Chapter 70

(Harold’s pov)

It was about two hours after the ridiculous incident caused by Itsuki and Francis.

Those two, accompanied by Harold, were currently on the outskirts of the town of Kablan, in a white western-style house surrounded by nature, built on the shore of a lake. The building and its garden were well-maintained, and it was evident that they were cared for regularly.

It was an unoccupied house owned by the Berlioz family.

【”It’s on sale, but it seems like there haven’t been any buyers.”】 (Itsuki)

Well, that makes sense, thought Harold.

Although it was built a little far from town, it was still extremely well-located thanks to the lake and mountains behind it. The bright white of the two-story building’s walls, reflecting on the blue of the water, looked, in a word, beautiful. There was also a boat anchorage at the edge of the lake, as well as a small cottage on the property.

How much would it cost to purchase this? There was no mistaking that this wasn’t a property the area’s aristocrats could afford.

【”It’s not bad for a holiday house, even though it’s a little too small.”】

【”I know, right? The price is pretty good too, but still, I’m not sure about this location.”】

The two, belonging to the upper echelons of society, were having this conversation, oblivious to Harold’s feelings.

The two-story house seemed to have as many rooms as a small hotel, so Harold couldn’t understand how it could possibly feel too small, even for a holiday house. After all, this house was at least bigger than the Strokes’ mansion.

The two bourgeois didn’t even seem to realize they were spitting venom.

As for why the three were visiting such a place, naturally, they hadn’t come to check out the property.

Though they had gotten enthusiastic about a duel before, they had no suitable place. There was no way they could cause a disturbance within the Berlioz’ mansion, so as a last resort, the three slipped out of the mansion together, claiming, 【”Francis is looking for a holiday house, so we’re going to do some sightseeing and guide him through the town.”】

What they needed was a spacious place, far from prying eyes, where they could fight without restraints. And this place fit the bill.

【”If you want to buy a property, do it when I’m not here.”】

【”Right. Itsuki, where should we fight?”】

【”Let’s go around to the back.”】

And so, Itsuki led Francis and Harold to a horse riding area enclosed by wooden fences. Horse riding was certainly an aristocratic hobby, and even the Stokes’ mansion had a stable, but there, people still had to go outside the mansion grounds to gallop.

Right now, the horse riding area was completely empty. But that was only natural because, no matter how well-maintained the place was, it lacked the most important part of horse riding; the horses.

【”If it’s here, we’ll sure be able to fight to our heart’s content.”】

【”Still, it would be troublesome if this turns into a rampage.”】

【”No need for such worries. I won’t draw my sword.”】

As Harold said those words, Itsuki and Francis were petrified on the spot. But that was a normal reaction to being told by someone that he wouldn’t draw his sword in a formal duel.

After a moment’s pause, Francis, filled with anger, questioned Harold.

【”What does that mean?”】

【”Do I have to spell it out for you? There’s no need for a sword against the likes of you, you bastard.”】

Harold was aware of how outrageously condescending this statement was.

However, currently, there was no way for Harold to be defeated by Francis.

From the various assessments over the past few years, Harold had determined that, based on 『Brave Hearts』’s system, he was currently above level 70. In the game, there were three fights against Harold, and it was only in the third fight that the original Harold had reached level 70.

Harold had no status display to check his level, but he calculated it by fighting a specific monster hundreds of times, figuring out the power of each blow by working backwards from the monster’s HP.

But this was quite difficult. Assuming the level-up system in this world was the same as in the game, if Harold fought many times, his level would naturally increase. Even with a margin of error of one or two, if he were to get a massive level-up before accurately estimating his level, he wouldn’t know his level precisely.

So, he had a technique to probe his level by another standard.

In 『Brave Hearts』, just like the main character, Harold and Vincent could lift usage restrictions on some techniques depending on their level.

When he came to this world, Harold initially tried techniques the original Harold could use, but the results were terrible; many moves he couldn’t use. It wasn’t that he struggled with them or was close to using them; he encountered two cases: either he could use the techniques perfectly, or he couldn’t use them at all. Then, one day, he could perfectly use techniques he hadn’t been able to use before.

From this, Harold believed this world had a similar level-up system to 『Brave Hearts』.

Incidentally, in his final battle, the original Harold’s HP was over 140,000. While it might have been different without his berserk state, this could still be used as a reference point, given that Harold already had 90,000 HP in his second fight.

On the other hand, Francis’ original level was set to the party’s average level when he joined. Although this depended on the player’s play style, Francis usually joined at level 30, more or less.

Assuming Francis was currently level 30 and Harold had 100,000 HP, there was a tenfold difference in HP. Even if Francis, not known for his physical prowess, managed 100 combos against Harold, it wouldn’t be enough.

However, there are always exceptions, and due to the game’s specifics, there was something called a critical hit, which appeared when attacking an opponent’s vital point. In the game, critical hits doubled damage, but things weren’t so simple in this world where real and game elements were mixed.

In the game, the hydra Harold killed in Mount Giran had slightly less than 20,000 HP, and Lifa’s attacks probably hadn’t even scratched a third of that.

Yet, Harold killed the Hydra in a single blow, decapitating it, and killed its companion in less than ten hits, even though they were in perfect condition. This wasn’t due to high attack power, but because he inflicted many fatal wounds by striking vital points.

Well, getting a critical hit on a hydra required skill and a fairly high level, especially as its resistance would increase with level. Therefore, critical hits didn’t change the fact that higher levels meant greater strength, but if an opponent lowered their guard, even a level 1 opponent could land a critical hit.

And in this world, even a single critical hit could be fatal.

In short, unless careful of critical hits, which could be fatal, nothing could stop Harold’s victory.

