"Sorry, I still lost."
Shirou got up from the ground.
He wasn't fatally hurt in the last hit, but he was knocked out of the ring, which was the same as losing the match.
Even though Shirou knew in his heart that he hadn't really lost, but had held back at the end because he didn't want to hurt Isolte, others couldn't see the subtle exchange. Most people thought Shirou had truly lost the match.
In this situation, Shirou didn't have the face to see Eris.
He thought Eris would definitely be disappointed in him, and even start to dislike him.
However, to his surprise, Eris didn't show any disgust towards him. The girl just looked at him with a slightly complicated expression and slowly said, "You were so close to winning, it's a shame..."
"Huh?"
Shirou was honestly surprised that Eris would show such a gentle attitude towards him.
He had thought that with her personality, she would probably mock him and berate him for his poor performance.
But that was just what Shirou thought.
In reality, after witnessing the exchange just now, most people were already full of respect for Shirou.
The battle between Shirou and Isolte was so wonderful, both sides showed their full strength.
And although many people didn't see Shirou holding back at the end, many could clearly feel that Shirou actually had a chance to win. He could have delayed the fight, avoiding direct combat with Isolte, and waited for Isolte's fighting spirit to run out, then he could have easily won.
However, Shirou chose to fight Isolte head-on in the most honest and upright way. Such grace could not help but make many swordsmen admire him.
At least, even if they didn't know Shirou was the dragon slayer from Buena Village, the adventurers present were now full of respect for Shirou.
Eris was naturally the same.
"Since we both lost, let's go quickly."
Eris spoke first. Although she didn't think Shirou had lost, that was the rule. Staying here would only add to the humiliation, so it was better to leave early.
"Okay then."
Shirou nodded. He didn't think it was good to leave without saying goodbye. He hoped to talk to Isolte again, at least to say goodbye before leaving.
But Isolte was currently surrounded by disciples of the Water God Style dojo, and it would probably take a long time for her to get away.
Shirou and Eris's challenge match had taken up too much time. It was already evening, and they had to return to the inn as soon as possible so they wouldn't be scolded by Philip.
And they really suspected that if they returned late, Philip might actually post a request at the knight's order, asking the knights to help find them.
To prevent that from happening, Shirou finally didn't have time to leave any words for Isolte, and left the dojo with Eris.
...
Shirou and Eris rushed through the city and successfully returned to the inn before nightfall.
Philip and Ghislaine happened to be returning from outside as well, and they ran into each other.
Philip then spent money to order a table of food and drinks at the inn.
Everyone gathered together to eat dinner.
"A lot happened today."
Philip spoke first, looking at Shirou and Eris, clearly wanting to hear about their experiences first.
Shirou and Eris exchanged glances. The latter seemed a little embarrassed to speak, so Shirou had to tell them what happened during the day on his own.
"You went to the Water God Style dojo to challenge them?"
Philip and Ghislaine couldn't help but show strange expressions when they found out that Shirou and Eris had such a wonderful experience.
Especially Ghislaine. After she challenged the Water God Style dojo in her younger days, she was forbidden from stepping into that dojo ever again. So even if she wanted to visit the Water God Style dojo later, she couldn't.
Now that Shirou and Eris were also challenging the dojo like she did, as their sword instructor, she undoubtedly wanted to witness the battle.
Of course, Ghislaine knew she couldn't, so she could only ask Shirou and Eris to describe the details of the battle as much as possible.
"A Water God Style swordsman who has mastered the Rock Armor secret technique at such a young age? I didn't expect such a person to appear in this generation of Water God Style."
Ghislaine clicked her tongue slightly, not expecting such a strong person like Isolte to appear in the Water God Style.
"I will defeat that guy one day!"
Eris angrily swore. She was probably the most unwilling person there.
The fact that she was instantly killed by Isolte was simply unacceptable to a proud girl like her.
Eris couldn't easily accept such a result no matter what.
"Yes, you can definitely do it."
