CH 05
‘First strike in a fight!’
The boy, who took a direct kick to the stomach, staggered for a moment before glaring at me with a fierce look.
“This insolence…!”
I had aimed to knock him down by putting my entire body weight into the kick, but perhaps due to the difference in physique, he didn’t fall easily.
Still, it allowed me to capture his attention.
“Do you really want to die that badly?”
“God, this is…”
“It’s okay, Mary. Stay back.”
I hid Mary behind me and confronted the boy.
“Well, both you and your maid are as good as dead today.”
The boy brandished his sword threateningly and glared at me with a terrifying expression.
‘He’s taller than me by at least a head and even tries to use a weapon. This guy really means business.’
However, I didn’t think he would win.
Perhaps due to the medicine the Duke gave me yesterday, my body felt remarkably light.
‘My mind might not be the sharpest, but I’m confident in using my body.’
The neck of the Evil Dragon that had brought the continent to the brink of destruction couldn’t be easily snapped.
The boy raised his arm and swung the sword wide.
Judging by the solid muscles and the stable trajectory of the sword, it seemed like he had trained quite diligently.
Probably one of the more skilled ones among his peers.
‘But it’s evident against me.’
As he swung the sword with all his might, it seemed to move in slow motion from my perspective.
I maneuvered, avoiding the boy’s sword and getting inside his guard.
As I closed in, he seemed flustered and attempted to step back, but it was too late.
‘Without a sword, use your fists!’
I clenched my small fist tightly and thrust it upward.
The extended fist struck the boy’s lower jaw as it shot upward.
‘If the strength is lacking, go for the throat!’
“Ah!”
In pain, the boy held his jaw, visibly flustered. Seizing the opportunity, I swiftly struck his solar plexus.
“Crack!”
‘A bit sorry, but unavoidable!’
In a fight, showing mercy meant death.
It wasn’t a joke; if that sword had hit me, with this fragile body, I might have truly died.
‘Nevertheless, I’ll spare his life!’
Internally consoling myself, I tripped the boy’s aching leg and as he struggled to regain balance, I mounted him, delivering a series of punches.
—
“Rather than this, we suggested adopting Dawson, did we not?”
The Duke’s forehead wrinkled unpleasantly.
Dawson was the grandson of the head of the council.
Seeing him pretend to be well-behaved whenever he passed by was irritating.
“Regardless of who I choose as my successor, it’s not a matter for you to decide.” (Count said)
“Even when there’s an excellent child like Dawson, adopting an unknown child…”
“Do you know anything about the child’s parents? Perhaps he’s the descendant of criminals. The fact that such a child enters the Clasta mansion is dreadful to think about.”
“We’re expressing concern for the Clasta family! If he comes from an orphanage, she likely hasn’t properly learned to wield magic yet! Making such a child your successor will ruin the Clasta family!”
Thirty years had passed since the evil dragon’s demise, but the continent remained in turmoil.
The minions of the evil dragon still lurked in the shadows, and the monsters had become even more greedy and malicious.
The powerful military force to defend territories from these creatures had become an essential virtue for the nobles.
Perhaps it was due to the Duke’s exceptional skills that the Clasta Duchy could expand to this extent.
“However, choosing an unknown child who had come from who knows where as the successor was beyond comprehension.”
“It seemed like witnessing the downfall of the Clasta Duchy was near.”
“No matter what you say, the adoption process has already been completed, and it’s irreversible.”
“Duke!”
“It’s noisy. It’s endless if I start listening. The successor is decided, so let’s end this discussion now.”
As if annoyed, Duke Clasta raised his hand and stood up.
At that moment, a knight urgently entered the meeting room and approached the chairman.
“What, what did you say? Dawson fought, got injured, and collapsed?”
The people in the meeting room looked at the chairman with surprised eyes.
Dawson, being the grandson of the head of the council, had been well-treated, receiving the best education and training.
He was talented and physically strong enough to face an adult knight.
The fact that Dawson had fought and was injured shocked everyone in the room.
“Who dared to do such a thing? Did he dare to fight against an elite knight? How dare someone…!”
The chairman’s anger flared up at the news of his carefully raised grandson being injured.
The intensity of his rage was evident as the knight delivering the news hesitated, feeling the chairman’s wrath.
“Well, what is it?”
“We’ve already confined him to the dungeon… but it’s…”
The knight looked at Duke Clasta with a troubled expression.
“Claiming to be Duke Clasta’s daughter, Arielle…”
Arielle?
The people in the room were stunned by the name they had just heard in the meeting.
One person, seemingly skeptical, questioned the knight, “Did she really say she’s Arielle Clasta?”
“Yes, yes, that’s correct. She claimed to be Duke Clasta’s daughter… but we haven’t received any official confirmation yet…”
Arielle’s identity was just announced in the meeting room.
However, during the brief moment I was outside, such an incident occurred.
The image of Arielle I had just seen flashed in the minds of the people in the room.
A young girl with long sky-blue hair, displaying a serene expression as if it didn’t matter what people said about her.
With her fair and slender face, slightly uplifted eyes resembling a cat, the cute appearance of the girl from the orphanage was smaller and more delicate than her peers, hinting at a lack of proper nutrition.
