I Am Not The Duke's Evil Son
Chapter 67: Waiting and a Duel

Chapter 67: Waiting and a Duel

With heavy steps, Octavia wandered through the corridors of the castle not due to fatigue or exhaustion, but because she felt hollow inside, and all she wanted was for time to pass quickly.

With indifference and gloomy expressions, she stopped near one of the windows and gazed out at the lively town. Then, she began surveying the surrounding area and the roads leading into it. Deep inside, she wholeheartedly wished to see the person occupying her thoughts.

She let out a long sigh quietly, "My lord, when will you return? I miss your company."

She raised her hand and placed it on her chest, feeling her irregular heartbeat, then sighed. She had finally realized the nature of her feelings toward Arthur; she liked him. Not in the casual, friendly way she’d thought at first, but in that subtle, heart-fluttering way that crept up on her when she wasn’t paying attention.

It had all started when he left six days ago. At first, she handled it normally and only felt a bit off due to his absence.

But after not seeing him for two full days, she began to miss him and felt an emptiness inside. With each passing day, her longing grew, and eventually, he came to dominate a large part of her thoughts. Her mind became distracted and her body sluggish—at that point, she was certain of her feelings.

She took a deep breath and intended to leave, but hesitated, once again surveying the area around the town. Yet she found no sign of his arrival. She knew that already, but her emotions made her unable to resist.

"Where are you now, my lord? It’s been six days since you left."

Resigned, she walked away. She knew there was no point in anticipation and waiting. Besides, Arthur had entrusted her with several responsibilities before leaving, and she had to fulfill them so as not to disappoint him.

She pulled herself together, shook off the sluggishness in her body, regained her calm expression, and headed to the blacksmith’s workshop to see if he had finished crafting some of the tools they needed in the soap workshop.

On her way, she noticed that the place was unusually quiet and empty. At first, she thought it was due to her conflicting emotions, but the castle was truly empty. Normally, maids would be bustling through the corridors, and the recruits would be stationed at various corners, guarding the area. But now, there was no sign of them anywhere.

"What’s going on here?" she frowned in irritation, but suddenly she heard faint clapping sounds coming from outside the castle.

"This...?" A certain idea crossed her mind, and quickly, she headed toward a specific location. After two minutes, she reached a wide yard designated for the gathering of soldiers, located between the outer wall and the castle.

Unlike usual, the yard was filled with dozens of people, watching a friendly duel between Novarian and Chadwick.

"Tch, ever since that annoying pretty boy showed up, this castle hasn’t known peace or discipline. I don’t know why my lord recruited him, he’s just a nuisance." She was greatly annoyed by it and felt like Novarian was stealing the spotlight from her noble lord, who in her eyes was the only one worthy of such attention.

Although most others didn’t share her view—in fact, many didn’t like Arthur and considered him moody and extreme in his actions.

The bad reputation that the original Arvan had earned wasn’t something that could be easily changed.

...

In the center of the yard, Chadwick gripped his sword with all his strength, scanning his surroundings with extreme caution. He was sweating profusely, looking for an opening to exploit for an attack—but found none. In resignation, he swung his sword straight forward.

His strike was very powerful, capable of threatening anyone at his level. But Novarian, standing before him, didn’t show any notable reaction. He easily raised his sword and blocked the strike, unmoving and without even blinking. To him, an attack at level D wasn’t anything worrisome.

Chadwick sighed at the sight, "It’s no use. You’re at a higher level than me. I can’t keep up with you." Deep down, he was shocked by his own words.

He couldn’t believe how his lord had managed to recruit someone of such strength, and at the same time, he felt somewhat threatened—fearing he might lose his position and become just another ordinary knight.

Knowing that Arthur was the one who made the forest beasts attack them, his feelings were conflicted. He feared him, yet also respected him especially since Arthur had saved him from the mountain bear. Because of that, he felt he had a certain place in his lord’s eyes, and he didn’t want to disappoint him.

Thinking about that, he remembered the scene of the ferocious bear that nearly cost them their lives. This made him feel overwhelming anger. "I must become stronger. I won’t remain a burden waiting to be saved. I don’t know my lord’s true intent, but I’m sure he doesn’t mean us harm... maybe?" Despite his doubts, his resolve strengthened and his morale rose.

Then, without hesitation, he attacked Novarian again. As usual, his attacks were easily blocked, but he didn’t care and continued his assault.

’His mood has changed, and his movements have become faster.’ Novarian was surprised by the aura of determination coming from Chadwick.

In truth, he hadn’t been interested in the duel and had accepted the challenge only to show good faith. But now, he felt a sort of excitement and wanted to see how their duel would end.

