Chapter 40: The northern lion. (5) *Redux*

The training grounds of the Barong duchy was rather different from the one in the Vritara estate. Circular patches of segregated earth were replaced with metal squares that were slightly elevated, separate platforms engraved with magic formations resting just a few centimetres below said metal. Gabriel couldn’t see exactly what words formed the formations but he guessed that it was something to keep the metal from freezing during the colder seasons.

The 10 knights of the Barong duchy were already waiting for them on the central square, their armours so polished that you could almost see your own reflection in them. He could see their backs tense the moment Arioch brought them into the training grounds, it almost looked as if they were trying to stand on tip-toes to look as tall as possible.

"These are our knights-in-training, they’ve spent the last three years training and are just waiting for a good chance to join one of our divisions so that they can enter the field and work towards getting knighted."

The backs of the knights tensed and straightened further as Arioch gestured towards them, but thanks to that most of them weren’t able to see his eyes dart slightly.

"Men, this is the entourage of Lady Alice De Vritara, who has come here from the Vritara family so that we can deepen our friendly relationship. I want nice and clean sparring matches, everyone here is undergoing training so I don’t want to see anyone try to tear down the others, understood?"

He emphasised the point time and time again, locking eyes with each of his knights-to-be to silently convey the message. He couldn’t exactly just go out and say that the opposing side was weaker so go easy on them, the damage that would cause to their pride was immeasurable and may harm their future relations with the knights of Vritara.

"Naturally, Lady Alice will be observing the matches with me, but we also have Sir Caine Woodime, the runner up of the Twin Moon Festival. I have no doubt that he will be a better judge than me, so if he calls for a fight to stop then I expect both parties to lower their weapons. Have I made myself clear?"

Twin Moon Festival, the annual festival celebrated by the Earhart Empire to commemorate their two greatest idols, the founder and the Sword Saint. It revolved around the empire’s greatest swordsmanship competition, whosoever got the first and second spot both gaining a Moon title and endless glory. As such, being the runner up, Caine was actually the one who got third place. But still, the glory gained by that position could not be diminished.

"Yes Sir!""Yes, my Lord!""Understood!"

The Barong knights saluted with all their might, their armours clanking in unison as gauntlet met helmet. The visors of their helmets weren’t closed so Gabriel could see their expressions as they spoke, they were bursting with excitement and practically frothing with desire to prove themselves. It was that particular desire that was giving Arioch a headache.

A situation like this was unprecedented. Sending an extremely weak entourage was not only an insult to the other family because you were implying that their knights were weak, it was also extremely humiliating for yourself if all your people ended up losing. From the outside, it looked like an extremely small thing, but to Arioch it showed that the Vritara family still didn’t think very highly of their youngest child, even with her spirits and future title. Well, with the things he’d heard from her it made a smidgen of sense.

"Right. Juliano, please step forward. Lady Alice, you may send out your first knight."

Honestly, he would have loved to just skip this, now of all times especially. But his father would be furious once news reached him, and at that time the knights he prepared for the sparring probably wouldn’t be something as merciful as knights—in-training. Aaahh… He really hated the current position he found himself in. Alice, however, looked as if she was actually a little amused, expectant even.

"Right. Who to send… Who to send. Let’s be honest, most of you don’t want to step up, isn’t that right?"

Arioch did his best to sugarcoat things and beat around the bush as he spoke to his men, but Alice subscribed to no such niceties. The people sent along with her as the entourage, they were the bottom of the barrel knights-in-training, the newbies who would never go anywhere. But most importantly, the only people among them who would actually risk fighting just for her honour would be Gabriel and Trisha. And lo and behold, the ‘knights’ sent to aid here didn’t even dare to meet her gaze.

"Yeah, that’s what I thought. But don’t worry, I never expected any of you to fight for me."

She wasn’t bothered by it. These people belonged to the Vritara household, they would much rather latch onto Marion or Francis than some upstart like her. She was used to it so it was no longer able to hurt her.

"This is rather embarrassing, Young Master Arioch, and I do hope you and your men aren’t too offended by this sorry sight. But it would appear that I only have two people capable of fighting by my side. But as both of them have more than three years of training under their belt, may I recommend a gauntlet-style sparring match? I know that it is highly unorthodox, but it would somewhat bridge the gap in their years of training so that your men don’t lose because of a minor technicality like who started first."

