When The Silent Peony Blooms - Chapter 56

When Pellerhar rushed down to the training grounds, dismissing the attendants following him, Sislan was still charging at Merton relentlessly, gasping for breath as if he would collapse at any moment.

“Hiyah! Haah…!”

Although his strikes were quite sharp at first, as his stamina depleted, Sislan’s movements became sluggish and sloppy.

In contrast, Merton barely moved from where he stood, using just one arm to deflect Sislan’s attacks as if dealing with a child.

“Grr…!”

Sislan gritted his teeth, gripping the wooden sword with both hands.

The area under his bloodshot eyes twitched, looking like he would faint at any moment.

Merton chuckled like a sigh and said.

“You’re using too much unnecessary force. I acknowledge your strength is good for your build, but half of it comes from your shoulders. I don’t know what weapon you mainly use, but using shoulder strength is only fit for sparring with children.”

“What meddling!”

Sislan shouted angrily, his pride hurt. Then, before his words even finished, he suddenly charged at Merton.

It was almost a forceful blow, but when Merton swung his firmly gripped wooden sword, there was a crack and Sislan’s sword broke.

“Gah!”

Sislan, who had fallen down, momentarily widened his eyes. The blunt end of the wooden sword lightly touched his nape.

“Oh my.”

A sigh mixed with sympathy and mockery escaped Pellerhar’s lips as he watched.

Sislan glared at the wooden sword touching his neck, then bit his lip hard and rolled his eyes.

Merton said.

“You’re dead.”

“…Damn it!”

Sislan jumped up, raising dust, and roughly wiped his face drenched in sweat.

“Let’s go again.”

“You’re welcome anytime, but not in your current state. Go drink some water and lie down. Otherwise, you’ll collapse.”

“What water, I’ll freeze to death…! I said let’s go again!”

“Sislan!”

Bellen’s shout crossed the wide training grounds.

Sislan flinched and turned his head, his lips twitching as he kicked the ground hard.

“Damn it!”

He turned his head and spat, then glared at Merton before stomping off somewhere.

Merton, looking not tired at all, rested the wooden sword on his shoulder and shook his head with a strange smile.

“Now it’s my turn! My turn, I say! Commander Merton, please come in quickly, I’m going out!”

Telma came running out, prancing about. The atmosphere among the soldiers was not good due to the consecutive defeats of Betor’s commanders, but he showed a frivolous attitude as if such things were none of his concern.

“Right, Telma. It’s your turn. And this time, it’s my turn too.”

Telma, who had been twirling the heavy wooden sword in one hand like a toy, saw Erdene stepping down from the platform and opened his eyes wide.

“No! Why? I want to face Betor’s commanders too! Why only me…!”

“Shut up.”

Telma’s mouth, which had been protesting loudly, snapped shut.

The soldiers of Betor and the knight commanders looked at their queen, who appeared like a young attendant, with fresh eyes.

Some of them were seeing Erdene’s face for the first time today, and they seemed quite surprised to see her small stature and pretty features, unlike the rumors they had heard.

Erdene, holding the wooden sword, pointed its tip at Telma and said.

“This one.”

“This one, you say…”

Telma mumbled, pouting his lips.

Erdene burst into laughter, wrinkling her nose as if looking at a whining child, then continued nonchalantly.

“Is said to be Telma, the commander of the Eril Knights, the most elite among the empire’s soldiers, overseeing the best of the best. When I was in the empire, he was also my direct subordinate.”

The mouths of those gathered at the training grounds fell open. At the disbelieving looks, Telma shrugged his shoulders and snorted proudly.

“That frivolous one is a knight commander?”

“And he oversees an elite force?”

“A direct subordinate, you say…”

With each murmur heard, Telma’s pride swelled even more.

Watching this, Merton turned his head away as if he was more embarrassed, and Aiman clicked his tongue, rubbing his bumpy bald head.

Erdene continued, looking towards Bellen.

“Commander Telma can handle almost all weapons as if they were part of his body, but he especially uses twin-bladed swords and curved sabers. He’s also exceptional at mounted archery. Now, without a horse or bow, the third skill aside, watch carefully how his habits of using twin blades and sabers manifest in his movements.”

The flag went up.

Telma was still sulking like a child, slumping his shoulders and stomping his feet.

“Your Highness, please go easy on me. In the empire it would be one thing, but here… Ack!”

