Kapitel 147: Novice tournament (2)
"Well, we're in for a tough tournament."
"Oh, come on. For example, there was a case where a merchant won the tournament. He bribed several warriors to win in the other stages and let him pass to the finals. And every time they entered the arena, they immediately admitted defeat."
"And they counted that?"
"You won't believe it, but YES! After all, you can use any weapon, and money is known to be the best weapon," Vina smirked. "But he couldn't buy the second finalist."
"And did he lose?"
"No!" Vina beamed with pride for her colleague. "His opponent was the strongest warrior of the Academy, and on his way to the top, he defeated more than one mage! So, the merchant learned that he did all of that because he wanted to obtain a title and court the daughter of his feudal lord, who was notorious for her dislike for commoners."
"Sounds like romance is in the air?"
"That's an understatement. The naive warrior thought that he could win the heart of the beauty with his achievements, but the father had already arranged her marriage to the son of their neighbor. And the cunning merchant promised the warrior that he would win her hand and heart in less than two months if he obeyed him. But if he refused, he would never see her again."
"What a story," the girls had teary eyes as they couldn't take their gaze off Vina. "And what happened? Did he succeed?"
"Yes, as it turned out, the feudal lord of this warrior had serious financial problems and hoped to improve his situation by marrying his daughter off to a wealthier neighbor. But as it turned out, the neighbor was a complete show-off, drowning in even more debt, and he planned to improve his own situation by selling off all of the feudal lord's property after the wedding. Of course, the plan also involved the idea of the girl becoming a black widow.
"So, he wanted to kill the girl too?! What a scoundrel!" Seleria angrily bit the corner of her handkerchief and continued listening to the story.
"Don't worry. The merchant hired several thieves to break into the neighbor's estate and steal evidence of his bankruptcy. This way, he proved that the whole wedding was a farce."
"And they lived happily ever after," Katrina's eyes sparkled with a glimmer of hope.
"Not exactly. The neighbor's son was a handsome fellow and knew how to charm young noble ladies with his sweet talk. The feudal lord's daughter fell for his romantic stories, which claimed that her cruel father wanted to find her a much older and wealthier groom. The naive girl believed him and eloped with the young man. Of course, her father was devastated because, after realizing that he couldn't hide his true intentions anymore, the young scoundrel demanded that he transfer all his property to his daughter. But the merchant offered him a solution – his hero would save the girl, and in return, the feudal lord would grant him just one wish. Naturally, the merchant didn't mention the hero's name or his origins; otherwise, the father would never agree. The thieves who broke into the estate to find evidence also took the schematics of secret passages and gate keys. Causing a commotion in the estate, the young warrior managed to sneak into the girl's room, but she wasn't particularly thrilled to see him. When she found out that he came on her father's orders, she began to scream and resist in every way."
"Poor warrior, what did he see in her?"
"In the end, the young nobleman burst into the room with his guards, but they weren't much of a threat to the best warrior of the Academy. However, the girl herself stood up to defend her "beloved," and the warrior had to lay down his weapon. The nobleman immediately ordered them to capture the knight, but he was distracted by the same cunning merchant. With deceit and tricks, the merchant coaxed the truth from both the warrior and the nobleman. The warrior came from an old soldier family who ran a small martial arts school on the feudal lord's lands, but they weren't too popular and sometimes had nothing to eat. But a little girl occasionally attended their training sessions and paid much more than they asked. Then the nobleman's daughter remembered this guy who only asked one thing of her – not to marry that man. And when she refused, the nobleman decided to force her by violence. That's when she realized his true nature and pleaded for help. Of course, the love-struck knight couldn't be stopped by dozens of guards, and he rescued the girl, pushing the despicable son out of the window. Thankfully, he didn't die, but he had to forget about girls for a long time. Naturally, as expected, the girl's father refused such an audacious request from a nameless warrior."
"Wow," the girls were already in tears from the touching story, while we, the guys, nervously exchanged glances.
"But the merchant didn't stop there. He proposed to the feudal lord to save his lands from ruin if he allowed them to marry. The old man hesitated for a long time but eventually gave him a chance, and in the end, everything worked out just as the merchant had planned. He spread fame about the warrior school, whose heir fought on equal terms with the best students of the academy, and they gained more clients, including wealthy families. Eventually, they became rich and had a lavish wedding. As for the cunning merchant, after enjoying the fruits of his labor, he moved on."
"What a wonderful story, sniff-sniff," Katrina wiped her tears with her handkerchief.
"So beautiful."
"Yeah, and why did I start telling all this? Oh, right, I was talking about the tournament," Vina interrupted herself.
"Wait a minute, Vina," I addressed the trader suspiciously, "how do you know this story in such detail?"
"Huh? Oh, it's just that he was my great-great-great-great-grandfather. That's all!"
"What?!?" The girls exclaimed in unison.
"Well, I hope you're not planning to repeat your ancestor's feat?" I asked sarcastically.
"Spend six months helping others and not earning anything? Nah, that's not my style," Vina chuckled. "So, are you all ready for the tournament?"
"I have just one question," I drew the trader's attention, "who is Hilda?"
"Mmm, I don't know," the girl shrugged, "I just found out that a certain Hilda Degarun signed up for the tournament, and she was accepted without any questions. She's actually a newcomer, for some reason, admitted to the Academy from the second semester."
"You said Degarun?" Seleria asked, intrigued.
"Yes, that's a familiar name, but I can't remember where from."
"Well, if my memory doesn't fail me, that's the clan that has been ruling Nordrune for thousands of years. There were exceptions at times, but most often, the title of Supreme Jarl went to the heirs of this clan."
"Hmm, so that huge barbarian, Siegfried, who was in search of treasure..."
"That's probably this Hilda's father, but I've never met her. I only know that she's a year younger than me."
"Hmm, it seems a new princess is stepping onto the scene, quite interesting. We'll have to find out why she decided to join the Academy a year earlier. So now, everyone go to the organizing committee and confirm your participation."
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein