Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Knight
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Princess Heroine Bellatrix Oberia.
She was called the Empire's Golden Rose, her every action and mannerism so perfect that she was the closest thing to 'perfection' itself. Accordingly, her escorts were selected from those closest to her level of 'perfection'.
While playing the game, you'd eventually encounter Bellatrix's rookie escort knight, a woman who perfectly matched the ideal knight Bellatrix sought.
A sturdy body honed through grueling training.
A face brimming with an ironclad will that seemed unbreakable.
A character that knew how to aid the weak and serve her lord.
And swordsmanship that claimed the top spot in overall rankings.
Despite being a commoner, she'd secured her position as Bellatrix's escort knight through sheer skill alone—a fact that made her more than worthy of being Bellatrix's favorite.
So.
"How about the two of them have a spar? It seems my friend here has developed a bit of competitive spirit toward Sir Is."
I couldn't believe what Bellatrix was saying.
Competitive spirit... toward me?
Objectively speaking, my martial prowess is only mid-tier at best if we rank it high, mid, low.
I'd become Ariana's direct Holy Knight because I ranked first among the rookies, but if I faced off against the Seven Virtues Holy Knights, I'd be flat on the ground in the blink of an eye.
Yet her—the candidate for Bellatrix's escort knight—could hold her own to some degree even against the Seven Virtues Holy Knights.
The gap between us was so vast that a match was impossible. There was no way she'd feel competitive against me.
This had to be Bellatrix's doing.
Even while playing the game, she'd occasionally act in ways that defied understanding.
A spar with her... I'd definitely get crushed.
I had no idea what Bellatrix hoped to gain from watching me fight, either.
Still, my choice was set.
"Saintess, may I accept the challenge for a spar?"
I'd accept.
From the moment the proposal left her lips, my answer hadn't wavered.
"Are you sure, Is? Your opponent is..."
"It's fine. Please permit it."
"...All right. If that's your wish, Is."
The reason was simple. Just one.
Considering Bellatrix's personality...
"Oh my, accepting right away? My friend will be thrilled."
You're the one who's thrilled, aren't you?
Playing along like this was the best way to rack up points.
"Is..."
"It's fine, Saintess. As a Holy Knight, how could I refuse a spar? Doing so would make me look weak, and that would reflect poorly on you as well."
I whispered it to Ariana loud enough for Bellatrix to hear.
Bellatrix's lips curved into a subtle smile as she eavesdropped on our conversation.
From her perspective, I was the loyal Holy Knight sworn to the Saintess. As long as I acted exactly as she expected, her favor toward me would rise.
Well, not that there's even one percent falsehood in what I just said to Ariana.
The words I'd whispered to Ariana weren't fabricated to impress Bellatrix—they were one hundred percent sincere.
Protecting Ariana's honor while boosting Bellatrix's favor? Best of both worlds.
Of course, I had zero chance of winning the spar, but Bellatrix probably expected that too, so...
I'd fight with everything I had. That should be enough.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ -Clank. Rattle.
As usual, I headed to the training grounds in full armor.
With the sun set, the armor—which normally gleamed blindingly white in the sunlight—now looked a deep gray.
I'm a little tense.
Another sudden encounter with a heroine.
My meeting with Ariana had been abrupt, and so had this one with Bellatrix.
And now, the knight heroine too.
With Ariana, my first impression had been simply 'beautiful'.
With Bellatrix, it had been 'mysterious'.
I wondered what this one would be like.
Carrying that anticipation, I arrived at the training grounds. In the distance, through the darkness, a figure gripping a sword asserted its presence.
Even though the darkness obscured her form, the aura emanating from that silhouette was already that of a true knight.
-Gulp.
I swallowed hard from the tension and stepped forward. Then, applause rang out from somewhere.
-Clap clap.
As the sound echoed, light bloomed overhead in the once pitch-black training grounds.
Magic, huh.
As if reading my thoughts, a familiar voice kindly explained.
