Chapter 59

Adrian twisted his body to dodge a sword strike, using his footwork to circumvent the man and slash with his blade. The man used his wrist guard to block, it hurt, but it successfully parried the attack before he swiped back with his own sword.

‘So quick!’ Adrian thought. The enemy was faster with a blade than anyone he had ever seen, it was as if the man had trained by swinging his sword a thousand times a day.

Each time Adrian tried to meet an attack head-on, the man would quickly change his grip, trying to slip his blade past like a serpent to strike Adrian’s body directly. Adrian blocked with his sword, but at the moment of impact, the opponent used the recoil to pull back and swipe downward, forcing Adrian to suck in his breath so his stomach wouldn't be hit.

Adrian had finally had enough. He dived toward the enemy, using his weight to ram into him.

"Ugh?!"

They tumbled to the ground, the opponent kicking Adrian away to create space. To Adrian’s luck, he landed near a buckler, his shield before, blown away. After some time and struggles, only the two of them remained in their arena now.

He quickly grabbed the small shield, got to his feet and shoved it forward, blocking an incoming attack just in time.

With the buckler in hand, Adrian fell into a familiar rhythm. He felt comfortable now, what he lacked in finesse, he compensated for with defense.

Adrian parried a hard swing. His opponent, now tired and panting, took a moment to recover. Adrian seized the chance to invade his space. He rammed his shoulder into the man and ducked under a desperate swing before sweeping his sword to trip him.

Before the opponent could recover, Adrian pressed the tip of his blade against the man’s gorget.

"Yield?"

The opponent took several deep breaths. Adrian could see a flash of indignation in his eyes before the man finally nodded. "I yield."

Adrian exhaled, finally letting his breath out, and looked around the arena. There were no other fighters left. He was the last one standing.

He had won this arena.

--

He wasn’t the first to finish, nor the last. The longest melee took about half an hour, while that isn’t long, fighting multiple skilled enemies was enough to exhaust most fighters. New competitors quickly took their places, with Dexton among them.

Luck wasn’t on Dexton’s side, however, as Lord Corvus, armed with his infamous black spear, despite its tip blunted, was among his opponents. Since Adrian had just finished his own grueling match, Lord Jayson and the Princess hadn’t invited him to the afternoon rounds, allowing him to watch the entire spectacle without pressure.

He found a spot on the bleachers, leaning back and enjoying the rare luxury of being a spectator rather than a competitor or entertaining lords of higher rank than him.

As expected, Dexton lost. To his credit, he managed to defeat one knight and contend with another before Lord Corvus turned his attention toward them and promptly beat them both. Adrian saw how swift and powerful Lord Corvus was with that spear, he reckoned that if he couldn't find a way to get inside the man's reach, he wouldn’t stand a chance.

“How is the loser feeling?” Adrian grinned at Dexton later. The man was out of his armor, holding a bruised shoulder.

“Milord, I have disappointed you…” Dexton muttered, bowing in shame.

“Don’t worry about it. It was just your luck to face an Earl’s heir so early.”

Soon, the preliminary rounds concluded. Thirty-four fighters were set for the finals, the last one standing would be the ultimate victor. The twin princes, Leoford and Beoford, hadn't participated, but Adrian spotted several familiar figures among the winners, Lord Corvus, of course, along with Lord Bennet and Lord Wyatt.

Night fell, and a feast began in the keep, the first of many that would take place every evening of the competition. Having already participated in two events, Adrian had a good enough excuse to skip it. He knew that if he showed up, supposedly having defeated a knight trained by elves, he’d be surrounded by lords and ladies pestering him about his victory. It sounded like a massive headache.

Instead, Adrian spent a leisurely time in his room, sipping wine and reading a book he’d recently purchased. The quiet crackle of the hearth was the only sound in the room until a soft knock sounded at the door.

“Hmm?” Adrian went to the door and opened it slightly, only to see Lady Thea standing there in a cloak.

Adrian’s instincts kicked in, and he promptly slammed the door shut. Then, fighting his against what he like, he quickly pulled it open again, though only slightly.

“Oh, Lady Thea? What can I do for you?”

Lady Thea pulled back her hood and chuckled. “Lord Harrow, may I enter?”

“You may not.” Adrian responded quickly, before scrambling for a reason. “Uh, I’m injured, you see. I’m using herbs that stink quite a bit, it wouldn't be appropriate for a lady.”

