Fifteen days was far too little time to achieve any meaningful results through sword training. Moreover, Adelia was a complete beginner who had never even held a sword until a month ago.
If she had first built a foundation and then raised her realm through training, there might at least have been room for hope, but this was a reckless wager by anyone's standards.
Although his reputation was confined to Torres Territory, the Second Young Master was acknowledged as a genius. No one expected Adelia to accomplish anything in a spar against him. In truth, the very idea of the match was absurd.
The unexpected part was Count Leonard's declaration.
Adelia and Tailon were to hold a formal duel at the Dawn Knight Order's sword training ground. Although attendance was limited to internal personnel, the leadership and the Dawn Knight Order would be present.
Now that it had become an official duel, it could no longer be dismissed as mere training or instruction between siblings.
Even so, no one expected the Second Young Master to take the duel seriously. Official or not, there was no honor in defeating a younger sister who scarcely knew a single move.
Nevertheless, no one could take the duel lightly.
Count Leonard had made it clear that if Adelia failed to produce results, Ron would be stripped of both his position as her Personal Knight and his noble status.
-Putting aside whether it's even possible, where's that confidence coming from?
-He isn't just strange. He's completely insane!
-He isn't even stepping forward himself as her Personal Knight. How's the Young Lady supposed to face the Second Young Master?!
-Maybe becoming a Personal Knight and a noble filled him with so much confidence that he lost his mind.
-Maybe it's a joke?
-What lunatic jokes about something like this? Could you do it?
-I couldn't. That's why it's strange. Why stir up trouble when he could've just stayed put?!
-Maybe he's desperate for attention.
-But didn't it seem like none of us even knew his name?
Ron had saved the Young Lady and crushed the conspiracy. In recognition of that achievement, he had become her Personal Knight and gained noble status.
Even His Excellency the Count could not ignore Ron's accomplishments.
With an easy road open before him, Ron had deliberately chosen the difficult one. He did not look sane.
-Could His Excellency have given him some private instructions?
-Do you have a death wish? How dare you mention His Excellency the Count!
-Want to bet?
-A loyal knight doesn't gamble!
-That's what I'm asking. Would you make a wager like this?
-That's true, but that bastard is unusually strange.
-Maybe he's a genuine madman.
-If he could discuss his tastes even in front of His Excellency, he couldn't be a fake madman.
His Excellency had already spoken, so he could not take his words back. They assumed some secret circumstances unknown to them must be hidden beneath the surface. Otherwise, none of this made any sense.
Without their questions being answered, the day of the decisive match dawned.
The members had gathered at the training ground long ago, and as the appointed hour approached, the retainers entered one by one.
At the center of the training ground.
Once the spectators had filled the surrounding area, Ron and Adelia appeared.
Ron walked out calmly, looking around him, while Adelia could not erase her stiff expression, grim resolve radiating from her.
‘It looks like the Young Lady really means to do this.’
‘I can feel her determination.’
‘She looks more nervous than determined.’
It did not look like a joke, but Ron's method was reckless. It could be seen as using the Young Lady's honor to prove his own ability.
The members looked at Adelia with pity and showed open hostility toward Ron.
DUN.
The Second Young Master emerged from the opposite side, having completed his closed-door training.
The Second Young Master usually brimmed with so much confidence that he seemed arrogant, but his aura was exceptionally fierce today.
‘Damn, the Second Young Master is different from usual!’
‘He's clearly changed from when he relied on talent alone.’
‘At this rate, the result is already obvious.’
Normally, Tailon would have been thrilled by all the attention, but he did not loosen his grip on his tension. In particular, when his gaze inadvertently crossed Ron's, the memories of their previous encounter returned, bringing the pain with them.
GRIND!
The thought of being beaten like a dog by a bastard who had only just made a name for himself still made his teeth tremble with rage.
And on top of that—
‘How dare he use my sister!’
When Tailon heard the news during his closed-door training, he had nearly stormed out of the training hall. The mind and body he had honed for half a month had collapsed in an instant.
A duel with Ria sounded so absurd that it made him question whether the rumor was even true. Then his father's message arrived.
‘You might fool everyone else, but you can't fool me!’
That bastard was clearly using Ria as a shield, planning to produce some sort of result and then cement his position as her Personal Knight and a noble. It was a cunning trick that exploited the fact that Tailon could not bring himself to fight his own sister seriously.
‘Ria, I'm sorry, but I have no choice!’
It was a decision made for the greater good.
If such wicked scum took root in House Leonard as a Personal Knight and a noble, he could become a lasting source of trouble. It pained Tailon, but he resolved to crush the bastard's scheme through this opportunity.
Ria's heartbreak would be unfortunate, but the duel itself posed no problem. It was impossible for someone with only a month of training to cross swords with him in the first place.
