Ian quickly stepped back.
– Thud!
A sword struck the spot where he had been standing.
As he frowned at the sudden attack, the sound of clapping echoed.
“Just as expected.”
The one clapping was Grand Duke Edelmar.
“…Grand Duke?”
Ian furrowed his brow.
Why is the Grand Duke here?
Drawing a new sword, Edelmar pointed its tip at Ian and said,
“You owe me something, don’t you?”
“What are you talking about, Grand Duke?”
“You can repay me with a duel,”
Edelmar said with a sly smile before abruptly charging at Ian with his sword.
“Grand Duke!”
Ian swiftly summoned Fragarach and blocked the sword aimed at his neck.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“You owe me a debt. Let’s settle it with a duel,”
Edelmar responded, pushing back Ian’s sword.
Edelmar followed up with a horizontal slash, forcing Ian to retreat once more.
“What are you talking about? Why all of a sudden?”
There was no time to speak further, as the attacks kept coming.
– Clang! Clang!
Ian defended himself against the relentless assault, searching for an opening.
However, as expected of someone with the title of Swordmaster, Edelmar left no gaps.
‘Damn it.’
As Ian blocked a strike aimed at his waist, Edelmar’s eyes gleamed.
“Impressive defense.”
“When did you arrive in the Duchy? And how did you get in here?”
Ian asked as soon as he found a brief moment to catch his breath.
But Edelmar didn’t answer so easily.
“Are you an Aura Master?”
Ian gritted his teeth.
“…There’s no reason to tell you.”
“I’m about to use my aura now. If you value your life, defend yourself well.”
Suddenly, Edelmar’s sword was enveloped in aura. Ian hurriedly cloaked his own sword in aura as well.
“Just as I thought. Shall we fight for real now?”
– Boom! Boom!
As golden and silver auras clashed, they created explosive sounds and stirred the wind.
“Are you going to continue this?”
Ian asked, pushing back against Edelmar’s aura-covered sword.
“If you want this to end, you’ll have to defeat me. I won’t stop until then.”
“Defeat a Swordmaster?”
Ian replied, raising his eyebrows in disbelief.
Edelmar lifted his eyebrows playfully as if to say, ‘If you can’t, there’s nothing you can do about it.’
‘Damn it.’
After pushing Edelmar’s sword aside, Ian was the first to launch an attack.
Seeing Ian charge at him, Edelmar burst into laughter and swung his sword.
The aura condensed into a sharp wind that shot toward Ian.
But Ian sliced through the wind with his sword.
“This is fun!”
Edelmar exclaimed, deflecting Ian’s sword aimed at his neck.
Their swords clashed repeatedly as both sides took turns attacking and defending.
The knights who had taken shelter watched the endless fight with their mouths agape.
“Is this even possible?”
“Can you see it?”
“Do you think I can? All I see are flashes of light.”
“Ah, I see.”
The knight chuckled softly and refocused on the battle.
In the distance, all he could see was the clash of aura against aura, with no sign of the people involved.
‘So, this is what a fight between aura users looks like. Incredible. Truly.’
While the knight was once again marveling at the sight, Ian gritted his teeth at Edelmar’s words.
“You’re still not taking this seriously, are you?”
“Watch closely. This is just me barely holding on.”
Ian’s words were genuine.
Although he was an aura user, he had not yet reached the level of a Swordmaster.
The only reason he could endure this fight was due to the skills he had learned from the Constellations and the combat experience he gained from his past battles.
“Is that so? It doesn’t seem that way to me.”
Edelmar’s sword, which was previously wrapped in aura, suddenly extended in length.
As the aura brushed past Ian’s cheek, he quickly stepped back, feeling a searing pain where it touched.
In an instant, Edelmar closed the distance, and Ian blocked the sword aimed at his heart and lifted it upwards. The screeching sound of aura scraping against aura filled the air.
The spectators covered their ears, but the noise had no effect on the two fighters.
As Edelmar deflected the sword that had been aiming for his head.
– Bang!
Their weapons clashed once more, then separated.
As time went on, the aura surrounding Ian’s sword began to waver.
‘I can’t drag this out any longer.’
Ian gritted his teeth and charged at Edelmar.
“Oh?”
Amused, Edelmar allowed Ian to close in, only to find himself suddenly thrown to the ground as Ian grabbed his wrist and flipped him over.
Edelmar, who had let Ian approach out of curiosity, was now slammed into the ground.
“Hah… hah…”
Breathing heavily, Ian collapsed onto the floor.
It was the first time since arriving here that he had completely exhausted his strength.
His breath came in gasps, and he didn’t have the energy to stand.
“Ha!”
Edelmar, lying sprawled out on the floor, let out a bitter laugh. He then sat up and moved next to Ian.
“Do you know hand-to-hand combat too?”
Ian, still trying to catch his breath, replied,
“If I don’t have a sword, I have to use my fists, don’t I?”
In his past, during his time as a Constellation’s chosen, there were times when his sword would break or slip from his grip while fighting monsters.
Since monsters wouldn’t wait for him to pick up another weapon, he had to use his fists instead.
Edelmar burst out laughing.
‘Did he hit his head when he fell?’
Ian wondered, looking at him in confusion.
After laughing for a while, Edelmar extended his hand.
“What do you want?”
Ian asked, even as he accepted the handshake.
Edelmar smiled brightly and said,
“Since you’ve agreed, I’ll be staying here from now on.”
“What?! What do you mean by that?”
