Chapter 34 - Honorable Duel (4)

"Hey, junior. Don't stare too much."

Burleigh spoke to Vlad in a drained voice, just as he always did.

"The people over there get offended just by us looking at them."

"..."

The boy also knew.

That Burleigh's words were true.

"It's just the difference of a single street, but it means we don't have the qualification."

"What qualification?"

Leaning against the wall and carving a piece of wood with a dagger, Burleigh smirked with one side of his lip raised.

That smile contained a small amount of anger, along with an inescapable sense of sorrow.

"We fall short in everything."

"... What exactly are we short of?"

Burleigh chuckled at Vlad's response and answered.

"Well, it's not just that we fall short, we don't have the qualification either, we've been like this since birth. You know that perfectly well."

"..."

The boy didn't ask this time.

He just turned his head to look at the fine buildings across the street.

Over there, there was sparkle and laughter.

And those were things that were not permitted to the people in the back alleys.

The boy was always hungry for that.

* * *

CLANG.

The sound of something dropping reached the ears of Vlad, who was bowing in greeting.

"... You do not have the qualification."

Pablo, the knight of Arnstein.

It was the sound of him, a knight famous for his shield techniques, throwing away his shield.

"You do not have the qualification to hear my name."

"..."

Pablo threw his shield down and declared.

That he would not do his best.

"From the moment an unqualified bastard like you stepped up, this ceased to be an honorable duel."

A fight between a squire and a knight.

It was something others would laugh at if they heard.

And he himself was the party to this absurd situation.

"You can ignore whatever the priest said. Use everything you have and come at me with all your strength. You can even try to kill me."

Joseph had trampled on Pablo's honor to save Alicia's honor and his own opportunity.

And all the resulting anger was something Vlad had to shoulder.

"..."

Amidst a bleak aura that even the priest hardly dared to restrain, Vlad quietly raised his head.

And asked.

"What am I short of?"

"... What?"

Pablo was momentarily flustered by Vlad's attitude, which was not just bold but outright confident.

Despite it being a fight between a knight and a squire, far from being scared, the guy's blue eyes were blazing fiercely.

A man holding something honorable, noble, and shining in his hands.

I want to ask you.

"What makes me different from you people?"

Why do fine, beautiful, and shining things always belong exclusively to hotshots like you?

I hate that.

"... Both sides, r-return to your positions and..."

Even at the priest's restraint, the two men stood perfectly still, their eyes locked on each other.

A conversation communicated through the eyes.

For that to be possible, one needed to possess at least an equal level of spirit, but the boy was managing it.

Even though he was born in an unqualified place, he had no intention of ending up as a nobody.

"You said it first. That I could do whatever."

"... Bayezid's standards have fallen."

This guy was crazy.

He was a reckless fool who didn't know who he was or who his opponent was.

"I will nip this in the bud."

It was obvious that even if a guy like that grew up, he would only bring disgrace to a knight's honor.

So it would be better to firmly crush him right here.

"Hurry... please return to your respective positions."

At the desperate plea unintentionally let out by the priest, who was having a far too overwhelming day, the two walked toward opposite ends of the battlefield.

"He's a faithful guy."

"He's got the basics down."

Seeing the boy holding his sword and muttering in a quiet voice there, people thought Vlad was praying.

In this situation, it was a scenario more than fitting enough to beg for God's grace.

However, as always, the boy did not lean on God.

["If holding out is the goal, I cannot help. If I borrow your body, you will collapse in less than ten seconds, let alone ten minutes."]

'...'

Vlad had a hidden card in the form of the voice, but it was a method he couldn't use in this place right now.

["Once ten minutes have passed, do not overdo it and just forfeit. Last time you had to risk your life, but that is not the case this time."]

"I had no intention of hoping for help anyway."

["... Right."]

The voice's help was excellent, but it was not his own.

Vlad knew well that to shine completely, he had to possess something purely his own.

"Will I be able to do it?"

["We will only know if you try."]

Vlad was nervous, but the voice was also nervous.

The boy was full of potential, but he lacked the time to refine it.

He had guided him as best he could, but the boy hadn't experienced actual combat.

And what stood before the boy now was a knight.

"Are you ready? Vlad of Soara?"

