Uncle here isn't your average office worker!

Listening to her niece's cheers from the courtyard, Zofia suddenly understood why Marna's face was so dark when she entered the house.

Hey little girl, Roy is your mentor, but I'm your aunt, a relative, blood is thicker than water! I don't ask you to just cheer me on, but at least be fair and impartial, don't show favoritism, okay?

I've been fighting for ten minutes now, and I haven't heard you cheer for me even once. All I hear is you cheering for Roy. You little brat, why are you siding with outsiders like that?! Not to mention Marna, who already seemed to have some prejudice against Roy, even Zofia, who prides herself on being extremely tolerant, couldn't help but want to stop Roy right now and go back to get a whip to give Maria a few lashes so she can experience the true value of a family burial.

"Master Roy is indeed very strong. Even if he only defends and doesn't attack, Aunt Zofia can't do anything about him. 4? Master Roy even has time to count. Is he counting how many times he has blocked Aunt's attacks?"

Hearing Maria's heartfelt praise, Zofia's forehead veins bulged, her mind went blank, and her originally balanced whip-wielding rhythm was interrupted. In her haste, she lashed out with her whip, the sharp blade drawing a crescent in the air as it slashed toward Roy's waist.

"5."

Before making her move, Zofia seemed to hear Roy mutter something under his breath, but the move was already made and there was no going back. She thought Roy would easily dodge it with a simple bend or a step back, just like before, but she didn't expect Roy to suddenly switch from defense to offense. His strength seemed to have suddenly increased by a level. Seizing the opportunity, the sharp blade he had been using for defense suddenly shot upwards with lightning speed. The amazing power sent the whip blade that couldn't be withdrawn in time flying into the air. Then, he spun his palm and easily bound the sharp whip to his own blade.

Zofia was startled and instinctively tried to pull her weapon back, hoping to use the whip to snatch Roy's weapon as well. However, Roy beat her to it, pulling her to the side. Caught off guard, the weapon slipped from her hand, and she stumbled, falling uncontrollably to the ground.

Fortunately, just before her chest was about to be stained by the mud in the courtyard, a pair of hands caught her waist in time. Roy gently helped her up again, bowed slightly to Zofia, who was still somewhat bewildered, and said:

"You flatter me, Miss Zofia. I have learned a great deal from this duel."

Zofia snapped out of her daze, picked up the whip from the ground, and, seemingly realizing something, quickly took three steps away from Roy, clutching her chest. Only after confirming that Roy didn't show any strange expression did she breathe a sigh of relief, her brow furrowing slightly, and said:

"You flatter me. Maria is right. You are indeed very strong and more than capable of teaching her."

She wasn't one to back down easily. Although she had indeed been influenced by that heartless little bastard Maria during the battle, Roy's strength was undeniable. He had managed to parry her whip blade without taking any damage, while effortlessly finding an opportunity to defeat her in one strike. This was enough to prove that Roy's strength might even surpass hers.

The reason for adding "possibly" is that she did not use Originium Arts.

Although she still harbored doubts about Maria's claim that Roy could defeat Marna, she had at least come to acknowledge Roy's abilities as Maria's mentor, at least in terms of raw strength. As for his character, Zofia felt that someone who could still loudly proclaim the "Three No's" principle and oppose the Business Federation after the Radiant Knights were exiled was beyond question.

Besides, Marner didn't object, did she?

Zofia looked up and glanced at Marna's room on the second floor. The curtains facing the courtyard were drawn, and it appeared empty. But Zofia knew that the more that eccentric person pretended not to want to see, the more they actually were watching. He was definitely standing behind the curtains, just not letting her see him.

He's incredibly subservient to his company leaders, like a timid jerk, but he becomes all concerned with saving face in front of his children.

She sighed softly and turned to look at Roy. Like Maria, who was cheering, she still had one question about the duel that had just taken place.

"Master Roy, why were you on defense the whole time?" Maria asked first, and Zofia nodded in agreement.

Maria's mental struggles are due to external factors. Roy is very strong; he could have easily taken the initiative and ended the fight quickly. Instead, he remained on the defensive, seemingly deliberately prolonging the entire match, which doesn't make sense.

Surprisingly, Roy nodded quite readily, admitting, "I did it on purpose." (9)

"Why?" Zofia frowned, her tone slightly angry. (iv)

A strong person fighting a weak person, deliberately concealing their strength to create the illusion of an evenly matched contest, giving the weak person a glimmer of hope before abruptly crushing that hope for their own amusement, is far more humiliating than a direct, immediate defeat. It's less a display of respect and more a callous disgrace. ⑧

Being weak is one thing, being humiliated is another, and Zofia doesn't want Maria to go astray.

