Chapter 88: Leaving the Castle (1)

Chapter 88: Leaving the Castle (1)

“Do you really plan on heading there without an escort?”

When Eugene told him that he was planning on heading south, instead of asking for Eugene’s reasons, Genos couldn’t help but first question his lack of an escort.

This was the Samar Rainforest they were talking about. The largest jungle in all of the continent. In size alone, it could compete with the entire territory of the Kiehl Empire, and there were countless tribes living in their own individual nations within that vast forest.

The tribes living there were not receptive toward outside attempts to civilize them. Located deep within the forest, these tribes had strong enduring traits that helped to maintain their own cultures.

For hundreds of years, Kiehl had been attempting to negotiate with these natives, and, when necessary, had even threatened the use of force in order to secure Samar as part of its territory.

However, these attempts hadn’t gone very well. Samar was far too large and there were too many natives for them to succeed. The indigenous people, who had lived in the forest since times immemorial, had developed their own unique forms of civilization. It was only natural that they would preserve their own customs instead of adopting the civilization of those from outside of the forest.

The culture of the jungle mainly focused on witchcraft and spirits, as well as methods of fighting within the rainforest. Not only that, but the indigineous people of the Samar Rainforest were even able to raise monsters like livestock.

Samar was indeed divided into dozens of tribal states, but when confronted by the Kiehl Empire, they would join together in order to form a huge tribal coalition known simply as ‘the Samar’, and shoot down any attempts to place them under Kiehl’s rule.

However, Kiehl was an empire. Had it truly wanted to, it would have been able to conquer the Samar Rainforest at any time. What really prevented them from doing so was the fact that Helmuth supported the freedom of the Samar tribes. Although Helmuth claimed that they were defending the cause of freedom, considering the circumstances, there were a lot of factors motivating their intervention.

For the past three hundred years, Helmuth had been attempting to recover their reputation in the eyes of the continent. They supported the countries that had been most affected by the war and accepted human immigrants. They allowed the Holy Empire to establish a diocese in their own territory, and they even closed their eyes to the fact that the Holy Empire and the Anti-Demon Alliance continued to deploy their troops on their shared borders with Helmuth.

Nevertheless, most of the countries on the continent still had yet to recognize Helmuth’s peaceful intentions. Wasn’t it obvious why that would be the case? Demon Kings, demonfolk, and the demonic beasts were all far too dangerous to deal with.

In any case, Samar was a huge forest comparable in size to the entire Kiehl Empire. By protecting Samar, Helmuth had obtained the recognition of its tribespeople. Other countries were also subtly bolstering Helmuth’s support of Samar, as they didn’t want Kiehl to add this vast forest to its already large territory.

As such, even an empire like Kiehl was left in a position where it couldn’t afford to mobilize its army on the large scale needed in order to conquer Samar. After all, if such mobilization took place, then Helmuth was sure to intervene.

“That place is far too dangerous,” Genos insisted.

Genos was well aware of how wild and dangerous the barbarians of the Samar Rainforest could be. The Uklas Mountains, where the Black Lion Castle was located, also bordered the Samar Rainforest to the south. Although they had been relatively docile in recent times, the barbarians of Samar had historically made several attempts to raid Kiehl by crossing the Uklas Mountains.

Because of this, the knights of the Black Lion Castle were always keeping a wary eye on Samar. The Knights of the Black Lion were, of course, sworn to the Lionheart clan, but with the approval of the Kiehl Empire, they were also tasked with protecting the border.

“It’s also a very inconvenient location.” Genos tried to persuade Eugene. “They don’t have warp gates there, let alone any cities.”

“You’re exaggerating things, Junior Brother. People live there, so why wouldn’t there be cities?” Eugene refuted him.

“...But there won’t be any cities like the ones you’re familiar with, Senior Brother. Can you even call a ‘city’ a place where a bunch of one-story buildings are haphazardly squished together and the roads aren’t even properly paved?” Genos argued.

Eugene shrugged. “Well, you can call any place where a lot of people live a city.”

