Ian looked at the man staring at him with an interested expression on his face.
Honestly, although he told Logan he would sort things out with them, he preferred to resolve it through conversation if possible.
The target was a knight, not a gunman who sorted things out by brandishing weapons.
However, as soon as he heard Claude’s gossip, the hope Ian had shattered like glass.
‘I can’t just let this slide, right?’
If this is left alone, the knightly order would continue to be neglected with lax discipline, which could pose a significant problem in executing future plans.
‘There’s a high chance they’ll try to remove me, claiming I’m causing interference. Tsk.’
Ian, who had slipped in among the breathless knights, looked up at the knight commander, William.
“Blessings of spring upon the fruits of Loenbaum.”
As Knight Commander William rose and knelt on one knee, the knights followed suit, kneeling and chanting together.
Ian scanned the knights, then fixed his gaze on the man who, while meeting the requirements, had a gaze full of rebellion.
“Can you tell me what’s your name?”
Claude, with his head held high and a cocky attitude, spoke as if clicking his tongue.
“I am Claude Cassan.”
“Claude! Don’t speak insolently to the Duke!”
Ian, restraining William by raising his hand as he burst out angrily, looked at Claude and asked.
“Alright. Claude Cassan. Any noble lineage?”
“No. I was a commoner orphan until caught the attention of the Knight Commander and started from scratch.”
“I see.”
Ian nodded thoughtfully, glancing at Claude’s back.
A large sword was strapped to his back, as large as his stature.
“Do you wield the greatsword?”
“Yes.”
Even though he felt like shouting to slice the guy’s throat right then and there, Ian strangely kept pouring out questions.
The knights chuckled at his demeanor.
“When were you knighted?”
“Four years ago.”
Ian scrutinized Claude’s face.
‘Ah! Claude.’
Claude was one of a character from the novel.
Claude Cassan.
He was initially one of the knights who disliked Rose, but later, due to certain events, he decides to pledge allegiance to her.
Becoming one of Rose’s guardian knights, he even risks his life to rescue her when she’s in a dire situation.
Due to his upbringing on the streets during his early years, he lacked proper education and had rough edges, but he wasn’t inherently a bad person.
“Hmm.”
After returning from the capital, Ian, who had planned to assign Claude as a guardian knight to Rose, found Claude to be a decent knight in his eyes.
“Your age?”
“I’m 20 years old.”
“Oh? Knighted at 16. Quite young to be knighted. How strong are you compared to the other knights?”
“Second or not, does it matter right now?”
“No, it doesn’t matter.”
Ian chuckled and extended his hand towards William.
“Hand me the sword.”
“Duke.”
Despite William’s attempt to intervene, Ian only waved his hand while keeping his gaze fixed on Claude.
Claude was taken aback by his demeanor.
“Surely you’re not suggesting a duel with me, are you?”
“Why do you think it’s not? William, do you also disagree with me?”
Hesitating, William unsheathed his sword. While he might bravely suggest a duel now, in reality, he handed it over with a flimsy calculation, expecting Ian to falter under its weight once he actually held the sword.
However.
“You’re using a lighter sword than I expected.”
As he wielded the sword almost effortlessly, as if it were a twig, the knights’ eyes widened.
“The Duke knows how to use a sword?”
“Not as heavy as a greatsword… Wasn’t the Knight Commander’s sword on the heavier side?”
“Am I dreaming right now?”
Ignoring the murmuring knights, Ian ordered William while looking at him.
“Make some space.”
Claude repeated the same disbelief.
“Are you really going to duel with me?”
“Then is there such a thing as a fake duel?”
With a scoff, Claude exhaled as if amused.
“You might get hurt. A duel isn’t something to be taken lightly.”
At first glance, it seemed like concern for Ian, but beneath it was an underestimation of him.
“If the Duke is injured, the blame will be all on me.”
“I wouldn’t let that happen.”
“Claude! How insolent you are!”
“William!”
William acquiesced to Ian’s voice.
“Regardless of what happens in this duel, don’t hold Claude responsible.”
“Duke.”
“This is an order.”
“I will protect it at all costs.”
Claude glared at Ian as if to say,
“Is it over now?”
The knights who had agreed moved away, and a circular arena was formed.
“Will you come first, or shall I?”
“Are you really not going to regret this?”
“Yes.”
“Even if something breaks, it won’t be my responsibility.”
Ian chuckled, extending his hand holding the sword.
“Stop babbling and come on.”
Claude grimaced.
Although he had changed from the past, the Duke still looked frail and feeble.
‘How ridiculous I must have appeared as a knight.’
With a sneer, Claude drew his greatsword.
Since he promised not to hold anyone accountable, he intended to instill respect for knights this time.
No matter how high his rank, he couldn’t overlook disrespecting a knight’s dignity.
“I’ll go.”
“Is it not just your tongue that’s long, but your preparation time too?”
Ignoring Ian’s sarcasm, Claude raised his greatsword high and charged.
Unable to intervene but unwilling to stand idly by, the knights closed their eyes tightly to avoid witnessing the disloyalty.