She straightforwardly laid the truth bare for Arioch and his men as she made her offer, not the least bit embarrassed by the men that turned away from her. They weren’t idiots, they would have been able to see from the start that the men she brought along were nothing short of pathetic. Even if they went with a standard sparring match it would be obvious what would happen, it probably wouldn’t even serve as a warm-up for the Barong duchy’s men.

"A gauntlet…"

Arioch had no choice but to hesitate. The offer wasn’t bad, assuming that Alice’s knights were skilled enough. His knights would get to fight, and lose so that they could learn something new, and the knight that eventually beat them would get the satisfaction of victory. Meanwhile, Alice’s knights got to beat multiple people in a row so they would look good.

"If I may, my Lord."

One of the knights spoke up while Arioch pondered it over, pale skin contrasted by black eyes and dark brown hair. He was the tallest of the Barong duchy’s men here, standing at a little over two metre with his muscular frame. He placed his hand in front of his chest and dropped to one knee so that he could speak respectfully to the future lord.

"Personally, I will call myself in favour of the gauntlet. There is nothing to be gained from fighting those with no will. And while I will not call it honourable to fight a worn-out opponent, I still wish to spar with the knights of Vritara. But if the chance cannot arise today, then I will also see myself content with waiting for a few more days as they rest up and inspect our lands."

Today was just the first round of sparring matches, several more would follow over the coming days and weeks. This was meant to give both sides time to digest what they learned so that they could improve in their next match. But with the state of things… It looked as if this break would only serve to give the Vritara side time to rest as they cycled between opponents.

"And the rest of you?"

Arioch allowed his gaze to slide across the other men after the first one, Juliano, spoke up. If his men were fine with the gauntlet then that made things easier for him, he could just agree and let the die fall as it may.

"I am fine with it, my Lord.""I wish to fight them, my Lord, so if that is what it takes.""My Lord, please let me represent you."

The knights-in-training agreed one by one. It wasn’t the perfect outcome, but it was still a chance for them to show off their prowess and get recognized by the future lord they would serve. With them agreeing, it was naturally set in stone. Thus, Alice turned to one of the two that would fight for her.

"Trisha. Please be my vanguard."

Gabriel saw Lawrence tense up the moment Alice spoke up. He had avoided it for as long as he could, but the day for his granddaughter to fight had come in the end. And it would be a gauntlet-style set of matches even, it wasn’t something she was meant to win.

"Allow me to bring you victory, my Lady."

Trisha, on the other hand, accepted it gladly. She wanted to be a knight of the Vritara household. She may lose here eventually, but she would not let down the pride of the Vritara name and its knights.

"Okay Trisha… Just be careful and do your best."

Lawrence spoke through grit teeth as he helped Trisha don her armour. Her actual armour this time, not the mixture of leather and metal she usually wore. No, for this sparring match they would use actual weapons so it was safest to use the proper knight armour.

He wanted to say so many more things, but Trisha’s eyes were bright as she looked at him. She was solemn, but excited. Anxious but determined. Ah… How could he try to hold her back when she looked at him like that.

"Don’t worry, Grampa, I’ll make you proud."

She lowered her visor and spun around, drawing her sword as she climbed onto the metal stage. Juliano towered above her as he stood in his spot, the other people of the Barong duchy having already left the stage for the fighters.

"Tristana Delgrade, Knight-in-training of the Vritara estate! I look forward to learning from you."

Her armour clanked as she brought the hand that held the sword to her chest in a proper greeting, the blade rising up past her face. As was proper form, her opponent reciprocated the greeting.

"Juliano Saril, Knight-in-training of the Barong estate! Please guide me."

The two fighters observed each other for but a moment after they finished exchanging their greetings, both stepping forward at the same time as they lowered their blades. Trisha lowered hers down to the stage and dragged it along while Juliano smashed his down from above, taking full advantage of his height.

Trisha quickly stepped to the side so that the blade wouldn’t hit her, bringing her own sword up at an angle until it crashed into Juliano’s armour right around the ribs. The metal was dented slightly with a loud clank, the resulting vibrations rattling Juliano until he took a step back.

