At this moment, Menasha and the nobles had been watching Natasha intently. They had not expected Natasha to be so formidable, defeating Steven’s most powerful disciple, Gorda, with her first move!
“Go, have someone call her over. I have something to say to her!”
Menasha instructed the one-eyed bodyguard.
“Yes!”
The one-eyed bodyguard responded and immediately went to summon Natasha.
Soon, Natasha arrived with the one-eyed bodyguard. Although Natasha found Menasha distasteful, she could not openly confront her in such a setting. She performed a perfunctory, grand bow to Menasha.
“Miss Natasha, your swordsmanship is becoming increasingly proficient!”
“You defeated Gorda with such ease just now, it was truly eye-opening!”
Menasha nodded with satisfaction.
“These skills of mine are nothing. My teacher is even more formidable. You know my teacher, there’s no need for me to elaborate on his abilities!”
Natasha replied.
“You have surpassed your master. I believe your skills are superior to his!”
Menasha looked at Natasha and smiled slightly, “Both myself and these nobles greatly admire your abilities. If you can win this competition, our Eagle Kingdom’s royal family will surely promote you to captain of the Royal Guard.”
Upon hearing this, Natasha was momentarily stunned, her face filled with surprise.
But Natasha quickly regained her composure. “I cannot believe you. Who knows if you are telling the truth or just deceiving me? I have some understanding of the Royal Guard; not just anyone can become its captain. Your sudden kindness towards me makes me hesitant to trust you!”
Hearing this, Menasha’s expression grew serious.
“If you can win the championship, you will have performed a great service!”
“Our Eagle Kingdom’s royal family has a rule: the top ten finishers in the fencing competition will be selected as members of the Royal Guard. The May Kingdom’s royal family specifically invited Steven to participate in the competition with the aim of having Steven lead his students to victory and subsequently join our Eagle Kingdom’s Royal Guard. This way, our Eagle Kingdom’s royal family will be under the constant surveillance of the May Kingdom’s royal family!”
“If you defeat Steven and all his students, you will have achieved an immortal contribution. Then, granting you the position of captain is a small matter. Our Eagle Kingdom’s royal family will continue to value you in the future!”
Menasha explained to Natasha.
Natasha did not show much excitement upon hearing this, as she knew very well that the Eagle Kingdom’s royal family was untrustworthy, saying one thing to your face and doing another behind your back. Unless someone was foolish, no one would easily believe any promise from the Eagle Kingdom’s royal family.
Natasha’s participation in the competition was solely to infiltrate the Eagle Kingdom’s royal family and assist Jiang Yi.
Natasha had no interest in high positions or generous stipends.
“Alright, I will do my best to defeat Steven and the others!”
Natasha stated.
Seeing Natasha agree, Menasha smiled slightly. “Your teacher serves our Eagle Kingdom’s royal family, and you serve our Eagle Kingdom’s royal family. Our Eagle Kingdom’s royal family will certainly not mistreat you. Rest assured!”
“Mm!”
Natasha nodded.
“Continue with the competition! I have high hopes for you!”
Menasha said.
“Yes!”
Natasha responded, then turned and returned to the plaza.
Watching Natasha’s retreating back, Menasha’s face displayed a cold smile.
“Your Highness, Natasha is, after all, a rising talent. Can she truly defeat Steven and his students?”
A noble couldn’t help but ask.
“Although she defeated Gorda just now, it might have been sheer luck. Moreover, Gorda is not the strongest. The strongest is Steven. Since Steven debuted, no fencer has ever defeated him.”
“I don’t know either!”
“We can only take it one step at a time. As you all saw in the previous matches, among all the fencers from the Eagle Kingdom, only Natasha shows some skill. The rest are all useless, unable to cope with Steven and his students!”
“Now, we can only rely on Natasha! We have no other choice!”
Menasha took a deep breath.
Upon hearing this, the nobles fell silent.
Given the current situation, they could only place their hope in Natasha.
“Go and invite Steven over!”
Menasha instructed the one-eyed bodyguard.
“Yes!”
The one-eyed bodyguard responded and went to the plaza to invite Steven. A few minutes later, Steven, accompanied by his students, walked directly towards them.
“Your Highness!”
Steven greeted, then directly sat on a chair to Menasha’s left, exhibiting an extremely arrogant demeanor, showing no regard for Menasha, the princess.
This displeased many of the Eagle Kingdom’s nobles.
Although Menasha was also displeased, she did not reprimand Steven.
“Mr. Steven, I didn’t expect you to personally participate in this year’s fencing competition with your students. Later, we will have the opportunity to witness your prowess once again!”
Menasha said with a smile.
“Your Highness is too kind. However, if I personally step in, it will be more than enough to deal with these useless fencers of your Eagle Kingdom!”
“The birthplace of fencing is in the Eagle Kingdom, but its decline is also in the Eagle Kingdom. Look at the current fencers of the Eagle Kingdom; they are all like mere clowns. They do not understand the essence of fencing!”
“It is different in my May Kingdom. Any fencer who emerges from our ranks can trample all over your Eagle Kingdom’s fencers!”
Steven sneered.
Hearing this, Menasha became restless. She hadn’t expected Steven to become increasingly arrogant, mocking all the fencers of the Eagle Kingdom to her face.
This was tantamount to slapping Menasha in the face.
In fact, such a situation was not surprising. The Eagle Kingdom’s royal family was the lapdog of the May Kingdom’s royal family, serving their interests.
Over time, the May Kingdom’s royal family began to regard the Eagle Kingdom’s royal family as a dog they had raised.
Therefore, in the eyes of the May people, the Eagle people were naturally inferior.
Many people had realized this and intended to resist. They did not want to be subordinates; Prince Matthew was a representative of such people.
The May Kingdom’s royal family had consistently suppressed Prince Matthew, which was sufficient evidence that the current Eagle Kingdom’s royal family still wished to continue acting as the May Kingdom’s royal family’s dog.
“Mr. Steven, aren’t your words a bit excessive!”
“Everyone just witnessed it. Your most prized student, Gorda, was defeated by our Eagle Kingdom’s fencer, Natasha, in just a few moves. This is something everyone saw with their own eyes!”
A noble interjected.
The other nobles began to laugh.
Hearing this, Steven’s face immediately darkened, but he quickly recovered, a look of disdain on his face.