The Saintess and the Bet (2)

“Surround Young Master Ian, pleaseee!”

As Saintess Seraphina shouted, trainee holy knights rushed in without hesitation.

― Ta-at!

Ian quickly changed his walking pace and retreated rapidly.

He was confident that he could break through even if he clashed with them head-on, but if he did that, the trainee holy knights would only get needlessly injured.

Moreover, the power Ian was hiding would be overly exposed.

That was not a favorable move.

― Ta-dat! Tat! Ta-at!

“Chase him! We have to catch the young master before more reinforcements arrive!!”

― Urrurururu!!

The trainee holy knights stuck closely as they pursued Ian, who was widening the distance.

Ian wore a mischievous smile.

‘They’re taking the bait. Good.’

He had purposely created distance for the sake of luring them in, and succeeded.

Thanks to that, the defense around the flag became lax.

‘This is the fun of hiding one’s strength.’

If Seraphina had known Ian’s true power, she wouldn’t have dared to rush in so recklessly.

Because she was under the illusion that they could win with numbers, such an opening had appeared.

‘I’ll slip out smoothly through the gap in their encirclement.’

For an ordinary cadet, this would be an impossible feat.

If someone recklessly jumped among them, they’d be grabbed at once and slammed to the ground.

Moreover, they were all currently reinforced to their utmost by Saintess Seraphina’s blessing.

Each individual was capable of performing at Hector or Kargon’s level.

Therefore, the basic strategy was to somehow buy time and endure until the Saintess grew tired and the blessing faded.

But Ian had no need for such tedious procedures.

― Kkuuuk!

Just with the overwhelming power of a peak-stage swordmaster.

― Paaang!

If he kicked off the ground with force and sped past, that was enough.

― Shuuuk!

Ian quickly pierced through the encirclement of the trainee holy knights.

“What!?”

“Huh!?”

He slipped, leaped, rolled, and-nimbly dodged their shields and swords.

“Wh-what! Where did he go!?”

“There! U-ugh!”

The trainee holy knights hastily reached out, but only brushed Ian’s sleeves.

With movements as slick as an eel, Ian slipped out of the encirclement.

“Catch him!”

“Ah! Missed him! He’s to the right!”

The holy knights were thrown into confusion by Ian’s acrobatic movements.

“H-he’s getting through!”

“The line’s been broken!”

If the encirclement had been any tighter, Ian himself might not have been able to break through like this.

But, even with the blessing’s enhancement, trainees were still trainees.

There were sloppy spots everywhere.

Even if they surrounded him a hundred times, Ian could escape all one hundred.

“S-Saintess is in danger!”

One of the trainee holy knights cried out in desperation.

“It’s alright!”

Seraphina raised her hands confidently as she faced Ian.

Her fingers were tensed like the talons of a raptor.

It seemed she intended to grab Ian with power and senses drastically amplified by divine power.

However—

― Sureuk! Swaaaek!

“Wh-what!?”

Her two arms cleaved nothing but empty air.

Ian had effortlessly slipped past even Saintess Seraphina, the holy kingdom’s elite prodigy.

“H-huh!!”

Seraphina hurriedly turned around, eyes wide.

“The flag!”

Ian was running toward the holy kingdom’s flag.

“Catch him! We have to catch him! Everyone, go!!!”

“Y-yes!”

“Waaaaaa!!”

Like iron filings drawn to a magnet, the holy kingdom’s group chased after Ian.

― Ta, tak!

“Ah, ahh!”

Seraphina hurried after Ian, but her feet got tangled and she fell.

“S-Saintess!?”

“Are you alright!?”

“Ugh…!”

The Saintess’s face flushed with embarrassment and excitement.

“D-don’t mind me, keep running! Don’t let the young master get away!”

“Y-yes!”

“Understood!”

The trainee holy knights raced after Ian again.

― Paat!

The Saintess, sprawled on the ground, stretched out her hand sharply.

Straight toward the flag.

― Wooong!

A bright golden light began to emanate from Seraphina’s hand.

She was shielding the flag with a divine power barrier.

‘With this, no matter how powerful Young Master Ian is, he won’t be able to take the flag…!’

Though hastily raised, this type of shield was one of the holy kingdom’s specialties.

No matter how hard Ian struck, the barrier would not break so easily.

While he was wrestling with the barrier, this time they would be able to surround and capture him perfectly.

That was Saintess Seraphina’s plan.

