“Heh… quick on the uptake, aren’t you?”

Lutan—or more accurately, the sword in Lutan’s hands—let out a dry chuckle.

“That’s right. I am His sword.”

The blade’s true name was Lutanox.

“Not that it changes anything.”

He leveled the weapon at her.

“You’re going to die here anyway.”

“A sword wielding a sword… quite the irony.”

Nael’s eyes locked on Lutanox.

“You showing up here in Lutan’s form means the real body is keeping itself safe, doesn’t it?”

“…”

 “You’re here to gauge Tia’s power, aren’t you?”

Lutanox gave no answer.

“I thought so.”

His silence was all the confirmation she needed.

“So you’re rampaging like this even without Tia here.”

“I’m simply here to deal with Ezer’s forces,” Lutanox replied flatly.

“Even without the Emperor, I still have work to finish.”

“Then I guess my job is to make sure you don’t.”

Nael lunged forward without another word. When Lutanox swung, she suddenly halted mid-step.

He couldn’t pull back his extended arm in time. In the opening left by his swing, Nael drove a fist straight into him.

Staggering, he barely had time to see her closing in—left, right, left, right—her fists flying in rapid alternation. Footwork sharp, her barrage smashed into him with no room for him to respond.

“What’s wrong?” Nael taunted.

“Can’t dodge?”

Lutanox was, at his core, a sword—not one who wielded, but one to be wielded. Without a master, his capabilities were limited, and Nael knew it well.

“Even Excalbren couldn’t fight at full strength without Clay.”

And Excalbren, the original blade Lutanox was modeled after, had failed to best Nael in their own bout. Against a mere imitation, she felt little threat.

“Keh keh keh…”

Even as she pushed him back, his tone held no hint of surrender.

“Are you saying I’m inferior to Excalbren?”

“That wouldn’t exactly be a lie.”

It was only natural that the original was stronger than the copy.

“Insulting.”

His eyes flared, and Nael instinctively pulled back just as he lunged, stabbing forward.

The tip nearly kissed her throat. Regaining her stance, she braced for the next strike.

Lutanox pressed in with straightforward thrusts, the blade darting toward her before snapping back.

Almost as if he were imitating her earlier moves, he abandoned trickery for raw, direct offense.

“What happened to that confidence? Why so evasive now?”

Her brows drew together.

He’s faster.

His speed had increased significantly—and with the reach advantage of a sword, it left her little room to counter.

Still…

She was watching for her chance.

No matter how he acts, he’s still just a degraded copy of Excalbren.

Ting!

There—it was. She’d read the flow of his attack.

“Raaagh!”

Ting! Kang! Kang-kang!

The sound of gauntlet meeting steel rang out in quick succession. Lutanox’s eyes widened as he was driven back. She wasn’t even aiming for his body—her blows struck only the sword itself.

By the time he realized and tried to withdraw, it was too late. A fracture was already spidering down the blade.

“Yes, your weapon’s longer,” she said evenly, “But that just means it’s easier to break.”

Whoosh!

Pouring her weight into her next punch, she forced Lutanox to instinctively swing.

CRASH!

The already-cracked sword shattered into pieces. As he reeled, her fist didn’t stop.

Thud!

Following the same trajectory, her punch slammed into his chest.

“Guh!”

From there, it was like sparring with a straw dummy. Every blow sank into his body, each one driving him further back.

She slowed her strikes slightly, but each was heavier, more punishing, until he was nothing more than a battered sack under her fists.

The dull rhythm of impacts mixed with his strangled screams as he stumbled.

“Lady Nael…”

“She’s overwhelming him.”

The Ezer soldiers watched, disbelief turning to exhilaration.

“Lady Nael is winning!”

It was a childish cheer—but nothing lifted battlefield morale faster.

“Waaaaaah!”

Their spirits soared, and with renewed ferocity, Ezer’s troops tore through the shaken Krata soldiers.

The enemy’s lines faltered.

“What… what is this?”

“He’s losing?”

“But His Majesty said it wasn’t really him…”

The truth spread quickly—it wasn’t Lutan at all.

“No… no way.”

“We can’t win this.”

“Retreat—!”

Seeing Lutanox’s battered state, panic rippled through Krata’s forces. First a slow withdrawal, then a full rout.

“Don’t let them get away!”

“End it here!”

“Cut them all down!”

