I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 42

The spear that the unidentified girl hurled struck the carriage wheel precisely.

Crack! Thump!

The carriage wheel, shattered by the sudden spear attack, flew in all directions.

“Waaah?!”

The wheel-less carriage slid along the road before finally coming to a stop.

Neigh! Neigh!

The startled horses screamed and bolted in every direction.

“Oh dear, oh dear, what in the world is going on….”

I couldn’t quite grasp the situation amidst the sudden commotion.

I understood that some girl had suddenly ambushed us and broken the carriage wheel. But then what?

Just then, the carriage door burst open, and Lukas poked his head inside.

“Are you alright, Your Highness?!”

I waved my hand dismissively.

“Don’t worry. I’m fine. Just a little dizzy….”

“I’ll assist you. Please come outside for now.”

Supported by Lukas, I staggered out of the carriage and onto the ground.

Thankfully, I wasn’t hurt anywhere.

After confirming that I was unharmed, Lukas let out a sigh of relief and then roared at the attacker.

“Who are you!”

“……”

“Do you know who this person is, daring to point your spear at them? I will have you arrested and severely punished!”

The unidentified girl who had destroyed the carriage stood in the middle of the road, wearing a very sullen expression.

Having caught my breath, I was finally able to take a closer look at the girl.

Her pale platinum blonde hair was quite long, tied loosely behind her neck.

Her sharp eyes were a clear green, and a small fang peeked out from between her tightly closed lips.

“……She’s a kid.”

Indeed. Very young. At most, fourteen? Fifteen? She looked even younger than that.

“You shouldn’t underestimate her just because she’s young, Your Highness. She seems to be a trained combatant.”

“Trained?”

“Look at the clothes she’s wearing.”

Clothes? Why the clothes? Hearing Lukas’s words, I examined the girl’s attire.

A white jacket with gold embroidery, a black skirt, and a red cloak on her back.

“……A school uniform?”

It was a familiar style, so I couldn’t help but point at her and ask Lukas.

“That’s a school uniform, right?”

“Yes. It’s the uniform of the Imperial Royal Academy. The emblem on her cloak confirms it.”

In short, she was a student at a knight academy. Meaning she was probably still in her school lunch days.

“What is an academy student doing here! Identify yourself!”

As Lukas continued to shout, the girl bared her sharp fangs and growled.

“Who are you? is what I should be asking. You old men.”

“Wha, what? Old men?”

I was taken aback by the sudden age-based insult, but the girl remained indifferent.

“If you’re older than me, then you’re old men to me. Isn’t that right? Am I wrong?”

“U, uhm!”

Unable to refute her, I just clenched my fist. The audacity of this typical teenager…!

The girl pointed the huge cavalry spear in her hand towards the lord’s mansion.

“This is my family’s house. But when I came back after a long time, some unfamiliar soldiers had taken it over? And the flag of our family, which had been there for hundreds of years, was taken down without permission.”

The girl’s sharp eyes narrowed.

“I was wondering if they were the troublesome bandits from before, or if enemy forces had infiltrated. I was lacking information, so I was pondering, and then you old men came along in a carriage, so I stopped you to ask some questions.”

“Hey, you could have just asked! Why did you have to break the carriage!”

“I was taught at school to subdue anyone who is suspected of being an enemy first.”

Clack-

The girl lightly spun her spear and pointed it towards us.

“So, who are you old men? Why are you occupying someone else’s house without permission? Depending on your answer, it might hurt a little, so please answer carefully.”

Lukas, who was furious, answered for me.

“What nonsense! This is the mansion where the lord of Crossroads resides. It is naturally the lord’s property!”

“……? What are you talking about?”

The girl also looked genuinely confused.

“The lord here is my father?”

A moment of silence passed.

Lukas and I exchanged glances. We had realized the identity of the girl before us.

“I see. So you are….”

I slowly spoke the girl’s name.

“……Evangeline Cross.”

Upon hearing her name, the girl’s sharp eyes widened.

“Do you know me, old man?”

“I’ve heard a lot about you from your father.”

Looking into her eyes, I could finally feel that this girl was indeed the daughter of the Cross Margrave. Her green eyes were a perfect match.

