After I finally found a place to be (1)
When I attended the banquet again the next day, more people were watching me than ever before.
Those who were not satisfied with watching even approached.
They were asking me and speaking to me about all sorts of insignificant things.
Sometimes, I answered with the same blarney; other times, I direct their questions to someone else.
If I let go of the conversation and started moving to another place, a different group will form around me.
Is this how a banquet really is? It was so exhausting.
When I was a sword, it was a place I wanted to be in, but now I know that it was tiring, uncomfortable, and not fun at all.
The queen watched me. Not knowing how I felt, she seemed happy to see me socialize. It seems that she liked seeing me getting the attention of the other nobles.
Then, the damn imperial ambassador appeared.
“Prince. I heard you were engaged to an elf.”
Montpellier’s tone was arrogant as if a prince of a small country was unimportant.
“I could not attend yesterday because of my duties, but I certainly missed a good sight,” he said, with a fake expression of sadness.
“But why are you alone today?”
A strange heat was in his eyes.
Greed. Longing. Lust.
His instinct toward elves was obvious.
I did not accept her proposal because I wanted it, and I didn’t really intend to get married, but on the surface, Sigrun is indeed my fiancé. The attitude of treating the Prince’s fiancé like a cheap dancer was truly infuriating.
I turned my head. Many people nodded at Montpellier’s words. No one pointed out how dirty he is. Everyone has the same thought as him.
It was absurd. But in the end, I cooled my anger.
“Could I meet with her once? Unfortunately, elves do not exist in the empire.”
Montpellier continued to speak with his detestable mouth.
I looked up the platform.
The queen’s face was pale. In any case, she looked worried that I would cause trouble.
It was the same with the King’s face. Even though his eldest son’s fiancé was treated as a cheap dancer, their expressions were only one of embarrassment.
Was it because he hated me?
No. No matter how much he hates me, a king should not allow this to happen.
A king should step in when a dog of the empire acts as if he is the owner of our kingdom.
A king should step in when a Prince was insulted.
But no one came forward.
So, it was all up to me.
“Marquis. Do you think that the fiancé of a prince is a cheap dancer that would come at your beck and call?”
At that moment, it was as if all the air in the banquet hall had been sucked out. The music stopped playing, and the buzz of the nobles’ conversations stopped.
The nobles looked at me with pleading eyes as if they wanted me to apologize.
The look on the King’s eyes wasn’t as explicit as the nobles, but the emotions contained in it weren’t that different from the others.
“How dare…”
I heard Montpellier’s voice. His face was red-hot.
The imperial dog opened his mouth once more.
“A prince of a small country scorns the marquis of the great empire…”
“A prince of a small country points out the rudeness of a marquis of another country.”
Everyone in the room held their breaths.
“How dare…”
“Shut up, before I cut off that tongue.”
The nobles’ mouths fell open as if they were screaming silently. Everyone in the hall was pale.
As I looked at their faces, I thought that perhaps, from this day onwards, I would suffer more contempt than before. It would become impossible to get their support.
I knew that what I’m doing right now is stupid.
But this is the way I should go.
The souls of those who turn their eyes away for the sake of fake peace will gradually lose its light.
The compromiser could never attain transcendence.
“Hey!”
The Marquis of Bielefeld appeared. Like he did before, he staggered in and spilled alcohol as if he was drunk.
But today, he spilled it on Montpellier, not me.
“Oh no, I made a huge mistake! Apologies!” Bielefeld began to fuss and started wiping Montpellier’s face with his sleeve. He shot a knowing glance at me as he did.
“You have to change clothes! Oh no, I’m so sorry. I did not want to hurt your precious body!”
The trembling Marquis Bielefeld started to lead Montpellier away.
I laughed at his impudent acting.
“Let me go!” Montpellier roughly struggled against Bielefeld, trying to get rid of him, but Bielefeld’s arms were strong.
It was a rare sight to see. An elderly Marquis of Bielefeld holding down the sturdy Montpellier effortlessly.
“Damn it!”
Exhausted, Montpellier turned away and let himself be led.
As they went, Marquis Bielefeld looked at me once more. Reprimands were contained in those wrinkled eyes.
Soon, they disappeared outside the banquet hall.
The atmosphere was still the same. The cold eyes of the King and the nobles were staring at me.
But it was only for a while.
They started ignoring me. It was as if I was invisible, although I was right in the middle of the hall.
“Your Highness.”
If it wasn’t for Sigrun, who arrived late, I would have ended my own banquet like that.
With her appearance, the mood of the banquet hall rose again. Those who acted as if I was invisible saw me again and began approaching me.
Approaching Sigrun, to be precise.
“Your Highness is really a fun person,” she leaned in close and whispered.
“I’m not here to have fun.”
“I’m looking forward to three years from now,” she said with glowing eyes and a beautiful smile.
* * *
The Third Prince Gillian Leonberger was upset when he heard about the First Prince’s engagement.
“It’s not enough to break the Flower of the Templar Knights; now, an Elf?!”
Originally, he had no intention of attending his banquet. However, after hearing the rumors about the Elves, he could not bear it anymore.
