"Annie! Is this Mr. Mecklenburg?"
Before Annie could think of a way to calm Charlot, an exceedingly gentle voice interrupted her.
Two young officers approached, walking side by side.
Both appeared to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, exuding confidence and radiating energy.
One of the young officers was exceptionally handsome, with short golden hair and emerald-green eyes. There was a slight elegance to his demeanor, almost bordering on delicate, and he bore a certain resemblance to Annie.
Charlot, having joined the city patrol guards and worked among military ranks, had been forced to study some Old Continent military hierarchy. He recognized the insignia on the officer's shoulders—he was a first-class sub-lieutenant of the twenty-fourth rank.
The twenty-fourth rank was known as an "uncrossable class" in the empire. Even if an ordinary commoner followed the rules, made no mistakes, and received extraordinary commendations, they could never hope to reach this rank in their lifetime.
The other young officer, in contrast, radiated warmth and vitality. He had black hair and dark eyes, with a natural aura of pressure that made others instinctively wary. He held the position of fifth-class commander, at the twenty-fifth rank—ten full levels higher than Charlot's third-class chief clerk. Without external intervention, Charlot would need to endure at least thirty more years of arduous service to attain such a position.
Feeling slightly awkward, Charlot performed an imperial salute and said, "I am Charlot Mecklenburg. Good afternoon, gentlemen."
The officer who bore a resemblance to Annie stepped forward and said, "Annie asked me to help you in a duel."
"While I agreed, I do have one small condition."
"If you can withstand three of my moves, I will assist you unconditionally. If you cannot, I will still help, but I ask that you stay away from Annie from now on."
Annie's expression changed slightly as she interjected, "Cousin Clair, I don't need your help."
Clair Bretagne smiled faintly and said, "Mr. Mecklenburg, what do you say?"
Charlot took a deep breath and replied, "I respect Annie's opinion!"
"But... I personally would very much like to cross swords with a Transcendent of your caliber, Mr. Bretagne."
Charlot knew how to "earn points" with members of the Bretagne family. He couldn't allow Annie to think of him as a coward, nor could he back down in front of Clair Bretagne and risk leaving a poor impression.
Most importantly, dueling with Clair carried no life-threatening risks.
Charlot was about to face a duel challenge from the Fierce Horse Detective Agency, and gaining experience against a skilled opponent would be immensely beneficial for the upcoming fight.
Charlot had never been one to place all his hopes in the hands of others.
He was always ready to fight his own battles.
Clair raised an eyebrow and said to Annie, "I won't hit too hard."
The fifth-class commander standing beside Clair stepped back, making room for the duel.
Annie appeared anxious, but after glancing at the two men, she eventually retreated to the side.
This was Gorgias University, where almost every nation on the Old Continent had a culture of martial prowess. If Charlot avoided the duel, it wouldn’t be long before he earned a nickname for cowardice.
Conversely, losing a duel was perfectly common and wouldn’t damage his reputation.
Annie trusted that her cousin would not go too far.
A duel was always a spectacle at a university, and soon dozens of students gathered around, with more arriving as news spread.
Clair Bretagne stood a dozen steps away from Charlot but did not immediately make a move. Instead, he slowly pulled out a pair of pristine silk gloves and said, "You don't mind, do you?"
Charlot shook his head. "Not at all."
Clair donned the gloves with deliberate care and said, "I have a bit of a cleanliness obsession. During duels, I prefer wearing gloves to avoid direct contact with my opponent."
Seeing that Clair had no intention of using weapons, Charlot calmly activated Blood Glory and said, "I washed my hands on the way here."
Clair smiled faintly and said, "Please, defend yourself!"
Though Clair appeared refined and elegant, with a slightly delicate air, the moment he moved, he was as fast as a storm. His hands slashed through the air like blades, striking dozens of times in an instant, filling the space between them with illusions of knife-like fingers.
Charlot instantly activated Eye of Insight. In the very next moment, he realized he could not keep up with the golden-haired officer's "hand speed." Without hesitation, he transformed into a form of bloodflame.
Clair was a graduate of Hartington Thunder and Storm University. Unlike the other three imperial universities, this academy specialized in producing knights, particularly Thunder Knights and Storm Knights—the pinnacle of knightly traditions on the Old Continent.
Although Sheffield University possessed Dark Breathing Techniques and Black Moon Meditation, the most orthodox legacy of the Lady of the Black Moon lay with Dark Moon Sorcerers, not knights.
Gorgias University, on the other hand, was blessed by the Elven God and specialized in astrology and card magic. Annie Bretagne's chosen Transcendent path, Dreamcrafting arts, belonged to this branch.
Incidentally, Venie Arsenault's expertise in Cat Spirit Magic also originated from Gorgias University.
While the bloodflame state rendered Charlot immune to most physical attacks, knights trained at Hartington Thunder and Storm University possessed combat energy imbued with thunder or storm attributes. Charlot had no intention of meeting Clair's attacks head-on. Instead, he allowed his "body" to disperse, transforming his bloodflame into a nimble feather that evaded Clair's strikes with fluid grace.
Charlot fully unleashed his Eye of Insight and Angel's Thorn abilities.
Though Clair fought unarmed, his techniques were rooted in Hartington's orthodox knightly swordsmanship.
Charlot relied on Eye of Insight to predict changes in the airflow and used the swordsmanship insights granted by Angel's Thorn—an inheritance of the Arsilo family—to anticipate Clair's moves. Against all odds, Charlot managed to hold out against the attacks of this seventeenth-rank knight.
Clair was visibly surprised. While he had held back somewhat, he hadn’t expected Charlot to narrowly escape his devastating Thunderstorm Sword Technique.
Switching from a thrust to a light palm strike, Clair struck Charlot before he could react, sending him flying back dozens of steps. The gap between them was still immense—ten entire ranks—and if Clair had been serious, he could have ended the fight in an instant.
However, after knocking Charlot back, Clair stopped attacking, removed his gloves, and casually activated his combat energy, reducing the gloves to fine powder. "Did you choose Blood Glory at the university?"
Charlot returned to human form, his face pale. Clair Bretagne truly lived up to his reputation as a seventeenth-rank knight. Though Charlot had avoided Clair's initial barrage with Eye of Insight and Angel's Thorn, he had been dancing on the edge of a blade. The residual combat energy from Clair's attack had penetrated Charlot's Bloodflame Aura, causing light injuries.
"If I faced him on a battlefield, Eye of Insight would be nearly useless. Even if I could predict his attacks, I wouldn’t have the ability to defend against them. Angel's Thorn may contain the Arsilo family's profound swordsmanship, but my rank is far too low..."
Taking a deep breath, Charlot activated Blood Glory to gradually dispel the lingering combat energy in his body and replied, "Yes, I chose Blood Glory."