Chapter 66: The Tin Knight and The City of Clockwork — Act 3 (8)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 66: The Tin Knight and The City of Clockwork — Act 3 (8)
“Sir!”
A straight line from his right shoulder to his right thigh.
At the sight of the massive wound, which could only be described as fatal, the members of Gerhardt’s faction screamed.
But.
Thwack!
Gerhardt himself, far from clutching his wound and collapsing, moved his leg even in that state and kicked Adelaide.
The sword Adelaide was holding broke, and she too couldn’t withstand the impact, rolling across the floor.
Pshhh! Blood gushed from Gerhardt’s wound.
It was the price for moving so recklessly while injured.
Examining his wound with a grim face, Gerhardt’s eyebrow twitched as he saw Adelaide groaning and trying to push herself up.
Clank.
The Tin Knight stepped forward, as if to confront Gerhardt.
There were piercing wounds all over its body, and its right arm was twisted outward at a ninety-degree angle, but it gave no impression of being weakened.
On the contrary, it felt as if it could fight on indefinitely if it chose to.
In that case, I will too, Gerhardt thought. Just as he was about to step forward, the Count’s voice rang out.
“Why don't we leave it at that? Any further and this will turn from a duel into a fight to the death.”
Gerhardt froze.
Knowing the Count was right, the old man, who yearned to burn up all his strength, stubbornly pushed back.
“…Many duels become fights to the death.”
“If this were a fight to the death, you would have already lost.”
“What do you mean?”
“If that girl had truly intended to, your head would be split open by now.”
“That’s…”
Gerhardt swallowed his words.
The bleeding looked dramatic, but in truth, Gerhardt still had strength left.
Although she had managed to use sword energy briefly during the fight, Adelaide’s technique was still immature.
Her skills were in many ways insufficient to properly cut through Gerhardt’s body, which was already fortified by the Lion Duke’s bloodline’s unique constitution, years of training, and mana reinforcement.
However, that could change depending on how one attacked.
If she had aimed for his head from the start—and not with a slash but a downward strike—even Gerhardt wouldn't have escaped unscathed.
As Gerhardt hesitated, a detestable voice reached his ears.
“Cough! Cough! Hooo. Well, I know you've always had a lingering, ugly personality. But still, let's be reasonable. Seriously. You old geezers have no sense of grace.”
“Lying on the floor, yet your mouth is as lively as ever.”
“You wouldn't be saying that if you'd taken a lump of iron to the solar plexus.”
It wasn't just talk; as if he truly lacked the strength to get up, René lay sprawled on the floor, only his eyes darting around.
Gerhardt, who had been staring at him with annoyance, finally closed his eyes with a sigh.
“I admit defeat.”
*
After the match ended, there were no cheers filling the arena or a grand award ceremony.
The fight had been so bloody that the audience, who should have been expressing admiration and cheers, was simply stunned into silence.
“What a shame. It was such a magnificent fight.”
Seeing the Count calmly munching on a cookie as if he didn't understand, the knight commander replied with an expression that said he wanted to sigh.
“Well, to ordinary people, it must have looked like they were really fighting for their lives, not just dueling.”
The standard for a ‘fatal wound’ for an ordinary person was quite different from that for a warrior trained with mana.
The former could die from excessive bleeding with a single bad cut to the thigh or neck, but the latter could stop the bleeding and even constrict blood vessels by focusing their energy.
Of course, there were limits—it wasn't as if a severed arm would just grow back—but it was true that the higher the level of the combatants, the more brutal their duels tended to become.
This was especially pronounced for the Lion Duke's bloodline, as their basic constitution was naturally robust.
“Well, to put it another way, the fight was so intense that no one will dare to dispute the outcome now. Even if someone wanted to, the atmosphere would make it difficult for them to speak up. In that sense, Lord Gerhardt has done us a great service.”
“Judging by how he insisted on fighting to the very end, I don't think it was intentional.”
“Isn't the result what matters? And even if Lord Gerhardt had no such intention, I'm sure Lord René was different. Frankly, he had no other reason to agree to the duel.”
Though I doubt he expected both of them to lose side-by-side, the Count muttered.
The knight commander agreed.
The outcome of this match was just that abnormal.
“I'm curious about that Tin Knight's identity. I've heard that the magic dolls from the Magic State are far superior in performance to the Empire's. Could it be from there?”
“If so, that's a frightening thought. We must strive to improve our city's technology quickly. Otherwise, won't our Tik-Tok dolls fall before the Magic State's dolls like mere foot soldiers before a knight?”
The Count said playfully.
Judging by the wide smile on his lips, he didn't seem genuinely worried.
“…Do you perhaps have any idea about that knight?”
The Count shrugged at the knight commander's question.
“Well. At the very least, he seems to be a very interesting fellow.”
“I see.”
At the answer, which could have been sincere or a joke, the knight commander sighed inwardly.
His lord was, as always, a difficult man to understand.
*
Tik-Tok Lord’s Castle. Infirmary.
“…You're asking me to take on the role of an instructor here?”
With his upper body wrapped in bandages, Gerhardt's eyebrows twitched.