“Ugh!”
With a familiar cry of pain and the sound of something being struck, the knights subtly opened their eyes.
Before them stood Duke Ian, aiming a sword at Claude’s neck, who had raised both hands in surrender.
“What, what is this?”
“Claude, where’s your damn sword?!”
“Oops. Did you lose the sword?”
With Claude’s sword stuck in the ground and the outcome determined in just one move, the knights began to murmur.
“You may have strength, but no matter how lightly you think of your opponent, you shouldn’t swing your sword so carelessly.”
William approached Ian when he lowered his sword with a smirk.
“You said Claude was second. Who was the first?”
“That’s me.”
Ian chuckled dryly.
“It seems the Knight Commander raised a kids, not a knights.”
As Claude was about to protest with a frustrated expression, William bowed first.
“I apologize.”
“It’s fine. If the master had ignored it all this time, you couldn’t have helped it either.”
Though William’s complexion darkened, Ian turned away from him towards the knights, ignoring him.
“I know I’ve been indifferent to my duties until now.”
The murmuring knights looked at Ian.
“But you are the Loenbaum Knights, the Black Wolf Knight. There are no bastard wolves without a leader.”
Black Wolf.
It was the name originally given to the knights by the Duke, the only knight order in the empire approved by the royal family.
True to their name, the Black Wolf were the first to hunt monsters for the empire and the first to engage in war when it occurred.
However, when the Duke, who had been confined to his room, called them bastards, Claude, who had been quietly suppressing his anger, couldn’t take it anymore and burst out.
“We are the wolf! Not bastards! That’s not something the Duke, who has been holed up in his room all this time, should say!”
“Claude!! Are you out of your mind? What are you doing?!”
As Claude erupted, the knights nearby panicked and tried to restrain him, but Ian just looked at him and chuckled softly.
“Weren’t you a wolf in the room? Now, through this duel, everyone knows who the real wolf is, right?”
Claude’s face turned red.
It was just one strike.
To call it luck or coincidence would be an understatement; the difference in skill was too stark.
“I have nothing to say. I apologize, Duke.”
As William bowed, the knights followed suit.
“It’s fine. Apologies won’t necessarily improve your skills.”
Ian’s blunt remark kept the knights from raising their heads.
“I have something to announce. We’ll conduct a monster extermination in winter next week. We plan to take only the top 20 through this duel.”
“Duke, is there a reason for advancing the extermination suddenly?”
“There will be a crowning ceremony for the crown prince in the fall. If I go up to the capital, I may not be able to come down in time for winter. I plan to subdue it first and then go.”
Ian glanced around at the knights after finishing his speech.
In the original work, the description of the knights was impressive, and Ian wasn’t worried about their strength. However, contrary to their reputation, the knights before him all seemed weak.
‘It’s more impressive that they’ve conducted monster exterminations until now.’
If they became as strong as their goal, there would be no opponent who could defeat them in combat. However, Rose was different.
Ian, who had no intention of teaching dangerous swordsmanship to delicate Rose, was determined to ensure that the knights became as strong as he was.
Knights would grow faster than a novice gunman from an ignorant guild.
Ian looked around at the puzzled faces of the knights and then turned to William.
“How is the knight training conducted?”
“We have basic training starting at 10 a.m., followed by sparring sessions in the afternoon.”
Ian found it strange that the knights were just spectating during their training sessions instead of actively participating, which he usually observed during his morning walks.
From the knights’ perspective, it was their leisure time, so they confidently enjoyed watching.
“Since when did the knights start training after sunrise?”
“The former Duke didn’t like morning training.”
Ian cursed the previous Duke from the original story, who not only failed to raise his children properly but also ruined the knight order.
“We’ll have to change the knight training regimen. Come to my study tonight for details.”
Ian said, recalling the brutal training methods from his memory.
“Understood.”
“Oh, and you should change your sword. It seems unbalanced.”
“…Is that so?”
Ian took out a key from his pocket and handed it to William.
“It’s for the armory. Go find a suitable sword.”
“Duke.”
“If you can’t find a suitable one there, let me know when you bring the key back. I’m not someone who would tell an important person to use any random sword.”
William looked at Ian with a touched expression.
Ian gestured for them to hurry, then turned towards the castle.
As Ian and William disappeared together, the knights released the breath they had been holding.
“What was that just now? The Duke’s pressure was no joke.”
“Yeah, was he always like that?”
“Does anyone know what happened in the duel? Ah, I should have opened my eyes to see it earlier!”
“We should ask Claude. Hey, Claude!”
While the knights speculated about Ian’s disappearance, Claude clenched his fists while glaring at the ground.
Unlike the longsword, the greatsword was heavy, making even facing it a burden.
However, the Duke effortlessly parried the sword.
Very easily.
“Hey, what are you thinking that you’re not answering? What happened in the duel? How did the Duke manage to parry the sword?”
“Hey! Say something!”
“Quiet!”
Pushing aside the grumbling knights, Claude pulled out the greatsword stuck in the ground.
And he stared at the castle while sharpening it.
