As though determined to allow Ron no further opportunity to interfere, Count Leonard immediately declared the start of the duel.
‘How impatient.’
No matter how hard one tried to hide a family trait, it was bound to reveal itself eventually.
Radon stood behind Ron after he returned to his place.
Radon whispered quietly.
“You do not have three or four lives to spare. What in the world was that bizarre stunt before His Excellency?”
“What did I do?”
“You do not even know your own offense?”
“Then what exactly was my offense?”
“That would be…… Ahem.”
Ron had stepped forward without knowing his place, but looking back, those were matters that absolutely had to be confirmed before the duel. It was merely that no one in House Leonard could voice an opinion in such a manner before His Excellency.
Haah.
A sigh escaped Radon.
“So, are you confident?”
“If it doesn’t work out, so be it.”
“……You lunatic!”
Radon no longer wanted to know what exactly he had raised. Who could have imagined Ron would grow into someone this reckless? He felt guilty toward Ethan.
‘Only the weak make contingency plans, Old Master.’
Ron had made no other preparations. Besides, controlling one’s anger before the strong was the secret to living a long life.
Tailon had disliked this entire situation—facing his younger sister—from the very beginning.
That bastard had not only beaten him but was now using his sister as well.
And now he was even toying with their father.
‘I’ll make you regret what you did today for the rest of your life!’
His talent was a waste, but a dog that bit its master had to be boiled and made an example of.
‘I’ve got no choice!’
It was for the greater good of preserving the hierarchy of the house.
Before he was an older brother, Tailon was a direct descendant of the house. For the sake of his father’s honor after this humiliation, he had to punish Ron. To do that, he had no choice but to subdue his sister, even if he had to clutch his breaking heart.
‘When you think about it, this is all for your sake too!’
The sword did not suit Ria. She had to return to being the younger sister she once was, tending flowers and quietly reading books.
“Attack as much as you want.”
“Thank you, Brother.”
As both her senior in the sword and her older brother, Tailon yielded the first move. He decided to receive as many attacks as she wished before ending the duel as quickly as possible.
He had agreed on this with his father beforehand.
Stopping someone from doing what they wanted only invited greater resistance. The best course was to make her realize her own limits herself.
Step, step!
Adelia walked slowly, as though measuring the distance.
Her movement was too slow and riddled with too many openings to be called sword footwork.
Haah.
Tailon sighed, and his anger toward Ron intensified. The fundamentals of the sword began with footwork. The thought that Ron had pushed Ria into this without teaching her even the basics over an entire month made his blood boil.
‘Let’s end this quickly.’
The moment he made that decision—
SWISH—!
Huh?
A bewildered cry burst out.
Tailon had intended to accept anything she threw at him, but Ria’s speed was completely unexpected.
The instant Adelia entered striking range, her footwork abruptly accelerated.
CLANG—!
His response was delayed by the unexpected speed, but Tailon swiftly raised his sword and blocked.
STAGGER!
Adelia’s sword gave way without resistance, and Tailon lost his balance.
She let his blade glide past.
Switching from forward footwork to a lateral step, Adelia changed direction as smoothly as flowing water.
FWOOSH—!
Tailon’s upper body pitched forward and his sword pointed toward the ground, exposing a clear opening.
He realized his mistake, but Adelia’s sword was already driving into that opening from the ideal distance.
SLICE—!
STING, TRICKLE!
Blood ran down Tailon’s neck. The sharp sting struck his mind and snapped him awake. Yet he could not grasp reality because he was incapable of accepting the situation before him.
Adelia, who had nicked her brother’s neck, asked,
“Surrender?”
“……No, that is…. Gah!”
“Surrender?”
“……Ria, lower the sword first… Aagh!”
The match had been decided in an instant.
It might have felt like a nightmare to Tailon, but this was a familiar scene to Adelia.
‘How did it not deviate by even an inch?!’
Adelia sighed at her brother’s lax response.
During the final three days of training, Ron had given her drills designed specifically for her second brother. And her second brother had responded exactly as Ron had.
Psychology, distance, sword path, speed, response.
Even his attitude.
Not a single thing had strayed from Ron’s prediction. That was why she felt so dumbfounded even after putting a decisive end to the match. Now it felt as though every last one of them had been dancing in Ron’s palm, leaving a bitter taste in her mouth.
“Ria… the sword’s too…… Aagh!”
“Surrender.”
Adelia could not lower her sword until Tailon declared his surrender. This too was part of Ron’s merciless instruction.
SHIVER, TREMBLE!
Every time Adelia recalled Ron’s teaching, goosebumps rose across her skin. Whenever she refused to surrender, Ron had left one part of her body after another drenched in blood. Had she not received healing magic in time, she would have walked around covered from head to toe in it.
Hah!
Ah!
Silence followed the result no one had expected, then exclamations burst out.
The most astonished person of all was Count Leonard. He had hoped his second son would take it easy so that Ria would not be hurt.
“It appears I have won.”
“……Hah!”
Count Leonard swallowed an exclamation at the unbelievable result.
‘…This bastard!’
