episode_0039

Episode 39

The day of the Sword Festival.

The largest sword fighting stadium in Lulie was so crowded that temporary seats had to be improvised. The Sword Festival, held for the first time in seven years, was held amid enthusiastic cheers from the audience.

A total of ten knights, five and five, climb onto the circular arena carved out of stone. They were wearing much more ornate ceremonial gear than when carrying out their daily duties.

There was quite a contrast between Pilgret walking silently and Walter waving his hands at the fans.

In the best location, there are VIP seats for the royal family and other high-ranking nobles. Fehat, who was sitting right next to me, said happily.

“I think it was a good idea to restart as you said. It’s a duel between the kingdom’s best knights, so I’m really looking forward to it. Isn’t that right?”

“Yes, I’m really looking forward to it too. Right, Princess Sera?”

Carmel passes the baton to me and smiles like a kind stepmother. He’s probably trying to scratch my insides.

I also responded with a bright princess smile.

“I don’t have enough sword skills, so I don’t know if I’ll be able to enjoy it properly. But if Your Majesty and Mother are happy, I am happy too.”

Carmel huffed and snorted at the model student-like answer. On the contrary, Fehat nodded and said.

“Hmm, it’s definitely not your taste.”

Well, to be honest, I wish I could just put it all away. Because I don’t have the slightest interest in things like that.

Moreover, the winning side has command and personnel authority over the losing side? Can people of this era, including knights, really understand such a ridiculous situation?

As someone who has lived in an efficient modern society, it is difficult for me to tolerate such a backward system. Even though the company I worked for was the worst black company, it would be hard to be confident that something like that never happened. shit.

Anyway, if I ever come into power, the first thing I plan to do is abolish the Festival of Swords. For the people’s entertainment, it would be enough to throw in gladiators and a pride of lions. It is much healthier than having knights with important missions fight for the sake of gossip.

However, it is also true that my fortune depends to some extent on this unsophisticated sword dance. I put my hands together as if praying.

‘Believe. Philgret…’

Carmel’s plan to plant a seed of magic in Pilgret’s sword came to nothing. Judging from Carmel’s condition yesterday, it appears that no other tactics were used. If I had something left to lean on, I wouldn’t have become so depressed that I fell into bed.

If that’s the case, this match is a fair one. The only thing that determines victory or defeat is each other’s skills. Now I have no choice but to trust my first vassal, Pilgret.

“Commander of the Obsidian Knights! Walter of Grave Street! As the head of the direct unit following the orders of the royal family, I participate in the sword festival dedicated to the goddess!”

“Chief of the Golden Knights. Pilgret of Ostana. As the captain of the bodyguard that protects the royal family, I will participate in the sword festival dedicated to the goddess.”

The two captains declared as they crossed swords in the center of the arena. Then they each took five steps back and stared at each other.

This time, the priest in charge of the ceremony stepped forward and began to read the dedication to the goddess. The content was boring, but the voice and nuance were perfect for falling asleep.

Fehat, too, seemed to be unable to bear the boredom and spoke quietly to the man in the back seat.

“Hmm, it’s going to be long. Lord Allen, what do you think of this Festival of Swords?”

Allen Grave. General in charge of capital defense and father of Walter Grave. He answered in a refined voice from the back seat.

“I just hope that you ugly bastard shows a fight he is not ashamed of.”

It’s my first time actually seeing your face. His face had an impression reminiscent of a dry tree.

It is not a haggard, gaunt tree, but an old giant tree that has withered after enduring the storms of midwinter, but still stands firmly in its place.

As the head of the family, he would naturally have heard about the marriage talks between Walter and me. Maybe he was the one who led this situation.

“Haha, there is no need to be humble. We all know that Pilgret is an excellent dancer, but I heard that Walter is also a worthy opponent. Aren’t you even called a sword prodigy? How do you feel about leaving your family and becoming a military person?”

Allen shook his head slowly but firmly.

“Pilgret Ostana can never be compared to my son. If I dare to tell you my thoughts-”

At that moment, the trumpet sound announcing the start of the match rang out. Immediately after that, Walter’s loud voice was also heard.

“Go!”

The five knights of the direct division rushed forward with great vigor. The audience cheered wildly at the sight of the knights advancing vigorously.

‘Do you want to induce a melee? Either they judged that each individual’s capabilities were superior to that of the guards, or…’

I glanced at Carmel. He was watching the game with a confident smile. The reason Walter rushed in so boldly may have been because he informed me that the swords on the guard’s side were no different from wooden swords.

Philgret also quickly moved his hand and sent a hand signal to the knights. The knights formed a battle line in an instant and met the charge of their direct troops.

Cheaeng! Cheaeng!

The metal sound resounds as the sword clashes with the sword incessantly. The sight of the knights flying, rolling, and stabbing even looked like an extremely elaborate group dance.

Among them, the two who especially stood out were the two with the captain’s mark on their helmets. Pilgret and Walter. Other knights were also showing great moves, but some of their moves were in the high range.

“Let’s compete here, Philgret!”

Walter’s belligerent words echo amplified throughout the stadium. The audience reacted passionately to the remark that seemed to ignite the spirit of victory.

Your voice is completely different from when you spoke to me before. Maybe this is his real voice.

