Chapter 94: The Duel (1)
"I... am not sure what you mean."
This girl was so strange...
She was talking to Evangeline with her eyes closed, and now she was even asking strange, nonsensical questions.
The girl gritted her teeth.
"Ugh, fine, act clueless if you want. Why did I even bother asking? You two are probably just sick in the head."
And with that, the girl walked away, disappearing into the crowd. Evangeline could only look blankly at her back.
’What in the... No, was that last part also an insult?’
It felt like it was, yet wasn’t intended to be. Still, Evangeline wasn’t sure.
In the end, Evangeline walked away, still confused.
***
’Ugh, it’s ruined.’
Adrian knew that something was most likely going to happen at this banquet, so he was constantly on guard, even though he usually wouldn’t have cared much about it otherwise.
He had prepared for everything.
His mother had told them not to do something that would give others the opportunity to humiliate them. Now, what was the best method to achieve this goal?
Of course, the best method was... to simply do nothing.
If he were to stand like a statue throughout the duration of this banquet, he would completely avoid any sort of risk. So he was doing just that.
But...
Adrian stared from afar as Evangeline stuffed her face with one slice of cake after another. According to the etiquette he was taught, you were not supposed to stand and eat in a formal setting.
But forget about etiquette; the girl didn’t seem to even have basic manners, standing and eating right where food was being served. The way she ate those slices made it seem as though she had been starved for days.
Adrian could already spot some noble ladies watching her and whispering to themselves. He was sure this was going to create some sort of rumor.
’I guess I failed at babysitting. Would this have some consequence too?’
But then, his focus shifted to something else.
Several servants were walking around the hall, carrying large trays filled with silver chalices. Those servants were serving a chalice to everyone. Soon, all the people present in the massive hall were holding a chalice in their hands.
Adrian and Ravian were also holding one.
Then his mother, who had been interacting with other nobles until now, walked to the center of the hall once again, and all eyes naturally settled on her.
She raised her chalice high and spoke in a louder, more formal tone.
"May the Lord’s light forever shine upon us all. May humanity continue to prosper under his love and care."
Everyone present in the hall raised their chalices as well, mirroring her, and spoke collectively.
""May the Lord’s light continue to shine upon us all.""
Adrian furrowed his brow as he watched it all. No one had said it explicitly, but it was apparent that this was signaling the end of this banquet.
But...
’It’s ending just like that?’
What about the plan his mother had? Wasn’t that the reason she had prepared this banquet in the first place?
As if to clear away his doubts, his mother clapped a few times, as if to get everyone’s attention.
She had a vague smile on her face as she spoke to the hall.
"I was thinking, ’wouldn’t it be too dull to simply end the banquet like this?’ I am sure many of you have enjoyed your time here. Still, doesn’t it feel as though something is missing?"
Her smile widened.
"So, how about something to spice things up? This is why I am pleased to announce a duel between the two sons of House Ravenshade as the final event!"
Several gasps were heard from the crowd the moment she finished. Then the hall was filled with loud murmurs as many of them looked at Adrian. He was sure many had directed their gaze at Elias, too.
Observing it all, Adrian pinched the bridge of his nose.
’Ah, I’m so disappointed. To think that she would be so blatant.’
It was obvious to the point that he may have guessed her intentions even if he had been clueless about her plans until this point.
***
Evangeline frowned as she heard the announcement from Duchess Seraphina’s mouth.
’Adi is gonna fight his younger brother? How would that even work?’
She hadn’t interacted with Adrian’s siblings, so she didn’t know much about them. But wasn’t Adrian some sort of once-in-a-generation genius? His brother didn’t seem to have any such reputation.
So wouldn’t everyone know that Adrian was obviously going to win? And if so, then what even was the point of this duel?
As she looked around, many of the surrounding nobles seemed to share the same question.
Yet things moved quickly without anyone’s questions being answered.
Everyone in the hall was guided outside by the servants of House Ravenshade. They were so well-organized that it didn’t seem like things had only been arranged at the last minute.
Soon, everyone was relocated to what seemed like a mix between a stadium and a coliseum. It apparently existed somewhere behind the Ravenshade mansion.
It was so large that there were still several empty seats left even after all the guests present in the banquet hall were seated.
Evangeline, too, was sitting there. Thankfully, she had been quick and was able to secure the front-row seat. Ravian was sitting on the seat to her left. And surprisingly, the seat to her right was occupied by the same strange girl she had met in the banquet hall, which was quite the coincidence.
That girl still had her eyes closed.
Evangeline leaned a bit to her left and whispered into Ravian’s ear.
"Hey, do you know who the girl sitting beside me is?"
Ravian glanced at the girl, then slowly shook his head.
"I’m afraid I don’t recognize her."
Evangeline slowly nodded, then asked something else.
"You are friends with Adi, right? Do you know his brother? Like, is he strong enough to stand any chance of winning?"
Ravian thought for a bit, then answered in a low voice.
"I do know Elias rather well; we have interacted a lot. As for how strong that boy is... hmm, I wouldn’t quite call him average, but he is not special either. I don’t think that boy will even be able to defeat me in a fight, let alone Adrian."
Evangeline glanced at the stage where the duel was going to be held.
This was going to be the first time she would see a fight between two mana users, even though this was just a duel between ten-year-old children.
She was somewhat curious about what the fight would look like, so she was looking forward to it.
She turned to Ravian once again.
"What about Adi? How would you evaluate his strength?"
She had seen him train with his sword while covering it in mana. It looked cool, but she was unsure whether it was impressive or not since she lacked relevant knowledge.
Ravian hesitated.
"Hmm, how do I put this? I get the feeling that I wouldn’t even be able to leave a scratch on the guy before I’m defeated if the two of us were to fight without holding anything back."
Just then, they saw movement near the stage. A few servants were there making some arrangements. It was a signal that the duel was about to begin.
