[TL: Don't forget to read the next chapter. ]

 36 – Great Duel (1)

[Adilun's POV]

What happened in front of me was something I did not expect. 

I was not able to believe it, but Physis defeated Sir Lucas.

For an instant, including me, everyone in the gymnasium went silent.

Who was Sir Lucas? Wasn’t he the warrior who fought back against countless monsters and protected Rodenov?

A man like that was knocked out by one blow from Physis, who recently turned 20.

Lying on the floor of the cold gymnasium, he was just smiling.

But that smile didn’t last too long. His expression began to contort with pain as if the pain was rising.

I could tell from a glance that he was quite overdoing it, so I hurriedly approached him and asked.

“Is it okay?”

"Y-yes..."

“Ugh, no. It’s not okay. It seems like you’re overdoing it.”

“Ha.”

I sighed and gathered mana in my hand. Mana moved as I wished and seeped into his body. Little by little, seeing his expression straighten, it seemed that mana was successfully relieving his pain.

“How are you now?”

“It has improved a lot. Thank you.”

“Then why are you so overdoing it? If you had just met the standard, you would have been selected as a great warrior anyway. Isn’t that rather bad? It’s not much time before the great duel from now…”

“I do not know. I just… … I just wanted to see how far I could go.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, the treatment is over… …Can you wake up?”

At my question, he nodded wordlessly. He got up from his seat and said with a slightly terrified expression.

“Well, if this is the case, the battle will now be finalized… … I can destroy that unlucky family. Anyway, Adilun, thank you for treating me. I’ll get well soon thanks to you.”

A smile that seemed happy at first glance gave vent to the uneasiness that was building up inside me.

The question, which was started by the expression he had shown, now became a thought.

Is it true that what I thought had changed in him actually did not change? Could it be that the kindness he had shown me was a lie?

In doubt, I had no choice but to remain expressionless as if nothing had happened.

.

.

.

.

Physis was able to be selected as the Great Warrior without any objections.

Even after being selected as a great warrior, he repeatedly sparred with the knights of Rodenov in the gymnasium.

Looking at him rolling around in the gymnasium every day, I could tell how serious he was about the great duel.

My father and Sir Lucas were looking at him with satisfaction.

The most surprising one was Sir Lucas.

Despite the crushing defeat, he humbly accepted it and seemed satisfied that Physis was a genius.

He must have thought that if he became Rodenov’s son-in-law, Rodenov would become even more stronger. He always emphasized his loyalty to Rodenov as a knight.

Overall it was a good thing, and it was something that I should be happy about.

I reflected on what I was recently doing.

Physis had always been kind to me since the day he apologized to me, and he even tried to punish those who insulted me.

Even though I spet out useless complaints and poured out the confusion at the banquet on him, he calmed me down without any annoyance or dislike.

Clearly, at The National Foundation Day, he was an extremely kind and good person even if judged objectively.

But… … The brute force, anger, and hatred he displayed in the tournament continued to pierced my heart like a small thorn.

He didn’t even show me any violent look, so why am I so anxious? If he showed a violent side to the one who insulted me, I should rather rejoice.

I didn't know why? but an unknown kind of uneasiness continued to weigh me down.

That was why I wanted to talk to Physis. 

'Are you sincerely treating me like this, or is it a made-up lie?'

But because of the vague fear that Physis might suddenly change his attitude after hearing my story, I couldn’t possibly tell Physis about it.

While I was trembling with anxiety for no reason, the great duel was gradually approaching.

* * *

[Dillard Aiden's POV]

“What the heck, what the hell am I supposed to do…”

Aiden’s master, Earl Dillard Aiden, trembled with fear. It was because Aiden’s fate depended on the territory battle tomorrow.

It was already a thing of the past that Aiden was a renowned knight family.

Now it was just a place to play with merchants and money, so there were no more famous knights in Aiden.

It was not like Aiden was without knights, but compared to the knights of Rodenov, they were lacking in every way, such as; skills and loyalty.

Because of that, there were not even those who dared to become a great warriors.

Even if Dillard, who couldn’t see that situation, tried to recruit talented knights with a large amount of money, since the battle between Aiden and Rodenov’s territories had already spread throughout the empire, no one had rushed to join Aiden.

