90 - The Crown I Will Take From You
Episode 90
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Clang, clang, clang-!
As soon as the bell rang, signaling the start of the duel, the Fourth Princess charged in relentlessly.
Whoosh, whoosh.
The sound of the Sword aura, creating a threatening and chilling wind, accompanied her.
“……”
The Princess’s hand holding the sword was trembling slightly, and her body was stiff.
People thought she was terrified.
But no one knew that her eyes were fixed, tracking the Fourth Princess’s movements like a beast.
‘Angelique, I know all your weaknesses. You never deviate from your patterns.’
As expected, the Fourth Princess, wearing a confident smile, rushed forward fiercely.
Medeia took a step diagonally backward, subtly deflecting the Fourth Princess’s sword.
The Fourth Princess had received the best elite training in the Imperial Family, but perhaps because of that, she was weak against unconventional tactics.
She was the worst possible match for a type like Medeia, who had been hardened by real combat.
‘Why do I keep missing!’
Unaware of this, the Fourth Princess became increasingly frustrated as her carefully planned attacks missed by a hair’s breadth.
She wondered why the Baldina girl had boldly requested a duel; it seemed that the audacious girl had been hiding her skills.
“You’re quite good at dodging, aren’t you? It seems your brother’s talent has passed on to you, Princess. Then, how about this!”
The Fourth Princess’s sword, gleaming with malice, danced wildly. A clear orange light bloomed within it.
“That’s Aura!”
Someone recognized it and shouted, causing people to gasp. Aura required a further stage of Initial training called Awakening.
The difference in skill between an Aura user and a regular swordsman was like that between an adult and a child.
Therefore, unless there was mutual agreement before the competition, using Aura was an unspoken rule.
However, as the duel didn’t go her way, the Fourth Princess suddenly unleashed her Aura without a word.
It was considered a despicable act in the world of swordsmanship, one that opponents wouldn’t even bother with.
‘Now’s the time.’
Medeia’s eyes gleamed.
She staggered and turned her body as if startled by the rapidly approaching spectacle of crimson light.
Each of the Fourth Princess’s sword strikes seemed to be in slow motion. But she deliberately didn’t avoid the last one.
“Kuh.”
Her arm was grazed, and blood splattered.
“Kyaa-!”
“Medeia!”
Screams erupted.
The Queen Dowager couldn’t bear it and called out to Medeia, while Ciseo clenched his fist. His nails dug painfully into his palm.
The Kazen Princess, not only insulted the Late King, but also inflicted a despicable wound on the Princess, who was trying to protect her father’s honor, while hiding that she was an Aura user.
Was this really just the Princess’s idea?
No, this was a blatant provocation from the Kazen Empire to Baldina.
It was telling them that they would never be a match for the Empire and should obediently submit.
He was furious that he had to watch this arrogant and contemptible behavior without being able to say anything. He never wanted to be weak again.
He would definitely strengthen Baldina and never forget this humiliation.
It wasn’t just Ciseo who was burning with anger and determination. The Baldina people watching the Princess clenched their fists tightly.
As everyone endured Kazen’s ruthlessness, the drops of blood shed by the young Princess, who bravely stood against Kazen, felt like they were piercing their hearts.
The atmosphere among the Baldina people became so fierce that even the Kazen people sitting on the opposite side noticed.
‘I deliberately missed the last one, so why……!’
The Fourth Princess was also startled.
She had only intended to show off her skills and intimidate the presumptuous Princess. And in the moment she was flustered, Medeia approached like the wind.
Instead of avoiding the Aura that the Fourth Princess was wielding recklessly, she boldly lunged towards her chest.
A murderous intent, like that of an assassin aiming for a surprise attack, flared up.
The silver Sword aura that Medeia drew upwards flashed before the Fourth Princess’s eyes.
“Kuh!”
The startled Fourth Princess dropped her sword.
A momentary movement. A single sword strike.
