Chapter 62: Elaine vs Grace (2)

A sudden duel between Elaine and Grace.

Despite the big news that the Northern Duke and the Captain of the Escort Knights were facing off, the crowd did not gather in droves…

The duel took place in Grace’s private training ground within the Winter Palace.

The audience consisted of the weapon engineers who had created Silver Sting, a few soldiers carrying wooden boxes, and the first squad of escort knights currently on duty.

Even counting myself, there were fewer than thirty people.

The referee was Anduril, the vice-captain of the first squad.

“Are you ready, Sir Elaine?”

“I am ready.”

“Haha, it’s been a while since I last fought you. I’m looking forward to this.”

Grace spun her dagger with an excited expression, loosening her wrist.

The completion of Silver Sting was just an excuse—she had been feeling restless and distracted all day, and this duel with Elaine seemed to be her way of clearing her mind.

Of course, Elaine knew that about Grace, which was why she agreed to the duel.

The rules were simple: one Silver Sting dagger each, no magic allowed, and a single-round match.

Dagger duels relied not only on swordsmanship but also on close combat, as the short blade made physical clashes inevitable.

Both fighters had opted for lighter attire to maximize their speed.

“Who do you think will win?”

“Senior, you’ve stopped using formal speech with me now?”

“Ah, my mistake, Sir Luke.”

“Right, let’s do our best. Okay?”

“Uh… Are you planning to enjoy this?”

Since they had no intention of stopping, what choice did I have? I might as well enjoy it too.

Thinking about it, having seniors speak formally to me due to my rank wasn’t such a bad thing.

At Garen’s question, I fell into deep thought.

Elaine and Grace had completely different fighting styles.

Elaine specialized in rapid consecutive strikes, while Grace’s attacks were heavy and powerful.

A speed type versus a power type.

Based on that alone, Elaine had the advantage.

She was a swordswoman fast enough to keep up with Rowe. Now, without her heavy armor, she was even quicker.

Her swordsmanship, Frostbite Blade, focused on precision and speed, and she had a piercing technique called First Snow.

Grace wasn’t slow by any means. As befitting a knight hailed as the strongest among humanity, her leg strength and footwork surpassed that of most knights.

However, her Lion’s Blade, which focused on powerful strikes, wasn’t well suited for a dagger duel.

Moreover, the restriction on magic—meant to prevent injuries—was an unexpected disadvantage for her.

Lion’s Blade incorporated many magic-infused techniques akin to a king’s roar, all of which were now sealed. Even her non-sword techniques were unusable.

But Grace has that title.

Swordsage.

The pinnacle of all swordsmen.

This was bound to be an intense match.

“Then, both of you, take your positions… Start!”

With Anduril’s signal—

Pa-pa-pa-pat!

“!?”

As soon as the match began, Elaine and Grace lunged at each other, exchanging rapid blows.

“Crazy! Hey, Luke, did you see that?”

“No, I lost track after the fourth exchange.”

It was like watching top-tier action stars perfectly synchronize their choreography.

Elaine and Grace had already exchanged seven attacks in an instant—without either side taking a hit.

Elaine, realizing that exchanging blows wouldn’t settle the match, extended her leg for a kick. However, Grace noticed and stomped the ground hard, preventing the sweep.

As her move failed, Elaine immediately twisted her body and aimed an elbow strike at Grace’s chest, but Grace blocked it with her hand.

Grace then attempted to push her away, but Elaine swiftly retreated to widen the distance.

Instead of clashing against Grace’s heavy horizontal slash, Elaine dodged and quickly switched her grip to a reverse hold before counterattacking. However, Grace blocked that as well.

The high-speed battle was so captivating that soon, the only sound in the training ground was their weapons colliding.

It was thrilling to see how the match would unfold—both fighters utilizing their strengths in a perfectly balanced contest.

Grace, slower than Elaine, countered with precise and deliberate strikes.

Elaine, weaker in strength, avoided direct clashes by relying on her footwork.

Then, Elaine made the first decisive move.

Frostbite Blade—First Snow.

A piercing thrust, combining Elaine’s speed with Silver Sting’s penetration power, shot forward.

As a fellow Frostbite Blade user, I recognized the movement immediately. If that lands, it’s over. Is it even okay to use something that lethal?

But of course, Grace was Grace.

She read the trajectory of First Snow with precision and countered by colliding her blade against the tip of Elaine’s dagger.

A defensive maneuver only someone worthy of the Swordsage title could execute.

As their weapons clashed, Elaine’s thrust lost momentum. In that brief opening, Grace twisted her wrist upwards.

Elaine’s First Snow was completely disrupted, causing her arm to rise along with it.

