Ch.8686. Royal Ranch (5)

After knocking out that irritating woman with a staff blow to the back of her head.

“We’ll take care of the aftermath of the duel.”

“……Thank you, ma’am.”

“….No, we should have prevented you from experiencing such an unpleasant situation. ……..I’m sorry.”

“Ma’am, you don’t need to apologize. He’s the one who was in the wrong.”

“……Yes, you should go ahead now.”

After hearing that the teacher, Druid Frida Meyer, would handle the aftermath, I was able to leave the Imperial Pasture with light steps, carrying my newly crafted oak staff.

The oak staff I was holding now, which I had used during the duel, was indeed inferior in many ways compared to my mother’s staff that I had originally used.

It could never match the mana storage function or the nature magic casting assistance of my mother’s staff… But since its purpose and intended use were different from the beginning, it wouldn’t be a major issue.

The oak staff had two main functions.

First, since I had manipulated it to be essentially like a living oak tree, it allowed me to hide among natural objects at any time.

And the second was the ability to provide a certain amount of correction in close combat when using this staff.

I had already mastered staff techniques beyond the basics to a level usable in actual combat, and although I couldn’t compare to professional warriors, I could hold my own in close combat to some extent.

The strength and physical abilities I could achieve by applying various wild magic buffs exceeded those of warriors who enhanced their bodies with aura.

However, since this method couldn’t penetrate or block the destructive power or defense of equipment enhanced by aura, until now I had been content with supporting from the rear with magic…..

But this staff I created, on the grounds that one never knows how life will unfold, possessed the power to overcome such gaps and make close combat with professional warriors viable.

Borrowing part of the mysteries from our squeaky friends, the staff was given the ability to ‘absorb’ impacts and ‘release’ them internally.

When striking an enemy with high defense using the staff, it absorbs the repulsive force and recoil, then delivers it along with the damage that should have been originally transmitted, directly inside their hard shell.

[…….But master, you still can’t win against a real proper knight in close combat, right?]

“……..Robo? Mouth.”

[Yes…….]

Let’s just ignore the minor noise coming from outside.

Anyway, after riding on Robo’s back for some time, I heard Corin’s voice—or more precisely, a mental message—floating near my soul.

[……Um, master. I have something I want to ask.]

“Something you want to ask?”

When I responded with that, indicating that he should go ahead, Corin asked me with a voice tinged with slight hesitation.

[Well, won’t there be problems if we mess with a human who received an award from the boss (Emperor) of this human country (Holy Empire)?]

“……..What?”

Upon hearing Corin’s words, I couldn’t hide my bewilderment and asked back.

Ah, of course, this has nothing to do with suddenly realizing the weight of what I had done after hearing Corin’s words.

“Corin, you’ve become socialized now……..!!!”

Rather….. I was simply amazed at Corin’s remarkable growth, the fact that he showed understanding of human social and political structures.

[……..Master. Do you really want to get hit?]

“Haha, sorry. I’m sorry.”

As the animal friends in my head agreed with Corin’s words and laughed boisterously, I apologized to the grumbling Corin and immediately gave my answer.

“Yes, there shouldn’t be any major problems.”

[……..But isn’t he a noble? A noble from another country. Wouldn’t that cause issues?]

“You might think so, but this is different. It was a one-on-one duel, right?”

That’s right. Normally, combat between nobles of different nationalities could easily be used as grounds for declaring war, but if it happens within the format of a duel, the story changes.

In the Frankish Kingdom, duels are certainly a good form of conflict resolution, but they can’t compare to the dueling culture of the Holy Empire, the originator of the duel trial system.

In the Holy Empire, dueling has evolved beyond a simple method of settling disputes into a traditional culture and professional entertainment.

Even the Holy Empire’s professional sport, similar to American football, originated from this dueling tradition as a mock warfare culture, and separate from this group conflict resolution purpose, individual conflict resolution through duel trials has now become almost a sport.

This system, where people hire champions to fight on their behalf in duel trials, has become so popular that there are professional duelists who make a living solely by serving as someone’s champion.

Also, if the content of the trial is exciting or of public interest, it can be expanded to hold matches in the Colosseum of the imperial capital, and there are hundreds of cases each year where people are caught fixing duel trials for profit, like professional wrestling.

Ironically, even when caught, they are often released if the content was entertaining.

What’s even funnier is that as duel trials have become sportified, there has been a reduction in cases where the weak are unjustly blamed for crimes.

The weak tend to appear relatively virtuous in any era, and thus duelists seeking fame and public support often offer their services for free, reducing instances where people cannot hire champions due to lack of money.

As a result, this has come to play an enormously important role in maintaining society.

[………Human society is really complicated.]

“……Isn’t it?”

As Corin, whose mind seemed dazed, quietly responded like that, I too agreed with his words and responded softly.

After all, such things don’t appear normal no matter how you look at them.

※ ※ ※

And the next day.

“Good morning, fellow compatriots!”

As I arrived at the headquarters of the Imperial Pasture for my daily “work” (so-called) as usual, I could sense that the atmosphere was somehow strange.

“……..??”

Could there have been some incident because of what happened yesterday? As I entered the headquarters filled with a subtle tension and all eyes turned to me, Druid Frida Meyer appeared from one side and approached me……

“Young compatriot, congratulations from the heart.”

“What… is happening?”

“Yes, a griffin interested in an animal friend contract has appeared.”

“R-really….?!”

I was so surprised by her words that I momentarily lost my voice, and while my eyes widened in shock, I tried to maintain my composure and asked a question.

“……May I ask how this came about?”

“Of course, you may ask anything. Where should I begin……”

At this point, I realized that the atmosphere filling the headquarters stemmed from concern and worry about an anticipated farewell.

And in this situation, Frida slowly explained the circumstances to me.

“About yesterday’s duel…… it seems one of our griffins watched it.”

“The duel….?”

“Yes.”

She explained that the griffin cub showing interest in a contract was none other than one that had witnessed the duel between me and that warrior, and had become interested after seeing me fight and win against an aura awakener alone.

But in truth, I couldn’t help but focus more on the intention to contract itself rather than this motivation.

This direct expression of interest in a contract from a griffin was quite a good opportunity for me.

The pride and loftiness of adult griffins make them unable to accept a leader who is not of a superior species.

Even griffin riders in knightly orders who have gained recognition through physical combat are merely partners; neither side can be said to have hierarchical superiority.

On the other hand, the difficulty of hatching and raising them from eggs is by no means low…… So ultimately, my decision converged toward acceptance.

“So, what do you think?”

“……I accept the contract.”

There was no reason to hesitate. I expressed my agreement firmly and precisely, while also letting a slightly happy smile slip.

“Good. Would you mind waiting a moment?”

“I can wait as long as needed.”

After confirming my intention, Druid Frida left briefly, then returned carrying a griffin about the size of a large cat in her arms……

“……..Huh?”

[Nice to meet you, future contractor! Your duel yesterday was amazing!]

It was one of the griffins I had been taking care of until yesterday, a particularly eye-catching individual.