Chapter 96

Chapter 96 - Gord (3)

"To think you already have someone in mind."

Did she instinctively realize who it was? Aisha's gaze shifted to the seat next to Eugene.

There sat Valda, who looked the most flustered person in this place.

Originally, Eugene planned to ask her separately in a quiet place after the banquet ended. However, since the situation turned out like this, he couldn't help it.

"If so, then it cannot be helped."

"Thank you for understanding."

"But I also mustered my courage to do this. If I return like this, I feel I will not be able to sleep tonight. May I ask you for one favor?"

"?"

"Even if I lose, I want to see clearly who I lost to."

It meant she wanted him to show himself becoming Valda's knight right here.

In response to Aisha, whistles and urging sounds echoed from all over the banquet hall.

Wasn't he an ordinary knight but one of the most distinguished rookie knights lately? Just who could the lady who stole his heart be?

With a sigh, Eugene rose from his chair and stood facing Valda.

"..."

Above the scarf hiding the lower half of her face, her wide-open golden eyes were shaking rapidly.

"Shh! Shh!"

"Quiet!"

People whose consideration had needlessly increased hushed themselves voluntarily.

"Sage of the Emerald Forest, Valda."

At Eugene's low voice, whispers erupted from all directions.

"The Sage of the Forest!"

"The maiden who walks upon the wheat fields!"

"The one who scatters flower crowns..."

Everyone was amazed.

Seeing her wearing her characteristic robe, they guessed she was a magician following the army by his side.

However, to think she was the Forest Elf renowned across the continent beyond Roman.

"As a knight who possessed nothing, I have longed for victory and fame since meeting you. Now, I wish to see what lies beyond that."

As Eugene continued speaking while dropping to one knee, everyone closed their mouths and listened.

"Swords and chivalry. Justice and courage. Those are things a knight carries in his heart for a lifetime. They are things that cannot be drawn out by any tyrant's threats or a dragon's breath."

Looking forward to the tournament, the excited knights nodded and clenched their fists.

"But what about the heart? A knight's heart beats more intensely when held in another's hands. It makes the knight even more complete."

Smooch.

Eugene grasped Valda's trembling hand and pressed his lips to the back of her white hand.

"Please allow me to become your knight."

"Uuh."

A faint moan that only Eugene right in front could hear.

'Wait. Does Lady Valda have a spare scarf right now?'

The scarf Valda usually used was meant to hide the lower half of her face.

It didn't necessarily have to be a scarf; anything that could symbolize a lady was sufficient, so it would probably be fine.

'Ah, right. I might end up being rejected after doing all this.'

Since he hadn't looked into her mind, it was entirely possible.

If Eugene, who had rejected Aisha, were rejected as well, it seemed that would liven up the banquet in its own way.

However, such a thing did not happen.

"My respected knight. My benefactor, my friend."

Valda untied the scarf covering her lower face with trembling fingers and took off her hood.

Swish.

Elven ears rose elegantly above the pouring golden waterfall.

They say God shaped humans from clay, but this beautiful woman must be the sole exception.

Her skin, breathtaking just to look at, seemed as if a goddess had carved it from milk.

"Oh..."

"A Forest Elf."

People understood why the Sage of the Emerald Forest was famous throughout the continent.

Forest magic might have spread Valda's fame to the world, but the reason the nobles who met her could not forget her must have been due to something else entirely.

"It is an undeserved honor. I will gladly accept it."

Valda tied the scarf held in her hand around Eugene's chest.

"Though my mind is relieved, it seems I won't be able to sleep for another reason now."

Smiling brightly, Aisha turned around without lingering attachment and returned to her seat. The clacking sound of her shoes echoed through the quiet banquet hall.

When the chamberlain sent a tactful signal, the musicians covered everything up with cheerful and loud music.

Count Andar, who had been laughing heartily and chattering about something to his daughter sitting next to him, instantly contorted his face.

Looking at Aisha's strenuous expression and shoulders, it seemed he got his instep stepped on while teasing his daughter.

"Do you not know what it means for a woman to have her own knight?"

When the pouring gazes scattered, Valda pressed him. Her two fists rested cutely over her chest.

"I know it is a great honor."

"Because of that, it should not be decided carelessly. No matter if Lady Aisha's face was on the line."

"You don't think I did that just to escape a crisis, do you? I am not that narrow-minded."

"That is true, but."

"Besides, it is puzzling to me why Lady Valda is so surprised."

Eugene stroked the scarf resting on his chest.

"You have already referred to me as your knight in front of Lord Marbas before."

"That is..."

A fateful party consisting of a knight, a squire, and a magician.

Valda had called him her knight in that sense, but she didn't bother to say more.

As stated before, for a woman to have her own knight is the highest honor.

