Chapter 489: The Arena
The Empress's birthday.
A grand festival was being held in the Imperial City.
The highlight was a one-on-one duel to be held in the colossal arena in the Imperial City.
"I appreciate you for setting up the barrier, Silver."
"It was nothing. I'm rather grateful you prepared this venue."
My father, sitting in the chair prepared for him in the VIP seats, conversed with Silver. I, watching from the royal seats, was drawn into the conversation by Silver.
"I heard it was Prince Arnold who convinced Elna von Amsberg. I was surprised he took action."
"It's better than having them duel somewhere without us knowing."
"Truly an adventurer's response. Do you think No-Name will win?"
"Truly a royal response. You seem to think Amsberg won't lose."
"Want to make a bet?"
"Heh... confident, aren't we? You wouldn't be able to offer what I want, so I'll pass on the bet. However, I believe No-Name will win."
"My son’s childhood friend won't lose."
The conversation ended there.
A royal and an SS-class adventurer couldn't argue forever.
The surroundings began to stir with curiosity.
The Emperor, Empress, and other royals who were in the Imperial City were here, along with numerous nobles.
Standing out too much was not an option.
"Arnold is putting up a fight, huh. Leonard, what do you think?"
"Of course, Elna will win."
"I see. Brunhild, what do you think?"
"I also vote for Elna to win."
"You're at a disadvantage, Silver."
My father started to amusingly gather opinions from around him. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ N0velFire.ɴet
However, this was the VIP seating of the Empire.
"If there are more people who think the adventurer will win, wouldn't that put you at a disadvantage, Your Majesty?"
"That's true. But this wouldn't be fun otherwise."
"In that case, I'll cast a vote for No-Name to win."
"Really? Is this not a spur of the moment decision, Erik?"
Erik joined the betting match and my father asked him for his reasoning, clearly enjoying himself. Erik, as always, unchanging in expression, stated,
"I trust not in No-Name, but in Silver. Silver, who has seen Elna's abilities, is recommending No-Name. That's more than enough reason to trust his judgment." 𝙧ÂΝỖβЁS
"I see. That does make sense."
"Prince Erik is wise. But I'm a mage. What we are about to see is a duel between first-class swordsmen. My predictions can be unreliable."
Silver shook his head at this.
His gestures were incredibly fitting.
This Silver was an illusion created by Henrik.
As a royal, I had to be present, but my father had invited Silver to sit beside him.
To avoid arousing suspicion, Henrik was put in as a substitute.
"Now let's ask the swordsmen. Alida, Theodore. Who do you two think will win?"
My father asked Alida and Theodore, his guards, for their opinions.
Both of them were swordsmen of the same caliber as Elna, or even better.
They responded immediately.
I thought they would have a different answer.
It seemed my father thought the same.
"It's surprising that you're so sure. Why is that? If my memory serves me right, Elna didn't have the upper hand when training with the two of you, did she?"
"A sparring match and a one-on-one duel are different. A sparring match is, at the end of the day, just practice. Even if Elna loses, she sees it as a learning opportunity. However, she wouldn't seek to learn in a one-on-one duel. She would go in aiming to win absolutely. Given that attitude, I don't think anyone can beat her."
"Moreover, the last time we fought Elna with all our might was several years ago. Comparing the Elna of that time and the Elna of now is like comparing day and night. She seems to think we're superior in swordsmanship... but a year ago, we were at best on par. Now, we would probably lose."
"So, the prodigy of the Amsberg house is not to be underestimated."
Hearing their opinions, my father nods repeatedly. The phenomenal prowess of the Amsberg House of Amsberg is something you can't fully understand unless you're a swordsman, it seems. Alida and Theodore seemed to have grasped that.
Well, I could more or less guess it when they managed to take the Holy Sword from Amsberg.
Among the Amsberg family, Elna, known as the prodigy, is an exceptional existence. Even in a family full of exceptions like Amsberg, she's still an exception. Just like the previous No-Name started going berserk once they knew of Elna's existence.
"It seems Elna is indeed the favorite."
"But the opponent is an SS-class adventurer. No matter how formidable Elna is, it won't be an easy fight. The outcome won't be clear until the very end."
"That's true as well."
Upon hearing the empress's words, my father nods and settles back into his chair.
The one-on-one duel is about to start.
The outcome won't be known until it's tried.
Especially when it's a battle between the top-tier.
The arena was crowded with people gathered to see the duel between the prodigy of the Amsberg family and the SS-class adventurer.
The venue was undoubtedly exceeding its capacity, yet there were still many people who couldn't make it in.
It was rare to see such a large crowd gather.
"No-Name will be okay, right? I heard a rumor that they are aiming to surpass the Amsberg family."
"There's always someone spreading gossip. Indeed, that's true. That's why I prepared the arena for the one-on-one duel."
"The rules are set, but they can be broken if one wants to. Can we trust them?"
"I don't know. If they break the rules, then anything goes, and the same would apply for Elna. But, that probably won't happen. Silver seems to be guaranteeing No-Name's side."
"I guarantee it. As long as Elna von Amsberg doesn't summon the Holy Sword, the arena won't be destroyed. Well, even in a mere one-on-one duel, if they wanted to, they could wreck half the arena since they're both capable of it."
"I'm starting to feel even more anxious..."
Leonard's anxiety was ignored as the announcement of the two participants' entrance was made.
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