, and with both wrists seized, she was effortlessly subdued.
"Hahaha, I heard there are four princesses, but this is the first I've heard of that. Ah~ You! You're that princess sent as a hostage from the Leon Kingdom, right? But then isn't the prince your enemy? Why are you protecting him like this?"
"You don't need to know that!! Let go!!"
Eliza kicked wildly while resisting fiercely with her wrists held, but it had no effect on her.
"Not my business anyway... So just stay quiet for a bit, Princess."
Struck on the back of the neck with a hand chop, Eliza quietly collapsed onto the floor.
Having neutralized all resistance, the mysterious woman slowly approached Yuno. But Yuria spread her arms and stood in his way, and she reached out toward Yuria.
As Yuria closed her eyes seeing the hand coming toward her, Yuno finally snapped out of it.
"What is this about? Why are you looking for me? You didn't kill my sisters or Eliza, so it seems like you want something."
Yuno pushed Yuria, who was shielding him, behind him and stepped forward, staring her down directly.
"Oh! I thought you were some pathetic wimp being protected by the girls, but that's not the case?"
"Wh-what did you say?! How dare you speak to our Yuno like that!!"
Yuria exploded in anger at the woman's crude words, but Yuno, instinctively sensing her immense strength, calmed her and offered a polite greeting.
"I was out cold and just woke up, so my manners are late. Yuno Alexander Windrage von Valkan, Third Prince of the Empire. The lady beside me is my mother, Yuria von Valkan, Empress of the Empire."
But instead of a greeting, she threw a punch straight at Yuno's face.
Whoosh.
"Wh-what is this?! Don't you know any manners...? Guh!!"
"Dodging that one— you've got some talent... But this...? Huh? You took it?"
Yuno barely dodged the left fist aimed at his face, but the follow-up right fist landed squarely on his abdomen. However, with superhuman abdominal muscle tension, he endured the punch and immediately countered with his own fist.
"Uhahaha! Impressive! A guy who can't even handle mana at this speed! Whoa~ That last one was close!"
Even as he threw his strongest punches and kicks, she effortlessly dodged while mocking him, making Yuno bite his lip.
'That woman... She's not your average knight... At least an advanced knight... Maybe even...'
The thought that she might be a master filled him with brief despair, but Yuno quickly regained his composure and pressed her toward the opposite side.
'I have to seize any chance while she's playing around... And now's the time!!'
Finally spotting the wall behind her, Yuno spread his arms wide to block her retreat and attempted a tackle.
"Hmph! Isn't that too obvious? Well~ I'll give you credit for the effort. But with that level, you can't—Huh!!"
The mysterious woman lightly jumped over the waist-level tackle and aimed to finish him off. But Yuno hadn't targeted her waist—he went for her ankle.
"Gotcha!!!"
Yuno grabbed her ankle and slammed it down toward the floor. But she moved at incredible speed, easily freed her ankle from his grip with her hand, then struck the back of his neck with a hand chop, knocking him out and escaping the crisis.
"Guh!!"
Thud.
"Whew~ This kid!! He's something else? Forcing me to use mana against him... No wonder Richtenaur cherishes him."
"Wh-who are you... What are you doing here? Why do this...?"
Yuria, supporting the fainted Yuno and helping him up, asked softly as the woman's fierce aura faded.
"Hahaha, you're the Empress, right? Sorry about that... I never learned proper etiquette, so forgive me. Richtenaur asked me to teach this kid, so I came to see his face. Didn't plan to cause a scene at first..."
She gave an awkward smile, looking at Yuno's completely wrecked palace.
"Well... I only broke the door... The rest was trashed by your kids, so don't bill me for it? I'm broke on booze money these days... Came to earn some, and taking a loss would suck. Hahaha."
Yuria could only let out a deep sigh watching her scratch her head.
A short while later, once Yuno, Isabella, Marie, and Eliza all woke up, Yuria called the servants and maids, made them swear to secrecy, and cleaned up the scene.
"I gave the Empress a rough explanation already... But now, let me introduce myself properly. I'm Katrin Aragon. I came at Richtenaur's request to teach you."
Eliza's eyes widened hugely.
"Ka... Katrin Aragon? The... the world's only Fist Master? You're her?"
"Well, not the only one. My master and junior sister are around too... But I'm the strongest, so it's not entirely wrong. Uhahaha!"
Hearing her identity, Yuno's eyes also widened in shock.
"But... What do you mean I'm to receive your teachings? I have no Mana Core, so even if you teach me..."
"What nonsense? What's that massive energy bursting from your lower body if not mana?"
At her words, Yuno finally looked down at his lower body.
"Huh...? But Richtenaur Count said I have no Mana Core..."
"Puhahaha! That guy said your Mana Core is in your balls, so he couldn't detect it properly. Puhahaha! Man~ You're set for stamina from now on, huh? You know wherever the Mana Core is, that area develops insanely? Normal knights have theirs in their hearts, so their stamina is top-notch."
At Katrin's words, Isabella, Marie, and Eliza all blushed.
"Th-then... does that mean I can wield mana now? I was so disappointed thinking all my training was for nothing..."
"Yeah. You trained insanely hard, didn't you? I never dreamed a total beginner without mana control would force me to get even a little serious. Your combat sense is pretty good too..."
"Thank you... But Richtenaur Count said he'd teach me himself... Why ask you, Lady Katrin...?"
"That guy's completely conservative and by-the-book. He can only teach what he knows. No idea how he became a master with that thick skull. Most Imperial sword styles are made for heart Mana Cores. Almost 99% of humans have theirs there. But yours? In the balls, so it doesn't mesh."
Only then did Yuno understand why Katrin had come for him.
"Then... Lady Katrin, you don't have yours in your heart either?"
"Right! I'm an even weirder case. I've got two. One in each of my proud breasts. That's why they're so huge. Puhahaha!"
She said something utterly embarrassing without a hint of shame, making Yuno's family blush instead.
"Our school's training methods don't care about Mana Core location anyway. So, wanna learn from me?"
Katrin extended her hand to Yuno. Without a moment's hesitation, he grabbed it and shook.
"Yes. I'll learn from you, Lady Katrin. Please take care of me from now on!"
"Good! You're my disciple starting today, so call me Master from now on. During training, I won't give a damn about status—brace yourself! Got it, Yuno?"
"Yes, Master!"
And so, Yuno took the world's strongest Fist Master, Katrin Aragon, as his master. From that day, he devoted all his time except for cultural classes to training.