Chapter 16

Dinner ended, and Ivan was called by his father, Rielo. He headed to the study and sat across from Rielo, starting a one-on-one conversation.

"As I said during dinner, I am going to the fortress. I want to see Melissa, but I also need to keep my skills sharp. Can I leave the work here to you while I'm away?"

Unlike when he casually suggested it during dinner, Rielo was now speaking seriously as the head of the household.

"Of course. Please leave it to me, Father."

"Hmm, Ivan, your magical skills are already superior to mine. Now, you need to gain experience in administrative work and prepare to be the next head of the duchy."

"Yes, I understand."

Rielo nodded in satisfaction, his expression softening slightly.

"Did you train with Asaria as soon as you returned today?"

"Yes, I did. And with the man Asaria found, Lauro."

"I see. Despite your long journey, you must have been quite tired. How were the two of them? Especially Lauro, whom Asaria wants to be her personal knight, even though he has no experience as a knight and is just a commoner."

Rielo's gaze sharpened slightly when he mentioned Lauro, as he was concerned about his daughter's choice.

"To be honest, both of them are geniuses."

"Really? It's rare for you to say that. I heard Asaria used fire magic at the Founding Day party, but Lauro too?"

"Yes, Asaria has great talent, but Lauro is on a different level."

Ivan went on to describe their talents in detail, especially how Lauro, despite only holding a sword for a day, was already more skilled than a seasoned knight.

"Amazing. If that's the case, I can certainly entrust Asaria's personal knight to him. It's impressive that Asaria found such a talented person."

"Yes, indeed."

(As expected, she's an angel.)

Ivan praised her in his heart, though he didn't say it aloud.

"I plan to leave for the fortress tomorrow. Continue training those two until they are fully developed. And don't forget your duties at the main estate."

"Yes, I understand."

"Good. Well... hehe, I need to prepare to see Melissa now."

Rielo, a doting father and loving husband, was in high spirits. After watching his father, Ivan left the study.

(There's nothing more to teach those two, but since I can be with the angel, I'll train them a bit more.)

Ivan and Rielo, being father and son, had a similar disposition.

A week had passed since Lauro officially became a knight of the Spencer duchy. He had been training with the duchy's young lady and young master from the first day, and it had been a week.

Now, he was facing off against the young master, Ivan, in the training ground.

"Next, I'll attack."

"Yes, please."

Ivan stood a few meters away, facing Lauro with his palm outstretched. Flames shot out one after another.

Each flame had the power to blow off a part of a human body, and a misstep could mean instant death.

But Lauro deflected and parried each attack with his sword, standing his ground without moving an inch.

This continued for a while, and Lauro didn't take a single hit.

"Good, not bad. As Asaria's personal knight, you must never dodge or retreat, no matter what magic attack comes your way."

"Yes, I understand."

Lauro had already started training to become a personal knight, and Ivan was pushing him to the limit.

"Either deflect or parry. Never dodge or retreat. If you do, you might as well die from the attack."

"Yes."

Despite the harsh words, Lauro didn't flinch. He understood what it meant to be a personal knight.

"Given your strength, I don't think you'll retreat even if attacked. And even if you use your body to block, your magic-enhanced strength will protect you."

"Thank you."

Ivan sighed, seemingly impressed but also a bit overwhelmed by Lauro's strength.

"There's nothing more I can teach you. From now on, it's just a matter of gaining experience. As a knight, you'll be hard to beat."

"Is that so?"

"Indeed, it seems you still don't fully understand your own strength."

Lauro had only been blocking Ivan and Asaria's magic and swinging his sword methodically. He hadn't yet realized how extraordinary this was.

"Let's see how strong you are. I'll have other knights test you."

"Yes, please."

Ten knights gathered in the training ground. All were seasoned veterans who had fought monsters for over ten years.

"We'll start a mock battle. Lauro, face all of them."

"Understood."

"Master Ivan, is this really okay? He's only been here for a week..."

"It's fine. You'll lose anyway."

The knights were slightly irritated by Ivan's confident statement but couldn't argue with the duchy's young master. They could only prove him wrong through their strength.

"Let's start with me..."

"What are you saying? All ten of you, attack him at once."

"Huh? Are you serious?"

"Dead serious. Get started."

The knights were surprised and looked at Lauro, but he showed no signs of shock, only readying his sword.

"Let's begin."

As Lauro entered a combat stance, the knights felt a powerful aura from him, one that suggested even all of them together couldn't defeat him.

A few minutes later, Lauro stood alone on the field, while the ten knights lay on the ground. None of their attacks had even grazed him; he had deflected and parried every single one.

"It's over, Master Ivan."

"Ah, how was it?"

"To be honest, it wasn't particularly challenging."

"Indeed. Facing ten opponents without dodging any attacks is quite an achievement."

"But you told me not to dodge, Master Ivan."

"True, but... never mind."

Even with a young lady behind him, facing ten seasoned knights and deflecting all their attacks was impossible. Normally, just winning would be nearly impossible.

"If Asaria were behind you and surrounded by this many people, your first priority should be to protect her and escape."

"Understood. But what if Asaria is eager to fight?"

A normal young lady would be scared and want to escape, but Asaria was different. She had fearlessly stepped forward and easily subdued the Pidol baron when he went on a magical rampage.

"Indeed, that's possible. In such a case, handle it appropriately."

"Understood."

"But absolutely—do not let Asaria get hurt. Not even a scratch. Do you understand?"

"Understood."

Ivan's stern words made Lauro nod firmly. Despite only a week of interaction, Lauro could tell how much Ivan cared for Asaria.

"Since there's nothing more I can teach you, just gain more experience. As Asaria's personal knight, you'll be fine. With my and Asaria's recommendation, you won't have any problems, even if you haven't worked as a knight."

"Thank you, Master Ivan."

"One last thing. Can you die for Asaria?"

"..."

"When Asaria is in danger, a personal knight must risk his life to protect her. No matter how strong you are, if you're not prepared to risk your life for Asaria, I won't recommend you as her personal knight."

Ivan's sharp gaze met Lauro's, testing his resolve.

"What do you think? Is Asaria worth risking your life for?"

Lauro already had his answer.

"Master Ivan, of course I can—"