Episode 213: The Helian Tournament (2)
“The Iron Wall Knight lost?”
“His shield was completely shattered! That shield withstood even the blow of an ancient golem!”
The crowd was in utter disbelief.
Jose Brendan, known as the Iron Wall Knight, was a renowned figure throughout the empire. While there might be knights stronger than him, none could pierce his shield. His shield had never been broken, not even once. Even those who managed to defeat Jose did so by exploiting his weaknesses or through sheer skill, never by breaking his shield.
Yet, Damian Haxen had shattered Jose Brendan’s shield with a single strike.
“Could we be witnessing the birth of a new legend…?”
Most of the audience gazed at Damian with awe and reverence. But not everyone was impressed.
“Even so, he won’t beat Archibald or Bradley.”
Some spectators were quick to downplay Damian’s achievement.
“He’s just a knight from the kingdom! There’s no way he can defeat our empire’s knights!”
“Exactly. Besides, Archibald and Bradley are exceptional knights!”
However, their arguments were quickly drowned out.
“I doubt even those two could do what Damian Haxen did.”
“Right. Damian Haxen shattered the Iron Wall’s shield and even cut through his longsword.”
“It was over in the blink of an eye.”
Damian’s performance was simply that extraordinary. He had demolished Jose Brendan head-on, without any tricks or strategies.
“Ugh…”
Those who tried to belittle Damian had no choice but to fall silent.
“It seems the winner of the Masterclass category has already been decided, doesn’t it?”
Everyone agreed with the statement.
“Truly remarkable.”
Emperor Howard Adelaite of the empire was genuinely impressed. As an emperor, he had met many knights, but none like Damian Haxen.
“Did you say that young man just became a Masterclass?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. The Sword Saint himself confirmed it.”
The imperial guard standing beside him replied.
“Did the Empire’s Greatest Sword and the Sword Saint ever display such prowess in the tournament?”
The guard, who was also a Masterclass, had witnessed the participation of the Empire’s Greatest Sword and the Sword Saint in the tournament.
“If I may evaluate them… They both showed incredible skill, but neither secured victory as swiftly as Damian Haxen.”
The emperor couldn’t help but marvel once more. The two knights held immense prestige, with legends as numerous as grains of sand on a beach.
“Watch closely. The world might soon revolve around that man.”
The emperor addressed his children seated beside him. The prince and princess stared intently at Damian Haxen, each with different emotions in their eyes.
“Damian Haxen… Damian Haxen…”
The emperor repeated the name, as if to commit it to memory. Then, a slight furrow appeared on his brow.
“Damian Haxen?”
Damian entered the waiting room, leaving the cheers of the crowd behind.
“Brother! That was incredible! You won faster than anyone else today!”
“How did you do it? How did you break the shield?”
As soon as he returned, Michael and Veronica rushed over. Even Veronica, who usually only cared about killing, bombarded him with questions.
“Damian Haxen!”
Another voice called out. It was Rachel, the Sword Queen, running towards him.
“Weren’t you watching from the stands?”
Rachel had come as a spectator since she wasn’t competing today. As the heir to the Lichteauer duchy, she had been given the best seats.
“How could I just sit still after witnessing that?”
Rachel pushed her way between Michael and Veronica to stand in front of Damian.
“More importantly, what was that just now? How did you do it? Why didn’t you show me that when we sparred?”
“If I did that to a Highclass, you’d die.”
“I wouldn’t mind! I’d welcome dying to such an incredible strike!”
“Are you crazy?”
Damian looked at Rachel incredulously. Despite her noble appearance, her words and actions were no different from Veronica’s. He couldn’t shake the feeling that she was of the same ilk.
“Oh, by the way, Damian. Are you interested in making more connections in the empire?”
“Why do you ask all of a sudden?”
Before Rachel could answer, a commotion erupted outside.
Is Damian Haxen really in there?
Move aside! Our family has already marked him!
A letter! I just need to deliver a letter!
The sound of footsteps was unmistakable. At least dozens of people were approaching.
“Now’s the perfect time to build connections. What do you think?”
“Too much hassle. No thanks.”
Damian replied immediately. Having Rachel as a connection was more than enough. Besides, politics and networking weren’t his style; they were just a bother.
“Then I’ll have to help you out. You heard him, David?”
“Yes, my lady.”
A bespectacled man responded promptly. He was Rachel’s ever-present attendant.
“Please follow me, everyone.”
David led the group deep into the coliseum. He guided them through a secret passage within the coliseum, which connected to a house outside. Thanks to this, Damian returned to the mansion without encountering any nobles.
However, the nobles were persistent. Before long, they all gathered at the mansion.
“We heard Sir Damian Haxen is here!”
“Just spare a moment! It won’t be a bad conversation for either of us!”
“A letter! Just one letter!”
But the nobles were blocked by the Lichteauer duchy’s guards and couldn’t enter. Thanks to them, Damian could rest peacefully at the villa.
The next day, the group entered the coliseum through the secret passage once more. Nobles searching for Damian were swarming around the coliseum.
Today, neither Damian, Michael, nor Veronica had matches, so they headed to the stands instead of the waiting room.
“Please use this.”
Rachel guided the three to the VIP seats she had been assigned. Reserved for high-ranking nobles, the VIP area was divided into private sections.
“Damian, I’ll be competing today, so watch closely. Let me know if you spot any issues!”