His sword hit the stage in the meanwhile so he took advantage of the fact that it bounced off of the metal to redirect the slash towards Trisha. She hadn’t dodged far so there wasn’t too much room for her to move, especially since she just launched an attack, so she could only raise her left arm and block the hit with her gauntlet.

It was a rather hasty and makeshift attack, but Juliano’s sheer size gave it enough power to push Trisha sideways. She would have lost her footing if she hadn’t slid her right foot outward to stabilise herself, falling over in a match like this generally meant defeat because of how poor your position became.

Once the force from his attack faded, she wrapped her arm around his blade and clutched it between her elbow and chest, taking the chance to launch several stabs. Some Juliano managed to block with his hand, but several more dinged his clean armour and left more dents.

He eventually managed to free his sword from her grasp, but the moment he pulled it back she took advantage of the opening to rush into his bosom. The pommel of his sword struck her shoulder as he quickly defended himself, but Trisha stood strong and drove her sword behind his leg, tripping him up due to the backward momentum he still had from pulling free his sword.

He stumbled back and she finished the job by turning her weapon and smashing her own pommel into his chest so that he fell on his back. Her weapon was turned again, the tip resting on his visor.

"I have lost. Thank you for the guidance."

He could only admit defeat, prying open the visor and stabbing his face would be an easy task before he managed to get up. With the victor decided, Trisha pulled back her blade and stretched out her arm to help Juliano up. But he was naturally large, and clad in armour, so she didn’t have the strength to pull him up.

In the end, he rolled sideways like a turtle and then got up with a push-up, giving Trisha one last formal greeting before he stepped off of the stage. Trisha returned to her previous position, but Gabriel could tell that her breathing was a bit heavier.

An actual fight was different from training, your fight was constantly going at full speed because you had to take in everything. A single slip up was all it took to die so you were constantly stressed. Gabriel was very familiar with that sensation, his overse… Master constantly forced it on them during their training. Those who slipped up die… Were sent back home and were forbidden from coming back. It was hard, and then you also had to launch attacks and block while moving, it was a constant drain on your stamina.

"Garvel Tartak, Knight-in-training of the Barong estate! Please take care of me."

The next knight stepped onto the stage to replace Juliano. This time it was a slimmer and smaller man, his visor already lowered so that you could only see the pale green eyes that looked at you from within the armour.

"Tristana Delgrade, Knight-in-training of the Vritara estate! Please."

Gabriel didn’t see the need for Trisha to repeat her introduction, but then again there were a lot of things about knights that he didn’t understand.

Once again, both the knights moved shortly after they finished their greetings, charging at each other. Garvel was surprisingly quick on his feet despite the armour, swiftly hopping into Trisha’s range while holding his sword close to his chest.

She naturally swung her sword, raising it from the same low stance that she used against Juliano. But Garvel attacked at the same time, tilting his sword towards her and stabbing it forward. He was as fast with his hands as he was with his feet, the tip of his blade reaching Trisha before she managed to finish her swing. He also didn’t get greedy, quickly sidestepping her rising blade, pulling his weapon back and pushing it forward again at the same time.

The dinging of sharp metal striking armour echoed across the stage as Garvel utilised his speed to quickly launch stab after stab. He reminded Gabriel of the fencers from his old world, except he was using the same longsword as everyone else so it was a bit off. Rapiers were more a noble thing for sport in this world, the image of a knight with a longsword was so ingrained in peoples minds that few used a different weapon. Even in cases like this, where he should obviously be using a different weapon, was that true.

Naturally, Trisha wasn’t someone who would be completely undone just because her opponent was a bit faster than her. She stretched out the arm that held the blade and placed her other hand on its elbow, delivering a wide sweeping blow to catch Garvel.

The green-eyed knight naturally dodged to evade, but Trisha pushed down on her elbow with her spare hand just as Garvel started to dodge. Changing the swing of her arm using just her already-in-motion arm was hard, but with some outside aid it was more than easy.

Her wrist turned and her blade tilted as her arm was pushed down, colliding diagonally with Garvel’s shoulder and smacking him to the side. He quickly regained his posture, but Trisha had already followed after him and was swinging her weapon again. He had to block somewhat awkwardly with his gauntlet, Trisha quickly pushing the blade forward so that her hilt guard smashed into his arm and pushed it back. His side was left open as a result, her spare hand sliding to her forearm and giving it a push so that she could shift into another sideways slash.

