Deviating from the original plot

Chapter seventy-three

Victoria drew a steady breath, shoulders squaring as she stepped forward. Her eyes locked on his with steady resolve.

"You'll regret this." she said

One of the guards leaned close, lowering his voice. "Your Highness, perhaps it would be wiser to let them go. Trading blows with a noblewoman... it will look brutish, beneath your station."

Cassius's glare cut sideways, silencing him at once. "A woman who behaves like a brute will be treated like one," he snapped.

The guard fell silent and stepped back, though unease lingered in his expression.

The circle buzzed with anticipation, soldiers whispering among themselves as the two squared off. Celeste cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Do well, Lady Victoria!"

"We are rooting for you!" Evelyn added, though her grin faltered when Cassius shot them both a deadly glare.

The crowd of soldiers ringed the circle, murmurs passing between them, some curious, others uneasy.

The guard's hand dropped. "Begin!"

Cassius exploded forward, his fist cutting through the air in a sharp arc aimed squarely at Victoria's jaw.

But Victoria slipped aside at the last second, his knuckles grazing nothing but air. The force of his swing carried him forward a step, and the crowd let out a low murmur.

He recovered quickly, pivoting with a snarl and striking again—faster, heavier, a punch meant to crush through her guard.

Victoria's hand clamped around his wrist mid-swing, unyielding as steel. Cassius's eyes widened for an instant before snarling.

"You think you can stop me?" He spat.

"It's the fact that you're truly serious about this," Victoria said evenly, though her voice carried a warning edge. "I don't want to fight you, your highness. Just calm down and let us leave."

"You dare mock me?" He snarled, his lips curling into a cruel smile. "I'll end you myself!"

He wrenched his arm free and drove his fist forward, smashing it into her face. The crack of impact rang across the training yard.

The world went still. Victoria staggered back—not from pain, but from sheer disbelief. He had struck her with no restraint.

"That monster!" Celeste screamed, her hands balling into fists.

Cassius sneered, stepping toward Victoria. "Prepare yourself. You'll taste humiliation here and face the guillotine later, you vile woman." He lunged, aiming a brutal kick at her midsection. Victoria slipped aside, fury igniting within her chest.

"And as I told you," she hissed, "you will regret this."

He lunged again, throwing another punch. This time, Victoria seized his arm, ducked under, and twisted hard. Cassius groaned, his face contorting in pain, but before he could act, she caught his other fist mid-swing. With a sharp pull, she yanked him close, then slammed her forehead against his with brutal precision.

The sound was sickening.

"Ah!" The watching soldiers winced in unison, several clutching their own foreheads.

Cassius reeled back, dazed, before collapsing hard onto the ground. His body went limp, unmoving.

Victoria straightened, breath steady, her stance still guarded.

The guards rushed forward, kneeling beside their prince.

"He's... he's out cold!" One of them shouted, disbelief thick in his voice.

The field erupted with murmurs, gasps, and wide-eyed stares—all directed at Victoria, who stood tall, her expression unreadable.

A heavy silence hung over the field, broken only by the uneasy scuff of boots against the dirt.

Evelyn leaned closer to Celeste, her voice barely above a breath. "She... she actually knocked out the prince."

Celeste's lips curled into a smile. Then, without hesitation, she began to clap.

Evelyn blinked at her in shock. "Are you insane—?"

But before she could finish, the sound spread like fire. One guard joined in, then another, until the entire line of soldiers was applauding. The sharp rhythm echoed across the yard, their voices rising with murmurs of awe and cheers.

Victoria stood frozen for a moment, startled by the unexpected response. She had braced for outrage, for chains, maybe even the guillotine—but not this.

One of the older guards stepped forward, his tone respectful but careful. "Lady Valenford... you've done what no man here has dared. You bested the prince fairly, before all our eyes."

The captain dipped his head in respect, and one by one, the others mirrored the gesture.

Victoria hesitated. "I... appreciate it. But what about the prince?"

A guard leaned in, a faint, knowing smile tugging at his lips. "Rest easy, my lady. He'll honour his word. Resentful, perhaps—but his pride won't allow him to lash out. The last thing His Highness desires is gossip spreading that a noblewoman bested him in fair combat. He guards that 'undefeated' reputation of his more fiercely than his crown. Even if it means pretending this never happened."

Victoria's eyes followed the prince's limp form as two soldiers bore him away across the field.

Evelyn shifted beside her. "So... we're actually free?"

Celeste replied. "For now. But don't look so relieved yet. He'll find some way to nurse that ego of his."

The guard straightened and bowed. "For the time being, you're dismissed. I'll see to it that the others spread the right story."

As the women turned to leave, a ripple of whispers spread among the remaining soldiers—half in awe, half in disbelief. That's one issue taken care of.