The dawn after the greenskin hunt.

“Let’s move.”

“Yes, sir.”

Kyrie and the soldiers of the 7th Century departed from the village.

“Safe travels, sir!”
“Thank you, my lord!”

Having feasted and slept deeply, the soldiers had forgotten the fatigue of yesterday’s battle.

It took two days to reach this place after disembarking, but that was because we landed near noon. If we march hard now, we can board the ship again by nightfall.

Even if it meant losing a little profit, Kyrie sold off the orc hides and trinkets in the village.

“Wouldn’t we get a better price in the city?”

He had two reasons.

Nereus or the third Blue Knight might be after me. And the ogre heart—better to sell it quickly.

“Until then, you’d be the ones carrying it. If you fall into a swamp with that load, the leather will soak up water and you’ll never get it out.”

Of course, he couldn’t say any of that aloud.

I thought Blue Knights treated our lives like pebbles to be thrown away.
Don’t get used to it. He’s an exception. We’re still disposable.
But we’ll never forget it—serving under someone like him, even for a moment.

Jo and the veterans were in a constant state of reverent awe.

The return trip felt lighter than the journey out.

Kyrie and his men crossed the marshlands swiftly.

At roughly the same hour, Nereus—who had operated farther west—was also beginning his return.

“Move out!”
“Forward!”

Nereus’s soldiers were far more exhausted than Kyrie’s.

My head’s pounding.
My whole body aches. Shouldn’t have drunk that much.

They had taken considerable losses—five dead, several wounded.

The battle had been brutal, especially since they had to handle the monsters Karl had driven their way.

Many had drunk themselves insensible afterward to blow off steam.

Yet morale wasn’t bad.

“Did you see Sir Nereus fight yesterday?”
“He leapt over five meters straight up and took an ogre’s head clean off.”
“Two ogres alone, thirty orcs—now that’s what a Blue Knight looks like.”

Whatever the hardship, they were a victorious army returning home, and soldiers were always a breath away from death anyway.

They had completed the mission, served a fierce yet magnanimous knight, and drunk and eaten their fill. Many were satisfied enough.

“Divide the gold and silver among yourselves. Sell the ogre heart and split that, too.”

Most of all, Nereus distributed the spoils to his soldiers.

He was a violent knight, but not a greedy one.

The only thing he coveted was victory over Kyrie.

Kyrie, Kyrie… I didn’t expect you to charter a ship. Or that a captain would know these inland channels. But you’re wrong. Information gaps are easier to close than power gaps. In the end, I’ll catch up to you.

Kyrie, for his part, wanted victory no less.

Nereus must have succeeded in his hunt too. The difference has to be made somewhere outside direct combat.

The two Blue Knights cut through the marshlands like wind.

Kyrie’s men, light-footed, waded through reeds. Nereus’s troops, exhausted, enlisted local traders and villagers again, pushing carts while singing praises of their master.

Late that night.

“Sir Kyrie?”

“Captain? I see torchlight—both sides of the river.”

“So do I.”

At the pier ahead, two centuries approached from opposite roads, torches blazing.

Their pace was a normal march—until they spotted each other. Then, horns sounded, and both broke into a run.

“Commander of the Border Patrol’s 7th Century—Sir Kyrie of House Astrios has arrived!”
“Commander of the Border Patrol’s 1st Century—Sir Nereus of House Astrios has arrived!”

Jo and the 1st Century’s adjutant each rushed forward to shout their salutes.

Ah, hell.

The captain watched the two converging forces with a rising sense of dread.

Thunk.

The two units halted, leaving a few dozen paces of empty ground between them.

Torch-bearing soldiers parted to either side.

From both ranks, a Blue Knight stepped forward.

It was night, but anyone with eyes could see clearly.

Crackle.

Lightning ran from the crown of one man’s head down his spine.

Even after seeing it once, it’s terrifying.

He wore a black eyepatch over his right eye, white sparks dancing before his blue left one.

And the other one’s no less frightening.

The second knight grinned, baring canines in a cruel smile—a crimson radiance flickering along his body.

We’re screwed.

That was my first thought when I saw the torches drawing near.

Looked like someone meant to interfere directly.

In the worst case, the soldiers could be driven into an outright clash.

“Jo.”

“Yes, sir.”

I turned to him.

He looked at me with an expression halfway between excitement and anxiety, clearly expecting me to charge in and cut the opposing knight down myself.

There’s no “civil war” category in the evaluation. If we fight each other, some third knight could take first place while we’re busy.

By the House of Thunder’s Roar, I had no intention of letting that happen.

“I’ll stall for time. Send the fastest men through the reeds to board the ship and prepare to depart. Once ready, pull away from the pier and drop the rope ladders. We’re all traveling light—everyone can climb aboard.”

Whether it was Nereus or some third Blue Knight, I didn’t yet know.

If it was Nereus, that would be troublesome enough.

“Our morale’s high, and we’ve strength to spare. If you order a frontal breakthrough, we’ll follow.”

Jo’s eyes said he’d obey even if I commanded them to fight.

“I don’t fear battle. But I’m a century commander now. My duty is to get you home alive. And I’m an Astrios knight—hurting soldiers of my own house isn’t an option, even if they try to stop me.”

I almost told him not to be so moved.

“Sir Kyrie…!”

Thankfully, Jo obeyed without protest—though again, for some reason, he looked deeply moved.

He gathered twenty swift men to slip off behind us.

All that remained was for me to hold their attention.

“Nereus?”

