I'm fighting Kal'tsit? Really?

She must grow up.

Blacksmithing, casting, and sword practice.

Blacksmithing, casting, and sword practice.

This continued for a full year, until that familiar figure reappeared before her, promising to return.

After that, one of the corporate alliances in Kazimierz experienced a terrible upheaval, with all the management dying in an extremely bizarre way. The entire business community was plunged into an unprecedented blow and fear, which only eased slightly when the Major was held again, and the Blood Knights' victory completely swept away the original gloom.

This incident has been dubbed the "Casimir Nightmare Curse." Some newspapers have even claimed that the companies were marked because they dug up the nightmare's grave, and that they would be hunted down to the ends of the earth by the evil spirit of the nightmare. Even the Wuhou Alliance didn't hear a word about it, and the investigation yielded no results. There was no explanation other than the evil spirit.

But Maria knew that it was all just the simplest form of revenge.

So she continued blacksmithing, forging, and sword practice, re-establishing contact with her Aunt Zofia, and occasionally taking a break at the Horrible Martin restaurant at the end of Golden Feather Avenue.

And so, after passing the craftsman certification exam, she suppressed her deepest emotions and waited for the day when the Supervisory Council needed her to become the family's chief rider.

She was finally ready.

……

Maria stood quietly in the center of the arena, clearing her mind of all distractions.

The clamor swept through the entire arena, a cacophony of cheers, whistles, and shouts from the audience, the air thick with restlessness and the stench of blood. Some cheered for her, others mocked her family; some truthfully recounted how much they had bet on her; and still others simply cheered for her.

But none of this concerns her.

Big Mouth Mob was still enthusiastically describing the atmosphere of the match, but she coldly pressed her ear, stripping away the unnecessary information from her mind.

Her first opponent—"Rusty Copper" Ingra—stepped forward slowly, his heavy armor scraping against the ground with a grating metallic sound. A ferocious grin appeared beneath his brand-new helmet, like a beast that had tasted countless lives, eager to tear its prey apart.

“A repulsive pretty face.” His voice was deep and husky, as if he were chewing on something. “The arena is not a place for noble ladies.”

"But without a shield? Perhaps you're quite bold, noble lady, or perhaps you're being too reckless. I can only guarantee that your face won't be intact in a moment, so that when that Radiant Knight sees this scene, she'll be somewhat moved, right?"

After uttering those harsh words, the knight from the ancient family slowly walked to the other end of the ring. Mob the Big Mouth continued his rambling description of the match's atmosphere, including how many people had suffered comminuted fractures at the hands of his opponent, and how the National Assembly had released a criminal, allowing him to participate in the event in time.

Maria simply pressed her ear indifferently, stripping the unnecessary information from her consciousness.

"Maria!"

A familiar voice rang out from behind her, and she looked over—her aunt, Zofia, known as the Whipblade Knight, was anxiously calling out to her, her hand pointing swiftly at Maria's left hand: "Where's your shield?! Why are you carrying a two-handed sword? Didn't we agree on this before the competition?!"

The Rinko family rarely uses Pegasus swords with two hands.

Not to mention that Zofia herself was never familiar with this type of weapon, she had only ever seen such a weapon in the hands of a strong Pegasus. The strength and skill required to master it could not be learned in just a few days.

Unless you hone your skills countless times, master the distance and gaps of every attack from your opponent, and then anticipate the consequences of your own attack.

Maria simply responded to her aunt with her usual shy yet warm smile: "It's alright, Aunt."

"Believe me."

Please also believe that the person who believes in me will never say anything to me that represents deception.

Meanwhile, Mob the Big Mouth suddenly waved his arm, and the sound from the loudspeaker instantly soared to the highest point in the arena, creating a new uproar.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Are you ready?!"

"The competition officially begins!!"

boom!

The moment the commentator finished speaking, the battle axe cleaved down, kicking up a cloud of dust, and the ground cracked open with a gruesome fissure.

Ingra's offensive was devoid of any fancy techniques; it relied purely on violence and brute force to try and crush Maria in the most direct way.

But the young Pegasus was no longer there.

Maria slightly turned her body, her steps precise and light, avoiding the heavy blow. The greatsword that originally required both hands to lift was now held in her hand with a single grasp, and not even a speck of dust touched her boots.

But Rust Copper didn't stop. He swept his axe horizontally, the axe carrying the wind pressure as it slashed out, aiming straight for Maria's waist.

It's another instance of dodging.