Garvel seemed to grit his teeth, accepting the blow with the side of his helmet while pushing his blade forward, another ding ringing out as he struck Trisha’s thigh. But with a blow to the head it was already over, he was so disoriented that he only got out one last half-hearted attack before Trisha pummelled him into submission.

"It is my losssss….t, thank you for revealing my flawwwws"

His speech was a bit slurred after getting pummelled, the hit to the head especially was still affecting him. He received some ointment from Juliano after he got down from the stage, removing his helmet to reveal a bald head covered by a tattoo depicting a roaring tiger.

"Next man."

Arioch gave his man a look-over before calling for the next knight to step forward. Inwardly he was heaving a sigh of relief. So far, things were going good, if Alice’s other knight could also defeat two or three people then things would end about as well as they could in this situation.

"Tarquin Elsaid. Knight-in-training of the Barong duchy! I look forward to our journey."

A third knight stepped onto the stage and faced Trisha, who had returned to her spot and raised her blade again. Gabriel could see her breathing heavily, her cuirass rising and sinking slightly with each gasp for air. But she still stood tall and raised her weapon in greeting.

"Tristana Delgrade. Knight-in-training of the Vritara duchy! Please, guide me."

Another introduction, another greeting, another pair of knights that charged at each other. Tarquin wasn’t especially muscular like Juliano, nor was he as quick as Garvel. But he was faster than Juliano and stronger than Garvel so he was more balanced, the black eyes seen through the visor glinting ferociously as he launched his barrage of attacks.

He didn’t do much defending, favouring to attack until the enemy was crushed. It was a strategy that could work well, Gabriel used it in the past to take down the Yveria… Some targets when he went out on a mission. But it was also a risky strategy because it could earn you death just as easily as victory.

Trisha also knew it well, she was learning from Lawrence alongside Gabriel so she too knew what it was to fight to kill. So after his seventh hit struck her shoulder, her armour now completely dented, she struck. She lowered her shoulder so that the blade slid down along her arm, quickly flexing so that the weapon was caught within her elbow.

She then swept out with her blade and struck Tarquin’s waist, taking advantage of the fact that she was holding his blade to hammer into his side with repeated attacks. She struck him one final time on the thigh so that he was forced onto one knee and then placed her blade against his neck, ending the battle.

"I lost."

Tarquin’s voice was a bit more downcast than that of the two previous knights and he stepped down from the stage with lowered shoulders. Losing to Trisha in the first match was one thing, even the second was understandable. But she had already gone through two fights and a small journey in advance, yet he still lost to her. At that point it became a bit more shameful and embarrassing.

But Trisha wasn’t much better off, swaying slightly as she stood there. She held her weapon, but she kept clenching her hand so it seemed like she was having some trouble with it. In the end, as the fourth knight entered the stage, she was just barely able to raise her sword.

"Tristana Delgrade. Knight-in-training of the Vritara estate. Please, show no mercy."

She knew, her opponent knew, the onlookers knew, this was a match that she wouldn’t win. But the other knights had fought until they were defeated so she would do the same, even if it would end up causing her a bit more pain.

"Quinn Alstaro. Knight-in-training of the Barong Duchy. Hold your head high."

The fourth knight stepped onto the stage and raised his sword, a pair of brown eyes looking directly at Trisha without a hint of disrespect. The two charged at the same time and exchanged their blows, Trisha completely on the defence. But by the third blow she fell to the ground, Quinn’s blade resting against her visor.

"I have lost. Thank you for the fight."

She announced her defeat with a long breath, Quinn removing his blade and offering his hand. She graciously took it and staggered to her feet, just barely able to get down from the stage after three fights and more than a few strong hits. Her armour was completely dented so she was probably covered in bruises. Well, the option was cuts and stabs so bruises really weren’t that bad.

She stopped in front of Gabriel before she returned to Lawrence, who was already preparing painkiller ointment. His eyes were a bit red, but Gabriel wasn’t sure if it was because he was about to cry because she was hurt or because he was proud of how she stood up with pride.

"Gabe. For the Lady."

She didn’t try to drag in the Vritara name as she stretched out her hand, placing her fist against his chest. Gabriel… May never end up becoming a knight, at least not the kind of knight that this empire was used to. But the Lord Protector of Alice De Vritara? Oh, that was a role he was sure to take up. No, he was the only one who could.