It was the perfect chance to annihilate the pursuers and push back. Ezer’s soldiers, eyes blazing, chased the fleeing Krata troops.

The roars of pursuit and cries of retreat filled the air. Nael stood over the ragged Lutanox.

“Looks like the tide’s turned.”

“Don’t make me laugh,” he rasped, his body creaking, “I won’t fall here. I’ll finish my mission and return to His Majesty.”

“You’re making a big mistake.”

Her tone was almost bored.

“Lutan probably already expects you to die here.”

“What? What are you—”

“Going to ask if I’m talking nonsense?”

She smirked, pointing at him.

“You’re a copy of Excalbren.”

“If you’re just going to insult me as ‘inferior’ again—”

“You think you’re the only one?”

He stiffened.

“…What?”

“There are more. Several Soul Swords modeled after Excalbren.”

Yes, Lutan had sent something valuable to test Tia’s strength—but Lutanox had no idea how replaceable he really was.

“Did you really think Lutan made only one? That he let Krata’s wealth sit idle?”

“Ridiculous—”

“If you want to believe that, go ahead.”

Her voice dropped to a murmur.

“Either way, it doesn’t change the fact that you’re going to be smashed to pieces here.”

“Enough of your damn nonsense!”

Lutanox exploded with power, clearly intent on ending this in a single decisive strike.

“I see.”

If he failed to kill her, he’d be spent and defenseless—meaning his own death. Facing an opponent willing to stake it all, Nael calmly brought both fists together in front of her.

“If you want your finale to look like that… I’ll oblige you.”

“I am—!”

Lutanox charged, eyes blazing with fury.

“His Majesty’s only sword!”

In his hands appeared a blade of green aura. Nael crossed both arms to block the downward strike, but she couldn’t deflect it completely.

Fwooom!

He pressed harder, forcing the weapon lower and lower, bending her posture beneath the weight.

“Does a beast like you even understand His will?”

His words dripped with contempt.

“If not for His Majesty’s mercy, you wouldn’t even have earned the scraps of human consideration, you inferior breed—!”

His face twisted in rage.

“And yet here you are, running wild!”

“You’re right,” Nael said, legs tensing beneath her, “I belonged to those who would never receive human consideration.”

But—

“It wasn’t Lutan’s mercy that allowed me to stand in this world.”

Everything had begun with the Hero—Clay.

“It was Clay who gave me this place.”

Because of him, she had been able to change. To forge a new life.

“So this is simply something I should have done long ago.”

“What—?!”

Watching her slowly straighten against the crushing blade, Lutanox grit his teeth.

“This… this can’t be happening!”

“Go on ahead,” Nael said coldly.

“I’ll send your master after you soon… along with the rest of your brothers.”

And in that moment, Lutanox realized—her earlier words had been true.

“Aaaaaaaah!”

He let out a scream, but Nael shoved the blade upward, reversing the pressure and slicing clean through his neck.

“Mate… huh.”

Alone in the tent, Clay sat in silence.

Beatrice’s intentions went further than he’d thought—she wanted a deeper bond with him.

I don’t have the room in my life for something like that, he thought.

Her behavior baffled him, but if that was her reason, it made a certain amount of sense. She’d never had a mate before—perhaps that was why she wanted one so badly.

She had decided to live for the man who appeared at her final moment. Maybe he should have realized it back then.

She said she’d watched the previous Demon King.

Having seen someone fall into ruin because of love, perhaps she had been inspired by that in a way most wouldn’t be—to want that kind of bond for herself.

“Haa…”

Now wasn’t the time to dwell on it. As long as he relied on her, she would have her own ways of relying on him. Sorting it out could wait.

First, I need to figure this out.

He looked down at the back of his hand.

The sun-shaped emblem he’d shown Beatrice stared back at him.

The being that gave Tia her power.

If it truly was also watching him, that was… unsettling.

Even if I don’t want to be entangled, it won’t be that easy.

Even as a Demon King, he didn’t feel like he’d gained freedom of mind. After a moment’s thought, he rose to his feet and walked toward Beatrice’s tent.

“You’re here?”

She smiled at the sight of him.

“You seemed rather shocked when I told you that.”

“I was.”

“And now you’ve accepted it?”

“Not exactly.”

He looked away, then spoke slowly.

“Beatrice.”

“Yes?”

“We need to halt the advance for a while.”

He extended his hand to show her the emblem.

“There’s something I need to investigate first.”

(End of Chapter)

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