Her movements were so light that it was almost as if she weren't standing on this rough arena; her waist was slightly back, and the axe blade sliced ​​through the air in front of her chest, creating a dangerous gust of wind.

"Oh my gosh! Everyone! Did you see that?!"

Mob's voice echoed throughout the arena, his tone exaggerated and excited: "Our Maria Nearl—or perhaps we shouldn't call her Pegasus, but rather the nimble little bunny? She actually dodged two full-force swings from 'Rusty Copper' Ingra! Facing this axe-wielding butcher, her choice was—to completely ignore his attacks!"

Ingra's expression became even more ferocious, and his attack frequency increased. Each slash was accompanied by a shockwave that tore through the air, violent and heavy, as if it could tear Maria's body apart at any moment.

But she continued to dodge.

There was no counterattack, no fierce struggle, and they didn't even raise their swords.

He simply adjusted his steps precisely, dodging the onslaught with minimal movement, each movement perfectly timed, as if he had seen through the trajectory of every attack in advance.

Ingra started to get anxious.

His attacks relied on overwhelming force and physique, but Maria's dodging methods made it impossible for him to exert any pressure. No matter how hard his axe fell, it would only shatter the ground, not her body.

"It's clear that Ingra's patience is almost worn out!"

Mob's commentary was full of sarcasm, but he was actually a little surprised. Almost no one expected Maria to go to such lengths: "He's like a mad butcher, trying to chase and hack at a rabbit, but what if he suddenly realizes that the rabbit is more dangerous than he thought?"

Listening to the commentator above the arena, Ingra's temples bulged with veins. He suddenly changed his move, no longer just swinging and slashing, but instead swung his battle axe and, using the force of the rotation, smashed it violently into the ground!

Maria watched quietly as the axe hurtled towards her.

Maria.

That was the voice she had imagined countless times and longed for.

[It's like having the wind pressing down on you; the attack is actually quite simple.]

When facing a weaker opponent, there's no need to overthink, react to every move, or wait until the match is evenly matched before ending it. Just strike.

Trust me, it's very simple.

Maria quietly stepped back, letting the axe fall in front of her along its original trajectory.

And she raised the sword in her hand.

Under the horrified and astonished gaze of the Rusty Bronze Knight, Maria slowly spoke—

"—Light!!!"

……

It was neither as bright as the Radiant Knight, nor as dazzling as the Dark Knight, which showered light down across the sky like raindrops.

Maria's light simply absorbed the roaring flames within the furnace.

There are no so-called techniques, no exquisite sword strikes, no delicate moves; it's just a simple slap.

Like a sudden drop in wind pressure, it completely crushes all obstacles in its path.

Like——

It was as if the sacred flame had descended, crushing the weight and sins of the entire world onto the opponent.

Ingra didn't even have time to scream before he was completely embedded in the ground by the blow, without even a chance to struggle. His armor was shattered on the spot like a fragile shell, his battle axe broke in the shock, and his bones were shattered into pieces by the impact. Just like the countless enemies he had destroyed before, he was completely deprived of the possibility of continuing to fight.

The earthquake trembled violently, and the ground shattered into pieces.

Before the dust had even settled, the shouts, cheers, and laughter from the audience all came to an abrupt halt at that moment.

An unprecedented silence fell over the arena; no one spoke, no one made a sound. Even Mob, the commentator who never shut up on the podium, remained unusually silent.

Maria slowly straightened up, sheathed her sword, and took a breath.

She didn't look at her opponent lying on the ground, nearly smashed. She simply turned around quietly, stepped on the cracked ground, and walked towards the exit.

The light has not yet faded.

--------

Meanwhile, a hooded figure sat in a VIP box, looking down at the battlefield through the glass.

Behind him, platinum arrows fell on several people.

Gerald nodded with a sigh upon seeing this, then put his arm around the railing and withdrew the wind that he had originally intended to use for safety.

“You’ve grown up well, Maria.”

Chapter 10 I'm going to die, it's all your fault (4K6)

In the arena, everyone's consciousness seemed to be suddenly awakened after a period of silence. First, faint sounds gradually returned to the field, followed by deafening shouts.

"Really...is that really how it is...? Cough cough,"

Mob cleared his throat, forcibly suppressing his brief slurred speech from shock, then slammed his hand on the commentary table, his voice echoing throughout the arena once more—

"What is this?!"

"Everyone—everyone! Did I miss something?! Did we all make a mistake?! This isn't some little girl who's just entered the arena, is it?! Standing before us is the strongest and fiercest challenger this Major is about to face!! Maria Nearl, who even surpasses the potential of a Radiant Knight—!!"

