Chapter: 358
While Lucy was meticulously preparing to participate in the arena, those left in the Allen Knights were sprawled out on the training ground floor, resting.
It was clear to anyone that those of noble status shouldn’t look like this outside, but no one dared to point that out.
The reality was just too grim to uphold any honor of the nobility.
“After lunch ends, we’ll have to roll around until dinner again.”
“…Third Prince, do you really have to mention that?”
“Lady Partlan is right. Let’s relax while we can.”
As soon as Arthur spoke, the kids from the Partlan and Burrow families next to him scolded him.
However, Arthur didn’t seem fazed at all.
“I’ve been running since dawn, feeling like throwing up, and after breakfast, I just wanted to faint from all the physical training! What’s waiting for us after lunch?”
“I don’t want to imagine it, so please take it easy.”
“I know what we’ll be doing after dinner. We’ll be dueling with the knights right up until we sleep, and they said they’d let us sleep for three whole hours, considering we’re still young. Three hours! How considerate of them!”
“Third Prince, do you need to be stabbed with a spear before you stop?”
“But Lucy Allen, who threw us into this hellhole, just left saying she had her own things to do! That damn girl!”
Arthur cursed, but neither Jack nor Joy could bring themselves to say anything. His anger was utterly justified.
It was Joy’s cautious words that finally calmed Arthur down.
“In a way, isn’t it a relief she left? If Lady Allen were here, it would be much harder for us.”
“…That’s true.”
Arthur nodded lightly at that.
If the one who had been harassing him throughout training were here, he’d probably be too busy being verbally abused to even think about speaking right now.
Upon reflection, this person should really stay away for a long time. Perhaps it wouldn’t be bad if they were gone until training was over.
After all, training with that person wouldn’t really change anything.
If Lucy Allen, who was already accustomed to the Allen Knights’ training, had joined us, she’d have pushed us to our limits while choosing to work herself twice as hard.
“Joy, what was that person doing again?”
“To the Terasha Empire’s arena. They said they’d be participating there.”
The arena of the Terasha Empire, huh.
Arthur recalled when he accompanied envoys there in his childhood for the sake of socialization.
Noblemen who willingly risked their lives to show off their strength.
Both victors and losers shaking hands with smiles in a glorious duel.
And the spectators who were thrilled, promising themselves one day they’d join in.
Lucy Allen is participating there?
‘Hey, hey. How does it feel to get beaten by a girl who’s much smaller than you?’
“…That opponent is unfortunate.”
Arthur felt sympathy for Lucy’s opponent, imagining the kind of words she might throw at them.
What would go through the mind of someone participating in the arena for honor, only to be insulted by a girl hiding behind a shield?
And how would they feel when they fall apart without even being able to land a single scratch on her, their self-esteem crushed?
“I hope it doesn’t lead to diplomatic issues.”
Hoping that there would be no high-ranking nobles hit by Lucy Allen’s sharp words, Arthur slowly stood up as he heard footsteps approaching from afar.
“Third Prince.”
“What is it, Frey? Did you finally come to rest too?”
“No, the break time is over now.”
“…Already?”
“Don’t! Ahhhhhh…”
“Oh God…”
Frey, who loved the Allen Knights’ training, couldn’t understand the despairing trio.
*
The people of the Terasha Empire revere the strong.
It is considered etiquette to respect someone who is strong enough, regardless of their status.
With how much they prefer strength, the people of the Terasha Empire also hold a strong contempt for the weak.
Anyone weaker than themselves should naturally respect them, and if they don’t show that respect, they will pay the price.
There could be no mercy. Being overlooked and laughed at by the weak is not kindness but weakness. The strong must ensure that the weak pay a price, even if there are differences in status.
If they didn’t want to be dragged down by the weak. Count Bardronel, who learned about honor from his parents from birth, understood this better than anyone.
That’s why he respected the strength of Benedict Allen, laughing off rudeness, while also secretly tracking Lucy Allen’s actions.
He wished for her to get the arena participation rights. To make her pay for rudeness.
And just previously,
Lucy Allen was able to gain entry to the arena as Count Bardronel wished.
“Son.”
“Yes, Father.”
“I think you already know without me saying it.”
“Don’t worry, Father. I won’t disappoint you.”
After his son left the office, Count Bardronel leaned back in his chair, looking up at the ceiling, a smile creeping onto his face.
“I must think of a way to prevent the wrath of the Allen family.”
He didn’t even consider that his son would lose.
*
Leaving the dead Benedict behind, I stepped out onto the street and entered the shop managed by the Newman family once more.
I was here to check who would be participating in the upcoming arena.
If it were just to gain experience, I might have rushed in and thought about it later; however, given the divine mission bestowed upon me by the great and noble Lord Armadi, I couldn’t do that.
I must win the tournament in the arena to see my spec sheet!
Of course, it’s also important to know how strong I currently am, but there are some things that can only happen if certain stats are exceeded.
I must complete this mission for the sake of knowing how much I need to grow.
“Here’s the list of people the lady should pay attention to.”
As I articulated my demand, a person from the Newman family promptly handed me a document.
“Do you need an explanation about each individual?”
‘No, it’s fine.’
“Just go away and stop bothering me, you old thing.”
“…Yes. Understood.”
After the awkwardly smiling Newman employee withdrew, I propped my chin and examined the list.
There were a lot of names I recognized.
That was only natural. The arena in the Terasha Empire had been a well-established content in the game Soul Academy. I didn’t memorize the names of all the NPCs there, but I remembered those who would be obstacles.
