Ch.247247. Ah! Because the Imperial Family is too intimidating to mess with, and I’m just a mere noble?

WHOOOOSH-!

A dull roar spread across Lumestia Square.

And then.

THWACK-! THWACK-! THWACK-!

WHOOOOSH-!

The territory’s residents who couldn’t fully grasp the situation let out exclamations of awe, while the Holy Knights were struck with horror.

Lionel, who possessed strength that seemed beyond their reach.

The man hailed as the greatest Holy Knight Captain in history in terms of skill was being tossed around like a toy by Selden Alphonse.

WHOOOOSH-!

Lionel collapsed to the ground in an instant.

Though struck only by a fist, his face and body were already covered in blood as if slashed by a sword.

And that wasn’t all.

His expression was one of utter bewilderment.

It was a humiliation he had never experienced in his entire life.

“W-what are you?”

“What am I? Have you been talking to me this whole time without knowing who I am?”

“…That’s not what I mean. How do you possess such impossible skill? Are you using some dark magic?”

“Dark magic? You must think I blocked the monster wave by playing hopscotch.”

As Selden Alphonse took a step forward, Lionel shrank back and retreated a step.

“Eep!”

“Why are you so frightened? Where did all that earlier confidence go?”

Lionel turned his head slightly.

Among the terrified Holy Knights, Balthasar had his eyes tightly shut.

‘Did Balthasar know about this?’

Balthasar was a fairly skilled Holy Knight in his own right.

That’s why when Saint Claudia was taken to Lumestia territory, the most puzzling part was, ‘Shouldn’t Balthasar have been able to subdue Selden Alphonse?’

Only after arriving did the question seem answered.

He had assumed Balthasar had reluctantly agreed to accompany them after learning of His Majesty the Emperor’s critical condition.

However, after this confrontation, he realized all his assumptions had been wrong.

‘At this level, Balthasar must have been forcibly taken as well.’

Lionel took a slow, deep breath and gripped his sword.

He thought that being caught off guard had contributed to his one-sided defeat moments ago.

Otherwise, there was no way he, revered as one of the greatest Holy Knight Captains in history, could have been defeated so pathetically.

“You’ve been lucky until now.”

“Me? Or you?”

“…Just now, I was careless, which made my movements sluggish. It would be wasteful to show my full ability against a small fry.”

“Kuk! What an ugly excuse. Anyway, you’re saying you’ll show your true skill now?”

“…That’s right.”

Selden Alphonse let out a mocking laugh and picked up the real sword he had dropped on the ground.

“Then I should respond properly too, shouldn’t I?”

“…”

The match between fist and sword had already been no contest, and now it would be sword against sword.

The outcome was painfully obvious.

Lionel’s expression, which had regained some confidence, gradually hardened.

“What’s wrong? Am I not allowed to use a sword?”

“What?”

“Have you gone deaf now? I don’t think I hit your ears when I was beating you earlier.”

The pressure was suffocating.

With just fists, it was one thing, but now that Selden Alphonse had drawn his sword, Lionel couldn’t even guarantee his own life.

Thump thump-!

His heart trembled.

Despite his subordinate Holy Knights watching the duel, he could hardly muster strength in his lower body.

Yes.

It was unfortunate that he couldn’t behead Selden Alphonse right now, but shouldn’t he save his life to fight another day?

He needed to plan for the future.

Swish-!

Lionel steeled his resolve.

Just because Selden Alphonse had drawn his sword, he had become a coward.

“Haa… I adm—”

Just as Lionel was about to admit defeat with his own mouth, Selden Alphonse instantly closed the distance between them.

Slash-!

In the blink of an eye, Lionel’s head fell to the ground.

Not only the territory’s residents but also the Holy Knights who witnessed the scene were all shocked.

Thud-!

Selden Alphonse, unfazed, casually shook the blood off his sword and stared blankly at Lionel’s head rolling on the ground.

Then, with an indifferent expression, he clicked his tongue.

“Tsk, you’re the one who challenged me to this duel, remember?”

*

“How utterly absurd.”

In the Imperial reception room.

I adjusted my posture leisurely at the grumbling of Alexis, the Vice-Captain of the Holy Knights.

“What is?”

“After all the effort we put into entering the Imperial Palace… how could we get in so easily with just a word from Lord Selden Alphonse?”

“I do have some acquaintance with His Majesty the Emperor. By the way…”

I raised my head and continued.

“The Imperial reception room is quite spacious, but with all you Holy Knights present, it feels rather crowded.”

