Chapter 95 - Got angry for the first time
I looked at Isolde’s miserable state.
I sheathed Eclipse and returned to Luna’s side.
Behind me, Isolde remained standing in the arena, staring at the ground.
She still couldn’t accept what had happened.
All her life, she had been praised as a genius.
Her vines had always been her greatest strength.
Their durability, precision, and versatility had allowed her to defeat opponent after opponent.
She rarely needed to rely on her Water Affinity.
Her vines had always been enough.
But this time...
She had used everything.
She had used her vines.
She had even resorted to her Water Affinity.
And yet, none of it had worked.
I had countered everything she threw at me and defeated her without much difficulty.
Isolde clenched her fists tightly.
She forced herself back onto her feet and slowly walked toward her mother’s side, her head lowered.
As she made her way there, she heard the whispers.
"Isolde lost that badly?"
"I thought she was supposed to be a genius."
"She couldn’t even force him to use his full strength."
"The difference between them was ridiculous."
The same nobles who had once praised her as a genius were now talking about her behind her back.
Every word reached her ears.
Every whisper dug deeper into her pride.
When she finally reached her mother, she didn’t say a single word.
She simply stood there with her hands clenched tightly at her sides.
Her silence hurt more than any scolding could have.
⸻
Meanwhile, I returned to Luna’s side.
However, someone was already standing beside her.
Luna had a polite smile on her face as she listened to him, but I could clearly see that she was uncomfortable.
I walked closer.
As I approached, I heard him say,
"Princess Luna, why did you agree to this engagement?"
"I have pursued you for a long time."
"I even sent several engagement requests to the Valtherion Family, yet you rejected every one of them."
Luna’s expression tightened slightly.
She clearly wanted to tell him that she simply didn’t like him.
But she held those words back.
Instead, she calmly replied,
"This was Mother’s decision."
"And after spending some time with Gray, I found his company enjoyable."
"So I agreed."
"What does that have to do with you?"
Her tone was polite, but the annoyance underneath it was obvious.
It seemed this man had been bothering her for quite some time.
Before he could respond, I stepped beside Luna.
"Hey."
He turned toward me.
"Can’t you take a hint?"
"She clearly doesn’t want to talk to you."
"So why are you still bothering her?"
His expression immediately darkened.
"What are you butting into?"
"This is a conversation between me and the princess."
"So mind your own business."
The hostility in his voice could practically be felt from across the hall.
I remained calm.
"I can mind my own business."
"But only if you stop ruining someone else’s mood."
I pointed toward Luna.
"Look at her."
"She’s clearly uncomfortable."
"Anyone with eyes can see that."
"And yet you keep bothering her."
I paused.
"So I decided to interrupt."
"It’s only happened today, but she’s my fiancée now."
"That means I have a responsibility to look after her."
The man’s expression twisted with rage the moment I mentioned our engagement.
His eyes filled with hatred.
Luna remained silent.
She simply watched the situation unfold.
From her expression, it was obvious that she disliked this man.
He had blond hair and yellow eyes.
He wasn’t bad-looking.
But judging from his behavior...
He was incredibly annoying.
The man’s anger finally reached its limit.
"Fine."
"How about we settle this with a duel?"
I frowned.
He continued with a smirk.
"And we’ll wager the engagement."
The atmosphere around us instantly changed.
Several nobles gasped.
Even the Empress, who had been watching the exchange with amusement, lost her smile.
Her eyes narrowed.
Isabella’s expression also became serious.
If this situation escalated any further, she would immediately intervene.
After all, this wasn’t some ordinary wager.
Luna’s entire future was being dragged into this.
Mom frowned as well.
However, she didn’t intervene.
She trusted me to handle the situation.
If Amy had been nearby, she probably would have stepped in immediately.
But she was currently occupied with her own duel.
I narrowed my eyes.
My voice became colder.
"What do you mean by that?"
He smirked.
"I challenge you to a duel."
"If I win..."
"You hand the engagement over to me."
I stared at him.
The coldness in my voice increased several times.
"Who do you think you are?"
"What makes you think Luna’s engagement is something you can wager?"
"She’s not an object."
"Her engagement is her decision."
"Even our parents only suggested this arrangement."
"We both agreed to it willingly."
"And who are you to demand it from me?"
I stepped forward.
"If you want a duel, I’ll give you one."
"A piece of trash like you?"
"I can defeat you without even trying."
His face turned purple with embarrassment and rage.
"What do you think?"
"Just because you’re from the Starlight Family, you think you’re special?"
