Chapter 22
"Heinrich Updyke!"
The young man with thick, curly golden hair and large, round deer-like eyes lifted his head at the sound of his name from atop the stairs. Svergen's Margrave Updyke stood sternly on the second-floor landing, glaring down at his son and shouting.
"When exactly do you plan to fix that foul and vulgar habit of yours? You're the future Margrave of the Svergen Empire—you need to show some dignity, not act so shamelessly..."
Even under his father's scolding, Heinrich's innocent expression showed no sign of gravity.
"But Father, Daniel is my lifesaver, so he's a hero of the Updyke family, right? If it weren't for him, you wouldn't even have a son with such foul and vulgar habits."
"This kid..."
Unable to outright deny it, Margrave Updyke could no longer rebuke his son's frivolity. He glared fiercely at his son, clicked his tongue in disapproval, and left the scene. Heinrich shook the shoulder of the knight wearing a cloak emblazoned with the Updyke family's crest—a blue eagle—wildly as he asked again.
"Tell me quick, come on. When? Is he fully awake? Is that devastatingly handsome face still the same?"
"Ahem. Young master. P-Put me down first and ask o-one at a time if you want me to a-answer..."
Heinrich, who had been shaking the knight so hard that one wing of the blue eagle fluttered, suddenly stopped and yelled.
"There, happy? Now spill it. Quick!"
Sighing deeply, the knight stepped back, straightened his disheveled uniform, and spoke.
"Yes. He's awake. With all of Shendal Castle buzzing about it, it's undoubtedly true."
"Wow. Haha. I knew it. There's no way our Daniel would die easily."
Letting out a triumphant "Yahoo!", Heinrich jumped around the knight who had brought the news.
"Anything else you heard? He's totally fine, right?"
"Probably. That's why Her Majesty the Dowager Empress must have sent someone down to the duchy to keep a close watch."
"Someone to watch?"
Heinrich, who had been bouncing excitedly, froze in place and asked what that meant.
"Watch who? Daniel?"
"Yes. The pretext is sending a steward to manage the duchy in place of the inadequate Duchess. But the real intent is obvious—planting eyes to monitor His Grace the Duke's every move."
"Insane. Who was it that put that inadequate woman in that position anyway!"
Startled by Heinrich's harsh reaction, the knight hurriedly looked around and covered his mouth.
"Have you gone mad, young master? What if someone hears such reckless talk..."
"Mmph, mmph. Let go! Do I look like I'm not pissed?! Who did Daniel marry because of, and for whom did he end up like that in battle?!"
The knight broke out in a cold sweat trying to restrain Heinrich, who roughly shoved his arm away. How many knew that this delicate young master—the sole heir of Margrave Updyke and future Margrave—was nicknamed the "Mad Flower Deer"? His face was the complete opposite. With his boyish features and the blue eyes typical of Svergenians, he looked like he'd flit around banquets charming noble ladies. But when that radiant face picked up a sword and went berserk, no description fit better than "Mad Flower Deer." Unable to suppress his anger, Heinrich slammed his left hand on the railing and growled.
"That cunning old witch of the Baichen family. What scheme is she plotting against my Daniel now?"
"Young master, please refrain from such easily misunderstood remarks."
"No. I can't just sit here—I have to go right now."
Ignoring the knight's pleas as he muttered to himself, Heinrich suddenly dashed toward the stairs. The startled knight shouted at his retreating back as he climbed.
"Young master, where exactly are you going?!"
Grabbing the railing and leaping three steps at a time, Heinrich charged straight ahead, yelling,
"Utrecht!"
*** As the midday sun began tilting westward over the Altas Mountains, Daniel standing in the Training Ground slowly closed his eyes. Before starting a fight, he had the habit of visualizing the unfolding situation in his mind. As his eyelids shut, the surrounding clamor enveloping him vanished as swiftly as darkness yielding to dawn.
'Formtak, Ox, Fluke, and Alver.'
Muriel Rossivalt, raised in a traditional knight family, would face him with orthodox longsword techniques. On the Rosuman continent where the Svergen Empire stood, there were a few legendary swords any warrior coveted, especially famed longswords. The most renowned was 'Askaron,' with a short history but fame rivaling the greatest. Known as the "sword that drinks blood," it once belonged to 'Nicholas Rungen,' founding emperor of the Rungen Empire west of Altas. It was now held by his son-in-law, Margrave 'Balt Morenhaits.' In the Svergen Empire, swords linked to its founding emperor Karl I held fame. 'Rinaldo,' said to have been wielded by Karl I himself, had passed down through emperors and was enshrined in Shendal Castle, in Emperor Leopold Bolshtak II's office. Several others ranked next, but Daniel rated the hefty longsword 'Koldar' held by his sparring opponent the highest. Its hilt was simply shaped without needless ornamentation, its blade forged from Damascus steel—the strongest known material. Most swords shattered against Koldar after twenty exchanges. A supreme strong sword made for born warriors whose sole aim was victory. Bestowed by Karl I upon his knight 'Oscar Rossivalt,' it had only served his descendants. The last Daniel heard of it was that Muriel Rossivalt had become its new owner. He'd thought it'd never cross his path, yet its wielder was his wife's escort knight—or rather, her nanny. Was this what they called a heaven-sent opportunity? Electric excitement coursed through Daniel's body. He'd heard from Dominic that Muriel Rossivalt tended to the Duchess like a mother bird. He'd shrugged it off then, but seeing the knight swing a fist at him—a duke—made him realize: She'd take the bait.
