Chapter 78

The name of the mercenary who challenged Ariel to a duel was Belmont.

Belmont was a seasoned warrior who started his mercenary life at a young age, honing his skills through countless battlefields.

The sword he wielded was a heavy double-edged blade, and it bore the rather eccentric name “Spin Breaker.”

Belmont had named it himself.

Although no one ever called it that, Belmont would always say, “Take care of me, Spin Breaker,” to his sword before every battle.

Once, a fellow mercenary asked, “Which do you like more, women or your sword?” Belmont replied with a solemn face, “Spin Breaker.”

Since then, Belmont was treated as an eccentric or even a sword fetishist among his comrades, but no one could ignore his skills.

As mentioned earlier, Belmont was a seasoned warrior who had honed his skills through countless battlefields since his youth.

Belmont’s swordsmanship was a harmonious balance of strength, speed, and technique, with his ultimate move, the “Triple Spin Slash,” being particularly devastating.

The Triple Spin Slash was a technique where he rapidly spun his body, slashing randomly at the upper, middle, and lower levels.

The first time an opponent faced this technique, they often couldn’t react in time, losing their head or legs.

Because no one could predict where Belmont’s next strike would land—up, middle, or down.

Even Belmont himself didn’t know.

Whenever Belmont used the Triple Spin Slash, he swung his sword as he pleased, making it impossible even for him to predict where the next strike would go.

And even if the opponent managed to block the attack, it didn’t end there.

Belmont’s Spin Breaker was a heavy double-edged sword, and Belmont’s arm muscles were above average.

Each strike was inevitably powerful and weighty.

Even if the opponent blocked the attack, their stance would crumble, and the next strike would eventually take their head or legs.

The Triple Spin Slash, Spin Breaker, and Belmont.

This trio would one day become an undeniable force of fear in the mercenary world… or so Belmont hoped.

“What are you gonna do, kid?”

Belmont puffed up his large frame and looked down at Ariel.

“Will you have a fiery duel with me, Spin Slasher Belmont? Or will you cowardly wet yourself and back off?”

Seeing Belmont like this, the other mercenaries clicked their tongues inwardly.

Belmont’s serious. Challenging a little girl to a duel? What kind of adult does that?

Picking fights on the street was a characteristic and occupational hazard of mercenaries.

However, it wasn’t born out of malice but rather a natural phenomenon, a part of their energetic way of life.

But now, Belmont had malice. No, not malice, but a sinister ulterior motive.

The loser of the duel would become the winner’s subordinate.

Suggesting such a thing to a young elf girl, his intentions were too obvious.

If the opponent were a burly mercenary, it might be understandable, but with such a small, young girl, Belmont’s tendencies were clear.

‘Don’t duel her, kid.’

‘Don’t fall for Belmont’s snake-like provocation.’

The mercenaries who had been mocking Ariel earlier were now inwardly worried for her.

‘No matter how despicable Belmont is, his skills are nothing to scoff at.’

But despite their worries, Ariel nodded readily, accepting Belmont’s challenge.

“Let’s do it.”

At that moment, Belmont’s lips curled up as if they might tear, and the surrounding mercenaries inwardly lamented the bleak future awaiting Ariel.

“Kehaha! Such a brave kid! Then let’s do this properly, shall I? I mentioned earlier, right? The loser becomes the winner’s subordinate. To make sure of that, we’ll draw up a contract.”

Belmont quickly pulled out a piece of paper.

It was a duel slave contract.

It stated that the loser would become the winner’s slave, and it was legally binding under imperial law.

In other words, Belmont was serious.

His meticulousness left the other mercenaries speechless.

‘To go this far…’

‘Disgusting, truly disgusting…’

If they weren’t his comrades, they might have tried to stop him, but unfortunately, the surrounding mercenaries had no grounds to intervene in Belmont’s despicable act.

“Now, sign here. Bravely.”

Ariel signed the contract Belmont presented and even pressed her fingerprint.

“Good, good, ehaha! So brave.”

Belmont chuckled gleefully and carefully tucked the contract into his chest. Then, he looked at Ariel with a heated gaze.

‘As expected of an elf, her beauty is remarkable. To have such a cute girl as my slave, just thinking about it…’

Drool was already dripping from Belmont’s mouth.