“The toilets there don’t even have running water,” Genos warned him.

Eugene persisted. “So what about it? That sounds like it would be very eco-friendly and quaint.”

At Eugene’s reply, Genos let out a deep sigh. “...I’m trying to tell you that, if at all possible, you shouldn’t go there. Although I of course have faith in you, Senior Brother, to survive in Samar, you need not just skill, but luck as well.”

“That just means that as long as you’re skilled enough, you won’t need any luck,” Eugene boasted confidently.

Genos hesitated. “...That’s….”

“Junior Brother, let's just be frank. In your opinion, you believe that my skills aren’t enough to keep me alive in Samar. Isn’t that right, Junior Brother?” Eugene addressed the matter directly.

Instead of replying, Genos’s brows furrowed slightly. It wasn’t like he could do anything else. He didn’t want to blatantly prick his young Senior Brother’s pride.

However, he couldn’t help but be worried about Eugene, this nineteen-year-old Senior Brother of his. There was no doubt about his innate talent, and from what Genos had seen during Eugene’s match with Carmen, Eugene already possessed exceptional skills for someone his age. But even so, Samar was still far too dangerous a place for Eugene to wander around without an escort.

In this world, there were many people who found excitement and joy by flirting with such danger. Every year, wealthy merchants and aristocrats searching for a unique experience would spend a lot of money to recruit escorts and guides before entering the Samar Rainforest.

And every year, there were always a few who didn’t return from Samar. If they were lucky, they were able to return after being forced to pay a huge ransom, but if they were out of luck, it was impossible to even retrieve their bodies.

“Before I came here, I was already told not to go there because that place is too dangerous,” Eugene revealed.

When he had announced that he intended to head to Samar, Gilead had shot to his feet with an objection. No matter what reasons Eugene might have, Gilead could not permit his adopted son, Eugene, to enter the exceedingly dangerous Samar Rainforest.

Surprisingly, Doynes hadn’t been as fiercely opposed to Eugene’s plans as Gilead was. In a few months from now, Eugene would also become an adult. This meant that he would no longer be a child who needed to be followed around by his parents. However, Doynes did express his concerns about the weapons that Eugene had decided to borrow and take with him.

In such an uncertain situation, Kristina was the one who had lent him her strength to support Eugene’s decision. She persuaded Gilead that if she — a Saint — accompanied Eugene, God’s blessing would surely be with them.

“Junior Brother, I’m not an idiot either. I’m not planning to go to such a dangerous place where death is a very real possibility for no reason. I’m going there because I need to go there, and I also have the confidence to protect myself,” Eugene declared.

“...I’ve heard that you’ve reached the Fourth Star of the White Flame Formula,” Genos said after some thought. “Although I don’t practice the White Flame Formula, I’m well aware that no one in the history of the main family has ever been able to reach the Fourth Star of the White Flame Formula at an age like yours, Senior Brother.”

“I am pretty amazing,” Eugene stated arrogantly. “On top of that, I’ve even learned magic.”

“Would it be alright if I check just how skilled you are, Senior Brother?” Genos proposed.

Eugene raised an eyebrow, “And if you decide that my skills aren’t good enough, Junior Brother?”

“Then I will stop you from going to such a dangerous place,” Genos solemnly promised.

Eugene burst into laughter and got up, “Well now. If I say no, then it seems like this Junior Brother of mine won’t truly be able to respect me as his Senior Brother…. In that case, it can’t be helped. Shall we get started then?”

“Let’s head down to the gymnasium first,” Genos proposed. “Although it might just be a light spar, so long as we’re going at it seriously, then we’ll need an impartial observer. I’ll go get one and meet you there.”

It looked like Genos was trying to make it impossible for Eugene to wriggle out of their deal.

Eugene chuckled and nodded his head, “As your Senior Brother there is no way I would go back on my word to my Junior Brother.

“It’s just better to be sure,” Genos answered evasively.