For example,
One of the names on the participant list was Bauth. A guy who carried around a giant hammer that most people wouldn’t even dare to touch.
His movements weren’t fast, but each attack was powerful and had a wide range, making him a troublesome opponent.
The strategy?
Stay calm. He has strong attacks, so he leaves big openings after each strike, making it manageable to take him down if treated with coolness.
I didn’t know how it would be in reality, but that was how it was in the game.
There was also Diel, who was quite the challenging opponent.
He used the elemental spirits he summoned to harass users, often referred to as a “shotgun manufacturer.”
When facing an enemy who attacks and dashes like a user, curses tended to slip out naturally.
The method of countering him was to withstand his attacks while breaking through.
Since each attack dealt low damage, it wouldn’t be hard to take him down if you fought making it a ‘you die, I die’ contest.
Besides these, there were Park, Gav, Ham, Arsha, and Han.
“This guy is also participating in the arena?”
As I was recalling the names that stuck in my memory, I flinched at the voice that suddenly came from the side.
“Ah, I’m sorry, Lucy. I just stumbled upon a name that I recognized from when we clashed weapons before, and I couldn’t help but speak out.”
Benedict, who seemed unable to get out from the aftereffects of the ‘Papa Baderoni’ incident, immediately offered an apology as soon as he made eye contact with me.
But I still couldn’t forgive him.
How could he refuse to even pretend to listen after I had been so kind in explaining?
If the tavern-goers hadn’t intervened, I would have been branded as the bad girl.
Considering that resentment, it’s still a little early to forgive.
Should I say something like, “Could you please get a bit further away?”
Hmm. No. That would be too obvious.
It would be better to just turn away without a word.
My assumption was correct. As I turned my gaze back to the list without any reaction, Benedict’s giant frame crumbled.
“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, Lucy! This foolish papa!”
“…”
“Lucyyyyyy!”
Was the sight of the defeatist giant pitiful? The bald knight who had been waiting behind stepped in with a gentle voice.
“Uh, um. Miss. The head of the house means well too.”
‘Shut it, bald head.’
“Shut up. You’re so dense that your hair must have run away from you.”
At my sharpened tone, the bald knight fell silent, but in his place, two others—Karl and Erin—jumped in to defend Benedict.
“Miss, the head of the house is reflecting on his actions.”
“Indeed, Miss. Why not show a moment of generosity and forgive him?”
…Ugh. It wouldn’t be so easy to ignore the same sentiment from two people who are unconditionally kind to me.
I pouted my lips, then turned my face towards the tearful Benedict.
“Papa♡”
“…Lucy.”
“If you do something as foolish again next time, I really won’t forgive you♡ No matter how much of a fool you are…”
“Lucyyyyyy!”
Before I could finish my sentence, Benedict burst into tears, pouring liquid from his entire face as he pulled me into a hug.
At first, I tried hard to escape from that sticky embrace, but now, as I am, escaping from Benedict’s strength was impossible.
Before long, I surrendered and gently patted his back until his frustrations eased.
“Ugh. I’m so sorry, Lucy. This foolish papa…”
‘It’s fine, just stop it already.’
“It’s okay. When a foolish father does something foolish, that’s not just any day!”
“Sniff. To misunderstand such a good Lucy… This foolish papa can’t hold his head up.”
Sigh. Since trying to soothe him doesn’t seem to yield results, I’ll just change the topic.
Talking about something else should distract him.
‘More than that, just now…’
“Instead of that, foolish papa, you just mentioned there was an opponent who was sloppy, right? Tell me, I’ll listen specially to how stupid you’ve been in the past.”
*
On the day of the arena’s commencement. After finishing the congratulatory speech, Count Bardronel leisurely watched the battles of several warriors from the upper seats.
This arena seems to be better quality than usual. It must be influenced by the Great Allen’s appearance on the street.
It’s only natural for someone who seeks to show off their strength in front of a legend passed down across the continent.
“Ooh! Finally, it’s Lucy’s turn!”
Following Benedict Allen’s excited voice, Count Bardronel turned his head to see Lucy stepping out from the door.
The quality of her weaponry is excellent.
The shield, glowing in the sunlight, may evoke legends from the past, while the mace, as if it knows no rust, is truly beautiful, capable of stunning anyone who wields weapons, but all the more terrifying.
However, compared to the quality of her weaponry, her armor is shabby. It’s not a bad piece, but it’s far inferior compared to the shield and mace.
What kind of confidence does she have? The most critical piece of equipment in battle should be the armor of all things.
Well, such questions aside, she is disgustingly beautiful.
Just by revealing herself, she steals not only the audience’s gaze but also the very soul of her opponent.
If she climbs to a high place, the box office for this arena will undoubtedly soar.
However, unfortunately for her, her first opponent isn’t good.
Bauth, who wields a giant hammer, is not some shabby guy who would lose to such a little girl.
To be eliminated before even encountering his son is truly troublesome, yet on the other hand, it’s quite delightful.
While Count Bardronel was certain of Lucy’s defeat, Bauth, standing opposite Lucy, finally regained his composure and turned towards her.
“Nice to meet you, Lady Allen. I hope we have a good match.”
As soon as Bauth, undoubtedly a strong contender, greeted her respectfully, voices from the audience praising his kindness erupted.
However, those voices quickly came to an end.
“Yeah, nice to meet you too, big guy. But I’m not sure if this will be a good match; your sloppy, slow hammer won’t even come close to me.”
Lucy’s response turned the arena into a library.
