Arcadia's Ignoble Knight: The Sorceress' Knights Tournament

Chapter 15

Several minutes after the preliminary match had started, it ended. Caspian clapped his hands together, as if wiping off the imaginary dust on them. He was covered in a light sheen of sweat, which felt uncomfortable against his clothes, but he was otherwise fine.

"I expected a little more fight from you guys," Caspian said to the unconscious nobles lying around him. "I guess all of you are like everybody else. You talk and plot and scheme like every other noble, but when it comes right down to it, you don't have what it takes to really make it as a Sorceress's Knight."

Instructor Murdock held up a hand. "The winner of this fight goes to Caspian Ignis del Sol!"

"You didn't do much to curb their dirty fighting, did you, instructor?" Caspian quipped.

Instructor Murdock shrugged. "That's because I knew you'd win, so I didn't see the point."

Caspian clicked his tongue, but he didn't say anything as Elincia came rushing out from behind her column.

"Caspian!" she called out. Her eyes were bright and vibrant, like two gems as sunlight coruscated off their glittering surface. "You won!"

Grinning, Caspian opened his arms as his friend threw herself into him. He lifted her off the ground, spinning her around as they laughed together. By the time he set her down, Elincia's cheeks were flushed and she wore a smile so wide that her eyes were forced closed.

"I can't believe you won against five people! That was so amazing!"

Caspian felt exhilaration from his victory still flowing through his veins. It made feel playful for some reason. "Are you saying you doubted that I would win?"

Elincia's eyes widened. "No! Of course not! I was just so amazed that I—!"

"Relax." Caspian wore the widest grin as he leaned down and placed his forehead against hers. "I'm just teasing you."

"That wasn't very nice," Elincia said, puffing out her cheeks. However, as Caspian laughed, her pout went away and she began laughing too.

"Hey! Sol!" Instructor Murdock grunted, interrupting them. "You need to head over to the main hall again."

Caspian waved the man off as he and Elincia left the courtyard. Wandering hand in hand through the corridor, just like they did when they were children, the pair headed toward the main hall. The other matches should be ending soon, if they hadn't already. He imagined that the headmaster would be giving out further instructions on how this tournament was going to work.

As they wandered down the hall, several of the nobles who'd followed them to watch the fight, grumbled irritably.

"I can't believe Sol won."

"He must have cheated."

"As expected of a peasant."

"I can hear all of you, you know." Caspian glared at them. "If you've got a complaint, then come up to me and express it. We can settle our differences with a sword, if you'd like."

The nobles fell silent. Caspian clicked his tongue and continued walking.

A shift in the atmosphere caused him to look at Elincia. Her once joyful expression had been replaced with something more befitting a woman who'd just had her heart broken. He frowned.

"Stop that," Caspian said.

Elincia looked startled. "E-excuse me?"

"I bet you're thinking something stupid again. Let me guess, you're thinking, 'I can't believe all those people would say such horrible things about Caspian,' right?" Her widening eyes told Caspian that he'd hit the nail on the head. "You need to stop thinking like that. None of this is your fault. You shouldn't feel bad about what other people say or do."