Rody immediately got on the horse the moment Gordon gave the order. In consideration for the safety of the young nobles with such familial background, the horses were specially selected. These were all gentle horses with good temperament, so that they would be easier to control. If the young nobles fell and injured themselves, then it would be big trouble.
By virtue of Professor Randt's coaching, Rody did not require any effort to control the horse. He held his head high and waited for Gordon's next order.
"Young Master Seth!" A youngster on a horse beside Rody called out.
"Yes?" Rody looked at him. This guy had delicate features but was extremely tall. His eyes seemed to be evasive.
"I am the son of the Kersey Family Earl, Gray. Let us cooperate! This group we are in has so many people. It would definitely become a muddled warfare! We would be much stronger if we cooperate than if we were to fight alone," Gray whispered in a low voice.
Rody looked around and sure enough, all the other young nobles were glancing around with different expressions. There were also some who looked at him maliciously.
"Alright." Rody nodded and gave of a smile that was difficult to perceive.
Commander Gordon then gave the order in a loud voice, "Start!"
All the young nobles on their horses back shouted together and made their horses speed up. Most of them did not grab their bows and arrows but held the lance instead. With a loud shout, more than half of the participants rushed towards Rody.
The successor of the God of War's family was famous for being a bungling oaf. Some of these people also charged at Rody because they were unhappy that His Majesty the Emperor brought forward the examination date solely for his sake. In the Imperial Capital, it is especially common for people to take the easy way out. In this case, eliminating one more enemy meant one more chance to protect themselves.
Rody looked stern and his eyes glinted in excitement. He tightly held his lance and gave Gray, who was beside him a hand signal. After that, he assumed the standard posture for a cavalry charge. Taking the lead, he rushed towards the participants on his left, with Gray following behind him on his horse back.
The hooves of the horses could clearly be heard galloping on the stone slabs of the square. Rody felt calm as he faced the fierce and malicious participants in front of him.
While still galloping, Rody thrusted his lance and managed to hit one of his opponents' body. That person screamed and fell from his horse. Fortunately, the people participating in that examination were all wearing light armor. Otherwise, he would have been skewered as well! If Rody had utilized the momentum of the galloping horse, the armor would have definitely been pierced through.
Rody became the main target of others within the tangled warfare and several lances flew towards him. With a clear mind, Rody shouted and swung his lance in circles like a black dragon coiling up and down. A noble cried out as his waist was hit. He flew and knocked into another warrior. Rody then spotted a gap in the crowd and rushed towards it. He used his lance to block attacks coming from both sides. Not a single one of the participants from either side was able to stop him. They could only hear the sounds of clashing and wherever that Rody went, someone would fall from their horse. Gray who was following closely behind Rody, guarded Rody from being attacked by those coming from the back.
In just one charge, Rody managed to knock down six opponents. He shook off the crowd and reined in his horse. The young nobles all became frightened and stopped attacking. They looked at each other for a moment before they shouted and rushed towards Rody.
Although the horsemanship of the young nobles was passable, they were only beginners in cavalry battles. Rody once again assumed the posture for cavalry charges and rushed towards his opponents. Making use of his horse, he swung his lance and two more opponents were immediately knocked down from their horses. Those young nobles did not know how to use the power of the horses to engage in cavalry battles. They only knew how to wield the lances as foot soldiers. How could a human's strength block the sprinting power of a horse? Not to mention that at that time, Rody was already on par with Grade 3 warriors. The team with dozens of participants were immediately defeated by Rody and Gray.
With two sprints, Rody only had four opponents remaining. The other participants were all lying down on the ground groaning in pain and were unable to get up. The horses that had lost their masters had long ran away.
The remaining four opponents were the best among the Grade 1 warriors. The two of them glanced at each other and rushed towards Rody. It was clear that they were instructed by professional soldiers as they knew how to lean and make use of the horse's speed. They came from both sides with one of them attacking from the top while the other attacking from the bottom. Their lances simultaneously headed for Rody's head and waist.
