Chapter 167
9V5pauqEven after Tristan’s visit, mourners continued to arrive without pause.BLv
90C8ddThe mark that Swordmaster Eisen had left on the world was far too great, and the bonds he had forged were just as varied.eyQvK
vKziHcFrom knights who had exchanged only a few words with him, to acquaintances with whom he had maintained relationships for decades.vZ9J
iHxIf things were left as they were, it seemed the visitors would not stop coming even after an entire year.xe2
pubdUOBut the living cannot cling to the dead forever.ehL
aNMarWhen Lucian judged that the flow of mourners had reached its limit, he formally began the funeral.k1mY
Ah1GD“May the great Swordmaster now rest in the bosom of the Eight Gods. May he find peace. May this empire remember him forever. And may all knights follow his legacy and become true knights.”daNmgU
GDqH7fbAs the one presiding over the ritual, Lucian spoke a few brief words of farewell and placed the body into the coffin.qVyLfF5
o04yBThe wooden casket, without a single gem inlaid, faithfully reflected the austere personality Eisen had possessed in life.sASMBWi
br0VdPdAmid a solemn atmosphere, the procession and burial concluded, and the commemorative banquet began.Skk
pp8l3While the attendees recalled the achievements of Swordmaster Eisen, they could not help but glance sideways at Lucian.JpAVXaG
VS6SjAlthough the official period of mourning had not yet ended, the time for genuine grieving had already come to a close.ZFfA3ga
3pRJ25From that moment on, the political stage began, with Lucian, the absolute lord of the north, at its center.3PU
fxOLcJf‘Now that the imperial family remains silent, the ducal house of Grimaldi is the most powerful unified force after the Roglan Marquisate. And with no nearby enemies, its potential is even greater.’a9Qg
S2CEoh‘The future of the empire will depend on how Duke Lucian moves from here on. We must understand his intentions clearly.’pE1A
1tBDKb3The heads of the various houses waited attentively, their eyes shining.BHM5
WqBUIt was not long before Lucian appeared in the banquet hall and announced his future plans.BUuWRi
POkV7VW“I sincerely thank all of you who have come to pay tribute to my master. With this, the funeral rites have concluded. If this were an ordinary funeral, we would continue the festivities for a few days before dispersing. However, I wish to hold a somewhat more special event in his honor.”WozpF
F49Pp“Do you mean the blacksmith competition you mentioned earlier?”P3sQTbT
BtRVOne of the heads of a minor house, with an impatient temperament, interrupted.PsF
CyLXvepUnder normal circumstances, everyone would have frowned and reprimanded him, but this time no one said anything. The others were also interested in that point.kEbqH9
uqfOLucian smiled, as if understanding the impatience, and explained kindly.tjBrpgC
SYisg“That is correct. I wish to offer at his grave a sword forged from fae metal. However, after so many years, the method for refining fae metal has been lost, so we must first select the blacksmiths capable of doing so.”NiJiAJ8
GFUOwKD“Hm.”IAF3
GVMq3VLow murmurs spread throughout the hall.PcOUZ
RlyNirYBlacksmiths capable of refining fae metal. If they truly appeared, it would be astonishing, but would they not be useless to them? Even if such blacksmiths existed, they had no fae metal to provide.wmq9qUO
hT64SFHIn practice, it was an event from which only Lucian would benefit, and the other heads of house felt a bitterness rise within them.mhyDiv
Pfrhny‘Damn it. Since we can’t gain anything from this, Duke Lucian will take all the talent for himself.’muMj
ULDbs‘Please let him fail. He is already a powerful force; if he grows even stronger, how are we supposed to deal with him?’kHLket
pXDAmong the heads who secretly wished for Lucian’s misfortune, one stepped forward.bfQv
BTR“And what do you plan to do if, in the end, the blacksmiths fail to refine the fae metal? If there is no success at all, wouldn’t the event lose its meaning?”DfIgt
CVtaQgIt was a clumsy and ill-timed question, but the questioner himself appeared confident.ESCH4
TaFRHis attitude suggested that he was not speaking out of personal interest, but out of genuine concern that the event might fail.qRqIO
cHmDespite clearly seeing his intentions, Lucian replied without losing his smile.k2cO
QoKsi“Hahaha! How could all of those blacksmiths fail? Someone is bound to succeed. Besides, anyone without confidence would not even dare to try.”Hrv
OVg“There is always that possibility, isn’t there? If people with little skill but excessive confidence attempt to refine fae metal, it could end up being something embarrassing.”5gFPd
2nxMWZ“Well, I don’t see it that way. I have no absolute certainty, but there will probably be success. And I also don’t think we will have to wait very long to see a successful case.”bKJ
o8kaW“What do you mean by…?”ZSIKsU