Shortly afterwards, everyone gathered at the gymnasium. The elders were led by Doynes, the Patriarch Gilead, and even the Captains of the Knights of the Black Lion were present. Looking around at all the people standing outside the gymnasium, Eugene let out a whistle.

“Aren’t there way too many ‘observers’ here?” Eugene noted.

Since the number of spectators had increased, Eugene left out Genos’s title of Junior Brother.

While stripping off his dress shirt and tossing it aside, Genos replied, “The only one that I asked to serve as an observer was the Patriarch. However, once they heard that you and I were going to spar, a lot of people seemed to be interested in watching, Eugene.”

This was only natural. On the one hand, Genos Lionheart was one of the strongest warriors in the Knights of the Black Lion, alongside the likes of Dominic and Carmen.

On the other hand, there was Eugene Lionheart. Even though he was born to a collateral branch, he had been adopted into the main family due to his one-of-a-kind talent. In many ways, he had left an unprecedented mark on the history of the Lionheart clan.

“Instead of live blades, let’s use these wooden swords,” Genos proposed.

Eugene asked, “What about sword-force?”

“If we used that, what would be the point of switching to wooden swords? It will be safer for the both of us if we limit the use of mana solely to our own bodies,” Genos said as he picked his wooden sword.

Eugene likewise selected his own wooden sword. Indeed, even without using a real sword or sword-force, their level of strength was enough to shatter bones. And that was before even mentioning what they could do with mana enhancement.

As such, they had both armored their bodies with a Mana Shield. The rule was simple. The moment that one of their mana shields was pierced and one of them was injured, it would count as their defeat.

“What about magic?” Eugene asked once more.

“If you feel like you need to use it, then go ahead,” Genos allowed.

“Since I don’t think that what Sir Genos wants to see from me is my skill in magic, I won’t use any spells,” Eugene promised with a grin.

Without reacting to this response, Genos tightened his grip on his wooden sword and stepped backwards.

“Sir Carmen.” Dominic, who had been watching as the two prepared for their confrontation, suddenly spoke up. Stroking his chin, he glanced sideways at Carmen and continued speaking, “As someone who has fought with both Sir Genos and Eugene, what do you think of this spar?”

“...The two of them are similar,” Carmen muttered as she chewed on the end of an unlit cigar. She then held the cigar between her fingers and crossed her arms as she elaborated, “If you don’t factor in his magic, it’s impossible for that brat, Eugene, to face Genos. Or at least that’s how it rightfully should be, but… honestly, I’m not sure.”

“...You’re not sure?” Dominic repeated.

“Sir Genos is not in a position where he can perform at his best. This is just a spar, so he can’t risk killing or crippling his opponent, especially when that opponent is an heir of the main family.”

Carmen couldn’t be certain of how this spar would play out. It was because she had a strange feeling, one that was difficult to explain.

A parrying technique that was able to divert all attacks — such a skill could even be said to be Genos’s speciality. However, Eugene could also use a similar technique. In fact, the techniques shared by these two were so similar that she had even begun to suspect that Eugene was Genos’s disciple, or had at least been taught by him.

Carmen hesitated. ‘...However… in terms of finesse….’

It seemed absurd, but… having personally faced both of their techniques, she felt that Eugene’s finesse in executing the technique was far above that of Genos.

When she had faced Eugene, Carmen hadn’t used her full power. However, the attacks she had thrown at him were powerful and heavy enough that it should have been impossible for a nineteen-year-old brat to deal with them. She had vowed to defeat him within a minute, after all. Yet, let alone a minute, she wasn’t able to defeat him even after three minutes had passed. No, she hadn’t even been able to really push him… even though Carmen hadn’t been going easy on him. Eugene had shown absurdly high levels of mana control, and he had been able to divert all of her attacks.

His technique surpassed even Genos’s.

“Come on, then.” Genos conceded the first blow.

Eugene might be his distant senior, but such generosity was still justified.

Eugene smirked and took up his stance. ‘That’s just fine with me. I’ve been wanting to take a good look at it.’

