The Grand Duelist

"Juzo? Do you know of that man's name? He's from the Divine Sword Sect and is known to be the greatest drunkard out there. I really admire his skills in brewing alcohol... Could it be that you have alcohol brewed by him?" Krid asked in excitement.

Joseph nodded his head and Krid's excitement intensified.

"Really? If that's the case then hand it over to me right now. Those bastards always refuse my request for some alcohol. It's been such a long time since I drank one and if it came from Juzo then it will really be a good treat."

"Hahaha..." Joseph lightly chuckled when he saw Krid's excitement.

Krid looked like he was a child about to be handed over his favorite toy.

The former chuckled upon seeing that peculiar excitement.

"I have a jug of his beer with me. Would you like some, Senior?" Joseph opened his palm and a jug of beer appeared in his hand.

Along with its appearance, a strong, citrusy and spicy aroma suffused in the air.

"Yes, that's it! That's Juzo's jug of beer... Hand it over!" Krid's excitement surged and he reached out towards Joseph.

[ Would you like to hand over Juzo's Favorite and Beloved Jug of Beer to Krid? ]

"Here you go, Senior." Joseph handed over the jug of beer and Krid gladly received it.

Popping open the lid, the spicy, citrusy and strong aroma of the beer that suffused in the air further intensified. Joseph couldn't endure it and he had to take a step back. Ezreal who was still unconscious visibly knitted his eyebrows...

Krid then chugged the beer without any care, some of it spilled on his clothes and to the poor Ezreal who peacefully laid on the ground in the middle of his sleep. When the strong beer splashed on his face. Ezreal was startled awake.

"What is that? Why is it so spicy? What is this strong smell?" He pushed his upper body off the ground and started complaining before he could even open his eyes.

Krid and Joseph chuckled upon seeing his awakening.

"Master? You're there? What's going on? Are you okay?" Ezreal mumbled, his eyes still closed.

"I'm doing fine, Ezreal. Just open your eyes and you'll see."

Ezreal obliged and the scene that he saw thoroughly shocked him to the core.

Krid who was supposed to be their enemy was now staring at him with a sarcastic smile on his face, and Joseph. Whom he considered as his master stared at Krid with excitement and reverence.

'Just what the hell happened that everything became like this?' Ezreal thought, but his first move according to his subconscious was to stand up, leap backward and prepare an attack.

"Get away from master!" Ezreal cried out, throwing all caution to the wind. He glared at Krid and an incomparably pure aura along with the aroma of earth revolved around his body.

"Calm down, calm down, Ezreal! Me and Senior already cleared up our misunderstandings. Right now, he's not an enemy, but a friend. Calm down, okay?" Joseph stood up and explained.

Ezreal knitted his eyebrows and he looked like he couldn't believe what Joseph was saying. The first idea that he thought about regarding what was going on, was that the Joseph he was seeing right now was an illusion that Krid made so he could let his guard down and be easily ambushed.

But...

"Don't worry... He's real... Even if I could make an illusion out of him. There's no way that I can perfectly replicate who he is..." Krid smiled and explained.

Ezreal nodded his head in agreement. That's right, although someone could replicate Joseph's body, mannerism, speech, and voice completely.

There's no way that they could replicate the divine aura of the Grand Duelist coming out of his body.

Even though that aura of his was still incomplete and immature...

It was undoubtedly the aura of the Grand Duelist.

Ezreal visibly calmed down and he finally approached the two.

Of course, he still hasn't let his guard down.

"Then, master. Can you please explain to me what happened?" Ezreal turned to look at Joseph and the latter explained everything that happened with a bitter smile on his face.

"You... you bastard! How dare you kill my master!" Ezreal took a stance once again and Krid could only scratch his head.

"Listen here... What I did was completely normal. Wouldn't you counter-attack against someone attacking you? His death was just an unfortunate result of me using my strength..."

"He's right, Ezreal. There's no need to make a big deal about it. Everything that happened is done and finished. How about we look forward to the future and talk about what the reasons why I came here in the first place? Right, Senior?"

Joseph chimed in before tension could form between the two.

Although reluctant, Ezreal could only nod his head and agree.

