Sir Neumann.
Senior knight of the Frontera Barony.
Swordsmanship level: low-tier Sword Expert.
In a rural territory like this, he was treated as competent.
But he was far more interested in personal advancement than swordsmanship.
Loyalty to his liege? Not as much as immediate coin.
A knight's honor? Not as much as instant status gains.
He was the type who would do anything for his goals.
'No, he actually put it into practice. By selling the Frontera family's internal info to a conman.'
The early part of the novel *Iron-Blooded Knight* came to mind.
The Frontera family's downfall—the first trial to befall the protagonist, Haviel.
Sir Neumann was behind it.
He sold the family's info to the conman.
The conman used it to approach the baron.
With sweet words, he persuaded the baron into a massive investment.
In the end, he swallowed the funds and fled.
The baron ended up buried in debt.
In short, Sir Neumann's betrayal had pulled the trigger on the family's ruin.
'Which means you're on the chopping block too, of course.'
Lloyd bit his lip.
It was because of this man that he, now possessing the body of a rural noble's eldest son, couldn't just laze around sucking honey.
Because of him, he had to scramble east and west to pay off the family debts.
Fundamentally, it was all this guy's fault.
But Lloyd didn't show those emotions rashly.
By the time he turned to Sir Neumann, his face had already returned to a calm expression.
"Sir Neumann? What did you just say?"
"Exactly as I said."
Sir Neumann's lip twitched.
"I've come to speak about the unjust violence you inflicted on Sir Ulrich this morning, Young Master Lloyd."
"Unjust violence? Speak?"
"Yes."
"Then go ahead."
Go on, blabber all you want.
Lloyd smiled leisurely.
Sir Neumann's expression hardened further.
"As you know, Young Master Lloyd, Sir Ulrich is a knight sworn to our liege. He has taken the proper oaths and is thus entitled to have his honor and rights protected. It means you cannot treat him recklessly out of personal grudges."
"Yeah, yeah. Sure."
"Yet this morning, you showed no respect whatsoever for Sir Ulrich's honor and rights."
"Yeah, yeah. I did."
"So, as the territory's senior knight, I formally wish to hear your response, Young Master Lloyd. Do you feel nothing about this incident?"
"Yeah, yeah. Probably not."
"..."
Pissed off, huh.
Sir Neumann's face flushed red all the way to his neck.
Meanwhile, Lloyd's expression remained brazenly calm.
"Do my words sound like a joke to you, Young Master Lloyd?"
"Nope. They sound right on. Right on the mark."
"..."
Sir Neumann's eye twitched.
Lloyd grinned even wider.
'What the hell? He's already losing it over this?'
Seeing Sir Neumann's reaction,
Lloyd couldn't help but snort inwardly.
Truth be told, by his standards, this was barely low-tier provocation.
And yet the guy was already floundering.
'If I put this dude in a Korean online game, he'd die of rage-induced illness.'
He meant it.
The world of Korean online games he'd grown up with daily.
It was a battlefield where apocalyptic chaos did the tap dance.
One tiny mistake in your role, and teammates unleashed every curse under the sun.
A festival of personality-shredding insults and memes.
Asking about parents' well-being was just the basics.
But get mad at every one?
'The one who snaps loses. Trembling just gets you more mockery and aggro meters exploding.'
A brutal world where you had to laugh off even harsh pad-lips and counter harder to survive.
He was an elite veteran forged in that hell.(?)
No, most average Korean gamers were.
So by his standards, the jab he'd just thrown at Sir Neumann?
It wasn't even kindergarten level. Just a greeting.
But it was different for Sir Neumann.
To him, this humiliation was one of the worst in his entire life.
'What kind of guy is this?'
He was too flabbergasted to speak.
He'd known the spoiled brat was a troublemaker from the start.
But not to this extent.
Now he realized he'd been wrong.
This crazy young master saw even him as an easy mark.
"So you're saying you're insulting even me now?"
"Yeah, yeah. Obviously."
"You're disregarding even my honor and rights?"
"Yeah, yeah. Obviously."
"You're not worried about the consequences?"