Erdene charged in, swinging her sword at a speed almost invisible to the eye.

It was fortunate that Telma reacted instantly; otherwise, the wooden sword would have pierced his side and torn him to shreds, such was the ferocity of the attack.

“Ah, really! Why only me! And so seriously! Damn it!”

Though Telma kept chattering incessantly, he soon took his stance. From top to bottom, left to right, both hands to one hand…

Telma’s movements in receiving Erdene’s relentless attacks were quick and agile.

Bellen slowly inhaled as he watched the movements of the two, which were too fast to follow.

Setting aside the fact that the commanders he had sent out earlier were no match for the imperial military officers, Bellen, having directly faced Erdene before, couldn’t help but be shocked by Telma’s reaction speed and attack directions.

Moreover, Erdene’s speed when sparring with him had been ridiculously slow. Compared to now, that is.

‘Just how much were you holding back? Damn, when the skill difference is this big, it doesn’t even hurt my pride.’

Clack! Thud! Thwack—!

The sound of wooden swords clashing continued.

When Telma found an opportunity to approach Erdene closely and was about to swing his wooden sword, their faces showed contrasting expressions. He had miscalculated the distance.

“No, Your Highness. Wait… Ugh!”

Erdene blocked Telma’s incoming wooden sword with her hand at close range, then struck his chest squarely with her empty fist.

The impact on his bare body, wearing nothing but a leather vest, let alone armor, was… tremendous.

“Argh, I’m dying! All my ribs are broken! Oh my!”

As Telma rolled on the ground, exaggerating as usual, Merton groaned and held his forehead.

Being very shy, he found it unbearable to witness Telma’s frivolity in front of foreign soldiers.

On the other hand, when Erdene kicked the rolling Telma hard, unexpectedly, cheers erupted from among Betor’s soldiers.

“The queen has won!”

“My goodness, it was a one-sided match!”

“Queen, you’re amazing!”

As applause and cheers came from everywhere, Telma, who had been complaining about his ribs just moments ago, jumped up and shouted.

“That’s our princess, you know?”

Thwack!

Erdene’s wooden sword accurately struck Telma’s crown.

“Ouch! Why are you hitting me!”

“Stop being dramatic and go back.”

Telma grumbled as he returned to his place.

Erdene glanced at him getting scolded by Merton, then turned to look at Bellen.

“How about it, Bellen?”

“Pardon?”

“Can you apply what you’ve seen so far?”

Bellen swallowed dryly and looked at Erdene with a tense expression.

The memory of being beaten soundly came back like a vivid nightmare. Moreover, now all his subordinate soldiers were watching him…

“I’ll try.”

As Bellen nodded, Erdene smiled contentedly.

“That’s the spirit you should have. You can’t improve if you’re afraid of losing face.”

As Erdene moved to the center of the training grounds, Bellen, with a tense expression, came forward holding a wooden sword.

The soldiers became quiet as mice again. Even Telma, who had been prancing about, watched the two with an interested expression.

“Come at me first.”

“Then, excuse me, Your Highness.”

Bellen’s body moved first. However, the moment he was about to swing his sword, Erdene, who had clearly been in front of him, disappeared.

“Huh?”

“Your movements are too textbook.”

With a thud, a sharp pain ran through his back.

Bellen bit back a groan and tried to counterattack, taking his stance again.

However, before he could even think about how to attack, Erdene’s attacks came pouring in.

Sophia, who had been watching Erdene and Bellen’s sparring—or rather, Bellen being beaten for the second time—from the platform, belatedly noticed Pellerhar who had quietly approached her side and bowed her head.

“Prince Pellerhar.”

“Ah, Sophia. I’m a bit surprised to see you watching this kind of thing?”

“I came accompanying the queen, but that doesn’t mean I dislike watching military officers spar.”

“Is that so?”

“It is.”

Pellerhar glanced down at the training grounds with a slightly surprised smile.

Bellen was now being beaten as enthusiastically as Telma had been. Still, it was commendable that he was trying to defend somehow without rolling around.

“Commander Wizard’s dignity is in tatters. I thought the queen would go easy on him.”

Sophia said.

“That would be of no use. The queen is deliberately turning Commander Wizard into mashed potatoes…”

Pellerhar turned to her with a puzzled expression.

“Mashed potatoes?”

“…My words came out wrong. I mean she’s deliberately… attacking so mercilessly.”