In regards to the damn Hamel Style that Vermouth, that son of a bitch, had sorted out and taught his descendants, Eugene had also become familiar with it after reading the notes that Genos had written for him.

But even if he hadn’t read it, Eugene couldn’t help but be familiar with it. All ten moves in the Hamel Style were based on techniques that had been used by Hamel after all.

Although that was just in his immature childhood.

Eugne judged, ‘In terms of technique, I’m superior. I’ve taken the Hamel Style apart and corrected it for him, but Genos probably won’t be able to adapt the techniques that he’s practiced for decades so quickly.’

And even if Genos did manage to adapt them, it still wouldn’t be much of a problem. After all, wasn’t the Hamel Style still based on what Eugene had come up with as Hamel? In other words, under normal circumstances, it was impossible for Eugene to lose this spar.

There was no way that Genos wasn’t aware of this fact. Even so, Genos had still proposed this spar because he wanted to confirm Eugene’s abilities other than these techniques. Also, if Genos was able to beat Eugene even if they were using the same techniques, then…. Unbeknownst to the audience, Eugene’s right to keep acting superior to Genos was also on the line.

‘You’re distracted, Junior Brother.’ Eugene silently chided Genos as he held his wooden sword straight in front of him. ‘To start with… alright. Let’s use the Hamel Style second mo—wait, fuck. Why am even I using that bullshit name now?’

Eugene’s expression twisted into a scowl as he pushed off the ground with one foot.

The second move was called Thousand Thunderclaps. Although it had ‘thousand’ in its name, it was really just stabbing his sword dozens of times in a rapid flurry. If you added sword-force on top of that, even if you didn’t reach a thousand, you could at least make it seem that there were hundreds of blows.

‘Thousand Thunderclaps…!’ Genos recognized it, his eyes opening widely.

Although Eugene hadn’t shouted out the name of his attack, there was no way that Genos wouldn’t be able to recognize this technique.

‘No, it’s different,’ Genos realized. ‘It’s not the same Thousand Thunderclaps that I know. What was in Sir Hamel’s secret manual was an improved version… the genuine Thousand Thunderclaps…!’

As his juvenile Senior Brother, Genos had been taking Eugene a bit lightly. He had been forced to call Eugene his Senior Brother due to the rules of seniority, but Genos had still thought that he was overwhelmingly superior to Eugene in terms of pure ability.

However, after seeing the genuine Thousand Thunderclaps being used by Eugene, Genos could no longer continue to believe that his own skill was so massively superior. Currently, what Eugene was displaying was the perfectly recreated version of the true Thousand Thunderclaps.

Even without mixing in sword-force, the tip of the wooden sword seemed to have split into dozens of copies all thrusting together. That was just how seamlessly each of the different sword thrusts were woven together.

Genos immediately pulled his wooden sword back behind him.

Hamel Style, third move — Lightning Counter.

Crackle!

Genos’s wooden sword transformed into a lightning bolt. The lightning pierced right through the center of the flurry of sword thrusts.

Clack!

Both of their wooden swords were knocked backwards. His attack had failed. The Lightning Counter was a counterattack that was meant to slip through an opponent’s attack.

However, without any hesitation, Genos immediately recovered his sword.

‘The lightning of the Hamel Style never stops,’ Genos reminded himself.

He used the mana circulating within him to regulate his body. The arm that had been pushed back by the recoil was forcibly moved back into place by the flow of his mana. The final goal of the Hamel Style was to be able to completely control all of the body’s movements with mana alone. This would enable the practitioner to become even faster and stronger. It would also allow them to attack continuously, whatever their situation or their condition.

Genos’s Thousand Thunderclaps burst out towards Eugene.

Eugene’s eyes were able to catch up to each of the dozens of sword thrusts. As expected, Genos’s technique was still just like what he had written down in the notes he gave to Eugene. In other words, his technique was inferior by Eugene’s standards, but Genos’s skill and experience could still make up for the technical inferiority.

That said, Eugene could still see through it. He could see everything. Eugene’s body slipped backward, a moment before the sword thrusts stabbed into the air in front of him.