Ghislaine always had a lot of confidence in Eris. She smiled and encouraged her.
Ghislaine then looked at Shirou and said with regret, "I didn't expect even you to lose, Shirou. You were so close to winning..."
"It can't be helped. I'm just not strong enough."
Shirou didn't plan to say that he had given up the victory at the end. He could keep that to himself.
And Ghislaine didn't care about his failure.
After all, Ghislaine knew very well that Shirou's true strength was enough to defeat a red dragon.
With that level of ability, not to mention a half-step Water Saint, he even had a chance to challenge the Water God herself.
When fighting Isolte, Shirou only used the Sword God Style's power, so this result was only natural.
After talking about Shirou and Eris's experiences, Philip also began to talk about what he and Ghislaine had encountered during the day.
And when they thought about the auction that the two had attended, Shirou and Eris couldn't help but pay attention.
For Eris, it was simply because the auction in the royal capital was very interesting, and she wanted to know the specific details. But for Shirou, the fun of this auction was a bit too much...
After all, if nothing went wrong, the indestructible holy sword he had forged would very likely appear at this auction.
While Shirou was having complex thoughts and trying to remain calm, Philip quietly began to tell the story.
His and Ghislaine's experiences weren't complicated.
After the two set off in the morning, they went straight to the auction house for the auction, and because of their Boreas family identity, they were given a VIP box.
After arriving at the box, they realized how important this auction was.
Not only were there nobles from various families and knights from the royal capital, but even the Second Princess Ariel Anemoi Asura, and the current Water God of the Water God Reida, had come to the event.
Of course, compared to ordinary nobles and knights, Princess Ariel and Water God Reida Reia were just simply attending the auction and could be considered just there to make up the numbers.
In fact, neither of them really made a bid on any items.
For Princess Ariel, the antiques and gems at the auction were too common. The royal palace had too many collections that were more valuable than these things.
There was no need for her to like them.
For Princess Ariel, the goal of participating in this auction was just to expand her social circle, let more people know her, make more noble friends, and expand her reputation and influence as a princess.
As for Water God Reida Reia, she was invited to participate by an old friend, who was a blacksmith. He strongly stated that the items appearing this time would definitely be of interest to the Water God.
The Water God didn't plan to pay attention to such words, but because she owed that old friend a favor once, and she was someone who cared a lot about favors.
So naturally, she chose to attend.
The Water God knew that the old friend's purpose in inviting her was purely to increase the popularity of the auction.
In fact, it was true. Because of the Water God's name, the attractiveness and popularity of this auction were far beyond imagination. A large number of nobles and knights followed suit and came to the auction because of her presence.
And the Water God considered this just a way to repay the old friend's favor, and didn't think she would really witness anything special at this auction.
It was with this thought that the auction officially began.
When the auction displayed the items, most of the items couldn't attract the attention of the Water God, the Second Princess, and others.
Philip was also just taking a look and didn't plan to bid.
Most of the people participating in this auction were nobles and knights. They would often participate in the bidding when they saw something they wanted.
In this way, the auction proceeded slowly at an almost uneventful pace.
Finally, just when almost everyone thought that it was almost coming to an end and that there wouldn't be any more surprises, the auction organizer took out the final item after the last item, a very high-quality magic stone.
What they took out was a long object wrapped in red cloth.
After the auctioneer uncovered the cloth, everyone saw what the object looked like.
It was a long sword with exquisite workmanship, even too exquisite, and it also emitted a slight light, giving people an indescribable sense of attraction.
The width and size of the long sword were moderate. It was a standard knight's long sword, but compared to the weapons used by knights on the battlefield, it was more like a noble's sword for decoration on weekdays.
But even if it looked like a decorative sword, the unique magic power emitted from the sword body was enough to make anyone realize that this was definitely not an ordinary weapon!
Whether it was nobles or knights, at that moment, they were all attracted to the sword.
And this sword was undoubtedly the treasure forged by Shirou—the indestructible holy sword, Durandal!
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