The Top-Tier Butler of the Marquis Family

Chapter 083

He usually walked around in Heavy Armor, but today, of all days, he had lightened his equipment. Whether it was an expression of confidence or some other hidden scheme, I could not tell.

If the man standing before me now had been Arthas, it would have been the latter.

But Sir Lorenz had neither the petty cunning nor the scheming mind for that. He was undoubtedly underestimating me.

“You are glaring at me rather fiercely. Surely you are not planning to kill me?”

“Isn’t it true that no one can know how a sword might move?”

Sir Lorenz grinned wickedly as he said it. I did not even need to hear the rest.

That bastard definitely intended to kill me today.

In a duel, each party bore responsibility for the outcome. That was precisely why an official witness was required. Settling things one-on-one in private was illegal, but a duel conducted before an official witness and assembled observers was legitimate.

Which meant that even if Sir Lorenz cut off my head here, there would be no one who could say a word against it.

Of course, I intended to turn that to my own advantage.

Shing!

I drew my sword.

There had been time to inspect and prepare before the duel, and there had been fine weapons laid out for use, but I had chosen the sword Smith had given me as a gift.

Now that I had decided to use Mana as though it were Aura, the quality and type of weapon no longer meant much to me. If anything, this sword, forged with an artisan’s devotion, meant far more.

I let out a faint laugh.

“You are quite right. No one can know how a sword may move. Which is why I ask that, should my blade happen to commit any discourtesy, you forgive it with a generous heart.”

“Hahaha! What an arrogant little wretch. Even if you did defeat that Arthas brat, the gap in skill between an apprentice and a Guard Knight is the difference between heaven and earth. Today I’ll carve that truth into your bones. In fact, I’ve prepared a special gift for you.”

Sir Lorenz drew his own sword.

Then energy began gathering around it, and before long it gave off a faint blue light. He had activated the Aura Sword so commonly used by knights.

Wooooooong!

The blade vibrated on its own, releasing energy in all directions. The expressions of those watching split at once.

Some were thrilled, while those who favored me, like Rohan, Arwen, Smith, Chef Ramsay, and Sapiela, let out worried sighs.

By all common sense, it was impossible for an ordinary person to withstand an Aura Sword. No matter how fine the weapon in his hand might be.

To stand against an Aura Sword, one’s own weapon had to contain equal or greater power. But I was holding nothing more than an ordinary sword of the sort one might commonly see in a forge.

In other words, Sir Lorenz’s intentions were obvious.

“So you mean to end me in a single blow.”

“Of course. As I said before, I don’t have time to play children’s games with an apprentice brat. I’ll cut you down in one strike and reclaim my tarnished honor.”

“It won’t be that easy. Because……”

Thump!

My heart, receiving the command of my will, began to pound violently.

With every beat, the Mana pouring from it passed through my Mana Circuit and was refined once more at my fingertips before surging into the sword.

It all happened in a single instant.

Whoooom!

With a most unusual sound, my own sword began glowing blue as well.

I deliberately controlled the intensity, setting it close to the level of Aura Sword Sir Lorenz was displaying. But the power I wielded was Mana, and there was an undeniable difference in quality.

Even if the colors were the same, once they clashed, it was obvious Sir Lorenz would be driven back.

“Oh! Isn’t that an Aura Sword?!”

“That’s impossible!”

“I can’t believe it! How is a mere Butler Apprentice manifesting an Aura Sword? What in the world is the Butler Corps thinking?”

“Sir Yanrof! What is the meaning of this? I was certain I heard that boy was born a commoner……”

“So defeating that apprentice knight wasn’t luck after all! It was inevitable!”

The murmurs would not cease.

My lips curled upward on their own. As expected, the audience was in utter chaos.

Everyone was staring in shock not at Lorenz, but at the Aura Sword I had revealed. Smiling faintly, I glanced toward the seats where Marquis Chronos and his sons were seated.

Their reactions varied.

The Marquis sat with his chin resting on his hand, his eyes shining brightly. Anyone could see that I had captured his interest.

Meanwhile, the eldest son, Kaien, showed little particular interest, and the second son, Prah, displayed no change in expression. Only the unruly Young Master Hamel wore the blank look of a man who had just been struck across the back of the head.

No doubt the first two were the ones wearing masks, while Hamel, the one who truly ought to have worn one, had instead shown his true face.

The same was true of my close companions.

Rohan and Arwen both looked stunned, while Sapiela, standing beside the Training Ground in the role of official witness, held a hand to her chest and could not even close her mouth.

“Dilen……”

Her trembling voice reached my ears, faint but clear enough.

It did not take long for astonishment and disbelief to sweep through the audience.

At this rate, I could call this a successful debut.

All of my strength had now been exposed before everyone, but that did not matter much. The Knight Order would no doubt send active offers soon enough, but I could simply refuse them. More importantly, I was still keeping my hidden card concealed: the fact that I was a Mana User.

And, of course, the one most unable to contain his shock on this stage was my opponent himself, Sir Lorenz.

“Y-you…… were an Aura User?”

“It wasn’t that I was trying to hide it. It’s just that there was no reason to manifest an Aura Sword while living the life of a Butler Apprentice. Do you have a problem with that?”

“Damn it!”

He was rattled from the very start.

Naturally. He had abandoned Heavy Armor and chosen Light Armor because he intended to finish me in one strike. He had not even armed his hands or feet with anything extra. It was blatant carelessness.

That did not mean I was soft enough to overlook it.

I intended to crush him thoroughly, so that he would never dare bare his teeth at me again.

“Shall we begin?”