Facing Zofia's scrutinizing gaze, Roy nodded seriously and explained: Two

"I'm testing Miss Zofia's physical strength and endurance."

“Miss Zofia, the weapon you use is a whip blade. In weaponry, there's a saying that an inch longer, an inch stronger. The whip, in particular, belongs to the unconventional category, with ever-changing techniques, uncommon among knights, making it easy to achieve unexpected effects. I believe you chose it as your primary weapon because you considered these two advantages.”

Roy spoke eloquently, and just as Zofia nodded, he changed the subject, but the words left his mouth...

"However, this weapon also has its major drawbacks, the most significant of which is its physical exertion. Wielding a whip is not the same as wielding a sword. A sword is a sharp weapon, capable of cutting through wind and waves, and slicing through iron like mud, while a whip is a blunt weapon, large in size, and inherently requires more physical strength than a sword. Although you have optimized it and created the [whip blade], you still cannot completely eliminate this flaw. Prolonged whip-wielding will inevitably lead to excessive fatigue in your arms and waist. Therefore, I want to test the extent of your endurance."②

At this point, Roy paused, looking at Zofia's genuinely surprised expression, and concluded, "The answer is, it's not enough."

"Even with my continued defense, you showed obvious signs of fatigue after just the tenth five-round interval. Your face turned red, your breathing became erratic and rapid, and your rhythm began to crumble. Perhaps you felt that you were affected by Maria, but that's not the case. You were the one who lost your focus first."

Zofia subconsciously touched her still slightly flushed face, calmed her slightly panting breathing, and the surprise on her face turned into realization.

Indeed, Roy was right. Maria's claim of siding with outsiders was just an excuse; the one who lost focus first was actually Maria.

Otherwise, how come the loud cheers and curses from the commentators and audience during the match in the Knights' Arena didn't affect her at all? It's because she was completely focused and at peace with herself, and didn't care about the noise from the outside world.

As Roy said, her stamina was only about fifty rounds. If someone could withstand fifty rounds of her whip-blade onslaught, she would be exhausted, and at that point, she might be turned around and defeated, or even...

Zofia felt a pang of panic as she recalled how Roy had snatched her weapon away and she had almost fallen to the ground.

The enemies on the field won't be as kind as Roy, who would lend her a hand. If she's exhausted and her weapon is taken away, there's only one thing they're most likely to do—come up and finish her off!

This time she's facing the muddy courtyard, but what about next time? She might be confronted with the blades and hammers of her enemies, and she could very well be injured!

Thinking of this, Zofia gasped and couldn't help but thank Roy:

"A very important reminder, thank you, Sir Roy."

“It’s alright.” Roy smiled and nodded, accepting Zofia’s gratitude without hesitation.

His words were not an exaggeration. As a time traveler, Roy knew Zofia's tournament history very well. The fact that she defeated the Rift Knight at the cost of serious injury in the round of 16 of the tournament, and then had to withdraw from the tournament due to a wrist injury, had always been a mystery in Roy's mind.

After his journey through time, he also secretly investigated the situation of the [Rift] Knight with the help of the Unarmored Alliance. This great knight, who also held a two-word title, was known for his endurance and strength. Judging from his past matches where he insisted on a defensive counter-attacking style, he likely adopted the same tactic when facing Zofia.

The likely outcome is that he managed to hold out until Zofia was exhausted through defense, then launched a counterattack and dealt her a heavy blow. Unfortunately, his raw strength was inferior to Roy's, and he ultimately failed to deliver the decisive blow like Roy did, ending his mission in vain.

If Roy had demonstrated this tactic to Zofia in advance, he could have potentially prevented Zofia from suffering a wrist injury and would have been able to fulfill his role as a tutor. Why not?

Looking at Zofia, Roy said, "So, Miss Zofia, please rate the quality of this lesson out of five. Please give it a good review, okay?"

Zofia was taken aback for a moment, then realized what Roy meant and nodded in agreement:

"Proving your strength through real combat, and then using that method to help me find my weaknesses? You're something else, Mr. Roy."

"So, how about a score?"

"Perfect score. You're accepted," Zofia acknowledged. At the same time, a soft hum and departing footsteps came from behind the curtains upstairs.

Maria jogged over to Roy, raised her hand, and waved it expectantly at him. Roy knowingly raised his hand as well.

Their palms collided in the air with a soft "snap," and Maria jumped up with joy.

At the same time, the Business Federation Council.

The Rebirth Pharmaceuticals spokesperson's glasses reflected a cold light as he scanned his surroundings, his tone revealing considerable dissatisfaction:

"Why hasn't the problem with the Blood Knights been resolved yet?"

In the center of the council chamber, Kuranta, dressed in a dark gray business association spokesperson's uniform with a specially made white shawl over his left shoulder, answered with a gloomy expression:

"The bribery failed. The Minoan refused any form of cooperation and insisted on participating in the tournament."