On the contrary, he was worried that without such a handicap, he might seriously injure Francis.

【”…I’ll make you immediately take back those words.”】

【”Go ahead, try your luck. If you can actually make me draw my sword, it’s your win.”】

Harold said, mockingly.

This was a good excuse to be defeated by someone despite the overwhelming difference in abilities. That way, Harold could set it up so that, frenzied after relentless attacks, Francis would unleash an all-out blow, using all his strength, to the point where Harold would feel the danger, raise his sword to defend, and thus be defeated.

Harold entered the fenced area and faced Francis near the center of the horse riding area. Francis was full of fighting spirit.

【”This will be the final confirmation. Harold Stokes and Francis J. Arkwright, you shall now have a duel. And I, Itsuki Sumeragi, will serve as the witness. The duel ends if Harold uses his weapon, if one of you gives up, or if I deem the battle unwinnable. Any objections?”】

【”None.”】

The duo’s voices overlapped. They were so focused they could only see each other.

And then――

【”Then, may the duel, for a marriage to Erica Sumeragi, begin—”】

【”Wait.”】

But that focus was easily shattered by Itsuki’s words.

He had just said the duel was for a marriage to Erica. Harold hadn’t misheard.

【”What’s wrong?”】

【”Are you seriously asking me what’s wrong? How does marrying Erica relate to this duel?”】

He hadn’t said engagement, but marriage. In other words, the winner would directly marry Erica.

That was strange. They had agreed that if Harold won, he would command Francis, and if Francis won, Harold would disappear from Itsuki and Erica’s lives.

【”It’s fine. If you want to marry Erica, all you have to do is win.”】

【”Idiot. That’s not what I’m worried about.”】

【”Besides, you’re already engaged to Erica, and if you lose, Franck will likely try to seduce her anyway, right? So isn’t it pretty much the same as the initial wager?”】

【”It’s completely different. Especially since your intention is—”】

【”-Ah, hold on a second, please. I don’t really get what’s going on, but… In short, if I win, I’ll be able to marry Erica?”】

【”Yeah, but I’m pretty sure that’s not going to be possible for you, Franck.”】

Itsuki provoked Francis with a smile. Perhaps his personality had been influenced by Harold.

However, Francis closed his eyes, crossed his arms, and indulged in silent reverie. After a while, he opened his eyes, his face more determined than before.

【”I feel even more motivated all of a sudden. Let’s get serious!”】

Francis’ emerald green eyes shone as he prepared to use his rapier.

Harold had a bad feeling.

And at the moment Itsuki finished reiterating his statement as witness and gave the signal, Harold knew his feeling was right.

Francis closed the distance and thrust his rapier at him. It wasn’t fast enough to overwhelm Harold, who could easily avoid it.

However, it was still stronger and sharper than expected. Therefore, Harold instinctively dodged it. This attack was supposed to be Francis’ “all-out blow.”

(Brave mode from the start? What the hell?!)

It was a sort of invincible mode, similar to what Liner had shown in the fighting competition. It had many advantages: increased attack power, halved damage received, and techniques couldn’t be interrupted or skipped even if attacked during execution.

However, it was a “gauge technique” that needed a gauge filled by combinations of attacks, combos, and guards. It wasn’t something that could be used right away.

(Could it be that there’s no need to fill a gauge here? Is it a “use it if your feelings are strong enough” thing? Are you kidding me?! Or rather, more important than that…)

Harold kept dodging, trying to organize his chaotic thoughts. Originally, to be defeated, he planned to only avoid predictable attacks.

But he was in a vicious cycle, drifting away from his plan to be defeated, his thoughts scattered.

Harold had a plan: to knock Francis down with hand-to-hand techniques, then recover him with prepared items to “earn Harold’s experience points.”

As mentioned, this world had a level-up system, but different opponents offered different experience points. In 『Brave Hearts』, participants gained 100% experience, those near death or in reserve gained 70%, and even losers gained some experience.

In RPGs, although random monsters offered little experience, bosses were worth a lot.

This was even more true for Harold, the boss character who fought the hero’s party the most.

Harold was worth 8,000 points in his first battle, 35,000 in his second, and 72,000 in his last. Currently, considering his level, he was probably worth around 60,000 experience points.

Losing a battle against an opponent yielded 10% of that opponent’s worth in experience points. So, in Harold’s case, it would be 6,000 points.

At level 30, 5,000 experience points were needed to level up. This would increase to 6,000 or more from level 35, but Francis could still level up every time he fought once or twice.

That’s how far Harold had pushed his calculations, but he had no real proof. Naturally, Harold considered the possibility that no matter how many times he defeated Francis, it would be meaningless.

However, if this hypothesis was correct, he could hope for a tremendous strengthening of Francis’ abilities. If he missed this chance to freely act before returning to being Justus’ pawn, Harold would struggle to fight Liner and others as many times as the original Harold did in the game.

Therefore, if Harold was going to do it, now was the time. Francis was severely criticized by game players, often benched, called “Delicate,” a “jack of all trades, master of none,” or even a “destitute prince.” Clearing the game with the prince was considered a special achievement. So, if Harold could strengthen him, it would surely raise the hero’s party’s overall strength.

As for how he would be defeated, Harold could still figure out a way while fighting.

While feeling slightly disheartened, Harold kicked Francis in the flank.

Translator’s note: This one was complicated, I hope you guys still get what happened. It relies heavily on having read other novels, manga, and the like. As for the experience points system, it might seem strange, but it’s quite similar to the one in Persona and many other JRPGs.

I’d also like to thank the new patrons, Ranga Q and Kat, and the old patrons as well. Thank you very much for your support!