“You bastard! This isn’t over yet!”
Asner shouted as he grabbed his wrist, which was beginning to turn red. He had completely lost his reason after being humiliated by Dien. Although he couldn’t easily stand up due to the pain in his wrist, Asner’s eyes were burning with rage.
“Pardon? This is just a social duel, so why are you so agitated…? I thought composure was more important than anything else for a knight…”
Dien spoke the last words with emphasis as he looked around at the knight cadets. This wasn’t just directed at Asner.
“Dammit!”
Asner was furious to the point of exploding at Dien’s sarcasm. He tried to rush in with his wooden sword, but he was soon blocked by Arnold’s hand.
“That’s enough, Young Lord Asner.”
“Young Lord Arnold! I can still move…!”
“I said, that’s enough.”
Arnold spoke in a low, forceful voice. Among the knight cadets, Arnold had the highest achievements. Faced with his intense gaze, Asner eventually hung his head in frustration.
“Young Lord Dien! Because Young Lord Asner made a mistake, the duel that should have been entertaining ended far too easily. It’s a shame, so how about enjoying a duel with me instead?”
“A mistake… Well, sure.”
Dien accepted Arnold’s proposal with a nonchalant expression. His face looked as if he were doing Arnold a great favor.
‘This guy.’
Arnold’s hand tightened around his grip as he faced Dien. If the duel ended like this, all the Academy students would remember Dien as the one standing at the end.
If that happened, their plan would essentially go up in smoke.
“Shall we begin, then?”
“Yes, I hope it doesn’t end so blandly this time.”
“How arrogant…!”
Arnold grew even angrier at Dien’s calm response. It was an insufferably insolent attitude. Being treated exactly the same way they had treated others made him feel incredibly indignant.
‘Your luck ends here.’
Arnold rushed in quickly toward Dien. His opening move was clearly not something that belonged in a formal social duel.
***
“What!”
Not long after the duel began, Arnold felt goosebumps break out across his entire body.
‘I can’t even touch him…’
Arnold’s one-sided attacks continued, but his wooden sword couldn’t even graze the hem of Dien’s clothes.
Dien was simply moving his sword calmly with an expressionless face, as if these attacks were nothing at all.
‘It can’t be…’
Arnold was the one unfolding threatening techniques, yet he felt as if he were the one being threatened.
Arnold tried to deny Dien’s skill in his mind and swung his sword again.
*Clack! Clack!*
‘♪♪♪’
The attacks were becoming faster and more aggressive, but Dien remained calm.
‘There’s too much noise mixed in.’
Dien had already heard the “performances” played by the swordsmanship of Silro and King Lonas.
The difference between their swordsmanship and Arnold’s was literally the difference between heaven and earth. Since Dien usually practiced his swordsmanship according to the standards of Silro and King Lonas, Arnold’s swordsmanship looked like nothing more than a child playing house.
Dragging the time out any further was meaningless.
“Strike!”
Having identified the section where the noise was leaking out, Dien did not miss the gap and lunged his wooden sword forward rapidly.
“Kh-!”
In the end, Arnold allowed a hit right in the middle of his chest. His heart chilled at the attack that had pierced his opening with such precision. Arnold felt more embarrassment than pain.
‘Dammit… He’s no ordinary opponent!’
Arnold was feeling a great wall standing before him in Dien. To feel a wall against an administrative official student, not even a knight!
However, he couldn’t just stop the duel he had started himself.
“Ugh…”
As the pain in his chest didn’t subside, Arnold began to forcedly swallow his groans.
Watching him quietly, Dien added a comment.
“If these were real swords, Young Lord Arnold, you wouldn’t be standing right now.”
*Grind.*
Arnold escaped a retort; as much as it stung, those words weren’t wrong.
Toward Arnold, who couldn’t seem to close the distance, Dien began to whisper in a voice only the two of them could hear.
“Chivalry is said to stem from loyalty, justice, and… humility.”
“And humility can be said to truly begin when you respect others. I’m sure you’ve heard that until your ears bled at the Academy, Young Lord.”
A great wall he could not approach. Arnold had no choice but to listen to Dien’s words while holding his wooden sword.
“In your eyes, Young Lord Arnold… how did the students look today?”
Arnold’s gaze began to waver at Dien’s words.
“If you are a student preparing to be a knight, I hope you will think deeply about it.”
After finishing his sentence, Dien charged toward Arnold. It was a rapid movement Arnold had never seen before in his life.
*Thwack!*
Before he knew it, Arnold felt his wooden sword being knocked away by Dien’s strike.
‘I didn’t see it!’
Then, he realized that the tip of Dien’s sword had already reached his throat.
“I… I lose.”
A complete defeat. If he couldn’t even follow the opponent’s movements with his eyes, it meant there was such a clear difference in skill that they shouldn’t even be compared.
Thus, Arnold silently admitted his defeat and lowered his head.
“Whoa!”
The students burst into cheers all at once at the result of the duel. For Dien, an administrative noble, to beat a knight cadet! Moreover, Arnold was a skilled individual who could be called a junior knight without reservation. Even if it was a social duel, this was an astounding event.
“How can this be…”
The ones most surprised were, of course, the knight cadets. Even they hadn’t been able to see Dien’s form clearly. Furthermore, that last movement was something even they could feel the weight of.
While no one doubted Dien’s swordsmanship skills anymore, Dien stepped down from the platform and left the mansion.
“He couldn’t have gone far.”
Dien had something to do outside the mansion. The students, wrapped in shock, could only stare blankly at Dien as he left the area.
***
“Where did he go…?”