Seeing him clearly suppressing a surge of anger, Adelaide flinched.
René, who was next to her, chimed in.
Unlike Gerhardt, he was impeccably dressed in his uniform, with not a bit of skin showing.
“Not ‘me,’ but ‘us.’ Let's be precise.”
“I have no desire to be lumped together with a brat like you under the word ‘us’.”
“Hey, you old geezer, you think I'm happy about this?”
“P-please don't fight, you two.”
Seeing the two of them growling at each other, Adelaide glanced at the Tin Knight and desperately tried to convey her thoughts.
‘S-Sir Knight. Isn't this asking too much?!’
The Tin Knight responded to Adelaide's glance.
[The 'Tin Knight' replies that if that were the case, it would have just sided with one of them from the start, gotten the token, and been done with it!]
[The 'Tin Knight' insists that the reward for the hidden route must be greater than the normal route!]
[The 'Tin Knight' says that the dojo where Adelaide is the representative instructor must be bigger and stronger than the other dojos!]
[The 'Tin Knight' says that having an old man of power and a young man of technique is better than having just one of them!]
It was only natural, but it was impossible for Adelaide, who had to wander the continent collecting tokens, to stay in Tik-Tok and act as an instructor.
The position of representative instructor would be a title in name only, so the actual management of the dojo would have to be entrusted to someone else.
Adelaide had planned to entrust the role to René, with whom she was at least acquainted (and for whom she felt a bit of guilt for suddenly smacking him from behind), but the Tin Knight insisted that if they were going to do it, they might as well talk to Gerhardt too.
The Tin Knight didn't even consider Adelaide's predicament of having to relay the message, as if it was fine since it didn't have to speak directly.
Then again, a being without a heart naturally lacks a conscience.
If the witch had been here, she would have slammed the brakes on the Tin Knight, either with scathing remarks or a physical beating, but the little lion still lacked the courage and capability for that.
Instead of kicking her worthless mentor in the shin, she looked at Gerhardt and René with teary eyes.
“Um, s-so, is it… impossible after all?”
“……”
The two men fell silent.
And then.
“…Hmph. If that is the victor's will, I have no choice but to follow.”
Surprisingly, it was Gerhardt who raised the white flag first.
René's eyes widened.
“What's with this old geezer? I expected him to spout some shameless nonsense like, ‘If you're going to entrust it to me, then give me full authority.’”
“A match is a match.”
“Didn't you lose to me and then disgracefully demand a rematch?”
“What you did was trickery.”
“My, what pretty words. Anyone hearing this would think you were kicked out for no reason at all.”
Although René grumbled and complained, he eventually nodded his head, just like Gerhardt.
“Well, I suppose taking on the role of an instructor is better than being kicked out. Once word of this duel spreads, the strength of magic dolls will be re-evaluated, and membership will probably increase.”
Adelaide's expression brightened instantly.
“Thank you both so much!”
“Haha, what's to thank? On the contrary, Adelaide, this old man should be thanking you. I'm going from having everything to having only half, but this geezer is going from having nothing to having half, isn't he? If you ask me, he should be bowing in gratitude.”
“For a loser, you have a long tongue.”
“Ah, ahem. Hahahaha.”
Seeing the two of them start bickering again, barely acknowledging her thanks, she gave an awkward laugh.
She worried if the dojo could even function properly with these two rivals clashing in one place… but what could she do? She had no choice but to trust the Tin Knight's intuition.
Afterward, Adelaide continued her discussion with them, hashing out details like, “new students will first undergo common training before choosing an instructor for a specialized course,” “a teaching assistant system will be created to boost student motivation,” and “Adelaide's seven disciples will receive bonus points during TA selection.” As they spoke, the Tin Knight addressed her.
[The 'Tin Knight' suggests she also talk about the Smith & Sinc Workshop!]
“Oh, right. In about two days, a doll workshop connected to my party is scheduled to open. To celebrate the opening, Sir Knight will be putting on a performance in the streets, so please come and watch if you're free!”
“Hoh, a doll workshop, you say? If you're recommending it, I'm quite interested. I've been a patron of the Stromboli Company, but it's always basic practice to have multiple trade routes.”
“Tsk. To think a being with such skill would act like a clown. I find it hard to understand.”
The Tin Knight proudly puffed out its chest.
[The 'Tin Knight' proclaims that it will show an even more powered-up version of itself then!]
[The 'Tin Knight' says that, on second thought, if it had twisted the order of events and fought after finishing its upgrades at the workshop, it would have been much easier!]
[The 'Tin Knight' adds that this was fun in its own way with a moderate difficulty, and self-praises its excellent schedule-coordinating abilities!]
“……”
Adelaide, who had been rolled around to death—no joke—during this match, remained silent.
“By the way, Adelaide. Your doll seems to want to say something. What is it?”
Adelaide hesitated for a moment. Then, she replied with a bright smile.
“—Oh no, he didn't say anything important!”
[The 'Tin Knight' is shocked by its pupil's rebellious phase!]
After the arduous challenge in Tik-Tok.
She had grown a little more once again.