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“What’s going on here…?”

Arthur turned his head away from the Emperor’s gaze, unable to raise his jaw, his mouth agape. Even for Arthur, there were times to boast and times not to. No, this was beyond bragging. Right now, Arthur was feeling just as the Emperor was.

Aslan and Arthur weren’t the only ones; the other prominent nobles watching from the side felt the same way.

“Hoo…”

“This… this crazy… I thought I was going to die….”

Ludwig chuckled hollowly as he looked at the half-drawn sword before him. Joachim had collapsed, exhausted after cutting off the spell he was maintaining to protect the audience from the impact of the duel, while Franz, sitting slumped in his chair, was just as worn out for the same reason.

The sight of these top figures from various fields showed how urgent the situation had been. If things had gone wrong, the Sacred Festival honoring the gods could have turned into a bloodbath, so how could they not sweat in dread?

Of course, they were now in their positions to prevent such an event, but even so, the shock they had just experienced was enough to chill their bones.

The golden Divine Power spreading through the venue was a truly beautiful sight. Yet, they had no leisure to appreciate such a view. The crashing waves of gold brought both relief and horror upon them.

Franz, still gasping for breath, shouted toward Arthur.

“Hey, you lunatic!! What kind of monster have you created!!!”

All eyes turned to one spot.

Normally, Arthur would have responded brazenly with something like, “What are you even looking at,” but he couldn’t do that this time. He could only meet their gaze with a silly expression.

*

When Noel and Damian first clashed, the atmosphere had been very different.

While Damian had displayed an overwhelming presence against others, so had Noel, and in their duel, they were evenly matched, making it so that both Arthur and Aslan were busy praising their own children for triumph.

“She’s grown to a level that feels completely different from before, but in terms of strength and skill, it still seems like she’s behind Damian… Alas, it seems the Princess has hit her limit.”

“Tsk. That’s quite a conclusion. Is Noel such a simple knight? You won’t know the long and short of it until they compete. She hasn’t even used her Divine Power yet. Isn’t your judgment a bit too quick?”

“By that logic, Damian is just using a ‘sword’ too.”

“True for Noel as well…”

Despite their bickering, smiles lingered on their lips. The duel between Noel and Damian was quite impressive even to those at the top, allowing them to prattle proudly about their children. While victory and defeat were certainly important, seeing their children show off their evenly matched skills was their joy at the moment.

Others watched their banter like it was an annoying noise, but they too would brag just like Arthur and Aslan when their children came to the venue.

Still, there was a certain sincerity hidden in their gazes. The duel between Noel and Damian had lasted longer than those of the other students, making it the longest fight aside from when Orcus faced Elena, prolonging the parents’ bragging.

With Orcus already having lost to Elena, Aslan’s defense of Noel was at an extreme level, while Arthur was not one to easily concede. Thus, the debate extended, and Franz, who had been listening, finally snapped, unable to tolerate any longer.

“At this point, it’s just embarrassing! Embarrassing!”

“What does it matter? Both are outstanding, that’s true. We ourselves couldn’t show that level of talent at their age, so it’s worth bragging about.”

“…..You’re just favoring your son-in-law, aren’t you?”

At Franz’s words, Joachim fell silent. The sly smile gracing his lips spoke for him.

Franz shot him an annoyed glance, but he said no more. After all, there were clear grounds for their bragging, and Franz acknowledged that. As Joachim said, both of their skills were in the realm of genius for their age. He had no intention of denying that. He just disliked the endlessly ongoing debate between Aslan and Arthur about who would win.

As Damian broke the stalemate and pushed Noel back, they all believed victory was about to be determined. Noel began to wrap her body in Divine Power, and Damian’s changed stance indicated that they were finally being serious. Even Aslan and Arthur, who had been chattering noisily until now, focused entirely on the duel.

When their swords clashed, a brilliant flash erupted, brightening the venue. The onlookers couldn’t bear it and winced at the light, but the five here saw through it with clear eyes, exclaiming in a strange mix of disappointment and admiration, each in their own way.