"Yeah, yeah. Obviously."
It really was obvious.
Sir Neumann was getting axed anyway.
The guy who'd sell his liege's secrets to a conman behind his back.
And now he was prattling about noble honor and rights to his face.
Lloyd snorted inwardly.
'Like a voice phishing goon. Probably scheming to stir up the other knights with this.'
Knights were bound to their lord by oath.
Not to the lord's son.
So you couldn't just bully knights because you were the heir.
Sir Neumann was likely poking at that to rile up the others.
Of course, Lloyd wasn't worried about any of it.
'I'm firing them all anyway. Except Haviel and Sir Bayern.'
Senior knight Sir Neumann.
Sir Ulrich and Sir Conte who followed him.
They were the ones who'd turn tail when the family fell.
No need to fret over their agitation.
'Right now, I need an excuse to boot them.'
Lloyd glanced around.
The area had gone quiet.
Because no one was there?
No, the opposite.
The skilled workers and soldiers cleaning up the site.
They'd all stopped work to watch.
When their eyes met his, they hurriedly looked away and pretended to work.
But their ears were still tuned in.
'Of course. It's a rare sight: the lord's son arguing with the senior knight.'
As the saying goes, the best spectacles are fires and fights.
Recalling that truth(?), Lloyd looked at Sir Neumann.
"Hey, then let me ask one thing too."
Sir Neumann's eyebrow twitched.
Lloyd asked.
"You know I've never trained in swordsmanship, right?"
"I do."
"But is getting wrecked by a guy like me what a knight does?"
"Pardon?"
"Is a guy who gets his soul stripped bare and stomped by someone who's never even held a sword a knight?"
"That's..."
"This morning, Sir Ulrich seemed even more pathetic than I thought. So all this time, the way he strutted around with puffed-up shoulders—was it all bluff? Is he a swaggerer? A hipster? Or did he get his knight certification playing rigged go-stop? Or maybe his final education wasn't the knight academy but some summer Bible school?"
"..."
"You get wrecked by me and call yourself a knight? Demanding respect for your honor and rights? Are you kidding? Get real. You gotta earn your keep before you get that treatment. That's common sense, right?"
"What do you mean by..."
"What do I mean? You're the one bitching right now. So you feel wronged?"
"..."
"Feel wronged? If it's that bad, strip the ranks and fight me."
"Are you proposing a duel?"
"Yeah. Exactly."
"..."
"You in, or out?"
For the first time, Sir Neumann's gaze wavered as he looked at him.
He'd probably just come to complain to the reckless young master.
Maybe use it as an excuse to bolster his own authority.
He'd never imagined the swordless young master would challenge him to a formal duel.
Lloyd smiled brightly.
A response that exceeded expectations.
Sir Neumann, now plunged into turmoil.
Lloyd helpfully guided his decision.
"Now even the senior knight is backing off. Scared of a duel? You a real knight? Looks like you couldn't even make eye contact with the local cab drivers at the knight diner."
"..."
"If I were you, I'd quit out of shame. At least as a knight, go deliver Pizza Land or Chicken Princess. That suits you better. Am I wrong?"
"Have you said all you wish to say?"
"Nope. Not yet."
"..."
"You're exactly that type. Full of bluster. But when it comes down to it, you bail. That's why you're an 'inae'. Two letters, both rotten—just like your life. Gives you chills, right?"
"..."
"If you don't wanna hear this crap, accept the duel. Or if you're too scared, quit being a knight. Still deciding? That's why you're..."
"I'll accept."
Sir Neumann ground his teeth and replied.
A smile bloomed on Lloyd's lips.
"You're in? Duel?"
"Yes."
"Good choice. If you've got beef, settle it like men. So, when's good for the date?"
"You decide, Young Master Lloyd."
"One month from now. Place: the mansion's training grounds. Sound good?"
"Fine."
Sir Neumann nodded with a stiff face.
"Then, depending on the duel's outcome that day, do you have any demands?"
"Of course."
Lloyd pulled out his prepared response.
"If I win the duel that day, you're fired."
"Pardon?"