He slipped in the banquet uninvited.
He thought the fiancé would look like a beautiful woman, but her appearance was actually even beyond what he imagined.
His belly twisted with envy.
After the banquet, he sharpened his sword. He wanted it to be as sharp as it could in the upcoming duel.
“Should I make him look like an idiot? Or maybe I would kill him and pretend it was an accident…”
No. Killing would be a problem. He decided it would be better to cut off his manhood.
Gillian kept thinking about how to deal with the First Prince. It was a fever that consumed him every waking second.
He wanted to inflict the most humiliating defeat possible.
Perhaps, with that, the elf woman would break up their engagement and choose him instead.
He smiled at that delusion. Just thinking about it was fun.
Gillian kept waiting for the day to come.
Every day passed like a year; every week felt like a decade.
Finally, the day of the duel came.
As he carried his sword over his shoulder, his eyes roamed over the crowd.
“Why? Are you expecting someone?” The First Prince asked him.
It seems like the elf woman did not come with him. Gillian’s plan to win in front of her was destroyed.
He brought his sword down and sighed in a deep sense of loss.
“If not, let’s start right away.”
He’s rushing to his ruin, Gillian grinned at the thought and nodded.
The Court Knights Commander Count Schmilde Stuttgart stepped forward.
The Count was a notary sent by the royal family to officiate in the duel and prevent any unfavorable circumstances.
“His Highness First Prince has challenged His Highness Third Prince as his opponent, is that correct?”
The Count started the ceremony before the official duel.
The First Prince nodded casually.
“His Highness Third Prince has accepted the challenge with His Highness First Prince, is that correct?”
“Yes,” Gillian quickly responded.
“Both would like to prove their swords here, but only one will enjoy it. God will choose one of them with an impartial eye, and those gathered in this place will become those eyes to decide victory and defeat. Therefore, the truth of the result is beyond words. Your Highness, do you both agree?”
The two princes nodded at the same time.
“Both Princes want to prove their swordsmanship and wants to be the winner, so I declare that the battle has been established. This was granted by His Majesty King Lionel Leonberger, the legitimate ruler of the land, and notarized by Schmilde Stuttgart, who received the honored title as the Commander of the Court Knights; no one can object to the result…”
It seemed a lot to say about one sword fight, but the Count didn’t care.
“The war begins. The match ends when one side cannot continue the match, when one admits to defeat, or when a notary judges that the victory or defeat could not be determined. The winner must be generous to the loser, and the loser must not challenge the winner’s rights.”
When the Count stepped back, the First Prince immediately stepped forward.
Gillian also stepped forward, raising his sword expectantly.
“Both Your Highnesses, hold up your sword. I beg you, please don’t let this battle hurt Your Highnesses’ righteousness.”
The Count finally announced the start of the duel.
Gillian laughed at the first Prince.
“I prepared a grand audience for my brother. Do you like it?”
Since it was so soon after the banquet, the Third Prince was able to invite a far greater number of nobles than he originally expected. It was regrettable that the elf woman did not attend, but it was still a good thing to embarrass the First Prince in front of these people.
The First Prince twisted his head and told him, “You talk too much.”
Gillian’s expression hardened.
“I hope it will be the same when the duel is over,” the First Prince added.
Gillian raised his sword. Numerous styles came to his mind. Among them, he chose the most glamorous and most complex swordsmanship.
He adjusted his stance, and fixing his stare towards the First Prince’s figure, he charged at him.
His momentum was as sharp as his sword.
He couldn’t get destroyed by someone who had learned low-level skills such as mana hearts.
Gillian hit the ground faster, but strangely, it seems that his opponent was getting farther away.
Suddenly-
Kudangtangtang-!
In Gillian’s eyes, heaven and earth changed positions countless times. He felt extreme pain on his chest. It was crazy. He couldn’t understand why he was rolling on the floor, or why the First Prince was standing on top of him.
“I wanted to play with you more, but I’m a little busy.” The First Prince’s voice didn’t sound like mockery. It sounded apologetic.
The Count immediately approached Gillian.
“Your Highness, are you okay?”
Gillian wanted to say that he was okay, and tried to get up.
However, he couldn’t speak, nor could he get up.
He could hear the voices of the onlookers.
“Uh, what happened?”
“Was he knocked out?”
Gillian looked at the Count’s eyes, who seemed to be pitying him.
“As the notary of this duel, I decide in the name of the King that the Third Prince could not continue the duel anymore.”
No. I can still fight.
Again, the words did not come out of his mouth.
“The winner is the First Prince!”
As he heard the Count’s declaration, his eyes began to spin, and finally, it went black.
* * *
The nobles who were watching were at a loss for words.
No one expected that the Third Prince, renowned for his swordsmanship, would get beaten up that easily.
The Third Prince convulsed a little then passed out completely.
The First Prince stood calmly, with his sword down. He didn’t have any excitement or sense of accomplishment that the winner should have. Instead, he was just staring at his brother with a gloomy face.
Then, he suddenly raised his head and looked around.
