How to survive as a beggar count

Chapter 16

My eyes, too, were fixed on the agent beside Count Bener.

‘That’s Priyana.’

A monster who had reached level 5 at such a young age.

He was the one who cut off Aemon’s wrist in the novel, and he played a major role in the story.

‘He looks even sharper in person.’

He seemed a little younger than in the novel’s image.

Since this was set in the past, perhaps he was still in the process of growing.

As I observed Priyana from various angles, a man finally stepped forward to the center.

“…Now then. I call upon the great Duel Goddess, Tryas, to seek justice. Is there any objection?”

The plump judge, sweating profusely, asked.

Aemon, though appearing as a middle-aged man with a round belly, seemed almost slim in comparison to the judge.

“No objections.”

“None from me either.”

The two counts politely responded to the judge.

Though a mere judge, he was now acting as the king’s representative for this trial.

Even nobles had to show respect to the king’s authority at this moment.

“Then, the duel will begin. The champions for the duel, please step forward.”

“Ahem! Well then…”

Count Bener nodded toward his attendants.

At his signal, the short-haired man who had been resting in the shade stepped onto the dueling grounds.

Priyana was known for his quick swordsmanship.

Though I hadn’t seen his swordplay yet, his appearance alone indicated he was formidable.

Broad shoulders, eyes full of determination.

Even as he slowly walked toward the dueling area, his gait radiated strength.

‘So this is what rank 5 looks like.’

Rank 5 was truly the realm of geniuses.

For ordinary people, it was an unreachable, distant wall.

The realm of monsters.

Originally, his plan was to sever Aemon’s left hand and turn him into a blank.

‘So this is Priyana.’

He felt different in person compared to from a distance.

A character who would later rise to become the commander of the Isoether Kingdom’s knights.

As Priyana stepped onto the dueling ground.

‘Hmph.’

A young knight who was probably not yet thirty.

And yet, his rank was level 5. This was an enormous merit.

This meant there was a possibility he could even break the level 7 barrier in the future.

‘So this is where the conspiracy begins.’

No one present, except Priyana, knew about this.

A promising young knight with such a bright future had ended up as the representative in a rural duel trial.

Count Bener, who prided himself on being quite clever, had overlooked something.

The author was far too competent to get involved in the conflict between our two families.

According to Count Bener’s plan, the Impera family was supposed to fall shortly after the duel trial was over.

But Ian would remain alive for several more years, until the main characters visit the mansion.

This meant things weren’t going according to Count Bener’s plan.

Priyana, a graduate of the Jenis Knight School.

A man who would eventually become the commander of the Isoether Kingdom’s knights.

That was the true identity of the representative.

And the reason he had come down to this rural village was one thing only.

Aaron Gold II, the ruler of the Isoether Kingdom.

The civil strife that began in this rural village would not end as a simple feud between two families.

The delicate balance of power would be shattered, and countless other families, aside from the Bener and Impera families, would fight to the death.

As a result, the nobles would be embroiled in internal strife and weaken, while the Isoether Kingdom’s royal power would grow stronger.

The duel trial taking place now was the beginning of all this scheming.

‘What a vile man.’

I didn’t want to fall into such a malicious trap. …But if Priyana loses, will it be okay?

According to the novel, Priyana wins the duel.

And as a reward for his efforts, he enters the knight order and later even becomes the leader.

But what if he loses here? What will happen then?

‘…Ah, whatever. Why should I care? It’s not my problem.’

There might be some deviations from the novel’s plot, but what can I do? If we lose here, I’ll die.

“The preparations are complete.”

After a quick stretch, Priyana spoke to the judge.

Bener’s side was already ready.

The only ones left were from our Impera side.

“Count Impera. Where is the champion?”

“That is…”

Aemon, resigned, was about to step forward when—

“I’m here.”

A man in shabby outer clothes stepped up to the dueling ground.

He made it right on time. I wasn’t worried since I knew he wouldn’t break the promise.

‘Though showing up just before the duel is a bit much.’

He was wearing thick plate armor haphazardly covered with a ragged cloak.

“Who is that?”

Aemon, seeing Claude for the first time, was clueless.

“I told you, didn’t I? I found a representative.”

“Where did you find someone like that…?”

“Well, I just picked someone from among my drinking buddies.”

Aemon, who had been cornered only moments ago, now stuttered upon seeing the representative.

I decided not to explain further.

If I mentioned the Eternal Knights, things might go south in more ways than one, possibly even leading to execution.

“Hmm…!”

The judge glanced at Claude and frowned slightly. However, after briefly inspecting his appearance, he didn’t seem to care much.

Given Claude’s shabby appearance and the fact that his opponent was Priyana, the judge didn’t think much of it.

Who would think a rank 5 would lose to someone like this, from a rural village?

“Then, the champions from both sides, please step forward.”