‘The Lightning Counter is meant to strike without any notice,’ Eugene thought in that instant. ‘Wait, fuck, no, it’s not the Lightning Counter, it’s…. Damn that son of a bitch, Vermouth, the names that he came up with keep popping up inside of my head.’

Lightning shot out. Eugene’s counterattack was smoother and more subtle than Genos’s. Genos realized that it was impossible for him to parry this attack that had already pierced its way into his chest.

‘So this is the true Lightning Counter…!’ Genos had the time to muse.

Rather than trying to knock the attack aside, Genos judged that the best way to deal with it was to retreat. Indeed, doing so allowed him to narrowly escape the attack — and then Genos’s wooden sword went wild.

Hamel Style, fourth move — Asura Rampage.

This dizzying sword strike, which Molon had described as ‘just like an Asura’, swept through the air. Eugene braced his own sword arm tight against his body and dove into the sword blow.

Making use of parrying, their wooden swords clashed against each other, and Eugene managed to slip past. Having knocked away the closest sword strike, Eugene’s wooden sword spun around in his hand. The sword that he was now holding in a reverse grip dug a furrow into the ground as it surged upward.

‘Dragon Burst!’ Eugene shouted internally.

The Dragon Burst that Genos was familiar with required the user to condense sword-force and then let it burst forth with a slash. Although they weren’t allowed to use sword-force in their current spar, the form of this attack was definitely the Dragon Burst.

The technique that Genos chose to face this attack with was the Dead End. Genos’s wooden sword soared high into the sky, then fell down like the blade of a guillotine.

Crash!

It was impossible to believe that such a sound could have come from two wooden swords colliding. As the mana covering their bodies clashed from coming so close, the ground shook from the force of it. At this sight, the faces of their spectators were covered in astonishment.

No matter how many cards Genos was holding in his hand, the nineteen-year-old Eugene was still able to meet him on an even playing field.

‘That monstrous bastard…!’ Cyan thought as his jaw dropped open.

When he heard that Eugene was going to be sparring with Genos, Cyan had hoped that Eugene was going to suffer a beating. He had come out here because wanted to see such a sight personally, with his own eyes, but what the hell was going on?

‘If it was me… if it was me, I would have fallen down already,’ Cyan admitted. ‘This is absurd…. He’s not getting pushed back in the slightest despite sparring with a Captain of the Knights of the Black Lion?’

His throat seemed to have dried up and his fingertips were twitching sporadically. Cyan felt the urge to immediately pick up a wooden sword and jump into the fight along with them. Of course he knew that he wouldn’t be able to hold on for even a moment and would only end up collapsed on the ground groaning pitifully, but it felt like he would still be able to obtain something by doing so.

Cyan painfully admitted, ‘I’m… I’m weak. In many ways, I’m lacking. But so what?’

Forgetting to even blink during all this, Cyan avidly watched the spar. Although he wasn’t able to fight alongside them, by focusing on watching the spar from the side like this, Eugene and Genos’s techniques were slowly being absorbed into Cyan’s head.

‘I can’t break through,’ Genos realized, feeling an admiration that surpassed his faint surprise.

It was impossible for him to overwhelm Eugene even with the fair bit of strength that Genos was holding in reserve. Let alone overwhelm Eugene, Genos felt like he was slowly being pushed back. The things that were really getting to him were Eugene’s Mana Parrying and Lightning Counter. In a state like this, where he was forced to refrain from using the full amount of his mana, Genos didn’t have the confidence that he could properly display his techniques the way Eugene was doing.

This was proof of Eugene’s superior mana control.

Hamel Style, sixth move — Cyclone.

The rotation added to Eugene’s sword thrust twisted the path of Genos’s sword, then immediately flowed into the movement for an Asura Rampage. Genos was slowly getting pushed back little by little, even as he kept looking for a chance at a Lightning Counter.

When he was finally able to send out a flash of lightning, however, the lightning bolt that shot back at him in return was faster than Genos’s own!