“…Is that so?”

Alexis clenched his jaw.

Understandable.

No matter how bad his reputation or how selfish he was, Lionel had been their captain.

I crossed my arms heavily and spoke.

“You seem quite displeased with me.”

“To be frank, there are many things that are disconcerting.”

“Please, tell me.”

“First of all, taking Saint Claudia without the temple’s permission is a serious crime.”

“I thought we had finished that conversation earlier? I’m only guilty of carrying out His Majesty the Emperor’s orders, aren’t I?”

When I raised my voice slightly, Alexis opened his palm as if to calm me down.

“…Then why did you kill Lord Lionel?”

“It was a fair duel. Anyone watching would know that I didn’t force Lord Lionel to challenge me.”

“That’s not the point. Lord Lionel was clearly about to declare his defeat at the end.”

“Are you certain?”

“…Pardon?”

I maintained a brazen attitude while looking at the bewildered Alexis.

“Are you certain that Lord Lionel was about to declare his defeat to me?”

Alexis took a deep breath and continued.

“All the Holy Knights here witnessed the duel. After discussing among ourselves, we are all convinced that Lord Lionel was about to declare his defeat.”

I glanced subtly at Balthasar.

When I jerked my chin as if asking ‘Is that true?’, he squeezed his eyes shut and nodded.

Perhaps I was too obvious.

If I had known this would happen, I would have killed him right at the start instead of toying with him…

I adjusted my posture and put on a serious expression.

“It was a critical situation. When my head could have been severed at any moment, do you think I had the luxury to pay attention to such things?”

“…Excuse me?”

“If I had been distracted by such thoughts and my movements had slowed, it would have been me who died, not Lord Lionel.”

Alexis nodded as if it made sense, then hesitated.

“But anyone could see that Lord Lionel was no match for you, Lord Selden Alphonse… you seemed quite relaxed.”

“When swords cross, a single mistake can determine life or death. What kind of madman would act relaxed in such a situation?”

“I-is that so?”

“Well, I might have appeared relaxed. But that was merely a means to hide my tension.”

As I told these lies without batting an eye, the Holy Knights began murmuring among themselves, seemingly divided in opinion.

Alexis sighed briefly and continued.

“Even so, there will be much talk at the temple.”

“Why?”

“Because Lord Lionel was the Captain who led the Holy Knights.”

“Wasn’t he the one who challenged me to the duel, and didn’t we both sign a contract imbued with magical power?”

Alexis clutched his head as if struck by a headache.

“I understand what you’re saying, but the situation is more complicated than you think.”

“Complicated how?”

“Besides the Saint, there are many others at the temple, including the High Priest. I’m not sure if they will understand.”

I let out a laugh of disbelief.

“Ha! What if I had been killed by Lord Lionel?”

“…”

“Didn’t you all expect me to die? And now that Lord Lionel is dead instead, you can’t handle the consequences?”

“Th-that’s not what I meant…”

“As I said earlier, Lord Lionel was the one who challenged me to the duel, and we even signed a contract. What exactly is the problem?”

“…It’s because Lord Lionel was the Holy Knight Captain representing the temple.”

I had anticipated the situation would unfold like this to some extent.

Yet they didn’t stop it because they were confident Lionel would win.

But after Lionel’s death, they were forced to face reality.

Regardless of the reason, they would have to report Lionel’s death to the temple.

“…So what do you want me to do?”

“To be honest, there won’t be any formal issues, but I wanted to warn you that Lord Selden Alphonse might find himself in a difficult position. The temple was already displeased about taking Saint Claudia.”

“I told you, it was because the Emperor was critically ill! Ah! So the Imperial Palace is too intimidating to touch, but I’m just a mere nobleman?”

“Th-that’s not what I…”

Alexis trailed off.

Unable to come up with any excuse, he hung his head low.

They must be embarrassed too.

Clearly, all blame lay with Lionel, but the temple would undoubtedly be in an uproar.

And yet.

The reason I could remain so calm was because, as a reader, I had anticipated the temple’s reaction.

‘It should be time…’

Creeeeak-! Clank-!

At that moment, the doors of the Imperial reception room opened grandly, in a manner unbefitting nobility.

As two guards opened the doors, Emperor Malius entered the reception room with an air of dignity and authority.

The Holy Knights rose hastily, caught off guard.

And then I spoke in the most endearing voice I could muster.

“Father-in-law, you’re here!?”

Yes.

If you can’t avoid it, you might as well enjoy it.