"I'm truly sorry, Your highness!"
Eurius comforted Linfield, who was receiving emergency treatment with a frustrated expression.
"Trust Heinz and me. You did more than enough!"
'What I expect from you is not just your strength.'
He had originally noticed Linfield for his ability as an aide, not his combat ability as a knight.
If he could see his stats, he would see that his talent was divided between aide and knight. He deserved a great praise for showing such a fighting spirit.
Anyway, as Nuada's side took the first victory, the tribes cheered.
"Woohoo!! Win the next match easily too!"
"Of course, the weaklings of the continent can't match our warriors."
Eurius smiled faintly as he saw that.
"What about you? How do you see Heinz?"
"Shouldn't I show you with the result?"
Heinz also smiled and answered with a cheerful tone that was not like someone who was about to fight.
Eurius shouted out loud.
"I'll send out the next person!"
He patted Heinz's back.
He was also someone who had always taken care of him since he was young.
There was no need to express their trust relationship with words.
"I am from the Imperial Guard, and now I'm in charge of guarding His Majesty, Heinz!"
"I am Bogr, a warrior of the Thunder Rock tribe! I hope for a good match like before!"
Bogr was also a great warrior who was on par with Sven. But Eurius trusted Heinz.
'His talent was originally much better than mine.'
He had been watching him since he received the guidance of Carlos, the superhuman duke. He never saw him slack off in his efforts for a single day.
Heinz also didn't look back at Eurius as he went out, but he recalled the past with a nostalgic expression.
'His highness is my benefactor who has no equal in this world.'
His first meeting with Eurius was when he was admitted to the Imperial Guard as a commoner who was recognized for his talent.
'It wasn't easy to adapt.'
The Imperial Guard was mostly composed of people who had gone through the best elite courses. It was hard for a commoner like him to fit in at first.
'He has decent skills, but isn't he just a lowly commoner?'
'Tsk! No matter how meritocratic it is, the Imperial Guard should have people who have basic manners!'
His meeting with Eurius, who was known as a troublemaker at the time, also started at this period.
People around him sneered. They thought he was just babysitting the emperor because of his background.
"It's unfortunate, but it can't be helped."
"Who knows? Maybe he'll catch the eye of the first prince and get promoted?"
"Nah, not that prince."
But Heinz was a bright and positive person by nature. If not, he wouldn't have been able to endure that contempt and come this far.
"I am Heinz, a knight of the Imperial Guard. It is an honor to be in charge of His highness basic swordsmanship training from today."
He spoke cautiously, afraid of offending the emperor's mood because of his background.
The current emperor had dismantled the power of the nobles so much that it wasn't like that, but just a few decades ago, it was hard for a commoner to even set foot in the palace.
"Really?"
Surprisingly, Eurius didn't seem very interested and moved on.
"…!?"
Many high-ranking nobles openly despised commoners.
He couldn't help but make a slightly confused expression when the little prince showed such a candid reaction.
"What's your name again?"
"Nothing. I was just afraid that Your highness would be upset because of my background…"
"What are you talking about!"
Eurius smiled brightly again.
"His Majesty always said this. Whether they are commoners or nobles, the imperial family must always take care of them and be an example to them."
He said this and then stretched his waist with a sigh.
"That's why it doesn't matter to me whether Heinz is a commoner or a noble. You can just treat me casually!"
He said this with a proud look on his face, but he was just a ten-year-old kid.
He acted like he had said something great, but he was a typical immature lord.
However, ironically, Eurius was the first person who had ever said such words to Haines.
'His highness is a person who treats everyone equally with a righteous character.'
Although he didn't remember it himself, the first meeting with Eurius was something that Heinz could never forget.
Eurius thought that he was just being nice to him because he had a warm and friendly impression, but in fact, Heinz had taken good care of Eurius for this reason.
In fact, Eurius in his childhood was a prince who had no flaws in his personality.
He wasn't called a genius like Leonhardt, but he was a child who often received praise for his kindness.
That's why the emperor and Marius supported him even though they heard that he lacked talent.
If it weren't for the schemes of Wallace or the duke, Eurius would have had a high chance of living a peaceful emperor life in his previous life.
His achievements after his return were also dazzling.
'He did go astray for a while, but he had his own reasons for that!'
"That's why I want you to be my Emperor!"
That's why he chose to follow Eurius without hesitation. There was no other reason.
Whether it was in the palace or in the north, Eurius had always shown him an ideal image.