Pilgret showed no particular reaction to Walter’s shout, which seemed to ignite a sense of rivalry. He simply inspects the battlefield and gives instructions to his knights by hand.

In Walter’s movements, there is no sign of any tendency to despise the opponent’s sword. It seems there was no tip from Carmel. If you think about it, they are also proud knights. You wouldn’t want to win in such a shameless way.

The only person here who was shocked by the fact that the guards’ weapons were intact was Carmel.

Carmel looked surprised as she saw both sides fighting equally. Then he turned his gaze towards me. I don’t know why, but I can feel a sense of betrayal in my eyes.

Well, let’s just say Monaz was extremely capable here. I smiled and shrugged my shoulders with an innocent face, as if I didn’t know why he was looking at me like that.

Meanwhile, the sword festival continues. No matter how skilled the knights were, it was impossible for them to avoid all attacks while fighting together like that.

The sword pierces the leather armor and plunges into the torso. Red blood spurts out, making you grimace. Thanks to non-lethal magic, the injury was not severe enough to cause instant death, but a painful scream still came out.

According to the rules of the Festival of Swords, you are out the moment your body touches the floor. Those who were injured and could no longer fight avoided the battlefield by kneeling or sitting down.

In this way, the situation was turning unfavorable for the convoy. Of the three eliminated, two were from the escort team.

If it’s 3:4, it’s not over yet. However, as time passes and physical strength decreases, the inferiority of the personnel will become more and more disadvantageous. I was looking at the stadium with my blood running dry.

At that moment, I saw a scene that made me doubt my eyes.

‘Now, wait a minute. ‘What are you doing?’

Pilgret gestured to the other two slightly injured knights, and they retreated a long way back and fell to the ground.

Not only I, but even the opposing knights of the direct division were looking at Pilgret with dumbfounded faces at the miraculous atrocity of turning 3:4 into 1:4.

“Is it a stone? Pilgret.”

I never thought the day would come when I would agree with that bastard. If Pilgret were in front of me right now, I would want to grab him by the collar and shake him violently.

“Wilter, have you ever thought about what you swing your sword for?”

“What?”

“I have been looking for it all along. What is the purpose of refining yourself as a knight? And I finally found the answer.”

Pilgret’s gaze turned to the VIP table. This gaze was probably understood by the audience here and the King as signifying loyalty to the royal family. But I could tell he was looking at me.

But why did you send your subordinates out?

“So what?”

Annoyance is slowly showing in Walter’s tone. On the contrary, there was a strange laughter in Pilgret’s voice.

“Keep the fight going, Walter. Actually, I didn’t like it every time you got angry. Come on, come on! You can attack one by one, or you can come together as a group of four.”

“The number is small… Hit it!”

Four knights, including Walter, rushed at the same time. I was looking at the stadium as if I was in a nightmare.

The first knight falls with his head cut. If it weren’t for non-lethal magic, his head would have been blown off.

The second knight aimed for the arm but failed to hit it. In the meantime, my knee was kicked and my leg was broken.

Meanwhile, the third knight succeeded in sticking his sword into Pilgret’s body. But even as he bled, Pilgret struck him in the face with the handle of his sword. It fell to the ground with a painful groan.

The fourth knight… Walter Grave was frozen in place as he watched the knights being destroyed in just a few seconds.

“…huh?”

“What are you doing? Walter. Are you not going to attack me?”

Blood leaks from the stab wound. Pilgret covered the wound with his left hand and walked away.

“If you don’t come… I will go.”

It is impossible to move quickly while being stabbed in the stomach. Pilgret, who was walking slowly, looked as ferocious as a ghost knight from an old story. In the end, Walter took a step back.

Maybe it’s a first for him. He, who was praised as a prodigy, met an opponent stronger than himself. Walter seemed to have already lost the will to fight.

There was no longer a fancy sword festival there. The enthusiasm cooled off. It was so quiet that not even a cough could be heard.

In such silence, everyone was watching Pilgret and Walter.

Walter’s hands were shaking. There was no sense of victory or fighting spirit in his posture. It may be fortunate for Walter that the helmet covers his face. An embarrassing sound of trembling breathing could be heard through the amplifier.

“Ugh… Ugh… Ugh!”

In the end, Walter kicked off the ground and ran away. Not towards Pilgret, but towards the outside of the stadium. It was the ugliest retreat in the world.

“Ha… that stupid guy…!”

A heavy sigh comes from the back seat. Allen Grave was gritting his molars with his eyes tightly closed.

I never told Pilgret about my marriage talks with Walter. However, he seemed to have noticed that the Festival of Swords was giving me trouble for more than just the superficial reasons.

The reason for preparing such a splendid stage is likely to be to lift Walter up. Even if we don’t know about marriage, we’ve probably reached that conclusion.

That is why this method of victory was adopted. A way to cruelly tarnish the honor of Walter, whom he had respected as a colleague until now.

‘I wish I had told you in advance.’

No, I probably wouldn’t have allowed it. There was no way I would have accepted the plan to send all the knights out and deal with the rest alone to break their morale.

But Pilgret did a great job. It clearly showed the cost of faith.

It showed that level of indecency. Even if you break the marriage contract, nothing will come out of Grave Street.

Even when the priest with a perplexed expression declared the guard’s victory, no one in the cold audience applauded the winner. But I can’t help but admire him.

Well done, Pilgret.