"Now to the main part, I just want to ask, Senior. Just how did the Kingdom imprison someone as powerful as you? I mean, you could easily remove those chains around you earlier..."

"Doesn't that mean that you could escape this place whenever you want?" Joseph asked a question that Ezreal also wondered about for a long time prior to this. For him, it didn't make sense that a powerful Legend could be imprisoned by a mere Kingdom...

He nodded his head and stared at Krid with a serious expression.

Krid was taken aback by the straightforward question. He swept his gaze at the two before sighing.

"That's right... I could leave this place whenever I want but I cannot do that."

He spoke in contradicting words that confused the two...

But before the two could ask any further.

Krid voluntarily revealed the answer to their question.

"I cannot leave this place for they took my one and only beloved disciple as their hostage. I don't care about dying. I don't care if I die...

"In fact. Dying is also a blessing to me since I can finally meet her, but I cannot die until my disciple inherits everything that I knew about blacksmithy and Swordsmanship..."

Krid looked like he aged for about ten years at once when he talked about his disciple.

"You know what? I'm always guilty whenever I face my disciple. Ever since she was a child, she grew up in front of the anvil, and only the anvil and the hammer were her playmates."

"I knew nothing about bringing a child up, so I couldn't do anything other than use methods that I knew..."

Joseph frowned, he felt somewhat strange when he heard what Krid had said. But he didn't dare on confirming them right now.

"The life of a blacksmith is harsh, tedious, tiring and hot. But she never complained about it. I never heard any words of complaint from her whenever she was near the terrifyingly hot flames of the furnace. She only smiled, always assuming a tough facade in front of me even though her petite and young body was clearly suffering..."

"That is the reason why I cannot leave this place. If I leave, she will be executed by those bastards..."

"I will never let that happen... No matter what..."

Krid declared in a solemn voice. He once again chugged the jug of beer in his hands before he stared at Joseph and said...

"Brat..."

Ezreal subconsciously moved closer towards his master.

Krid didn't mind what he was doing...

"As I said earlier, I already know the reason about why you are looking for me... But I cannot help you with that for now. At least, until I leave this place along with my disciple. I cannot fulfill your wish, forgive me." Krid slightly bowed his head towards Joseph.

Ezreal was taken aback by his gesture.

'A Legend is bowing towards master?' Ezreal was gratified about what was happening and his mood turned for the better.

But he had an inkling about what Krid was hinting towards them, so he couldn't help but ask.

"Old man, does that mean that you want us to help regarding your precious disciple?" Ezreal chuckled when he said these words.

Krid trembled for a moment but he still replied.

"Yes, that is what I want to request from the two of you. It's been a long time since I was thrown in here and day by day, I always thought about methods that I could use so that I could rescue my disciple... but... Those bastards! Those bastards placed a Heart Binding Worm in her!!!"

Krid suddenly screamed and the ferocity of his cry startled Joseph and Ezreal.

But in the end, Ezreal wore a bitter smile on his face, whilst Joseph was the only one who was confused.

"Heart Binding Worm... Those bastards really are too vicious..." Even Ezreal was shaken by Krid's words. It looked like the Heart Binding Worm was quite serious, so although Joseph didn't know about what it was.

He still assumed a solemn expression as if he understood what they were talking about.

"That is the reason why for now, I cannot help you. I hope that you can understand my plight. And even if I am willing to help you right now. "

"I do not have the necessary materials in here for your Primary Weapon worthy for the successor of the Grand Duelist..."

Krid explained to Joseph with a sigh and he momentarily closed his eyes. However, in the very next moment. His eyes snapped open as he cried out.

"And don't even try and coerce me into making inferior weapons for you! The Grand Duelist is my benefactor and the foundation of my Swordsmanship came from her."

"I will not entertain such blasphemy and disrespect, even if you're the successor of the Grand Duelist!" Krid suddenly gave a warning and Joseph nodded his head in a serious manner.

'I came here for the strongest weapon suitable for me, why would I ask for inferior ones?' He thought.

"But... even though I cannot help you regarding your Primary Weapon for now. That doesn't mean that I cannot help you in other ways..." Krid revealed a proud smile on his expression and he looked like he was begging for some praise.

