The Princess finally stepped over to the Young Wolf and his companions, taking a seat beside them. The initial awkwardness slowly faded as the conversation turned toward the Hero's abilities.
"Excuse me, may I sit here too? Sitting alone isn't very entertaining," Anabella spoke.
"Of course, sit down," Andras replied.
"Come, join us," Christina smiled.
"Thank you," the Princess nodded.
The talk soon shifted to Eris, the Hero.
"I hear the Hero has two elements," Christina remarked.
"Yes," Anabella answered. "Though we didn't announce it, lest we discourage brave applicants from the Knightly Tournament."
"I don't know," Andras said. "It might have discouraged the weak, but strong warriors would only be more eager to test themselves against a swordswoman with two elements."
"I agree," Christina nodded. "It fired me up even more!"
"Do you know the Hero well, Princess?" Andras asked.
"Eris is my personal knight and bodyguard," Anabella replied.
"With the light element, can she heal others, or only herself?" Andras inquired.
"Only herself," the Princess explained. "Not that anyone could easily wound her. Her injuries heal instantly thanks to the light element."
"Then she's the same type as me, not like Noelle," Andras noted.
"Yes," Noelle explained. "Healing magic has two forms. The better one is the healer type, when you can heal others. The other is the Paladin type, which only allows self‑healing. I don't mean to criticize the Hero, but I expected more from her abilities."
"I see," Anabella replied. "Well, perhaps in the near future she'll be able to heal others too."
"Unfortunately not," Andras shook his head. "These aren't abilities you can switch on and off. The healing power of light works on the same principle as water. Light is more effective against demons—it's a true Demon‑slaying element."
"You know so much about the light element, even more than Master Albert," the Princess said with admiration.
"I'm a mage, and I love to research," Andras replied. "But if anyone truly knows the light element, it's the elves. Even today there are Elven Paladins who personally witnessed the Hero of five hundred years ago in battle."
"You're right, I hadn't thought of that!" Anabella nodded. "I'll tell Eris."
"Don't worry," Andras smiled. "When Eris fights demons, she'll discover the true use of her light element."
"Eventually she'll get the hang of it, like a puppy learning to bark," Noelle remarked.
"Hahaha! Or like you with baking bread rolls," Christina laughed.
"As for healing," Andras continued, "the Hero's team will need a true healing mage. In the Elven Kingdom, you'll surely find a suitable wizard for that."
"Thank you for the advice," Anabella replied. "Seeing how much you know about magic and demons, I'll be eager to hear your opinion in the future."
"The four great noble houses will always strive to protect the Kingdom," Andras said gravely. "Whether the enemy is the Empire or the Demon horde."
"Thank you. That's reassuring to hear," the Princess answered.
"If the Silver Knights and the Wolf Knights join forces, the demons will tremble!" Christina declared.
The Princess then smiled, her thoughts slowly shifting.
Perhaps the Young Wolf and Christina aren't as bad as I first thought. I shouldn't have called them Stupidwoods, even in my mind. Maybe I'll even speak a few good words for them to Eris.
After several dull duels, Anita finally stepped onto the battlefield. As soon as her boots touched the arena's sand, she waved with both hands toward the balcony where the Young Wolf sat. Andras, Noelle, and Christina smiled and waved back, as if lending her strength through the gesture.
Her opponent was a Royal Knight, yet the duel ended almost instantly. Anita's sword flashed like lightning, and in the blink of an eye the Royal Knight collapsed to the ground. After the Hero's match, this was the second duel decided in mere moments.
"Is that female Wolf Knight a Captain?" the Princess asked, surprise glittering in her eyes. "She dispatched our Royal Knight so quickly."
"No," Andras replied calmly. "The Captain and Lieutenant of the Wolf Knights are not participating in the tournament."
"Our Lieutenant isn't competing either," Christina added. "He's as much an old swordsman as your Captain."
"If I recall, he was your sword master, the one who trained you, Christina," Andras said.
"Yes," Christina nodded. "And he is also my younger brother's bodyguard, just as your Lieutenant is Bandorn's protector."
"I see," the Princess spoke. "So the current Wolf Knight Captain is already old, and this girl will be his successor?"
"No," Andras shook his head. "Anita is only my second‑strongest Knight."
"There's someone even stronger than her?" the Princess asked in disbelief.
"Oh, I want to fight both Anita and Andrea!" Christina cut in, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Don't worry," Andras replied. "You'll surely face one of them in the group stage."
