Chapter 65 Duel at the banquet
{TL: By Creed}
"Are you the adventurer who defeated the thieves' guild?"
"Oh, yes. That's right, but who are you?"
"I'm Zeros, a fellow adventurer."
"I'm Fate Stuart. Nice to meet you."
I stood up and bowed my head slightly, but Zeros wasn't looking at me anymore. He was scanning the garden of the party venue.
"You're a friend of the Sword Saint, right? Where's the Sword Saint?"
"Um... If you mean Sofia, she's got some business to attend to and hasn't returned yet."
"Tch, bad timing."
It felt uncomfortable, to say the least. He had the same aura as Sigurd.
"Are you here for Sofia?"
"I'm here as Brassband-sama's exclusive. I've heard the Sword Saint has been invited to serve exclusively as well."
"Well..."
I've been invited too, but... I felt it was better not to mention it and kept quiet.
"Still, the Sword Saint is just a woman, right? She probably earned her title by using her body, not her strength."
"..."
"A woman like that becoming exclusive is ridiculous. I can't stand incompetence meddling. So, I thought I'd teach her a little lesson."
"...Maybe there was no need for that. She probably heard I was here and got scared, so she ran away. Haha. A mere woman couldn't handle being exclusive."
"Retract that."
"Woah, Fate...?"
I glared at the man who had been speaking so casually.
Seeing me like that, Licorice let out a panicked voice.
"Huh?"
"Retract every word you just said, from beginning to end."
"What? Are you picking a fight with me?"
"You're the one picking a fight, not me. Not with me, but with Sofia... I can't overlook that insult. Retract everything."
"Huh. What's wrong with stating the facts?"
"Just retract it, okay?"
"Of course I won't. I'm not wrong. If you really want me to retract it..."
The man drew his sword.
"Let's settle this with a duel."
The man grinned.
It was a sudden act of violence, but there were no screams from the surroundings. Instead, there were cheers like, "Go for it!" "Show us the power of exclusivity!"
Apparently, this was a common occurrence.
The man was rough, violent, thoughtless, and lacked manners, which is why he repeated such acts over and over again.
"Hey, Fate!"
"What? Are you going to stop me?"
"No, not at all, quite the opposite. I also really like Sofia. That's why... go crazy and beat him to a pulp!"
"Got it!"
The part about going crazy and beating him to a pulp was a bit unclear, but... the anger at Sofia being insulted was mutual. Licorice and I were burning with anger.
"I'll give you credit for having some guts, but well, that alone won't do you any good. I'll teach you that there are things you can't solve with just that. Come."
Following the man, we arrived at a dueling arena surrounded by party attendees.
Seeing this prepared arena, it seemed like these duels were held regularly.
Perhaps even the party attendees were looking forward to this duel.
"First, I'll show you my power. Take this!"
The man who stepped onto the dueling arena first smashed a fist-sized rock with his bare hands. The party attendees cheered, and even Licorice above me felt uneasy.
"Wow, that guy's incredibly strong. I wonder if he has any technique, though. His physical abilities are quite something."
"Huh?"
"Huh?"
We both muttered dumbfoundedly.
"What's with that reaction? I'm just guessing, but... Fate, can you do that?"
"Yeah. It's something like this... See?"
When I smashed the rock with my bare hands, the attendees at the party murmured in surprise.
The man was dumbfounded.
"I've trained with Sofia, you know. I have some confidence in my strength, thanks to her teachings."
"That's not it! Training wouldn't have led to such a sudden increase in strength! And 'some confidence'? That's an understatement!"
"Thanks to Sofia."
"That's definitely not it!"
"Heh, hehe... Seems like you're somewhat capable."
The man chuckled nervously, sweat dripping down his face.
"Then how about this? Hah!"
With a powerful leap, the man jumped vertically, almost reaching the second floor of the mansion.
However...
"If that's all, then I'll..."
I leaped beyond the mansion's peak, surpassing even the third floor.
"Wha—!?"
Licorice screamed above me.
Oops, I had forgotten about her.
"Sorry. Are you okay?"
"I-I'm f-fine... just a bit dizzy."
"You don't seem fine at all, do you? I'm really sorry. I thought I was holding back..."
"H-Holding back and jumping that high...?"
"Well, yeah?"
"I... I forgot for a moment, but Fate, you're just as strange as Sofia. Actually, maybe even more so? Yeah. I've come to realize that again."
"Thanks?"
Wait, was I just praised?
"Ugh... you're... quite something. But, the outcome of a battle isn't determined solely by physical abilities. Combat skills are important. Let me teach you that."
"I agree with that opinion, but didn't you just show off your strength earlier?"
"Ugh..."
The man turned red and stumbled over his words...
And then, the party attendees chuckled, seeming to agree.
The man blushed like a ripe apple.
Drawing his sword, he pointed it towards me.
"Come on! I'll show you who's superior right now!!!"
"Is that so... but are you going to use real swords?"
"Hey, are you chickening out now? It's too late to back down."
"I'm not saying that... well, whatever. I'll just use my sword sheathed."
"What... are you implying that you'll go easy on me?"
"Huh? No, that's not what I meant..."
"If that's not what you meant, then what do you mean? Your actions seem to align with what he's saying, Fate. Well, it's more entertaining that way, so it's fine."
Licorice said that above me.
As for me, I thought my sword was so sharp that it would be better to keep it sheathed...
Oh well.
Whether this person gets angry or not, there's only one thing I need to do.
"You're going to regret insulting Sofia, okay?"
TL Note: Let the duel with the bear begin.
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