Chapter 21: The Duke's Manor (1)

"......Even if you take me, I cannot see Duke Your Excellency."

Orland Demisi said with a face full of fear.

Opposite him sat Demian.

Demian was calmly looking out the window.

"......I am merely a branch manager, not even the CEO of Dash and Cash."

"Do you think I don't know that? Just shut up, will you?"

At Demian's words, Orland tightly shut his mouth.

His eyes and face seemed to be dripping with fear.

"You just need to bring me in front of the Duke; I don't expect anything more."

Demian doesn't know the way to the Duke's Manor, and he hasn't made the necessary preparations for a long journey.

That's why he's bringing Orland Demisi along.

"......Do you really plan to participate in the duel?"

Orland Demisi asked cautiously. Demian only nodded.

"......So, you also plan to make the Duke lose in the duel?"

Demian nodded again.

A strong sense of disbelief appeared on Orland Demisi's face.

"......Do you know who will represent the Ryanbloom Marquessate? It's the heir, Michael Ryanbloom."

The Duke of Goldpicks does not personally train knights like the Ryanbloom Marquessate.

Instead, he receives knights from noble families loyal to the Duke.

Thanks to this, the quantity and quality of knights under the Duke of Goldpicks were not inferior to those of the Ryanbloom Marquessate.

The reason the Duke of Goldpicks was recruiting knights for the duel was precisely because of Michael Ryanbloom.

"Michael Ryanbloom became a Low-Class Knight before he even reached adulthood. Now, there are even rumors that he is eyeing the Mid-Class rank."

Orland Demisi had seen how strong Demian Haksen was.

But even Orland Demisi didn't think Demian could defeat Michael Ryanbloom.

"Quite noisy."

Demian said casually. Orland Demisi covered his mouth with his remaining hand.

"I never asked you to worry about me."

"I'm sorry."

Orland Demisi bowed so low that his forehead almost touched the ground.

"If you understand, be careful from now on."

Orland Demisi's body trembled.

* * *

The journey to the Duke's Manor was comfortable.

Thanks to Orland Demisi's generous spending, they stayed in the best accommodations in every town and ate the finest food.

Even the expensive magical tools were used without hesitation.

Thanks to this, Demian could enjoy a hot bath even when camping.

'Even more comfortable than being at home?'

Demian didn't waste this time.

He used every moment, except when sleeping, to accumulate mana.

'What I need most right now is mana.'

In terms of skills and knowledge, no one could match Demian.

But he was still lacking in many external aspects.

His body was not yet fully trained, and his mana reserves were insufficient.

'If I could just reach the mana level of a Squire, I could do so much more.'

Five days passed like this.

The carriage arrived at the Duke's territory.

* * *

The Duke's Manor was built on a vast plain.

The castle was so large that it had no fewer than eight gates.

At each gate, there were long lines of people waiting to enter.

Demian didn't need to wait because of Orland Demisi.

As a branch manager of Dash and Cash, Orland had the authority to skip the inspection at the outer gate.

The carriage passed through the residential and commercial areas and arrived at the inner wall.

"Stop."

The soldiers guarding the inner gate blocked the carriage.

Orland Demisi, drenched in cold sweat, said to Demian,

"......I can only guide you this far."

Inside the inner gate was the Duke's Manor, a place Orland Demisi had never entered.

"Then I'll have to walk from here."

At this, Orland Demisi let out a sigh of relief.

Then he realized that Demian was staring at him intently.

"......I've been thinking during the journey."

"......Yes, yes?"

"I'm too soft-hearted to kill you."

"......So, you're going to let me live?"

"......But it's hard to forgive the insults to my family."

Demian stood up from his seat. The sunlight entering the carriage was blocked by Demian.

A dark shadow enveloped Orland Demisi.

"......So, I'll just cut out your tongue."

"......What? What? Wait......"

The sound of a sword being drawn was heard.

Soon, a blood-curdling scream echoed throughout.

The soldiers who had blocked the carriage were startled and raised their spears.

A moment later, Demian Haksen walked out of the carriage.

"......This place is huge."

Demian looked up at the inner gate and said.

The inner gate was much taller than the outer gate, and one had to tilt their head back as far as possible to see the top.

"......What are you doing here!"

