Chapter 19

"Of course, in a duel."

When I smirked, Eira gave a strained smile.

My smile must have been a bit wicked, so I probably scared her a little? Well, it's too late for that now.

"A, a duel?"

"Yes, since you said so much, I assume you have a personal knight as well?"

"Yes, I have about three personal knights."

"Oh, how wonderful. Then let's have your three personal knights and my personal knight fight. It will be settled quickly."

At my suggestion, Eira gave a bitter smile.

"My personal knights are all nobles, raised with elite education from a young age, and have over a decade of experience. Are you sure about this?"

"Yes, of course."

"..."

My completely relaxed attitude made Eira flinch a little.

Eira glanced at Oline beside her.

Her gaze seemed to be asking, "Is this really okay?"

Oline nodded, as if to say, "It's fine."

"...Alright. My personal knights are waiting in the carriage, so I'll call one of them."

"One? No, call all three."

"Eh?"

"This is a fight to see which of our personal knights is better. If you have three, it wouldn't make sense to fight with just one."

"…Are you serious?"

"Of course, call them quickly."

When I said that, Eira gave a strained smile.

Was it a smile of fear at my confident attitude, or a smile of irritation because her personal knights were being underestimated?

Either way, it didn't change what needed to be done.

Eira glanced at Oline again.

Oline seemed a bit hesitant but still nodded.

"Alright. I'll call them right away, so please wait a moment."

Eira signaled to her entourage of young ladies, and they went to call the knights.

I turned my back on Eira and her group and returned to the table where I had been sitting.

"Miss Daria, I'm sorry for the trouble. I'll make it up to you someday."

"No, it was Eira who started this, Lady Asaria. You don't need to apologize."

"I'm relieved to hear that."

"There's an open area beyond the courtyard. We can have the duel there."

"Thank you."

I hadn't even thought about the location; we couldn't have the duel in the courtyard prepared for the tea party.

"But, Lady Asaria, are you really sure about this? Eira has three personal knights..."

The other young ladies around us were also looking at me with concern.

Even among my own entourage, many seemed to think my personal knight would lose.

After all, I hadn't denied the story that I had a commoner who had only been a knight for a week as my personal knight.

Under normal circumstances, my knight would be expected to lose.

"It's fine. My Rauro is the strongest."

I smiled to reassure Daria and the others and said confidently.

Then I looked at Rauro, whose expression remained unchanged as always.

"Rauro, you understand, right?"

"Yes, of course. I'm sorry for causing trouble because of me."

"No, it's not a problem at all. In fact, it's like we've added an exciting event, and I'm enjoying it."

"I'm glad to hear that."

Rauro didn't seem nervous at all.

For him, fighting three experienced knights probably wasn't a big deal.

Actually, I've never seen Rauro nervous...

"Rauro, show them your strength."

"Yes, I understand."

Rauro bowed gracefully.

A few minutes later, at the place Daria had shown us, Rauro faced off against the three knights.

Most of the young ladies attending the tea party had come to watch, in addition to Eira and me.

The three knights were a bit older than Rauro, around thirty years old.

They were still in their prime physically and had a wealth of experience as knights.

...Come to think of it, how old is Rauro?

Is he the same age as me, or closer to my brother's age?

Judging by his appearance, he doesn't seem much older than me.

Maybe I'll ask him after the tea party.

"Lady Asaria, are you really sure about this?"

Eira asked with a slight smirk.

Oline, standing beside her, also had a smug look on her face.

Oline hasn't said a word to me, but her presence is annoying.

"Of course, let's get it over with quickly."

"...Yes, that's right."

Daria will give the signal to start; I really am causing her trouble. I have to thank her later.

"Then, let's begin."

As soon as she said that, Eira's three knights moved first.

They surrounded Rauro and readied their wooden swords.

In contrast, Rauro didn't move, just glaring at one of the knights in front of him.

Then, the knights surrounding him attacked simultaneously.

In an instant—the fight was over.

"Ugh!?"

Rauro took a step forward just before the knights attacked, kicked one in the stomach, and sent him flying.

The knights attacking from the sides and behind.

Rauro swung his wooden sword with one hand and hit the jaw of the knight behind him, knocking him out cold without a sound.

Then, he stopped the wooden sword of the knight attacking from the side with one hand.

"What!?"

The knight who had attacked with both hands was surprised.

But in the next moment, Rauro hit the knight's temple with the hilt of his wooden sword, and the knight fell unconscious.

"...What?"

The fight was over in an instant, and Eira's small whisper could be heard.

The crowd finally seemed to realize what had happened and started murmuring.

Most of the young ladies probably didn't see what happened, as Rauro defeated the three knights so quickly.

Even with my trained dynamic vision, I could barely see what happened.

He's really fast and strong.

"Eira, it's over."

"W-What...!?"

Eira couldn't believe the scene in front of her, as she didn't see the moment her knights were defeated.

One knight was thrown several meters, and the other two were lying on the ground next to Rauro.

"How about that? My knight is very strong, isn't he?"

I smiled and said, but Eira still seemed in shock, her eyes wide.

"H-How...? He's a commoner and has only been a knight for a week...!"

Eira whispered in a trembling voice.

Then, she glared sharply at Oline beside her.

Oline, who also seemed shocked by the scene, flinched when Eira glared at her.

"Oline, what's going on?"

"I, I don't understand...!"

"Did you lie to me?"

"N-No! I didn't lie at all!"

"Then how is that knight so strong!?"

Oh dear, a falling out among friends?

It seems Oline, wanting to be favored by the confident Eira, passed on information about Rauro, thinking it was my weakness.

That's why Eira challenged me, but unfortunately, Rauro became much stronger than any ordinary knight in just a week.

Oline probably didn't expect him to be that strong.

Before the regression, I was tricked by Rauro, who became my holy knight... Hehe, it's very amusing.