Chapter 374

Baron Corst
We arrived at the capital of Baron Corst’s domain, Corst, in two days.
Since it was right next to Vardmoi and we were using magic vehicles, that was only natural.
Even though it was a neighboring territory, the Kiblinki Saltas stood out.
People were still casting fearful glances our way.
If they actually spoke with them, they’d realize they were quite gentlemanly spiders, though.

"Welcome, Marquis Vardmoi. Are these the monsters you mentioned?"

The man who came to greet us was a tall, solidly built older gentleman.
Apparently, this was Baron Corst.
He gave off a strong warrior-like impression.

"Indeed. Four for city security, ten for pioneering new land, and another ten for crop exploration. I’ve brought them as promised."

"I appreciate the effort. And where is the tamer of these monsters?"

"That girl over there. Her name is Lily. Believe it or not, she’s a Silver-ranked merchant."

"Believe it or not"—how rude.

Though, I guess I was getting used to it.

"That girl…? Pardon me. I just found it hard to believe that someone like her could control so many monsters."

"Hmm. Then, how about testing her in battle? She may not look it, but she’s quite strong."

Marquis Vardmoi!?
Stop provoking him unnecessarily!
And Baron Corst seems eager, too.
What should I do?

"Well then, Lady Lily, are you ready?"

"Yes. Just… please don’t go all out."

"Of course. I wouldn’t fight a merchant seriously."

In the end, there was no avoiding it.
Since this was a practice match, we used wooden weapons, but personal armor was allowed.
That meant I’d be using my goddess-bestowed armor, so I wasn’t likely to get injured.
Still, I didn’t have much experience with fighting other people.
When was the last time I even did this?

"Then, let’s begin… Start!"

At the referee’s call, the mock battle commenced.

But neither of us made the first move.

I was in my usual defensive stance—tower shield and short spear, staying guarded like a turtle and counterattacking whenever I spotted an opening.

Baron Corst, on the other hand, wielded a standard one-handed sword and a small shield, watching me carefully.
Hmm… at this rate, the fight would just stagnate.

Alright, I’ll make the first move.

"A trap spell, is it?"

Wow, he noticed instantly.
Since he wasn’t attacking, I was trying to scatter some trap magic from behind my shield.
But the moment I activated the first one, he caught on.
He really *is* a warrior through and through.

"If I keep waiting to see what you’ll do, I’ll lose all room to maneuver. In that case—here I come!"

With that, Baron Corst closed the distance in an instant and launched his attack.
At first, he slashed at me with his sword, but when he realized my shield wouldn’t budge, he started bashing it with his own shield.
The impact was so strong!
This guy had more power than an ogre!

"Tch… Even with this, I still can’t break through?"

"Well, I can barely manage to hold my ground myself."

"No… If I can’t break through a tamer’s defenses, then I’ve already lost. I surrender."

That was a relief.
I was glad we settled things before either of us got hurt.
If Talat had been here, he would have trapped Baron Corst in spider web the moment he started attacking.
I never realized just how critical it was to be able to break through a tamer’s defenses.
This was quite the learning experience.

What do you think about this chapter?