Chapter 44 : Chapter 44
Chapter 044
Was there really any way to avoid it other than one?
Fight head-on and crush the opponent beneath overwhelming Martial Prowess.
I said exactly that.
Sir Paramela nodded, but his expression remained serious. As if he had expected that answer, he continued,
“There is one other way. A certain and safe one.”
A certain and safe way?
I was confident in my own skill, but the problem was that I had no idea which Apprentice Knight would be sent out against me.
I had seen them training briefly, but I had never actually crossed swords with one, so I knew nothing of their real level.
If the opponent were around Kalmond’s level, then it would be worth trying. After all, I had beaten him twice already.
But even then, things had not been straightforward. The first time, in the warehouse, I had caught Kalmond off guard. The second time, he had been blinded by rage. In other words, he had never displayed his full ability.
This spar would be different.
A proper stage would be set, and there was every chance that superiors and members of the Royal Family would be watching. To raise his own value, my opponent would likely throw himself into the fight as if his life depended on it.
In other words, this was going to be troublesome.
And it was not as though I could simply open my Mana Circuit to the fullest and cut him down with Sword Aura.
If I did that, I would one hundred percent end up in military life. Even if they offered me the position of Knight Commander, I still did not want the Knight Order. I had said it many times already, but one round through the military was enough for any man.
In any case, if it were not a live-blade match, then I too would have been willing to display my skill to the fullest. No matter what, there was something unpleasant about injuring an opponent for no reason.
In the midst of all this, the words that came from Paramela were enough to sharpen my interest. His face was full of certainty.
“May I ask what kind of method it is? If it is something I can do......”
“It is entirely within your power. All you must do is receive knightly appointment at once.”
“Pardon?”
I was genuinely startled.
It was not an act. Nor had he spoken in jest. The seriousness still fixed on his face told me that plainly enough.
So I asked,
“What exactly do you mean by receiving knightly appointment? Has receiving knighthood become something so easy that even a commoner can obtain it without difficulty?”
“To receive knightly appointment, one must ordinarily spend three years as an Apprentice Knight first.”
“That much I know.”
“But in your case, that process could be skipped. When you saved Young Lady Sapiela before, the head of the House had intended to bestow a baronetcy upon you in recognition of your service.”
At first, I could not quite grasp what he meant.
I thought back to my audience with Marquis Chronos. At the time, in return for saving the Young Lady, he had said he would appoint me a Full Butler and bestow upon me the title of baronet.
But what did that have to do with this?
“From baronet onward, one becomes a retainer of House Adeline. And that means, if one wishes, one may sit the knightly examination immediately. One may even become an Honorary Knight. In my opinion, you would pass easily enough. To speak frankly, I do not believe for a moment that you stepped on the Young Master’s foot by accident. Are you not hiding your talent?”
I let that last remark pass as though I had not heard it.
“So what you are saying is that I should ask the Master to give me back the baronetcy I once declined, and then sit the knightly examination?”
“Exactly.”
“I think that would be rather difficult.”
“Why?”
“It would look bad.”
Perhaps I had gone too far.
Sir Paramela’s grave expression collapsed at once.
“I turned it down rather stylishly before. If I went back now and asked for it after all, I would look pathetic. The Master would likely think me strange as well. I wrapped that matter up neatly once already, so overturning it now would be awkward.”
“Haah.”
Sir Paramela let out a sigh and propped his chin on one hand. Even so, he did not retreat easily.
“Let me ask you one thing. Are the eyes of others more important than your life?”
“It is not that. I simply do not see why I need to go that far. I am somewhat concerned about the spar, yes, but I still think it is worth attempting.”
“Your opponent has already been decided. They will send out the best apprentice they have.”
“May I know his name? I happen to have one acquaintance on that side as well.”
“Arthas.”
Damn it.
So that was how it was going to go after all.
The Status Windows I had seen were accurate. On top of that, he was a four-star talent, a young knight with high levels and excellent Traits.
To think I would be facing him. To be honest, my heart tightened.
“Forgive me, but may I ask one question?”
“As many as you like.”
“I do not quite understand why Sir Paramela is taking such an interest in me. Compared to Sir Lorenz, whom I often saw while attending Young Lady Sapiela, you seem to have a very different temperament.”
“That is only natural.”
Sir Paramela fell silent for a moment. Or rather, it seemed as though he was looking at me and choosing his words.
A little later, he finally spoke.
“The truth is, I too was once a butler.”
“Truly?”
“There is no reason to hide my past from you. Anyone here who knows me already knows the story.”
No wonder he often showed a certain delicacy unlike the usual rough and open sort of knight. Still, I had never imagined he might once have been a butler.
“But then why did you sit the knightly examination? Did it not suit your aptitude?”
“Because I had a clear goal.”
“Does that have something to do with this situation?”
Silently, he nodded.
This was becoming more interesting by the moment.
The Young Master I had judged to be someone entirely different, a man far removed from the succession struggle who concealed ambition beneath the mask of a wastrel.
And it was not only Acting that stood at A-rank. His Swordsmanship, Tactics, and Stratagem were all A-rank as well. Even D-rank was already better than the average person, so I could not even imagine how brilliant A-rank must be.
