Chapter 70

Roughly two hours had passed since the farce put on by Francis and Itsuki.

Harold stood with the two men on the grounds of a chalk-white Western-style manor. It was situated in a secluded spot on the outskirts of Kablan, nestled against the shores of a lake teeming with nature. The buildings and gardens were clearly well-managed, showing signs of meticulous, regular upkeep.

Apparently, this was a vacant property owned by the Berliozes.

"It’s currently on the market, but it seems they’re having trouble finding a buyer," Itsuki remarked.

Well, I can see why, Harold thought.

While the location was somewhat remote, the scenery—with the lake in the foreground and mountains towering behind—was magnificent. The three-story manor was a picture of elegance, its vivid white walls reflecting beautifully off the blue surface of the water. A boat mooring sat at the water’s edge, and several cottages were scattered across the spacious grounds.

He wondered just how much a place like this would cost. It was undoubtedly a property far beyond the reach of an average noble.

"It’s a bit cramped, but it wouldn't make a bad villa," Francis noted.

"Wouldn't it? The price is reasonable, too. I suppose the location is the only real hurdle," Itsuki replied.

The two high-society types carried on, completely oblivious to Harold’s internal commentary.

Harold couldn't wrap his head around their perspective. To him, a three-story mansion with enough rooms to rival a boutique hotel was hardly "cramped," even for a vacation home. This manor was larger than the entire Stokes mansion.

He didn’t even have the energy to spit acid at the "bourgeoisie."

The reason the three of them were visiting such a place was, naturally, not to appraise the real estate.

Once they had fired themselves up for a duel, they realized they lacked a venue. They couldn't exactly start a brawl at the Berlioz estate, so they had slipped away under the flimsy pretext that Francis was looking for a villa and the other two were showing him around the city.

They needed a wide, private space where they could fight without hesitation. This property fit the bill perfectly.

"If you want to play real estate agent, do it when I’m not around," Harold snapped.

"Fair point. Itsuki, where should we do this?" Francis asked.

"Let’s head to the back."

Itsuki led them to a riding ground enclosed by a wooden fence. While horsemanship was a standard noble pursuit and even the Stokes mansion had stables, one usually had to leave the grounds to actually ride.

The riding ground was currently deserted. Since it was being maintained but lacked any actual horses, it felt strangely hollow.

"This will do. We can cut loose here without holding back," Francis said.

"I’d prefer if you didn't destroy the place, though," Itsuki added.

"Save your concern. I won't even be drawing my sword."

At Harold's declaration, Itsuki and Francis froze. It was a natural reaction to someone claiming they wouldn't use their weapon in a duel.

After a tense silence, Francis spoke, his voice vibrating with irritation. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Do I have to spell it out? You aren't worth the effort of drawing steel."

Harold knew his words were incredibly provocative. However, as it stood, he couldn't see a single scenario where he would lose to Francis.

Based on the various tests he’d conducted over the last few years, Harold estimated his current level to be over 70 by Brave Hearts standards. In the game, the player fights Harold three times; a level of 70 made him equivalent to his stats in the final encounter.

While he didn't have a literal status screen, he had calculated his level through the grueling process of fighting hundreds of specific monsters and reverse-engineering his power based on their HP values.

It had been a miserable grind. Assuming this world followed the game's leveling logic, fighting repeatedly would naturally raise his level. A margin of error of one or two levels was fine, but if he leveled up significantly before he could establish a baseline, he’d lose track of his own strength entirely.

Another benchmark he used was his available skill set.

In Brave Hearts, enemy characters like Harold and Vincent had level-gated skills, just like the protagonists. When he first arrived in this world, Harold had tried to use every skill in his repertoire, but the results were binary: he either could use a move perfectly, or not at all. There was no middle ground. Then, reaching a certain threshold, skills that had been locked away suddenly became accessible.

Because of this, Harold was convinced that a level-up system existed in this world.

For context, Harold’s HP in the final boss fight exceeded 140,000. Even without being in a Berserk State, his second-encounter stats sat at 90,000 HP, meaning he was likely somewhere in between right now.

In contrast, Francis’s starting level in the game was tied to the party’s average—usually joining around level 30.

If Harold had 100,000 HP and Francis was level 30, the health gap was tenfold. Francis, who wasn't exactly known for his high damage output, wouldn't be able to finish Harold off even if he landed a solo 100-hit combo.

However, there was an exception to every rule: Critical Hits. In the game, a critical hit simply doubled damage, but in this reality where game logic and physics merged, things were more complicated.

The Ice Dragon he’d slain on Mount Giran had roughly 20,000 HP in the game. Lifa’s attacks wouldn't have even shaved off a third of that. Yet, Harold had killed one in a single strike and finished its healthy companion in fewer than ten. That wasn't just raw power; it was because he had targeted vital points to trigger critical hits.

Granted, landing critical hits on an Ice Dragon required immense skill and a high level, and resistance to damage scaled with level as well. Strength still mattered. However, if one left themselves wide open, even a level 1 opponent could land a fatal critical hit.

In this world, a single critical hit could be the end of the line regardless of HP.