I pushed through the ranks and stepped forward.

A hundred gazes fixed on my back; another hundred on the space before me.

“Kyrie.”

His voice held faint admiration.

From the 1st Century’s side, soldiers parted, and a figure stepped out.

Golden hair like a lion’s mane. Eyes of blue-green.

My longtime rival.

“I knew you wouldn’t run.”

I’m trying my damnedest to avoid this, actually.

“When you think about it, we’ve been fighting for years. Remember training school?”

Nereus walked toward the open space before the pier.

I followed without resistance.

“How could I forget? We’d compete to see who could last a second longer in front of the lightning-training machine, until both of us passed out foaming at the mouth.”

“In the end, the instructor had to separate us into different squads.”

“Which made it worse. If I lasted a few minutes longer, you’d always try to beat it—and then faint again.”

The soldiers watched from afar.

There was no place for them in this. They wouldn’t even be able to react if they tried.

A Blue Knight duel happened faster than ordinary eyes could follow.

“Let’s be honest. Back at the Academy, I thought I could crush you.”

“I remember. When your lightning gift awakened, you fried all those arrogant seniors who tried to haze us.”

“But your combination of Physical Enhancement, Thunder Step, and swordsmanship was damn near perfect. Shit—you were on the heir’s line and even got Elixirs sometimes.”

“Didn’t help me catch up to your talent for lightning.”

“True. I accepted that you were the top overall. At least I’d beaten you in lightning arts. I didn’t fail the other courses—I just didn’t need them. Then you went and gave up your eye before graduation.”

“Afraid I’ll surpass you even in lightning now?”

Nereus drew his sword.

“Thinking, ‘at least I’m still better at this’—what a fool I was.”

A real blade, of course.

“Only one valedictorian, only one first place. That’s right—the best stands alone, like a thunderbolt. I won’t settle for being first in lightning arts. And you shouldn’t settle for overall first either. You take everything—or you lose everything.”

Orange sparks burst from the crown of his head.

The current raced past his eyes, reinforcing his optic nerves, then ran down his spine to synchronize his muscles.

Crackle!

I did the same.

“Kyrie!”
“Nereus.”

I stamped the ground with Thunder Step as I drew my blade.

Boom.

Nereus, twenty paces away, appeared before me in an instant.

His sword rose in a spinning slash.

Screeeech!

My blade flared with white lightning under the power of Imbuement.

Spinning together, it looked like a white cyclone of thunder twisting through the air.

Screeeech!

Nereus mirrored me.

Boom!

He pivoted on one foot, spinning at impossible speed.

Clangclangclangclang!

White and crimson lightning blades collided seven times per second.

To an ordinary man, even standing upright would’ve been impossible—but under Neural Acceleration, each turn of his body moved slow as drifting smoke to my eyes.

Every revolution, our gazes met.

Clangclangclangclangclangclangclang—!

Our rotations ended almost simultaneously.

I reached out with my gauntleted hand to grab his wrist.

He feinted compliance, then swung upward from my blind spot, aiming for mine.

Hum.

But I’d already spread my Bio Radar.

Almost aboard.

I could see Jo and the others moving toward the ship. If I could see that, I could see Nereus’s blade easily enough.

I waited until the very last instant to deflect it—

He’s… smiling?

His sword changed course, thrusting for my armpit.

I slashed upward in haste, knocking it aside.

“Not bad!”

Nereus laughed as he struck again.

“Hah.”

He’d accounted for the improvement in my Bio Radar. That’s how badly he wanted to beat me.

For a heartbeat, I felt that old Blue Knight impulse—fierce, reckless, the Astrios blood that demanded dominance.

If not for this oath—if not for this damn goal—I would’ve liked, just once, to forget everything and fight him purely.

“Nereus.”

But I couldn’t.

I feinted an upward slash, then stomped down.

Our blades crossed in midair, guards locking tight.

Exactly like our old sparring duels.

Nereus tried to trigger Thunder Step again, faster than before.

“What did Trisan promise you?”

For the first time, I spoke the secret I’d pretended not to know.

“—!”

A twitch ran through his proud face, like he’d just been struck by lightning.

Boom!

I launched backward with Thunder Step.

Our arms stretched taut.

He struggled to hold firm, but the strength drained from his grip.

I flew back, breaking free—both swords, still locked at the guard, came flying with me.

“It wasn’t just a bottle or two of Elixir, was it?”

I kicked his sword aside, sending it spinning into the reeds, and picked up mine.

“...!”

But Nereus looked as if he’d taken a wound far deeper than any blade could inflict.

The quintessential Blue Knight—ferocious, straightforward—crimson with humiliation at the thought that he might have sold his pure rivalry for a few vials of Elixir.

“Grr…!”

He ground his teeth.

“Shut up!”

Orange current surged up his left arm.

Crackle-crackle!

The dark pier flared bright as midday.

No wonder he was called second place—what a monstrous output.

If this were a sparring match, disarming him would’ve been victory. But this was a Blue Knight’s duel.

Crackle!

Thick bolts erupted from his hand toward me.

I countered with Discharge, while my Bio Radar monitored the ship.

Just a little longer.

Jo and the captain were readying to set sail.

All I had to do was hold.

Come to think of it, this was the first time I’d fought Nereus in lightning arts since gaining Heavenly Lightning Conduction.

A good chance to see how far I’d come.

Crackle!

White current burst from my own hands.

Orange and white thunder met in midair—

And began to tip to one side.

Chapter 14

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