“It cannot be said to have nothing to do with it. I chose the Third Young Master because I wished to aim for higher ground. Outwardly he may appear that way, but he harbors ambition. Not only is he outstanding in swordsmanship, he is exceptional in intellect as well.”
“So you placed your bet on the side with the higher return rather than the safer one.”
“Exactly. That is why I became a knight, entered the Young Master’s service, and reached my current position. I received the same command that you have now, but I used the shortcut of converting to knighthood, escaped the crisis, and caught the Young Master’s eye.”
Now, at last, I understood the situation I was in.
As expected, the Young Master had surely been searching for someone bold and audacious enough to step on his foot on purpose.
Which meant that only one question remained.
So I asked,
“All right. But why are you telling me something this important? If I were to spread word of it elsewhere......”
Unexpectedly, Sir Paramela smiled and answered with complete candor.
“Who would believe the words of some common Butler Apprentice? More likely, you would simply vanish without a trace under the charge of spreading talk about the Young Master’s private affairs.”
“I see.”
“The reason he chose you is because the Young Master took a liking to you. He is presently gathering talented people who can support him from behind. And in the course of that, you caught his eye.”
“So I stepped on his foot for nothing.”
A small laugh escaped me.
I had never imagined that one unintended act would drag me into something like this. If I had seen the future, I probably would not have stepped on his foot at all.
But now, there was no choice left.
“If you want to sit the knightly examination, I will report the necessary procedures myself. If that happens, the spar will naturally be canceled as though it had never existed.”
“No. I decline.”
“Why?”
“Because I wanted to fight Arthas at least once. Since a proper stage is being prepared, I thought I might as well take this chance to have one blazing match.”
“You are thoroughly insane.”
He let out a sigh, and I gave a light shake of my head.
“In any case, this is a contest of pride between butlers and knights, is it not? I am a Butler Apprentice, so naturally I have to fight well for the sake of my fellow apprentices and my senior butlers.”
“Very well. I will not press you further. I wish you good fortune in battle.”
“Thank you.”
Sir Paramela left the room first. I did not follow him at once. I remained in the empty room for a moment, sorting through my thoughts.
***
The tedious afternoon passed, and the sunset spread across the sky.
After taking a brief rest while gazing out the window, I picked up a cloth and began tending to my sword again.
Only a few hours remained before the spar.
According to Rohan, our resident information broker, a temporary Training Ground was currently being erected behind the garden. The workers, and even the retainers, were showing intense interest in the matter.
So I revised my strategy.
At first, I had intended to use the mana pistol to take Arthas down in advance, but I decided not to do that. If I used such a weapon while everyone’s attention was fixed on the match, it was bound to cause a commotion.
“Could I really bring him down with nothing but a sword?”
I was not certain, but I still thought it was a fight worth having.
After all, I was one of those rare beings known as a mana user.
I would lower the level of mana by one stage and use it the way others used Aura. I meant to spread it lightly over my armor and coat my weapon just enough that the mysterious power would support my lacking Swordsmanship.
Fortunately, there was no mage staying as a guest within the Adeline Marquis House, so no one would notice that I was converting mana into Aura.
People who used mana were extraordinarily rare, but Aura was not nearly so uncommon. Even if someone noticed, I could simply improvise an excuse.
Just then, there was a knock, and the door opened slightly. I set the sword down and received my visitor.
It was Arwen.
By instinct, I felt I could guess why she had come.
Was she perhaps a messenger from Young Lady Sapiela?
“The Young Lady said to bring you to her at once.”
“Really? I have to prepare for the spar, and yet people keep summoning me from every direction.”
Earlier, Head Butler Yanrof had called for me as well. But I had already sent word that I would come after the spar, citing my preparations as the reason.
“......”
“What is it?”
Arwen’s face was full of worry. It seemed that hearing I was going to fight a knight, even as an apprentice one, had frightened her.
I did not particularly want to linger on that subject. No matter how much I said, it would not change the outcome. I slid the sword into its scabbard and rose from my seat.
“Come on.”
I stepped out first, but Arwen simply stood there inside the room, staring at me.
“What are you doing? I’ll go by myself, then.”
“Dilen. Are you really all right? I heard you’re going to fight with a real sword... and if you get hurt......”
“I’ll be fine. Do not worry.”
She looked as though she might burst into tears, so I simply left.
No matter what I said now, it would not comfort her. It would be faster to show her through results.
When we arrived at the Young Lady’s residence, Sir Lorenz was there, just as expected, looking at me with obvious displeasure. I ignored him and knocked on the door.
“My lady, it is Dilen.”
“Come in.”
When I entered, the Young Lady was seated in a poised posture, sipping tea. For some reason, it felt as though it had been a long time since I last saw her, and I found myself glad of it, but she did not even look at me.
Even after waiting for some time, the Young Lady did not say why she had called me.
Since I could not continue wasting time forever, I asked first.
“I heard that you summoned me.”
“......”
“My lady.”
I stepped a little closer. Without a command, that was a slight breach of decorum.
But I did not think the Young Lady would grow wary of me over something so small anymore.
“If something is troubling you, I will listen. I am your faithful servant, my lady.”
“......I am sorry.”
“Why would you say you are sorry to me?”
Only then did Young Lady Sapiela raise her eyes to me and say,
“Because I could not protect one of my own.”
That one small sentence, trivial as it might have seemed, struck straight at my heart.