‘Wait a minute, though.’

The SSR-grade [Super Super Rare, a term used in gacha games to denote the highest rarity] tank character Evangeline Cross that I saw in the game was definitely a tall, beautiful woman.

But this girl in front of me was not only young, but above all….

“……She’s much smaller than I thought.”

She was short.

She seemed to be at least two heads shorter than me.

She was small in height and build. Even the fingers holding the spear were tiny, like a child’s.

She didn’t look this young in the game, and she was much taller.

Her image was so different that I didn’t recognize her right away.

‘Why is she so different? Lukas and Jupiter looked similar to their game counterparts.’

As I was comparing the Evangeline from the game with the Evangeline here, Lukas nudged my side with his elbow. Huh? What’s wrong?

“Your Highness, how can you comment on someone’s appearance in front of them? Such remarks are rude….”

“Oh.”

I stopped thinking and looked ahead. Evangeline’s expression was coldly set. She looked very angry.

“No, no, Miss Evangeline! There’s a misunderstanding. It’s not that you’re short, but that you’re a little smaller than I imagined from the game… no, from what I had imagined!”

“……”

I frantically waved my arms and made excuses (which were true), but of course, the situation didn’t improve.

Evangeline’s eyebrows twitched.

“To make fun of someone’s complex right in front of them, you must have a lot of lives to spare?”

“No, I only have one….”

“Then you should have been more frugal with it.”

Evangeline twirled the huge spear in her hand.

“I’ve changed my mind. I only poked you a little while ago to ask about the situation, but now I’m going to be serious.”

Whoooosh-

An intangible fighting spirit surged around the girl as she gripped her spear. Even I, an amateur, could feel it like a gust of wind, so this was no joke.

Swoosh!

Lukas drew his sword and stood in front of me, shouting.

“Put down your spear, Miss Evangeline Cross! The person before you is His Imperial Highness, the Third Prince Ash!”

Evangeline snorted.

“After illegally occupying someone’s house, now you’re impersonating royalty? Your creativity is decent, but the plausibility is lacking, don’t you think?”

“What?”

“There’s no reason for the infamous Third Prince to come down to this rural backwater!”

But he’s really here!

Thud!

Evangeline kicked off the ground, creating a shallow crater where her small foot landed.

When I opened my eyes, the girl spear-wielder was right in front of me. Her speed was almost like a missile.

Clang-!

Lukas swung his sword to deflect the spear that was thrust at me.

The spear tip and the sword blade scraped against each other, sending red sparks flying. A strange light flashed in Evangeline’s eyes.

“Oh, this old man is quite skilled?”

“Of course, Miss Evangeline. I am also a senior from your academy…!”

Lukas straightened his posture and introduced himself.

“Lukas McGregor, the second-ranked graduate of the 369th class of the Imperial Royal Academy.”

Oh, second-ranked! Lukas was the second in his class? Amazing!

Lukas suddenly pointed his hand at me, who was admiring him.

“And by the way, His Highness Prince Ash behind me is also a senior from your academy!”

Oh? Really? I went there too?

“Among the 369th class, he is known as a legend among legends!”

And I was a legend?!?

“What legend? What kind of legend was it, Lukas? Huh?”

“Uh, well….”

But Lukas only said legend and didn’t elaborate further. And he seemed to be avoiding my gaze.

Feeling uneasy, I cautiously asked.

“Hey, Lukas. Can I ask you something?”

“O, of course, Your Highness. Anything.”

“What was my graduation rank…?”

“……”

Lukas, who had frozen for a moment, reluctantly answered with a cold sweat.

“……You were, uh, first, first place.”

“……From the bottom?”

“……Y, yes.”

I smacked my forehead.

“So that’s why I was a legend?”

“Yes, well… that’s not entirely wrong… As expected of someone with royal blood! You boldly and confidently abandoned your studies and played around! Even being last was a rank you aimed for!”

Oh, how magnanimous! Yes, if you’re going to slack off, you should at least be last in the whole school. Well done, Kim Ash!

“Now you’re even impersonating our school seniors… You old men are really something.”

Evangeline, who had been listening to our banter, adjusted her stance.