"For the Lady."

Gabriel gave her a simple nod and mimicked her gesture, the dying occasionally used it on him in the past, as if they wanted to transfer their hatre… hopes to him.

"Gabriel."

A voice reached him before he could head for the stage, Alice curling her finger to beckon him over. She leaned in close when he reached her, her lips almost touching his ear.

"You’re not allowed to lose, my Knight. So fight, win, and come back to me."

Was it a request, a desire, or an order? He couldn’t really tell, the hot breath that brushed against his ear stole his focus for a few seconds before Alice placed a hand against his chest and softly pushed him back, a somewhat mischievous smile hanging on her face.

"But you’re not allowed to eat them, keep that in mind."

The words she spoke were rather macabre, only made worse by the slightly sweet tone hidden within her voice. He could tell from how she spoke, this was what she had been waiting for. This was why she said that he should just let his men do as they please. All for him, all for this moment.

"No armour?"

Quinn seemed to raise an eyebrow as Gabriel stepped onto the stage, still clad in his leather armour with only his pauldrons and gauntlets made from metal. Like that… It would be dangerous if he swung his sword wildly. But Gabriel himself didn’t seem to mind.

"I don’t have one, I cannot move properly in it so I never had one made."

If even Trisha had armour then naturally Gabriel should have had his own, Alice would have spent all the money she had on one if he asked for it. But armour… It wore him down. The weight on his limbs, the flexibility that wasn’t the exact same as his body. The security that dulled his senses. The overseers… Master, never allowed armour for that specific reason. Dull senses meant you were dead, being dead meant you couldn’t complete your missions.

"…"

Quinn naturally hesitated, glancing at Arioch and Alice before he proceeded. Arioch was as caught off guard as he was, but Alice simply smiled and gave him a nod. If even the master agreed then he could only go along with it, Gabriel giving him another layer of insurance.

"Please don’t worry. I stand here solely responsible for my own safety, you will not be blamed even if I am hurt or killed."

He said it in front of everyone, so naturally the pride of a knight would force him to keep his word, and his master too. Well, that was at least what the others had in mind.

"Quinn Alstaro. Knight-in-training of the Barong estate. Please grant me your guidance."

He raised his sword and introduced himself, brown eyes staring intently at Gabriel, who drew and raised his own sword. If he didn’t introduce himself here and didn’t at least return the greetings then it would reflect poorly on Alice. This was a good chance for her to make some allies so it wouldn’t be good if he did something too reckless.

"Gabriel, no last name. Knight-in-training of Alice De Vritara. Please take care of me."

The introductions were done so now the fighters would normally start charging. But while Quinn started moving, Gabriel remained standing, a pair of violet eyes quietly, almost eerily, observing Quinn, who felt a sliver of a chill in the pit of his stomach. He swallowed heavily and then kept charging forward. Since Alice had saved him for last it was likely that he was stronger than Trisha. Quinn had no vain desires of beating him as quickly as he beat the tired Trisha, but he had to at least glean some of Gabriel’s skills.

He charged forward and thought about the best angle of attack, choosing to raise his sword high and then bring it down heavily. Gabriel wore pauldrons so if he hit his shoulder it wouldn’t be as bad as hitting the other parts of his body.

The sword came down, its edge reflected in Gabriel’s eyes. He waited for a moment and then raised his sword in an arching manner. The edge of his blade collided gently with the flat side of Quinn’s blade, and rather than blocking it he simply pushed it aside by continuing with the arching motion. Once the blade slid down past him, Gabriel’s blade was horizontal again so he swept it out and pushed it forward while taking a quick step forward and to the side.

But the tip didn’t go for Quinn’s head or chest, not even his throat. No, the blade angled itself under his arm with a slight bend of Gabriel’s elbow, the tip of the weapon slipping through the thin gap in his armpit. With the quick step he took, Gabriel was able to angle the blade so that all it would take to go from Quinn’s armpit to his throat would be a quick and simple stab.

But he held back, he stopped the blade just as the tip touched cloth and skin. He didn’t need to go further, it would be pointless and would just cause friction. The message was already clear enough, both to Quinn and the onlookers.

"I… I’ve lost. Thank you for the marvellous display."