Seeing that Krid didn't continue on speaking.

Joseph asked: "Uh... What does Senior mean?

"Well, when you fought me earlier. I noticed that you were not taking complete advantage of your skils as the Grand Duelist. Since you're her successor, shouldn't you have the ability to use the Grand Duelist's Graceful Swordsmanship?"

Joseph revealed a bitter smile in the face of his question and he felt reluctant on answering it.

"I do have it, Senior... But I am not sure if I can use it."

"Why?" Krid frowned. 

A complicated expression flashed on Joseph's face and he seemed to be struggling with something.

"Is it because you're not confident that you could make it work and afraid that failure on using it will break your fragile heart and make you further lose your confidence?" Krid's words were spot on and Joseph's eyes widened in shock when he heard the former.

Ezreal was also surprised by what Krid said, but when he saw the bitter expression on Joseph's face.

He confirmed that it was the truth and he couldn't help but mumble.

"Master... is he saying the truth? So the reason why master refuses to use the Graceful Swordsmanship of the Grand Duelist is because, master is not confident that master can properly utilize the Grand Duelist's Graceful Swordsmanship.

Joseph nodded his head in embarrassment. Even he couldn't understand why he was so afraid of the unknown. Why was he so afraid of failure?

He failed for so many times before he managed on defeating the Great Magician Lilibeth, the times when he was defeated could be considered as failures, so why was he not afraid of failing back then?

Krid turned to look at Joseph and when he saw Joseph's complicated emotions.

"I know what you are feeling right now. You feel stupid and useless since you do not have the confidence of doing something that you should be capable of doing, right?"

"Hahaha, I understand. I was also like that back then. I was so afraid that my disciple will despise me if I failed in my craft so I always strived for perfection..."

"But do you know about what she said to me when her birthday came at that year? Do you know about what she wished for in front of her cake?"

Krid revealed a gentle smile on his face as he swept his gaze at the two before continuing.

"She said that she hopes that I would realize that she would love and adore me no matter what happened..."

Joseph froze, and Ezreal now had a small smile on his lips.

"That is why, young man. If you're afraid of being despised by someone whom you consider as valuable to you just because you failed in something. Think about this..."

"If they despised you while you are in your worst, they do not deserve you at your best."

"A true comrade will never do something like that, and if they do? Good job, you dodged a bullet."

Krid patted Joseph's shoulder, and the latter revealed a light smile on his lips.

Ezreal who sat beside Joseph was visibly moved.

"Master... I didn't know that I was that valuable to you..." Ezreal turned to face Joseph and the latter pushed him backwards before saying.

"Fuck off! Can you not look at me like that?" Joseph was disturbed about Ezreal's teary-eyed look.

"Oh? I thought that master liked women who are innately innocent and often acted like this? Master really is the so-called, tsundere-type of a person." Ezreal said in a teasing manner and Joseph instantly stood up.

"Yeah, that is definitely my type of women. But the problem is that you're a man! By the way, where did you learn the word tsundere?"

"Well, it was inscribed on the manga slabs that I got from that young woman. But how about you, master? I don't think that you're entirely disliking it."

"But don't worry..."

"I will always be your friend no matter what your unique habits and orientations are."

Ezreal winked at Joseph and the latter couldn't do anything but stand there with his lips twitching in anger and embarrassment.

"Did... Did he just turn the tables against me?" Joseph exasperatedly mumbled.

Krid observed the two at the side, and complicated emotions flashed on his face as he whispered to himself...

'If he really does value his friends like this... Perhaps, I could have her...' Krid paused his thoughts, and shook his head.

He had shackled his disciple with him for such a long time already...

She couldn't even enjoy her childhood and play like a normal child should do back then...

Right now, he must not make decisions on her behalf.

She wasn't a puppet. She was his disciple. 

But more importantly.

His...

A bitter expression flashed on Krid's face.

'Do I even have the right to call her as my... Heh, forget about it... I have no right to call her like that.'

Krid chugged the jug of wine in his hands and swept these thoughts away from his mind.

[Author's Note: Juzo's Beer came from Chapter 7 if you already forgot about it.]