The Tale of the Teapot Hero’s Revenge

Chapter 15 - One-on-one Brawl

Amidst the chaos, a one-on-one battle was happening.

The surrounding knights were being taken care of by the members of the Resistance. Meanwhile, the slim but strong-looking man was being held back by the Leader and Raid-san. And I was engaged in a one-on-one fight with a knight.

"So, you think you can kill me? Is that what you're saying?"

"That's what I'm saying."

To be honest, my head was filled with anger right now. She's acting like she knew everything about me. I didn't have a personal grudge against her, but frankly, I really wanted to kill her.

When her blade hit near the hilt of my sword, I quickly pulled back to catch her sword on the serrated part.

"With your skill, I doubt you can kill me!"

Naturally, the enemy pulled back her sword before I could break it. I also realized that she's underestimating me which worked out well for me.

My Sword Breaker also had a regular sharp edge. Moreover, since it's specially made, with a heavy and long blade, it had considerable attack power. And my physical abilities had improved significantly from hunting monsters.

"If you think so, feel free to think that way!"

I reversed the sword and aimed the blade at her. I learned swordsmanship from the Leader as well, so I was no longer an amateur, not just a simple village girl. I'd make her realize that I could fight properly.

I swung the sword diagonally upward.

*Swish!*

The sound of the wind being cut washed through me. I slashed only the wind. She carefully watched my sword technique, and so she was able to evade with a step backward.

"This guy...!"

I stepped forward, and swung the sword several times. But I couldn't hit her. She evaded my vertical strikes by stepping left and right. Horizontal swings were avoided by jumping. Despite wearing knight armor, she's more agile than me.

Was I the one who underestimated her? That wouldn’t happen!

"You can rest assured."

"What...?"

"With that level of skill, you can't kill me."

"So what! As long as I can kill Brutogyu...!"

Why does she act so superior?

Driven by rising anger, I attacked with all of my strength. But the sword I swung diagonally once again cut through nothing but air. As a result, I exposed a big opening. It seemed like I let my anger get the better of me.

(Oh no, I messed up.)

The opponent maneuvered to my side and raised her sword to strike me.

*Pachiin!!*

My shoulder was struck, causing a sharp pain that was worse than a slap. What I heard, however, wasn't the sound of a slash but a high-pitched noise as my skin was smacked hard. My shoulder was hit hard with the hilt of a sword.

"Ouch!"

I wasn't slashed, she held back. Did she feel sorry for me after hearing my story? Or did she already realize that the provocation about the princess was nothing but a bluff? Either way, she's quite something, this Knight-sama.

"So, have you cooled your head a bit?"

Indeed, I was angered by her remarks. I lost my cool because of it.

Our attack had failed, so there's no need to linger here. As much as it annoyed me, killing her wouldn't benefit me in any way.

"Yeah, I've cooled my head a bit. I appreciate that."

"I see... Do you have no intention of giving up on revenge?"

"—Of course not."

She's persistent.

I glared at her irritably.

"...I understand. Your resolve is firm. In that case, I won't say anything more. However, as a knight serving the royal family, I cannot leave you as you are."

"There’s no need for more words, right? Let's continue."

To be honest, right now, I just wanted to escape. But I couldn't leave the Leader and the others behind, and she didn't seem like she'd let me go either. Moreover, I wanted to pay her back for hitting my shoulder.

I took a big step forward but swung my sword just lightly, recalling the Leader's teachings to avoid exposing any openings.

The opponent continued to avoid my attacks gracefully, just as before. Was it because she's wary of the nature of my sword, or was she more concerned about my hidden abilities that she was only concentrating on evasion instead of catching my attack with her sword?

(She's not counterattacking because she's afraid her sword will break if she attacks carelessly, I suppose.)

　But if I passively waited, she would never let me break her sword. I had to surprise her somehow to gain an edge.

(...There are plenty of things that can be used, right at my feet.)

It's fortunate that it's winter right now. My weapons were scattered around me.

