The Charm Of Living

Silver Knight Rose's clothes and armor were covered in dust. She stared directly into the eyes of Aciano Alucard. Her face was the same as the last time Arnacia met her. But her temperament had changed for the better. Plus, she had amazing muscles to boast about. Right now, she looked like a glamorous female Knight with her perfectly fitted attire.

However, this wasn't just a physical change. She had entered the Lanceworth Castle, conversed with Queen Afeefa and especially with the maid, Selene. It was a qualitative change, it was as if knowing how vast the world was for the first time.

The one thing that did not change was her battle style. She directly launched herself towards Aciano. Gladly, she did pick up the longsword on her way. As brave as she was, she swung her sword at Aciano.

Arnacia, on the other hand, was terrified. She had an inkling that at any moment, Aciano could come over to finish her off. Thus, she turned her head to see the battle.

Rose swung her longsword, and it was dodged very easily. Aciano immediately stepped forward as he saw an opening. Short sword users indeed preferred to fight more up close than longsword users. He used this chance to disrupt Rose's moment and probably to kill her.

Just as Aciano closed the gap, Rose launched a kick at him. He braced the impact with his own sword and took advantage of the momentum to jump back. Surprisingly, there was a layer of a metal plate in the Silver Knight's sole.

Rose was also excited at the discovery. Her heart had jumped when she saw Aciano block her kick with the sword. But luckily, the boots were gifted to her by Queen Afeefa. Her eyes teared up a little as she realized that everything the Queen gave her was custom made. This further fanned her resolve.

"I will stop you!" Rose said as she kicked up dust and launched another round of attacks.

Clang! Clang! Clang! The longsword collided multiple times with Aciano's short sword.

Inherently, Acinao's sword should be no match, but the strength and techniques he possessed were no joke. He was playing Rose at her own game while thinking of ways to overturn the little mishap from earlier into complete dominance.

In his perspective, there could be reinforcement waiting in the periphery. Whereas Rose was just a Silver Knight in disguise. He was in complete control of the battle and his eyes hovered over Arnacia. This minor act would be detrimental if he was facing someone of similar strength, but he had a plan.

He was testing Silver Knight Rose. If she were to be an experienced Knight, then she would pounce at the opportunity.

But no, there was no change in Rose's strategy. She swung her longsword honestly and was ready to throw a kick if Aciano were to close in.

Aciano was immediately enraged by this. His battle strength was steadily dropping as the drowsy gas had also entered his lungs. He was also running out of time. Silver Knight Rose's defense felt like a turtle. This type of combat directly countered his sword short style.

If this Silver Knight was only sent here to buy time, then there would definitely be reinforcements nearby. He felt like being trapped in quicksand but wasn't afraid, as he had still had an ace up his sleeve. However, the overestimation of Rose's strength did affect his emotions.

In the next moment, he made an opportunity to extend his hand backwards and swung the short sword. Rose didn't have enough time to match a swing with a swing. Thus, her one hand let go of the hilt and reinforced the flat part of the blade with an open palm. This was a risky move, but considering the speed of Aciano's sword, he would find it very difficult to change trajectory.

The short sword arrived with an overwhelming might. With a full thrust, Aciano was confident in piercing Rose's armor. And now the power of his full swing crashed onto Rose's longsword.

CLANG!

Rose's feet forced the grass back a little as she embraced the impact. Her sword was pushed back as it crashed onto her chest.

At the same time, a small crack on the short silver sword darkened. And the blade immediately snapped into two!

Incidentally, the crack had appeared at the same spot, which met with the flying longsword at the start of the battle.

Rose coughed heavily and immediately took out a rectangular pouch from her pocket. But Aciano was even faster. He already had a very small bottle in his hand. Inside the glass was a red-colored pellet.

The situation was grim for either party, but for different reasons. Aciano eyed the pouch Rose took out and Arnacia also did the same. The resources on either side would determine the outcome now. One had an intact sword while the other did not. What about medicinal pellets?

