The Vice-Commander's Son
The Vice-Commander's Son
The greatsword sliced through the air, cutting toward my opponent.
The knight hurriedly raised his sword.
Bang!
"Ugh, what kind of strength is..."
He seemed to have underestimated me because of my size.
Although he managed to block my greatsword, Dabit, the First Prince's guard knight, was pushed far back by the force of the impact.
Still, his sword looked like an artifact-grade weapon. It seemed perfectly fine, even though the impact would have shattered an ordinary iron sword.
"You're even more impressive than what Havier said..."
Knight Dabit shook out his hand as he looked at me.
Though he had been overpowered, the knight was still relaxed.
"Even though I didn't properly channel my mana, I can't believe there was this much impact. No one in your age group could possibly match you."
So that was why he was so relaxed—he hadn't properly channeled his mana.
He had blocked my attack without using mana at all. He was certainly a powerful knight, worthy of being promoted to senior royal knight.
But the same was true of me. I hadn't used mana either.
If I wanted to head off any excuses later, I couldn't just defeat a knight who wasn't even fully prepared to fight.
Now that I'd brought him to his senses, we could finally have a proper match.
"Very well, I apologize. I thought of this as mere preparation for the next match, but I must take this seriously."
The way he kept going on reminded me of my last fight with the Vice-Commander.
Even remembering the pain of dying put me in a bad mood.
Whoom.
I lunged forward again and swung my sword.
This time, the sword was fully charged with mana.
"It will be different this time!"
Seeing the greatsword coming at him, Knight Dabit swung his sword to meet it.
But the swords didn't clash.
The greatsword swayed and bent, slipping right beneath the knight's sword.
The knight's eyes widened.
Apparently, he hadn't expected such a massive sword to move so freely that it seemed to bend.
Boom!
Instead of his sword, his armor took the blow. No—the sword shattered his armor.
As the armor burst apart, the knight tumbled across the ground.
As expected of the Royal Knights' armor, it was sturdy.
Only the armor was destroyed; the knight seemed unhurt.
He quickly rolled away to create some distance, then stood up.
Though uninjured, the knight was a complete mess.
One side of his breastplate had burst open, exposing the inside, and his once-gleaming armor was now filthy from rolling across the ground.
On top of that, his helmet had popped open during the roll, clearly revealing his distorted face.
"What kind of swordsmanship is that? Is that... your ability?"
If you wanted to call it an ability, it was indeed one.
It was a technique that altered the sword's trajectory by switching mana cultivation techniques mid-swing.
It was a trick I'd fallen for multiple times while fighting Carlos inside the sword.
I hadn't been able to use it before because I knew too few mana cultivation techniques, but now I had a rough idea of how to pull it off.
The knight bit his lip and rushed at me.
Having taken a proper hit, he seemed to have finally acknowledged my skills.
Even as he charged, he kept his full attention on my sword.
Since he'd already experienced how extraordinary the movements of my greatsword were, it was only natural that he was cautious.
But there were some things that caution simply couldn't overcome.
I swung my sword once more.
This time, I didn't alter its path or switch mana cultivation techniques.
I simply channeled my mana and swung with all my might.
Boom!
A royal knight would have no trouble blocking a straightforward sword swing.
The knight raised his sword and solidly blocked my greatsword.
And then, he was sent flying far away.
He must have flown at least five meters.
Although he was taller and heavier than me, I'd known how to use mana to anchor my body to the ground since I was a child.
My body was anchored to the ground, and the greatsword I swung was packed with mana I'd cultivated over many years.
My opponent had no choice but to be blown away.
Thud, rumble.
The knight flew a good distance and rolled across the ground.
This time, his armor wasn't damaged any further, but the sight of him barely managing to pick himself up was far worse than before.
His face was pale, and his sword-wielding hand was trembling.
And the blood visible at the corner of his mouth suggested he'd suffered internal injuries from enduring my mana.
Yet he didn't give up. Since he hadn't even had the chance to fight properly, it was probably hard for him to throw in the towel.
With a pale face, he tried to approach me once more.
But the sound from behind him stopped him in his tracks.
"Enough, Dabit has lost. The victor is decided, so let us end the duel."
The Vice-Commander had stepped in.
Knight Dabit turned his head blankly, looked back, and lowered it.
It seemed to be because of the Vice-Commander's grave expression and the First Prince's irritated face.
The First Prince clicked his tongue as he watched Knight Dabit return with his head bowed.
"Why are you ending it already? Even if he's going to lose, he should at least put up a more spirited fight before it's over."
The Vice-Commander sighed at the First Prince's words.
If it had been any other knight, he might have agreed, but this was his own son.
The difference in their skill was clear. There was no need to fight any further. There was no reason to let his son make an even uglier display of himself here.
He didn't know where such a monster had come from, but he couldn't let his son's bright future be ruined by being crushed by a beast like that.
The Vice-Commander stared at the Princess's guard knight, who was walking back to the Princess.
"I heard he's an illegitimate son... Which family does he come from?"
He had definitely heard the boy was still an academy student, but could someone really be this strong?
Surely, he wasn't the only one wondering that.
"He is indeed an illegitimate son, though he's the third son of the Duke of Gracia."
The Knight Commander, who was standing beside him, answered his muttering.
Though the Knight Commander had suddenly returned and made life difficult for others, he was, contrary to appearances, well-versed in all sorts of rumors.
At the Knight Commander's words, the Vice-Commander nodded.
If he was the Duke of Gracia's son, that made sense.