And a true knight who knew how to handle aura, at that.

"... Yes."

The time he could stall with his ready stance was now up.

All that remained was the clash of sword against sword.

"Good."

The priest confirmed that both sides were ready, stepped back, and raised both his hands.

"Under today's sun, God has granted permission!"

With the signal announcing the start of the duel, the people looked at the dueling grounds with excited eyes, but...

"..."

Before they knew it, the boy who should have been standing in his spot was nowhere to be seen.

A Duelist's swordsmanship specialized in short-range combat.

It was something that fit perfectly with the disposition of the boy, who always enjoyed taking the first strike.

"Haaht!"

A domineering and simultaneously linear movement.

A confident movement that showed he didn't care about anything blocking his way.

Therefore, there wasn't a hint of hesitation contained in the sword of Vlad, who rushed in like a thunderbolt.

Only intent was contained within it.

CLANG!

The boy took the first strike just as he intended.

Whether it was given to him or he took it, Vlad's intention had succeeded regardless.

"..."

It was a fast rush that wouldn't even be caught in the vision of ordinary people, but Pablo blocked Vlad's sword without difficulty.

["Always think of your next move. Unless you want to attack once and die."]

"..."

Even though his attack was blocked, Vlad did not lose his momentum.

Just as he had learned from Jager, a continuous barrage of attacks began to strike down at Pablo as if he had been waiting for it.

The unceasing ringing of swords echoed through the hall at precise intervals.

It was like a signal informing everyone that the duel was progressing according to the flow of the boy who was leading the attacks.

"..."

Although Pablo had yielded the first strike, there was no panic on his face.

He was merely calmly appreciating the spectacle.

'He's a natural.'

It was only a single clash, but Pablo felt he could slightly understand why Joseph had sent out this greenhorn here as his opponent.

["Aim for the left side where he used to hold his shield. Habits are a fearsome thing."]

"Haaah!"

Following the voice's advice, Vlad dug into Pablo's weak point with an intense shout.

It was clearly an attack he could sufficiently block, but Pablo was feeling something flashing within Vlad's sword.

The boy's sword was like a starving wolf.

Like a wolf that had caught the scent of blood, it was tenaciously biting at his weak point.

Starvation.

And innate cruelty.

That was hidden within the boy's sword.

'Still, I should cut it off around here.'

Having given up the first strike due to a sudden attack, Pablo felt the need to break the momentum at this point.

That was how fierce the boy's spirit was.

"What kind of...!"

"That guy doesn't even get tired!"

Vlad's fast and sudden movements inherently possessed a brilliance, much like the blond hair the boy had.

And the people were mesmerized by it.

They were gradually getting drawn into the spirit exuded by the boy named Vlad.

CLANG! CLANG! CLA-ANG!

The sparks created by sword clashing against sword scattered noisily.

"..."

Watching Vlad storm in like a tempest, Pablo quietly waited for an opening.

Aiming for the gap in Vlad, whose spirit was excellent but still unripened.

"Hmph!"

And he dug into the gap and struck down.

With a rock-like solidity that could easily suppress a small tempest.

"..."

Vlad, who had been unceasingly battering Pablo, instinctively raised his sword at the sudden approaching weight.

CRASH!

"Gugh!"

At the same time, he ended up getting slammed into the ground.

He was hit with such forceful momentum that his body immediately bounced back up the moment he fell.

'Gah!'

He had definitely blocked it with his sword, but the numbing sensation, as if the back of his head had been struck by a solid rock, made Vlad unable to collect his senses.

A strike that was blocked, yet unblocked.

Because he couldn't deflect it, Vlad absorbed the entire impact, but using the senses ingrained in his body, he quickly executed a breakfall and hurriedly stepped back to open the distance.

"Ughhh..."

A bodily movement reacting not from thought, but on its own.

It was the result produced by the combat-like practices with Jager.

["Get a grip!"]

'... Ugh.'

The swords Jager swung during practice had also been plenty threatening, but Pablo undeniably possessed a different kind of strength.

'Feels like I was hit with a rock.'

He had only blocked once, but his entire body was throbbing.

It wasn't sharp, but the impossibly heavy strike naturally made Vlad flinch.

