Dragon King: Throne of Demons and Gods-Chapter 20: Fractured Bonds

Will felt the world slow down as he fell, his body no longer responding to his will. He could feel the dirt rushing up to meet him, the sting of his defeat settling deeper than just his battered body.

Pain spread through his limbs, but that was nothing compared to the shame burning in his chest.

He saw it all, Sienna watching, her expression a mix of worry and disbelief. The knights around them, whispering among themselves, some shaking their heads. But above all else, he heard it.

Crest's voice.

No. No, no, no... Not like this.

The realization hit him harder than Bel's blows. He had failed, not just in a fight, but in the worst way possible. In front of his friends, in front of his mentors. In front of Crest.

His body hit the ground with a dull thud, dust rising in the air, but before the attention could settle on him, all eyes were pulled toward one figure.

Crest stood before them, his arm still outstretched, his fingers slightly curled as if he had meant to stop the fight but had been too late. His hand trembled slightly, but his eyes... his eyes burned.

A slow, seething anger smoldered beneath his usually composed gaze, one that sent an unnatural silence through the courtyard.

The knights stiffened. Sienna swallowed hard, her fingers gripping the hem of her sleeves. Dusteria's arms tensed at her sides, her body frozen as she stared, barely breathing. The air had shifted.

Bel exhaled through his nose, tilting his head slightly as he observed Crest. His own eyes widened for a moment as he realized something.

He had been so focused on Will, so caught up in his own experiment, that he had overlooked the bigger picture. Crest wasn't just any noble. He was Will's friend. And apparently... Will's superior.

Now that Bel had utterly crushed him, left him sprawled out on the dirt like a discarded doll, Crest's reaction only meant one thing.

In a world of noble, where Bel was outcasted for being a peasant, he had humiliated the friend of a noble he should be serving.

This was the definition of trouble.

A tense, drawn-out silence settled over the crowd as Crest finally spoke.

His voice was calm, too calm.

"What... is this?"

His tone carried no immediate fury, no shouting or theatrics. Just something low and burning beneath the surface, like a fire waiting to consume everything in its path.

Bel sighed, putting the sword down as he met Crest's gaze evenly.

"A duel."

Crest's fingers twitched slightly.

"A duel? This?"

Bel nodded, unfazed.

"Will challenged me for Dusteria's knight position. He lost. Simple as that."

Crest exhaled slowly, his chest rising and falling in measured control.

"And you felt the need to humiliate him?"

Bel raised an eyebrow.

"I only fought at a level equal to his, to make sure I didn't seriously injure him. It dragged on longer than necessary because while I could measure his attacking potential, I couldn't do the same for his resilience."

Murmurs rippled through the knights. Some shifted uncomfortably, others whispered between themselves, but none dared to step forward.

Crest took a slow step forward, his eyes locking onto Bel with a cold intensity.

"You knew you were stronger. You knew he stood no chance. And still... you toyed with him. You humiliated him on purpose."

Bel sighed, tapping his wooden sword against his shoulder. "I fought at his level to avoid seriously injuring him. But since I couldn't tell how tough he was, I had to drag things out. That's all there was to it."

Crest's jaw clenched, his fingers flexing before curling into a fist.

"Don't act like you don't know exactly what you were doing. This wasn't just about measuring strength. You wanted to play. You wanted to put on a show."

Bel exhaled sharply through his nose, irritation flashing in his eyes.

"Ah, this is getting nowhere. What's about you? I can smell your real problem from here. You're not mad about Will. If you were, you'd be checking on him instead of talking in circles. So what is it that you really want?"

A tense silence stretched between them, the air thick with tension.

Crest's fists tightened, his stance shifting ever so slightly. And then, his voice dropped.

"Then, let's not beat around the bush, you'll fight me next."

Gasps echoed across the courtyard. The knights stirred, some stepping back in shock, others whispering furiously. Even Dusteria's breath caught, her body tensing.

Sienna's eyes widened.

"Crest, wait..."

The sourc𝗲 of this content is freēwēbηovel.c૦m.

Crest ignored her. His focus was solely on Bel, his expression unreadable.

The air in the courtyard remained thick with tension as Bel and Crest locked eyes, neither willing to be the first to move. The knights around them barely dared to breathe, waiting for what might come next.

Then, a voice cut through the silence.

"Enough."

The Duke's tone was sharp, impossible to ignore. Instantly, all eyes shifted toward him as he stepped forward. The knights immediately made way, parting like a tide before their lord.

Bel and Crest still didn't break their stare, but neither moved.

The Duke's gaze swept over them before settling on Crest.