"......Do you know where you are and still cause a disturbance!"

The soldiers pointed their spears at Demian and shouted.

"I have business with the Duke. Can you open the gate for me?"

At Demian's question, the two soldiers roared.

"......What nonsense! Of course not!"

"......Now I see, you're here to assassinate His Excellency!"

By the soldiers' reactions, it seemed impossible to enter the castle peacefully.

"......Then I'll have to force my way in."

Demian recalled his past memories.

He had never met the Duke of Goldpicks in person, but he had heard many rumors about him.

A thorough meritocrat.

He would mercilessly cast out even his own children if they lacked ability.

Conversely, he would be generous even to his enemies if they had ability.

"......I have to prove my strength to participate in the duel anyway. Showing it directly is better than trying to persuade with words."

Demian nodded, making a decision.

The soldiers were taken aback by his calm demeanor.

"......What nonsense have you been spouting all this time!"

"......You need a few beatings to come to your senses!"

Demian's knees slightly bent.

Immediately after, with a sound like the air bursting, Demian's body disappeared.

"......What?"

"......Huh?"

The soldiers instinctively looked up. They saw:

Demian floating halfway up the inner wall.

"......What is that!"

"......Huh, huh!"

Demian stepped on the inner wall, and his body leaped up again.

He continued to push off the nearly vertical wall and climbed upward.

In the blink of an eye, he reached the top of the wall.

"......Haaaaa......"

"......Hey, you're going to get bugs in your mouth."

There were soldiers standing on top of the wall. Demian landed between two of them.

"......What? What?"

"......What is this?"

The two soldiers looked at Demian with confused faces.

Regardless, Demian looked down at the bottom of the wall and marveled.

"......Wow, what a view."

At that moment, the soldiers, having regained their senses, thrust their spears at Demian.

"......Intruder!"

"......Die!"

Demian leaped again, dodging the spears and diving down the wall.

The two soldiers were startled and looked down.

Despite falling from such a height, Demian was unharmed.

"......Where is the Duke's Manor?"

Demian walked leisurely. The soldiers' eyes widened in shock.

"......Intruder! Sound the alarm!"

"......He's not an ordinary intruder! The knights must come out!"

A loud alarm rang throughout the Duke's Manor.

* * *

Even as the alarm sounded, Demian did not hurry.

He walked as if he were on a leisurely stroll.

On the contrary, the Duke's Manor was in a flurry of activity.

"......There he is!"

Ten knights rushed over and surrounded Demian.

"......Reveal your identity immediately!"

"......Who sent you?"

"......What is your purpose?"

The knights shouted one after another.

Demian glanced at the knights. They were all Squires.

"......Tsk, tsk, sending these greenhorns first is a waste."

"......Greenhorns."

At this, the Squires were taken aback and then burst into anger.

"......How dare you look down on us!"

"......Should I cut off your arm?"

Demian shook his head.

"......Where is the Duke? I have urgent business with him."

At this, the knights' faces turned red with anger.

"......You're here to target the Duke!"

"......I have urgent business, not to target him."

"......Shut up!"

The knights drew their swords in unison, their sharp blades pointing at Demian.

"......I'll make you pay for your crimes right now!"

The knights charged at Demian. Demian scratched the back of his neck.

At that moment, Demian could have killed all of them with a single strike.

But a Squire is a valuable force that can be immediately deployed in battle.

Killing ten Squires?

This would be tantamount to declaring war on the Duke's Manor.

Therefore, Demian did not draw his sword.

He deflected all the incoming blades with his bare hands.

The Squires were bewildered by this scene.

"......What?"

"......Huh?"

Demian's body disappeared.

He approached the Squires and struck each of them in the jaw.

His speed was so fast that it left afterimages.

The Squires were knocked out before they even realized they had been attacked.

"......I didn't get to hear where the Duke is."

Just as Demian was regretting this, one of the supposedly unconscious knights groaned.

"......Ugh...... Ugh...... Ugh......"

He was not fully unconscious but was not in his right mind.

Demian, delighted, approached the knight.

He grabbed the knight's hair and lifted him up.

"......Where is the Duke?"

"......H-His Excellency is...... in the conference room......"

Thanks to his half-deranged state, the knight easily revealed the information.

Demian put the knight down and looked at the