Chương 147: Locked

The crowd was silent until Lord Ceonwin stood up, armour clinking. A wave of shouts rolled through the audience as they slowly realized what had happened. My squad pushed to the very front of the barrier, holding their weapons ready. They were still willing to break me out? I had promised them this would work out. We'd planned it as best we could. But I just hadn't been strong enough. I'd failed. Just like I'd warned Sage not to bite off more than she could chew… I'd done the same.

Hinfic hauled me to my feet, locking my arm, and a pair of soldiers rushed in, holding spears and pointing them at me.

"This is an outrage!" Lord Hinlaw shouted.

"Impersonation! And worse, a complete fabrication of his titles! To top it all off, it's a Dupe! Ceonwin, if you knew of this—""I knew nothing about this," Ceonwin countered.

"He rode on his own volition." The crowd was silent. Judging by the expressions of the nobles and the audience, no one believed him.

"No papers of thegnage," Lord Hinlaw said.

"And I suppose what he did present were forgeries. Send him to the stockade, and ridicule him, then take his head! My son must advance to the next round, and the tournament must continue!"

"Wait!" I yelled.

"I may not be a thegn, and I may not be Sir Ricdine, but I have served just as well as anyone here, if not better." I needed to buy myself time. I didn't know what I was saying. An appeal to their humanity? I just needed to use my Arts to escape. Maybe I should abandon the army, and seek out advancement on my own. But would I get anywhere? I needed the military's resources and training. If it was a choice between death and survival, though? I'd find a way.

Lord Ceonwin stared at me, scowled, then grimaced and said, "Take him away. I'll ride the last match against Hinfic."

"Sir, listen!" I yelled.

"Don't let Hinfic hit you with his—" Before I could try to warn him about Hinfic's lances, a bolt of pain lanced across the side of my face, and I tumbled down into the mud. Hinfic had struck me. The other soldiers, who were just regular guards from the tournament—not sappers nor soldiers from the 294th—propped me up. I never got a chance to say anything more about the lances. Hinlaw yelled, "Take him away! We'll deal with him when this is all done.

If he requests a trial, then so be it, but he will not win, and I want him out of my sight!" The guards jostled me, pushing on my back, trying to force me out of the tournament grounds. I considered resisting, but that sounded like a good way to make Hinfic put a sword through my spine. He was poised to, after all. When we reached the edge, they tried to drag me through the crowd. Someone shouted, "Liar!"

"Imposter!" another yelled. I tried to tune them out while I thought through all my options. I wasn't just going to give up, but maybe it would be better to wait until sun-down, or some other time when I could more reasonably escape—"Wait!" a voice cried out from the opposite side of the arena. It was barely audible over the roar of the crowd. Again, it shouted, "Wait!" This time, it was much louder—louder than it should have been. The crowd quieted slightly. I blinked, trying to find the noise's source.

I recognized it. That was— There! On top of the audience stands, on the shaded covers that protected the lords and other thegns from the sun. Alis stood on the awning, cupping her hands around her mouth.

"I said wait!" The crowd seemed to quiet down, more over the sheer impressiveness that someone like Alis would dare climb up there, much less yell to the crowd and try to halt the orders of a lord, especially when she wore the garb of a worker girl. Not a good plan, Alis, I thought. Even my squad has more discipline than you, not coming out to interrupt this.

"Who are you to make such demands?" Lord Hinlaw yelled, leaning out from under the awning to see her.

"This soldier, a Duplicate no less, impersonated nobility! He is not a thegn!"

"But he is," Alis said. She swung down from the awning with deft precision, then balanced on the railing and paced back and forth in front of the Ealdormen and thegns.

"He was, in fact, granted thegnage by a member of the royal family." The crowd fell silent, and all eyes turned toward her. Someone whispered, "Get the Subtle Men from the castle. Now!" She glanced around, hesitating, then reached into her blouse and pulled out the illusion pendant she'd shown me earlier.

"Oh shit…" I breathed. I raised a hand, and found it free. The guards were too busy staring at Alis to worry about me.

"I should have…" She gulped, then glanced at me. Finally, face firm, she tugged the pendant off her neck and tossed it to the ground. The bandana rippled away from her hair, and the brown hue lightened to bright, blood-red. It was still perfectly straight, and a bandage still covered her eye. As well, an unbuttoned vest of chainmail appeared above her dress. Lord Ceonwin dropped to his knee, and after a scowl and a moment of hesitation, Lord Hinlaw did the same.

The guards who were guiding me pushed me away and knelt, and most of the audience joined them in seconds. I joined them a moment later, dropping to a knee and tucking my head down. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. I was already in enough trouble. I didn't need to be in more trouble.

"I don't think I have much time until the royal thegns find me and take me back to my father," Alis continued.

"I am Princess Aelfwen Alisid, firstborn and only descendant of King Aelfor. Release my thegn. He is my chosen champion."

"He owns no land, my lady!" Hinlaw shouted.

"The law, set out by your forebears, states that he must own land!"

"He unhorsed your son, did he not?" Alis asked.

"He's entitled to all your son's lands, and that should be well over a Hide's worth. As for tribute…I think there are more than ten soldiers who would be willing to pay parts of their wages as tribute to him."

"I would!" Brawl shouted.

"He is my brother!"

"As would I!" Anchor added.

"And I!" Sage shouted. By now, a cluster of soldiers from the 294th, who had been tasked with patrolling the city, had gathered around to watch. At least ten of them raised their spears.

"Where are his papers?" Lord Hinlaw tried, desperation creeping into his voice.

