After Losa left the arena.
Abelardo took the stage once more.
This knight, who had claimed multiple Champion Knight honors in Lombardy, was indeed a formidable expert.
He advanced to the finals with ease.
Even the two knights clad in half-body plate armor, resembling iron cans, were defeated by him through ingenious tactics.
"Worthy of bearing the name of the renowned general Abelardo, who once followed the Great Emperor Charlemagne. Abelardo dominated throughout, the disparity was truly astonishing."
"Abelardo’s experience in competitive tournaments is clearly richer, and he is better at conserving physical strength than young knights like Losa."
"It seems the final is already a foregone conclusion. This Abelardo will once again claim the honorable title of Champion Knight."
"It’s truly a pity, that in the knight tournament hosted by our Great Germania, the highest honor has been seized by someone from Lombardy."
Losa furrowed his brow.
It wasn’t dissatisfaction with people’s lack of confidence in him.
After all, Abelardo was a veteran who had swept invincible through the tournaments of the Lombard city-states. It was normal for him to be inferior.
Without the system’s support, the original would just be a knight with decent talent, still far from being extraordinarily gifted.
However, despite the series of intense battles, Abelardo’s stamina remained so ample, which was truly perplexing.
There are many ways to conserve energy, but he uses a half sword, swinging wide and open. Even if mastered with some special technique, it shouldn’t be so easy and effortless.
"It’s understandable for me to have an edge, but how can a regular knight like you endure so long?"
Losa furrowed his brow.
The situation on the field was still one-sided.
Abelardo’s opponent had clearly consumed a lot of energy, facing Abelardo’s fierce onslaught like a torrential storm, he could only manage to parry.
It wasn’t long before he spotted a flaw and knocked the Armed Sword out of his opponent’s hand.
Abelardo, victorious!
Because his opponent lost so quickly, Losa had only time to take a sip of water before being helped onto his horse again by Laine and Model.
He accepted the white beech riding lance obtained from a previous defeated opponent, as the two he had purchased earlier had both broken in the earlier battles.
He raised the kite shield bearing the Standing Lion Badge, this iron-clad shield after a round of the tournament was already scarred and riddled with holes pierced by lances.
But he couldn’t replace it with a shield taken from other knights, as those bore their exclusive badges and using such a shield without erasing it first would be dishonorable.
Moreover, the condition of those shields was not much better than the one Losa held.
But Abelardo was different. With more experience, he had long prepared a spare shield.
His emblem consisted of nine scattered gold pearls, with possible gold powder mixed in the paint, reflecting dazzling brilliance under the sun’s rays.
Then the announcer shouted, "Next, the critical moment to witness the birth of the Champion Knight, Knight Losa from Algo will face Abelardo from Tuscany in the final duel."
"Heavenly Father above, He shall watch over these two warriors, gaining the final honor, Amen!"
Amid the cheers of the people, the two entered the arena slowly.
"You fought to the end, truly not disappointing me."
Abelardo raised his lance, its tip aimed at Losa, "But unfortunately, in the next battle, I will no longer hold back, you can concede in time to avoid irreversible damage."
Losa’s voice came from beneath the barrel helmet, sounding somewhat muffled, "I’ll say the same to you. Concede early to avoid injury."
Neither had much backing.
Abelardo came from the Medici family of Tuscany, being the second son of the family, fundamentally just a landless knight roaming the world, albeit a renowned one.
He knew Count Algo, even if he died, he wouldn’t be too heartbroken.
He valued family interests above all and would never act recklessly and deal a blow to Abelardo.
After all, being killed in the tournament arena is an open and fair duel, no one could find fault with it.
If someone sought revenge, it would be an action despised by the entire noble world.
Abelardo tapped his shield with the lance, fiercely clamped his heel into the horse’s belly, and let out a mighty shout: "Allez! (Go!)"
Losa also spurred his horse.
The arena was limited in space, neither had much time to spur the horses and charge fiercely, only allowing the horses to run as fast as possible to increase the impact of the charge.
The two lances simultaneously pierced each other’s shields, the horses letting out cries of unbearable weight, the immense force hurling them both off.
Losa felt his body as though it had been disassembled, his chest where hit by the opponent’s lance sending waves of severe pain, which was definitely not just a light bruise, possibly even broken ribs.
On the other hand, Abelardo, though also struck by Losa’s lance, swiftly stood up again, raising his knight’s sword, responding to the arena’s cheers as if victorious.
The crowd cheered Abelardo’s name wildly, as if witnessing the rise of a new star.
