Chapter 362: Dirty Tactics
The threat hung in the air, naked and brutal.
This was no longer about wounds or humiliation; it was about annihilation.
Thea felt a cold sweat on her brow. Poppy herself was now tugging frantically on Sigrid’s arm, tears in her eyes.
"No! Sigrid, please! Don’t! My honor isn’t worth this! I don’t care about any of it! I just want you safe!"
Yet, against the terrifying finality of Luca’s last threat, Sigrid did not crumple.
She seemed to grow taller.
A strange, serene smile touched her lips—a smile of utter acceptance that was more beautiful and heartbreaking than any look of defiance.
"Even if my life is the price..." She said, her voice gaining a resonant, gentle strength.
"Even if I fall here and can never again serve my lady...I would consider it a worthy end. To have fought, however briefly, to cleanse a stain on her honor."
She placed a calming hand over Poppy’s.
"That is the duty of a knight. That is my choice."
The transformation in the clearing was instantaneous.
The younger knights, who moments before had been afraid, now looked upon their commander with awe so profound it bordered on reverence.
The veterans swelled with a fierce, bursting pride.
This was the ideal they had pledged themselves to—not just strength, but the courage to uphold righteousness in the face of certain doom.
One young centaur, her eyes shining with tears, started spamming her fist against her breastplate.
"Sigrid...Sigrid...Sigrid..." She chanted, her voice cracking with emotion.
Another immediately joined her.
"Sigrid!...Sigrid!...Sigrid!"
Then another, and another, until the name became a thunderous, rhythmic chant that shook the leaves from the trees.
"SIGRID! SIGRID! SIGRID!"
"SIGRID! SIGRID! SIGRID!"
Hooves stamped in unison, creating a war-drum rhythm that vibrated through the ground.
The collective spirit was a tangible force, a wall of sound and solidarity that transformed the clearing into a war camp. All hesitation was gone, replaced by a unified, exhilarating fervor.
Poppy, despite her worry, felt a lump form in her throat. ’My knights...my family...’
Theo, the most sensible of the group, still looked nervous.
But even she couldn’t help but feel moved by the display of devotion.
Sigrid, hearing her name being chanted by every single one of her sisters, smiled even wider. She stood taller. Straighter. More confident than ever.
She had the support of her entire race behind her.
—
Luca watched the spectacle with a mixture of surprise and admiration.
’So this was what Nyx meant when she said the centaurs were stubborn.’
Earlier, they had been completely reasonable. They had listened to his explanations, considered his perspective, and handled the situation in a perfectly diplomatic manner.
They had even shown gratitude for his actions against the human continent.
But when it came to their core values—their traditions as knights, their duty to honor their queen—they did not budge. They did not take loopholes. They did not find shortcuts.
They went through with the formality, no matter the cost.
And Sigrid was the most stubborn of them all.
She stood there, proud and powerful, her eyes blazing with determination.
He had threatened her with broken bones. With permanent scars. With death itself.
And she had not flinched.
’So this is what it means to be a centaur knight.’ Luca thought.
He could respect that. He really could. In a world where most people abandoned their principles at the first sign of danger, seeing someone who held onto theirs so tightly was...refreshing.
But at the same time, he could see the disadvantages.
This kind of stubbornness could lead to poor decisions.
It could get her killed. It could get her people killed.
He wanted to break through that stubbornness. Not to humiliate her, but to make her see that there were other ways.
That blind adherence to tradition wasn’t always the right path.
But for now, that wasn’t important.
For now, he had a different idea.
A mischievous idea.
He held up a hand.
The chanting died down with remarkable discipline, every eye fixed on him.
"Hold on." Luca said, his smirk returning, but now edged with a devilish glint.
"I see it now. Physical pain, mutilation, even death...none of that moves you. Your spirit is armored in something thicker than steel."
He paced a few steps, the sword now wagging like a teacher’s pointer.
"But what about...embarrassment?"
He stopped and looked straight at Sigrid, whose confident expression faltered for the first time since the chanting began.
"What if..." Luca continued, his voice dropping to a whisper that everyone strained to hear.
"I don’t aim for your skin at all? What if I aim for your clothes?"
He made a precise, slicing motion with his hand.
"A flick of the wrist here, a delicate cut there. I could sever every strap, slice every seam with surgical precision. Your armor would clatter to the ground. Your tunic would fall apart."
"And you, the noble, dignified Commander Sigrid, would be left standing before your entire brigade, and your queen..."
He let the pause hang.
"...stark naked. Not a scratch on you, but utterly, completely exposed."
"What would your honor say to that?"
The reaction was electric. Sigrid’s face flushed a brilliant, scarlet red that spread to the tips of her ears.
Her mouth opened, but only a stunned sputter emerged.
The dignified knight was gone, replaced by a profoundly flustered young woman.