‘Your plan will never succeed!’
This was the perfect opportunity to repay the terrible pain and humiliation he had suffered before. That low-ranking knight would pay the price for failing to recognize his master.
Heh heh heh heh!
Tailon would watch him try to soar toward the blue sky, crash headfirst, and then flail in despair at his ordeal.
The time to look at that smug face of yours ends now…?
SMIRK!
That bastard!
Tailon furrowed his brow. When he happened to look over, the corners of Ron's mouth were raised.
The smile carried contempt, as though Ron had already won and Tailon was nothing at all.
Of course, that was an extremely subjective interpretation.
Then again, Ron had beaten him before and sent him fleeing with his tail between his legs. It was understandable that Tailon would see it that way.
There were two moments when a man erupted in anger: when someone looked down on him, and when the effort he had poured in went unrecognized. How much worse would it be for a brainless fool known as the embodiment of simple-mindedness and a genius only within the territory?
‘I will shatter your absurd dream into pieces!’
Tailon's fighting spirit burned like an active volcano.
Ron rejoiced inwardly.
‘What a fool.’
Tailon was not only stupid but inattentive. He had been caught by childish bait that even a child would not fall for, causing him to miss what truly mattered.
He lacked the discernment to see through his opponent and judged victory or defeat solely through his own subjective assumptions. He was the very image of an idiot who believed himself the strongest because he had never looked beyond the bottom of his well.
Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will win every battle. One should even tap a stone bridge before crossing it. The mere fact that Tailon underestimated his opponent showed that even his first shoots were yellow. He was hopeless.
He was exactly the kind of person who would ruin anything the moment he became its leader. Good fortune might let him prosper for a time, but he would eventually destroy both himself and his house.
‘That works in my favor, though.’
No wonder the Progress for Building Up House Leonard was negative.
Should he count himself fortunate that this was someone else's house?
The path ahead was painfully obvious for Adelia, who would have to side with a man like that merely because he was her brother. Tailon would remain an obstacle for years to come.
‘Why couldn't you have just been a bad brother?’
If Tailon had been blinded by lust for power and rejected Adelia since childhood, Ron would at least have had grounds to remove him.
But every last person in this damned family doted on Adelia.
They were always trying to do something nice for their little sister. If Ron killed Tailon merely because he was annoying, there was no chance Building Up House Leonard would go well.
‘It's not as if I'm a villain.’
Now that he had begun rearing Adelia… raising her, he could no longer reverse his choice. It would be especially troublesome if conflict with her family turned her into a villainess.
‘That working title is the problem.’
If the title had been fixed as Building Up House Leonard, he would not have worried. But a working title meant it could change at any time.
Given the circumstances, Adelia was probably the protagonist of Building Up House Leonard. If she became a villainess, the title might change to Raising a Villainess.
Though he was currently enjoying… overcoming his burnout, he had been a hero who saved the world in his previous life.
Heroes rarely met good ends, but he could not raise a villain.
This was not some clichéd novel where the Hero picked up the Demon King.
GRRRRIND!
The sound of grinding teeth came from beside him.
It was Adelia.
Her fighting spirit blazed as she glared at Ron as though she wanted to kill him.
Ron asked with perfect innocence.
“Why?”
“……(AAAAAAAAARGH)!”
Ron's eyes held pure goodwill, as though everything he had done was entirely for her sake.
Unable to get angry or scream, Adelia felt as though the frustration would kill her.
Ron did not forget to offer advice.
After all, did they not say that carelessness could overturn even a fully prepared table? It would be troublesome if Tailon happened to stumble into success with an ox's backward step.
“A proper amount of excitement is medicine, but too much becomes poison.”
“I know.”
Adelia's quiet whisper was as sharp as a tempered sword.
Ron was pleased by her reaction.
She had been well reared… trained.
STEP.
Count Leonard, the sky of Torres Territory, appeared at precisely the time he had announced.
The First Young Master, the Knight Commander, and the Vice Commander followed behind him.
Astonishingly, no one noticed that the Third Young Master was absent, nor did anyone wish to know why.
DUN.
Once the master of House Leonard and its leadership had taken their places, tension settled over the training ground. The duel itself was nothing remarkable, but the matter surrounding it was far from trivial.
SWEEP.
Count Leonard's gaze roamed across the training ground as though examining every inch before fixing on Ron.
DUN.
The duel between his second son and youngest daughter was unimportant. He merely disliked that bastard hovering around Ria.
‘It seems he still doesn't understand the situation.’
Once the duel ended, his life as a knight would be over.
This was no time for him to stand there so calmly.
‘It is a pity to waste his talent, but this count does not make empty threats.’
Had Ron not been Adelia's Personal Knight, he could have made a name for himself as a knight of the Dawn Knight Order.
But his hot blood had run wild. He had forgotten his place and made a dangerous wager.