Crack!

Although Genos immediately twisted his body out of the way, Eugene’s wooden sword barely managed to scrape past Genos’s shoulder.

“...Amazing…!” Genos gasped as he took a few steps backward and shook his head.

His mana shield hadn’t been punctured yet, but Genos accepted that there was no point in continuing this spar.

Having to admit defeat like this in front of so many people should have been humiliating, both as a knight and as someone from the older generation. However, Genos didn’t feel even a hint of shame at admitting his defeat. Instead, he actually admired and respected Eugene even more for it.

Genos felt that respecting Eugene was the same as respecting Hamel, whom Genos had acknowledged as his grandmaster. Eugene was Genos’s Senior Brother, as well as the true successor of the Hamel Style.

Genos declared, “I’ve lost. You really are amazing—!”

Although he had just been about to cry out Senior Brother, since there were so many eyes watching them, Genos had to stop himself. As Genos laid down his wooden sword and walked over to Eugene, he grabbed Eugene’s shoulders with tears shining in his eyes.

“...Why the hell are you crying?” was Eugene’s first question.

“I… I have conjunctivitis. Sometimes, tears just end up flowing out like this.”

As Genos stared up into the sky to keep his tears from flowing, he hugged Eugene tightly.

This was quite embarrassing behavior, but… seeing how passionate Genos’s tears were, Eugene just couldn’t bear to push him away.

“...That’s great.” Carmen sighed, as she admired the passionate embrace of the two men, as well as Genos’s chivalry in being willing to admit that his far-younger junior had defeated him.

She put the cigar that she had been holding in her hands back into her mouth, then she took off her leather gloves and started clapping.

Clap clap… clap clap clap clap.

Once Carmen had started clapping, everyone else who had been watching started clapping as well. Even Cyan, who had pinned his eyes wide open as he watched the spar, clapped vigorously as he felt a burning passion in his chest.

‘Eugene… you might be an adopted son, but you will surely become the pride of the entire Lionheart clan,’ Gilead thought to himself in admiration of Eugene.

When Eugene had said that he wanted to go to Samar, Gilead had felt like he definitely couldn’t allow Eugene to go there. That was why, once he had heard that Eugene would be sparring Genos with this trip on the line, Gilead had been willing to come here and act as an observer.

In his heart, he had been hoping for Eugene’s defeat. If need be, Gilead had even been prepared to intervene midway and announce Eugene’s defeat as quickly as possible. He was determined to protect his son from going to such a dangerous place even if it meant resorting to such measures.

But he hadn’t been able to do that. There wasn’t any chance for him to do so. Although he had already seen some of it during Eugene’s match with Carmen, this time he was able to properly assess how much Eugene’s skill had grown over the years. Right now, Eugene was no longer a young lion that needed to be sheltered in his embrace and protected. He was a mature lion that wouldn’t face any problems even if it left the pride to become independent.

‘Indeed… I wasn’t mistaken about him,’ Gion also felt deeply moved.

From when they had first met at the main estate, Gion had sparred with Eugene several times over the years. Although he had also taught swordsmanship to Cyan and Ciel, he hadn’t actually been able to teach Eugene anything.

The child had already known how to do everything before Gion had even started teaching him. No, it wasn’t just that. Whenever they had held those types of spars, Gion had never once felt like he had held the upper hand over Eugene.

He now couldn’t help but admit that it wasn’t just a feeling — it was a fact. That boy had been born with an unbelievable instinct for battle. He could make accurate judgments no matter what the situation, and his body reacted immediately.

‘I have a bad feeling about this,’ Ciel thought sulkily.

Although she was clapping, her eyes were looking somewhere other than Eugene. Specifically, she was looking at Kristina Rogeris, who was staring intently at Eugene with her hands clasped in front of her chest instead of applauding.

Those eyes seemed to contain an emotion that was completely different from either admiration or astonishment at Eugene, though Ciel couldn’t really figure out what that feeling was.

As such, Ciel couldn’t help but dislike Kristina.