“Oh? Then why did I see you leave the melee with a spring in your step?” Lady Thea smirked, revealing what she was holding behind her back. “Besides, I just wanted you to teach me how to play your game…”

She showed him a board and a leather pouch.

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Where did you get that?”

“It is already known that the Princess and a Duke’s son played it during the competition. Some lords and commoners have already tried to recreate it for themselves,” she said. “I admit, I thought little of it before, but when I saw the Princess playing with Lord Jayson… you created such an interesting thing. Now… will you let me in?”

Adrian had a feeling that denying the lady this time would earn her ire and ruin whatever relationship they had. With a heavy sigh, he pulled the door open and gestured for her to enter.

Lady Thea chuckled as she stepped inside. “Oh, no servants? That’s good.”

Adrian raised a brow as he closed the door. Lady Thea made herself comfortable in the chair Adrian had just vacated and picked up his book.

“Sir Philip and the Black Goblin? You’re reading this?”

Adrian set aside his food and drink to allow the board to be set on the table, pulling up a smaller stool for himself. “I just bought it. Have you read it?”

“A fancy knight goes on a journey to kill the Black Goblin King who is terrorizing the kingdom, ending with the knight’s glorious victory,” Lady Thea said, smoothing her dress.

“So you have.” Adrian began arranging the pieces.

“But did you know the true story?” Lady Thea’s smile thinned. “It was about a commoner whose wife was taken by a lord’s son, a man with an illness that made him small and dark-skinned. The commoner wanted revenge and almost succeeded before Sir Philip, the lord’s knight, killed him. The story was spun by the victors until it became something completely different.”

Adrian’s hand paused over a piece. “Truly?”

She responded only with a knowing smile. Adrian looked down at the piece he was holding. It wasn’t as finely carved as his original set, but it clearly tried to mimic the look of a Queen.

“Well, that’s depressing…”

Lady Thea chuckled. “Then let us move to another topic. If you had participated in the feast tonight, you would have seen the ugly looks on Lord Cedric and his friends' faces.”

“Why? What happened?”

“I happen to know that Lord Cedric approached the masters of the lists to have you matched against Sir Harold, the Knight of Precision. Then you went and beat him anyway. Someone spread word of the scheme to the other guests, now half the lords and ladies are gossiping about Cedric and laughing at his failure.”

“Let me guess.” Adrian said, “The one who spread the word was you?”

A glint appeared in Lady Thea’s eyes. “Oh, how could I ever do such a thing?”

Adrian rolled his eyes. “Are they going to get in trouble?”

“Not much. Tampering with the lists isn’t uncommon, but-”

“But since nothing bad happened and he’s a lord, they’ll get off lightly?” Adrian finished for her.

“You’re becoming a refined lord, Lord Harrow.” she said with a hint of sarcasm.

Adrian put his piece down. “Shall we start?”

“Gladly.”

Adrian spent the next half-hour explaining the rules. As they played, he discovered that Lady Thea liked to take her time with every move. Nearly an hour passed before their first game ended. Adrian had actually gone back to his book while waiting for her to finish her turns. He won, of course, but Lady Thea didn’t seem to realize how much time had slipped by.

“This game makes one forget the time quite easily.” she remarked.

“Indeed. I bet the feast is halfway over by now. I’m sure there are plenty of people you need to speak with, Lady Thea.”

“Are you kicking me out?” She chuckled, her eyes flashed a glint.

“I simply think you have more important matters to attend to than me.”

“Oh, I do...” Lady Thea nodded. She leaned back and crossed her legs, her dress shifting slightly to reveal her calves and bare feet. “But I can think of a much more interesting activity we could do than play a board game, if you want?”

Her voice turned soft, almost ethereal, with a faint, seductive edge.

Adrian was momentarily stunned. He examined the woman in front of him, the soft blonde hair, the pale blue eyes, the elegant green dress. His eyes traveled down to the curve of her neck and her collarbone and below, to the mounds of flesh in her chest pressed by her dress.

Then he looked back at her face, seeing the blue eyes that seemed to be tempting him.

He nodded, having made his decision.

“Thank you for spending your time with me, Lady Thea. I’ll see you around, yes?”

Adrian then promptly slammed the door in the bewildered lady's face.