"Are you done doing your little tricks?"

"..."

The aura of Pablo in front of him was gradually growing larger.

Pablo, who had not only stood in a dishonorable duel but had also ended up providing a spectacle, did not want to drag this out any longer.

["He is coming."]

Although he was not holding a shield, Pablo's presence was like a mountain.

'... To where!'

["He is trying to dominate the distance. You have to move anywhere!"]

Pablo, who had created a solid defensive posture with just a single sword, began to slowly pressure Vlad with steps as heavy as a great mountain, just as he always did.

Just being shown this level of sincerity would be an honor for Vlad, but in the current situation, it was merely a daunting advance.

["You have to deflect it somehow."]

'That's easier said than done!'

The voice's swordsmanship, which could be defined by short-range combat and one-hit kills, was something that couldn't be used in the current situation.

'Footwork.'

Right now, the wave-like movements of his other master, Jager, were needed.

The boy recalled Jager's movements in his head and prepared for Pablo's approaching attack.

CRASH!

"Gah!"

However, there were inevitably things that couldn't be blocked even if one prepared.

As someone who hadn't held a sword for long, Vlad had neither the experience nor the skill to deflect the massive wall that was Pablo.

CRASH!

CRASH!

With unbelievable sounds for sword clashing against sword, Vlad was slowly stumbling backward.

At the perilous retreat accompanied by the threatening sounds, Alicia could barely even breathe properly.

It was too harsh a punishment for a boy to shoulder.

["Get a grip!"]

The voice continuously tried to awaken his senses, but Vlad had almost lost his mind from the overwhelmingly heavy impacts.

If this were a spar rather than a duel, just holding out this much would already be a sufficient display of a good fight, and it could be said he had proved his worth.

However, the boy had not stepped up here to learn something.

He stood in this place to prove himself.

'No!'

Barely clinging onto his fading consciousness, Vlad somehow thrust his unadorned sword toward the approaching blade.

It was like a final struggle.

CRASH!

But the sword thrust out with a faint will provided no opportunity whatsoever for the boy.

SCREEECH-

Due to the clash just now, Vlad ended up getting pushed all the way to the edge of the dueling grounds.

"Keugh!"

Bright red blood poured out of Vlad's mouth.

His grip, which had forcibly held onto his sword, had long been torn apart, and the drool flowing down his lips was mixing with the bloodstains on the floor.

"Excellent."

Pablo had been furious at Joseph for ignoring his honor just a moment ago, but after clashing swords with Vlad, his thoughts changed a little.

He was an excellent kid.

He was a greenhorn with the qualification to dare stand against him.

Even though it was still too early for him to engage in a formal duel.

"Seek me out again later."

Pablo raised his sword high, preparing the final strike.

Vlad was watching Pablo's strike with hazy, completely exhausted eyes.

["... You did well."]

The voice, Jager who had prepared Vlad, and Joseph who had ordered the boy were all nodding their heads.

The boy had done his job.

He could rest now.

The moment everyone in the hall was about to applaud the boy who had fought bravely despite his defeat.

CLANG.

Pablo's sword, which had been striking down toward the boy, bent inward bizarrely.

Along with a somewhat weak sound.

"...?"

While everyone failed to comprehend the situation that had just occurred before their eyes.

"..."

Colin, who had been sitting listlessly, stood up in shock at the sound that seemed like it belonged in a nightmare.

"He's an extraordinary one."

Jubert, who had been chewing on dried fruit while watching the boy's struggle, also couldn't hide his surprised expression.

"..."

Only after seeing Colin's scream-like silence did Pablo realize why his sword had bounced off.

Because it was an event outside of common sense that even an experienced knight like Pablo found hard to accept immediately.

"... Why, only you people..."

At Vlad's low voice, Pablo quietly moved his sword aside and looked at the boy in front of him.

Hazed eyes that were half-unfocused, as if he had lost his mind.

They were eyes that seemed to be dreaming of somewhere in his memories.

"I too..."

The unqualified boy had always craved shining things.

He wanted ability, wished for opportunity, and dreamed of gaining qualification.

To go to a shining place.

And the boy now proved that he was someone with the qualification to shine.

Vlad of Soara, who had cut off the sword path of Pablo, the knight of Arnstein.