A faint smile appeared on Abelardo’s face beneath his helmet; he had never pledged loyalty to any lord, waiting for the right offer.
Clearly, Leopold’s generous offer had successfully won him over.
Prajna, standing on the grandstand, gripped the wooden railing tightly, a rare glimpse of coldness in his expression.
Hans, Laine, and Model also shouted anxiously, "Sir, are you okay? We concede, hurry and carry our lord out!"
Losa leaned on his Armed Sword to slowly rise.
He shook his head at the worried crowd, signaling them not to make rash decisions.
He glanced down at his own chest, where the cloak had been pierced, exposing the deformed chain links beneath.
Chain Armor’s defense against cuts and stabs is strong, but it cannot protect against blunt trauma.
If his physical strength hadn’t reached superhuman levels, he might have completely lost his combat ability.
The people in the grandstand noticed this too, and the cheers gradually subsided, replaced by exclamations of surprise.
Abelardo looked at Losa with some confusion, "Do you want to continue? You’re not my match, but to have lasted this long is quite commendable."
Several spectators who enjoyed watching the drama stirred up the crowd: "Come on, Losa, knock down that Tuscan pretty boy!"
"Don’t disgrace the face of the Great Germanic people, go for it!"
Only two contenders remained vying for the title of Champion Knight, capturing everyone’s attention.
The competitions around the Knight’s Jousting Arena, such as archery, ground battle, and javelin, had long been ignored; everyone gathered here, cheering in French, Latin, and German.
Losa remained silent, his breath extremely heavy beneath his Barrel Helmet.
He tightened his grip on his Sword and Shield, approached Abelardo, and tapped his shield with his sword, the meaning clear without words.
"I don’t understand, it’ll be better for both of us to end this early." ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NoveI[F]ire.net
Abelardo sighed lightly, "But since you insist, let’s continue. I will show you what a twelve-time champion knight truly is in the arena!"
He stepped forward, crossing the wooden barrier that divided the arena, coming face to face with Losa.
He swung a sword straight down.
The sharp blade sliced through the air with a whistle, crashing fiercely onto Losa’s shield.
Losa blocked the strike, but his fingers were numb through the Chain Armor Gloves holding the shield.
It was clear that Abelardo’s strength had increased by at least half compared to their initial encounter.
He had definitely hidden his strength before.
The sound of steel clashing echoed.
Losa’s counterattack was deflected by Abelardo’s half sword.
"Do you feel it now? This is my true strength."
A slightly hoarse voice came from beneath Abelardo’s helmet.
He discarded his shield decisively, holding his half sword with both hands high above his head, and when Losa seized the moment to charge up, he chopped down, forcefully slicing off one side of Losa’s iron-bound Kite Shield.
Losa also discarded his useless shield, struggling to calm his rapid breaths, his eyes closely watching his opponent’s moves through the slits of his Barrel Helmet.
Abelardo swung his sword again, and Losa, holding his Armed Sword with one hand on the blade and one on the hilt, positioned it horizontally in front to block the strike.
Seizing the unstable footing of his opponent, he kicked Abelardo’s waist, causing him to stagger backward several steps.
Losa, desperately grasping a chance to counterattack, naturally refused to relent, darting forward and exploiting the half sword’s suitability for slashing rather than thrusting to breach Abelardo’s defense.
He followed up with a series of headbutts, leaving both men dizzy.
But in this near face-to-face battle, Losa was shocked to find in the slits of Abelardo’s Barrel Helmet, a pair of eyes with vertical pupils, like those of a wild beast.
Genuine horror flashed in Losa’s eyes.
Realizing something, Abelardo flipped Losa over, raising his longsword, aiming to thrust it through the slits of Losa’s helmet.
He intended to use a fatal strike!
Losa felt fear gripping his heart; he struggled desperately to break free from Abelardo’s single-handed grip, dodging the assassination attempt.
The sharp half sword grazed his cheek and pierced into the arena’s muddy ground, prompting Losa to kick Abelardo off with both legs forcefully.
He reversed positions, sitting atop his opponent, using his body weight to pin him down.
By this stage of the battle, the two knights seemed more like common brawlers than chivalrous duelists.
However, seasoned knights understood that it was precisely at moments like these that life and death hung in the balance.
On the grandstand, the red-haired witch’s lips curled into a slight smile under the shadow of her hood, whereas Count Leopold wore an expression of regret.
He said to the witch, "Knight Losa and Knight Abelardo are both exceptional talents, yet the Heavenly Father demands that they decide a victor today, a true pity."