“Sure, I will.”
Unlike the others, Rachel had a match today.
“Promise me! Promise!”
Only after her earnest plea did Rachel head down to the waiting room.
Damian watched the tournament from the VIP seats. After the Middleclass matches concluded, the Highclass matches began.
“Brother, it’s Rachel.”
Rachel’s match started. Michael watched her every move, determined to redeem himself in the tournament. As expected, Rachel emerged victorious. She deftly dodged her opponent’s attacks and pierced their shoulder with her rapier to claim victory.
“Rachel! Rachel!”
“Lichteauer!”
The crowd erupted in cheers. Rachel placed a hand on her chest and bowed to the audience in gratitude. Her eyes met Damian’s, and she flashed a triumphant look.
“Well, well.”
Damian chuckled softly.
“Brother, are you hungry?”
“I’m going to get something to drink.”
Taking advantage of the break, Michael and Veronica left to buy food.
At that moment, someone else took their seats. Damian instinctively turned to look.
A man he had never seen before sat down. He appeared to be in his late thirties, with a thick mustache styled like a buffalo’s horns.
“Truly impressive, as expected of the Lichteauer heir. Such talent.”
The man crossed his legs and spoke.
“Damian Haxen, forgive my intrusion. I insisted on meeting you in person.”
“Who are you?”
“Archibald Gellar.”
The name was familiar. Rachel had mentioned him as one of the top contenders. A Masterclass who wielded a saber, known for his swift swordsmanship.
“Do you have business with me?”
“Not really. I just wanted to see my most dangerous competitor.”
Archibald Gellar’s eyes darkened.
“I thought Bradley Heath was the only one to watch out for… I didn’t expect a monster like you to appear.”
As the runner-up in the last tournament, Archibald Gellar exuded an overwhelming presence.
“I’m 39 this year. This is my last Helian Tournament.”
Other categories in the Helian Tournament allowed participation up to age 25, but the Masterclass category permitted entry until age 40, given the difficulty of reaching such a level.
The number of matches in this event was fewer compared to other categories. While other events had six matches scheduled per day, the Masterclass category only had two.
“As a knight of the kingdom, you probably don’t understand how significant the Helian Tournament is to the knights of the empire,” Archibald remarked.
The tournament was held in honor of the empire’s first emperor, and the winner had the privilege of meeting the emperor and receiving a title directly from him.
For the empire’s knights, the Helian Tournament was a matter of immense prestige and skill.
“I intend to win this tournament, no matter what it takes,” Archibald declared, a faint hint of menace in his voice, revealing just how obsessed he was with the competition.
“Are you here to threaten me?” Damian asked.
“No, I’m here to offer some advice. This tournament is extremely dangerous, so if you can, I suggest you withdraw,” Archibald replied, shifting his gaze to Damian.
“You never know, you might end up poisoned without even realizing it,” he added with a sly smile.
Damian chuckled at the thinly veiled threat.
“Next up, we have Archibald Gellar and Malenka Hibiscus! Please come to the arena!” the referee’s voice boomed.
Archibald rose from his seat. “It’s my turn. Don’t ignore my warning,” he said, leaping effortlessly over the spectator stands and landing in the arena.
“Wow!” The crowd erupted in admiration.
“Archibald Gellar!”
“This time, you have to win!”
Archibald spread his arms wide, basking in the crowd’s cheers.
Meanwhile, another knight entered the arena—Malenka Hibiscus, as the referee had announced.
“You could make a quieter entrance,” Malenka commented with a look of disdain.
“Better to be noticed than to be as dull as you,” Archibald retorted.
“Just get ready,” Malenka said, gripping his spear and taking his stance. “This time, I’ll defeat you.”
“Unlikely,” Archibald replied, drawing his saber slowly.
“Don’t get overconfident like last time, or you’ll lose a hand again,” Malenka warned.
“Have you forgotten how close you came to losing an eye to my spear?” Archibald shot back.
As the two men exchanged barbs, a strange sound echoed from a distance.
Tap, tap.
It was the sound of something striking the ground, like a cane. Both men turned to see where it was coming from.
A young woman was approaching the arena. It was odd, as entry was strictly controlled for non-participants.
She carried something large on her back, resembling a cross, covered in black cloth, obscuring its identity.
But what caught their attention wasn’t the object she carried. The woman had bandages over her eyes and was tapping the ground with a shabby wooden cane as she walked.
“A… blind woman?” Archibald said, puzzled.
The woman stopped at his voice, bowed slightly, and said, “Ah, hello! I’m Everis! Oops, bit my tongue!”
Everis covered her mouth with both hands, embarrassed.
Archibald looked incredulous. “What are the guards doing, letting an outsider into the arena?”
“Please don’t be mad at them. They couldn’t stop me anyway,” Everis replied.
“What are you talking about…?”
“I’m from Pandemonium,” she said, causing Archibald to pause, staring at her in disbelief.
“My master told me to enter the Helian Tournament and… kill everyone,” Everis continued, setting down the object from her back with a heavy thud.
As the black cloth fell away, a two-handed sword was revealed. The blade was relatively thin but stretched a full two meters, twice Everis’s height.
“Anyone who kills me here will bring victory to the empire,” Everis declared, gripping the sword with both hands. But the blade was so long and heavy that she struggled to lift it.
“Just don’t blame me if you die,” she added, her voice trembling slightly.