#11
I gave her an awkward smile as I looked at her worry-filled expression. At this rate, Kara would age day by day from worrying about me.
“If it really doesn’t work out, Kara can surrender on my behalf.”
“No. If Young Master seems to be in danger, I’ll intervene directly.”
“Keep that as a last resort, alright?”
After comforting Kara, who was reluctant to let me go until the very end, I slowly walked toward Rikin. What I held in my hand was a child’s wooden sword. I don’t know why this toy-like weapon felt so heavy in my grip. As I stepped forward, Rikin, who had been waiting, also slowly began to move.
“Since there’s a physical difference between us, I’ll use my sword with my left hand. I absolutely won’t use my right hand. If I take the sword in my right hand, you can consider it my defeat.”
He was offering to give me a handicap. There was no need for me to refuse here. I nodded and slowly raised my wooden sword.
Rikin also lifted his wooden sword with his left hand. A pure white light began to shimmer around the sword that had risen to a similar level as mine. It looked as if sunlight was reflecting and shattering around the wooden sword. I knew Young Master Parten was remarkable, but I never expected it would be to this extent.
That was sword aura. A mere nine-year-old was creating sword aura right now. It wasn’t properly wrapped around the wooden sword, but just the faint glow alone was astonishing for someone his age.
Rikin Parten was a genius. I wasn’t unaware of this, but seeing it with my own eyes made me feel that fact even more clearly.
“I’ll accept 5 exchanges.”
Rikin said with a relaxed expression.
Wasn’t this too much? Someone who could even imbue his sword with aura was saying he’d only accept 5 exchanges. On top of that, he’d only hold his sword with his left hand. Without moving his feet and only using his left hand, wouldn’t it be a proper duel? I’m finding even this wooden sword heavy right now.
Between a genius and an ordinary person flows a very large river. That river, wide as an ocean, can never be filled no matter how much time passes. Rikin couldn’t be unaware of that gap.
“Come at me.”
Rikin gestured to me with a completely confident face. Well, I didn’t know for sure, so I decided to gauge his ability with the 5 exchanges he had offered.
I lifted the wooden sword with both hands and brought it straight down toward Rikin’s head. More force went into it than I expected, making me worry if something might happen to him. Making my concern meaningless, Rikin very easily blocked my wooden sword.
My hands, which had made the attack, were the ones that ended up tingling. This wouldn’t do. Rikin’s wooden sword that blocked my attack didn’t have aura around it. He hadn’t even used his aura yet, but if I was taking this much impact, there was no way a proper duel could happen.
Both my arms would break, or both my legs would be ruined. But I couldn’t just surrender right here either. The palace employees were watching our duel with burning eyes.
If I shouted surrender ridiculously quickly, the palace employees would surely run to Persis and tell him about it in a way that made me look as pathetic as possible.
I didn’t care if my reputation got worse, but if Persis found out that I had given up on the duel over the position of playmate without even trying, he might be greatly disappointed. It would feel like I had easily given up the right to be by Persis’s side.
If it was the tearful Persis, he might sit down and cry right there. Unless some truly great danger approached, I wouldn’t shout surrender like this. I should at least show the sincerity I could manage.
I thought Persis would want that too.
“Now you have 4 exchanges left.”
“Yes. I surrender.”
However, the moment I heard the number of attacks I had remaining, the strength left my hands gripping the wooden sword. I raised both hands high and stepped back from Rikin. When I gave up, Rikin’s confident face was colored with shock. He probably never expected me to surrender this quickly.
After picking up the wooden sword I had dropped, I moved my short legs and ran toward Kara. Kara nodded greatly as if very proud and patted my shoulder.
“You did well.”
“Yeah. I couldn’t do it.”
My arms were still trembling. The recoil I felt when he deflected my wooden sword aimed at his head was truly the first pain I’d ever experienced. Even before blocking Rikin’s attacks, I could tell that I’d be knocked out in just 4 exchanges.
It was natural in a way, since I was in a body that hadn’t received proper training. Other kids might have thrown a tantrum saying it hurt.
This is why they say if you listen to Kara’s words, even bean powder appears while you sleep. I decided to definitely listen to Kara’s words next time.