Finally, all preparations for the duel trial were complete.

All that was left was to see which side the Duel Goddess would smile upon.

“Hey.”

Claude, standing in the dueling arena, called me in a low voice.

“You remember the promise, right?”

“Heh! It’s been a month, and that’s all you have to say? Of course, I remember!”

“Hmph.”

Claude seemed to relax only after confirming the answer.

I observed Count Bener’s reaction from across the way.

At first, when Claude appeared, he seemed a little unsettled, but after seeing his shabby appearance, he maintained a confident expression.

‘Well then… Shall I have some fun with this?’

A plan to raise my rank while playing a trick on Count Bener.

Before the duel began, I asked the judge.

“If our side wins, what happens?”

The judge was a representative of the king.

Though my tone was somewhat impudent, no one reprimanded me.

The judge, whose reputation was already tarnished, seemed to take it in stride.

“Well… this trial was held because of an incident involving Count Bener’s vassal, Davenes Majien. So if the Impera family wins, it should all be settled as if nothing happened.”

“That’s too bland, don’t you think?”

“What… what do you mean?”

“Well, what’s the point of going so far as to find a representative if we’re just going to leave it at that? At least there should be something at stake on both sides, right? And if you really think about it, it’s Majien who insulted Count Impera in the first place.”

“That’s…”

I didn’t stop there and continued my argument.

“So I’ll make a bold demand right now. If our representative wins, please return the ownership of the Baldig Dungeon to us.”

“What kind of nonsense…!”

The judge was so flustered by the proposal that he almost forgot what he was going to say next.

As Count Bener was about to start protesting, I threw in a final gamble.

“However, if our side loses, I’ll offer my life in exchange.”

“What did you say?”

“What will you do?”

This time, I turned my question toward Count Bener, not the judge.

I could briefly see the tension in his expression, but soon enough, he regained his smug smile.

He must have been expecting something like this.

The Impera family had chosen a representative, so things were different from the original story.

They were supposed to cut off Aemon’s left hand.

That’s the only way for the Impera family to fall apart.

But with the representative now chosen, expecting Aemon to become a blank after losing the duel was unrealistic.

In this situation, would the heir of the Impera family really risk his life?

From Count Bener’s perspective, this was an incredibly tempting offer.

If you compare the ownership of a dungeon about to collapse with my life, the choice was obvious.

Aemon, too, was clearly surprised by the sudden proposal, but he made an effort to remain calm.

It seemed like he trusted me, no matter what happened.

Count Bener was initially a bit taken aback, but soon enough, he fixed his expression.

He even stroked his mouse-like mustache and smiled smugly.

Finally, the reckless young heir was spouting nonsense!

“I don’t see any harm in that.”

“Hmmm…”

The judge, though clearly surprised by the proposal, quickly made up his mind.

Since both sides were agreeing, there was no reason for the judge to refuse.

“Lord Impera’s heir, are you really serious about this?”

“Of course.”

“A duel trial is a sacred event. You don’t think this will just be a joke afterward, do you?”

“Of course not.”

“Hmph…”

Though the judge seemed displeased with my attitude, he didn’t say anything further.

The negotiation was successful.

Once the negotiation ended, Claude was looking at me.

“That was an interesting move.”

“Well, you better take care of things. If we lose here, you won’t get what you want ever again.”

***

Now, with the duel approaching, Count Bener was giving Priyana a stern warning.

“You know you must win this duel, right?”

Priyana didn’t give a verbal response, only nodding slightly.

‘Damn, this guy’s got some nerve for someone from the knight school…’

Count Bener was a little irritated by Priyana’s cocky attitude, but he didn’t say anything. There was no need to worry as long as Priyana won.

What did it matter if Priyana was cocky? As long as he won, the Impera estate would be his.

Moreover, with that crazy reckless son of his betting his life, if Priyana won the duel, it would all be over.

‘But still, you’re just a knight with no connections, aren’t you? Wandering around without any backing!’

Such thoughts were on the tip of his tongue, but he held them back. There was no point in causing trouble.

‘Or… should I just make him one of my vassals? He may be a bit rude, but his swordsmanship is rank 5…’

It wasn’t unreasonable for him to think this way.

It wasn’t common for a young knight with rank 5 to wander around without support.

Though Count Bener didn’t ask, he suspected Priyana might have gotten involved in some scandal, like messing with a noble’s daughter…

Taking in such a person felt uncomfortable, but for Count Bener, it was fine.

He only had a young son, no daughters, so he didn’t mind too much.

After making his calculations, Count Bener stood tall and spoke to Priyana.

“If you win this duel, I’ll grant you the special privilege of becoming my vassal. What do you think?”

He thought it was a decent offer. Except, of course, for the fact that Priyana had secret backing from the king.

“…I’ll think about it.”

“Well, of course… Huh?”