"The entire kingdom acts like your family is something extraordinary."
"But in reality, there’s nothing special about you."
He pointed toward me.
"If you’re really a man, come and duel me."
"And wager the engagement."
I stared at him.
"Are you stupid... or were you simply born this way?"
His expression twitched.
"I already told you."
"This engagement wasn’t my decision alone."
"Luna and I both agreed to it."
I took a breath before continuing.
"Fine."
"Come to the dueling area."
"If you win, I’ll give you anything of material value that I can reasonably provide."
"But the engagement?"
"I won’t touch it."
"If you want it that badly, go and convince Luna yourself."
"If she gives you her permission, I’ll dissolve the engagement."
Luna’s expression immediately became cold.
She gave the man a death glare.
He noticed it but still refused to back down.
He wanted to beat me.
So he agreed.
"Fine."
"Let’s duel."
He turned and headed toward the dueling area.
I followed him.
From the side, the Empress watched everything carefully.
She had noticed the anger hidden beneath my calm expression.
And judging from the slight smile that appeared on her face...
She approved of how I had handled the situation.
She gave a small nod.
The duel was permitted.
I looked toward him.
"So."
"What are you wagering?"
He looked at me confidently.
"A magic-stone mine owned by my family."
I glanced toward Mom.
She gave me a small nod.
"Alright."
"I’ll match it."
The Empress stepped forward.
"Very well."
"Both sides have agreed to the wager."
"This duel may begin."
The young man stepped forward.
"I’m Vincent."
"Vincent Crownhart."
I looked at him without much interest.
"Gray Starlight."
I didn’t care about his name.
The moment the duel began, Vincent raised his hand.
A massive bolt of lightning erupted from his body.
It shot toward me.
I could see everything through my perception.
The trajectory.
The speed.
The mana flowing through it.
I could easily avoid it.
But I didn’t.
Instead, I raised one hand.
A dark vortex appeared before me.
The lightning struck it.
And disappeared.
Completely.
It was as if the attack had never existed.
I stood there without a scratch.
The entire banquet hall fell silent.
I looked at Vincent.
"What was that?"
"Was that supposed to be an attack?"
I tilted my head.
"What?"
"Does your family not feed you properly?"
"Is that why you’re so weak?"
"Or did you spend your entire life eating grass?"
I paused.
"Because it seems your body grew, but your brain didn’t."
The nobles around us went silent for a moment.
Then several struggled to hide their laughter.
The Empress looked toward Mom with an amused expression.
"Your son certainly has quite the mouth."
She laughed softly.
Mom simply smiled.
Meanwhile, the nobles turned their attention toward Vincent’s father.
His face was livid.
But there was nothing he could do.
His son had challenged Gray publicly.
And now he could only watch as Gray humiliated him.
Vincent’s expression twisted with hatred.
"Cheap trick."
"That won’t save you today."
He drew his greatsword.
Lightning immediately wrapped around his body.
He charged toward me.
I could read every movement.
Every step.
Every shift in his posture.
I didn’t even need to use my full strength.
I raised Eclipse and met his greatsword head-on.
CLANG!
The impact shook the arena.
I applied Gravity to Eclipse.
Vincent’s greatsword was forced downward.
He staggered backward several steps.
I looked at him.
"Weak."
His expression became furious.
Lightning surged through his greatsword.
He gathered almost all of his strength into his next attack.
Then he charged.
I met him again.
Our blades collided.
CLANG!
Lightning surged along his sword.
I immediately covered Eclipse with Ice Mana, freezing the lightning before it could reach me.
Then I shifted my blade slightly.
Vincent’s greatsword slid along Eclipse and was forced to the side.
His stance opened.
That was all I needed.
I released one hand from Eclipse.
Ice immediately covered my fist.
Then I reinforced my body with Gravity and Mana.
I stepped forward.
And punched.
BOOM!
My fist slammed directly into Vincent’s face.
The force was overwhelming.
His body was launched through the air.
Blood sprayed from his mouth as several teeth shattered from the impact.
He crashed heavily into the ground.
His greatsword flew from his hand and landed several meters away.
The arena fell completely silent.
I lowered my fist.
The ice covering it slowly disappeared.
Then I looked at Vincent lying on the ground.
My expression remained completely emotionless.
"You lost you trash."
I turned around and began walking back toward Luna and Mom.
But then—
Vincent suddenly moved.
He reached for something.
His voice was filled with rage.
"It’s not over!"
"I’ll kill you!"