Edelmar stood up cheerfully, waved his hand, and began walking towards the mansion.
Ian, utterly bewildered, muttered to himself,
“What’s with that guy?”
***
Ian let out a sigh.
It was because Edelmar had taken up residence in the mansion after their duel.
Calling himself a guest, Edelmar had confidently settled into one of the guest rooms.
If it had been any other noble, it wouldn’t have mattered if they stayed at the duchy since the mansion was spacious.
But Edelmar was a grand duke—no less than the Emperor’s cherished younger brother.
Given that the duchy was preparing for independence, having someone like him stay there was a cause for concern.
‘I’d throw him out if he caused any trouble.’
But that wasn’t the case.
The grand duke had been living quietly, almost as if he wasn’t even there.
He ate his meals in his room and avoided interacting with the children.
However, whenever Ian was in the training grounds, Edelmar would appear out of nowhere, like a ghost, and relentlessly challenge him to duels, constantly bringing up the debt he was owed.
“I should have formally requested an audience,”
Ian muttered to himself. If he had known the cost of accepting Edelmar’s help would be this high, he would have never accepted it.
He clicked his tongue at himself as he reached for the documents he had set down earlier.
“Duke.”
Without even knocking, Edelmar entered and stood before Ian’s desk.
“You’re not going to the training grounds today?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
Edelmar looked puzzled as if he didn’t understand the obvious reason.
Ian sighed and said,
“Because of our duels, the knights’ training hasn’t been going properly.”
“Ah, I see. Then should we do it somewhere else?”
“No.”
Ian raised his head to meet Edelmar’s gaze and said,
“We need to talk.”
“Alright.”
Edelmar readily agreed and sat down on the sofa in the office.
Ian handed him a cup of tea that had cooled down a bit.
“How long do you plan to stay here?”
Instead of answering, Edelmar simply lifted the teacup.
“Don’t you have anything to do?”
“Not really.”
“For a grand duke like you?”
“My dear elder brother isn’t cruel enough to give work to his beloved younger brother.”
Ian clenched his fists.
“Don’t you have any duties at the grand duchy?”
Edelmar responded slyly,
“Unfortunately, things run more smoothly in the grand duchy when I’m not there.”
Ian closed his eyes tightly.
He really wanted to throw him out.
If Edelmar were just some ordinary noble, Ian wouldn’t have cared if he stayed or left the duchy.
But Edelmar wasn’t just any noble. He was a grand duke of the empire and the Emperor’s most cherished sibling.
Even though Edelmar was currently holed up in his room, Ian feared that if he stayed any longer, he might uncover Ian’s plans.
“What will it take for you to leave?”
“What will it take?”
Edelmar asked with interest.
“Yes. What will it take for you to leave?”
Ian couldn’t afford to keep this dangerous individual around any longer.
Whatever Edelmar demanded, Ian was ready to grant it. Edelmar set his teacup down.
“A real duel.”
“A duel? Haven’t we had plenty of duels already?”
“But you haven’t used your full strength, have you?”
‘There’s no way he could know about my skills. Could it be magic? Was Edelmar at the plaza that day?’
Despite his anxiety, Ian kept his face expressionless.
“I’m not sure what you mean. You’ve already seen my aura, haven’t you?”
“Really? No lies at all?”
A smile lingered in Edelmar’s lazy eyes.
“Yes.”
“Then I’ll stay here a bit longer. Now that I’m finally getting used to the cold, it’s the perfect time to stay.”
“Grand Duke.”
At Ian’s firm tone, Edelmar leaned back into the sofa.
“If you really want me to leave, then have a real duel with me, using your full strength.”
“…What do you mean by ‘full strength’?”
“Are you not interested in talking to me…?”
“I’m asking because I genuinely don’t know.”
Edelmar folded his arms and stared at Ian. The tension between them continued in silence until Edelmar finally spoke first.
“Magic.”
‘Damn it, he really did see it,’
Ian cursed inwardly, but outwardly, he remained calm.
“If you wish to duel a mage, the royal court has its own mages, doesn’t it?”
“You must be unaware since you’re stuck out here in the countryside.”
‘Why is he calling my duchy the countryside? This is the land Rose will rule one day!’
Ian bristled at the derogatory comment about the duchy, but before he could retort, Edelmar continued.
“While both magic and aura are based on mana, the way they are accumulated is different. A mage forms a circle in their heart.”
Edelmar pointed to a spot just below his navel.
“A swordsman forms a core in their dantian (energy center).”
“And what’s the point of that?”
Ian looked at Edelmar strangely as he suddenly began lecturing on the basics of mana.
Edelmar, enjoying the confused look on Ian’s face, smiled as he continued.
“A circle can never become aura, and a core can never become magic.”
‘That’s obvious… oh.’
It hit Ian suddenly.
Because of the blessing of the Constellations, he possessed both a circle and mana simultaneously, something most people couldn’t achieve.
He had forgotten that ordinary people couldn’t use both at the same time.
“In truth, unlike swordsmen, mages are all about talent. I once dreamed of becoming a mage too. But instead of a circle forming, a core developed instead, so I had to give up on that dream.”
Despite recounting a story of his own disappointment, Edelmar beamed as if he were talking about something pleasant.
“…How did you find out?”
Ian asked.
“The child captured by the slavers was in far too good health.”
‘Ah, it was back then.’
Who would have thought that healing a child on the verge of death would come back to haunt him?
“How did you know it was me?”