At my words, Young Lady Sapiela stepped onto the Training Ground. Looking from one of us to the other, she spoke the words she had to speak.

“I hereby declare before all present that this duel is to be conducted according to proper procedure under the laws of the Kingdom. Both parties shall bear full responsibility for whatever may arise from this duel, and once it concludes, both shall accept the result cleanly. Do you acknowledge this?”

“I do.”

Sir Lorenz and I answered at the same time, then stepped back. Letting out a small sigh, Sapiela made her final declaration.

“I hereby declare that the duel has been established.”

After confirming that Young Lady Sapiela had withdrawn to a safe distance, I drew up my power once more.

“Whew.”

I took a single breath, then unfolded the fundamental form of the Merdiang Sword Art that Arthas had taught me not long ago.

“You bastard……”

The moment Sir Lorenz saw me standing there with my posture perfectly set even while manifesting an Aura Sword, his face twisted.

You regret underestimating me now, don’t you?

But what can you do? It is already too late.

“When did you learn swordsmanship?”

“I merely had the chance to learn for a few days. You do seem rather fond of idle talk. Shall I come first, or will you? Since you are far my superior in rank within the mansion, I’ll graciously allow you the first move.”

“Shut up!”

The provocation struck home exactly as intended, and Lorenz, enraged, charged straight at me.

Had I not received Arthas’s instruction, and had I not gained that realization in swordsmanship, I might have been shaken, at least a little, by his attack.

More precisely, I would have been so caught up in his movement and blade path that I would not have known exactly what I myself ought to do.

But even as Sir Lorenz came rushing at me, my heart remained calm, like a still lake.

Because I knew exactly what I had to do.

“Haaah!”

Leaping toward me in an instant, Sir Lorenz brought his sword down without the slightest mercy. It seemed his strategy was to split me in two with a single strike.

With a detached expression, I activated the Fifth Form of the Merdiang Sword Art: Rising Slash.

Ssshaaaak!

Clang!

The descending blade and the rising blade collided.

Both were Aura Swords of the same visible level, but the source of their power was different. It was Sir Lorenz’s blade that was knocked away.

“Good heavens! Sir Lorenz is being driven back!”

“Is another miracle happening? Just what kind of monster is that apprentice?”

This was only the beginning, and already they were making such a fuss.

I did not let up. The instant my sword reached the upper limit of its arc, I did not withdraw it, but immediately flowed into the First Form, Diagonal Slash.

Ssshaaaak!

Kang!

“Ghk!”

Sir Lorenz’s face twisted.

He did manage to block my sword as it came down with tremendous speed, but the pain in his hands would be no small thing.

An Aura Sword could absorb the impact of another Aura Sword of equal level, but I was amplifying the force moment by moment. The power was not the same.

The same had happened just now. It had lasted only an instant, just a brief flash, but at the moment my blade touched Lorenz’s, an Aura twice as strong as his own had struck his sword.

Like a rat, he retreated and reset his stance.

His expression was complicated. Disbelief, astonishment, and finally, darkest of all, the despair that he might actually lose.

Thus I drove him into a corner, striking calmly and at times mercilessly.

“Let’s end this.”

I did not think I could destroy his weapon outright. To do that, I would have to pour in an even greater amount of Aura, and that would only increase the number of people who might begin to suspect me.

In that case, there was only one answer.

An overwhelming offensive.

I would strike him so hard that the shock would force the sword from his hand.

I rushed him, gripping my sword in both hands. My plan was to string together the First through Third Forms in one continuous, blisteringly fast sequence.

First, Diagonal Slash.

Jjeong!

Once again, the impact staggered Sir Lorenz. But I was already moving into the Second Form, Horizontal Slash.

Kkak!

I felt something catch at the tip of my blade. My sword had cut across Sir Lorenz’s chest, but it seemed to have merely scored the leather portion of his Light Armor.

He barely avoided the blow by stepping back, but I still had the Third Form left.

Whirl!

Using the centrifugal force from the Second Form without wasting a moment, I flowed directly into Turning Slash. It was a method of maximizing impact by loading the blade’s tip with both centrifugal force and an additional burst of Aura.

Ttaang!

A clean, satisfying sound rang out, followed by Sir Lorenz’s groan. Foolishly, he had chosen to block my strike head-on by raising his sword vertically rather than deflecting it.

Whiiiiirl!

Thunk!

The sword in Sir Lorenz’s hand spun through the air and flew off, finally embedding itself in the ground far away. Grinning, I brought my own blade to his throat.

The arena went quiet.

But I still had something left to say. If you score the goal, then you ought to celebrate.

“I fear I judged you wrongly. I thought I might learn a thing or two from you, but it seems you weren’t someone worth seeking instruction from after all.”

“……Ghk.”

Grinding his teeth, he trembled with fury.

“Do you acknowledge your defeat?”

“……”

“So you do not acknowledge it.”

Pffft!

I moved the blade slightly, nicking the skin at the side of Lorenz’s neck. Only when the blood began to flow did he lower his head.

“I…… lost.”

Only then did I withdraw my sword and bow toward the platform. The battle must have left an impression, for Marquis Chronos clapped with an interested expression.

I turned my gaze toward Head Butler Yanrof and Commander Varian. Yanrof’s proud look was one thing, but Varian was looking at me with unmistakable interest.

A fine offer will likely come my way soon. I don’t intend to go, but it might be worth hearing what conditions they propose.

“Blessings upon the victor, consolation to the defeated. I hereby declare that this duel has concluded in Dilen’s victory.”

Sapiela’s splendid closing words. Our eyes met. She smiled, and I bowed my head in proper courtesy.

I had kept my promise.