Chapter 186

Chapter 186
## Chapter 186

It is an unspoken certainty of power: a ruler does not unveil the full scope of his designs to every follower.

The more critical a stratagem, the more imperative it is to shield it from exposure. Consequently, the circle of those privy to the true objective remains incredibly small.

Viscount Oleg Lerum’s current scheme followed this exact logic.

“I can’t believe the bridge gave way the very second we cleared the landslide.”

“It looks like we’re condemned to stare at those arrogant faces for another fourteen days. What a stroke of miserable luck.”

The novice knights, recently dubbed into the service of House Lerum, clicked their tongues in annoyance while casting bitter glances toward Lucian’s encampment.

Even under the guise of hospitality, hosting five thousand foreign troops on their soil was a recipe for anxiety. Had it been mere infantry, it might have been tolerable, but the presence of three hundred elite knights among them made the air thick with tension.

“Did you catch them walking by just now? They hold their heads so high I’m surprised their necks don’t snap from the vanity.”

“They only strut because they serve a Duke. They are absolutely insufferable.”

“The Duke holds the title, not them. Do they truly believe they are the ones wearing the ducal coronet? It’s pathetic.”

Huddled in a secluded corner, the Viscount’s men let their resentment boil over.

In the world of chivalry, two knights of equal age and prowess are never truly equal; their worth is dictated by the prestige of the lord they follow. The warriors under Lucian’s banner treated the knights of House Lerum with blatant condescension, as if they were dealing with common peasants.

To the local knights, this was galling. They might have accepted such treatment from a legendary veteran, but being looked down upon by peers who were effectively their equals was a bitter pill to swallow.

As the venting continued, the fire in their bellies grew hotter.

“I offered a spar, but they always duck a real challenge.”

“It’s obvious they lack confidence. They know they’d be humiliated if our steel actually met.”

“Do they have any talents besides hiding behind their master’s coat-of-arms? Typical Northerners.”

“One of them actually referred to himself as a Royal Guard the other day. I had to bite my tongue to keep from howling with laughter.”

“Are you serious? That’s delusional. Who in this entire Empire actually views the Duke as a sovereign?”

“They clearly think they’re untouchable because they’re propping up the First Prince. Their arrogance is transparent.”

What began as quiet grumbling was rapidly spiraling into dangerous territory.

Under normal circumstances, a cooler head would have silenced the talk before it turned treasonous. However, fueled by a collective sense of injustice and the frustration of being stuck with their rivals for another two weeks, no one moved to stop it.

Lost in their own vitriol, the knights were laughing and jeering so loudly they failed to notice a shadow looming over them.

“A ‘His Majesty’ who can’t even move a few rocks or mend a simple bridge.”

“The King’s honor is rotting in the dirt. We should call him the Incompetent King.”

“Or perhaps the Parasite King? He’s certainly draining our granaries and wine cellars.”

“Haha! Both are so accurate it’s hard to pick a favorite!”

“Then perhaps I should make the choice for you?”

The sudden voice from behind caused the knights of House Lerum to turn to stone.

As they slowly turned around, they were met by the icy, piercing stare of Hugo.

“That was a fascinating debate. The ‘Incompetent King’ and the ‘Parasite King,’ was it?”

“S-Sir Hugo. You misunderstand, we didn’t mean…”

“You didn’t mean it? Then I am eager to hear the true definition of your words. Please, enlighten me.”

Under Hugo’s relentless pressure, the Viscount’s men began to sweat profusely.

Though they secretly mocked him for his history as a common street thug, they couldn’t ignore the reality: Hugo was Lucian’s shadow and most trusted confidant.

If this conversation reached Hugo’s ears, it was as good as being spoken directly to Lucian. There was no predicting how the Duke would respond to such blatant disrespect.

As the knights stood paralyzed, realizing the sheer depth of the hole they had dug, Hugo spoke again.

“Silent now? Then the path forward is quite simple.”

*Snap!*

“Agh!”

One knight let out a sharp cry of surprise as a leather object whipped across his cheek. The group gasped as they saw a gauntlet fall to the dusty ground.

“S-Sir Hugo.”

“Words are useless now. We settle this with steel.”

At Hugo’s cold decree, the knights’ complexions turned a ghostly shade of gray.

—

A formal challenge between knights generally results in one of two paths.

The first is a duel where losing is a disgrace, but a victory mends the rift and settles the honor at stake.

The second is a duel where you are doomed regardless of the outcome.

The challenge Hugo had just issued was undeniably the latter.

*Damn it all. Whether we win or lose this fight, he’s going to tell the Duke. This duel changes nothing.*

*If we win, there is no glory. Defeating the Duke’s right-hand man will only serve as more fuel for his vengeance.*

*And we can’t exactly throw the match. We insulted his lord so foully; he won’t show us mercy just because we surrender.*

The knights caught in the trap gripped their hair in agony. If they triumphed, Lucian’s rage would peak; if they failed, the Duke would likely use the loss as a pretext to have them executed under the pretense of a dueling accident.

Yet, to decline the challenge would be to throw away the final opportunity to keep this a private matter. They had to resolve this as a dispute between individuals before the politics took over. If they didn’t, a slighted Lucian might order his five thousand troops to raze the entire Viscounty.

Hugo, seemingly indifferent to their internal crisis, pushed the matter further.

“A duel is best served with an audience. I shall notify the camp of the time. We meet here at sundown.”

“W-Wait, please!”

“I am finished talking.”

Hugo turned his back on their pleas and walked away.

