Early the next morning, Adam and Emilia arrived at Crusch's mansion.
Adam immediately invited Wilhelm to a sword duel.
The 『 Sword Demon 』 accepted, and with Crusch's permission, they began their exchange of swordsmanship.
It was purely a contest of sword skills!
Facing Wilhelm's frenzied attacks, Adam could barely defend himself with his Nichirin Longsword, desperately parrying each strike.
Adam had underestimated his opponent — a grave mistake.
Though he had mimicked Reinhard's 『 Sword Saint 』 Divine Protection and awakened his own sword talent, the 『 Sword Demon 』 Wilhelm van Astrea gave him a profound lesson.
Wilhelm was simply too strong.
Unlike Reinhard's iron wall of absolute power and speed, Wilhelm was like a vast ocean of endless techniques and skills. His decades of sword experience far surpassed Adam's mere half-year of training.
Even Adam's special ability wasn't enough to bridge this gap.
Yet thanks to that ability, Adam progressed from pure defense to keeping pace with his opponent. He felt confident that soon he would be able to fight Wilhelm as an equal.
He was grateful for the old master's guidance. Wilhelm, noticing Adam's rapid growth, deliberately matched his strength to Adam's level.
As Adam grew stronger, Wilhelm would increase his own power accordingly, allowing the youth to gain valuable experience.
"That's enough for today." Wilhelm sheathed his sword as Adam retreated. He addressed the panting "Madman", "Swordsmanship cannot be mastered in a day. It requires constant practice, thought, and understanding."
"So mastery isn't achieved overnight... I understand." Adam caught his breath and sheathed his sword.
"Thank you for your guidance!"
"Not at all. This old one was merely discussing the essence of swordsmanship with you. How could this be called guidance?" As a butler, Wilhelm maintained his humble and gentlemanly manner, making others feel warm and welcome.
This was the advantage of age — his mature demeanor formed a stark contrast with Subaru's youthful energy.
Despite Wilhelm's modest words, Adam couldn't accept such humility.
'I will repay this kindness.' He thought to himself.
"Why don't you two take a break?" Subaru, who had just finished his treatment, called out upon seeing both men's sweat-covered faces.
He gestured for them to rest.
"Indeed. Then Lord Adam should rest first. This old one still has work to do, so I'll take my leave."
"Wilhelm-san, please attend to your duties. Don't worry about me." Adam said. After a moment's thought, he added, "Wilhelm-san, if you don't mind, you can call me Adam."
"Yes, just Adam is fine."
"...Very well, Adam. Then I'll take my leave."
Wilhelm politely excused himself and departed.
Adam walked toward where Subaru was resting under the shade of a tree.
"Is today's treatment finished?"
"It was much faster than yesterday."
"Yesterday was mainly for examining my physical condition. Felix said we need to proceed gradually. Today was just a check-up on the treatment results."
"I see." Adam nodded, then asked curiously, "Why didn't you go find Emilia instead of coming here?"
"Because Emilia-tan is busy!" Subaru complained with a pout, "Crusch wanted to discuss the Royal Selection with her, and Felix wouldn't let me anywhere near that room. I had no choice but to wander around out here."
"Discussing the Royal Selection... Could Crusch be seeking an alliance with us?" Adam wondered aloud.
Without his interference, Crusch would have allied with Emilia — though only after Subaru's multiple deaths.
Adam would welcome such an alliance, as any political Discover more novels on NovelHub - your gateway to endless stories.
But that wasn't the case. Crusch had no intention of forming an alliance; she merely wanted to discuss the next trial of the Royal Selection with Emilia.
It was somewhat disappointing.
Emilia and Crusch appeared before everyone.
"I hope it will be as Lady Emilia says, that our Royal Selection ceremony won't involve bloody conflict. However..." Crusch paused, "If we must cross swords, I won't back down."
Her words firmly expressed her determination to become King.
"But I still hope we can choose our King peacefully." Emilia said, her idealism showing through.
Their discussion seemed to weigh heavily on Crusch.
The contrast was stark — an idealistic elven girl who saw the world through rose-tinted glasses, and a battle-hardened military leader who understood that power often demanded sacrifice. Their worldviews were fundamentally opposed, making meaningful dialogue difficult.
Sensing the impasse, Crusch smoothly changed the subject.
She turned to Adam, "How did you find your match with Wilhelm?"
"He's very strong. Wilhelm-san's seasoned experience in swordsmanship far surpasses mine... though his advantage lies purely in sword skills."
The qualification in his voice suggested that in a contest beyond mere swordsmanship, Adam believed he would prevail.
"Is that so? I think you would win too."
Crusch's words caught him off guard — shouldn't she stand by her own butler? Why validate her opponent's Knight?
But she offered no explanation, instead proposing, "Since you're confident in your swordsmanship, why not have a match with me as well?"
"Alright, I accept! I want to see just how strong the 'Valkyrie' really is." Adam agreed without hesitation.
He had been eager to witness Crusch's legendary sword technique — the 40-meter long "One Blow, One Hundred Felled" (Hyakunin Hitotachi).
They proceeded to the mansion's training ground.
Though Crusch's swordsmanship was impressive, she couldn't match Reinhard or Wilhelm's level. Adam found himself controlling the pace of their battle.
This restored his confidence in the〘Divine Protection of the Sword Saint〙.
After their sparring match, Crusch found herself overwhelmed by Adam's skill and decided to unleash her proudest sword technique.
"Your strength is impressive indeed, but let's see how you handle this move... Please be on guard!"
With deliberate grace, Crusch sheathed her sword before drawing it in one fluid motion.
◈ Hyakunin Hitotachi ⫸ One Blow, One Hundred Felled ◈
Wind-attribute Mana coiled around her blade, transforming into a crescent-shaped energy blade that streaked toward Adam with devastating speed.
Yet Adam remained composed, establishing a powerful mana domain while executing his strongest defensive technique.
◈ Water Breathing, Eleventh Form ⫸ Dead Calm ◈
As his domain expanded, the incoming energy blade decelerated dramatically before dissipating entirely.
Though he appeared motionless, Adam had struck countless times within a single breath, his Nichirin Longsword infused with water-attribute mana systematically destroying the crescent blade.
Through this exchange, he mastered the technique, acquiring〚One Blow, One Hundred Felled〛.
Adam knew this skill would manifest on his adventurer card.
"Truly formidable strength — befitting one who could face Reinhard in combat."
"You're too generous. Since Lady Crusch was holding back—"
"No need for modesty. I fought at full strength and was defeated. That's all there is to it."
Crusch proved graceful in defeat. Rather than becoming discouraged, she would analyze her shortcomings and strive to improve.
In truth, among the five candidates, she stood as the most dependable. The others paled in comparison.
As Subaru had mentioned, had he not encountered Emilia first, he would certainly have pledged himself to Crusch's faction.
"The hour grows late. Lady Emilia and I should depart."
"Mm, I'll have Wilhelm see you out."
With those words, they took their leave of Crusch's mansion.
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