The Female Knight of Doom - TFKOD 36: A Duel

Alice was shocked.

He must be referring to the box that holds the crown.

She had already packed the box carefully into her luggage before she left. How could he tell she had such a priceless treasure on her person?

It’s not really difficult to guess this issue.

For a brief moment, she reflected that the box had always been concealed inside the package. She only carried the box all the way back from the Rachel mansion to the inn.

She realized that there must be bandit spies in the inn.

To get the bandits ready, they must have sent the message outside the city after spotting a lone traveler on the road.

A fight seems inevitable today; the other party is here specifically to rob her.

Alice was not scared to face the boy, even though she had forgotten her greatsword; she simply had no idea how many other people were with him. It would be problematic if she were fighting him and he had other accomplices who could steal her luggage.

After giving it some thought, she told him, “Just because you’re here by yourself, do you think you can force me to give up? It’s not so simple.”

“Miss, are you dissatisfied with the scale of the operation? It is truly regrettable. It wouldn’t be an issue normally if we had to locate seven or eight additional people. Regretfully, they all targeted today’s merchant convoy. I came alone to wait for you after learning that a young lady was on her way. However, in my opinion, to deal with you, a young lady, my companions don’t even need to step in; just having me is enough.”

With immense relief, Alice pulled a dagger from her waist at what he had said, “If you can beat me, then come on.”

When he saw her dagger, his eyes glowed, “Miss, I was surprised that you could actually wield a knife. You have a really nice knife, and I’m jealous. Will you also give me that if you lose our duel?”

Alice grinned, “My life, not to mention this dagger, is in your hands if you can win. But you can’t win, in my view.”

“You truly are a master at boasting, miss. However, I have never encountered someone who could defeat me.”

The boy charged at Alice after drawing two knives from behind his waist.

Because she only had a dagger, she was at a disadvantage when it came to weapons, so she just used it to cut off a piece of a branch.

The boy on the other side of the street burst out laughing, “Do you want to use a branch to block my twin swords, miss? That won’t work, in my opinion.”

Without a word, Alice struck with a branch that looked like a sword.

She only wished to test his skill before they fought close, of course she knew the branch couldn’t harm him.

To the best of her knowledge, the majority of northern bandits were farmers who had lost their land and were unable to support themselves. They were mostly afraid of the violence of war and were afraid to join the mercenary force; instead, they were happy to hide in groups in the woods and attack caravans and bystanders. The majority of these bandits relied on sheer numbers to win because they lacked combat skills.

But her perception of the boy in front of her appeared to be different.

His skills were truly remarkable by bandits’ standards. As nimble as a swimming fish, he cut branches with ease in a few quick strokes while brandishing his twin daggers like blossoming flowers.

Alice couldn’t help but give him silent kudos.

When both sides put one another to the test, the boy understood that she was more than just a decorative element.

He gave a little chuckle, “Hey, miss, you’re really impressive. You might actually be that Greatsword Alice. Where is your sword, though? Did someone else also steal it? You know, you can’t just leave your own weapon unguarded.”

He was purposefully trying to mess with her thoughts, even though he didn’t have a smile on his face.

She was aware of this and chose to focus and hold her breath instead of answering. With a dagger in her hand, she tossed aside the partially sharpened branch and ducked, searching for the boy’s weaknesses.

Alice needed to get close for her dagger to work because it was too short. It was difficult to approach him because his twin daggers were longer than hers and were used with such accuracy.

In addition, he was wearing her chainmail, which made it even harder because she would have to almost aim for his face or lower limbs if she wanted to stab him.

She still thinks she can win, though; she just needs a little more time.

The boy lacks a well-known master to mentor him, unlike her, but he has a good deal of real-world combat experience. He has no idea what some of the little tricks are that take decades to learn. She will undoubtedly find the ideal moment if they continue to fight in this manner for some time longer, once he even begins to show signs of exhaustion.

There is a way to get things settled quickly.

Alice has the option to extend it by using the dagger’s enchantment. But that’s only for emergencies, like saving her life. To waste an enchantment on the dagger for this one battle would be a bit excessive.

Even though she didn’t currently lack these seven or eight gold coins, she had overcome poverty and she most definitely wouldn’t throw them away.

But this battle went on for quite a while.

The boy had reached his prime energy age and was utterly oblivious to exhaustion. Alice was two years older than him, but she was still a young lady.