"A duel is not a game," the Duke stated. "Nor is it an excuse to settle personal quarrels with reckless challenges. The purpose of a battle is to determine strength, but the fate of the loser is just as important."

Crest clenched his jaw but remained silent.

The Duke's gaze shifted to Bel.

"From my office, we saw everything. Bel was not the one who started this fight." His voice carried unwavering authority. "And if I were to ask for confirmation, I am sure I would hear the same truth from any witness."

As he said, his eyes darted to Sienna who flinched. All eyes briefly turned to her. She hesitated but nodded.

The Duke turned back to Crest.

"These are times when we need strong knights. What Bel did today is nothing but praiseworthy. He fought, and he won." His expression hardened. "The only thing to be judged here is Will's arrogance in challenging someone far beyond his capability."

Crest's fists tightened at his sides, his frustration barely contained. Then, with a deep breath, he straightened.

"Then I'll fight him next," he declared. "I want a duel."

A murmur spread through the knights.

The Duke narrowed his eyes.

"No. You will meet me in my office."

Crest's lips pressed into a thin line, his expression unreadable. But after a tense moment, he gave a curt nod.

The Duke turned away, walking back toward the mansion. Crest lingered, his gaze locking onto Bel one last time.

Then he called out.

"Sienna."

She stiffened, startled.

"Y-Yes?"

"Take Will to his room."

Sienna hesitated, glancing at Will's unconscious body before nodding quickly.

Crest finally turned and followed his father. As he passed Dusteria, their eyes met.

For a brief moment, she saw the storm of emotions behind his gaze. Anger. Frustration. Disappointment.

Then, without a word, he looked away and walked past her.

Dusteria reached out instinctively, about to call his name, but at the last second, she hesitated.

Her hands trembled before lowering to her sides.

The knights slowly dispersed, their gazes flickering between Bel and Will before leaving. Some threw glances of mockery, others of unease. But all understood one thing, Bel was now an enemy of the son of their lord.

Bel, meanwhile, barely paid attention to them. He glanced down at his fingers, flexing them slightly. The bruise left by Will's fire strike was still faintly visible.

... I need to speed up my evolution.

However, his thoughts were cut short by an approaching presence.

Dusteria.

She stormed toward him, her steps sharp, her breath uneven.

"This is all your fault!" she snapped, her voice raw, cutting through the thick tension that still lingered in the courtyard. "You ruined everything!"

The knights, who had started to disperse, turned back at the sudden outburst. All eyes were now on them.

Bel barely spared her a glance. He exhaled slowly, his patience already thinning.

"What?"

Dusteria's rage only grew at his indifference. Her chest heaved as she stepped closer, fists clenched so tightly her nails dug into her palms.

"My relationship with Crest, my friends, everything!" Her voice climbed higher, laced with frustration, pain. "You were supposed to stay out of my way! We had an agreement!"

Bel's expression darkened slightly, his gaze finally meeting hers.

"... Yes, we had, and I respected it. I never tried to interact with you." His tone cooled even further. "I didn't, but you... You did once. Your friends did twice. If someone isn't respecting your own wish, it's you."

Dusteria sucked in a sharp breath, trembling. His words stung because they were true, but that only fueled her anger more.

"You...!"

Her voice cracked, and she took a step forward, her vision blurring with the sheer weight of everything pressing down on her.

Crest's disappointed eyes. The way Sienna hesitated. The whispers. The way her status, her position, her control had slipped through her fingers without her realizing it. And him, the symbol of the change of her life.

Standing there, unbothered, like none of it mattered.

"I should never have agreed to have you as my knight!" she screamed, her voice shaking. "I should have never let this happen! Everything was fine before you and your people came along!"

Her breath hitched, but she couldn't stop herself. Everything she had bottled up, every frustration, every shred of control she thought she had, it all crumbled in this moment.

"You're not like us! You don't belong here! You've never belonged here! And now, because of you, Crest..."

She cut herself off, chest rising and falling rapidly. Her anger had unraveled into something more vulnerable, something she refused to name.

The courtyard had fallen into complete silence.

The knights who had been entertained by the fight now stood frozen, watching the scene unfold with wide eyes. Even Sienna, who had stepped forward as if to intervene, stayed still, uncertain.

Through it all, Bel said nothing.

He stood there, impassive, letting her words fall like meaningless noise around him. He didn't interrupt, didn't argue. He let her rage wash over him.

Then, at some point, he sighed.

He lifted his gaze to her, his expression finally shifting, not to anger, not to irritation, but something colder.

"Then let's do it."

His voice wasn't raised, but it cut through the silence.

Dusteria blinked, thrown off by the sudden change in the air.

Bel tilted his head slightly, his tone eerily calm.

"I quit."