Seizing the moment, Grace brought her dagger down like a meteor, aiming for Elaine’s shoulder.

Elaine swiftly twisted her body to the side, dodging the descending blade.

Thud!

Grace’s Silver Sting drove into the ground, sinking in effortlessly like a candle into a cake.

Taking advantage of the opening, Elaine adjusted her stance and was about to charge in—

But then, she hesitated.

Grace had stopped moving.

Instead of pressing the attack, she simply stood there, waiting for Elaine to let her retrieve her dagger.

“Why? This is the perfect opportunity to attack.”

“You’d aim for my foot while pulling your dagger out, wouldn’t you?”

At Elaine’s words, Grace smirked and smoothly pulled out Silver Sting.

“Shall we start again?”

“I’ll go first.”

Immediately, another rapid thrust came at Grace, and she adjusted her stance to counter Elaine’s attack.

Everyone, including myself, was mesmerized by the extreme level of skill displayed.

It wasn’t just because it was an incredible fight.

Everyone present—including the weapon engineers responsible for creating and testing Silver Sting—were warriors of the North.

They all recognized that the battle before them was of an exceptionally high level, the kind of legendary duel that might never be witnessed again.

No one dared to blink, determined to absorb every lesson from this display of strength.

Elaine and Grace continued their fierce exchange—dodging thrusts, blocking punches, colliding bodies, and attempting to trip each other.

And just when we were all holding our breath, hoping for just a little more—

“Stop! Time’s up.”

The referee, Anduril, coldly declared the match over.

Elaine and Grace, catching their breath, came to a stop.

Surprisingly, although both had bruises and swelling from the close combat, neither bore a single cut from the daggers.

Even if they had controlled their strikes out of consideration for it being a sparring match, the fact that they fought so fiercely without inflicting a single blade wound was beyond impressive.

“As expected, daggers don’t suit me.”

“Same here.”

“I intended to test its performance, but at this rate, it feels like we were just playing around.”

“You already confirmed its performance, didn’t you?”

Elaine pointed at the hole Grace had left in the ground earlier.

Seeing that, Grace burst into laughter and said,

“If it can pierce the floor like that, the performance is more than satisfactory. Well done, engineers.”

“A-Ah! No, it was an honor just to witness such a battle!”

One of the engineers, genuinely moved, bowed deeply, and Grace gave him an encouraging smile.

“By the way, we have two of them. I rarely use daggers, so one is enough for me. Would you like to take the other? You were the one who helped subdue the Silver Sabertooth, after all.”

“I don’t use daggers at all. Besides, Your Grace wouldn’t want this weapon to be reduced to a mere ornament, would you?”

“Of course not. Then who should I give it to?”

Grace’s gaze shifted to me.

“Sir Luke, you’ve used a dagger before. Do you want this one?”

Silver Sting, in my hands?

To be honest, I was tempted.

It was a weapon mentioned in the novel, and its performance was guaranteed.

And since I was one of the people who helped take down the Silver Sabertooth, I had a valid claim.

However—

“I already have a dagger I use, and I don’t think I can wield two at the same time.”

The truth was, I wasn’t even using Obsidian primarily for close combat.

I had been utilizing it as a magic amplifier.

To properly wield Silver Sting, one needed exceptional dagger skills.

Even I knew that I wasn’t particularly skilled in dagger combat.

Like Elaine, I would probably end up keeping it as a collection piece.

“Hmm, is that so?”

Grace withdrew her gaze from me and suddenly looked up at the sky.

I wondered what she was doing when—

“He’s refusing?”

“He says he won’t use it.”

“But it would suit him well.”

“His tastes are a bit odd. He doesn’t seem to like using special weapons like this.”

Grace exchanged a strange conversation with Elaine before shrugging her shoulders.

“Oh well. I suppose I’ll keep both for now. I could use them for dual-wielding techniques.”

Grace named the two Silver Sting daggers Alpha and Beta, then carefully placed them back in their wooden case.

“Got myself a good weapon, got to refresh myself—guess it’s time to get back to work.”

Grace, seemingly satisfied, stretched her arms and left to wash off the sweat she had worked up during the duel, her steps lighter than when she arrived.

“Luke.”

“Yes?”

“I recently learned that you’re quite good at massages.”

In my previous life, office workers practically lived on massages, so I had picked up a few skills. I had used them on Elaine once before.

“My arms and legs are sore from sparring with Her Grace. Give me one later.”

Elaine made the request in a confident and shameless tone.

“Sure, why not.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle, wondering if this was part of her plan when she agreed to the duel in the first place.

Kingdom of Artia – An Unnamed Back Alley

A group of rough-looking men sat around a table, holding cards and engrossed in their game of gambling.

BANG!