"So he was the Duke of Gracia's illegitimate son... Then, is he something like the Duke's secret weapon?"
"Well, I wouldn't know that, but why would a secret weapon be here?"
Indeed, there was no reason to send a knight raised as a secret weapon to serve as the Princess's guard knight.
And certainly not to have him appear in a place like this.
If he were a secret weapon, they would never do that.
In any case, hearing that he was the Duke of Gracia's illegitimate son let the Vice-Commander at least accept the monster's skill.
The Duke of Gracia had been famous as a sword genius in his youth.
If Alex had inherited that blood, it was entirely possible for a monster like him to be born.
This was merely an assumption the Vice-Commander could make because Alex had hidden his true skills to some extent.
The Knight Commander, who knew a bit more about Alex's true strength, smirked when he saw the Vice-Commander's expression.
The Knight Commander stared at Alex again, then tilted his head in confusion.
There was something peculiar about Alex's eyes.
"No matter how I look at it, he seems to be mocking you, Vice-Commander..."
He had never seen that particular expression before, but he knew the face well enough to guess what it meant.
It was unmistakably a mocking look.
"Why are you suddenly trying to stir up trouble? I am not the kind of person who would plot revenge just because my son lost. Do not try to pick a fight for no reason."
The Vice-Commander had never even seen the Princess's guard knight before.
The boy had no reason to mock him, and the Vice-Commander had done nothing to deserve being mocked.
The Vice-Commander also looked at Alex, but he didn't think the boy was mocking him.
While the boy was certainly looking in their direction, his expression was completely hidden by his helmet.
"He definitely has mocking eyes, though..."
The Knight Commander tilted his head.
The Vice-Commander asked the Knight Commander,
"Is he a knight you know?"
"No, well, I only saw him once when Duke Ceuta introduced us..."
The Knight Commander hurriedly waved his hands.
"Why are you dragging me into this when I'm just staying quiet!"
The old man standing beside them, Duke Ceuta, barked in anger.
"Well, I had to mention you if I wanted to explain."
"You rascal, I brought you along, and all you do is stir up trouble!"
The banter between the two began.
It was the same banter he'd heard in the past—the sort of thing he'd witnessed time and again before the King fell ill. Back then, he too had watched and laughed, but...
Now that their paths had diverged, he could no longer watch with a simple smile.
Just then, the Prince called him.
The Vice-Commander stepped out of the soundproof barrier the Commander had set up and walked over to the Prince's side.
The Vice-Commander's son was currently leaving the training ground to change out of his ruined armor.
Since his son, the guard knight, had left his post, it seemed he would have to stand guard in his stead.
But that wasn't why the Prince had called him.
The Prince pointed at the Princess's guard knight, who was stepping forward again for the next duel.
"He's quite useful, isn't he?"
The Vice-Commander shook his head inwardly. 'Useful' was not a word that could describe a knight of that caliber.
"He is far beyond just 'useful'."
"Who is he?"
"I hear he is still an academy student."
"Still a student? The guy who beat my guard knight?"
There was a lot packed into that single sentence.
It conveyed everything from surprise at Alex to an insult aimed at his guard knight—the Vice-Commander's son.
Though he had no choice but to accept it since the defeat was a fact, he couldn't help feeling disappointed at times like this.
"Investigate him immediately. Find out who he is."
Although he had already heard some details from the Commander moments ago, the Vice-Commander simply bowed his head.
He could just tell him later.
"If that's the case, that guy better win this time too... Watching my little brother win is even more annoying."
The Second Prince was grinning from ear to ear as he sent out his guard knight.
He looked as if he'd already won the match.
I had only swung my sword a few times, so I didn't need any time to recover.
I immediately stepped out and waited for my opponent.
Unlike the First Prince's guard knight, I knew nothing about this one.
A knight who looked smaller than me bowed to the Second Prince, then stepped out in front of me.
The knight who stepped forward silently took a stance and stared at me.
With no choice, I spoke first.
"I am Alex, Princess Aisha's guard knight."
Even after I spoke, I got no answer.
Just as I began to wonder if we should simply start like this, I finally heard my opponent's voice.
"...Ines."
My eyes widened involuntarily.
"She's a woman, right?"
"The Second Prince's guard knight was a woman?"
Her name sounded feminine, but her voice was unmistakably a woman's.
I wasn't the only one surprised.
It seemed everyone was only just learning that the Second Prince's guard knight was a woman.
Seeing the crowd's shock, the Second Prince looked even more delighted.
He looked like a child showing off a hidden toy.
As I hesitated, the knight standing before me spoke.
"...Is there a problem with me being a woman?"
Judging by her hesitant way of speaking, she probably hadn't spoken much in the past.
Perhaps the reason no one had realized she was a woman while she guarded the Second Prince was that she kept her mouth shut.
And now, it seemed the restriction that had forbidden her from speaking had been lifted.
Seeing the Second Prince smiling like that, I guessed this duel was the debut stage for his guard knight.
It seemed his motive for agreeing to this duel in the first place was to debut his guard knight.
In the end, was the First Prince the only one without an ulterior motive?
I let out a dry laugh to myself and gripped the sword slung across my back.
"There's no way being a woman is a problem."
It didn't matter whether she was a man or a woman.
More than that, I was simply glad to be fighting an ability user who seemed to have some real skill.
I raised my sword in salute, and she rushed toward me in response.
As she charged, the knight drew her sword and thrust it toward me from a distance.
Swish!
The sword left her hand and shot straight toward me.