“Thank you for the offer, but I’m not interested in serving anyone just yet. I’m sorry.”

“Ah… well… if that’s the case…”

Count Bener, surprised by the unexpected answer, nervously smiled.

‘This guy. Let’s see how long that pride lasts. Hmph!’

On the other hand, Priyana was seething inside.

Sigh…

He was already a knight loyal to the king.

For that reason, Count Bener’s words were extremely unpleasant.

In his heart, he wanted to strike the man, but this was an order from His Majesty the King.

A small spark to ignite the discord among the kingdom’s nobles.

The flame that started here would soon grow into a bloody territorial war among the nobles.

Endure it. For His Majesty’s grand plan.

***

“Heh heh…”

I kept a distance, carefully eavesdropping on the conversation between Priyana and Count Bener.

It wasn’t exactly quiet, so as long as I paid attention, I could hear them clearly.

On the surface, it didn’t seem too strange.

One was an ambitious noble hiding in a remote area, and the other was a knight who had been pushed out by central nobles and had no backing.

In some ways, they made quite a fitting pair.

But knowing the full story, I felt completely differently.

That fool Bener. He doesn’t even know who’s backing Priyana.

Priyana was a loyal knight.

At the same time, he was a knight who was full of pride.

One of the few knights who had the king’s support.

That was Priyana.

Would a man like him, backed by the king, be interested in joining the likes of a backwater count?

In fact, knights of his rank would often receive the title of Duke, if not higher, if they led a knight order.

Already, Priyana was preparing himself with an expression that looked like he had just eaten something disgusting.

Seeing this, Aemon nervously swallowed his saliva.

It was understandable, as our representative hadn’t even moved to loosen up, while Priyana was stretching his body.

“Um… my son, I appreciate that knight stepping up as our representative, but the opponent doesn’t seem easy…”

“It’s fine. That guy will definitely win.”

“D-Definitely?”

“Definitely…”

Although Claude didn’t explicitly show it, Priyana’s rank was at least 6.

During the great war in the novel, Priyana had already been rank 6, so it was only natural that he was higher now.

I whispered into Aemon’s ear, who seemed uneasy.

“That guy is rank 6. At least.”

“W-What? Rank 6!? A person like that… Why would he…?”

“Well, it’s because both sides need something from each other.”

“Hmm…”

Aemon had no idea what a knight of rank 6 could possibly gain from the Impera family, but one thing was certain.

This was a deal that would never leave Claude at a disadvantage.

It had already been 14 years since the empire collapsed.

In that time, he had scoured the former empire’s territories, but the “artifacts of the knights” had been nowhere to be found.

And now, he was offering to reveal them.

That was why he was here.

Priyana was certainly a great knight, but his mindset in battle was completely different.

This was a fight between a knight helping a backwater count on the king’s orders, and a wandering knight whose ambition had been burning for over a decade.

“Do you think you can handle it?”

“You talk too much. You just focus on remembering where the artifacts are.”

“Heh heh! No need to worry about me!”

I kept a close eye on the situation from a distance.

Count Bener’s representative, Priyana, was a knight skilled in fast swordsmanship, and he wore light armor.

His armor consisted of a sharp-pointed chestplate and bracers to protect his arms.

That was all the armor Priyana wore.

In contrast, Claude was fully clad in a full plate mail, making his movements seem quite slow.

What a sight. A knight of fast swordsmanship in that heavy armor.

If it were in this day and age, someone wearing that would be crushed under the weight of the armor.

Then again, maybe the thick armor allowed him to wield a fast yet heavy sword style.

Hmm.

A duel between two masters of rank 5 or higher.

It wasn’t often one got to witness something like this.

It was a great opportunity to see how far swordsmanship had developed in this world.

I kept my eyes wide open, making sure not to miss even a single move.

The judge from the kingdom looked between the two knights.

When Priyana nodded, as if ready, the judge took a magic orb from his pocket.

Bang!

He muttered softly to the orb, and a translucent barrier spread around them.

“For the glory of Isoter…”

With the judge’s words, the duel began.

Klood quietly drew a sword from within his cloak.

No Ouroboros symbol.

Perhaps aware of the surrounding gazes, this sword was different from the one I had seen before.

In the novel, whenever Claude was cornered, he would wield an additional sword.

A longsword that reached his waist and a broadsword about the length of his forearm.

With these two swords, he executed a fluid sword dance that claimed the lives of many knights.

The sword he had drawn now seemed to be the shorter one.

Hah.

In response, Priyana drew his own sword.

It was a sword of a reasonable length—not too long, not too short.

It was the standard sword used at the Zenith Knight Academy.

He was a knight who adhered strictly to the basics, never resorting to underhanded tactics.

That was the image of Priyana in the novel.

I wonder how this will turn out?

There was nothing I could do now.

All I could do was sit back and enjoy the show, like eating popcorn.