If You Take the Enemy Prince as Your Knight Chapter 122

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The reaction in the stands was split to extremes, creating chaos.

 

“Kill him! Kill!”

 

“Struggle all you want!”

 

There were those who had fallen into frenzy, veins bulging in their necks as they shouted.

 

“Ah, what to do…”

 

“I can’t bear to watch.”

 

And there were those who tightly shut their eyes in pity.

 

Noah wasn’t as composed as Kilieon. To be more precise, he was desperate. After barely defeating the fourth challenger and entering the fifth duel, he was visibly exhausted. Sweat dripped from his chin, and his breathing was ragged. Through the torn gaps of his uniform, red wounds could be seen. Even in that condition, his sword didn’t lose its edge.

 

“Sir Noah, victory!”

 

Though somewhat behind the other personal knights, he was still an outstanding knight. The fact that he had already defeated five knights serving the emperor in succession was proof enough of his worth. But he still had five more opponents remaining.

 

The absurd duel continued. As if burning his lifespan, Noah squeezed out his stamina and mana to fight.

 

“Keugh!”

 

He managed to defeat the sixth challenger, but the cost was great. Blood flowed down from his limp left arm, dripping from his fingertips. It had already formed a puddle at his feet with no sign of stopping. Noah’s body swayed heavily.

 

“Noah!” Orlette’s desperate cry was buried beneath the savage cheers of the arena and didn’t reach him.

 

Using his sword as a cane, Noah barely avoided collapsing, supporting himself on one knee. As he slowly tried to straighten up, Marquis Osbond approached him.

 

“Sir Noah, how about forfeiting at this point?”

 

“…Forfeit?” With his vision unfocused from extreme exhaustion, Noah turned to look at the marquis.

 

The mad emperor’s jester, resembling a snake, continued his cunning proposal. “The rumor that you will certainly die if you are dismissed from the position of personal knight is merely a rumor. If you are lucky, you may keep your life.”

 

“…”

 

“You know well that you have no chance of winning in this condition. So would it not be wise to give up the fight and seek a way to live?”

 

“Give up…?”

 

“Yes. A strategic decision.”

 

“Give up, you say.”

 

Light returned to his dull green eyes. Something unbelievable happened. The knight, who looked as though he could collapse at any moment, straightened his back as if nothing had happened, without even a disturbance in his breathing. He turned half a step with precision and flicked his sword diagonally, standing straight toward the crowd. Among the countless people, his eyes immediately found Orlette.

 

“I will not give up.” Declaring firmly, he shouted at the top of his lungs. “Where is the next challenger! Come at me!”

 

“…If that is what you wish.”

 

The knight wheel battle resumed.

 

“Noah… Aah…”

 

Orlette’s expression had completely collapsed in despair. While Noah fought the remaining duels, she endured the urge to shut her eyes again and again. She could not bear to watch, but she had the duty to witness her personal knight.

 

“Noah…!”

 

Before her eyes, her personal knight fought desperately, miserably. His injuries only grew worse. By the end of the seventh battle, his leg was deeply cut, restricting his movement. His back was scraped entirely against the ground by the end of eight, leaving him covered in blood. And by the end of the ninth, his insides were shaken, making him vomit blood.

 

In that battered state, Noah crossed swords with his final opponent. His body, whose eyes had lost their light, was no longer driven even by willpower. It was driven by instinct.

 

“Noah, forf—!” Orlette cried out without realizing it, then hurriedly covered her own mouth. She could not bring herself to tell him to forfeit.

 

“Oh my, Sir Noah. At this point, this looks less like a knight’s duel and more like a hunted beast. There is no knightly dignity left in your swordsmanship, only the instinct to survive. Isn’t this far too unsightly to serve Her Highness?”

 

At Marquis Osbond’s mockery, laughter burst from the stands. But not everyone agreed with such vulgarity. Most of the audience and all of the princesses thought differently, especially Orlette. Even as he rolled in the dirt, crawled miserably, and struggled to stand again, his fight looked noble and glorious in her eyes. He was her honorable knight.

 

Orlette strengthened her gaze. As if taking on the emotions she had barely suppressed, Shumel buried her face in her knees and sobbed.

 

Around then, the duel neared its end. To Noah, who had lost mobility due to his leg injury, the opponent’s sword rushed mercilessly. Each time he narrowly dodged or raised his sword to block, his body was pushed back a little by little. At some point, he was driven all the way to the arena wall, with nowhere left to retreat.

 

“It’s over!” Rejoicing in his cowardly victory, the opponent thrust his sword toward Noah’s face. With the sound of crashing, a handful of brown hair scattered into the air. Blood ran down the blade.

 

“Noah!” Orlette screamed.

 

It was then that the smiling tenth challenger’s lips stiffened.

 

“I won.”

 

“…!”

 

The blood on the imperial guard’s sword hadn’t come from Noah’s head. It came from his bare hand gripping the blade. The guard hurriedly tried to pull his sword back, but Noah did not allow it. That brief moment of confusion decided the outcome.

 

“You should have let go of your sword.”

 

“…!”

 

Drawing out his last remaining mana, Noah struck a blow into the opponent’s heart. With a roar, the tenth challenger was sent flying, bouncing across the ground several times like a skipping stone before finally crashing into the opposite wall. The arena then fell deathly silent. Because the result was unbelievable.

 

Clap, clap, clap. It was Sasha’s applause that broke the stillness. Only then, as if awakening to reality, the crowd erupted into cheers.

 

“Miracle! A miracle! The battered knight has ultimately defended his position!”

 

Waaaah—! Public opinion readily sided with the victor. Even the savage ones who had wanted to see blood from the knight’s heart now praised Noah. Hearing his name being chanted, Noah collapsed on the spot.

 

Orlette immediately sprang to her feet. “Noah! I’m coming! Wait!” Throwing off even her shoes, she ran down toward the arena.

 

The mad emperor, who had been watching indifferently with his chin resting on his hand, spoke to the chamberlain. “He’s just short of being a corpse. I suppose I should grant his wish while he can still crawl before me.”

 

“Yes, Your Majesty. I shall convey that he should present his wish after recovery.”

 

When Marquis Osbond announced the emperor’s will, the people once again erupted in fervor.

 

“Merciful Emperor!”

 

“Long live Your Majesty the Emperor!”

 

The world was this absurd. The more tyrannical the ruler, the more cheaply praise and worship were given.

 

“Noah!”

 

By the time Orlette reached the arena, Noah was being carried on a stretcher. His body was barely intact, but at her voice, he opened his eyes slightly.

 

“Ah… Your Highnessss…”

 

Even through his blurred vision, Noah somehow recognized her and smiled faintly. Despite being so horribly injured, her knight was the same as always.

 

“Why did you do so well…!” Overcome for a moment at his pretty smile, Orlette quickly corrected herself. “You did well. You really did well. You were truly amazing, Noah.”

 

“Then… later… Please give me… a reward… I want… a reward… so please…” That was his limit.

 

“No-Noah!” Grabbing his hand as it fell limply off the stretcher, Orlette called his name over and over.

 

The mad emperor, looking down at the scene, raised an eyebrow slightly and remarked, “I didn’t know Orlette was such an affectionate child.”

 

“She seems to resemble her mother. She was a kind-hearted woman.”

 

“Hmm, who was Lette’s mother again? I can’t recall at all.”

 

Meanwhile, the arena, which was once in ruins, was quickly restored. At the appointed time for the third round, the next figure stepped into the center of the arena. He was a knight with sky-blue, mid-length hair that lightly covered the nape of his neck.

 

From the princesses’ seats, Lilliana sharply inhaled. “Yulis…”