Visiting with her head inclined to the side, it is Alyssa.
“You rude lass. If you don’t want to be slain, get out of the way… no.” (Balzephon)
He brandished the sword with its blade blank.
“I will have you atone for the sin of having made fun of a knight.” (Balzephon)
The sword, swung downward with all his strength, only hit the floor causing Balzephon stance to grandly fall apart.
Alyssa had averted its trajectory with the wakizashi she held in a backhand grip.
“That sword is…” (Balzephon)
It’s a sword with only a slight curve having a single edge. Its characteristic, as Balzephon had heard before, was similar to the sword with the name katana, which Hifumi possesses.
“Hifumi-san’s… I wonder if you don’t get it. It’s a verbal message from Earl Tohno.” (Alyssa)
Even though she was assaulted with a sword, Alyssa, who wasn’t perturbed in the least, retrieved a memo from her pocket with a rustling sound and read it out loud.
“The stupid knights are gathering in the dance hall. End.” (Alyssa)
It totally rubbed Balzephon the wrong way that she even went as far as especially taking out a memo just to say only this much.
“Don’t mess with me!” (Balzephon)
“Uh-oh.” (Alyssa)
Alyssa, who easily avoided again and again the fast-moving, swung sword, jumped around with nimble movement.
“Since olden days my speciality is to evade, you know. That’s because I have officially worked as ojii-chan’s guard.” (Alyssa) (T/N: ojii-chan = grandfather in a very familiar way to call him)
“Wait!” (Balzephon)
At the moment Balzephon called her to stop, Alyssa immediately jumped out of the window.
“… Fuck!” (Balzephon)
Balzephon wavered while wandering around aimlessly for a while, but he doesn’t see any figures except the corpses of his colleagues up until here. Although there should at least be 40 of his colleagues remaining, he doesn’t meet anybody.
Clicking his tongue, he advances towards the dancing hall located at the centre of the castle with heavy feet at a quick pace.
Soon he arrives in front of a large door leading into the dance hall.
Once he opened it with a violent kick, he saw Hifumi’s figure there, surrounded by ten-odd corpses and furthermore encircled by knights beyond the circle of corpses turning their swords at him.
Due to the loud sound of the door opening, the gazes of everyone present gather on Balzephon.
“Ba-Balzephon! Do something about this man! He has already done in quite a few of us!”
Yelling while dripping in sweat, it was a knight, who had been earlier hit with the fruit and was lured up to the dance hall.
“Oh, at last the ringleader came?” (Hifumi)
The instant Hifumi said that, the door in the back of Balzephon, who entered the room, closed.
“Well then, aren’t there still around 30 of you remaining? Use your head. Brace yourselves and properly look at your surroundings. Recall the things you have practised until now. With this it will be possible for you to finally fight me decently.” (Hifumi)
Due to Hifumi’s laughter, Balzephon grasped his sword strongly and trembled with rage.
Even if he only looked roughly at it, almost all of the remaining knights of the rebelling side have been gathered here. To put it simply, every last of them has been lured here and in the end more than 10 have been killed in a short amount of time.
“Don’t screw with me!” (Balzephon)
Forgetting about himself being led here as well, he shouts.
“You idiots, all of you have been lured here abandoning your own stations! Furthermore, what’s this sorry state with only a single opponent! You should be ashamed!” (Balzephon)
There also were knights, who lowered their sight due to his words, but there are also those feeling antipathy.
“Balzephon! Haven’t you come here as well!?”
“Right! In the first place, it is likely your fault for the operation going badly!”
Due to the knights, who started to quarrel among themselves as if forgetting the situation, Hifumi made an astonished expression.
“Get along with each other. After all we will do our best to kill each other from now on.” (Hifumi)
Holding the katana above his head, Hifumi laughs.
“Well, then let’s start now, okay?” (Hifumi)
Balzephon readied his sword as well.
At any rate, if we kill the man in front of my eyes here, all will turn out well, opening his bloodshot eyes, he started to run.
Chapter 79: Kings and Queens
“What an idiot! Do you plan to win against this number of opponents?” (Balzephon)
Although Balzephon started to dash towards Hifumi raising his voice to yelling, he lost sight of Hifumi in the blink of an eye as he was moving, as if gliding, in the dance hall crowded with the other knights while laughing.