Digression aside, as long as he stayed focused and didn't leave himself open to a lucky shot, Harold’s victory was guaranteed.

Conversely, he didn't want to accidentally mangle Francis with his own attacks. He felt that a handicap of this magnitude was the only way to make it a fair fight.

"…I’ll make you take those words back," Francis growled.

"Try it. If you can force me to draw my blade, I’ll count it as your win."

Harold sneered.

This was also his insurance for "losing." He would provoke Francis into an all-out assault, then "instinctively" guard with his sword at the last second. By his own rules, that would count as a defeat.

He stepped inside the fence and faced Francis in the center. The Prince’s face was alight with fighting spirit.

"Final confirmation," Itsuki announced. "The duelists are Harold Stokes and Francis J. Arclight. I, Itsuki Sumeragi, shall act as witness. The match ends when I judge a participant incapacitated, when one side surrenders, or—in Harold’s case—if he uses a weapon. Any objections?"

"None," they said in unison.

Their voices overlapped, both men already locked in a state of total focus.

And then—

"Very well. For this duel with marriage to Erika Sumeragi on the line, let the—"

"Wait."

Harold’s concentration shattered instantly.

Itsuki had just said the duel was for "marriage" to Erika. Harold had definitely not misheard that.

"Is something the matter?" Itsuki asked innocently.

"Is something—? Everything is the matter! Why is Erika’s marriage being staked on this?"

Not an engagement, but marriage. Meaning the winner would marry her outright.

This was wrong. The deal was supposed to be: if Harold won, he got to order Francis around; if Francis won, Harold would disappear from Itsuki and Erika’s lives.

"It’s fine, isn't it? If you want to marry Erika, all you have to do is win," Itsuki said.

"You idiot. That’s not what I’m worried about."

"Besides, you’re already engaged to her, and if you lose, Fran is going to try and woo her anyway, right? It’s essentially the same thing."

"It’s completely different. More importantly, her own wishes are—"

"Uh, excuse me? I’m not quite following the situation," Francis interrupted, "but basically, if I win, I get Erika as my bride?"

"I think that’s a bit out of your league, Fran," Itsuki provoked with a smile.

Itsuki was goading him. Harold wondered if his own personality was rubbing off on the guy.

Francis, however, closed his eyes and crossed his arms, falling into deep thought. When he finally opened them, his gaze was more intense than ever.

"Now I’m really motivated! I’m going to give this everything I’ve got!"

His emerald eyes blazed as he leveled his rapier.

Harold had a very bad feeling about this.

The moment Itsuki gave the signal to start, Harold realized his intuition had been spot-on.

Francis closed the distance in a single stride and lunged. For Harold, the speed wasn't overwhelming; it was something he could easily parry while maintaining his range.

However, the thrust was faster and sharper than he had anticipated. Instinctively, he found himself countering an attack that should have been Francis’s "all-out" finisher.

(A Brave Mode opener?! Are you kidding me?!)

It was the same "invincibility mode" Rainer had displayed at the fighting tournament. It boosted attack power, halved incoming damage, and granted super-armor, meaning attacks wouldn't flinch him or cancel his skills.

But Brave Mode was a "gauge skill." You were supposed to build it up by attacking, guarding, and landing combos. It wasn't something you could just pop at the start of a fight.

(Does he not need a gauge? Is he just using it because he’s fired up? This is ridiculous! But more importantly…)

Harold scrambled to gather his thoughts while weaving through the assault. He was effortlessly dodging attacks that he had intended to let hit him so he could lose.

He had lost his "win condition for losing." It was a vicious cycle that left his tactical mind in shambles.

His original plan was to pummel Francis with unarmed strikes, then use his stockpiled items to heal him, effectively "farming" the experience points Harold himself possessed.

As mentioned, leveling existed here. In Brave Hearts, active party members got 100% experience, while those on the bench or KO’d got 70%. Critically, you still earned experience even if you lost.

Since this was an RPG world, field monsters gave pittance, but boss characters gave massive payouts. Harold was the boss with the most encounters in the entire game.

The first Harold fight gave 8,000 XP; the second, 35,000; and the final, 72,000. Based on his level, Harold estimated his current "worth" at around 60,000 XP.

If Francis lost, he’d still get 10%—roughly 6,000 XP.

At level 30, the XP required to level up was in the 5,000 range. Even after level 35, it only bumped up to the 6,000s. That meant Francis would level up almost every single time they fought.

Of course, this was all theory. There was no way to verify it, and there was a chance that beating Francis into the dirt would yield nothing at all.

But if the hypothesis was correct, Harold could facilitate a massive power spike for Francis. If he missed this chance—where he was free to move without Justus watching—he might never get another shot to level up the protagonist's party before the plot escalated.

It had to be now. In the game, players mocked Francis as "mediocre," a "jack of all trades, master of none," and he was the first person players benched. There were even "challenge runs" dedicated solely to trying to beat the game with the Prince in the party. If Harold could buff him now, it would raise the entire party’s power ceiling.

I'll figure out how to lose as I go, Harold decided.

With a surge of desperate resolve, Harold drove a heavy kick into Francis’s ribs.