However, the goal has already been reached, and the voices from outside the venue are destined to only reach the players' tunnel.

Maria pushed open the door, walked into the lounge, and the moment she closed the door, the noise from the outside world seemed to be completely cut off, leaving only the quiet air and the echo of her own heartbeat.

She took off her cloak, sat down on a bench, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and let out a soft breath, allowing herself to completely detach from the battle. Her gaze fell on a corner—there, the shield and one-handed sword that the staff had put back stood quietly against the wall.

That was a weapon that Zofia had specially prepared for her, but she ultimately chose a two-handed sword.

She reached out and gently stroked the shield, pondering how to face her aunt's questioning. The thought had barely crossed her mind when the door was suddenly flung open with a bang.

"Maria—!!"

The next second, her vision suddenly blurred, and she was caught off guard as her arm was twisted and flipped over. The familiar force slammed her into a standard chokehold, locking her entire body firmly in place.

"What exactly do you want?!"

Zofia's roar exploded in her ears, showing no mercy, as if she were about to shove Maria into the ground.

"Waaah! Auntie, Auntie, stop!"

Maria struggled, tears welling in her eyes, but she didn't want to exert any force. She was forced to the floor, where she pounded the ground in pain, begging for mercy: "It hurts! It hurts! It hurts!"

"You still feel pain?! You still feel pain?!" Zofia grew angrier the more she thought about it, her grip never loosening as she continued to roar, "You just went and used a two-handed sword so openly?! Without even a shield?! Are you trying to scare me to death?! Do you know how badly you would have been injured if you hadn't dodged their attack?!"

“Because I know he can’t beat me,” Maria shouted, struggling to lift her face off the floor and looking at her aunt with pitiful eyes. “Besides, letting a criminal imprisoned by the National Assembly return to the arena is itself a very unfair thing to the other contestants.”

Only after hearing those words did Zofia, somewhat dazed, release her hand.

Maria quickly rubbed her arm, which had been sore from the fall, took a deep breath, and stood up: "I know, now that he has the name Lin Guang and is famous, there will definitely be a lot of problems. For example, Uncle will definitely be asked all sorts of questions by his boss when he goes to work, and then he will have to work overtime."

“But I don’t regret it,” she said, her expression gradually returning to calm. “My brother said that if there’s a problem, you should solve it. My sister did that, and I will do the same, but not because I’m imitating her.”

"It's just because I have to take on family responsibilities, and the other party has committed an unforgivable sin."

After a moment of silence, Zofia's gaze fell on Maria's hand, and she frowned when she saw the trembling in her arm.

"Never mind." The Whipblade Knight, who considered himself an elder, didn't know what to do for a moment, so he changed the subject: "What you need now is rest. Don't go to the bar for now. After the competition, people will be lining up to ask you for sponsorships, and there will be reporters waiting to interview you."

“Eh…” Maria hesitated for a moment and took a step back: “The flash will hurt my eyes a lot.”

“So,” Zofia thought for a moment, then waved her hand and made a decisive decision: “Fine, come home with me first.”

Maria was taken aback: "Go home?"

"Yes, back to my home."

Zofia snorted, grabbed Maria's arm, and dragged her towards the door like a chick. "Reporters can't get into the manor, so Marna won't have a reason to nag you."

--------

In Qazimir, is it possible for ordinary people to rise to the upper class?

The answer is yes, you can do it through knightly competitions. If you also have a little bit of talent for making money, then with hard work, you will eventually be able to earn some money that you can deposit into the Gold Palm Bank in Kazimierz and enjoy a life of luxury and wealth.

That's exactly what Zofia did. Although she has a collateral connection to the Nearl family, that doesn't negate the certain achievements she's made over the years.

Her status as a member of the Nearl family's collateral branch allowed her to appear out of the public eye, and she single-handedly managed almost all of Maria's upbringing over the past six years. Having lost Margaret, this was the only thing she could do as "Nearl's attendant," a desperate measure that could be considered a loophole.

Even during the busy Special Championship period, her home maintained its dignity and order, and almost no one came to disturb her.

"Go take a shower and get some rest."

Back at the manor, Zofia patted Maria on the back and, after a moment's pause, said, "Well done, Maria. I'm proud of you, and I think everyone feels the same way."

She then beckoned, and soon a servant dressed in a neat maid's uniform stepped forward and bowed slightly to Maria politely: "Please come with me, Miss Knight."

"aunt!"