The door shattered with an explosive sound.

The men flinched in shock, hastily putting down their cards and reaching for the weapons they had left beside the table.

And yet, even in this chaotic moment, some of them instinctively covered their cards—proof of their deep-rooted gambler’s habits.

“Who the hell—?”

A voice as rough as its owner’s face growled.

From the splintered doorway, a black-haired man strode in, his steps steady and deliberate.

“Which one of you is the branch manager of Black Crow?”

His voice was so cold it sent chills through the air.

“Tch. And who the hell are you supposed to be?”

One of the men, the biggest of the group and clearly in the middle of a winning hand, grumbled in irritation.

Then, he suddenly realized something.

We’re on the third floor…

If this man had made it up here, that meant—

Down below was already—

“It’s you, then.”

The black-haired man locked eyes on him and began walking forward.

An inexplicable sense of dread crept over the branch manager.

“Kill him!” he shouted to his subordinates.

As the gang members simultaneously raised their weapons and charged—

Szzzt!

Suddenly, despite the clear weather and the fact that they were indoors, the sound of electricity crackling filled the air.

Bzzzzzzzt!

Before they could even scream, they were reduced to charred husks.

“Ugh…!”

These were high-ranking members of the organization.

Seeing them fall in a single strike, the branch manager instinctively stumbled backward in shock.

Swoosh.

Before he could react, the man was already upon him, gripping his throat.

“Guh…! Guhk…!”

The branch manager struggled desperately to escape, but for some reason, he couldn’t move at all.

Panic and terror flickered in his eyes.

He prided himself on never losing in a contest of strength, yet now, he found himself utterly helpless against a man smaller than him—this refined-looking, annoyingly handsome man.

Just who was this man?

“Where is your boss, Rowe?”

At the question, the branch manager’s face twisted in confusion.

Why was he looking for the boss? Was he a debt collector?

Rowe was someone who lent money, not someone who borrowed it.

But he didn’t have time to dwell on the thought.

As soon as he failed to answer, the man’s grip tightened around his neck.

The eyes staring at him were those of a lunatic.

If he wanted to live, he had no choice but to comply.

“I don’t know the details! He’s not here. I only heard rumors that he went north!”

“The north?”

The man loosened his grip slightly.

“Why would he go to the north?”

“I—I don’t know! I just heard it in passing!”

“The north, huh…”

As the man fell into thought at the mention of the north—

Now’s my chance!

The branch manager snatched up the axe he had dropped.

“Die, you b*****d!”

With all his strength, he swung at the man’s neck.

BZZZZZZZT!

Electricity surged from the man’s body, engulfing him completely.

Having squandered his last chance at survival, the branch manager joined his subordinates in death.

Moments later, a woman stepped through the doorway.

She had pale skin, full-body tattoos, and an enchanting presence.

Strangely, she also had two horns on her head, one of which was cleanly severed in half.

She glanced around the room, taking in the carnage, then spoke indifferently.

“Nothing on my end. What about you?”

“I found out where Rowe is.”

“Really? We should’ve come here first, then. Where is he?”

“The north.”

“Huh?”

The woman tilted her head in surprise.

“The north? That’s random. Why would he go all the way out there?”

“He doesn’t know either.”

“Hmm~ Still, at least we have a lead. So, what’s the plan? Are you heading north?”

The man thought for a moment.

“I need to gather more information first. He knows I’m after him, so he might be throwing out false leads.”

“Good call. I agree we should be certain. But if it turns out to be true, what then? Are you going after Rowe first in the north, or Dorgon in the west?”

At her question, the man answered firmly.

“Rowe first. If it’s true, I need to know why he went north.”

“Yeah, that is strange. What could he possibly be after there? Unless… he’s planning to assassinate the Northern Duke?”

The man let out a rare chuckle, making the woman frown.

“If that’s the case, then your revenge against Rowe is pointless. He wouldn’t stand a chance against her.”

“Wait, you know the Northern Duke?”

“…More importantly, what about Nia and Yui?”

“I let them go. Nia’s a good kid. And Yui went to help her.”

“……”

The black-haired man recalled the gratitude he received from a victim they had freed the previous day, when they destroyed one of Black Crow’s trafficking operations.

He smirked bitterly and turned to the woman.

“What about the drugs downstairs?”

“I left them. Why? Planning to use them?”

Without answering, the man drove his sword into the ground.

Lightning erupted from the blade, shooting downward.

In an instant, every last stash of drugs in the underground storage was erased without a trace.

“Let’s go.”

The man retrieved his sword and walked out first.

The woman stared at him for a moment before shrugging and following.

As they left, the building began to collapse.

That day, another of Black Crow’s drug dens was wiped off the map.