“The next event will be the team mock battle!”
Trees, boulders, and various terrain features began to erge inside the arena.
The court magicians used relocation magic to bring in pre-prepared terrain from nearby locations.
Apparently, since it only moves existing objects rather than teleporting them, the magic is fundantally different and not particularly difficult to cast.
“I thought it would just be a flat brawl, but with terrain in play, strategy becos viable.”
Tanya offered her thoughts as she looked out at the arena, now transford into a forest.
I had just co down to the waiting room with Asella to check on the knights participating in the mock battle.
Asella looked over the knights and gave her orders.
“Command will proceed according to training. The captain will lead overall. Make full use of Tanya at the front line.”
“As you command.”
Gathered before us were a total of 140 knights.
Regint 2, Company 1 was joining the battle today under Moonlight Palace’s banner as per contract.
I spoke to the company commander.
“You rember the terms of our contract, right? If I see even a hint that you’re working under orders from Tojin Palace, it’ll beco very troubleso for you.”
“Pfft, co on now. Don’t go crushing morale before we even start. We owe you too, don’t we? You think we’d pull sothing that scummy?”
The Company 1 knights were brimming with energy, loosening up with enthusiasm.
Thanks to the aspirin I gave them, they’d been enjoying a few rare days of good health.
“Just sit back and watch. We’ll show you what we’ve got.”
“Good. Follow our knights’ lead.”
I clapped him on the shoulder in encouragent.
Looks like I don’t need to worry too much.
“Still, 140 is a bit short compared to the other factions.”
The others each fielded about 200 knights.
With all factions deploying their entire fighting force into the arena at once, a chaotic lee was inevitable.
We didn’t have enough ampoules to distribute to everyone.
“This should be sufficient.”
In cases like this, it’s best to go for the most efficient, easily understood thod.
I pulled a book from my coat.
“Oooh, is that the scriptures?”
“No, it’s a novel. Got a recomndation and started reading it when I was bored. It’s actually pretty fun.”
A romance novel Lauga had ntioned.
Even if it wasn’t a holy text, it looked close enough to pull off the prayer act.
“Ah yes, dear Goddess or whatever—you know the gist, listen up.”
I recited the prayer, and a bright surge of holy power burst from my body.
“Let their bodies be imbued with strength. An.”
When I finished casting, the ground sparkled, and the knights’ bodies were enveloped in radiant light.
“A blessing!”
“This feeling... I’m overflowing with strength!”
The knights cheered and jumped with excitent.
I had cast a Strength Blessing. Muscle-bound folks like them would enjoy anything that thickened their biceps.
My divine power was completely drained in exchange.
But since I don’t use divine spells that often anyway, it didn’t matter.
“To think you’d even use a large-scale blessing—of course, you’re the royal physician!”
The company commander flexed a now-bulging bicep and laughed.
“I usually charge for that.”
“Haha, if war breaks out, I’ll pay any amount to stick by your side. Honestly, I thought you just didn’t know healing magic since you never used it.”
“What the hell? Who says I can’t use healing magic?”
There were probably only a handful of healers in the entire Imperial dical Institute who were better than .
“Well, since you’ve got even better techniques, there’s no need to, right?”
“Exactly. Don’t go spreading dumb rumors.”
“Whoa, I wasn’t the one spreading them!”
The commander craned his neck out like he was being falsely accused.
I’d only ant it as a joke, but was that rumor actually going around?
Who the hell started it?
“Your Highness, the command to deploy.”
The Moonlight Palace’s knight captain stepped forward crisply, placing one arm vertically across his chest in salute.
Asella raised her chin and gave her order with regal authority.
“Achieve victory.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
The knights surged out toward the arena.
The clanking of their armored limbs rang loud in my ears.
Once we watched them leave, I returned with Asella to the spectator seats.
On the way, she turned to and said:
“Physician, so you do know healing magic. That blessing spell—I’ve never seen one before.”
“Ah, I see.”
“...Are you not using healing magic because of ?”
No, I just got sick of it.
Try spending day after day being the healing-slave of a hero’s party and tell if you’d still want to cast it again.
All I have are mories of dying while casting it.
It was an extre situation, with overwhelming odds stacked against us, but still.
Whenever I cast healing magic, it pulls right back into that mont.
And those aren’t mories I care to relive.
Still, Asella’s question gave the perfect excuse.
“As Your Highness says. I am Your Highness’s physician. Skills you do not require are also skills I have no need for. Even dedicating my life to perfecting treatnts solely for Your Highness doesn’t give enough ti.”
“I see.”
Asella took my answer without any particular reaction.
Thanks to that, I gained a very convenient excuse I could keep using.
After this event cos the Magic Tournant. Asella plans to participate directly.
Now that I thought about it, where was Seymour?
I hadn’t seen a single trace of him all day. Maybe he didn’t co to the tournant at all.
Asella would probably know.
“Your Highness, may I ask a question?”
“...”
For so reason, Asella didn’t answer.