Dillard walked around the office nervously and somehow got his head rolling. However, no matter how much he thought about it, the right answer didn’t come out.

“If I had known it would be like this, I should have picked up some of Alan’s habits… … .”

As he was slumped down in his chair, his whole body drained of strength, staring at the empty space with cloudy eyes, he suddenly heard the butler’s voice.

“Lord!”

“… …What is it now?”

“The winner of the Martial Arts competition, Edith Douglas, has arrived!”

“What?”

Martial contest winner? Why would such a person come here?

Doubts arose, but Dillard got out of the office for now. Many questions came to his mind but he felt like, right now, he had to grab at least a straw for the continuation of his family.

When Dillard came out, he bumped into Edith.

“Are you Edith Douglas?”

“That’s right. Count Dillard Aiden.”

“What brought you here?”

“It is to become Aiden’s great warrior. You haven't found a warrior yet, right?”

“Why? Why Aiden? There must be many places you can go?”

“I enjoy confrontation with the strong. Let’s say it… … The knights of Rodenov are so strong. To the extent that it can be compared to the knights of Ortaire in the East.”

“Right. They are the ones who cannot be ignored, and they are the strong ones. Didn’t you already know enough to come to me?”

At Dillard’s words, Aiden nodded.

“Will you accept me as your great warrior?”

Dillard was troubled. Most likely, the reason Edith came all the way here must have been for some purpose. but… …he couldn’t refuse either.

Edith was the winner of the National Day martial arts competition. It was said that he would become a great warrior with much more power, so Dillard, who couldn’t even select a great warrior because he had no knights, couldn’t bear to refuse.

“… …Please Save Aiden.”

“Good. However, there are a few conditions.”

Edith put on a deep smile and told Dillard what he wanted.

* * *

[Physis's POV]

The day of the great duel was bright.

People’s faces were full of tension, and I could see Adilun nervously shaking her hands from time to time as well.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah yes. What about you, Physis?”

She quickly put her hand together and then asked me back.

“Hmmm… …Fine. I’m not particularly nervous.”

“Don’t get hurt.”

“Do not worry too much. I won’t get hurt.”

“… …Yes.”

Perhaps she was a little uneasy, she grabbed my sleeve and spoke to me anxiously. At first glance, the words seemed like a request, so I nodded and eased her concerns.

The site where the duel would take place was the Caltix Fortress in Rodenov. That was, where we were. It was Aiden who insulted first, so Rodenov could decide the place.

Sooner or later, the knights of Aiden and their leader would be heading here via the teleportation gate.

The chosen warriors were me, Sir Lucas, and three other Rodenov knights.

The duel between the great warriors would be continued until all the knights on either side were defeated.

The duel was as follows: 

First, Two knights would be chosen from both sides and the winner between them would continue to face the next knight.

By the time the knights of Rodenov were waiting after completing their preparations, Finally, the knights, including the lord of Aiden, teleported at Caltix Fortress.

“Here you are.”

“… …”

The old lord of Aiden, Dillard Aiden, was just looking at us with a hard face.

Behind him, familiar faces could be seen. Alan Aiden and… … Edith Douglas.

'Wait, Edith Douglas?'

'Why is that guy here? Did Aiden hire him?'

It was a bit surprising, but there was no particular problem. No matter who came forward, I decided that I will just do my best.

The various procedures passed in an instant, and we set out to the vast plain outside the Caltix Fortress.

On the plains covered with white snow, various ceremonies centered on the greetings of the imperial family continued, and personnel dispatched from the imperial family appeared one after another to confirm the outcome of the duel.

And that wasn’t all.

From Ortaire, my older brother came to check if I successfully fought in the Great Warrior duel, and several central nobles who had already heard the news of the Territory War arrived at the Caltix Fortress.

In that chaotic situation, both sides had finished all preparations, and finally, the duel between the great warriors was about to begin.

Since I was the first great warrior in Rodenov, I put on the black armor my older brother handed me during the jousting match, and set out into the middle of the plain.

On Aiden’s side, a fully armed knight came up to me and faced me with a great commotion.

Judging by his physique, he wasn’t Edith Douglas, probably one of the other great fighters.

As soon as the envoy prepared by the imperial family sent a signal, the knight and I took our posture and charged at each other.

The duel between the great warriors, announcing the start of the full-scale war, had just begun.

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