Chapter: 550
Benedict, watching the knights of the kingdom clash with Allen’s knights from the sidelines, pressed his forehead with a sigh.
He had known it would come to this since Lucy said she would participate in the duel. The fact that that kid stood on the frontline meant someone was about to lose their mind.
Having seen countless people regain their senses late after being swayed by Lucy’s voice during training with Allen’s knights and lamenting, “What have I done to the lord’s daughter!?” Benedict was sure that chaos would ensue the moment Lucy stepped forward.
Yet he could not stop his own daughter simply because he was endlessly soft on Lucy.
Such a cute daughter. Calling him Papa. Who could refuse when she exclaimed she wanted to test out the new armor?
Their original conversation had been filled with sarcasm and swearing, but Benedict adjusted all of that in his mind, only remembering the cute appearance of his daughter.
“Lord, are you sure you don’t want to join the battle?”
Allen’s knight commander, Possell, asked, arms crossed, prompting Benedict to chuckle.
“Then why are you watching?”
“I thought this would be beneficial for the knights’ growth.”
“Same for me.”
In actuality, the gap between the kingdom’s First Knights and Allen’s knights wasn’t that big.
Regardless of the situation, they were still among the kingdom’s best talents. There were those who obtained their positions due to political maneuvering, but they had the power to be the kingdom’s sword.
Especially threatening was the knight commander, Taboll.
The man who had survived countless battles against Benedict and had accumulated wounds through defeats wasn’t just someone who could remain as the commander for no reason.
While he might be stupid both personally and politically, he deserved to be called first-rate as a knight.
In normal circumstances, the likes of Possell would be needed to face him head-on.
However, today was different.
“I believe it’s the first time that fool is toying around with someone other than the lord,” Possell remarked.
“…Have I ever toyed with Taboll?”
“You did a lot back in the day. During your more vigorous times, you broke him completely. Why do you think he still hates you?”
“Cough.”
Benedict interrupted the conversation with a cough and redirected his gaze towards the front lines of the battle.
Taboll, the commander who should lead the knights, was currently toying with a girl.
His downward strikes like an executioner couldn’t even graze the girl’s skin.
Even his swings that could cut a target in half merely passed through the air as laughter.
His fierce charges turned into the clumsy demeanor of a crazed beast.
Lucy Allen’s footsteps, her dance in the midst of the battlefield, were movements that made anyone who laid eyes on her naturally gaze upon her, turning the commander of a national knight into a mindless monster.
Of course, even in a vacant state, Taboll was still formidable. The years of training engraved into his body couldn’t simply disappear.
“When did that guy Karl grow so much?”
“From my perspective, the lady’s growth is more noticeable.”
“Haha. Whose daughter would be surprising in that regard!”
However, Taboll’s monstrous offensive was blocked by only two individuals—Lucy and Karl.
Lucy stood in front of Taboll.
She easily dodged or deflected his descending sword with a shield, playing with him.
As Taboll gathered strength to crush Lucy with his shield out of anger, Karl intervened from the side, stealing Taboll’s breath.
Then, when Taboll attempted to exclude himself, Karl would retreat like a ghost, leaving Lucy to grab onto him again.
In the process, other knights rushed towards Lucy, but their swords could never reach her.
Karl, who had made himself Lucy’s dog, meticulously excluded the nearby knights, ensuring none could reach her.
“Patience is commendable. Rather than finishing off the opponent, focusing on removing variables. A guard’s sword.”
“That’s the right choice. Just by existing, the lady is shaking the front lines.”
Whether it was merely to protect Lucy or a strategic choice, Karl’s decision proved correct in the end.
Lucy’s influence didn’t just stop at holding down the beast known as Taboll.
The eyes of the kingdom’s knights were on Lucy. The rage they harbored was converging on that one girl.
More than what they had to do, the foes before them, or the safety of their comrades, for them, making Lucy Allen cry became the priority.
“But you know, Lord. Hasn’t the lady’s power been this strong?”
“You mean the power that makes others furious?”
“Yes.”
Having trained with Lucy for a long time and having kept an eye on her, both Possell and Benedict vaguely understood the strength she possessed.
