~Chapter 43~
A square outdoor arena was made with sturdy ropes. It looked plain and simple.
“Damn it! You idiot, I bet 200 Yubles on you, and you went down like a rag!”
“Chris! Hooray! Chris! Hooray!”
It was prizefighting—bare-knuckle boxing with no protective gear. That’s why people often got badly hurt.
“Chris Felton wins three matches in a row! No surprises tonight. Is there another challenger?”
A man with yellow hair was enjoying his victory.
“We got Lily’s hat back, so that’s enough. Let’s just leave,” Lily said, thinking only about getting Blake back to the hotel.
The Winter Castle group tried to ignore the match and push through the crowd.
“Excuse us, let us through.”
As they carefully made their way past, a loud voice rang out from the arena.
“Hey! You in the robes!”
It was Chris Felton, the three-time winner.
Everyone’s eyes turned to him. Naturally, they followed his gaze—to Blake’s group.
“I want one of those guys as my next opponent!”
Blake recognized him as the man who tried to approach Lily earlier.
The crowd was excited, winning and losing money. They began to circle Blake’s group.
“Chris, be clear—which one do you want?”
“The tallest guy? Is Chris Felton even in the same weight class as him?”
Blake now had only two choices: run away in embarrassment, or step into the ring.
“Let’s just go,” Lily tried to stop him.
But Chris heard her voice and provoked them even more.
“Or you could just leave the woman behind and run. Coward!”
Chris’s friend, acting as a coach, sat nearby, smoking and making rude gestures to stir the crowd. The boy who stole Lily’s hat had been hired by them to bring the group here. Chris was confident in a one-on-one fight.
“You bastard!”
The maids couldn’t hold back anymore and shouted back, making Chris even happier.
“I’ve got a nice bed for you, lady. You look even better without the hat.”
The crowd laughed at the crude joke. Watching a prizefight was a fun, illegal way to relieve stress after a long day.
Lily replied with a gentle smile,
“Sorry, I don’t like talking to men whose faces look like they got run over by a carriage.”
“What?”
“A face flattened by a carriage…”
“My ears are fine!”
“Then why did you ask again? That’s weird.”
The crowd exploded with laughter.
“Did you hear what that woman just said?”
“Idiot, Chris!”
Blake looked up at the sunset sky. Was running really the only way out?
I have a few minutes left. That’s enough to deal with a fool like him.
Blake took off his robe and put it over Lily’s head, showing he accepted the fight. Lily was worried.
“But, Blake…”
“I’ll be back soon. Cover your face so you don’t stand out.”
Blake jumped over the ropes into the arena.
His dark skin and strong, muscular neck were revealed. The crowd gasped.
“He’s from Uffus?”
“Look how big he is! Maybe Chris will lose this time!”
Chris felt a little nervous. He never expected a body like that under the robe. Still, he pretended not to care.
“Don’t be stupid. Keep betting on Chris! He’s beaten guys even bigger than that!”
People started betting again—most on Chris Felton, the regular winner.
“Lily,” Blake called out as he loosened his fists. He couldn’t call her “my lady” with so many people around.
“Bet on me. Five chicken skewers aren’t enough for all of us.”
The announcer cheered, “I don’t know what that means, but the new challenger looks confident! Sometimes courage is better than any drug!”
He quickly explained the rules: “Only fists allowed. No choking with clothes. If someone falls and can’t return to the center in 30 seconds, they lose…”
“Just start,” Blake said.
“Y-yes, sir.”
The signal sounded. Lily bit her lip, worried.
“I don’t know why things turned out like this. Will Blake get hurt?”
“Don’t worry, Lily,” the servants said. They were calm—actually, they bet all their money on Blake.
Lily then remembered something Il Dexter once said:
“Miss Lily, His Excellency is a master of every weapon. If you put anything in his hand, he could take out ten men at once.”
She knew Blake was impressive. But boxing used only bare hands.
Blake and Chris circled each other.
“You’re not a couple, right?” Chris sneered.
Blake just shrugged.
“At least you’re not confused.”
“What?”
Chris kept trying to provoke him, looking for an opening.
“How does it feel to hang around a pretty woman? Must be nice.”
“Just imagine how embarrassed you’ll be if I beat you up. After that, I’ll take your woman. If you still want her, I’ll return her after a week. It’s a generous offer.”
Blake expected to get angry at those words. His whole body should have burned with rage—but instead, he felt cold, as if ice water had been poured on his head.
I thought he was at least human. But he’s just a dog. Actually, that’s an insult to dogs.
Blake relaxed his fists and stood up straight, mumbling,
“Did I ever look like that to her?”
Did I seem so rude and wild to Lily? But with such a classy woman, wouldn’t anyone look like a thug?
Chris lunged in, aiming for Blake’s waist to throw him down—but it was pointless.
“Is that all you’ve got? Not even entertaining,” Blake said, unmoving.
To Lily, the place was a nightmare—the crowd screamed like maniacs. But to Blake, this was nothing compared to a real battlefield.
He wanted Chris to feel that difference himself. Blake’s fist landed on Chris’s jaw.
“Ugh!”
Chris collapsed, and the crowd booed.
“Chris, get up! Don’t lose now!”
“If you lose here, I can’t go home!”
Chris was shocked. How could one punch hurt so much? He felt dizzy, like a seasick sailor. But he had to get revenge for what happened earlier. He spat bloody saliva and staggered to his feet.
“Lucky shot! You won’t get cocky after just one hit, will you, you dirty barbarian?”
He tried to attack while talking, but Blake dodged and jabbed him lightly. Even those soft punches made Chris wobble.
“Try again.”
“I’ll kill you!”
“You call that killing?”
Blake easily landed hit after hit, barely using his strength.
“Good job, Master!” the Winter Castle maids cheered.
They had no doubt Blake would win. They wanted him to punish the man who insulted Lily.
Lily, though, couldn’t feel happy with them. She sensed how angry Blake really was, even though he tried to hide it.
Is there really any reason for you to be this mad? Lily thought.
In just a few minutes, Chris collapsed again.
“No, don’t fall! Get up!” Blake grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up.
“If you stay down, the match is over, isn’t it?”
“Wait, wait—let’s stop now, okay?” Chris begged, covered in dirt, blood, and something slimy.
“You started this. Shouldn’t you finish it? Ask me again—how does it feel to be with a pretty woman?”
Blake remembered every word Chris said.
“I tried to imagine being beaten by you, but it didn’t work. The truth is the opposite.”
Blake dragged Chris to the edge of the arena and threw him out.
“Pick up your teeth. If you need them, come back in a week.”
Chris, lying in the dirt, looked up at Blake against the sunset. He regretted everything.
If only I’d calmed down, I could’ve found another woman and enjoyed the festival… This was the worst day ever.