A small spherical object wrapped in white fell down from Rose's pouch. She immediately bent to pick it up and put it back into the pouch. This did not hide the fact that she also picked up a small black cube with her other hand.

"It's the Wounded Waxen Pellet!" Arnacia spoke as if she couldn't hold back her excitement. Wounded Waxen Pellet was a famous healing plus strength boosting pellet. Her goal was to imitate Acinao because Silver Knight Rose would not even think of doing it. "And what is that mysterious cubical pellet?! Queen Afeefa sure is generous." Just as she finished, drowsiness hit her again.

Aciano immediately assessed the situation. He had to finish off the maid, carry away Snowmoon, all while defending this Silver Knight who had a longsword. Both of them had enhancement pellets. Thus, a 100% result won't occur even if he pushed himself to the maximum. On top of it, he was worried about the reinforcements and trying to achieve a single goal would only leave him vulnerable.

Hidden danger is most threatening and two pellets were better than one.

Aciano reluctantly gave up and ran towards the stage. He took no chances as he popped up the red pellet between his teeth. He looked at the fainted maids and snorted in anger. Taking hostages would only make him a sitting duck. Additionally, according to his info, some of the trainee maids were from affluent families.

He wanted to pull his own hair in frustration. Little did his body cool down when he dived into the Evermore river. He swam like a harpoon, the downstream current additionally aided his escape. It was unimaginable to think about what he would do if someone told him the complete truth about the matter.

Reinforcements? Wounded Waxen Pellet? Two pellets were better than one? Pfft!

It was unimaginable to think that this was only his second defeat in life.

***

Aciano fumed in anger when the young man mocked him. The victor in this battle was long decided. The cathedral was their witness.

You mock my one final precaution? Aciano snorted. My peers told me to hire an assassin, but I was wary and acted myself. My peers told me to challenge you head on, but I was wary and lured you here. You thought I didn't notice the drowsing gas slip out the broken window, but I was wary and slashed your arm's muscles.

Look who is on his knees now!

"You were already defeated when you entered the cathedral." Aciano said.

"I might have failed to suppress the Alucards." The young man started taking long breaths. His head was high, and he directly stared into Aciano's eyes. "The old generation thinks I am toying with my authority and stripped me of power. All my brothers have a greater political influence than me. So what?! Failures and setbacks are only the charm of living. I, Nicolas lace van Deque, today I am only 16 years old!"

"The charm of living," Aciano muttered as he snapped back to the present. He was out of the river and now hiding in the trees. He looked at the water. It was unlikely that Queen Madeline would give him another chance.

"The lost artifact," an eerie light shone in his eyes.

***

Rose held the longsword and very slowly walked towards Arnacia and Isabelle. She felt complicated emotions towards Arnacia. How did she know about the Wounded Waxen Pellet? She wondered. She looked around again, expecting Aciano to jump at any moment.

Very careful she was as she bent her body towards the side and felt Arnacia's pulse. She also checked the injury. The bleeding had stopped for now. Her other hand held the black cuboid whereas the Wounded Waxen Pallet was already inside her pocket.

She secretly sighed in case Aciano was lurking around. The situation was very complicated. It was absurd, to say the least. On her way here, she had already used the Wounded Waxen Pallet.

She secretly sighed again. The situation was complicated. It was absurd, to say the least. She cautiously put the black cuboid close to her lips and whispered.

"Please send help asap."

The cube vibrated and morphed into a dragonfly. It immediately began its journey towards Queen Afeefa. Little did she know the Queen had a magical discovery and already called her best Knights to accompany her to the training ground.

Rose felt the bright sun radiating energy to her skin for millions of miles away. This day was crazier than the time Theon brought Arnacia and Isabelle to the Women's Court of Justice. And it wasn't even over yet.

Perhaps this was the charm of living!