Desperate, the knights rushed to inform Viscount Oleg of the disaster. Upon hearing the account, the Viscount’s face drained of color as he bellowed at them.

“You mindless idiots! How could you let your mouths run wild like common tavern drunks?”

“We have no defense, my lord.”

“I don’t need your apologies! I need a solution! Now!”

Despite the Viscount’s fury, the knights could only stare at the floor. The situation was already far beyond their control.

Eventually, a weary Viscount Oleg sought a private audience with Lucian.

“Your Highness, I beg you to overlook the reckless words of my men. Truly, you need not even show mercy. You may discipline them as you see fit, but please, let us resolve this quietly.”

“Resolve it quietly? You are asking me to pretend my knight’s honor wasn’t insulted?”

“That is… essentially the request.”

“Preposterous. The news of this duel has already permeated the entire camp. You expect me to cancel it now? To humiliate the very man who stood up for my name?”

“N-No, that isn’t what I intended…!”

“Enough. I will not hear another word that disparages my knight. Tell your man to stand tall and fight. That is my final word.”

Confronted with such unyielding resolve, Viscount Oleg could only bow and retreat. He realized that pushing any harder would only ignite Lucian’s temper further.

Thus, the Viscount was forced to watch the sun set on a situation he had no power to stop.

—

The moment word spread that Hugo was facing the local knights, a massive swarm of onlookers assembled.

Predictably, the crowd was dominated by Lucian’s own legions. The soldiers formed a dense perimeter around the makeshift arena, their voices a low, dangerous hum.

“I heard those bastards insulted the King?”

“They called us nothing but mouth-to-feed parasites, and they called His Majesty the Parasite King.”

“What? Are they suicidal? Why are we dueling? We should be sharpening the executioner’s axe.”

“They belong to a different house. Even His Majesty has to follow the legalities.”

“Then let’s just declare war and burn the place down.”

Hearing the soldiers’ vitriol, the local knights and even Viscount Oleg felt a chill of terror. This wasn’t the mere grumbling of the peasantry; it was the concentrated bloodlust of an army.

*This is a catastrophe. All the goodwill I’ve tried to buy is evaporating in an instant.*

The Viscount had gone to great lengths to pamper the troops for one reason: to prevent them from becoming hostile while stranded on his lands. Even if he could blame the terrain for the delays, the soldiers’ boredom and hunger were volatile variables.

There was a constant danger that their anger would fixate on House Lerum, the stewards of the territory. To counter this, Oleg had been overly generous with rations and comfort. He believed that by being the perfect host, he could neutralize their complaints.

The goal was to let the soldiers’ frustration wander aimlessly until it turned into apathy. By the time they reached House Roglan, they were supposed to be sluggish and unmotivated… that had been the grand design.

Oleg massaged his temples. Everything had been going according to plan until this afternoon. Now, they hadn’t just angered Lucian; they had earned the hatred of five thousand armed men.

“Combatants, step forward!”

As the scheduled hour arrived, Marius took his place as the arbiter and called out.

The challenger’s opponent, a Lerum knight named Folkar, had no choice but to emerge at the sorcerer’s command.

*Damn it, I wanted no part of this, and now I have to deal with a suspicious mage as the referee.*

Folkar felt a deep sense of dread. He knew that not every magic user was a practitioner of the dark arts, but having a man who likely knew nothing of swordplay oversee a knight’s duel was highly irregular. Who knew what hidden spells Marius might be weaving?

However, he couldn’t protest. The duel was already a consequence of their big mouths; if he offended the Court Mage of Asagrim now, this duel would undoubtedly escalate into a massacre.

“May this contest be honorable, and may the Eight Gods bear witness to a fair fight.”

To Folkar’s relief, Marius performed a quick ritual and retreated to the sidelines. The moment the signal to begin echoed through the air, Folkar unsheathed his blade and charged at Hugo.

*If I have to do this, I’ll end it before anyone can blink!*

He couldn’t afford to kill Hugo, but he wouldn’t let himself be humiliated either. His plan was to strike with such speed and precision that he could disarm Hugo instantly. If he could send the sword flying, he could claim a technical win without truly shaming the Duke’s man.

Just as Folkar reached his top speed, preparing for the decisive strike—

*What? He’s not even in a guard position?*

Hugo fumbled to raise his sword in a clumsy attempt to parry, but his form was pathetic. He looked like a novice caught completely off guard by a basic maneuver.

Folkar didn’t understand why a veteran like Hugo was being so sloppy, but he didn’t waste the opening. He swung his blade in a powerful lateral arc.

*Clang!*

“Argh!”

“…!?”

As their swords collided, Hugo let out a pained shriek and stumbled back. Through the vibration in his own hilt, Folkar realized the horrifying truth.

*This man… he didn’t use a single drop of mana to reinforce himself!*

In a duel between high-level knights, mana reinforcement was the only thing that kept their limbs from shattering. To face an enchanted blade with a mundane body was suicide. Yet, Hugo had stepped into the ring completely unprotected.

“No, why would you—!”

*Thud!*

“Guh!?”

While Folkar stood frozen in confusion, watching Hugo tumble backward, a massive force suddenly slammed into his side. Felicia had descended from the stands like a falling star, her boot connecting squarely with Folkar’s ribs.

As Folkar rolled through the dirt, his lungs gasping for air and his mind reeling, Felicia’s voice boomed across the grounds with righteous fury.

“To strike with a treacherous ambush before the duel even commenced! You are a disgrace to the very name of knight!”

“…!?”