“Tsk! Where did he go!?” (Balzephon)
He surveys his surroundings while turning in a circle, but he isn’t able to spot Hifumi’s figure.
“You can’t say it’s always advantageous to have large numbers.” (Hifumi)
Striking the head of a single knight, he enters the blind spot of his opponent before he can turn around and strikes yet another knight.
“I guess it’s inevitable for you to obstruct each other with such experiences?” (Hifumi)
“There you are!”
A knight, who was brandishing his sword, slashes at the back of the talking Hifumi.
“Don’t speak. You have to do a surprise attack.” (Hifumi)
While saying these words, Hifumi lightly placed his hand on the shoulder of the knight, who was in front of him, and changed places with him in a swift movement.
“Gya!?”
“Uh…”
The knight, who planned to hit Hifumi instead ended up hitting his own colleague with his sword, was beheaded while being perplexed.
“You are far too close to each other. That results in you cutting your own allies, if you swing your swords poorly.” (Hifumi)
The knights, who personally witnessed the friendly fire, have an indecisive attitude even while preparing their swords.
Being in a separate location, Balzephon instructed all of them to disperse.
“Everybody, fall back to the walls of the hall!” (Balzephon)
Hearing his voice, the surprised knights are slowly withdrawing.
Hifumi, who was left all alone in the centre of the hall, sheaths his katana and laughs daringly.
“Is this the correct answer, I wonder? So, what will you do next?” (Hifumi)
“How arrogant… although the Second Knight Order was destroyed, you likely only attacked captain’s group from the back after they were exhausted from the battle. Us knights won’t fall behind a country-bumpkin like you bastard.” (Balzephon)
“Look at the reality.”
Hifumi shakes his head as if being incredulous about Balzephon’s words.
He knocks with a finger on the pommel of the katana at his waist.
“We have so many knights here, why won’t the fellow, who has already come out in front of me and told me to fight him one-on-one, come forward? It’s simple. You saw your colleagues getting killed. You are probably aware that you won’t be able to win.” (Balzephon)
The knocking sound of a nail hitting the metal fixtures of the pommel is resounding.
Balzephon glares at the knights in his surroundings, but all of them are trying to not make eye contact and avert their sight.
“You worthless bunch! Don’t you have pride as knights!?” (Balzephon)
“No, no, if you say this much, you have to take the lead and come forward yourself.” (Hifumi)
Saying this while laughing, Balzephon stared at Hifumi with a bright red face.
“Ah, if you are scared of this, let’s go bare-handed.” (Hifumi)
>
Once Hifumi drew the katana, together with the scabbard, from his waist and quickly tossed it into his darkness storage, he showed his palms.
“Hey, set up your sword properly. Since I’m not wearing any armour, you might kill me, if you hit me. If you hit me, that is.” (Hifumi)
“You underestimate a knight far too much, bastard. I will chop you into pieces and present your corpse in front of Imeraria.” (Balzephon)
Balzephon stepped forward correcting his sword stance.
While gradually shortening the distance to Hifumi, he dispatches the knights, who are in Hifumi’s back, with a glance, that lasted only an instant.
Balzephon, confirming that both of them nodded, purposely spoke in a loud voice.
“Die!” (Balzephon)
“That’s impossible in this situation.” (Hifumi)
Hifumi slowly advances diagonally forward.
With only that alone, to say nothing about Balzephon’s sword, the two swords, swung downward from the back, don’t hit either.
Hifumi, who circled into Balzephon’s back as if smoothly passing through, kicked the backside of his opponent’s knee with the tips of his toes and locked an arm around the neck of the kneeling Balzephon.
Constricting the neck together with Balzephon’s right hand holding the sword, Balzephon’s consciousness is slowly getting muddy.
“Hey, try having a look at your surroundings. There’s no knight trying to approach in order to save you. What’s a knight? Are they guys, who also abandon their friends to save their own lives? Are they running away from battles only caring about appearance and weapons?” (Hifumi)
Due to Hifumi’s voice from right close-by, Balzephon’s head has become a sloppy mess.
What is the pride of a knight I wanted to protect? What is that lot looking from a distance as I’m getting killed this very minute? Just what the hell did I want to become…?
“Your brain still works, I guess. What can you do to survive right now? Is it holding your head high and brandishing your sword? Is it being proud of your noble birth?” (Hifumi)
Balzephon thought. He literally thought in desperation.