Thus, they tilted their heads. Lucy’s power of provocation was surely formidable, but it had always been limited to individuals.
There was no way it could be strong enough to draw the attention of everyone assembled like this.
“I hate to admit it, but that armor is making a huge difference.”
Benedict observed the armor Lucy wore with an expression full of unspoken words. That armor gifted by the legendary blacksmith Inuki was hardly something suitable for his daughter to wear.
To be honest, he still felt like tossing that outfit away now and then.
However, regardless of that unsatisfactory sentiment, the armor was indeed impressive.
Aside from the excessive exposure, the beauty of the armor was astonishing. One could confidently say it contained the craftsmanship of a master artisan.
Lucy was already said to embody the presence of a goddess. And now, with such provocative exposure and fluttering fabric around her legs, who wouldn’t be drawn to gaze?
Recalling how the fox she carried had tried to look below and got kicked, Benedict was sure that the knights were filled with disgusting lust in their gazes.
“Also, the martial arts Lucy recently learned must be having a significant impact.”
The dance she introduced as the Fairy Dance was light as the wind and alluring like a dancer’s movements.
Even the knights of Allen, who had seen it several times, couldn’t help but admire it. How would knights, who were unfamiliar with it, respond?
“It’s impossible to look away. They can’t turn a blind eye to Lucy’s playful laugh or her provocations. Simply put, she’s imposing her power upon them.”
The strength of the knight order as a whole comes from their lifelong training to fight as one.
Because dozens or hundreds can move as one, a knight order can overwhelm other groups.
Conversely, when this organic aspect is lost, the knight order becomes nothing more than a ragtag bunch swayed by their numbers.
And specifically, that’s what’s happening now. The First Knights, disrupted by the variable known as Lucy Allen, were worse than the troops that chose to retreat.
“Not only did we win in the battle of knight orders, but the First Knights have now given us justification. They can’t say anything to us anymore.”
“Is that all? We might also be freed from the issues of contributions in the future.”
Not long ago, Lucy had spoken to Benedict about the royal decree, asking him to ensure the First Queen couldn’t act recklessly. Benedict had no intention of betraying Lucy’s expectations.
“I had vowed to remain a loyal knight of the kingdom. Yet, now the kingdom is just a side note.”
Benedict smirked and, deciding that the battle between the knight orders was no longer meaningful, stepped into the fray.
It took less than a few minutes for those who had lost their reason in their wrath to fall.
*
After concluding the meeting at the Burrow Duchy, Erginius went to the Partlan Ducal Family to assess the level of the wizards.
To see if he could trust these individuals to handle duties he would assign.
Just like the duke, his daughter, and son did, the wizards of the ducal family were all thoroughly educated and completed wizards.
“This is interesting.”
Typically, wizards tend to have something strange about them in the back of their minds.
Because of this, many disregard the fundamentals and only pursue what they want, ending up as something vague.
However, the wizards of the duke’s family were different. Prioritizing collective strength over personal individuality, they were more akin to soldiers than wizards.
While he personally felt wizards shouldn’t be like this, for this situation, it was better.
Managing wizards who run wild with their individual thoughts was truly a tedious job.
They had solid fundamentals and had no intentions of defying orders, making them ideal for enacting plans.
Satisfied with the level of the Partlan wizards, Erginius led them toward the Fairy Forest.
To check the barrier with his own eyes while reviewing his plans.
Stepping into the earth tainted with the Evil God’s Energy, leaving other wizards behind, Erginius soon arrived in front of a darkened barrier.
“Your Majesty, it took a long time, but I have come to rectify my mistakes. I will meet you soon, so please wait just a bit longer.”
Touching the barrier, Erginius poured out the emotions he had bottled up for a long time, then composed himself to survey the barrier and the situation inside.
But…
“…Huh?”
It failed. Something within the barrier blocked Erginius’s intervention.
It wasn’t the Evil God’s Energy. If it were that, there’s no way I’d be blocked.
Then this is…
No way.
“…Fairy Queen?”
Is she the one blocking my intervention when she should be fast asleep?
Why?
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