“…”
“…”
Countless people from the 4 kingdoms were there and more than 60 magicians from the Slick family were present as well, but no one spoke a word.
The reason?
It was because of the obvious ‘tension’.
The tension of the impending argument with the magicians of Runtel, the tension which came from the one-on-one duel with the Sword Master which the others had nothing to do with…. and finally, the tension after the duel.
But it wasn’t like that anymore.
It had all changed in a single moment.
Seeing the Sword Master of Hale, who had overpowered the second-in-command of the Slick family, no one could hide their astonishment.
‘Does this… make any sense?’
‘Even if he is a swordsman who is better than magicians, Slick should have still won…’
‘The opponent was a Great magician right? And Airn Pareira has only been a master since last year…’
‘Is the aura of a Master that huge?’
‘It’s over? The duel is done?’
The royals of each kingdom looked around at their knights.
Their eyes were asking if the duel was done and if this was natural?
But.
‘Why are you looking at me…’
‘How can I know? It is my first time seeing a Sword Master and Great Magician fight!’
‘Even with my eyes wide open, I didn’t see any movement. Hehe, is the difference between an expert and master this much?’
‘No, even the Masters that I have seen before… weren’t this strong.’
The knights couldn’t give an answer to their Kings’ gazes.
This young man was the most talented in the continent, not just the four kingdoms.
It was impossible to judge a Sword Master’s skill.
However, there was one thing they all agreed on.
‘Airn Pareira is…’
‘Not at the beginner level of a Sword Master.’
‘We can’t know for sure but… he is much stronger than the rumors.’
“For some reason, it seems like Master Pareira is much better than I thought.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. I don’t know exactly because I am weak…”
“Hm…”
The silence lasted forever, and small voices broke out here and there.
Most of it was about Airn Pareira.
In addition to taking down the opponent, this young man was more mysterious to them than Yprene from the Slick family.
It was even more so because the 4 kingdoms shared borders.
Hearing the stories of the knights, the royals nodded and looked at Airn with deeper eyes.
They knew that this man had to be treated much more carefully than they had initially thought.
‘It remains to see how the relationship with the Runtel Kingdom will change…’
‘For now, we need to hold an amicable relationship.’
‘He is close to the Lindsay family and the Lloyd family. Right? Depending on how close they are, I think the situation will change entirely…’
‘But it seems like everyone is having the same thought.’
Except for the Vissau Kingdom which tried to have a relationship with Runtel, the others all seemed to have the same thought.
No matter how great the Sword Master in front of them was, it wouldn’t be right to praise him if they were a country that was in a relationship with the Runtel Kingdom.
It was because the eastern nobles had overwhelming power.
But right now, the situation was weird.
The young man who had become a Sword Master at 22 years of age had proved that he had amazing talent and abilities which were far greater than what the rumors had told them.
If so, it was very likely that he was close friends with the Lindsay and Lloyd families.
Perhaps, it might be even beyond that level, and they could be even closer.
Besides, considering that the younger sister of Airn Pareira had a connection with the Cesar Duchy… it seemed good to try and wait until someone took the lead.
‘Before the Cologne Kingdom reaches out…’
‘Before the Sonan Kingdom tries to get close with Airn, we need to act first!’
Both the Sonan and Cologne Kingdoms were now impatient. Initially, their plan was to just return to their home after the banquet, but everything that occurred during the hunt changed their mind.
It seemed that it would be better to even enjoy the banquet till the last moment.
“I am sorry that it turned out like this.”
“Hmm.”
“I am sorry, but I think I need to leave. Please let me.”
“… sure.”
The King of Vissau was no exception.
Regardless of the duel, Hale wasn’t the only kingdom in trouble.
He and Kyle Murdoch were restless since the duel began and now, they seemed like they would die any moment, since Yprene was defeated.
The Vissau Kingdom were the ones which called the Slick family here.
In the end, they too had to withdraw from the banquet with the magicians of Runtel.
Seeing the Vissau Kingdom’s people leave, the King of Hale had a bitter expression.
‘Maybe, after today there will not be a Banquet of the 4 kingdoms again.’
And the problem wasn’t just with the Vissau Kingdom.
Even the Sonan and Cologne Kingdoms would now have problems with Hale.
The four kingdoms were united for long and then they had acted separately and had desperately tried to rise to the top… perhaps, this was inevitable.
‘At least, the situation around Sonan and Cologne seem good,’
What they were thinking was unknown, but at least they seemed to have a good impression.
In the worst case scenario, Hale would become isolated, and the three other kingdoms would decide to side with Runtel, but such a situation was highly unlikely.
As his head continued to hurt from thinking of the possible repercussions of this incident, the person who had caused this incident walked forward.
The King of Hale forced himself to control his expression.
Everyone knew about him, but it seemed that he was trying to show some dignity.
However, such thoughts didn’t matter in the face of Airn.
“Your Majesty. I am very sorry and apologetic for causing this disturbance due to hasty actions. However, I could not stand by the remarks of Yprene Slick, who seemed to ignore my family and even the Hale Kingdom. The Slick family and even the Runtel Kingdom have the powers to surpass the royals, but Hale is my proud homeland with hundreds of years of history.”