Eventually, she was unable to maintain her position and actually erred before him.

She reacted quickly; as soon as she missed, she knew something was amiss.

Cecilion’s voice interrupted her as she was ready to cast the dagger’s enchantment, “Use your left arm to block.”

Without time to consider her options, she held up her hand and took the blow from him.

Alice’s arm was struck by the knife, which clanged and bounced off her arm as though it had struck an iron plate.

The boy was surprised, and she grabbed one of his knives and used the hilt to strike his wrist.

At this point, it can be claimed that everything has completely changed.

She swiftly knocked away another knife with a tool close at hand. The boy had no choice but to give up because he was holding no other weapons.

His arm was twisted by Alice, “Give me back my chainmail!”

Even though he lost the fight, he remained calm and had a broad smile on his face, “Please let me go, miss, so I can undress and give you back the chainmail! I am unable to flee because you have taken my knife.”

Alice let him go after hearing this, but she kept the knife close to him, “If you dare to pull any tricks, I’ll chop off your foot with one stroke.”

As though the boy doesn’t take this threat seriously, he continues to laugh, “Big sister is beautiful and kind-hearted, she would never treat me like this!”

Alice used the knife’s back to strike him, “Quick, take it off!”

Without a moment’s hesitation, the boy removed the chainmail and then his outer garment.

He carried on talking to her as he undressed, “I must concede defeat, miss! Is your arm totally fine? Are you one of Bertucci’s preferred ones?”

Alice gave a headshake.

She said she shouldn’t openly discuss her belief in the God of Doom with others.

This boy, on the other hand, lives in the forest and is obviously devoid of any beliefs or connections to the outside world. It doesn’t seem like telling him a little about it would make much difference.

So she said, “I am a follower of Cecilion.”

“Cecilion? I had never heard of him. Can I also offer him prayers?”

“If you don’t worship any other gods, praying to him isn’t a problem, but He might not necessarily respond to you.”

“Don’t worry! Simply praying to the most powerful god will undoubtedly result in my blessing.”

It is quite admirable that he was so self-assured.

He told Alice his name was Gil, that he had lived in this forest with the bandits for as long as he could remember, and that he had no idea who his parents were.

By now his smooth back was visible through the chainmail he had removed. He must have had a lot of summer sun because his skin was still healthy and tanned even though winter had just ended. He had no shirt on, the chainmail pressed right up against his skin, and he seemed unconcerned about the pain.

Luckily, the chainmail was enchanted and remained clean. If not, Alice would not have known how to handle it.

The boy now looked entirely like a child, whereas when he wore the coat he looked somewhat like an adult.

She scowled at him, “On such a cold day, aren’t you cold wearing so little?”

He grinned broadly as he put on his jacket, “Wow, the big sister actually cares about me so much, it really moves me.”

Alice became aware that she had been a little too forgiving of him after hearing him say this. He attempted to rob her and took her chainmail.

She ought to have been a little more severe with him.

It was understandable, though, as the boy was very attractive and affectionate, referring to her as “Miss” each time he spoke.

It was difficult to despise him because he appeared more like a mischievous ghost than a bandit. Alice was a little less cautious because, more importantly, she knew that he couldn’t defeat her.

Furthermore, she didn’t really want to kill anyone here, and this wasn’t a battlefield after all. She probably wouldn’t be so understanding, though, if the bandit hadn’t been a cute boy but rather a miserable uncle.

In every way, being well-groomed is truly advantageous.

She gave him a stern look after he had finished getting dressed, “Why don’t you hurry up and leave?”

“You stole both of my knives, miss. Please give them back to me. They are the instruments I use to earn a living. My friends will make fun of me if I lose them. I’ll agree to go with you if you’re willing to give me back the knives. When I get the knives, I swear to go, and I won’t bother you ever again.” While talking, he leaned in and playfully squeezed Alice’s waist, hinting at something.

She attempted to hit him on the head in response, and he quickly ran off, all the while casting flirtatious looks her way. His demeanor resembled that of someone accustomed to the atmosphere of a Red Light District.

With a shudder, she flung the two knives at him, “Take the knife and get out of here. Don’t come back!”

The boy returned his knives to his belt after picking them up.

The stunning white horse came running to him when he whistled. After mounting the horse and sprinting for several dozen meters, he turned around and waved to Alice.

“I’ve stolen your dagger, miss! To retrieve it, you will need to come look for me!”