She stretched out the hand not holding the spear to the side, then brought it to her chest and bowed.

One leg was pulled back, and both knees were slightly bent.

It was a beautiful and elegant etiquette without a single flaw. If only she wasn’t holding a huge cavalry spear in one hand.

“Understood. Then, to you ‘seniors,’ Evangeline Cross, the early top graduate of the 375th class….”

Immediately after, she sharply raised her emerald eyes,

“I greet you-!”

Thud-!

She flew forward.

Lukas didn’t back down and charged forward as well.

Clang! Clang! Thwack-!

The two knights clashed, wielding their spears and swords.

Their skills were completely equal. It was a close match.

That was because they were both SSR-grade characters. Geniuses of combat, rare in this world.

Their talents were evenly matched.

Clack! Clack!

However, the battle gradually became advantageous for Lukas.

Lukas was increasingly on the offensive, while Evangeline was on the defensive.

Evangeline was barely able to block Lukas’s sharp attacks.

Their talents were equal, but perhaps it was the difference in experience.

Lukas, who had been through countless real battles to protect me, had experience. Evangeline, who was still young, lacked that experience.

“Tch!”

It was then. Evangeline, who was completely on the defensive, frowned and put on something she had been carrying on her back onto her left arm.

“You’re better than our school teachers, old man? I didn’t want to take this out!”

It was a small eagle-shaped shield.

Clank!

As Evangeline put the shield on her left arm, the eagle’s wings unfolded, extending horizontally.

A spear in her right hand. A shield on her left arm.

Seeing that, I realized.

‘She really is the Margrave’s daughter.’

Evangeline, having adjusted her stance, charged at Lukas again.

“Now I’m going all out-!”

Lukas, with a hardened expression, silently raised his sword to meet her attack.

Clang-!

Evangeline’s combat power noticeably increased after taking out the shield.

She deflected Lukas’s sharp sword strikes with her shield and attacked, wielding the huge spear in her right hand as lightly as a feather.

Before taking out the shield, she was clearly being pushed back, but now the two were evenly matched again.

‘It’s a feast for the eyes, though.’

The duel between the two highly trained masters was dazzling and magnificent.

Every time metal clashed against metal, sparks flew as if there were fireworks in the air.

‘But as amazing as it is, someone is going to get hurt.’

In fact, neither of them was fighting to kill each other. If they were, they would have been using skills left and right.

But even if it wasn’t a fight to the death, it was still dangerous.

I should stop them soon. I stepped forward.

“Hey! Both of you stop, stop! That’s enough!”

Clang! Clang-!

“It seems like there’s a misunderstanding, let’s talk it out. Okay?”

Clang! Clang!

“Hey? Can’t you hear me? You two?”

They couldn’t hear me. The two knights were completely engrossed in their duel.

‘Is there no way to stop them?’

The two were in a complete stalemate.

Then, the only way is for a third party to interfere and break the tension.

I stared at my hand. The SSR-grade luck-based weapon ‘Lucky Strike’ was sparkling, asserting its presence.

‘Is this the only way!’

Even a weak attack is fine. I just need to break this situation.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Evangeline wasn’t paying any attention to me at all.

She seemed to be fully occupied with dealing with Lukas.

I crept up to the two of them.

I must have a weak presence as a combatant. They really aren’t paying attention to me.

‘Just a light tap, just a light tap!’

I clenched my fist and took a breath.

Okay, here I go!

“Prince Punch~!”

I threw a half-hearted punch, and

“Wha, what?! When?!”

Startled by my sudden shout and punch, Evangeline reflexively raised her shield to block my fist.

The moment my fist touched the shield, a slot machine started spinning in the corner of my vision.

Ding!

7.

Huh?

The moment the one’s digit appeared, a chill ran down my spine.

It was like a gamer’s intuition.

Then the ten’s digit.

Ding!

7.

A feeling that ‘something has appeared’ flashed through my mind like lightning.

Could it be?

Wait, wait. No way? Really?

And the last, the hundred’s digit was-

Ding!

7.

Uwaaaaaaaah!

It appeared! It really appeared, 777-!

I was shocked and gaped my mouth.

Why did it appear here?!