Lord: Stripped of My Inheritance from the Start

Chapter 170: Chapter 169: Champion

While Ronin and Galier were talking, the contest in the square had already begun.

James drew his Knight’s Sword. Crimson Fighting Qi erupted, and the immense energy it generated launched him toward his opponent like a cannonball. His speed was astounding.

Ronin raised an eyebrow. From just this opening move, he could tell the man’s fighting style was incredibly wild. His strength was perhaps even greater than Rogner’s.

Sure enough, the ensuing battle confirmed his suspicions.

James’s Swordsmanship was fierce, and his Power and speed seemed to surpass Rogner’s.

After every clash of their longswords, Rogner’s stance would falter slightly. As a relentless series of attacks followed, his disadvantage grew.

Soon, after a powerful exchange, James kicked Rogner squarely in the breastplate, sending him flying backward to land heavily on the ground.

“My apologies, but you have lost,” James said, looking down at him.

Rogner rubbed his chest, picked up his sword, and stood up. “Congratulations. You’ve won.”

On the terrace, Viscount Marvin, who had just been excited, saw his expression turn cold. He shot a dark look in Ossen’s direction. ’He knew the other party had sent someone out specifically to prevent Rogner from winning his third match.’

“I didn’t expect Rogner to lose so quickly.”

Galier lamented, “Baron Bernardo Monson is said to be at the Bronze Level. This James must be his son. I didn’t expect his talent to be so immense.”

Ronin nodded.

’Since James is participating in the competition, it means he’s under thirty. To have the strength to defeat Rogner so easily at such a young age, his talent is naturally not weak.’

“But Rogner is only twenty-one, so he should be much younger than James. When it comes to talent, it’s hard to say who is superior.”

As the two were speaking, James, in the center of the square, turned to look in Ronin’s direction.

He gave a respectful Knight’s salute and said in a clear voice, “Ronning Baron, might I have the honor of challenging you?”

As his words fell, all the nobles on the terrace and in the corridors suddenly went silent. None of them had expected someone to single out a challenger.

Even Ronin hadn’t anticipated such a scene. ’And here I was, just enjoying the show.’

“Uh, Sir James, there’s no round for issuing direct challenges in the Knight competition.”

As the host, Bretton spoke up, trying to help Ronin out of a tight spot.

But it was impossible for Ronin not to respond directly to such a challenge.

’So many nobles on the terrace are watching, including Princess Blanche. If I refuse, won’t everyone think I’m scared?’

’Besides, I’ve already decided to participate in the Knight competition to win the prize money. My strength has already been exposed, so it makes no difference whether I fight now or later.’

“Of course, you may.”

Ronin extended his hand, and Tom, who was waiting at his side, stepped forward and respectfully presented him with the Flowing Flame Sword.

He grasped the hilt and said as he strolled toward the square, “The Wushan Clan never shies away from any challenge.”

In an instant, thunderous applause and cheers erupted from the crowd.

The eyes of the noble young ladies sparkled with admiration.

“Malik, Ronin is even more handsome than last time!”

Marina from Lake Town said to her brother beside her. She felt a pang of regret as she recalled the night she’d tried to slip into Ronin’s tent.

’If only I’d been a little more persistent back then, would it have worked out?’

Malik coughed. “Sister, watch what you say. Jamie might misunderstand.”

Standing next to Marina was a portly man with lifeless eyes. This was the second son of Viscount Dennis, Marina’s betrothed.

Jamie laughed heartily and said in a very gentlemanly manner, “Marina is right. Ronin is indeed very handsome!”

In fact, it wasn’t just them. Even Princess Blanche, beneath her long skirt, clenched her fists. Her heart pounded as she silently cheered Ronin on.

A smile spread across the face of Lurans, who was seated in the very front and center. The phrase “The Wushan Clan never shies away from any challenge” was very pleasing to his ears.

“Thank you, Baron Ronin, for this opportunity.”

James remained courteous. “If you please!”

“Let’s begin!”

Ronin raised his hand and unleashed Fire Clouds Everywhere, sending a wide wave of flames rushing toward his opponent.

James, completely unflustered, used the same move.

BOOM!

The two fan-shaped torrents of flame collided mid-air, creating a deafening roar and sending a heatwave that swept across the area as a powerful gale.

“Ronin’s Combat Skill is a bit stronger!”

Many people saw Ronin’s cloud of fire completely devour his opponent’s Combat Skill before sweeping toward James with its remaining force.

Ronin’s Attribute Affinity was already high, so the power of his Fire Attribute Combat Skills was naturally greater. On top of that, the Flowing Flame Sword in his hand provided an additional boost.

When he used the same Combat Skill, it was naturally going to be stronger.