“Your Highness?”
“...Ah, yes?”
She finally turned her head, startled, as if she’d just realized I was talking.
“Is the Sage not attending today?”
“No, he’s not... huuuh.”
Wait a second—did Asella just use the wrong honorific?
She took a deep breath, then returned to her usual expression and narrowed her eyes at .
“You dare ask such a trivial thing while I’m in deep thought?”
“I have committed a grave sin.”
She looked like she’d taken offense again, so I imdiately bowed my head in apology.
...She didn’t respond.
I tensed, wondering if I’d crossed a dangerous line—when her now-composed voice reached my ears.
“Raise your head.”
“Am I forgiven? Will I not be executed?”
“No. Because if you died—”
Asella trailed off, muttering to herself again.
“...There’d be no one left to heal .”
***
“Now look closely, and witness the glorious might of Tojin Palace’s knights! Each suit of armor is crafted from thorium by dwarven artisans! And we’ve got two hundred of them! Of course we’ll be the last ones standing!”
Georg roared with pride from the spectator stands, puffed up with confidence.
Indeed, his knight corps, including Regint 2 from the southern garrison, looked exceptionally well-prepared.
“Oppa, you’re gonna get wrecked again if you keep showing off like that. My Geumseo Palace knights are strong too, y’know?”
“Please. They’re still wheezing their way into the arena post-plague. My knights, on the other hand, got special care from the dical Institute.”
“You’re so petty.”
“Haha, it’s all about what you can pull off before the match even starts. His Majesty values influence inside the palace, after all.”
Georg wasn’t wrong.
The condition of one’s knights—including the quality of their armor—was a reflection of the faction leader’s capabilities.
“Falkenhein! There won’t be any screw-ups this ti, right?!”
Georg snapped, and Falkenhein stepped forward.
“Yes, Your Highness. The knights have been strictly managed and are in perfect condition.”
“Good.”
With the booming of a giant drum, the battle comnced.
The knight corps’ roar shot into the sky with enough force to punch through the clouds.
Over a thousand knights stord into the ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) arena.
Each faction started from their own base camp, navigating treacherous terrain to strike the enemy.
There’s no way we can win in a head-on clash with Georg’s knights.
The gap created by his wealth and resources couldn’t be closed by skill alone.
Even though the weapons were standardized for non-lethal use, taking a hit still caused injury.
And armor quality played a huge role in sustained combat.
To make matters worse, we were using Company 1, who’d only been hastily trained. Tactical superiority wasn’t easy to establish.
No matter how strong Tanya was, she was still just one person.
Which is why we need Lauga.
Boom!
Dirt flew in the distance. The impact of dozens of shields clashing at once echoed like a drumbeat.
The real skirmish had begun.
Formations were already collapsing, with knights falling left and right.
“What the hell?! That unit—!”
Georg peered through his binoculars and ground his teeth.
His banner was already tumbling in the dirt.
“Lauga! That’s your unit! Why are they launching a preemptive attack on my knights?!”
Lauga giggled behind her hand at the sight of a flustered Georg.
“This is still the scouting phase. You won’t win if you just charge in blindly, y’know?”
“I don’t need to win. Festivals are fun as long as they’re entertaining. Oppa, just sit back and enjoy it.”
Georg sighed in disbelief at her shaless attitude.
“Anyone can see that was a malicious attack!”
“Oh, co on. I do have strategy, you know.”
“What about that is strategic?!”
And to be fair, Georg’s reaction made sense.
Lauga’s knights hadn’t even drawn weapons. They were just charging recklessly while carrying giant barrels.
Inside the barrels: sticky sli mucus.
It didn’t have any special effect—it was just gross.
Caught off guard, Georg’s formation began to crumble.
“Who are these lunatics?! All they do is charge!”
“Get back! Get that sticky crap away from !”
Lauga’s knights clung to them like zombies, saring them with sli.
“You jerks! You’re the only ones who got cured—so unfair!”
“We got dragged here with burning fevers! We’ll give you our plague!”
Forget honorable battle—this was a drunken street brawl.
The Emperor roared with laughter at the sight.
Clearly not because he was impressed by Georg.
“My knight corps!! What did I do to deserve this from you, Lauga?!”
“You stole the cake that was delivered to last month. You forgot already?”
“Cake?! You ruined this whole tournant over a cake?!”
“‘Just a cake’? It was a rare cake made by a royal pâtissier, only twenty a day!”
“It was imported from an enemy nation! For heaven’s sake!”
Georg clutched his head and collapsed into his chair.
I turned my eyes to the field.
The Moonlight Palace knights steadily claid the high ground, avoiding other factions and minimizing losses.
Up front, Tanya was mowing down enemies like autumn leaves.
At this rate, we could expect a pretty solid result.
I walked up to Asella and struck up conversation.
“Your Highness, the Second Prince appears to be suffering from a headache.”
“Indeed he does.”
“Shall I lend him so aspirin?”
Asella chuckled at my joke.
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