Now the time had come for him to pay the price.
Tailon and Adelia walked to the center of the training ground and faced one another.
Count Leonard did not drag things out.
“We will begin the duel.”
“One moment, please.”
……?
The leadership of House Leonard and the Dawn Knight Order swallowed their gasps. Who could have imagined that the instant Count Leonard, the head of the family, announced the duel, Ron would step forward with an objection?
Hah.
Everyone was so dumbfounded that silence descended over the training ground.
No one had expected it, and more importantly, the action defied all common sense. Several people wondered whether they had misheard, but Count Leonard was glaring fiercely at Ron.
‘That bastard has completely lost his mind!’
‘Or has he finally come to his senses and gotten scared?’
‘What's he trying to do now?’
He would be fortunate if His Excellency did not unleash a thunderous rebuke.
Yet the person in question looked unconcerned. Ron calmly stated his opinion.
Ahem.
Count Leonard suppressed his surging anger. Since Ron had staked his entire life on this gamble, the Count decided to give him a chance.
“If you have something to say, then speak. But if you have wasted our time with nonsense, you had best prepare yourself.”
“I would like to ask whether the result depends on winning or losing the duel.”
“It does not.”
“It matters to me.”
Th-that lunatic!
His Excellency had shown tolerance instead of anger.
Yet Ron contradicted him to his face!
They were so dumbfounded that words failed them.
Who had ever seen such a thing?
SHUDDER!
Even Knight Commander Crimson, known as the Sword of the Clear Mirror and Still Water for the absolute limit of his composure, showed anger.
“You mean to determine a clear winner and loser?”
“Proof is far too subjective. We must reach a decisive conclusion, or there will be objections afterward.”
“That sounds as though you do not trust my judgment.”
“Your judgment is always correct, Count Leonard. However, the Young Lady's entire life is at stake in this duel. I do not believe it is a matter that should be handled carelessly.”
‘As though it weren't your life at stake!’
The words rose all the way to Count Leonard's throat, but he could not bring himself to say them. Whatever else might be true, the protagonist of this duel was Adelia.
Moreover, Ron's request was clearly disadvantageous to Ron himself. Merely showing results and deciding victory or defeat were fundamentally different matters.
“Very well. We will make the victory and defeat explicit. May we begin now?”
Ooh.
Everyone seemed impressed by Count Leonard's unwavering composure and generosity. Had this been His Excellency in his younger days, an incident would have erupted long ago. As his experience and years as a lord accumulated, he no longer displayed the same fiery temper as before.
“No.”
……That lunatic!
The lord of the territory had given him two chances.
And without even thinking about it, he kicked them away!
FLINCH!
Even Adelia and Tailon, who had thought the duel was finally beginning, flinched. They had started to raise their swords into their opening stances, only to freeze halfway.
BUBBLE, BUBBLE!
Count Leonard's fury boiled. When had anyone ever treated him this way? His patience had reached its limit.
WHOOOOSH!
Count Leonard's furious pressure swept outward as he snapped.
“What is it this time?”
“I wish to know whether this duel will end after a single match.”
“If you wanted another chance, it is already too late. Everything will end with this one duel.”
“I think the same.”
……Hah!
By this point, Ron no longer appeared normal.
At the same time, no one could understand it. It was astonishing that such a lunatic had gone unnoticed until now.
Even the knights looked deeply shaken this time. Ron had behaved like a madman lately, but none of them had imagined he would act this way even before His Excellency.
‘What in the world have we been looking at?’
‘Is this real?’
‘I've seen a true madman!’
Anger was normally relative. Even someone who raged at every opportunity would rein himself in before a stronger opponent. Only a person who treated everyone the same, regardless of the law of the jungle or the class system, deserved to be called a madman.
Had Ron raised another objection, Count Leonard would not have let it pass. Yet even he had lost the proper moment to become angry.
“You will not go back on your word?”
“Of course not.”
It might have seemed as though everything had passed smoothly, but the situation was poised to explode at the slightest touch.
No one would have found it strange if the Count charged Ron with contempt and sentenced him to death.
Perhaps the passing years had broadened the Count's tolerance.
Or perhaps he simply did not understand what was happening.
Either way, it was unquestionably a situation none of them had ever experienced.
‘If it weren't for Ria, I would—! Damn it!!’
Count Leonard wondered whether he had ever exercised as much patience as he had today. He had to scrape together even the patience meant for the rest of his life.
‘He should be grateful to Ria!’
Ron was acting out without knowing his place, but he had saved Adelia. If her father punished the man who had saved his daughter, he might become the target of her resentment for years to come.
It would be better to corner Ron through a fair duel and leave him no room to wriggle free. That was why Count Leonard had tolerated Ron's arrogant behavior until now.
“Begin!”