WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle

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◈ The Wandering Knight and the Moving Castle ◈

Chapter 20: Great Warrior (3)

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Eugene rested in luxury until the appointed day. The knights who had not been chosen as Champions, however, had wounded pride.

“Sir Galia! Please calm yourself!”

“Quiet, brat. Is this where Sir Eugene is?”

It was hardly strange for a challenger to push past those trying to stop them, seek out Eugene, and demand a duel.

The city did its best to keep them under control, but it was difficult to deny knights their honorable right. Only another knight could cool a knight's boiling blood.

The problem was that the Champion duel was being hosted by a mere free city, without the authority of a powerful noble lord to keep everyone in line.

“I trust a knight won't refuse a fair challenge! I came here to protect the city and earn glory, not to stuff myself with bread!”

“Haah.”

The challenger might have been too drunk on honor to realize it, but Eugene found them a nuisance. Especially since the knight had barged in while he was getting his hair trimmed.

“I bear the city's future and the expectations of those who invited me. It isn't honorable to endanger that, even slightly, for the sake of personal glory.”

“Th-That's true, but...”

Faced with such justification for declining, the challenger had nothing to say.

“I'm having my hair done, so I'd appreciate it if you'd leave.”

Eugene reclined in a barber's chair. Homi, who had been showing off her skills, frowned. She had been delighted by the fine scissors, the sort she had never even seen in the countryside.

Perhaps realizing they had been rude, the challenger withdrew for the moment.

“They're really full of energy.”

“Hmph!”

Homi ran her hands over her lord's freshly trimmed hair with a dissatisfied expression. There was a tenderness in those gentle hands that made it hard to believe she was younger than him.

Ever since fate had brought the two together, she had always trimmed Eugene's hair and beard.

“There will be important people coming from all over. I should look presentable.”

Homi nodded.

For free knights without land, appearance was just as important as skill with a blade.

At the very least, it made it easier to catch the eye of a lord seeking to form a vassal contract. At best, some even married into a noble family and rose to prominence in one stroke.

* * *

There were many invited knights, so visitors continued arriving the next day.

Press. Press.

“Sir knight, does it hurt?”

Eugene and Homi were lying face down side by side, receiving massages.

“It only feels good. This is the best treatment I've received since coming to the city.”

“Hehehe!”

The maid smiled softly at Eugene's smooth talk, which was unlike a knight.

Then a booming shout shattered the pleasant mood.

“I am Gart, knight of House Domun! I cannot possibly accept not being chosen as a Champion! A duel, now...”

“Sure, sure. I'll fight you.”

Not every visitor was unwelcome.

“Sir Karas? You were invited too?”

“Yeah. And I've decided on my own to serve as the Champion facing that knight. If you want to spar, I'll take you on instead.”

“No, wait!”

Thanks to Karas, Eugene was able to rest in comfort, and he smiled in satisfaction.

“Our first meeting had a bit of an incident, but he's a good guy.”

Cressy, who seemed like the easiest target, had left the manor and disappeared to avoid challenges. Every knight who came by looked stronger than Cressy, so it was a wise decision.

Homi wondered why they had not assigned another knight to Cressy's place from the start.

“It couldn't be helped. Look at those blockheads. They're all stubborn and think they're the best, right? If you tell people like that, ‘A VIP has arrived, so please step aside now,’ they'll cause a scene.”

Regardless of their strength, they would immediately draw their swords and demand a duel. That was what knights were.

The duel outside ended quickly.

“I lost!”

Karas moved swiftly and unleashed a fierce assault, then trapped his opponent's weapon with his main-gauche at the critical moment. The knight was helpless before his dazzling dual-sword style.

The competitive visitors kept coming afterward.

“I am Dutri, knight of House Valmont...”

“Valmont of the zweihander? Nice to meet you! I've wanted to spar with you someday.”

“No, who exactly are you, sir?”

Each time, Karas promptly cut them off.

He was not merely skilled with his swords. At the right moments, he smoothly incorporated gauntleted fists and kicks as well.

Thud!

“Urgh!”

Dutri lost his balance, wheezing after taking an iron fist to the ribs.

The moment his first attack missed, defeat was certain for Dutri, who wielded a massive two-handed sword. Karas had closed in instantly, forcing him into an unfamiliar exchange at extremely close range.