When Eugene looked up at her with eyes longing for a token to dedicate his sword, Valda felt a sensation she had never experienced flow through her heart.

"Are you alright? It is not that your complexion is bad... but you look different from usual."

"I-I am fine."

Her thighs hovering in the air off the chair, her knees rubbing together as if she needed to pee, and her blood vessels feeling as if another substance besides oxygen and blood were flowing through them.

Valda gulped down a full glass of wine. It was as if she were asking the mercenary known as alcohol to drive out the unfamiliar energy occupying her body.

* * *

"After going around in circles, you eventually ended up with that?"

On the day of the tournament. Rex laughed at the sight of Eugene inspecting his weapon.

It was because he was holding a steel staff made by removing the mace portion of his flail.

"It is better to take the most familiar weapon to the battlefield."

"That is true."

Anyway, with Eugene's monstrous strength, anyone would go down in one or two hits. If that was the case, having a long reach was the best.

"But a knight using a staff. That is too uncool. It's not like you're some monk."

"If need be, I can just pick up the weapons or shields of fallen knights and use them, so it's fine. In fact, the audience will likely go wild for a weapon rarely seen normally."

"I suppose one could think of it that way."

"Since Count Andar is watching, it would be good to provide an entertaining spectacle."

Eugene looked completely unbothered as always.

"Sir. I will assist you with all my might."

On the other hand, Hind had a resolute face that looked stiff enough to creak.

This tournament is an infantry group melee fought by splitting into two sides, simulating a war.

Famous knights who had taken root for a long time or had accumulated much previously brought along quite a few gangs.

In contrast, Eugene only had Hind under his command. Rex and the tribal warriors were knights in name only; without formal investiture, they did not qualify to participate.

'I will absolutely never allow Sir Eugene to be attacked from behind and fall.'

Hind firmly resolved himself.

"By the way, the internal friction here is more severe than I thought."

Eugene watched the knights of both camps who had already entered psychological warfare.

A place where the divergent cultures of merchants and warriors harmonized into one, Gord has exactly one aspect that is less integrated.

Those are the native nobles who settled and lived there before the sea raiders arrived.

They called themselves the Clear Stream, while the families born from combining with the sea raiders were called the Salt Stream.

"I heard they restrained themselves from calling it the Muddy Stream because it would be openly picking a fight."

"Isn't that just covering their eyes and playing peekaboo? Calling it salty water. If it were me, I would be just as enraged."

"Aren't nobles' pride battles originally that childish?"

Valda shrugged. Having dealt with countless nobles, she had seen cases like this more than once or twice.

For reference, Eugene was assigned to a team mixed with a majority of the Clear Stream faction.

It was a group predominantly composing of knights who excelled the most at horsemanship in Gord and pursued orthodox swordsmanship.

"It is a shame. I wanted to go to the Salt Stream, meaning the team with many axe men, if possible."

"Axe men..."

Valda perked up her long ears and quickly scanned their surroundings. Fortunately, it seemed no one heard.

"I have no intention of dividing honorable knights, but I thought you would rejoice at mingling with the Clear Stream knights."

Eugene is an orthodox knight inheriting the legacy of the Prophetic Knight, Godfrey.

The reason he was welcomed and treated well everywhere he went was partly due to his built-up fame, but also because of the legitimacy that could be called pureblood in the knights' world.

"My primary interest is the prize money, but I also have ambitions of building a good relationship with Count Andar. Since the Count seems to support the opposing team more than the Clear Stream."

"If you wanted to get along that well, you should have accepted Lady Aisha's request."

"Excuse me?"

For a moment, Eugene wondered what kind of test Valda was trying to pull. However, her face was limitlessly serious.

Despite the grand event yesterday, she looked to be advising solely for Eugene's political benefit.

Staring blankly at Valda's golden eyes, Eugene chuckled.

"That is not a matter subject to compromise."

* * *

"Fasten your helmet securely."

"I have already checked it several times."

At Eugene's words, Hind nodded. As if it had fused with his head, the helmet did not shake at all.

All types of weapons are permitted so long as they have no spikes or sharp edges. Using another's weapon and shield dropped on the ground is also possible.

The rules are similar to tournaments in other countries, but since they weren't riding horses, there were a few peculiarities.

"To think there's such a thing as a ring-out loss in a tournament; it is peculiar."

"Because it is an infantry battle, it could potentially drag on too long if there are no ring-out losses."

The arena consists of a stone platform raised about 50 cm higher than the surrounding ground. Exiting the boundary and falling off results in immediate elimination.

In addition, having one's helmet removed or falling to the ground and being unable to rise for a certain period of time was also considered an elimination.

"May luck be with you in battle."