“I thought this would be the end of it…”

“It seems the match will last longer than expected.”

Franz and Joachim expressed their awe, but the other three remained silent, staring down at the venue. Now that their swords had vanished, they understood this was the moment they would unleash their full power.

“It’s coming.”

Aslan spoke, his voice brimming with excitement.

In Noel’s hand, now holding the broken sword, was a Holy Sword that radiated sunlight. Aslan’s confidence lay there. Unlike Orcus, who summoned a relic unconsciously, Noel had called forth the Holy Sword by her own will. A significant difference existed between them.

“Oh.”

This time, even Arthur couldn’t help but admire it.

Noel, wielding the Holy Sword, was so perfect and divine that she evoked the image of a goddess from legends; to those at the top, she was undoubtedly a shining light.

“This is really… amazing?”

“Right?”

Aslan smiled, pleased with Arthur’s reaction. However, he soon dropped his smile upon noticing the lack of tension on Arthur’s face. Even upon seeing Noel draw the Holy Sword, Arthur expressed no emotions other than awe. He still firmly believed in Damian’s victory.

Proving this, there was no significant gap between Noel with the Holy Sword and Damian.

Their swords clashed, unleashing flashes that made it difficult to see, yet the fact that the light did not diminish indicated that Damian was not falling behind Noel.

“That’s just impossible…”

Franz muttered in awe, and unconsciously the others nodded along.

Those witnessing the extraordinary energy began to feel astonished and even horrified. The achievements of Damian and Noel had surpassed their imaginations. As if waiting for this moment, even Arthur’s shocked face hardened upon witnessing the scene.

“Hey, what’s wrong with that?”

The amount of Divine Power gathering in the Holy Sword was alarming.

Though Arthur usually felt no threat from ordinary matters, even he felt that the energy converging in the Holy Sword seemed incredibly dangerous. The Emperor Aslan had never shown such a display with the Holy Sword; how was this girl capable of such a feat? Such questions crossed his mind but soon faded. Arthur gripped his sword and took a stance.

The situation was tense. The power contained within the Holy Sword would become Noel’s sword energy and, if they delayed any action, it would inevitably affect those outside the venue. The nobles seemed aware of this, each preparing to stop it in their ways.

“Damn it, Damian!!”

Arthur intended to stand before Damian to block Noel’s onslaught. Despite Damian’s high achievements, he thought it would be tough to withstand something that was a threat even to a transcendent being like himself. But before Arthur could act, Damian moved first.

The light bursting from his sword pierced Noel’s sword energy.

In a heartbeat, the tense situation cracked. Damian’s sword broke through Noel’s sword energy, and the threatening force crumbled into nothing.

No one understood how this was possible. One clear fact remained: a boy who hadn’t even reached adulthood had blocked a strike that could tense even transcendents.

And the situation returned to now.

Arthur was surrounded by nobles demanding an explanation. Of course, there was nothing he could say. For him, Damian’s accomplishments were beyond imagination. The only words Arthur managed to muster, having regained his composure, were these.

“My son really is a genius.”

“Fuck!!”

Franz’s curse drew a laugh from Arthur. He had momentarily been taken aback, but what truly mattered was that Damian had won.

With a confident face, he settled into his seat and smiled at the other nobles.

“Is there really any reason to continue this match? It seems we’ve already found our champion.”

“Wow, damn… what a pain.”

“Oh, speaking of which, next up is your son and Ludwig’s boy, right? The winner there will face Damian… Franz. I’m cheering for your son.”

“Hey, don’t jinx it. I have to end this with that brat today.”

“Hold on… if they face off, you’ll lose.”

Though Arthur’s bragging intensified, no one could counter it. The results had shown as such… The only one who could contest Arthur’s boasting was Franz, who was getting increasingly irritated by it.

“Just you wait!! Arthur, you’d better watch closely! Richard’s going up there to flatten your son and your nose!”

Soon after, Richard was defeated by Reinhardt.

 

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