Chapter 40
“It’s all a complete misunderstanding. It’s true that I’ve been lucky and had good companions. But I swear I never used the count’s name to get my way. A little investigating will make that clear.”
“Impossible! It can’t be done! There’s no way an adventurer could defeat a 【Lv: 50】 〈Dream Lord〉 in a mere week! If defeating a 〈Dream Lord〉 were that easy, the nobility system in this kingdom would be turned on its head! Don’t make a fool of me!”
Aizasu remained adamant.
Given the common sense of this world, I could understand why he found it so hard to believe.
The nobility wielded great power in this world precisely because only a handful of people could defeat such fearsome monsters.
If a rookie adventurer could easily defeat a 【Lv: 50】 〈Dream Lord〉, the kingdom’s entire system could be thrown into chaos.
Defensive classes were said to be especially difficult to level up.
Aizasu had looked down on the Heavy Knight class so much that he’d thrown me out of the count’s family just for learning I was one.
“W-Why are you so quick to doubt Elymas-san? He’s your own son, isn’t he, Count?”
“How tiresome... A commoner girl presumes to interfere in a matter of noble reputation? You will remain silent unless I order you to speak!”
Aizasu raised his voice in irritation.
“Father, I don’t think we should conclude that Elymas has disgraced House Edvaughn based on what we know so far.”
Malice, who had been keeping quiet until now, spoke up.
“What? Malice, are you taking Elymas’s side now?”
“No... I simply think we should investigate. There’s no need to rush to judgment and punish him. If he’s just become a C-rank adventurer, he must be around 【Lv: 40】, right? If so, this is perfect.”
“What?”
Aizasu looked just as puzzled by Malice’s words.
He, too, seemed unable to grasp what she was getting at.
“I’ve just reached 【Lv: 45】 through 〈Life Transfer〉 myself. In terms of level, we’re about evenly matched. No, when it comes to fighting with Skills, he’s probably ahead of me, given his wealth of real combat experience. A simple sparring match should make it easy to tell whether his story about defeating the 〈Dream Lord〉 is true.”
Malice twisted her mouth into a smile as she looked at me.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Malice! Even if your levels are about the same, there’s no contest between a Sword Saint and a Heavy Knight. Malice, I know you’re uneasy as a member of a branch family, but I’ve told you there’s no need for concern.”
“Heh heh, it’s just a simple practice match, Father. Making it this far in such a short time, without relying on support from a noble family... isn’t that impressive? I merely thought I’d ask him to teach me how he did it. Whether his story is true is just a bonus. But... if it turns out to be false... we can punish him at the same time.”
Malice was saying that if I insisted I’d really defeated the 〈Dream Lord〉, I should fight her and prove my strength.
She was bringing up not just my level, but my actual fighting ability, too.
Even if I showed her my level, she’d probably accuse me of having someone power-level me after I flaunted the count’s name.
But the Sword Saint was a formidable class.
Its Attack Power and Speed were extraordinarily high, and it had plenty of Skills that were brutally effective and easy to use.
Its other stats were somewhat low, but not low enough to be considered a weakness.
Because it specialized in straightforward strength, it left little room for flexibility in character builds. At higher levels, it could fall behind classes with more room for optimization, but at our current level range, that wasn’t much of an issue.
By contrast, as a Heavy Knight with low Attack Power and Speed, I’d have very few chances to go on the offensive against a Sword Saint—and even if I landed a hit, I’d be unlikely to deal a decisive blow.
If this really were just a simple mock battle, I could put up a decent fight even with my current stats... but judging by Malice, I couldn’t imagine it ending there.
“What’s the problem, Father? You promised to leave the matter of Elymas to me. Or... are you still wavering over your choice of heir and worrying about Elymas, just as I feared?”
“Malice... Was your goal from the start to test me? What was there to make you so anxious?”
Aizasu looked bitter.
I didn’t need to accept these terms just to prove my innocence.
Even if refusing meant dragging this troublesome matter out and taking on other problems, I should prove it another way, in my own time.
Aizasu didn’t seem particularly eager to go along with it, either.
If I calmly backed out, we could find a safer way.
It was obvious that if a defensive class fought a Sword Saint head-on, it would be stuck on the defensive, its HP steadily chipped away until the fight ended in no time.
Of course, that was how it would go under normal circumstances.
“All right. I accept your challenge to a mock battle.”
“W-What?!”
Aizasu was the one who seemed most surprised.
“Elymas-san, th-that’s reckless! I know how strong you are, but...!”
I understood what Ruche was trying to say.
My Attack Power was disastrously low, and I had no equipment that could make up for it.
She probably thought I’d let myself get provoked and rushed into a reckless fight in the heat of the moment.
“It’ll be fine, Ruche. I already have all the pieces I need to fight her. Thanks to you.”
“B-Because of me?”
“And I didn’t accept her provocation for nothing, either. I thought I’d moved on from House Edvaughn, but... I guess it still had a hold on me.”
That was only natural, really.
I’d just been stubbornly telling myself it was all in the past and that I’d moved on.
After earning recognition from the Guild and finding a companion in Ruche, I’d finally had enough breathing room to stop pretending I was fine... and realized how deeply I’d been shackled to House Edvaughn.
Looking back, volunteering to hold off Embryo on my own, with little chance of success, without even considering the other adventurers or Ruche’s help, had been incredibly reckless.
Back then, I must have wanted to give myself some kind of value, even after being driven out of the count’s family and losing my purpose.
There couldn’t be a better chance to settle things.
Rather than let things remain unresolved and drag the problem out, I’d end it cleanly here and now.
“Count Aizasu... I want to add one condition. If you acknowledge my strength, never have anything to do with me again.”
“W-What? Do you understand your position before you say something like that?!”
I didn’t care what his answer was.
I just wanted to say it aloud so I could finally put this behind me.
Malice quickly drew her sword and slashed the floor with its blade.
Stone chips scattered around us.
I’d expected as much, but she really was fast.
“I’m glad you don’t object, Elymas. That’s how it should be.”