"Show me the papers, if he was indeed granted thegnage by you!"

"They are in my tent," I said.

"Sitting atop a barrel." The warlord's messenger ran off, sprinting through the camp. We waited for a half minute, holding our breath, until the man returned, holding them. His eyes drifted over them, and finally, he proclaimed, "These papers are indeed authentic, and the seal is perfect. He is, technically, a royal thegn."

"There!" Alis said, motioning toward me. She snapped her fingers.

"He spoke the oath, and I call on him to finish his fight! He hasn't yielded yet." When Alis had granted me thegnage, she'd made me a royal thegn without me even knowing. My stomach sank, and I had no idea how to even go about thanking her for what she'd done. I could barely even process it.

"Release him," Alis commanded.

"He is a thegn, and he can compete! Let him finish his duel, and let him prove himself. If anyone interferes with his trial, it shall violate the decree of the king and his heirs. I know the king's word still holds some sway in these lands, and if anyone refuses to adhere to it, it will be treason of the highest degree." Hinfic finally released my other arm, and I sprinted back across the tournament grounds, then vaulted over the central fence, until I stood below the railing Alis perched on.

At the same time, the other royal thegns burst through the stable gates, mounted on horseback, a Subtle Man with them.

"Alis…" I breathed.

"How can I repay you?"

"It's not about debts," she insisted.

"You owe me nothing."

"You—""I came looking for friends. I told you." She grinned.

"Now win."

"Get down from there!" one of the royal thegns demanded.

"Aelfwen, now. If you wait any longer, we shall tell your father how viciously you resisted." Consigning herself, and wiping the grin off her face, she jumped down. The Subtle Man dismounted and grabbed her bicep with a tight grip, then led her away. I searched around for my spear, but I couldn't find my old one. It didn't matter. Anchor tossed me mine, along with my shield. I caught them both, then gave my spear a whirl.

Hinfic dragged himself back across the tournament grounds to face me, then flourished his sword again.

"The king's just a puppet," the thegn snarled.

"His word means less and less by the minute. Being a royal thegn will be a mark of weakness." I raised my eyebrows.

"We'll see." ~ ~ ~ Lord Hinlaw stared forward blankly. To have everything proceeding exactly as planned one moment, and then to have it ripped from beneath him the next moment. But he still had a contingency. He turned to Milsige, who stood just behind them, and said, "Send the orcs. Tell them to leave no quarter. No prisoners, no slaves. And prepare my horse. We leave immediately."

"And your son?"

"He's as good as dead."

"Yes, my lord." ~ ~ ~ Hinfic lunged toward me, thrusting his sword toward my chest. I leaned away, even as he chained it into a set of downward slashes. I leaned away, dodging each one. I'd caught my breath, and I still had my strength. Sure, my thigh was bleeding, but I could still put weight on it. Nothing was life-threatening. Except, of course, Hinfic's sword, right now. Every slice raced toward my face with deadly force. What did I expect would be different this time? He was still much faster than me.

If he had attributes, they'd be significantly higher, and more comparable to Gold than to Silver. He had to be high-up in the tier. But this time, I had my Arts. To buy myself time to counterattack, I tugged backward with an Art, dragging Hinfic away from me at a forty-five degree angle into the ground. It activated with a rumble so deep it could have been a jet-engine starting. Sure enough, increasing my tier to Silver had greatly improved my Art.

Hinfic tucked his chin, pushing through the immense swell of power, but it gave me time to reset. I took the initiative, attacking, wearing down his guard and assessing his fighting style. If I wanted to visualize how to beat him, I'd need to know everything he could do. The fight lasted another minute. I used my Art to gain an advantage, then deploy as many jabs and other attacks as I could. When Hinfic adjusted, using his superior speed and strength to retake the initiative, I'd retreat slightly.

Once I had a grasp of how he fought and what he'd do, I struck him with as heavy of an Art as I could muster. I created a well that would pull from two directions, both opposing him from slightly different angles, pulling him back and away. Then I narrowed my eyes and drew on the embedded [Eye for Framing], helping myself visualize what would happen.

I had ten seconds before he broke free of my well, and I used it to run hundreds of combinations through my mind as quickly as I could, imagining how each would proceed. I only had about thirty Presence left, and I couldn't use it all. Once I had a combination that I was confident in, I released the well. Hinfic stumbled forward, but recovered quickly and attacked with a barrage of swings, releasing arcs of cutting force with his great warbrand, before lunging toward my chest.

I took most of the hits on my shield, then darted to the side, giving myself enough distance. Creating a well of gravity above me, angling upward, I flung myself into the air like I was skiing off a jump. I didn't let it carry me all the way up, though—only about ten feet. I created a second well below me, at an angle, then dragged myself downward and triggered a resonance Skill in my spear. Hinfic had no time to anticipate an attack from above.

Just like Mugreth, who'd lost to a similar trick, I dove down on him, driving my spear toward his exposed shoulder. It pierced through his armour with ease, pinning him to the ground. He shouted and writhed, swinging his sword, but I stomped it out of his grip, then pointed my spear at his throat. His helmet topped off with the force he hit the ground.

"Yield, Hinfic," I commanded.

"You're beaten." He reached for a dagger at his hip, eyes wide, fingers scrambling. He wouldn't give up. Fine, then. I drove my spear down, ramming it into his throat, then twisted, giving him a quick death. Everything was silent. The royal thegns were gone, Alis was gone, and I was the only commotion. All eyes fell on me and the dead body beneath me. Finally, the messenger announced, "Sir Ricdine— Excuse me. Sir Levi is the victor."