However—

― Crash!

“… What?”

Just a few meters ahead, near the flag, there came a sound like shattering glass.

“… O-oh, Lord!”

At the same time, the golden light that had shrouded the tall flagpole scattered like powdered sugar before Seraphina’s eyes.

The barrier had been broken.

“No wayyyy!!”

That barrier was strong enough to hold off an expert’s sword aura about ten times.

How could it be broken so instantly!?

Just what did Young Master Ian do up there!?

The Saintess, her dirt-specked cheeks trembling, glared wide-eyed.

But, blocked by the burly trainee holy knights, she couldn’t see what Ian had done up front.

While the Saintess stood dumbfounded—

― Shuk! Shushuk! Whiiik!

“Ah!”

“Missed again! He’s going that way!”

“W-where!? I can’t see! Where did he go!?”

― Paaaa!!

“He got through again!”

“Damn! After him! Catch him!!”

Ian broke through the encirclement of the trainee holy knights once more.

― Tadatdat!

Ian ran towards Seraphina again.

“Uh, uh?!”

Seraphina scrambled to her feet, intent on catching Ian.

― Swaaaek!

Ian darted past Seraphina at an unbelievable speed.

“……”

Ian’s back quickly receded into the distance.

Seraphina gazed after him with dazed eyes.

Even Mallory, the fastest among the holy knight candidates, wouldn’t be able to move that fast.

And even though he kept moving that quickly, Ian showed no signs of exhaustion.

What is he?

― Whiiing!

A chilly wind blew through Seraphina’s hair.

Ian had completely vanished at lightning speed.

“H-huu…!”

Suddenly,

Overwhelmed with sorrow, tears welled up in Seraphina’s eyes.

“M-must chase… Huu!”

At last, a thick tear hit the ground.

He’s so fast, chasing is pointless!

It felt as if she lost Ian only because she tripped like a fool.

That thought made her tears pour down like rain.

“Huuiii… Huee!”

― Beeeeeeeeep!!!

And not long after, the sound of a whistle echoed through the canyon.

It was the signal marking the competition’s end.

The bet ended with the Sword Dragon Hall’s victory—and Ian’s victory.

* * *

After the mock battle ended, before returning, it was time for a quick break.

“Hu, huek… He… Hui…!”

Seraphina sobbed constantly, sitting on a rock.

“It’s all my fault…! I should have protected the flag! But I foolishly tripped…! Young Master Ian was just too fast, hu, huee…!”

― Pat pat.

Holy knight candidate Elaine comforted Seraphina.

“It’s not your fault, Saintess. Here, look at this.”

Elaine offered her a chocolate candy.

“You like sweets, don’t you? You’ll feel a bit better if you eat this.”

“H-huee…! I don’t even deserve to eat…! But since you’re giving it to me, just this once…”

Seraphina took the chocolate candy hesitantly.

Then, like a little sparrow, she popped it right into her beak.

“Omnomnom… Omnomnom… Hu, huee…!”

The Saintess wiped her tears and asked,

“By any chance… are there any fruit flavors? Hu, huuu…”

“F-fruit flavor…!?”

Elaine broke out in a cold sweat.

There was no fruit flavor.

“Hu, huuu…!”

Tears began to well up again in the Saintess’s eyes.

Just then, as Elaine sweated bullets,

Another holy knight candidate, the blonde Mallory, stepped in.

“Saintess! I picked some wild strawberries on my way here! Isn’t it amazing to find strawberries in winter?”

Mallory approached, holding wild strawberries in her hand, taken from her jerky pouch.

“Huh, huuu…”

Elaine let out a sigh of relief.

But then—

― Limp, limp.

Mallory was limping.

“Huee! Mallory! What happened to your leg?!”

“Oh. I twisted it a bit fighting Kuga earlier…”

“H-huaaang!!”

Seraphina’s tears burst forth again.

“Ah! Saintess, I’m fine! Please don’t cry!”

“… Haah.”

Elaine held her forehead.

Mallory, who had come to stop the Saintess from crying, now looked flustered at making her cry even more.

It seemed Seraphina would need more time to calm down.

Once she broke into a real cry, she wouldn’t stop easily.

“……”

Garenus looked at the scene with a bitter expression, then bowed his head to the holy knight in front of him.

“I’m sorry, master. My role was the most important, but because I abandoned my position, we lost.”

The holy knight Garenus called Master was Sir Rolan, who stroked his impressive mustache and smiled kindly.