"It's a light magic called Light. Magic circles installed throughout the training grounds activate to allow training even at night. For the imperial palace's grounds, this is the least they could do, right?"
I turned toward the voice.
How had she gotten so close? She stood about five meters away, still smiling.
"Thank you so much for coming."
"No problem. It's nothing."
Bellatrix gave a satisfied smile at my response, then stepped back a few paces to reveal the knight hidden behind her.
Full plate armor tailored to a woman's frame, a shield strapped to her back, and a straight iron sword in her hand—the very picture of a knight's standard gear.
The powerful aura radiating from her seemed to proclaim just how strong she was.
-Gulp.
I expected it, but she's even more intimidating.
True to her knight-plus-heroine combo, she didn't look like a heroine at all right now—just a pure knight in my eyes.
Perhaps annoyed that I'd been staring blankly, a beautiful yet resolute voice emanated from beneath her visor, snapping me back to reality.
"Holy Knight Is?"
"...Yes, that's me. My apologies."
I bowed my head in apology, and she nodded as if to say it was fine before cutting straight to the point.
"To business, then. Thank you truly for accepting this spar on such short notice."
"It's no trouble. As a Holy Knight myself, how could I refuse a chance to spar with someone of such outstanding skill?"
True to knights' talk, our exchange was all business, devoid of emotion.
"Then let's begin."
"Very well."
After that brief small talk, the spar commenced immediately.
Bellatrix stood off to the side, watching us, while Ariana had just arrived and taken up position beside her, shouting something my way.
From the shape of her lips, it looked like 'Do your best, Is!'—an adorably endearing sight.
Bellatrix seemed to find Ariana's display equally cute, gazing at her with eyes much like mine. The two heroines together were so harmonious it was healing just to watch.
But.
"..."
A slight turn of the head, and there she was—the fearsome knight heroine standing before me, sword in hand.
Her name was Adel. Her future family name: Fortress.
"Begin!!"
The battle with Adel Fortress had started.
-Boom!
With speed surpassing even the Hero, Adel kicked off the ground.
In the blink of an eye, her sword swung toward my side, while her shield in her off-hand pressured me.
I can't keep up...!
I quickly wrapped my body in holy power to brace for the impact.
-Boom!
"Ngh...!"
Even with preparation, her single slash sent me flying.
I expected it, but...
This was too much.
The Hero had immense power but was arrogant and prone to lapses, making his weaknesses visible. Adel, though, had that power plus far more combat experience than me—and zero carelessness. She was an iron wall of a person.
Losing was one thing, but getting knocked down without landing a single blow? That looked bad.
Especially since I didn't want Ariana seeing me get utterly demolished like this.
I scrambled to my feet at once.
"Hoo..."
Regulating my breath, I gripped my shotel tighter.
"Impressive as expected."
As if refusing all conversation mid-spar, Adel closed in again.
But this time, I had no intention of going down easy. I thrust my shield forward.
-Clang!
Her strength was monstrous—my shield flew from my grasp upon impact.
Now...!
-Klang!
Trading the shield, I drove a holy power-infused fist toward her torso.
"!!"
She realized I'd deliberately dropped the shield to land the punch—her momentum faltered, if only slightly.
I didn't miss the opening, swinging my shotel at her immediately. And then—
-Screeech...!
My shotel clashed against hers, metal scraping metal, and was blocked.
She's brutally strong...!
One of us couldn't block even with a shield and felt like dying, while the other parried effortlessly with a sword.
I desperately reached with my off-hand, but her upward shield bash blocked it clean.
She pulled the shield back slightly, then slammed it forward into me.
-Klang!
"Ngh...!"
The blow to my helmet made my head ring.
But even then, I didn't release my shotel.
Yeah, the situation's just like that time.
An endlessly disadvantageous spot, with only a curved sword in my hand.
This bent blade couldn't break a knight's straight sword, but...
"From now on, I won't take a single step back."
...it could hold her off.
From here on, I resolved not to retreat even a single step.