I ended up dropping the sword due to my arm losing strength because of the pressure of the constriction. It’s also impossible to grip Hifumi’s arm with my left hand. I can’t move my feet well due the kneeling posture either.
At last his vision became a cloudy white.
“… This guy was also only at this level, huh?” (Hifumi)
With a disappointed voice of Hifumi audible, the strength of constriction is raised even further.
“Gugu…” (Balzephon)
“Oh?” (Hifumi)
Balzephon ducked his head with all his might and opened his mouth. Somehow managing to open his front teeth to the degree of 2 fingers wide, he bit into Hifumi’s arm resolutely.
“Uh-oh.” (Hifumi)
On the verge of having meat torn off, Hifumi released the restraint and separated from Balzephon.
Balzephon, who got out of the predicament, gained distance from Hifumi by rolling on the ground without caring about his own appearance.
“*cough*… *cough*” (Balzephon)
“Your choice just now was good. There are people even saying that biting is vulgar and such, but it’s an effective attack. Teeth are strong.” (Hifumi)
As Hifumi was talking calmly, Balzephon looked at him with eyes filled with tears while coughing and rubbed his neck staying silent.
“Now then, just now you literally bit yourself to survival, but… what’s your next move?” (Hifumi)
“… I was able to calm down due to being close to death. I won’t be able to become an ideal knight anymore. Therefore, there’s no meaning in putting up a front either.” (Balzephon)
While saying this, he removes his armour with clattering sounds and drops it on the floor.
“I have understood. I’m no match for you bastard.” (Balzephon)
Balzephon, whose figure became agile, muttered “Finally free.”
“Next time I will win.” (Balzephon)
Once he finished saying that, Balzephon turned his back on Hifumi and ran with all his power.
Without change he rushed out from the narrow exit for the servants, the knights and nobles usually didn’t use.
Hifumi didn’t chase after him.
“How nice. How far will he get? My anticipations increased by one more… well then.” (Hifumi)
Hifumi matches the sight of each of the knights, who saw off Balzephon suddenly escaping in blank surprise.
“Only one chose life rather than honour, but what will you guys do?” (Hifumi)
“If it’s now, I will give you a big service. I will finish you all at once while unarmed”, he said.
The knights let their looks swim for a while. But if it’s such large number against an unarmed opponent, he apparently gradually became generous. One after the other set up their sword with a grim expression.
“That’s great.” (Hifumi)
Stepping forward with his right foot, Hifumi holds out both his hands in front and takes a relaxed stance.
“Let’s do this thoroughly until either of us dies.” (Hifumi)
☺☻☺
Due to the instructions of Midas and Vaiya, who regained his consciousness, the soldiers are guiding the populace to the plaza in front of the royal castle.
“At last the coronation ceremony is starting”, several soldiers loudly exclaimed, cautioning the people to advance slowly without running.
“Midas-san, this side is finished.” (Vaiya)
Vaiya, who concluded the stationing of the soldiers, ran up to Midas and gave his report.
“Understood. Since I will be continuing with the assignments of the guards for the venue, get in touch with Captain Sabnak.” (Midas)
“Yes, sir.” (Vaiya)
While issuing instructions to the soldiers without break, Midas, who remained at the plaza, made sure that the populace gathered in front of the royal castle.
At the time many people entered the plaza and the noise settled down, Midas unintentionally looked upwards and saw Sabnak’s armoured figure appearing on the balcony. Imeraria slowly showed herself accompanied by Shibyura, taking the breath of the people.
“It’s the princess!”
As someone raised their voice, the people’s gazes instantly turned towards the balcony.
Even the soldiers, while paying attention to the surroundings, turned their looks upwards against their better judgement.
“Everybody living in Orsongrande, on this occasion I, Imeraria Torie Orsongrande, will succeed my father and rise to be the ruler of this country.” (Imeraria)
A great majority of the gathered populace expressed joyful looks and applause reverberated.
Seeing this, Imeraria smiles delightfully.
“Thank you very much.” (Imeraria)
Imeraria, who regained a serious expression right away, inhales a large breath.
“This country has been exposed to many crisis. Battles have occurred, a great number of soldiers and knights got injured and a not negligible number of them perished. There are also the great accomplishments of Earl Tohno. Although these resulted in victories, there were sacrifices as well. I won’t forget this fact.” (Imeraria)
Summoned Slaughterer - Book 5 Page 3