Ron had produced a result for all to see, and when he claimed victory with a perfectly composed expression, Count Leonard felt his insides boil.
It was a shocking result that lay far beyond his expectations.
Even so, Ria’s swordsmanship was astonishing.
‘How did she do that in such a short time?’
As her father, he could not help marveling at Ria’s genius, but the sight of Ron grinning before him made his heart sink. He did not want to be dragged along exactly as that bastard intended.
However, the world of competition was merciless.
Although the result had come from his second son’s carelessness, defeat on the battlefield meant death. How could Tailon ask for another chance after letting down his guard with swords drawn?
Groan!
Father and son groaned at the same time.
“It would be a shame to end it like this. I wanted to show everyone the full extent of the Young Lady’s achievement as well.”
NOD, NOD!
Everyone unconsciously nodded at Ron’s words. Too little had been shown for the duel to end here. It looked like a lucky victory gained entirely through the Second Young Master’s carelessness.
Even so, the footwork and swordplay Adelia had just displayed were astonishing. To achieve so much in only a month was remarkable.
‘Was the Young Lady this talented?’
‘Was she the true sword genius all along?’
‘If they refused to teach her the sword because she was a woman, what a waste of talent!’
The sword might largely be considered a man’s domain, but there were swordswomen who had made their names known across the continent. Had Adelia been taught from childhood with talent like this, the genius of the territory might have been Adelia rather than Tailon.
‘Talent alone is not enough, though.’
‘So he had a reason to be so confident!’
‘Even heaven-sent aptitude cannot produce results without excellent instruction.’
Ron, who had taught Adelia for only a month, now looked completely different in their eyes. He was more than qualified to serve as her Personal Knight.
‘But can we really be certain from this alone?’
‘It ended too quickly.’
‘Who knows what would have happened if the Second Young Master had not been careless?’
The result inevitably divided opinions, but no one disputed the victory itself.
The former glory of House Leonard might have faded, but it remained a house of the sword. They could not overturn the outcome merely because defeat had resulted from carelessness.
They only regretted how the duel had ended and wondered about Adelia’s true ability. If it was not mere luck but heaven-sent talent, then she had to receive formal sword training, even if it began only now.
Ron was raising that very point.
“……Ria… Hrk!”
Adelia’s sword still rested against the side of Tailon’s neck. Her resolve made it clear that if he tried anything foolish, it would not end with another shallow cut.
“However, with His Excellency having publicly declared that everything would end with this one duel, I do not know whether I dare overturn his decision. Haah, whatever shall we do?”
Somehow, Ron’s blatant monologue sounded like a threat aimed at Count Leonard.
Do you want to end this here without any excitement?
Or do you want to keep going and make it more entertaining?
Whether he chose the former or the latter, both were equally infuriating.
TWITCH!
Three veins rose between Count Leonard’s brows and throbbed as though they might burst.
He wanted to declare an immediate rematch, but after what he had said, he could not bring himself to order one.
“It is not a battlefield where lives are at stake, and this is little more than a practice spar. It is also an opportunity to display the Young Lady’s achievement. Is it truly right to end it so blandly? What a shame. Truly!”
This damned bastard!
Casting dignity and everything else aside, Count Leonard cut straight to the point.
“What do you want?”
“The world of competition may be merciless, but every rule has exceptions. For example, a show of sincerity sufficient to overturn a proclamation or result, or perhaps a generous display of goodwill. I do not know. Perhaps the wise Count Leonard might?”
Was it merely Count Leonard’s imagination, or did that sound like a demand for him to name the terms Ron wanted?
“Enough rambling. Speak briefly.”
“Double.”
That was informal speech!
And did he really have to answer immediately just because he was told to?!
GRIND!
The others did not know the exact terms wagered on the duel. Count Leonard, however, had entered into an agreement with Ron and exchanged written documents.
Double meant twice the terms of the agreement.
Ahem!
Count Leonard did not like how everything was unfolding according to Ron’s wishes. Yet the thought of watching that detestable bastard continue to get his way made it impossible to refuse the proposal.
How could he stand by and watch Ron become Adelia’s Personal Knight and laugh merrily with her in her room?!
When he judged that the Count had nearly taken the bait, Ron displayed one of the East’s finer arts.
The virtue of humility.
Chapter One.
Refusing a Refusal.
“Carelessness or not, a victory is still a victory. I made a disrespectful proposal to His Excellency the Count, who reveres the sword.”
Ron had intended to refuse three times, but why was the Count making this so easy?
“I accept.”
“If you insist.”
Once permission was granted, Ron pulled a rolled document from inside his clothes and held it out to the Count.
“You need only sign it.”
“……Fine!”
This damned bastard had prepared the document in advance, as though he had known things would turn out this way.
The thought made Count Leonard hesitate uneasily, but he could not reverse his decision. He had already said he would do it. Taking back his word would not merely damage his dignity—it would strip his words of their authority.
For a lord, his word became law. If he overturned it at every turn, who would continue to obey him?
“Begin the rematch.”
