Chapter 55
The arena was packed with knights, key soldiers of the imperial army, and nobles who had rushed in after hearing the news of the duel.
As I took my seat in a dress, people around me sneaked glances and whispered in low voices.
“She’s about to inherit a title soon, right? The Lady of Elemoer.”
“To show up at a place like this just to catch the Emperor’s eye, even as a woman…”
“How ruthless she must be.”
As if they weren’t all here in this dust-filled pit for the exact same reason—to look good in front of the Emperor.
I shot them a cold glare, and they quickly flinched and turned their heads.
Soon, my gaze shifted to the arena.
The duel was supposedly held to “boost the morale of the imperial forces.”
But in truth, it was nothing more than the Emperor’s petty revenge for Etias winning the hunting competition.
‘But what was that, just now…’
My heart was still pounding wildly in my chest.
Just recalling his voice made my chest ache.
“You don’t want to get caught, do you?”
What was with that expression and those words?
Did he actually understand what I was thinking?
Even while drugged, there hadn’t been a trace of hostility in the way he looked at me.
At first, I thought he was refusing the antidote because he didn’t trust me.
I clenched the hem of my dress.
Whatever Etias thought of me—
I would only know for sure after this match.
And right now, Etias was in terrible shape.
The way he struggled just to stay standing made me want to rush down and scream for the duel to stop.
Etias’s lips split open, and blood trickled down in a long streak.
Every time he was thrown to the ground, he tasted iron in his mouth and hoped—desperately—that this pain was just one of the nightmares he used to have when he was five.
Everyone was laughing at him, cheering on the cruel and petty usurper.
This scene… it was vivid.
It mirrored exactly how he suffered in Star of the Revolution.
What kind of “Star of the Revolution” was this?
Wasn’t this more like Punishment of the Revolution, you sadistic author bastard?! I remember raging over that.
And now, again, I was forced to stand by and watch him suffer helplessly.
A familiar, unbearable fury began to wrap around my body.
Not long after, Etias stopped walking as he reached the center of the arena—right in front of the Emperor.
The contrast between them was stark.
The Emperor stood in radiant golden armor, wielding a gleaming sword imbued with magical protection.
Etias, meanwhile, wore tattered armor barely clinging to his body and held an old sword that also carried a thin magical shield.
Finally, the two of them began to assume their stances.
Etias couldn’t even focus his eyes properly, and the hand holding his sword trembled uncontrollably.
“Ugh, did he come out drunk or something?
I wondered what all the fuss was about when they said he won the hunting festival.”
“Knew it. How long do you think the Prince will last? Want to bet?”
“I’m betting on ten minutes.”
“I say five.”
“Hmm… then I’ll go with seven.”
The young nobles from the Emperor’s faction sitting in front of me were cracking jokes, and it made me sick to my stomach.
I slammed my foot hard into the back of their chair.
“Ouch!”
One of them turned around, ready to complain, but fell silent the moment he met my deadly stare.
“Hmph…”
“You’re being loud. Shut up.”
“Y-yes, ma’am.”
My growling voice slipped out between my crimson lips.
They immediately sat up straight.
Everyone knew I had a terrible temper, one no one wanted to get involved with.
And today, I was on the verge of truly exploding—so I must have looked like a madwoman.
Tweet—
At last, the whistle blew.
The match had begun.
Etias struggled to concentrate.
His head throbbed like it would split open, and the Emperor standing before him looked like two overlapping figures.
If he could, he would crush that mortal enemy’s skull right now—but in this state, it was impossible.
When the Emperor swung his sword, a powerful shock hit Etias square in the chest.
“Kgh…!”
The blade was shielded, so it wouldn’t be fatal, but the force behind it was real. He’d surely be left with a deep bruise.
Etias…
Her voice echoed in his mind like a hallucination.
Who would dare damage such a beautiful face…!
Her scent flooded his senses.
With his heart pounding, a fierce determination surged in his chest.
Even if he had to bow his head and roll in the dirt in front of the Emperor—
Just today, he wanted it to be different.
In a crowd full of poisonous weeds of nobles, only she bloomed alone.
“Kgh.”
As the Emperor attacked again, Etias’s body staggered once more.
“Hahaha!”
The Emperor laughed uproariously, raising his sword high for the crowd to see.
The pro-Emperor nobles cheered wildly in support.
Etias knew he was nothing more than a fighting dog in a pit.
“Huff… huff…”
Still, deep in his heart, he desperately wished—
Just once, just one time…
To strike that man who had taken everything from him.
“…Oh? You still want to fight?”
If he could just land one hit, he’d do anything for that chance.
Etias gripped his sword properly, and the Emperor approached with a mocking smile.
“You’re still far from ready. You have neither the talent for the sword, nor the qualities of an Emperor, Etias.”
Then, with a sneer in his voice, the Emperor continued:
“Winning the hunting festival? Don’t kid yourself. It was pure luck. Acting like it meant something—pathetic, really!”
Etias…
And if what was burning in his chest was the heat of a man—
A desire to respond, just once, to someone’s kindness—
“…!”
The blurring double vision in front of his eyes finally aligned into one.
And then Etias saw it—
A dented spot in the Emperor’s armor.
Right along the side of his waist, a scale on the armor was visibly damaged.
“Just give up already.”
As the Emperor raised his sword high, Etias gathered every ounce of strength and hurled himself forward.
He knew—this old sword, even with its barrier, wouldn’t cut the Emperor’s neck.
It wouldn’t even pierce that thick armor.
But that one damaged scale?
He could hit that.
Etias knew armor built in interlocking scales had weak points.
Whoosh—
His blade curved through the air and struck the exact spot on the Emperor’s side.
At the same time, the Emperor’s sword came down, slamming into the back of Etias’s neck as he ducked.
“Ghh…”
The brutal impact drove Etias to his knees with a groan.
He couldn’t endure the drug’s effects any longer.
The world around him split into dozens of fragments, the ground felt like it was spinning.
“Kuhuhu, I win again—”
The Emperor, lifting his sword in triumph, suddenly felt something loosen beneath him and hesitated.
He looked down at himself.
“Gasp.”
The entire crowd gasped in horror.
The few noble ladies in attendance covered their faces with their fans in shock.
His lower armor had come undone and dropped, leaving him in nothing but tight black undergarments meant for battle.
“Wh-what is this…?!”
Embarrassment overtook the Emperor’s face.
The attendants scrambled to bring something to cover him with, but in their flustered state, they bumped into each other like fools.
Meanwhile, Catrin’s violet eyes shimmered in admiration.
The Emperor had worn ring-linked armor—strong overall, but with a fatal flaw:
If one link broke, the others could easily snap, causing the upper and lower halves to disconnect.
“Ugh, what is that…”
“My god. Is there even anything in His Majesty’s groin?”
“So the rumors were true?”
“Shh! Someone might hear!”
Whispers—
The crowd murmured awkwardly, embarrassed by the sight of their Emperor in skintight clothes.
“Ghh…”
The Emperor’s face turned crimson as he snatched the cloth from a servant and desperately covered his lower half.
In the scramble, he dropped his sword with a dull clatter—it rolled to the ground.
So preoccupied with hiding his shame, he hadn’t even noticed.
There could be no greater humiliation.
His whole body trembled.
Etias, who had been slumped on the dusty ground, staggered to his feet and slowly raised his head.
His cold gaze locked onto the Emperor.
In that moment, the rules of the duel flashed through the Emperor’s mind—
And defeat washed over his face.