“Ho ho ho! How could this be your fault? You did well enough. Everyone else did wonderfully, too. The opponent was just extraordinary.”

“But… The cadets of the Sword Dragon Hall are mostly younger than us. Even Young Master Ian, who stood out the most, is much younger than I am. And yet we suffered such a crushing defeat… I feel maybe it’s not just their talent, but also our effort that’s been truly lacking.”

“Ho ho ho! Dear me, such painful thoughts. Garenus, your effort didn’t fall short—not at all. In fact, until Ian took the flag, everyone did splendidly. Mallory fought cleverly against someone stronger and made it a good match. Lady Elaine, though outnumbered, held firm and gave Kargon a hard time. And you, Garenus, if you’d had a bit more time, you might have taken down both Yuria and Charlotte at once. Honestly, if Ian hadn’t been there, we would have easily won this test.”

“….”

Garenus bowed his head in shame.

Though his master was kind, he still felt embarrassed.

Rolan fondly watched his student and stroked his mustache.

“Don’t be too disheartened, Garenus. Young Master Ian—he’s truly extraordinary. I can see why His Holiness specifically requested he be brought in. Now I understand why the Heavenly Sword Lord accepted him directly into the Heavenly Sword Palace. It must’ve been to protect such remarkable talent personally.”

In this test, Ian had only revealed as much strength as necessary and hid most of his power, but even so, the sharp eyes of a holy knight could not be completely deceived.

The way he slipped through the tight encirclement of the trainee holy knights like the wind—those acrobatic movements.

That was not a feat one could perform through reflexes or flexibility alone.

It required an acute understanding of human movement.

Even more so when facing multiple opponents at once—a deeper and more precise understanding was necessary.

Only then could you predict where a gap would appear in the encirclement and move swiftly.

“In fact, with that level of ability, he’s already on par with an active knight. Not just any knight—but peak-stage. I’m not belittling you, but… Young Master Ian was simply too strong an opponent for us.”

Garenus quietly sighed.

“So, in the end, we have to hand over the holy sword Heliodin. How will I face His Holiness now… I’m truly ashamed.”

“Ho ho ho! How can that be a disgrace for you? Surrendering the holy sword was His Holiness the Pope’s will.”

“….”

With lips pressed tight, Garenus said,

“His Holiness’s wish is for us to bring Young Master Ian to our side, isn’t it?”

Rolan shook his head.

“Who knows. I think, rather than a wish… it was curiosity.”

Garenus blinked.

“Excuse me? What do you mean…?”

“I suspect the message His Holiness received wasn’t for Young Master Ian to be brought to the Holy Kingdom.”

“… What? Then for what?”

“My guess is… the revelation was merely to give Heliodin to Young Master Ian. That’s all—just to hand him the sword.”

“What? Not bringing him with us, but to just give him Heliodin?”

“Ho ho ho! It’s only my conjecture—a gut feeling, if you will.”

He called it speculation and intuition, but his instincts were trustworthy, and he was one of those who understood the pope best.

There was reason not to dismiss it.

“His Holiness must have been curious. Why would the Goddess Radiance send down an oracle to give the holy sword Heliodin to a young master with no connections to our land? Naturally, the revelation must be followed, but when it comes to Young Master Ian, wouldn’t he want to look into him personally? That’s why His Holiness added such a condition for handing over Heliodin—and even attached this little wager. If possible, he probably hoped to observe the young master directly.”

“T-then… this result is still in line with the path guided by the Lord of Radiance…?”

Rolan nodded.

“Indeed. I see it that way. So don’t be too discouraged, Garenus. You are the pillar and representative of this group. If you shrink, the holy knights who follow you will be uneasy. Ho ho ho.”

Sir Rolan cheerfully patted Garenus’s broad shoulder.

At last, Garenus’s expression brightened a little.

“Omnomnom… It’s tasty. Huee…”

Seraphina was nibbling on wild strawberries in Elaine’s embrace.

Mallory, his leg presumably healed by the Saintess, no longer limped.

Sir Rolan looked at this fondly and spoke.

“Well then, everyone seems ready to move again. Shall we return?”

To Hisperion’s main hall.

Now that the bet was over, it was time to hand over the holy sword Heliodin to Young Master Ian, as promised.

————-= Clacky’s Corner ————-=

I guessed as much. The sword was supposed to be given to Ian…

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】

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