Rody sneered. He suddenly leaned and took the lance with his right hand. After that, he exhaled and threw the lance. The lance flew forward and hit the chest of the warrior on the left and he fell from the horse before he even had the chance to groan. At this moment, the person on the right was also approaching. Rody dodged the lance going for his waist and caught it tightly with his armpit. As his opponent struggled, Rody grabbed his belt and immediately pulled him down from his horse before throwing him onto the ground. He did not bother to look at the person on the ground and took the lance, which he grabbed from his opponent. He then rushed towards the remaining two participants. Gray was close behind Rody. He lifted his lance and rushed towards the person on the right.
Rody's opponent had turned pale a long time ago. When he saw Rody's lance in front of him, he suddenly felt weak and fell down from his horse. Rody thrusted into the empty space and was also shocked for a moment. Suddenly, he felt a burst of cold wind from behind and he sneered. He immediately ducked and felt a strong momentum swinging behind his back. Rody looked back and saw Gray watching him with a fierce expression. Rody's original ally also swung his lance but his target was not Rody. It was Rody's horse!
There was a cry of alarm as his horse moved back a few meters.
Rody looked back at Gray and lightly said, "I already guessed that you were problematic earlier! Come!"
Gray turned pale and gritted his teeth. He was holding the lance in his trembling hands.
Originally, Rody was busy and did not use the lance to ward off the blows. He knew that he would not be able to wield the two meter long lance properly with just one arm because he was leaning down. Even if he persisted on parrying that way, he could not prevent his opponent from striking the leg of his horse. That was why Rody decisively threw the lance. As they were very near each other and Rody was strong, the other participant could not dodge in time. Before the opponent's weapon could strike his horse's leg, it was already deflected by Rody's lance.
"Good! Seth! You really have hidden strength!" Gray gritted his teeth and grinned. "But now you have no weapons! Let's see how you are going to fight with me!"
After finishing what he had to say, Gray thrusted the lance towards Rody. On the other hand, Rody did something unexpected. He kicked his horse and ran to the left.
Gray laughed. "Haha! Did you think you could run away? I…"
Suddenly there was a black flash. Gray screamed and fell from his horse before he could finish his last sentence. An arrow had pierced through his light armor and was stuck in his shoulder.
Rody put the bow and arrows down and went to Gray's side. He looked coldly at the sweating and bleeding Gray on the floor.
"You must be surprised that I already saw through you earlier? Idiot! I always had a bad reputation! In your eyes, I am just a bungling oaf! That is why I suspected you the moment you wanted to team up with me. Out of so many warriors, you decided to team up with this useless bungling oaf. Don't you think that is suspicious?"
Rody laughed grimly. "Just lie down there! I have never killed anyone so, you are lucky. I do not want your life."
After having said that, Rody without looking at Gray, turned around and rode his horse towards the table in the audience hall.
In the square, collective groans of the participants could be heard. Without any doubt, Rody was the only winner of that competition. He did not even need to show his archery skill because even if he did not hit his target, there was nobody else to compete with...
On top of that, considering the fact that he managed to hit Gray with an arrow, it was unlikely that he would miss his target.
The square was silent for a long time before a thunderous applause broke out. The Imperial Guards were also veterans and were naturally able to tell that he was very good.
Rody dismounted from his horse and stood in front of the table. He looked at Abbas XI with his head held high.
The emperor slowly stood up and reluctantly smiled. He gently said, "Good! As expected of the heir of the Empire's God of War!" After that, the emperor gave a forced laugh with somewhat insufficient lung power.
Rody cursed in his heart.
Despicable.
However, Rody pretended to look loyal and went down on his knees.
Gordon looked surprised and his voice trembled in excitement. He loudly spoke, "The horsemanship and archery examination has ended! Winners, please enter the hall!"
Rody pursed his eyebrows as he felt an earnest adoration and fiery gaze on him. It was a look of surprise and affection. Without a doubt, it was Jojo's gaze.
Rody subconsciously looked towards Nicole. He saw her sweet, quiet smile as she looked at him affectionately. Only Rody could read her expression.