Chapter 420: Mad Prince

Chapter 420: Mad Prince

As the knights ran, their despair grew, and so did that of the oddball. It seems to be some sort of punishment that Arthur didn't know, and it worked well to push these knights beyond their limits.
The shocking matter, instead, was that the more they ran, the better the oddball became. Arthur could feel an unsettling aura gathering around him that seemed to aid the young knight in his training.
'What is helping him, exactly?' Arthur wondered as he ran beside the knight, keeping a safe distance to avoid being noticed.
There was something that bothered him about the knight, and it might be this thing exactly that made Arthur interested. However, he couldn't keep his notice on a single individual, and he turned toward the Mad Prince.
Exuding an aura of diligence, the knight ran forward ahead of everyone. There was not even a hint of sweat on her face, which made Arthur wonder what kind of pre-breakfast workout she had.
The knight's speed allowed her to finish the quoted laps and then run double the distance. Of course, her actions made everyone else disheartened, but the knight cared very little.
'A singular goal to pursue strength,' Arthur noted as he looked at the knight run beside him, countless laps ahead. Their eyes met for the briefest moment, and the knight squinted.
Suddenly, she slowed down her pace to run beside him. Arthur wasn't particularly bothered by her attention and simply nodded with a smile. His actions did nothing but make the knight furrow her brows more.
"Who are you?" the knight asked in a deep voice that didn't match her delicate appearance, but it ran magnetically.
"A new knight."
"Why are you running as if you are on a picnic?" the harsh tone of the knight surprised Arthur, who double-checked to see if the knight was talking to him.
"I think it's better to avoid attention," Arthur couldn't exactly pull the best act that matched his 'fake' stats. No matter what he did, his running would still look effortless.
However, he counted on the fact that very few people would notice this, as everyone was doing their best. Who would think that a recruit was hiding his power?
"It is because of people like you that they look down on us," the Mad Prince sneered with displeasure. "Show those nobles that we, who they consider of lesser importance, are far more powerful."
"No, thanks," Arthur simply smiled. "True strength doesn't need people to acknowledge it, and I think that pursuing it for anything other than protection is flawed. We should seek strength to protect."
"Strength to protect," the Mad Prince smiled for the first time. "Then I seek strength to protect my beliefs, but yours aren't so bad too. I'll look out for you and get Jeffery off your back."
The Mad Prince rushed forward, leaving nothing but a seal of approval. Arthur wondered how she noticed that Jeffery was bothering him, but he liked how attentive she was to people around her.
As he found two interesting people so far, Arthur looked around for the others. Kaza was average at best, and he was the same as the others. Jeffery was a bit stronger and was sneering at whoever fell behind.
A few others interested him, like a giant man who stood two feet above the crowd, a blue-haired knight that used waves to carry her, and a guy who had wings to fly him around the field.
'How is this a running exercise?'
At some point, Arthur feared that he might be the only one who didn't use his ability or traits to sprint. The Senior Knight even looked at them with approval as they used all sorts of ways to make this less of a running exercise.
Now, it made sense that this was only a warmup. After all, these people could maintain or have an intense burst that finished a few laps in an instant.
There were less fortunate ones who either had unsuitable abilities or lacking mana. Most of them were nobles who barely experienced hardships. Arthur could tell that they were getting pissed off when commoners finished the laps.
"Time is up!" the Senior Knight shouted, and everyone stopped running. There were only three of them who couldn't finish on time, and they were all nobles. "I guess you will be in charge of cleaning today."
The nobles looked disgusted and gritted their teeth before saluting and walking away. The Senior Knight turned back toward those who finished and gave his next instruction.
"The next training will be sparring, so pick a partner and start! If I catch anyone slacking, they will join those cleaning crew!"
Arthur could tell that cleaning wasn't the most relaxing pastime by the fact that most knights shivered at the thought. Pairs began to form, and it seems the nobles chose their lackeys or commoners.
Kaza picked the oddball, and the two began training in an arena. Arthur saw Jeffery walk toward him with a broad smile before someone stood between them.
"Let's spar," the Mad Prince raised her index finger and gestured for him to come. Jeffery stood rooted in his place as he gritted his teeth.
"Oi, Prince. The newcomer is my la– partner," the noble was about to say lackey. "Pick someone else to bully!" Jeffery said with an air of heroism as if he was saving Arthur.
"Do you want to fight over him?" the Mad Prince unsheathed her sword, and Jeffery flinched back. He stared at Arthur to show his unwillingness to put social pressure on the female knight, but Arthur simply shrugged.
"I won't forget this!" the villainous line got three out of ten in Arthur's opinion, but it was suitable for Jeffery. The noble stormed off after that, finding another partner.
"Are you trying to help me, or are you trying to gauge my strength?" Arthur asked the knight who led the way toward one of the empty arenas.
"I don't think you need my help, but it wouldn't hurt to make you grateful."
"You think very lowly of my standards for gratitude," Arthur followed after her until the two stepped on the arena.
"That works too," the Mad Prince smiled. "Since you are new here, let me explain the rules of sparring. These arenas are a bit special, and they can know who is winning and who is losing in a single exchange. Each one gives two points, and each loss takes a point."
"And what do these points determine?"
"The lowest three people will be sent to clean too," the Mad Prince took her stance. "Let me show you the art I honed."
"Go ahead," Arthur said, and the moment that he did, the Mad Prince disappeared. Sharp energy tried to strike his armor, but Arthur didn't move.
There was a clang, and the arena lit up. Arthur watched as his armor didn't even have a scratch on it, but a [-1] appeared on it. He wondered if Solomon also created these, and it made him more doubtful of his legacy.
"Why didn't you dodge?" the Mad Prince appeared in her spot again and glared at him. "Are you making fun of me?"
"Maybe I couldn't dodge?" Arthur shook his head. "How about we go again?"
The Mad Prince was still glaring at him but nodded with a frown nonetheless. She disappeared again, and her art allowed her to strike at the opponent without a trace, but it was anticlimactic because Arthur didn't move again.
"You bastard," the Mad Prince was full of cold rage now. "It seems that I misjudged your character. You are nothing but a spineless coward."
"Those words hurt more than any sword could," Arthur sighed. "I'm sorry, I was just preparing. Come at me again."
"I refuse to strike a defenseless coward," the knight straightened her back with pride. "This is not the way of a knight."
Arthur inwardly sighed as he remembered the Knight of Courage. They looked so alike that Arthur suspected this girl was the Titled Knight's daughter.
"I apologize. I had no intention of mocking you. However, I need a bit of time to warm up. How about we go again?"
Hearing his words, the knight seemed unconvinced but still nodded nonetheless. Arthur watched with a smile as the knight held her sword and dashed forward. Wind accompanied the knight, who arrived to slash his chest again, only a few centimeters off.
Arthur didn't move, but the knight missed nonetheless. He saw her eyes widen as Arthur tapped her armor with his finger, and a number [-1] number appeared on it.
"What did you..."
"I didn't do anything. You were the one to miss," Arthur smiled as he saw the knight doubt her reality. "Are you feeling alright?" he hinted, and it took a few moments for the Mad Prince to realize.
"I became... weaker?" she looked at her hand in realization before snapping her head toward Arthur. "This is your ability!"