Dien left the mansion and began to look for Baran. After confirming that the carriage of the Baran family was still at the mansion, Dien knew that Baran had to be somewhere nearby.
“I wondered where you went, and here you are.”
After searching for a while, Dien found Baran crouching by the garden fountain. Even though Dien approached, Baran just stared down at the ground without a word.
His slumped shoulders looked pitiful, but Dien didn’t show any sign of it and spoke in a cheerful voice.
“Is your shoulder okay?”
“The Baran I know was full of energy.”
“What did you come here for?”
“I came to get you!”
“Dien, I’m not going back to the party. I’m just going to go back to my estate.”
He was a noble who valued honor above all else. Furthermore, this incident must have been a huge shock to Baran, who had boasted endlessly about his swordsmanship skills to those around him.
“Dien. I can’t bear to look at the other kids…”
Baran’s despair was deeper than expected. Dien placed a hand on his shoulder and wet his dry lips.
Though he was prone to bluffing, Baran was a friend who was more innocent and kind than anyone. Knowing how soft-hearted he was, Dien couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh.
“Baran, Arnold is the most talented student among the knight cadets. There’s no need to be so disheartened.”
Even from Dien’s objective view, Baran’s swordsmanship skills were not inferior when compared to other knight cadets.
Of course, it was true that he had been helplessly subjected to Arnold’s attacks, but in a way, he had also managed to withstand ten exchanges of Arnold’s strikes while his balance was broken.
“And… your swordsmanship wasn’t a bluff. I know how hard you work.”
“The other kids will only remember my pathetic appearance…”
“Are you really going to end it gloomily like this? The swordsmanship genius Baran I know isn’t that kind of person.”
Dien flashed a grin toward Baran. It was a slightly goofy expression. Eventually, Baran let out a laugh at Dien’s playful demeanor.
“Use that feeling as fuel to hone your swordsmanship even more. And when the dueling tournament is held during the year-end Academy evaluation exam, you can pay Arnold back properly!”
“Is that… possible?”
“Absolutely! I believe in you.”
Dien answered loudly, patting Baran on the back.
It was true that Arnold’s swordsmanship skill was superior to Baran’s.
However, a victory for Baran wasn’t impossible either. Moreover, didn’t Baran have Dien, who was currently looking at Arnold’s weaknesses?
Above all else.
‘Baran’s talent is quite remarkable… If he composes himself and focuses only on training, he will definitely grow by a large margin.’
As Baran himself had said, his talent was on the superior side. The sound heard when he gripped the wooden sword had been sturdy enough to fill one’s eardrums. Baran had a big mouth, but his talent for the sword was real.
‘I can’t let him quit the Academy over something like this!’
Dien hooked his arm into Baran’s and pulled him to his feet.
“Dien, what are you doing?”
“I’m going to boost your confidence, so follow me! In exchange, you have to crush Arnold during the evaluation exam! For the time being, don’t attend any parties and just cling to your sword!”
“What are you planning?”
“You’ll see if you follow me.”
As the light hit Dien’s face, his fresh smile was revealed. Thus, Dien forcibly pulled Baran’s arm, and Baran began to follow him, unable to win against Dien’s persistence.
Baran and Dien entered the mansion again. Baran couldn’t lift his head out of embarrassment, while Dien had a bright smile on his face as usual.
“Dien!”
As soon as they opened the mansion doors, numerous administrative students rushed toward Dien.
“Dien! When did you learn swordsmanship?”
“Dien! You’re even good at swordsmanship! Is there anything you can’t do?”
Many students swarmed like a cloud of bees, surprised by Dien’s swordsmanship skills that had suppressed Arnold.
In addition, seeing Baran with Dien, everyone asked worriedly.
“Baran, are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“Yeah.”
Baran felt embarrassed by his friends’ consolation.
But contrary to Baran’s worry that his friends would be disappointed in him, the students were sincerely worried for him.
“Young Lord Arnold was just too strong…”
“Baran’s swordsmanship was really amazing too!”
Although it was said that Baran lost to Arnold’s unexpected lethal strike, others couldn’t help but admire the way Baran had stood against him.
Then Dien, surrounded by many students, turned to Baran and put a hand on his shoulder.
“Right, guys? I know Baran’s skills well. Today the rhythm was just off, but if he had played it properly, Baran would have likely won.”
“Really?”
“Of course! Baran is a real prodigy that even I recognize.”
“Is that true? Baran?”
At the words of Dien, who had lightly suppressed Arnold, the eyes of the students looking at Baran sparkled.
“I’ll vouch for him!”
At the reaction of Dien and the other children, Baran’s face turned red. It wasn’t because of embarrassment or shame, but a pleasant flush caused by the consolation and support of the children.
Then he looked at Dien’s face. He was winking at him.
‘Dien.’
Baran felt a strange emotion.
Did Dien know how he felt? Dien whispered quietly into Baran’s ear.
“Baran. It’s one month from now. I believe in you. You’re going to work without rest and win for sure, right?”
At the same time his heart felt grateful, his chest grew hot. Yes, he wasn’t the type to shrink away here. Baran resolved that he would definitely beat Arnold, if only for those who believed in him.
“Thank you…! I’m really going to work hard. I swear I’ll devote myself to swordsmanship more diligently than any swordsman on the continent.”
“Yeah. That’s the spirit.”
Dien read the burning gaze in Baran’s eyes and nodded. Surely, he would prepare for the dueling tournament during the evaluation exam more diligently than anyone else.
After confirming Baran’s brightened appearance, Dien slipped out of the party venue away from the students’ notice.