*

According to imperial law, duels could be freely conducted anywhere, anytime, as long as both parties agreed.

Whether it was due to a slight to one’s honor, a grudge, or simply a bad mood from a passing glance, one had the right to fight.

The empire didn’t intervene in such fights, but if a duel contract was drawn up, it was encouraged to follow its terms.

Failure to adhere to the contract would result in punishment by the empire.

Thanks to this, Belmont was in high spirits.

Getting a legal elf slave for free—how exhilarating! He felt like dancing naked at the city gates.

Of course, doing so would get him arrested immediately.

In any case, both the duel and the contract were legal.

Belmont wanted to immediately knock Ariel on the head and laugh, “How about that? I won, you’re my slave now, kehaha!” But since the area was too crowded, it seemed the duel would have to wait until after passing through the gates.

The line in front of the gates was slowly shrinking.

Belmont walked closely behind Ariel to ensure she didn’t run away.

Soon, it was Ariel’s turn.

“Present your identification.”

At the guard’s words, Ariel simply stood still. Belmont, watching from behind, spoke up.

“What are you doing, kid? You need to show something to prove your identity, like an adventurer’s registration or something.”

Ariel then carefully extended her hand. On her small palm were several gold coins.

“……?”

The guard looked at Ariel in disbelief, and Belmont also asked in a bewildered voice.

“What, do you not have anything to prove your identity?”

Ariel nodded slightly in response to Belmont’s question.

“Instead, gold coins…”

Ariel muttered hesitantly.

In other cities, she could pass by just handing over a bunch of gold coins, and the guards even liked it, but it seemed the atmosphere here was different.

The guard’s gaze grew stricter, and Belmont, standing behind, sighed in exasperation.

“Really…”

Belmont decided to step in.

If things continued like this, Ariel wouldn’t be able to pass through the gates, and the duel wouldn’t happen, meaning he couldn’t make her his slave.

He had to help Ariel pass through the gates somehow.

“I’ll vouch for this kid.”

Belmont pulled out his mercenary badge, contracts from the guild, and various documents that could prove his identity.

He was vouching for Ariel’s identity.

The guard carefully examined Belmont’s documents, accurately recorded Ariel’s personal information, and then allowed her to pass.

Clearly, being the imperial capital, the procedures were strict. Handing over gold coins wasn’t enough to pass.

“What were you thinking? Trying to pass through the imperial capital’s gates with just gold coins. If I hadn’t vouched for you, you would’ve been kicked out immediately.”

Belmont reached out to Ariel.

“In that sense, give me those gold coins. You were going to give them to the guard anyway.”

Ariel readily handed the gold coins to Belmont.

As Belmont said, they were meant for the guard.

If it weren’t for Belmont, she wouldn’t have passed through the gates, so giving him the gold coins didn’t matter.

“Heh, good girl.”

Belmont, having received the gold coins, let out another sinister laugh, and the surrounding mercenaries frowned.

Not only did he get an elf slave for free, but he also received gold coins. Now, Belmont was becoming enviable.

“Now, kid. As promised, let’s have a splendid duel, shall we?”

“Okay.”

Belmont took Ariel to a secluded open area, and although the outcome was obvious, the curious mercenaries followed.

Standing in the open area, Belmont drew his beloved sword and said.

“Kid, my sword’s name is Spin Breaker. Remember it well. Kehaha.”

Ariel nodded and drew the sword she carried on her back.

“This is Ragnarok.”

A momentary silence fell over the surroundings at Ariel’s words.

“…Pfft.”

Soon, someone burst out laughing, and then everyone in the open area started laughing loudly.

“Puhahaha!”

“Kehehe, Ragnarok, huh?”

Belmont also held his stomach and laughed.

“No, this is too scary! Ragnarok, meaning the end of the world, right? I think I’ve messed with the wrong person! Puhuhu.”

The surrounding laughter didn’t stop.

“Kehaha, hey, Belmont, take it easy! She’s just a kid.”

“So cute. Giving such a dramatic name to that scrap metal. Even more so than Belmont. Ah, maybe I should name my sword too. Hehehe.”

“……”

Ariel felt a bit upset.

Mocking the sword Lionel had poured his heart into creating? Well, she had no choice but to show them.

The power of Ragnarok.

“Come at me, kid.”

Watching Belmont twitch his sword, Ariel stomped the ground.