Immediately after signing, the Count declared the rematch, intending to block any further intervention from Ron entirely.
Haah.
Adelia removed her sword from her second brother’s neck, stepped back, and released a deep sigh.
‘Haah, how can a so-called Personal Knight behave like this?’
Like a cardsharp at a gambling table, the entire game was unfolding in Ron’s palm. Everything fit together so perfectly that it honestly sent chills down her spine.
‘Father, Brother! You don’t know who the sucker at this table is, do you?’
Her second brother, steeling his resolve.
Her father, swelling with hope that this time would be different.
Adelia, who had to crush that hope.
This was the day the bonds between her family members shattered.
Ron, who had designed the entire game, was the only one to hit the jackpot.
On top of that, the shape of Ron’s mouth was unmistakable.
-Quadruple?
Was this man addicted to gambling?
Just how much was he planning to extort?
Even if he squeezed it out of Father, isn’t it all the same family money?
***
-Progress: -64%
-Reward: 8 Coins
The Progress appeared before the rematch began.
It had risen by a full 4%, and he had received 8 Coins. It was advancement on a scale incomparable to anything before.
‘Easy.’
This proved that she was the protagonist of Building Up House Leonard. Perhaps it was only the natural conclusion. The genius she had displayed while he taught her was no small thing.
She excelled in both civil and martial pursuits.
She possessed a broad education in every aspect of administration and knew how to assess herself objectively.
On top of that, she had business acumen. It was the ability House Leonard lacked most.
This family knew only how to spend money. They had no talent for earning or multiplying it.
Moreover—
‘And I don’t even need to teach her.’
Torres Territory was no breadbasket or treasure house of resources for the Empire, but neither was it as harsh in climate and geography as the northern regions or border margraviates. Its territory was comparatively large, and its agricultural output was average.
Nevertheless, the territory had failed to develop because, to put it bluntly, its lord and leadership were incompetent.
The lord, in particular, had failed to set a proper direction for the territory. If they could not advance, they should at least have preserved their former glory. Instead, while others moved forward, House Leonard had failed even to hold its ground.
The negative Progress alone showed how many pointless mistakes they had made over the years.
In some ways, it was astonishing that House Leonard had continued functioning until now. Their loyalty to the house was high, so they had somehow managed to keep it afloat, but—
Had Building Up House Leonard not activated, the house might have fallen in the near future.
When coincidences continued, they became inevitability. Ron did not like the way the circumstances were unfolding.
‘I don’t want to forge my own destiny.’
Ron wanted Building Up House Leonard to proceed smoothly only insofar as it allowed him to preserve his ordinary life.
He drew a clear boundary between the two.
When one got down to it, House Leonard was his workplace, and he was an employee. Devoting one’s life to a workplace did not guarantee employment until the end.
That was why he had to prepare for his future life before he was dismissed. Lifetime employment did not exist, not even in a fantasy world.
“What kind of magic did you use?”
Radon, who had been quietly watching, approached from behind and asked in a low voice.
Who could have imagined that the Young Lady, who once trembled at the mere sight of blood, would subdue the Second Young Master in a single exchange?
There might have been the faintest possibility if she had learned the sword through grueling training since childhood. Yet in only a month, the Young Lady had become a swordswoman.
“Either the Young Lady is a genius, or the present state of House Leonard is appalling. Which do you think it is, Old Master?”
“Do not ask me such a thing!”
Radon avoided answering.
He leaned toward the former, but judging solely by the result, the Second Young Master, hailed as the genius of House Leonard, had lost to a beginner with only a month of training. Even if it had been the price of carelessness, the complacency of House Leonard had been laid bare.
‘They underestimate their opponents far too much.’
The issue concerning Viscount Rehalt alone made that clear. They underestimated their enemies and failed to assess House Leonard objectively. At this rate, they might meet the worst possible outcome.
Even so, Radon could not choose.
The reason was simple.
The moment he said it aloud, he would be pointing out His Excellency the Count’s incompetence. A loyal knight had to trust and follow his lord’s decision regardless of the outcome.
‘Could he be doing all this because he already knows?’
In the past, Radon would have concluded that Ron did not. Yet ever since the attack, Ron’s words had carried hidden implications. The more Radon recalled the old Ron, the more impossible the present Ron seemed.
He was that completely different.
Radon shook his head and gathered himself.
‘We are knights. We need only trust His Excellency and follow him, just as we always have!’
Ron’s behavior had been irreverent, but he had not crossed the line yet.
However, if Ron acted as he pleased against His Excellency’s decision, Radon would not stand by and watch.
‘Still, you did well.’
Radon sincerely celebrated the Young Lady Adelia’s growth. She had achieved something remarkable in a short period. His Excellency the Count would surely refrain from fixating on victory or defeat and permit the Young Lady’s decision.
However, defeating the Second Young Master once he stopped being careless would be difficult. She would probably be overwhelmed by his strength and thrown aside before they exchanged more than a few blows. Radon only prayed that she would not be hurt and that the duel would end without incident.
Then Ron brutally shattered those expectations.
“I will wager 100 gold on the Young Lady.”