Capítulo 15: An Incredible Outcome
"Hah!" Leo couldn't help but laugh.
He could tell Lionel wasn't lying, which meant this fellow was truly a fanatical admirer of his brother, wasn't he?
Shaking his head, Leo said, "I do wish you could always think like that, you fool!"
"You!!" Lionel was visibly angered.
He hadn't expected Leo to insult him so bluntly, completely disregarding the decorum expected of nobility.
"I won't accept your challenge. If every noble in the world behaved like this, would I ever have time for my own affairs? Please, everyone's busy! Unless…" Leo spread his hands, smiling.
"Coward! I am ashamed on behalf of Prince Horn to have a brother like you!" Lionel's fury escalated. He interrupted Leo, pointing at him with contempt in his eyes.
"Can you let me finish?" Leo looked at Lionel as if he were looking at a fool.
"What else do you want to say? Whatever it is, it won't change the fact that you're a coward!" Lionel exclaimed loudly.
"What I was going to say is, unless you can defeat my maid, I will consider accepting your challenge," Leo said nonchalantly, gesturing towards Lilith.
Hearing this, Lionel instinctively looked at Lilith, his face turning red in an instant.
"Are you mocking me?!" he shouted, drawing his sword and pointing it at Leo.
"You…?" Lilith, too, looked at Leo, equally astonished.
She had not expected him to say such a thing.
"What is there about you worth my mockery?" Leo said, somewhat exasperated.
He turned and began to walk away, adding, "You can choose not to accept and just leave."
He waved his hand dismissively, as if shooing away a fly.
Lionel glared at Leo's retreating figure, his face growing redder by the moment.
Suddenly, he turned to Lilith and declared, "Fine! I accept your challenge! I will first duel your maid, and after she falls to my sword, I will show you what true knightly spirit is!"
Upon hearing this, Leo paused, a faint smile playing on his lips.
He turned to face Lionel and Lilith, raising his hand, "Then let the battle commence. I'm eagerly awaiting to witness something interesting."
"A coward hiding behind a woman, the gods will not favor you!" Lionel spat, incensed.
He thought Leo was using Lilith, a pitiful girl, as a shield to back out of the duel, which he found utterly disgraceful.
"Lilith, are you ready?" Leo ignored Lionel, turning his attention to Lilith.
"If I defeat him, what reward will I receive?" Lilith asked directly.
At her words, everyone, except Lionel, was taken aback, including the servants of Leo's manor.
In their minds, Lilith was just a beautiful maid.
How could she possibly defeat Lionel, a basic knight? Had Leo gone mad, or was it Lilith?
"I might consider releasing you from servitude and making you my personal knight," Leo responded.
At this, a glint of excitement flashed in Lilith's eyes.
Escaping servitude had always been part of her plan, and if Leo truly kept his word...
She turned to face Lionel, her eyes now ablaze with an intense desire to fight.
Lionel was taken aback by the ferocity in her gaze.
He had never seen such boiling battle spirit, even... a killing intent, in a woman's eyes before.
...
A short while later, in the town square, Lilith and Lionel were about to engage in a duel.
News of this event had spread throughout the town, drawing almost everyone to witness this unbelievable spectacle.
The thought of Lady Lilith, a mere maid to Prince Leo, dueling a duke's heir was beyond comprehension.
Some, aware of the events leading up to this moment, harbored feelings of contempt.
They looked at Lilith in the center of the square with pity, already imagining the tragic fate awaiting this unfortunate girl.
"My goodness! How could she possibly stand a chance against a knight?"
"Such a poor girl, she shouldn't be treated this way!"
"Oh! I can't bear to watch!"
"…"
Whispers and comments filled the air.
Leo stood in the stands, his face expressionless, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding noise, which led some in the crowd to silently rebuke his apparent cold-heartedness.
Drawing his sword from his waist, Leo pointed it towards the sky and announced, "Begin!"
"I'm sorry, but I must defeat you," Lionel said to Lilith, performing a knightly salute before drawing his own sword.
"There's no need for apologies in a fair duel," Lilith replied, shaking her head.
She gripped her longsword tightly and then closed her eyes.
When she reopened them, her pupils had turned a blood-red color – the mark of the Rose Knight.
Although she had not yet reached the status of a basic knight, the activation of her hell magic enhanced her physical strength, power, and speed to rival that of a basic knight at their peak.
Without any hesitation, Lilith charged towards Lionel!
"Be careful!" Lionel bellowed in warning, still upholding the knightly code of honor by alerting Lilith before his attack.
However, the moment his voice fell, his body was already sent flying backward.
"Boom!"
The immense force of the impact hurled Lionel high into the air.
Everyone watching Lionel being tossed upwards had their expressions gradually freeze in shock.
Mid-air, Lionel was dazed.
What just happened?
Why was he sent flying?
Was it… the maid?
Looking down, he saw Lilith right below him.
She was bending her knees and then, with a powerful leap, soared skyward!
"Pfft!"
Lionel's chest and abdomen were impaled by Lilith's longsword.
Holding her sword aloft, Lionel hung from it, blood gushing out in streams, dripping onto Lilith's face.
In the dead silence, the only sound was the dripping of blood.
"Gulp!" After a long while, someone in the crowd swallowed hard.
"What just happened?"
"Lilith, she gravely wounded the duke's heir?!"
"So, Prince Leo's maid is actually this powerful?!"
"It seems Prince Leo had a reason for letting his maid fight on his behalf!"
"…"
Suddenly, amidst the noisy atmosphere, Leo descended from the stands.
He looked towards Lionel's attendants, smiling, "I believe the duel has concluded, hasn't it?"
"It's over! It's over! Please, let down Master Lionel!"
"We concede! Please, let down Master Lionel!"
"…"
Lionel's attendants nodded frantically, their faces filled with panic.
Hearing this, Leo nodded at Lilith.
Observing Leo's gesture, Lilith then withdrew her longsword and stepped back.
Lionel's attendants hurried forward to catch him, and a magus began using healing magic to stop the bleeding from his wounds.
Fortunately, Lilith had not struck a fatal spot, and they quickly managed to stem the blood flow.
Lionel lay there, eyes vacant as he stared at the sky, not even concerned about his own injury.
So, he had lost?
And to Leo's maid, no less?
"You will receive your deserved reward. From today onwards, you are no longer a maid. I promote you to my personal knight," Leo said to Lilith, smiling.
"Thank you," Lilith replied, giving Leo a deep look before nodding.
She then turned and stood by Leo's side.
Leo, aware that Lionel was still conscious, smiled and said, "You can tell your esteemed Prince Horn that if he wishes to challenge me, he should come himself instead of sending someone as inept as you."
"As a knight, you couldn't even defeat my maid. What makes you think you can challenge me? Ridiculous!"
After his unapologetic mockery of Lionel, Leo simply turned and prepared to leave.
Lilith, looking at the still severely injured Lionel, had a complex expression on her face.
After a moment's hesitation, she turned and followed Leo.
Lionel lay on the ground, listening to Leo's words.
A strong sense of humiliation clenched his fists, his body trembling slightly, and tears began to streak down his cheeks.
"My lord, you mustn't get too agitated!" the magus immediately cautioned Lionel.
"Take me back," Lionel managed to utter in a hoarse voice, using the last of his strength.
...
Inside the manor, Leo sat in his chair, savoring his dinner for the evening.
Lilith stood quietly by his side, her eyes brimming with complex emotions, seemingly lost in thought.
"What are you thinking about?" Leo asked, swallowing a piece of steak and looking up at her.
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