Performing both lightness and heaviness at the same time was not easy. Only the mercenaries of Facade recognized the depth of it.
“Ahahaha. This side didn’t even stand a chance. It was decided from the start.”
Gallo chuckled.
Clang-! A beat late, the Fourth Princess’s dropped sword fell to the floor.
“I’ve learned a lot, Fourth Princess.”
Medeia said calmly, with her sharp sword pointed at the Fourth Princess’s neck.
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“Waaaaah! Our Princess won!”
“Baldina won!”
The cheers erupted a beat late. Everyone was stunned.
Our Princess flattened the nose of the arrogant Kazen Princess!
The sound was so loud that the chandeliers shook slightly.
The sweet scent of violets wafting through the air heightened the Baldina people’s joy.
On the other hand, the Kazen side was still unable to escape their shock. Some were even rubbing their eyes, unable to believe that the Fourth Princess had lost.
“This is cheating!”
Belatedly, the Fourth Princess retorted with a flushed face.
“Princess, you lied to me! Why did you hide your skills and deceive me?”
However, her words were nothing more than a bizarre excuse.
What kind of duel is it where you assess your opponent’s skills before engaging? If she only wanted to fight battles she could win, she shouldn’t have accepted the duel in the first place.
“Let’s do it again!”
However, the Fourth Princess, who absolutely couldn’t accept that she had lost to Baldina, stubbornly screamed.
“This time, let’s have martial artists fight each other fairly, and not this shoddy duel, but a real, true showdown to settle things once and for all.”
It was not something that the person who had even drawn Aura to win ‘this shoddy duel’ should say, but the Fourth Princess knew no shame.
She only had stubbornness and a fiery temper.
Medeia slightly raised the corner of her lips.
“Has the Princess forgotten the oath? This isn’t a child’s play where you can take back a loss and do it again. That’s why I warned you in advance.”
Her calm voice somehow carried a cheerful rhythm close to mockery.
“At one time, you made the fair relief supplies that Baldina should receive a condition, and now that you’ve lost the duel, you want a rematch……”
A low laugh echoed through the training ground.
The Fourth Princess’s face was not only criticized, but even the Kazen people’s faces were trampled on.
“The Kazen Empire’s calculations are truly bizarre. Baldina can’t be the only one to know about this strange calculation method. It must be widely known throughout the continent.”
The faces of the delegation members hardened. Although they were a powerful nation, they couldn’t completely exclude other countries.
If today’s story spread throughout the continent, the Kazen Empire would not be able to avoid criticism for lacking Divine Physician. This would also affect any treaties that Kazen would make with other countries in the future.
Nevertheless, the Fourth Princess clenched her hands tightly, trembling.
‘How can I accept losing to a Baldina bitch like this!’
She had her pride, and she couldn’t return in such an unsightly state.
Moreover, she didn’t even want to imagine how much she would be disliked by her brothers, who were her competitors, if it became known in the Empire that she had lost to such a small country’s presumptuous half-wit.
“Double.”
The anxious Fourth Princess threw out a huge bait.
“Double, if you win this time too, I will support you with double the amount of supplies I promised. This should balance the stakes, right?”
A huge bait that the Baldina people could never miss, one that even the Princess herself couldn’t handle.
Double the relief supplies! The crowd stirred.
With that amount, they could solve the hardships of the Royal Castle and have enough to send military rations to the King in the plains.
“This is something I am presenting even considering my father’s scolding. Surely, even after hearing these generous conditions, the Princess isn’t thinking of refusing the bet, is she?”
However, the one accepting the challenge was the Princess.
She had barely managed to win the first duel, and it was uncertain whether the Princess would have such luck a second time.
Moreover, since the Fourth Princess had offered such generous conditions, she might use any means to win, filled with poison.
She had already left one of the Princess’s arms covered in blood.
Therefore, they had no choice but to quietly wait for Medeia’s choice.
“……”
Medeia’s unfathomable green eyes darkened.