odvcOThe head of house, who had let out an incredulous laugh, stiffened as he grasped the meaning of Lucian’s words.N4Kk7hg
YTLGHe claimed to have no certainty, yet he spoke with complete confidence, without the slightest concern.zMkGb
Xzv8That could only mean one thing he had already secured a blacksmith capable of refining fae metal and planned to present him at the competition.O8n
6Z9CL‘First the legacy of the northern royalty, then the barbarians beyond the eternal snows, and now even blacksmiths capable of refining fae metal…’xWB
j0uxn‘Just how much hidden power does he truly have? No matter how much we dig, it seems to have no bottom.’hhnPl
lr3KcKThe heads of the houses trembled at the power Lucian continued to reveal.k5w
BClmBIf this was only what he showed openly, how colossal must the forces be that he had yet to reveal? The title of “absolute lord of the north” weighed ever more heavily on his shoulders.C2lEf
uc6u8gIn truth, aside from the royal legacy, most of those forces had been obtained by Lucian at just the right moment, so it was all a misunderstanding.mITZ
47yBut unaware of the truth, the pressure they felt toward Lucian only continued to grow.zeU
ET3EeAH“The sword forged from fae metal will be offered at the grave by the hand of Lady Felicia, heir of Sir Eisen and the new Swordmaster.”ObKb
wEV3K“…Wait a moment, Your Highness. New Swordmaster? What does that mean?”ixldvn
vi2fy0Someone frowned, unable to let those words pass.BPVv8Q
qOexc84They accepted that Felicia was Sir Eisen’s heir. But being the heir of a Swordmaster and actually possessing the ability of a Swordmaster were two different things.S2bW2
EnEbWUNWere they intending to grant her the title of Swordmaster without any proven achievements?WHCk48n
fbqOI“The title of Swordmaster is not inherited from one’s predecessor. It is a noble title obtained only when no one can object that the one who bears it lacks the merit to be called such.”dKSjrTX
fbfNgN8“Are you saying that Lady Felicia is not worthy of being called Swordmaster?”0Uav2E
55b“How could I know? She herself has not yet proven anything, so we cannot speak of merit.”EGQ1
iZerP“Ha…”YJL3
EyFWYH8At the expected reaction, Lucian let out a short laugh.qvX
BZOvCVThose who had not even dared to open their mouths while Eisen was alive were now making a fuss, claiming they could not recognize it.gmP
pcgi6RP‘Of course. If they know the weight of the name Swordmaster, they won’t want to hand it over to others.’9x6c7R
nSsz5Although it did not grant real power, it was a title that, by name alone, could make all the knights of the empire kneel. With such an opportunity, it was only natural that they would want to give it to themselves, their relatives, or their vassals.Rcb3JBi
uTiBk63“Very well, then let us do it this way. Let the knights compete for the title of Swordmaster. The victor will offer the sword forged from fae metal at the grave of the previous Swordmaster, Sir Eisen, and thus announce the name of the new Swordmaster.”j1TcTyw
8mzFbtP“A fencing duel? It’s not a bad idea, but I doubt Asagrim can represent the entire empire.”qstu6N4
sl5vKuNo matter how sacred Asagrim was in the north, it did not have the authority to represent the whole empire.wiZ8
dYZbaEven if there were a victor, he would be nothing more than the champion of a local tournament, insufficient to prove his right to the title of Swordmaster.g4E
fLJLucian knew that well, but he shrugged as if it did not matter.51Jev
eKI“It doesn’t matter whether a mountain is split in some rural corner or in the very center of the capital. A swordsman’s skill does not change. Do you believe that a swordsman who splits a mountain in the countryside is inferior to one who only splits a stone in the capital?”r5qvr
tiX“That’s not it, but the fame and the number of challengers are not the same. There will surely be those who scoff, saying they would have won.”dZj
tgdcR“Either way, the position of Swordmaster is one that receives challenges without end. If one loses to another, they simply hand over the title and step down. What kind of Swordmaster would someone be if they were never challenged and comfortably kept the title for life?”VO4xV
Wk6mIn fact, even Eisen, the previous Swordmaster, had received constant challenges until his final years.b7yb
kmHjLTsThe challengers only disappeared completely ten years ago, and even then it was more out of respect for the aged Eisen than anything else.9ffW
vl9Now that Eisen had passed away, no matter who became Swordmaster, challengers would swarm in like moths to a flame.8gr3mu5
C9ZI“That you do not recognize Felicia as Swordmaster, or that you wish to challenge that position, does not concern me. But remember one thing.”WqTMfk1
y1NyaeXWith a cold smile, Lucian addressed the heads of the houses.00D7WV