Wooong!
The words of the young Sword Master were polite.
And the brilliant golden aura shone from behind. Most people around had a hazy expression as they looked at the sword.
Kwak!
Airn pushed the sword into the ground.
“With my sword and my heart, and my honor as a knight, I swear to Your Majesty. After today, I will take responsibility for solving anything which might happen due to the duel that has happened because of me. Your Majesty, I will make sure that no nuisance comes to my homeland.”
“…”
The King of Hale was unable to speak.
Airn’s words were nothing special in terms of content.
It was shocking that he would take responsibility for what he did despite not having a plan, and it was a good thing to hear, despite the words not having much of a weight.
However, Airn is a Sword Master.
Not just any Sword Master, but one who was potentially great enough to leave a mark in history… that Airn had drawn out his Aura which had looked more dazzling and sacred than the paladins of Avilius and had sworn to the king.
As the king of a small nation, he had never experienced such things even in his dreams, and it was truly the most thrilling thing he felt!
In the face of such deep emotions, there was no need for rational or logical measures.
He barely nodded and looked at Sonan and Cologne Kingdom.
‘You… don’t have one, right?’
There are no Sword Master’s in your kingdoms, right?
Maybe even if you have, they are not at the level of Airn Pareira, right?
Such things were being conveyed by his eyes. The Sonan and Cologne Kingdom felt the intentions of the King’s gaze, yet they couldn’t say anything.
Envy and jealousy brewed in the minds of those people.
But there were also those whose hearts were honest.
“Today, brother, you were so cool. Right, dad?”
“…”
“Dad, dad? Why aren’t you answering… dad?”
Kirill seemed startled.
This was because Harun Pareira, who was looking at Airn, was weeping quietly.
Of course, this wasn’t strange.
Seeing the father stare at his son without hearing her words, Kirill stepped back.
And with eyes similar to Harun, she looked at her brother.
“…”
Of course, not everyone had such good intentions like them.
Such was the case with Oswaldo Odone,
While admiring Airn, his mind was constantly thinking about Runtel.
‘Of course, it was a fair duel, and it was the other side who started it first and it was a one-sided defeat which is embarrassing to talk about… Yprene asking Runtel or even the Slick family for assistance would be wrong. Because even from the Kingdom’s point of view, it was absurd but…’
Was this clearly over?
Would the old magician quietly leave?
The Slick family had a strong power even in Runtel and Yprene Slick was a person who was known to be bad.
‘… we need to discuss countermeasures.’
Of course, it wasn’t needed right away. After the hunting was done, the people should rest and then talk about the measures at night.
And Airn Pareira’s presence would be essential.
However, after all that was done, he couldn’t meet Airn.
“It looks like he went for a walk.”
“Hm…”
Hearing the servant’s words, Oswaldo sighed.
The night was deepening and in his mind, he felt some unknown discomfort.
“Damn that bastard…!”
A large carriage of the Slick family in a vacant place outside Hale palace.
Inside it, was Yprene Slick swearing over and over.
With this head, he continued to perform the magical calculations, and transformed it into his desires in his hands.
In the first place, this method wasn’t something that should be done. Inserting personal emotions into rational magic was a big NO.
And if the purity of magic deteriorated, bad results would come out.
But it was fine now.
What he was practicing was a magic which could affect the mood and spirit of the opponent, and the more negative emotion the caster had, the more it would turn into a curse.
“Phew, done.”
After finishing, he took a deep breath.
And he looked at the completed magic.
It was colorless, odorless and the flow of magic was so small that no one could even feel it.
If that was the case, then would this magic which was so hidden and unable to be felt even work?
‘There will be no problem.’
Yprene Slick laughed.
A white barrier was created before the duel.
It wasn’t just for blocking things.
The secret magic that flowed from him would wrap around his targets, and this was also something that even high-ranking magicians could barely detect.
‘And this magic would follow the other magic and go along with it, and when the two magics mix…’
It could be compared to that drink which the ancient devils used to corrupt humans.
It was now forgotten in the world, but in the old times, it was called the ‘Demon drug’.
“That trash…”
Watching the magic spreading, the Great Magician smiled.
He had no intention of going back and asking the head of the Slick family for help.
His own skills were enough. And if he could do what he desired, then everything would be solved.
When he was in thoughts.
Kwak!
He heard the sound of the carriage door opening.
No, to be more accurate, it was the sound of something crashing that reached Yprene’s ears. It was a small sound, but he had still heard it.
It was because he was in an extremely sensitive state now, and had cast magic to heighten his five senses before.
Rather, what was even more absurd was the fact that he hadn’t noticed it until now.
But those feelings didn’t last for long.
The door opened and a being appeared in front of his eyes.
The moment he checked Airn Pareira’s face, the old magician’s eyes shook.
But then, something more shocking happened.
“M-My magic…”
‘…is being held in his hand?’
At that sight which was beyond common sense, Yprene’s voice trembled.