But this Arielle defeated Dawson, who was not only much taller than her but also bigger in stature?
“Does that make sense? Is her swordsmanship really that outstanding?”
“Did she learn swordplay at the orphanage? It’s suspicious! Tell us more about what happened.”
The knight hesitated but eventually relayed the information he had witnessed.
“Well… she… she defeated him not with a sword but with her fists.”
It was even more unbelievable.
Amid the astonished crowd, a loud burst of laughter echoed.
“Hahaha!”
Turning our gaze, Duke Clasta was holding his stomach and laughing heartily.
“Oh, this is amusing. Truly entertaining. I thought she was extraordinary, but I didn’t expect her to make such a spectacular entrance right away.”
The Duke, still with a lingering smile on his face, spoke.
“I suppose my daughter is better than that Denson you recommended to me.”
The Duke smirked as he looked at the tight-lipped faces at the sudden news.
“Well, since there is nothing more to be said, I must be off to get my daughter out of prison.”
* * *
“My lady, you are not hurt anywhere, are you?”
“Yes, I am all right; and Mary?”
“I’m fine, thanks to you.”
Me and Mary were now in prison.
Amidst the chaos, the knights rushed to find Dawson sprawled on the floor. Me and Mary were apprehended on the spot.
Despite Mary revealing that I was Arielle Clasta, the daughter of Duke Clasta, the news hadn’t reached the knights, leading to our imprisonment.
“You must tell me if you’re injured.”
“I’m really okay. I never expected our mistress to stand up for a humble servant like me. Where did the master find such an angel?”
Mary held both my hands, expressing her gratitude in a tender voice.
“Miss was amazing earlier, facing Dawson head-on. So brave that I fell for her in that moment.”
“It’s not a big deal. He was just too weak.”
Except for someone like Duke Clasta, who might not know.
“If it were Master Dawson, would he be quite skilled among his peers? Our mistress is even humble.”
Each time Mary spoke warmly, my heart fluttered.
“Once we get out of prison, I’ll cook you delicious meals. I noticed you like beef, but do you also like fish?”
“I love it!”
Anything was welcome as long as it wasn’t as tough as stones.
But I soon spoke with a gloomy expression, “But can we really get out of here?”
Though I acted impulsively, if Duke Clasta got angry and decided a lifetime sentence, what would we do?
“Well, then I guess we’ll have to escape secretly.”
I had a quick look around, and the surveillance didn’t seem too strict.
It felt like we could manage to escape in about a year.
Then, a familiar voice reached my ears.
“Surely you don’t prefer the prison over the bedroom I prepared for you.” (Duke said)
With a gesture from the Duke, the knight hurriedly opened the prison door.
As we stepped out of the prison, Duke Clasta looked down at me with his arms crossed.
‘I should probably apologize and start begging.’
As I hesitated for a moment, the Duke suddenly smiled brightly.
“Well done.”
Then, he bent down, lifted me up in his arms, and playfully pinched my nose.
“his jaw may be broken, but next time, I’ll break his nose too.” (Aiteira said)
“he is just like his grandfather, so ruthless! How could he even think of hitting a girl five years younger than him with a weapon!”
Owell spoke in a heavily agitated voice.
“he wanted to hit me too! If it weren’t for her, I would be in the hospital, not him!”
Owell was taken aback by Mary’s words.
“No, he wanted to hit the Lady’s maid?”
“Yes! The Lady was amazing today. She didn’t miss a beat when rushing at a taller opponent. I fell for her in that moment.”
I silently gazed at the Duke from within his embrace.
“Aren’t you angry?” I asked. (Alteira asked)
“Why would I be angry?”
The Duke playfully tousled my hair.
“I told you, all you have to do is survive here for a long time.”
“Does that include incidents like this?” (Alteira asked)
“That’s right.”
The Duke held me and spoke as we exited the prison.
“In the future, anyone who messes with you, whether it’s me or anyone else, should expect the same outcome as today.”
“But what if I end up retaliating against someone I shouldn’t?”
Even when I lived as the daughter of the Evil Dragon and grew up under Regan, I was always considered more formidable than anyone else. I had no one who could be a permissible opponent even if I got angry.
To this, Duke Clasta laughed joyfully.
“Is there anyone Arielle Clasta shouldn’t mess with?”
A strange sensation pricked at the corner of my heart.
For the first time, I buried my face in the Duke’s embrace.
—
“I can’t tolerate this! That woman attacked us! Even if she’s young…! If I hadn’t gone easy on her, she would have been dead…!”
Dawson shouted furiously with a pained expression on his face.
But then, he winced in pain and fell silent.
“Calm down. Getting angry unnecessarily might worsen your injuries.”
The Head of the Council, Dawson’s grandfather, spoke, and Dawson clutched the bedsheet in frustration.
“I don’t know where the Duke brought her from, but he brought someone remarkable. I thought it would be easy to handle since she came from an orphanage, but it won’t be that simple.”
The Head of the Council held Dawson’s hand and continued.
“If Duke Clasta dies, there’s no one else but you to inherit this dukedom. Just wait a bit. Your father will soon create an opportunity for revenge.”
Then prepare your coffin…