VZjX4“Even if someone manages to be called Swordmaster after a thousand hardships, if they cannot maintain the title and lose it right away, they will go down in history as a fool who did not know their place.”lOZ3H7d
pACl5yFaced with those blunt words, the heads of the houses could not respond.Xujq
DCGYeKJLucian showed a mocking smile at the reaction he had already anticipated. The very same people who, while Eisen was still alive, had not even dared to open their mouths were now making a fuss, saying they could not accept it.U2owL9
zpInun‘Of course. If you know the weight of the name Swordmaster, it’s only natural that you wouldn’t want to hand it over to someone else.’XwZac
dlinpEnAlthough it did not entail real power, it was a title that, by its name alone, was enough to make all the knights of the Empire kneel.Tpj
ynRPfTNow that an opportunity had presented itself, it was only natural that they wanted to give themselves, a relative, or a vassal the chance to challenge for the title of Swordmaster.dpwdDL
n6lA82Lucian’s words struck right at the mark, and the heads of the families had no choice but to close their mouths.sdMEwA
jd8rFdp***th6
eZGRg2jLucian immediately prepared the fencing duel, right after the blacksmith competition.CKCGFu
PSztOr, to be precise, he pretended to prepare it.y3hny22
iGiDIn reality, he had already had everything ready for quite some time, because he had anticipated that something like this would happen.dBO4
7PVaKa‘Perfect. Aside from Sir Eisen’s recognition, Felicia had no foundation to proclaim herself Swordmaster. With this tournament, she will at least obtain a minimal justification.’E2dE
mKAy7yNo matter how minimal, it was always better to appear to have received some recognition than to proclaim herself Swordmaster from the outset. At least this way, the nobodies who did not even have the right to aspire to the title would not be able to mock her.4r1T
LxVw‘Well, even if they mock her a little, once they learn Felicia’s true strength, they will all end up shutting their mouths.’ds7Ll
hJFkKwwAfter confirming that the controversy surrounding the title of Swordmaster had subsided, Lucian moved on to the competition that had already been scheduled.GlXzQ0
qSVThey could not build forges for all the blacksmiths at once, so they first set up five provisional forges.3p3qt
XdFciLmIf someone failed to work the fae metal within the allotted time, the turn would pass to the next aspirant.haF3
Ox8fThe news that they would be able to see with their own eyes the legendary forging of fae metal drew a crowd even before the competition began.yUnDvo
saZIOTAmong them were many outsiders who had recently entered as blacksmith apprentices.9nL1
ot8N“So if someone tries to forge it and fails, the turn goes to the next person? Then the next one doesn’t have an advantage?”jKZYwTa
bGq“That’s what I’m saying. If the one before manages to even melt it a bit or change its shape, it’s enough to copy it.”kPQmoHO
dYwCN0L“Tsk, tsk, such ignorance. Do you think blacksmithing can be solved by imitation? And you want to call yourselves blacksmiths without knowing even the basics of forging?”UN3Y1
ksaZdAt the murmurs of the outsider apprentices, a master blacksmith clicked his tongue and scolded them.sHwI4
kFjcVqwHearing their master’s rebuke, the burly apprentices scratched the backs of their necks with awkward expressions.8jFT
7k5“Still, you can learn something, right? We’re apprentices, but they’re masters.”tE0cy
VOCpkc2“As a reference, perhaps. But what about after copying someone else’s method?”HswtIj
ghluSF“After that? …Ah!”kkRpkWj
9Ci4EPAt the master’s remark, the apprentice realized his mistake. If one tried to forge based on one’s own theory from the beginning, there was a possibility of success.ltX
X2oulVUEven if it were one in a billion, the moment the theory fit, everything could go right.5uy0p
oXaBut if one only imitated another’s forging, all they would achieve was advancing one step beyond the point where the previous person had failed.JBUEkK
uXRBy copying something on the fly, there was no way to think about what came next.zcTHBlX
Jjcy“Besides, fae metal is a metal that no blacksmith has ever worked before. Even if you copied someone else and managed to forge it, do you think a decent sword would come out? At best, you’d get an iron bar.”VJt3cj7
Fqhxn“I-I understand.”6Exfhpy
6ohEJ“Well, if someone could see a perfect forging from start to finish, the difficulty would drop a bit but there is no such blacksmith.”nDzkyd
ZviTkMzAt their master’s words, laden with experience, the apprentices nodded vigorously.qPs
xrKfAlthough the master spoke as if it were nothing special, each of those offhand remarks contained surprisingly valuable lessons.JPR0eP
V1eWhile the spectators continued talking, the first aspirants, already prepared, headed toward the forges.NrrwS
iOBdKNAmong them was Malcolm, who had recently been appointed Master of the Furnace.zeEMqMT
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