“Did you get the show you wanted?”
The nobles felt intimidated as the First Prince stared at them angrily. They lowered their heads instinctively and exchanged worried glances.
“Nobles coming to watch a children’s fight… tsu!” The First Prince clicked his tongue, then started walking away.
Nobody said a word until he was far gone.
Then, they started to open their mouths.
“Did the Third Prince really lose?”
Someone said so. The nobles began to disagree among themselves.
“But how?”
“Yes, how? The First Prince had only started training a few months ago, right?”
“He was caught off guard! He was struck before he could even use his hand!”
“Right! It was a cowardly attack!”
Watching them, Count Schmilde Stuttgart spoke in a cold tone.
“As the observer and the notary of this duel, I will warn you. If there is anyone here that casts a fake opinion about the fair game that took place today, he is casting doubt about my honor.”
At his words, the nobles who were talking fell silent.
The Count stared at the direction where the first Prince went.
“It was amazing…”
There was admiration in his voice.
* * *
It took a full day before Gillian recovered his consciousness.
He blinked for a few moments, then screamed after realizing what happened.
“Fuck it! Damn, damn, damn!”
He began throwing anything that he could reach.
Hearing the turmoil, the attendants rushed in his room.
“Your Highness!”
His insides were burning up. It was embarrassing to fall like that in front of the audience that he himself gathered.
“Get ready! I will go to the First Prince’s Palace!”
At Gillian’s words, the attendants seemed restless and started looking down at their feet.
It was as if they wanted to say something but couldn’t.
“Have you not heard me?! I will go and compete again!”
I will be very vigilant this time, he thought. I didn’t know how I got hit, but I will not be hit like that anymore.
The unexpected ability of the First Prince was surprising, but if he focused properly, he is confident he would win. His opponent’s power is coming from an outdated artifact that collects mana in the heart. There was no reason for him to lose if he used the mana on his rings.
It must be done quickly. He ground his teeth.
However, his escorts and attendants have not moved.
“I said I would go back and avenge my disgrace! How many times should I tell you?!”
His personal knight, who was usually quick, procrastinated. Finally, he spoke.
“Your Highness, the First Prince has left.”
“What? Where would he go? He is not allowed to go to the entertainment districts outside the palace!”
“Your Highness, the First Prince is not on the royal road.”
Gillian was dumbfounded at the knight’s words.
“Your Highness, the First Prince left with His Excellency Count Balahard.”
“Where to?”
“I heard they were going north, to the Balahard Fortress.”
Gillian was stunned for a few moments, then started stuttering.
“B-but… me…”
The court knight bowed his head at his 14-year-old master, who has lived a vain life.
“Ahhhh!”
Gillian started screaming and throwing things again.
* * *
“Do we really have to leave this quickly? What’s the hurry?”
Uncle asked me as our horses ran.
“The royal road is not the place for me anymore.”
The moment I answered back against Montpellier, the air around me changed.
I could feel the hostility and contempt from everyone. I realized that none of the nobles would ever stand by my side.
It wasn’t sad.
I didn’t want to cling to those who groveled at the dogs of the empire.
It was better to invest my time in something else rather than paying attention to those pathetic creatures.
“Is there such a place where you’d fit?”
I laughed at Uncle’s question.
“Don’t you think the soldiers and knights would fit me more than the nobles?”
“They are not brighter than the nobles, but they are much more conservative. It won’t be that easy to win their hearts.”
“Well, if I roll the mud together with them, I would surely get something that I won’t have from the nobles. What are you so worried about?”
Uncle shook his head.
“I don’t know. I can’t help but think that you’re in too much hurry.”
Uncle’s words made sense.
After the banquet, we sought permission from the King to travel north, and immediately after given permission, we sped off the royal road immediately.
“Even Marquis Bielefeld said so,” I told Uncle. “He said I won’t get anything on the royal road. Why would I throw my life staying there?”
When the banquet was over, Marquis Bielefeld came to me.
He didn’t express his support right away, but he gave me some helpful advice.
He told me to create a force outside the royal road.
“But you’re going too fast. If you are in a hurry, you start missing things. Isn’t it time to tread carefully, step by step?”
“There is no time to relax,” I told him.
He couldn’t know. The scariest lunatic in the world is chasing after me.
The respite I have from Sigrun is not very long. I would really be marrying her. No, more likely, she would eat me alive. I have seen countless times how she destroys others.
It was still vivid in my memory to see her cutting limbs of her enemies, watching with a satisfied expression, like a child pulling wings off a dragonfly.
Everything she was interested in had the same ending.
Now, she is interested in me.
Before her patience ran out, I have to hurry and build up my strength.
I knew it was impossible to surpass the strength and power of an Elder High Elf within a short period of time.
I would not be able to stand against the strength she had built up for a thousand years.
Only
Unless I reached transcendence.
It was impossible to reach that on the royal road.
Peace makes a person weak and dulls his sword.
I need a place to accelerate my growth and sharpen my sword.
A place where humans are tested to their limits.
A place where Muhun-si could be born.
The place I should be on was the battlefield.
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