"And what if I'm paired against both?" Christina asked.
"Then you'd have to defeat one first," Andras answered evenly.
"So you think I'd lose against them?" Christina asked with a challenging smile.
"I think so," Andras said gravely. "But one thing's certain—it would be a very good duel."
"Want to bet on whether I can defeat them?" Christina asked, her tone playful.
"You're already thinking of some ridiculous prize again?" Andras sighed.
"A little motivation never hurts," Christina laughed.
"You're motivated enough without it," Andras concluded, though a faint smile lingered at the corner of his lips.
More duels followed: hard‑fought clashes, narrow victories, the crowd sometimes cheering, sometimes watching in tense silence. Then came Andrea's match. Her opponent was a Red Rose Knight. Andrea waved modestly toward the balcony, where Andras, Noelle, and Christina smiled and waved back.
But the duel ended in a flash. Andrea had overestimated her opponent, misjudging the gulf between them. With a single strike she not only shattered the knight's sword but severed his arm. The arena rang with the Red Rose Knight's scream as the Kingdom's healers rushed onto the field. By magic they reattached the limb, and the knight would recover—but the sight was burned forever into the audience's memory.
"Weren't they supposed to fight with blunted swords?" the Princess asked in shock.
"For a wind‑element knight, there's no such thing as a blunt blade," Andras replied.
"Exactly," Noelle added. "With Andrea's skill, even a simple stick could split a thick tree if she empowered it with wind."
"If she doesn't hold back, every opponent will lose an arm," Andras remarked.
"It's her opponent's fault for being so weak, unable to parry her strike," Christina said.
"Without a magical element, no one can block it," Andras answered.
"At times like this, I thank the Goddess that I'm earth‑element," Christina smiled.
"Earth is the best for defense," Noelle nodded. "Though judging by Ironclaw, it's no slouch in offense either."
"It really was a good idea to keep Ironclaw out of the tournament," Christina noted.
"Ironclaw… that's your Bandit‑Hunting Hound?" the Princess asked.
"Yes," Noelle replied. "If she had entered the battlefield, her opponents wouldn't have escaped with healable wounds."
"I can attest to that," Christina said. "She would have torn the knights apart, armor and all, just like the bandits."
"Such beasts are better left for bandits," the Princess sighed. "Thank you for sparing the knights' lives."
"There will be plenty of demons for her to play with anyway," Andras replied.
"Should I start pitying the demons?" Christina laughed.
"Unfortunately, the Demon Generals will be even more dangerous than Ironclaw," Andras said grimly. "So you needn't worry about them."
"That doesn't sound very reassuring," Christina remarked.
"But we have Eris, the Hero!" the Princess spoke up. "She will defeat the Demon Generals too!"
"Alone, Eris isn't enough for this," Andras replied. "That's why the Hero's Party is needed."
"I know," Anabella nodded. "We're already working on establishing that team."
Christina then stood up.
"My turn is coming soon. Will you still be here, Young Wolf?"
"I'll watch your match, then head into the city for lunch," Andras answered. "The Wolves' matches are already finished."
"I'll finish my duel quickly, then we could go eat together," Christina smiled.
"Alright, but make sure you hurry with that duel," Andras nodded.
"Leave it to me!" Christina replied confidently.
Not long after, Christina defeated her opponent—a Green Hawk Knight—in a flash. After her victory, the atmosphere in the balcony lightened: the Young Wolf, Noelle, Anita, Andrea, and Christina all set out together for lunch in the city, as though after the bloody battles, the true reward was sharing a meal in peace.
Meanwhile, not far from the Knightly Arena, Carla walked under Daisy's guidance, protected by Ironclaw. The city streets bustled with life, the air filled with the scent of pastries, as they searched for a famous sweet. By a fountain they stopped, where a Bard played his lute, surrounded by a small crowd.
"My next song shall be… oh, fair lady," the Bard addressed Carla. "Tell me, what would you like me to sing?"
"May I choose a song?" Carla asked with a smile.
"Indeed you may!" the Bard replied. "Choose a song, and if I know it—and why wouldn't I—I'll sing it just for you, my beautiful lady!"
"Do you know any Wolf‑songs?" Carla asked.
"But of course!" the Bard answered. "One of my favorites, and quite popular now, is the ballad of the Wolf and the Silver Knight, how they defeated the fearsome Blue Ogre."
"Then sing that one for me!" Carla said.
"Your wish is my command, fair lady," the Bard bowed, then began to play.