"In exchange, if I win, Koldar is mine."
"You promised clearly. You'll grant one wish of mine, no conditions, anything."
"Shall I put it in writing and stamp it with the Rihardt seal?"
As expected. The knight accepted his proposal without needing extra persuasion. Muriel Rossivalt's reason for agreeing was obvious.
'At most, something like "take care of my lady" or whatever.'
Do whatever she wants, don't make things hard for her. Or... cherish her. No one knew better than Daniel how blind affection could make fools of people.
'Heh. Thanks to that foolishness, I'll get Koldar.'
A bitter sneer twisted Daniel's lips as heat rose in his ears, sounds returning. The gentle spring breeze brushing his ears. The chirping of birds flying around the Training Ground. The faint murmurs of the crowd holding their breath, watching the two about to clash swords. Burning gazes. Even with eyes closed, he felt it all. Suddenly, awareness struck him: he was alive and breathing.
"Survive, Daniel. Being alive is what matters."
Yes. Because he's alive, days like this come. He somewhat understood his mother's plea. A faint smile like a thin thread ghosted across Daniel's lips. Riding the wind passing him, the calm voice of the knight opposite reached him.
"Shall we begin?"
A firm voice laced with the leisure of one who'd never once considered defeat. Slowly opening his eyes, Daniel nodded slightly toward the reddish-brown hair akin to his own gaze. *** Scanning the crowd filling the area around the Training Ground, Frida sought out Dominic when she couldn't spot a familiar face.
"Dominic, where's Ricardo?"
"In the herb garden."
"Alone?"
"Yes. He grumbled that if everyone came here, who'd tend the garden? He's finishing up, saying weeds overrun it in a single day."
It wasn't a joke—everyone residing in Munheim Castle seemed to have poured into the Training Ground. Around the center where Muriel and the Duke faced each other, the human ring was airtight without a single gap. Muriel gripped her sword two-handed, poised to clash any moment. Frida anxiously clutched her skirt hem.
"You should've at least tried to stop His Grace."
Unlike her, Dominic leisurely surveyed the surroundings without a trace of tension.
"Why me? He wouldn't listen anyway."
As the noisy clamor grew, he leaned his shoulder toward Frida and said loudly,
"I know you're saying that because you don't know your husband well, but learn this now."
As excited people kept pushing forward, Dominic signaled the mercenaries guarding the Training Ground with his eyes. Pushed back by the sturdy mercenaries' strength, the crowd retreated another couple of steps en masse. Lowering his voice slightly, Dominic continued.
"My lord has few desires, but when he wants something, he never gives up. Threats, schemes—he doesn't care. He'll get it no matter what this time too."
"What does that mean? Is His Grace doing this because he wants something from Muriel?"
No need to explain twice. If not, why would publicity-shy Daniel cause such a spectacle?
"Didn't you hear? The winner takes Lady Rossivalt's sword, Koldar. Though my lord's probably doing it to give her an excuse."
"An excuse?"
"Think about it. If word spreads that the heirloom Lady Rossivalt lost Koldar despite guarding it, who faces the biggest ridicule? Duke Rihardt who took the sword?"
Dominic's thick index finger wagged back and forth before Frida's eyes.
"Not a chance. It'll be Lady Rossivalt, who lost the heirloom she was duty-bound to protect."
Even as a bastard half-brother, he was the Emperor's sibling and an imperial duke. Snatching a mere knight's sword by force—what's so hard? Plenty of nobles did worse. But Daniel, foul-tempered yet not utterly unscrupulous, was pulling this farce to give Muriel at least the excuse of a fair loss. Even now, with the Dowager Empress sending rats to spy. In this precarious situation where survival was touch-and-go, he stirs up more trouble. 'Rihardt Duke, conscious after three years, defeats Koldar's owner in under a month.' How long for that rumor to spread empire-wide? About a fortnight?
'What a headache.'
Frida approached Dominic, who was roughly rubbing his dry face, and snorted.
"So you're saying His Grace will beat our Muriel? That Muriel is the strongest knight in the north?"
Our... Muriel? Arms crossed, Dominic snorted derisively.
"Our Daniel is the strongest in the entire empire. The undefeated Rihardt, Svergen's black beast—never heard the rumors?"