Valda approached and placed her hands on Eugene's shoulders and chest.

Eugene covered the back of Valda's hand with his gauntleted hand, but he could not feel her warmth. It was a terrible shame.

Like that, Eugene stepped into the spacious arena.

'The difference between the two factions is certainly severe.'

The majority of knights on Eugene's side were armed with swords or maces.

On the opposing camp, there were not many who used swords. The majority held axes that looked brutal even with the edges removed.

'And the weight classes too.'

Perhaps because the native nobles were selective about their marriage partners, their physiques were similar to the Romans. On the contrary, the opposing team unanimously boasted large and muscular builds.

"This is like the Roman army fighting the Germanic tribes wearing equipment of the same quality."

"Pardon? Romans?"

"It's nothing."

Eugene patted Hind on the shoulder.

"I am glad to meet you here again."

At that time, a certain knight approached.

"Do you remember me?"

"Of course. Sir Badel."

The knight who had appeared as Gord's second champion during the Hall War. It was Badel.

"We will be fighting on the same side this time. It feels reassuring to be together with Gord's finest swordsman."

"You flatter me too much."

Thrilled by the heart-pounding praise as a knight, regardless of age, Badel responded happily.

Ever since suffering a complete defeat by the sword and being granted honorable mercy, he had consistently hoped to meet him again.

The reunion Badel imagined was treating him to a meal or drinking tea as a fellow noble.

He never imagined they would stand shoulder to shoulder in a tournament. It excited Badel endlessly.

"This is Hind. He is my squire who graduated from the House of the Vigilant Knight."

Providing squires with connections is one of a knight's duties.

"Ah! It is a remarkably excellent place even among the Knight Houses."

Deeply honored, Hind clasped the hand Badel offered for a handshake.

"It is an honor to meet you."

"Badel of the Auvergne Family. I sincerely congratulate you on serving a great knight."

Meanwhile, scanning the opposing camp, Eugene spotted a familiar face.

"Sir Lipton is over there too."

He was the knight who boasted Gord's strongest shield techniques and appeared as the third champion.

"...!"

Seeing Eugene smiling brightly and waving at him, Lipton's face turned ashen.

Rubbing the back of his hand that was cut when his shield shattered, it seemed he was not as glad as Eugene.

A short while later, as the match starting time approached, all knights lined up.

Befitting a tournament held in a massive coliseum, the number of spectators surrounding it from all directions was enormous.

Knights of both camps glared at their opponents amidst a bloody tension.

Commoners watching from safe locations chewed on various street foods, holding their pounding hearts and eyes sparkling.

"Begin the battle!"

As the horn signaling the start of the battle rang out with a signal unique to Gord, knights of both sides charged while shouting battle cries.

Unlike tournaments with a rule of elimination upon falling from a horse, they had to deal blows severe enough to exhaust stamina or prevent the opponent from getting up here.

Since it is rare for outstanding knights to be absurdly eliminated, the knights did not resort to tricks and rushed in like madmen from the very beginning.

Badel clashed with knights from rival families along with three or four knights following him, and Hind exchanged fierce attacks with an unknown knight.

Behind Hind, Eugene was pondering where to attack.

"Booo!"

"What are you doing hiding? Fight like a knight!"

Perhaps considering it cowardice, the spectators sent jeers.

And as if responding to those jeers, a knight charged towards Eugene.

He held a two-handed axe without a shield, and even without a blade, it had enough impact to break a bone if it hit.

Holding the end of his steel staff with both hands, Eugene swung at his opponent's lower half like lightning.

Vwooom!

As the long yet immensely heavy-looking steel staff swept towards his legs at incredible speed, the knight was astonished.

However, it was already too late to react.

Struck in the legs and spun 180 degrees, the knight who soared about 1 meter into the air crashed into the ground shoulder-first.

"Ugh."

Clang!

The opponent attempting to stand up while trembling violently was knocked unconscious by a second strike from the staff hitting his head.

"You bastard!"

Another knight charging in sequentially momentarily paused. It was due to instinct warning him that he would die if he approached further.

'Th-this clearly doesn't have a spearhead, right?'

The staff aimed at him was blunt. However, the moment it was thrust, he felt a pressure as if his armor and body would be pierced through at once.

When the charging opponent stopped, Eugene inversely rushed forward.

Bang!

He kicked off the ground so hard that small stone fragments bounced from beneath Eugene's steel boots. A thrust like a flash of light containing all that force.

"Keugh!"

Along with his shattered round shield, the second knight rolled away continuously.

"..."

"Waaaaah!"

Some of the citizens who were jeering fell silent in shock, while others shouted in even greater excitement.

After twirling the steel staff over his head a few times, Eugene aimed it forward.

"Now, let's have a go!"