The Regeneron spokesperson, his hands gripping the table, threatened aggressively, "Charne, you should know that the Business Federation didn't hire you to hear you say 'it can't be done'."

To everyone's surprise, Charné remained composed and calmly replied, "Of course I know it's for the sake of greater profits. In my opinion, if we were to bribe him, the expected cost would far exceed the losses from putting an infected person in power. If we are not willing to suffer losses, then my only answer is: it's impossible."

He paused, then suggested:

"Moreover, why not take advantage of him? He would be a great way for us to extract profits from the infected, and it would appear to be more peaceful and fair."

That would reduce Rebirth Pharmaceuticals' profits!

The spokesperson for Regeneron Pharmaceuticals' face darkened. Of course, he couldn't say what he really thought, so he waved his hand to silence Charne. Then, looking at the other board members who were sitting in their seats, seemingly unconcerned, he suggested:

"It is against tradition to let infected people step onto the stage of the knightly arena. Not only will it damage our image and cause those infected people to have unrealistic fantasies, but it may also anger those old-fashioned knightly nobles and the Supervisory Council. I propose that we send out the Unarmored Alliance to eliminate the Blood Knight."

“That’s not how the Unarmored Alliance is mobilized,” the spokesperson for the Rose Daily sneered.

A spokesperson for Regeneron Pharmaceuticals knew what he wanted and replied:

"The boss promised to provide the necessary resources; we can discuss that privately."

The spokesperson for the Daily Rose nodded and raised his hand: "I agree."

The others exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.

Seeing that the representatives of the major companies had all made their decisions, Charne could only sigh inwardly and ask with a forced smile, "So, which member of the Unarmored Alliance do you intend to send? The Platinum One?"

"Platinum isn't enough. That Minoan is a bit strange; his blood magic is troublesome. Just to be on the safe side, let's ask Azure Gold for help. Contact the liaison."

Charné nodded: "As you wish."

PS: 4000 words, two chapters combined! The author has some things to do tomorrow, my headphones broke, and the repair shop doesn't accept deliveries, so I'll have to take them to be repaired myself. Updates may be a little late.

Volume One: Chapter Nineteen The Sun Rises in the West

Sunday, August 31, 1094 in the Terra calendar.

There is still one month until the start of the Kavaleriaki Knights' Tournament qualifiers, the grandest celebration in all of Kazimierz.

Although it was still morning, the streets were already bustling with activity. Various knight-themed merchandise, prepared in advance by shrewd vendors, was displayed prominently in shop windows. There were dolls of the former "Blazing Axe Knight," who had already earned the title of "Blood Knight," and candlesticks identical to those of the Candle Knight Viviana. However, where the most popular merchandise from the previous champion should have been displayed were now merchandise featuring the Black Knight, who had already retired from the knightly arena. The reasons for this were, of course, self-evident.

“These days in Kazimierz, even mentioning the name of the Radiant Knight is taboo, and only you dare to use his name.”

As Monique spoke, she glanced at Roy, who still looked sleepy beside her. Noticing his absent-mindedness, she pinched Roy's waist with her finger in annoyance.

"Cheer up!"

“But today is a day off.” Roy winced in pain and looked at Monique with some resentment. He didn’t know what had gotten into his good colleague. Not only did she sneak into his room early in the morning, but she also dragged him out of bed, claiming that she wanted Roy to go shopping with her.

You, a former Victorian soldier and now an Unarmed Assassin, what makes you even associated with the word "shopping"?

Roy hadn't forgotten his promise to Monique to go out together during his free time, but wasn't it him who invited Monique? How could Monique suddenly become the one to take the initiative and drag him out the door? "You're a girl, being so proactive, I'd think you were planning something with me."

"It would be great if you actually planned to do something, but what's with dragging me out to play and then talking about work...?"

Roy muttered a complaint under his breath, but couldn't bear to leave the lazy cat, who was chatting about work on his day off, hanging up on him. So he replied:

"Yao Knight has indeed been smeared, but its reputation is still there. Being infamous is still being famous, and reverse marketing is still marketing. I haven't directly used the slogan of exonerating Yao Knight, which is already considered restraint."

"Besides, isn't this the effect the BOSS wanted? Who would have thought that the Unarmored Alliance, which is mortal enemies of traditional knights, would participate in the competition under the name of the most renowned family among traditional knights?"

Monique nodded in deep agreement. To be honest, if he didn't know Roy very well, he would probably think that Roy was one of the Supervisory Council members just by looking at his behavior over this period of time.

That's a huge slap in the face. If the business association finds out the truth, they'll probably be so angry they'll smash the boss's phone.