"Stripped of position and booted out."
"..."
"Any complaints?"
"None. However."
"However?"
"You should stake something equivalent, Young Master Lloyd."
"Fine. Then I'll stake my position."
"Your position?"
"My rights as the eldest son of this territory's heir. I'll renounce them."
"You're serious?"
"Obviously."
Lloyd nodded readily.
"No lies, so don't worry. The soldiers here will witness it. Unlike Sir Ulrich, train hard so you don't get skinned."
"I hope you don't regret those words."
"No worries there."
With that, the duel was set.
No regrets, naturally.
To be clear, he planned to ruthlessly axe any rotten apples.
♣
"So, are you confident you'll win?"
"Nope. Not really."
"I see."
Two hours later.
Haviel nodded.
He'd unusually left Lloyd's side all day.
No choice.
It was Baron Frontera's—the lord's—orders.
'He suddenly summoned me this morning. And ordered me to halt Young Master Lloyd's protection just for today.'
He didn't know the exact reason.
But he could guess.
Thanks to hearing about what Lloyd had (?) done today while he was away.
'Something about beating Sir Ulrich under some pretext, then challenging Sir Neumann to a duel when he came to complain.'
Probably why Lloyd had him sidelined today.
That was Haviel's guess.
It felt odd.
'Why, exactly?'
He couldn't understand.
Why poke at knights who were fine?
What was the point of assaulting Sir Ulrich and dueling Sir Neumann?
'Just another spoiled rampage?'
At a glance, one might think so.
Lloyd's behavior had changed recently, sure.
But a person's core doesn't change easily.
Accounting for that, it could be seen as his rotten temper flaring up again.
But Haviel didn't buy it.
'Dismissing it as mere mischief feels off—it's too calculated.'
He'd gotten himself sidelined.
After beating Sir Ulrich?
He'd called Sir Bayern to handle the scene.
When Sir Neumann stormed in furious, he'd promptly sealed the duel like he'd been waiting.
And yet, after all that, Lloyd's attitude now?
Brazenly nonchalant.
An attitude impossible without deliberate planning.
'Plus, considering his recent changes, there must be some goal...'
But Haviel's thoughts stopped there.
Lloyd's voice snapped him out of it.
"Hey. 'I see'—that's it? Really?"
"What's 'that's it' mean?"
"Your reaction, duh."
Lloyd, eating dinner, looked up at him and tilted his head.
"You asked if I was confident about beating Sir Neumann in the duel. What'd I say?"
"You said you weren't."
"Right?"
"Yes."
"And your response is just 'I see' and done? For real?"
"..."
"No worries? No nagging about why you're stirring shit?"
"Why should I react that way?"
"I'm your protectee."
"True."
"True but?"
"The duel was your proposal, as I understand."
"Hmm, so guard duty doesn't cover duel grounds?"
"Of course not."
It was obvious.
What was a duel?
"The most fair and direct way for conflicting parties to resolve disputes: stripping titles and positions to fight on equal terms. Thus, I have neither the right nor duty to interfere in your duel with Sir Neumann."
"Hmm, as expected."
"Yes."
"Then how about this: you teach me swordsmanship until the duel in a month."
"Me, teach you, Young Master Lloyd?"
"Yeah."
"No."
"Why?"
"Personally, I don't want to."
Honest answer.
He was just a guard.
No obligation to teach swordplay to a young master he didn't even like.
'If I teach him and he goes around causing worse trouble...'
Better not.
But why?
Why was the young master grinning slyly after his curt refusal?
"Is that sooo?"
"..."
It felt ominous.
Haviel sensed a creeping bad premonition.
Lloyd's expression toward him was off.
Eyes like he knew something about him.
A smile confident he'd move as intended.
Soon, his ominous premonition became reality.
"If you teach me swordsmanship—"
Lloyd's eyes sparkled.
"I'll cure your insomnia."
Lloyd grinned.
"How's that?"
"..."
Haviel swallowed dryly, out of Lloyd's sight.
Chronic, malignant insomnia.
It was his secret weakness, tormenting him for years already.
(End of Chapter 9)
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