This was only the second time he had fought a human like himself. The first was about two weeks ago when he met a strange man in the forest—and unfortunately, that encounter wasn’t a pleasant one.

At the time, seeing a stranger roaming the forest like himself startled him. He had wanted to approach peacefully, to ask about the man’s identity and purpose—out of pure curiosity. But the stranger hadn’t responded with good intent and instead launched a surprise attack, intending to kill him.

Instinctively, he defended himself, which led to a life-or-death battle with the stranger. In the end, after a fierce fight, he accidentally killed the man.

The incident shocked him—he hadn’t expected to take another’s life, even by mistake. But unlike Arthur, he didn’t struggle much with accepting it and handled the matter with some calm. By stealing the man’s abilities, he acquired the skills "Lie Detection" and "Enhancement Magic".

After deciding to take things seriously, he no longer focused only on defense. He quickly slashed his sword upward from below—so swiftly that Chadwick’s eyes couldn’t keep up. But unexpectedly, Chadwick managed to dodge the attack, stepping back and staring at Novarian’s sword in horror.

’Was he really trying to kill me? That’s impossible...’ His body trembled, but he didn’t let fear take control. He struck back with force.

None of the spectators spoke. They watched the fight with anticipation and amazement—especially the recruits, who had never seen such a dazzling duel before.

As for the maids, unlike them, most of their attention was fixed on Novarian. They stared at his face and admired his smooth and simple movements. Deep inside, they imagined countless romantic and heroic scenes.

At the same time, Novarian swung his sword again and like before, Chadwick narrowly dodged the blow.

Novarian furrowed his brows in irritation. His strikes were extremely fast and should’ve been impossible for someone of a lower level to avoid. Coldly, he said, "Just surrender. Look, you’ve reached your limit. Besides, I’m faster and stronger than you."

Chadwick smiled and replied, "Yeah, you’re right. But this duel made me realize something I’m more experienced than you." As soon as he said that, he launched a quick strike aimed at Novarian’s chest.

Novarian grew angry, considering it an insult. ’Let’s end this.’

He unleashed all his power and easily blocked the sword, then punched toward Chadwick’s abdomen.

But, incredibly, Chadwick twisted his body and barely dodged the punch; it only grazed the edge of his stomach. At the same moment, he pulled a hidden dagger from his left sleeve and stabbed Novarian in the neck.

Novarian hadn’t expected anything like that. His eyes widened, unable to think of an appropriate reaction. He quickly activated the skill Explosive Steps. The ground beneath him cracked, and soil burst into the air. In an instant, he retreated five meters back. His movement was so sudden that Chadwick stood frozen in shock.

Meanwhile, Novarian stared at the dagger with mysterious eyes and a slightly trembling body. Slowly, a single drop of red blood leaked from a small scratch on his neck.

He raised his hand and touched the blood with his finger. ’I was wounded? By someone weaker than me? How? That’s impossible...’

He couldn’t believe it, but that was the truth. Novarian was just an amateur with no experience. Sure, he had a cheat-like ability that allowed him to raise his stats at an insane pace—but at the same time, he was like an empty shell.

That’s why he nearly got himself killed in the novel inside the goblin nest. They were much weaker than him, yet he was foolish enough to confront them inside their lair.

Due to the cave’s tight space, he couldn’t swing his sword freely, which made him unable to display his full strength. Additionally, the goblins exploited small holes in the cave walls and ambushed him with several deadly attacks.

When Novarian realized he was trapped, he made an even dumber decision—he blew them all up with Explosive Fireballs, nearly collapsing the cave on himself.

In the end, he accepted defeat and fled. That’s when he found the Thornspike Castle bracelet, which Arthur had taken earlier.

But the important thing he learned from that bitter experience was that he had no real combat experience—so he worked on improving himself afterward.

In the novel Rise of the Sword Sovereign, he never dueled Chadwick. What was happening now was proof that the events were starting to change because of Arthur.

Everyone was stunned by what happened. The recruits clapped and whistled enthusiastically, cheering for their gallant captain, while the girls looked at Chadwick with eyes full of hatred—they despised him for daring to injure the prince of their dreams.

At the same time, Octavia stepped in and scolded everyone loudly, "Enough! All of you, get back to work!"

When they heard her, the crowd dispersed quickly. Everyone ran off, including Chadwick, who still didn’t understand what had just happened. As for Novarian, he remained standing in place, deep in thought.

’That idiot’ Octavia shook her head. ’My lord, please come back soon. I’m tired of dealing with these fools. If only I had your presence a single glance would be enough to make them scatter.’

As she sighed, a loud voice rang out from atop the wall:

"The lord has returned! Clear the path!"

Her heart pounded wildly, and she ran quickly toward the gate to quench her longing with a glimpse of the man who had captured her heart and mind.