'His highness has the qualities of a great ruler. There is no reason for me not to follow him as a knight!'
He finished his reminiscence and heard the sound of the second duel starting.
"Then let's start the second duel!"
'I will win for His highness!'
'I saw him briefly before, but he's not an easy opponent!'
Heinz and Bogr measured each other's distance carefully and waited for an opportunity.
It was the opposite situation from the previous duel between Sven and Linfield.
That was because Heinz' strength was his skillful defense and Bogru relied on his heavy blows with his heavy weapon.
"Huah!"
The first attack came from Bogr. His huge axe blade fell down as if it would split Haines in half.
Clang!
But his momentum was easily deflected by Heinz with a simple movement of his sword.
'Hmm! He's really good at defense.'
Nuada couldn't help but exclaim. He had rarely seen anyone who could defend against Bogr's powerful strike so lightly.
Clang! Crash!
The situation continued similarly afterwards.
Bogr tried to land a heavy blow while Haines maintained a stable posture and defended himself. He didn't even try to counterattack much.
Bogr started to get annoyed.
'It feels like I'm hitting a wall with my axe.'
He didn't find Heinz swordsmanship scary, but it was like an iron fortress.
No matter how hard he attacked, Heinz defended himself with minimal movements.
This was because he had trained under Count Carlos, who specialized in defense.
"His highness already has his own fighting style. But you still have something to learn from me."
That's what Count Carlos said to him when he accepted him as his disciple.
While receiving guidance from Count Carlos, Heinz swordsmanship gradually resembled the duke's.
It was natural that he was different from Eurius, who had trained mainly through real battles.
Heinz had devoted himself to training under the duke's thorough personal instruction.
Therefore, his style also became naturally defensive.
And the scary part of this swordsmanship was that it started when the opponent's offense subsided.
Shriek!
"Ugh!"
Bogr barely dodged the attack by bending his waist back. It wasn't because he was careless.
It was because Heinz defense was so solid that he pushed back his attack and induced a gap.
It was clearly a one-sided offense by Bogr at first, but Heinz finally began to break his momentum little by little.
Heavy weapons had the advantage of being powerful, but they also had large openings and consumed a lot of stamina.
Considering this, Bogr was already half-defeated when he failed to suppress Heinz in the beginning and got caught up in his pace.
Clang!
Finally, Heinz sword pushed away the axe and exposed Bogru's fatal flaw.
Slash!
Bogru's chest was cut open and blood spurted out.
The outcome was decided.
"Chief! I can still fight."
"The match is over. We lost this time!"
Nuada also knew that losing his warriors in a duel was a big loss. He quickly called Bogr back when the situation tilted to Haines' victory.
"Woohoo!!! It's indeed Sir Heinz."
This time, applause and cheers erupted from the knights' side.
The duel itself was rather dull, but he had defeated his strong opponent without a scratch.
The Thunder Rock tribe who watched the duel couldn't help but feel gloomy.
They had hoped to win two matches in a row at first, but the result was the opposite.
But that was only for a moment.
"Thud!"
Nuada started to warm up his body lightly and their faces brightened up again.
'Our chief will easily win this match!'
Who was their chief? He was a legendary warrior who had reached the level of a great warrior who hadn't appeared in the northern mountains for nearly two hundred years.
No matter how strong the other warrior was, they had a faith in Nuada that was almost like a religion.
Eurius also prepared to go out.
"Your highness, please be careful."
"I can't guarantee anything about this opponent either. But he's not someone who would break his promise, so if I lose, just retreat."
'I'm not sure about this one either.'
Eurius had devoted himself to training for this day with all his means.
His skills, which were nurtured under the best environment and the best teachers, were now at a level that no one could ignore in the continent.
'But fighting against a superhuman-level warrior is unpredictable.'
Of course, he wasn't unsure of himself. He had his own plan to defeat Nuada, which was why he challenged him to a duel.
But his opponent was the loser of the north, who would rise as one of the strongest warriors in the continent in the future. It was too arrogant to guarantee victory.
Nuada was equally excited!
'This is the first time I have a one-on-one fight with a great warrior!'
The previous battle at the castle was nothing but a light greeting for him and Eurius.
How many warriors had been able to withstand his strike since he reached this level?
He felt his fighting spirit surge as he thought of finally unleashing his full power.
"The first prince of the Scharnos Empire, Eurius von Scharnos!"
"The chief of the Thunder Rock tribe, Nuada!"
The clash of the two fates that had continued from the previous life had finally begun.