’There’s something about his sword.’

James keenly noticed that the longsword in Ronin’s hand was unusual and realized he might not gain the upper hand by trading Combat Skills.

He covered himself in Fighting Qi Armor, slashed his sword to part the remnants of Fire Clouds Everywhere, and charged forward, intending to defeat Ronin with the same fast-attack strategy he’d used to beat Rogner.

Unfortunately for him, he had picked the wrong opponent this time.

Ronin’s Swordsmanship combined the strengths of Macken and Ridder; he was skilled in both defense and fast attacks.

Against James’s quick assault, Ronin’s defense was impenetrable.

’His Swordsmanship is fast, but it lacks Power.’

As their longswords clashed, Ronin analyzed James’s level of Swordsmanship.

’And the precision of his longsword is lacking. He leaves rather large openings when switching between offense and defense.’

These were all points Ridder had brought up while instructing him in Swordsmanship. Now, in James, he saw a shadow of his former self.

On the terrace, the more Lurans watched, the more gratified he became, and the broader his smile grew. At the same time, his astonishment at Ronin’s abilities increased.

’He couldn’t understand how this kid’s defensive Swordsmanship had reached such a high level.’

The other nobles felt the same. They had originally thought that reports of Ronin’s strength from the Beast Fighting Arena incident had been exaggerated, but now they saw that the rumors were all true.

Ossen’s brow was tightly furrowed. He couldn’t understand how Ronin had become so ridiculously powerful in just half a year.

“My turn.”

In the square, Ronin, who had been locked in a struggle, decided to stop defending. His Power erupted, and with a single strike, he flicked aside his opponent’s blade.

He slammed forward, using the right side of his body like a weapon to crash violently into his opponent. Under the immense impact, both of their suits of Fighting Qi Armor twisted and warped.

The sudden change in rhythm, combined with the colossal impact, left James unable to react.

As he stumbled backward, he swung his sword, unleashing a massive Flame Slash to try and delay Ronin’s advance.

But Ronin’s speed fully exploded. He not only dodged the attack but also caught up to his opponent’s recoiling figure.

“Gale Palm!”

Ronin struck with his palm. Wind Attribute Fighting Qi gathered in his hand like a fierce gale and slammed into James.

BOOM!

The Armor on his body completely disintegrated. Like a sandbag with its rope cut, he was slammed heavily onto the ground. His outer coat was torn open, revealing the Soft Armor underneath.

James felt his chest churn, and then he spat out a mouthful of blood.

“You have lost,” Ronin said, looking down at him.

“I…”

James seemed to want to concede, but the blood in his throat garbled his voice, making it impossible to speak. He could only nod silently.

Ronin turned to look at Bretton, who was still too shocked by the match’s sudden conclusion to pull himself together.

’They seemed so evenly matched. How did it end in an instant?’

“Bretton, don’t just stand there gawking. Announce the result and have the attendants take the injured James away for treatment.”

“Oh, oh, right.”

Bretton finally snapped out of it. “The… the winner is… Ronin!”

“Yes!”

On the terrace, Viscount Marvin cheered loudly. It seemed Ronin’s victory brought him more satisfaction than Rogner’s would have.

The others also began to applaud and cheer.

Blanche clapped and said, “Missy, present the valiant Knight with Five Hundred Gold Coins!”

“As you wish, Her Highness Princess!”

Following the reward from Her Highness Princess, the other nobles also began offering Gold Coins, though of course, the amounts they gave were far less than five hundred.

The reason Blanche only gave five hundred was actually to be considerate of Wushan Castle’s pride, as the prize for winning the entire Knight competition was only One Thousand Gold Coins.

Ronin hadn’t expected to earn an extra sum. He couldn’t help but feel grateful toward Blanche.

’This girl is quite thoughtful.’

With Ronin’s dominant victory over James, the subsequent matches became somewhat monotonous, as everyone knew who this year’s champion would be.

However, to keep the event lively, Knights from various families still came up to issue challenges under the pretext of asking for pointers on their Swordsmanship.

Ronin defeated them one by one.

「More than ten minutes later.」

After Bretton called out three times, still no more Knights came forward to challenge him.

“Since there are no more challengers, I can now declare the Wushan Castle Knight competition successfully concluded!”

He looked at Ronin in the center of the field. “The champion of this competition is—”

“Wait!”

Bretton instinctively thought there was another challenger.

But when he saw who had spoken, he froze.

“Is there anything else, my lord?”

Ronin nodded and looked up at the terrace. “I would like, here and now, in my capacity as the champion of this Knight competition, the Baron of Mountain Forest Town, and the eldest grandson of the Wushan Clan, to invite Baron Reisen of the Sain Territory to come down.”