“How can you surrender this quickly!”
“Young Master Parten is too strong.”
I casually spoke to Rikin, who was now fuming. Rikin seemed to feel a little better at being called strong, but apparently displeased with the suddenly ended match, he kept stamping the ground with his small feet.
“No matter what I do, it’s a match I can’t win, so it’s better to give up quickly.”
“That’s cowardly!”
“Giving up isn’t cowardly.”
I hoped the palace employees would relay these words to Persis too. I was just looking at the situation objectively. I didn’t get tired and quit without even trying.
“Fine, good. Then now beside His Highness…!!”
“Shall we have the next duel now?”
I immediately cut off Rikin’s words as he was about to shout for me to get away from Persis’s side. This child seemed to have completely forgotten that we had promised to have two duels.
Rikin, who had been flustered for a moment rolling his eyes, closed his mouth as if belatedly remembering that we had promised one more duel.
Rikin stuck the wooden sword he was holding firmly into the ground. I was really glad I surrendered early. A third of the wooden sword was buried in the ground. How could that be considered the strength of a nine-year-old? If I had continued facing Rikin, one of my arms might have been permanently damaged.
“Fine. Let’s do it. I, Rikin Parten, absolutely do not run away from promised duels.”
Rikin’s appearance as he spoke with his shoulders straight, putting strength into each word, looked truly strong. It wouldn’t be strange to call it befitting the heir of the Parten family.
I could see the palace employees who had been looking down were glancing at Rikin with faint smiles. They seemed to think this was finally an opportunity to make me suffer.
I really don’t know why they distrust me so much. I don’t particularly like them either, so it was mutual.
“Yes. Then, let me tell you the content of the duel.”
The Empire’s sword that never turns its back, the Empire’s shield, the Empire’s guardian Parten. I was planning to watch how much of that aspect Rikin could show.
* * *
His young face was flushed bright red. Though he was pretending otherwise, sweat would be beading on his forehead. He who hadn’t shed a single drop of sweat when outside just moments ago was now struggling and wiping cold sweat.
His confused eyes surveyed the battlefield, but no matter what, he wouldn’t be able to see a way out. Of course. Who did I learn this game from?
I smiled inwardly with satisfaction as I watched Rikin swallow his dry saliva.
You want to run away, don’t you? You want to just shout that you can’t do this anymore, don’t you? You probably want to take back all those confident words you spouted outside.
The duel subject I had proposed was a chess-like game. This world also had a game where you created a small battlefield and played with pieces, and the method was similar to chess.
Kara was the one who first taught me this. Kara said it would be good to learn in advance and gave me the pieces of this game instead of toys, teaching me what role each piece played.
It was because I was someone who remembered my previous life that I listened well to Kara’s words – if I had been an ordinary child, I definitely wouldn’t have listened properly and would have quickly gotten bored.
“Now, make your move.”
“Wa-wait a moment!”
Rikin shouted loudly and surveyed the battlefield. I could see him pondering how to move his pieces to protect his knight.
I knew from the beginning that he would find this game extremely difficult. Though he was still young, he was Rikin Parten. He was a respected general who couldn’t bear to see even one soldier sacrificed, and if someone had to be sacrificed, he would step forward and give his all.
If he learned proper military strategy it might be different, but I knew that given his nature, he wouldn’t welcome victories achieved through someone’s death. However, in games like this, there was absolutely no way to win without sacrificing other pieces.
Rikin, playing this game for the first time in his life, was completely unaware of this fact and kept thinking and thinking with his small head, trying to find his own way to victory. The method he eventually chose was continuous retreat. He kept pulling his pieces back until they were cornered at the edge of the board.
“What will you do?”
“Uh, uuugh.”
After deliberating, Rikin moved one soldier back with trembling hands. Another retreat after all. I thought he would do this. I captured the soldier piece that Rikin had just pulled back with my knight. Then Rikin was startled and caught the falling soldier with both hands.
“At this rate, your king will be taken.”
“I know! I’m not unaware!”
Rikin gently set down the soldier piece in his hands beside him and fell deep in thought. He was trying his best to find a way.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