"That—That is cheating!" She finally managed, her voice rising an octave. "That’s vulgar! A Hero should fight with honor, not...
"...not tactics like a common degenerate!"
A roar of agreement rose from the centaurs.
"Dirty trick!"
"Fight honorably Hero!"
"That’s not how a true Hero fights!"
Luca simply shrugged, the picture of innocence.
"Hero is just a word they gave me. I never signed a contract about fighting ’honorably.’ I fight to win, or in this case, to make a point."
Poppy pointed an accusing finger, bouncing on Sigrid’s back. "SEE! I told you! He’s a pervert! The biggest, most horrible pervert!"
She grabbed onto Sigrid, shaking her. "Don’t do it, Sigrid! It’s not safe! He’ll take advantage of you, just like he did to me!"
Luca’s smirk widened. "What’s wrong, Sigrid? Hesitating?"
He tilted his head. "You were so confident and proud moments ago. But now, just the thought of showing some skin is making you flustered?"
Sigrid’s face burned even brighter. "That’s—that’s completely different!"
"Is it? You said you were willing to face death. But you’re not willing to face embarrassment?"
"I—that’s not—" Sigrid struggled to find words. "Death is honorable! Being stripped naked is not!"
"So you’re saying your pride is more important than your honor?"
"THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"
The other centaurs were shouting now, their voices rising in indignation.
"This is not fair, Hero!"
"Please take it back!"
"You can’t bully our commander like this!"
But Luca ignored them all. His eyes were fixed on Sigrid.
Thea, meanwhile, was watching the exchange with a small smile on her face.
’This is amusing.’ She thought. ’I’ve never seen Sigrid this flustered before.’
Meanwhile, Sigrid glared at Luca, her teeth grinding together.
All the other threats—the broken bones, the scars, the death—had felt like honorable wounds she could bear.
But this? This was disgraceful! This was humiliating!
But then, she took a deep breath.
And sighed.
"Fine." She said.
Everyone froze.
"I agree to it."
The centaurs erupted in protest.
"NO! MY LADY!"
"SIGRID, NO!"
"PLEASE, COMMANDER, DON’T!"
Poppy was the loudest of all.
"SIGRID! YOU CAN’T! HE’S A PERVERT! HE’LL DO TERRIBLE THINGS TO YOU! HE’S EVEN BEEN EYEING YOUR BODY!"
But Sigrid shook her head, a forced smile on her face.
"I am a knight. No matter what happens—even if I’m stripped down on the spot, without any clothes on—I still have to fight for my lady’s honor."
She swallowed hard, her face still red.
"Just because I’m not wearing any clothes doesn’t mean I can falter."
She looked at Luca, her eyes filled with a mixture of embarrassment and determination.
"So go ahead, Hero. Strip me naked if you want. Disgrace my body if you wish. But you cannot touch my resolve. After all..."
She placed a fist over her heart.
"My duty is not woven into my clothes. It is in here."
This declaration, somehow more shocking than her acceptance of death, sent a new wave of awe through her followers.
"THAT’S OUR COMMANDER!"
"WHAT NOBILITY!"
"A TRUE KNIGHT INDEED!"
"THIS IS WHAT WE SHOULD ALL ASPIRE TO BE!"
Thea simply pressed a hand to her forehead, a wry, exasperated smile on her lips.
’Oh, Sigrid. You magnificent, impossible fool.’
But Luca...
Luca was baffled!
She actually agreed.
He had been so sure that threatening to strip her would be enough to break her resolve.
Earlier, during their conversation, she had been incredibly shy whenever he brought up dirty topics. She had practically begged him to stop involving her in his lewd comments.
But now? She was willing to stand naked before him and fight?
What is wrong with these people?!
At the same time, he couldn’t help but feel a grudging respect.
Earlier, she had been willing to face death because of her values.
But now? She was facing something she was genuinely scared of.
Humiliation, exposure, the loss of her dignity and she was still pushing forward.
That took real courage.
But it also made him want to break through to her even more because he felt that this stubbornness, this refusal to ever back down would be her downfall one day.
She needed to learn that sometimes, it was okay to bend.
That survival was more important than pride.
But that’s a lesson for another time.
For now, he had to admit defeat.
He let out a long sigh, sheathing his sword.
"Fine, fine." He said, waving his hand. "If you want to duel, let’s duel. I’ll just make it quick as possible."
Sigrid blinked, surprised by his sudden change in attitude.
"You...You’re not going to strip me?"
"Tempting as it was, I’m not actually a pervert." Luca rolled his eyes. "I just wanted to see if you’d back down. And you didn’t. So congratulations, you passed my test."
"And If you’re really so determined to have your ceremonial beating...who am I to deny a lady her wish?"
He held out his sword.
"Let’s get this duel over with."