He replicated the counterattack exactly along the Sword Path his master had shown him.

"... I want to be there too."

The boy's desperation met opportunity, teaching, and crisis, and was slowly creating a world of his own.

A flower was about to bloom.

A brilliant flower that no one had ever seen before.

The boy's sword was crying.

Vlad of Soara

"..."

A white snake wrapped around a lone tree on a low hill.

A being unseen in the boy's world was quietly listening with its eyes closed.

CLANG.

The white snake, emitting a brilliant light, slowly stretched as it listened to the sound ringing from the mansion.

CLANG.

It was undeniably an unfamiliar sound, but that sound contained the traces of someone it had longed for over a long time.

Therefore, the snake rejoiced at that sound and raised its head.

High into the sky, high into that sky.

"-----!"

Then, opening its mouth wide, it let out a sound that no one could hear anymore.

That lonely, lonely sound, although it started from the earth, was something only the sky would acknowledge.

SSSSS.

Rain was falling.

It was the answer to the voice the snake had let out.

The snake was satisfied as it was struck by the falling rain.

Because a scene exactly like the time it had settled on the tree in the distant past was unfolding.

The small clouds called by the snake gathered and gathered, obscuring today's sun.

The rain falling from the clouds imbued with the sun was a warm rain befitting a spring day.

It was a rain solely for the boy.

* * *

Everyone was in silence.

CLANG.

Unable to even exhale a breath, they merely watched the sight before their eyes.

"Gah!"

Bright red drops of blood scattered.

They were flowing from the boy's forcibly clenched grip.

The unadorned sword tightly held, as if he would never let it go.

A red hue was flowing along it.

The boy's vivid will was flowing along the sword.

"What on earth is this..."

Everyone was astonished by the sight they were currently seeing.

The movement of the blond boy, who was cutting off a knight's sword despite being merely a squire.

VWOOM- VWOOM- VWOOM-

And, though it might be an illusion, even the sound of the crying sword.

["..."]

This was not the sound made by the voice inside the boy's soul.

It was the sound made by the unadorned sword, crafted from an old man's dream, bought with a girl's tears, and wielded by a boy's will.

The boy's sword was crying.

'I didn't show it to him so he would do this!'

Jager, who was watching this scene, unintentionally touched his eyepatch, betraying his flustered state.

Vlad was feeling anxious.

Because just as he thought he was moving forward, he saw the traces of strong individuals blocking his path.

Despite not even being able to walk properly yet, the boy wanted to run as fast as he could to see the unseen end, no matter how far he advanced.

He shouldn't do that.

A strong leap could only be made on firmly planted ground.

That was why he had shown it to him, intending to temporarily calm Vlad's impatience, yet...

'I showed it to him to stick to the basics, and he's already using it so recklessly!'

That guy had somehow stolen his technique and was using it.

He had learned and applied something he hadn't even been taught as he pleased.

This was something that shouldn't happen.

A flustered master, an astonished crowd, a worried woman.

"..."

And even Joseph, who had chosen a definite defeat to achieve the lesser evil.

Amidst the justified silences held by their respective reasons, the only sound heard in the hall was the clash of sword against sword.

CLANG!

The boy's sword, continuing faintly like a thin thread, had undoubtedly lost its sharpness, but was instead filled with a firmly gathered will.

He would move forward.

To the place where those shining things that were not permitted to me are.

"..."

Pablo kept his mouth firmly shut as he watched the boy approaching him one step at a time like that.

He could have ended it anytime if he wanted to, but he did not.

Because the stumbling the boy was currently showing still had intent mixed within it.

VWOOM- VWOOM- VWOOM-

And because the sword was crying.

Hearing the crying sound of the sword more clearly since he was close, Pablo watched the boy's sword closely.

'Could it be.'

He couldn't be certain, but this was a precursor.

He never thought it would happen in a place like this, but sometimes young seeds would take root in places they shouldn't settle in.

And if what he was thinking was right.

"Hah!"

Pablo had to perform his duty as a knight.

Because he had sworn to do so.

Having firmed his resolve, Pablo struck his sword down toward Vlad with all his might.

That was not a strike intended to suppress the boy.

