Chapter 26 (1/2)
Chapter 26. Victory at the Martial Tournament
TL: Warriormonk
Editor: Isleidir
The preliminary rounds of Jabel viscountcy lasted for a week. Twenty one people successfully completed nine rounds, and received a silver medal.
Those who did not succeed in pa.s.sing the preliminaries bitterly headed back to their home towns. There were some who had turned into cold corpses as well.
Partic.i.p.ants who had received silver medals were given permission to enter the castle, as the final rounds were carried out in private. Only the privileged guests or those of status could view the final rounds.
“All those entering the final rounds, present your medal and enter.”
Twenty one partic.i.p.ants all excitedly entered the castle. Their room and board would be taken care of by the lord of Jabel viscountcy for the duration of the final rounds.
Luke was also able to enter the castle as Kurotan’s second, a position held by a person of close relation that would take care of the aftermath of a partic.i.p.ant’s death should it happen.
The room provided by Viscount Jabel was rather large and luxurious. The meals were much better than the ones that had been provided at the inn as well.
“The room is so much larger than the inn’s!”
“The food is much better.”
Luke and Kurotan were able to comfortably prepare for the final rounds of the tournament while staying at the Jabel castle.
There were fifteen seeded partic.i.p.ants that were going to be partic.i.p.ating in the final rounds, without having had to go through the preliminaries. Along with the twenty one people who had pa.s.sed the preliminaries, there would be thirty six people partic.i.p.ating in the last rounds of the tournament.
The preliminary rounds could be said to be a festival for the commoners of Jabel viscoutncy. The final rounds, however, were meant for the eyes of n.o.bles. The final rounds started with eager n.o.bles from nearby territories, knights, and wealthy merchants watching.
“Let the final rounds begin.”
Unlike the partic.i.p.ants who had pa.s.sed the preliminary rounds, who were of a diverse age range, the seeded partic.i.p.ants were mostly between their late teens and early twenties. Their eyes s.h.i.+ning, the disciples of knights and children of n.o.ble houses hungrily waited for the chance win the tournament and the honor it would bring.
“The first match will be between young master Chase, third son of Marquis Lael, and mercenary Alan, a level B mercenary from the Kital Mercenaries.”
Their names called out by the referee, the two men stepped up on to the ring that had been prepared for them. The first rounds between the thirty six people would mostly be between the partic.i.p.ants who had pa.s.sed the preliminary rounds and seeded partic.i.p.ants.
Unlike Chase, who was in his early twenties, Alan was a stocky man in his thirties with a messy mane. Alan bit his lips as he gripped his b.a.s.t.a.r.d sword tightly with both of his hands.
‘I must display my skills so that lord viscount notices me.’
The way to knighthood was not limited to winning the martial tournament. If you were skilled enough, it was not uncommon for the lord hosting the martial tournament to approach you with offers of knighthood.
Most of the partic.i.p.ants who had pa.s.sed the preliminary rounds were aiming to be as lucky.
‘Even if he has received training from an early age, I have more experience in actual situations. I must aim to utilize my experience.’
The referee signaled the beginning of the match as Alan was hardening his determination.
“Begin match.”
Alan roared fiercely and ran towards his opponent. Chase, however, calmly took a sword stance.
The match did not last long. Although Alan had honed his skills on the battle field and monster exterminations, it was not enough to defeat Chase, the son of a n.o.ble who had had the way of the sword ingrained into him at a young age.
“Stop match. Young master Chase wins.”
Alan’s mangled body was carried out on a stretcher as Chase lifted his sword proudly.
Most of the matches continued on with similar outcomes. The winners of the preliminary rounds found themselves being overwhelmed by the young masters of n.o.ble houses who had been born into the sword.
Not all of the matches, however, followed the trend.
Kwwannng.
Eric, of indirect line to a nearby n.o.ble house, frowned as he was pushed back from the impact of the clash. The s.h.i.+eld he was holding was deformed beyond recognition.
‘What the h.e.l.l? Why is this b.a.s.t.a.r.d so strong?’
The young n.o.bles’ greatest weakness was their lack of experience. Most of them held metal s.h.i.+elds in order to overcome this handicap. By utilizing the large surface area of a s.h.i.+eld, they could defend against even the more unpredictable sword strikes.
This was one of the reasons that the seeded partic.i.p.ants had been winning the matches so easily until now. Each one of the rapid attacks that Eric’s current opponent was throwing at him, though, could not possibly be blocked even with a s.h.i.+eld.
Kwaang.
A hole appeared in the middle of the thick s.h.i.+eld, and Eric slid back with his feet braced. The arm that held the s.h.i.+eld was numb, with no sensations coming from it.
‘No way. I can’t lose like this.’
Eric countered desperately but his opponent effortlessly deflected his attack before launching one of his own. Eric raised his s.h.i.+eld once more with a pale face.
Ujijik.
A chilling sound rang out, as the arm holding the s.h.i.+eld slumped in a strange manner. The ma.s.sive force behind the axe had broken his arm. Eric had no choice but to announce his surrender.
“I-I surrender.”
“Stop match. Kurotan, victory.”
Kurotan looked disappointed as he withdrew his axe and exited the ring. The gazes of the audience were concentrated on Kurotan as he stepped down.
He had been a tornado of attacks that relentlessly beat down Eric until he had won.
“What an amazing fighter.”
“Indeed, how amazing.”
Luke smiled warmly to greet Kurotan, who had returned to his seat.
“Good job.”
Because there were so many people surrounding them, Kurotan merely saluted Luke silently before sitting beside him.
The first rounds finished, and eighteen partic.i.p.ants moved on to the second round. Kurotan was a s.h.i.+ning star in the second round as well. He had overwhelmed his opponent to an extent unexpected by even Luke.
Kurotan’s sword style was not yet complete. His familiarity with Belloche sword style could not be that high, as he had only recently learned it.
On top of that, it could be said that Kurotan had yet to fully adjust to his human body. Despite all of these factors, Kurotan was able to dominate his opponent mercilessly to the point of pity.