“I-I lost!”

Before he could properly display his skill, Karas used hand-to-hand combat to get behind him and pressed the blade of his main-gauche to Dutri's neck.

“He clearly stands above the other invited knights.”

Karas's overflowing confidence was not empty boasting. It suited a knight who had built his reputation through duels alone.

Karas struck a pose like an actor after a performance, receiving applause for his victory. A flushed maid wiped away his sweat with a towel.

It was not only goodwill toward Eugene; Karas simply seemed to enjoy his hobby. The rumors were true that he was kind to subordinates but prickly with fellow knights.

With Eugene kept in peak condition, the Hall War was finally just one day away.

* * *

Just as Bonyard City expected victory, the nobles of the Kingdom of Gord were certain they would win.

“They've been trying so hard to shave off even a little of their annual tribute. I'm glad we'll get to teach them a lesson this time.”

Andar, the host, raised his cup with a smile.

“The muscle-bound merchants need to teach those pig merchants that greed can cost them dearly!”

At the banquet the day before, the nobles laughed and talked as though they had already won.

“We can't say victory is certain just yet.”

“Come on, what is there to worry about? It's only one city. And they've been scrambling around everywhere, trying to recruit people.”

“That is true.”

Even the cautious nobles merely refrained from celebrating too early. They did not doubt victory itself. The gap in preparation time and capabilities between the two sides was simply too great.

“The King of Roman has done one thing right.”

While most royal families merely drew legitimacy from the Ancient Kingdom, Roman, at the center of the continent, went a step further.

It had placed the Ancient Kingdom's guiding principle, the ‘Duty of Balance,’ at the very beginning of its law code and used it to wield influence in every direction.

“Whenever there's even the slightest conflict, they interfere and lecture us. Then they claim monster hordes are running wild, raise armies as they please, and demand permission to cross the border.”

To the Gord nobles, who had the blood of raiders in them, Roman could only be a hated nation that obstructed them at every turn.

“They need to know when to stop throwing their weight around. They're such a thorn in our side, and they're strong enough that we have to put up with them. Ugh.”

Still, they could not ignore the strength of Roman, their neighbor across the border. No matter how irritating it was, they had no choice but to endure it when they feared its fist.

Then an unexpected event occurred.

The King of Roman suddenly proclaimed an empire, throwing the country into turmoil. He had become emperor and was pushing policies to strengthen imperial authority. To nobles who had lived peacefully, it was like a bolt from the blue.

All kinds of factions took advantage of that chaos to pursue their interests, and the consequences even reached Bonyard City on the edge of the continent.

“Come now, everyone. A toast to the King of Roman. No, I suppose we should call him the Roman Emperor now.”

“To the Emperor!”

As Andar raised his cup, excited toasts were exchanged.

“Still, I wonder why he suddenly declared himself emperor.”

“Legitimacy. He became king only because his older brothers died one after another, some from illness and some away from home. After suffering under the great nobles for so long, he was driven to make a desperate gamble.”

“I heard they're already on the verge of civil war. At the last royal council, the words ‘You traitorous bastards!’ were said six times.”

Every kingdom and free city, mercenary and knight had turned their attention toward the center of the continent.

If a large-scale war broke out in Roman, opportunities for profit, loss, honor, and advancement would spring up everywhere.

“He won't back down, will he? A ruler of a nation can't be that spineless.”

“Absolutely not.”

“He'll either crush all his opponents and rise as an overlord, or be deposed. Backing down is out of the question. If he's deposed, the rest of his life won't be easy.”

The title of heir to the Ancient Kingdom carried great meaning on this continent. Except for foreign races, no one had dared call themselves emperor. Especially not Roman.

“Good, good. Now we can enjoy tomorrow's fight without a care.”

The Champions prepared by the Gord nobles were knights famed for their valor throughout the kingdom.

With their naturally powerful builds, when those warriors donned armor and swung axes, they turned the battlefield into a storm of blood.

On foot, they were grim reapers who could force any knight on the continent onto the defensive. No matter what knights Bonyard City had recruited, they would fall spraying blood.

* * *

The next day, Bonyard City's Champions received a subdued send-off as they headed for the dueling ground.