It was an attempt to draw it out.

The boy's world that was trying to bloom.

From the moment he heard the crying sound of the sword, the concept of a duel had long vanished from Pablo's mind.

Because what he was about to do from now on was a knight's duty and also a glory.

"Try to block this!"

With every strike the knight brought down, the boy's sword cried.

With every counterattack the boy thrust out, a sparkle leaked forth.

"... What is that?"

"The sword is shining, isn't it?"

As the people murmured while watching the light faintly leaking from the boy's sword.

The shining sword.

The knights who knew what that meant slowly began to stand up from their seats.

Vlad's master, Jager, too.

The bloodied old knight Duncan, too.

Colin, who had just tasted defeat, too.

"... He wasn't your ordinary extraordinary guy, I see."

And even Jubert, who had brought about this entire situation.

Everyone, without distinguishing between friend or foe.

Because they were all knights.

SCREAAK-

The sound of chairs scraping as the knights pushed them back mixed with the sound of sword clashing against sword.

The boy's sword was shining.

It was about to bloom into its own color.

All young and tender things in this world hold the proper qualification to bloom flowers.

Potential is a beautiful thing, and young ones who can express it as their own world are precious.

Therefore, you must protect that moment.

For that is a knight.

"Shield! Give me my shield!"

Finally seeing the light radiating from the boy, Pablo shouted urgently.

Following Pablo's urgent shout, his squire picked up the shield and threw it into the dueling grounds.

"Come!"

Pablo of Arnstein.

CLANG!

He struck his sword and shield together, making a loud noise.

A vivid yellow light originating from his closed left eye began to wrap around his body.

"I am Pablo of Arnstein!"

Pablo's shout echoed fully through the hall.

So that everyone here could hear.

He had looked at the boy and called him unqualified.

He had said this battlefield was not honorable and this was no duel.

That was why he said he would not tell him his name.

"State your name! Boy!"

However, right now, holding his shield, he was shouting his own name loudly.

Toward the boy who had gained the same qualification as him and had become honorable enough.

"I am..."

In his gradually fading consciousness, Vlad was walking along his dimming memories.

Passing the dark back alleys, walking past the blacksmith shop where the shining star hung.

Crossing over his now-broken nest, toward that place filled with shining things.

The difference of a single street.

Along that line, light and darkness were divided.

The presence or absence of opportunities one could grasp were divided.

A crossroad where one's life was inevitably chosen depending on where they were born.

He walked along that path.

The boy took a step toward a place he had never been before.

Toward the shining place.

Oh, boy who was born in an unqualified place, yet walks toward a shining place.

You have proven your qualification.

So shout it.

"... I am Vlad of Soara."

Along with the boy's small shout, the unadorned sword began to be enveloped in light.

With the worlds holding swords watching, a new flower was blooming.

"----!"

Rain for the boy was falling from the sky.

Although the young seed had taken root beneath dirty mud full of poison, it did not stop looking up and did not refuse to embrace the stars.

Therefore, it could bloom its light right here, right now.

"Come! Vlad of Soara!"

The intense light created by the collision of a newly bloomed world and a solid world began to fill the entire hall.

Along with that light, a single flower finally bloomed.

The root of the flower created by the boy was an intense white.

The stem of the flower created by the boy was a flexible green.

And the color of the petals the boy bloomed was.

"Haaaaah!"

The sorrowful blue of the moon.

Blue moonlight embraced into the fortress walls created by Pablo.

The boy who had borrowed honor raised the moon today.

Vlad of Soara.

Today, a new world bloomed its flower.

* * *

"... You did well."

Pablo said as he embraced the boy who had come into his arms.

Toward the boy whose eyes had rolled back white, but who had never let go of his sword until the very end.

Red blood flowed down the tip of the boy's sword that he had tightly gripped to the end.

Those who understood the situation paid their respects to the boy who had just awakened his world.

Just about when those who didn't understand were beginning to murmur about the boy's sword suddenly shining brightly.

"Aura... it's aura!"

Only the usurper, engrossed in the chunk of meat right in front of him, rushed out to the center of the hall, shouting loudly.

"Using aura in the duel is forbidden! Vlad of Soara is disqualified!"

