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Chapter 41
Lyle and Leo drew their swords. The tip of Leo’s thin but needle-like rapier wavered toward Lyle. Lyle’s sword was a bastard sword, thick and sharply honed.
“A bastard sword, huh. Do you really think it can match the speed of my blade?”
Leo smirked as if the notion was absurd. Lyle, however, showed no sign of agitation. Instead, he observed Leo’s sword carefully, as if offering advice.
“Quite a fine sword. Ever thought of trading it?”
“Huh? Why would I? Are you scared now, perhaps? As you said, this is the sword personally given to me by the captain when I joined the Royal Guard.”
Leo twirled the sword with pride, showing he indeed had a good eye for weapons. The sharp rapier sliced the air as he swung it.
“This sword has been my extension in every duel. Swordsmanship is my daily routine, so I can control my strength. No need to worry about injuries.”
Contrary to Leo’s expectations, Lyle showed neither fear nor concern. He merely nodded calmly, seemingly respecting Leo’s intention.
“Then I apologize.”
“Apologize?” Leo thought, confused. The words were meaningless yet oddly irritating. What could Lyle possibly be sorry for?
Every time they exchanged words, Lyle had the uncanny ability to unsettle him. Gritting his teeth, Leo assumed a stance and issued a warning.
“If there’s anything to apologize for, Your Highness, we’ll see about that.”
Lyle only smiled arrogantly, as usual.
‘Is he putting on a show because a woman is watching?’
Leo needed to make it clear that his sword wasn’t something that could be dodged with mere imitation.
Whoosh—!
The rapier sliced through the air with lightning speed. Lyle dodged deftly, but it grazed his cheek, leaving a streak of red.
“Ugh!”
From afar, Elaina’s scream rang out. Leo laughed meaningfully and asked,
“Oh? I thought you’d dodge immediately because you were overconfident. How is it? Does it hurt much?”
Lyle brushed his fingers over his cheek. Seeing the blood, he nodded.
“Indeed. Impressive. Your sword is far faster than I expected.”
Since returning from the battlefield, he had been training alone in the practice yard. No matter how much he trained, the edge and body control dulled compared to facing real enemies daily.
A rapier, so elegant, was hardly used in battle. Most weapons prioritized lethality—swords designed to cut down foes or maces that could inflict severe fractures.
“More challenging than I anticipated.”
And that pleased him.
An easy opponent would have been disappointing.
Lyle turned his head slowly. The sound of cracking wood echoed ominously. When he readied his stance again, his crimson eyes were eerily still, as if no wind stirred around him. A chilling silence settled.
Leo noticed the change. His instincts screamed danger. Swallowing hard, he shouted at Lyle,
“If you wish to end this duel now, surrender. If we continue, the one in trouble will be Your Highness.”
“Well, I never surrendered in front of the enemy, so I can’t offer that to you either.”
“Don’t act tough just because there’s a woman watching. You might get hurt.”
Leo steeled himself. Appearance alone didn’t make a threat. He gripped his sword tightly, wary of showing even a hint of fear.
The rapier lunged again, faster than before, whistling through the air.
Lyle didn’t move to dodge. Instead, he held his stance and slashed diagonally. The clean, precise motion stood out vividly in Leo’s eyes.
Leo’s rapier aimed straight at Lyle’s heart. Relative to the swiftly approaching blade, Lyle’s movement seemed slow. Or so it appeared.
“Ugh.”
Somehow, Leo ended up rolling on the ground. With his scream came the metallic clatter of his sword hitting the floor.
“What…?”
Leo looked at his trembling hand. It felt as if it had struck a rock.
He scanned around and soon spotted his sword lying a distance away.
This rapier was the pride of the Royal Guard’s deputy captain, personally crafted by Captain Olson as a gift. The kingdom’s finest blacksmith had forged it—it was said to be the finest rapier he had ever made.
And yet, it now lay bent and humiliated on the ground, nearly at a 90-degree angle. Leo was at a loss for words.
“Since I apologized first, I hope you’ll forgive me. Your sword was far too fast to let pass.”
Lyle’s voice cut through Leo’s stunned daze.
“By the way, do you consider this proper training enough, Bonaparte?”
“Next time, I’ll win for sure!”
Clearly frustrated, Leo shouted back as he turned to the carriage. Lyle welcomed it with an amused smile. Leo, still stubborn about another duel, took one last look before boarding the carriage. By then, the western sky was painted with sunset hues.
“Why didn’t we go back together?”
Though the sun hadn’t fully set, night was approaching. It was late for an outing.
Elaina looked at Lyle, puzzled by his words.
“We agreed to go out together.”
“At this hour?”
A playful smile curved Elaina’s lips. She looked up at him teasingly.
“I dressed up nicely, so it would be a waste not to go out. Are you saying there’s a curfew?”
“You speak as you wish.”
Lyle smiled faintly.
“Isn’t it the lady’s duty to return early? Once we go out, it will be late. Most young ladies wouldn’t go out at this hour to preserve propriety.”
“First, I’m no ordinary young lady. Second, I’m going out with my fiancé. Even if there’s a curfew, it wouldn’t be a fault to spend a late evening together.”
“Late at night…”
“Yes. Given the time, it’s inevitable. Actually, it’s perfect. Since it’s the day of Diane’s wedding, our outing together will feel even more meaningful.”
Despite her confidence, Elaina had never gone out after dark except for balls. She pouted slightly and passed the decision to Lyle.
“You decide what we’ll do. I always chose before, so this time you should do what you want.”
Lyle pondered for a moment, then smirked.
“If it’s something to do late at night, I can think of only one thing.”
“What is it?”
Instead of answering, Lyle instructed the butler to prepare the carriage.
“Here we are, young sir.”
“Hey, you’ve brought a lover with you.”
“Oh my, how could I come here with my partner?”
Elaina’s eyes widened as she looked around. The narrow alley was impassable by carriage. Women in scanty attire blew hand kisses at Lyle, teasing, until they noticed Elaina and pouted.
“Where is this place?”
Elaina would never have entered such a bustling alley normally. She had assumed it was just a dark alley, yet it was brightly lit and lively. She felt as if she were in a dream.
“Stay close. We don’t want any trouble.”
Elaina clung tightly to Lyle’s arm. Feeling her weight, Lyle’s expression faltered for a moment.
He led her deeper into the alley, until the voices of the women faded, replaced by lively chatter. The noise came from a tavern at the alley’s end.
“A tavern? You know about places like this?”
“I’d heard of it, but this is my first time actually visiting.”
“Hmm.”
“If you’re worried, we can leave now. There’s nothing dangerous.”
“Let’s go in. Leo lost to me, so what danger could there be?”
Feeling treated like a child, Elaina stepped forward and opened the tavern door herself.
If you want, I can continue translating Chapter 42 in the same detailed style.
Do you want me to do that next?