I continued to launch small attacks to make her think that all I wanted to do was attack. And after she evaded multiple times, I suddenly swung my sword forcefully.

"Whooryaaaah!"

As a bonus, I shouted loudly, giving off the feeling that I was really staking it all on this strike. And as expected, the opponent who thought a powerful attack was coming jumped back in anticipation.

"...Just kidding."

"W-What are you planning!?"

Well, it's natural to be surprised or confused. The opponent thought I was about to swing my sword, but suddenly I swiftly picked up the snow at my feet and rolled it into a ball. The ball was ice right now, cold. But it was going to become really hot soon.

"If you’re going to make fun—"

"I'm always dead serious!"

Injecting a bit of magical power, I threw the snowball.

Most people wouldn't dodge a harmless looking snowball, and no one would think this was an attack. Hence, it was not surprising that the opponent just swept away the snowball with her left hand.

"You don't seem to be taking this seriously."

"You'll find out soon enough."

Fragments of the snowball stuck all over her left hand. The magic I set up to boil the snowball with a time delay was then activated, melting it and making it bubble.

"I-It's hot!"

Well, of course it's hot. The snowball suddenly turned into boiling water, after all.  With this opening, I closed the distance to the knight who flinched at her scalded left hand. I successfully entangled the serrated part of my Sword Breaker with the defenseless sword in her right hand.

"Oh no..."

If I twist the my sword, her sword should be broken.

"...?"

It didn't. It didn't break. It didn't even budge. A familiar transparent haze surrounded the blade of the knight, instead.

"Renki-Infused Hardened Blade...!"

So, this knight could use Renki too.

"To be honest, I underestimated you. I didn't expect to use this skill. And you're still hiding something, aren't you?"

"...Who knows? But aren't you hiding something too?" Quickly suppressing my surprise, I replied ambiguously.

I was fine with people knowing I was alive, but I didn't want my abilities to be known. I didn't want to reveal any more of my hand... though it sounds like we're both in the same boat.

Now then, what should I do? As I pondered this...

"You all, retreat!" the Leader's command resounded.

Looking in the direction of the sound, the slim man was running away. It seemed they were successful in repelling him.

"...Well then. Knight-san, it seems we can't play anymore."

Everyone in the Resistance, who were fighting around us, instantly scattered upon the retreat order. They're all running fast, including the Leader.

"I see, it's a shame, but I've been ordered not to pursue further."

*Clang!*

We clashed our swords one last time, and we each took a step back, and stared at each other for a moment.

"And, I'm not a knight. I introduced myself at the beginning, I am Ilyria Ulysses."

"I'm not the hero either, I'm Kyrie. Well then!"

Turning my back, I started to run away. True to her words, neither the knight nor the soldiers chased after me.

After running for a while, I caught up with the Leader. From what I could see, almost no one seemed to have suffered major injuries. Only the three people who were cut by the skinny man were seriously wounded. Cain-san, Raid-san, and the Leader were each carrying one of them.

"...This has become quite troublesome."

"You mean that guy from earlier, right?"

Indeed, he seemed quite strong. Even with Raid-san and the Leader teaming up, they couldn't defeat him.

"Well, including him. That guy is Renkino, a highly skilled assassin. He is well known in the underworld, so it’s laughable that he's now a dog of the kingdom."

"Including him, huh? So there are others?"

"Our attack was discovered, so what does it mean?" Joanna said interrupting the conversation.

Her clothes were quite tattered. Although she didn't stand out much during the battle, it seemed she fought with her all.

"Hah, I’m pretty confident with you, Joanna. I didn't doubt your information even a bit."

"There was no room for doubt. My information comes to me carried by the wind, after all."

The wind, what on earth did she mean? Was it like rumors carried by the wind or something? Anyway, the Leader didn't seem to blame Joanna for this situation.

"Well, that's probably true. And if that's the case, there's an unpleasant possibility we can't ignore."

"There's a possibility of a traitor among us leaking information. That's what you mean, right?"