Those desperate for profit only think of the fruit that will bear when the flower falls, even while looking at the beautiful flower before their eyes.

Endre's figure was exactly like that.

Some people, only now grasping the situation at Endre's shout, finally nodded their heads.

"Aura, so it was aura."

"A squire using aura?"

"Isn't he Bayezid's squire? Now that I think about it, the color of his armor is..."

Just about when the people, having realized the true nature of the light that started from the boy's sword, were beginning to murmur and get heated up over the spectacle they had just witnessed.

"..."

There was a man quietly descending from the VIP seats.

Although he descended without a word, everyone here was paying attention to his figure.

Because he possessed that much presence, and he was a man who deserved to do so.

Joseph of the Bayezid Family.

The one holding noble blood stood before the knight holding his squire.

"Thank you."

He then bowed his head deeply to express his gratitude.

"I thank you for carrying out your knight's duty for my squire."

"It was merely my job."

Pablo, handing Vlad over to Jager who had followed up, bowed his head in return to Joseph.

"Priest."

Having expressed his thanks to Pablo, who had done his best to break Vlad's shell, Joseph turned his head and quietly spoke to the priest.

"Was it aura?"

"Y-Yes, it was."

Joseph nodded quietly at the priest's answer.

In that case, it is a disqualification.

Since the rules of this duel forbade aura to avoid fatal casualties.

However.

"Then I will ask you one more thing."

Joseph asked with cold eyes as he looked at the usurper drooling in front of him.

"Between the rules of a sacred duel and the code of the Swordmaster, which concept ranks higher?"

"... Ah, as expected."

At Joseph's question, the priest grabbed his forehead and sighed, as if the inevitable had come.

Swordmaster.

Master of the sword.

An honorable title that only a single person acknowledged by the era could hold.

And there was a code attached to that honorable title, which only one person in human history was said to have held.

It was something every knight had to follow.

"... It is a matter that a lowly one like me cannot decide in this place right now."

The priest presiding over the duel spoke, raising both his hands as if signaling a surrender.

"The code of the Swordmaster is an honor, a duty, and also something related to royal authority. It is a domain that I, as one who follows God's will, cannot dare to decide upon."

"... Is that so."

Joseph smiled at the priest's answer.

This would do.

"Endre Heinal."

Endre, who had been wearing a subtle expression as he felt the situation taking a strange turn, answered Joseph's call.

"What is it?"

Joseph thought as he looked at Endre, who was staring at him with a flustered expression.

'I asked you to buy time, but you brought an opportunity.'

'I aimed to choose the lesser evil, but you brought back the next best result.'

'So I will be sure to seize this opportunity you've given me.'

"The duel is deferred."

At Joseph's answer, cracks began to form on Endre's face like drying mud.

Deferred.

A word that meant neither disqualification, nor defeat, nor forfeit.

Joseph was saying that he would postpone the results regarding the duel for now.

"W-What do you mean."

"The code and the rules have clashed."

The man with dark bags under his eyes spoke with a smile as dark as the shadows.

"Since no one here can say which takes precedence, I believe I must report this matter to the capital where the Vatican and the royal family reside."

Pablo lifted his shield of his own will to uphold his knight's duty.

From the moment he lifted his shield, what unfolded here was not an honorable duel.

The code of the Swordmaster.

Pablo, who swore to follow that code to become a knight, contributed to awakening a new world today exactly as someone had intended in the distant past.

Does honor take precedence, or does duty take precedence?

No one here would be able to give an answer to that.

The noble ones who could answer that question were not here, but in the empire's capital, Brigantes.

"I propose that we defer today's result until a clear decision is made there."

Endre's mouth hung open stupidly.

It didn't matter what words poured out of that mouth from now on.

Joseph had absolutely no intention of letting go of the justification he was holding in his mouth.

Because it was a precious opportunity created by a boy no one had paid attention to, and whom even he had not predicted.

* * *

All young and tender things in this world hold the proper qualification to bloom flowers.

Potential is a beautiful thing, and young ones who can express it as their own world are precious.

Therefore, you must rightly protect that moment.

All those who have taken up honorable swords, swear under my name, Frausen, the Founding King and Swordmaster.

That you will fulfill your duty.

That is my first code.