Passing citizens, boys paid pocket money to call customers over, customers haggling with merchants to save even a single coin, everything was as usual.

Only the city guards, who also made their living by the sword, and some citizens solemnly bowed their heads and wished them victory. They made up no more than thirty percent of the people.

“Is this normally the atmosphere? I expected more cheering.”

“There are many reasons.”

Fannis gave a bitter smile at Eugene's question.

“Workers and travelers from outside, as well as those who live in the city but own nothing, see it as someone else's problem. It isn't a war, so there won't be any looting.”

Eugene had considered that much himself.

“If we lose, the city's upper ranks will be cleared out. Those hoping to fill the vacant positions are probably burning with ambition.”

“That is a grim story.”

“On top of that, most people believe Gord will win.”

The city was controlling information to some degree, and most citizens relied on rumors in the first place.

“On this side, there is one city. On that side, there is a coalition of nobles. We have been holding back, while they have been looking for an opportunity. To the people, it's obvious which side looks stronger.”

“If they support us and we lose, they'll have to watch themselves around the city afterward.”

“Exactly.”

Fannis pointed at the citizens seeing them off.

“Those who have lived in the city for a long time and take pride in it, or those who operate businesses here, can support us without worrying about that.”

Fannis's expression remained calm as he spoke of such sad things. His faith in Eugene and Karas was firm.

After leaving the city and traveling for around two hours, they reached the agreed location. In a Hall War, the defending side had the right to decide where the battle would take place.

“There are our opponents. Built like bears, but greedy as pigs.”

As expected of their people, every one of Gord's Champions was huge.

‘Did Roman soldiers feel this way when facing Germans? No wonder their country remains intact despite bordering Barsia to the north.’

Eugene, who had always looked down on his opponents wherever he went, saw someone larger than himself for the first time.

“That knight is Volx. He is the opponent you must be most careful of.”

Fannis pointed to the giant with a two-handed axe resting on his shoulder.

“I beg you. Please protect the city.”

Fannis trusted his side, but he was a merchant by nature. Seeing a Gord knight who looked like a man-eating bear stirred an instinctive fear within him.

“The truly troublesome ones are the other two. Lipton is one thing, but I never expected Badel to come too.”

Karas pointed with a troubled expression at the two Champions behind Volx. One knight carried a sword and shield, the other an axe and shield.

“You recognized them at once. They must be famous.”

“The one with the sword is a knight named Badel, the scion of a swordsmanship family that has lasted seven hundred years. Lipton has the finest shieldsmanship in Gord, a kingdom renowned for its shield fighters.”

“What do you think would happen if you fought all three?”

Karas shrugged.

“Volx is all or nothing. I might end up drenched in sweat but beat him without a scratch, or he might send me to the afterlife with a single swing of that axe.”

“He doesn't seem like someone you can trade ordinary blows with.”

The axes Eugene had seen while living in Kingdom's End or traveling with the Beard Mercenary Band had all been for chopping wood.

That one, on the other hand, had been made from the start to split people and horses apart. Its blade alone was longer than Eugene's head, sharpened enough to shave with.

“I'd definitely have to bleed against Badel or Lipton. I think I could win, but if I'm unlucky, I might lose a finger or two. Those Gord bastards came properly prepared.”

Despite his pride in his own strength, Karas assessed their chances objectively.

“If you want, I can change the order.”

“If I back down here, I wouldn't be a knight. I'll beat all three through sheer grit if I have to.”

Unlike Fannis, Karas was a knight. He did not step onto the stage calculating gains, losses, or odds. Whether he succeeded or failed, he simply trusted his sword and challenged his opponents.

Knights did not practice their faith with the same fervor as priests, but in some ways, their belief was even more devout.

A belief in pursuing honor by staking their lives! Its depth led knights down a path to greater strength. This was something all knights shared, beyond nation and race.

Eugene's group entered the dueling ground. Today, Bonyard City's fate, the knights' lives, and glory would all be decided here.

‘The gap in strength between the two sides is severe.’

That was Eugene's objective assessment.

Karas was certainly a strong warrior who did not fall behind any of Gord's Champions, but he was alone.

Bonyard City's other invited knights were clearly below those four. If Eugene had not been here, defeat would have been certain.

Footnotes:

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