Chapter 154

“Ugh…!”

With another mouthful of blood staining her already crimson lips, Claire looked down at the blade piercing her side.

The red steel that had torn through her flesh, muscle, and emerged from the other side.

The taste of betrayal was as cold as ice, while the severed flesh burned as if on fire.

“Jay…den…!”

“My apologies, Lady Claire.”

Claire’s gaze, filled with venom, turned toward the betrayer she had once adored.

Gathering magical energy, Claire’s murderous intent surged toward Jayden’s head.

Jayden, who had been smirking, dropped his sword and quickly retreated.

A delayed gust of wind struck the spot where he had just stood.

“That was close. I was sure you’d cause a magical backlash… As expected, Lady Claire, you really know how to control your rampaging magic.”

Her legs gave out, buckling on their own.

Staggering, Claire forced her body to stabilize by pouring out magical energy.

A surge of pride and tattered dignity drove her forward.

She couldn’t kneel before Ophelia.

Absolutely not, not before Ophelia.

“Why…?”

It wasn’t that she had trusted Jayden on a personal level.

After all, Claire hadn’t opened her heart to anyone since her childhood.

But still, questions arose.

She had thought he wouldn’t betray her as long as he adored her.

“Don’t you get it? What I promised him was far more enticing than anything you could offer. Did you even give him anything in the first place?”

“That’s about it. Don’t resent me, Lady Claire. You’ve lived that way too, haven’t you?”

Jayden tilted his head, infuriatingly smug.

“What did Ophelia… promise you…?”

The bleeding from the sword wound wouldn’t stop.

Feeling her strength drain along with her blood, Claire gathered magical energy at her fingertips, converting it into heat.

‘First, I need to stop the bleeding…’

A small flame ignited as she brought her hand to her side.

“It’s a bit awkward for me to say this, but it’s you, Lady Claire.”

“That’s right. Sister Claire.”

With a cold smile, Ophelia walked toward Claire.

With each step, she wove another spell.

Blue lightning, roaring flames, and invisible blades of wind swept through Claire’s subordinates, who were desperately trying to cast healing spells.

Horrific screams echoed one after another.

A knight, electrocuted, convulsed violently, eyes rolling back as he wet himself.

A female mage, her head ablaze, screamed like a monkey, clutching her face as she danced.

A skull, sliced open by the wind’s blade, spilled its contents like an overturned bowl.

“I promised him your body. You knew Jayden had feelings for you, didn’t you?”

“…What?”

Claire’s hand, trying to cauterize her wound, slipped.

The words were hard to believe.

“Rolling around naked with women every day, only letting him hear your moans? Dressing like a prostitute, yet glaring at him like you wanted to kill him when he showed interest? You messed up, sister. You’re not even a virgin, and you act like that? What man would put up with it?”

“No, just for that…?”

It was hard for Claire to comprehend.

‘After living like that for over a decade, you betray me now? Just because I didn’t take you to bed?’

“That was enough. With Princess Ai-shan Gi-or on my side, my chances were already high… It was the perfect opportunity for Jayden too.”

“That’s right. After serving you for over a decade, don’t I deserve this much reward?”

Jayden chuckled, all pretense of courtesy gone.

Lust and desire are just a hair’s breadth apart.

The adoration Claire thought she saw in Jayden’s eyes was now unmistakably tainted with vulgar desire.

The same disgusting gaze she had seen countless times.

The eyes of a lustful man.

Clenching her blood-soaked teeth, Claire shoved her flaming fingertips into her wound.

With her other hand, she pulled the sword from her side.

“Ugh…! Aaaah!”

The pain was unbearable, as if her brain was being seared white.

The smell of burning flesh rose with a wisp of smoke.

And then, once more, into the other side.

“Ugh…! Haaah…!”

The charred, melted flesh stopped the bleeding.

Though internal bleeding wasn’t completely halted, it was a temporary measure.

Her body trembled, her face streaked with tears, her lips bitten raw.

Yet, unyielding hatred drove her forward.

Her bones and muscles no longer obeyed.

So, she lifted her body with sheer magical energy.

Her movements were grotesque, like a marionette, but Claire finally stood again.

“…Impressive. You still want to fight in that state? You’ve got more grit than I thought.”

Ophelia shrugged, her expression relaxed, as if the outcome was already decided.

She wasn’t wrong.

Though Claire had managed to stand, her internal organs were poisoned, her side pierced, and her body battered.

Only a few of her subordinates remained.

“Haa… Haa… You think… I’ll fall to the likes of you…?”

“Such heroic words. Anyone would think I’m the villain here.”

Laughing merrily, Ophelia gathered magical energy.

The condensed energy transformed into a sharp whirlwind.

A blade of wind.

The spell that signaled the start of the battle.

“Ugh…!”

Claire stifled a groan as she summoned black lightning.

Her broken body, her wild magic. Even manifesting the spell was agony.

The lightning’s power was noticeably weaker than before.

“Don’t push yourself too hard, Lady Claire. If you die, it’s only a loss for me. I don’t have a taste for embracing corpses.”

Jayden sneered.

Without a word, Claire shifted the target of her lightning from Ophelia to Jayden.

Even if her body was torn apart by the wind, she was determined to kill him.

And just as the black lightning was about to strike…

“Don’t worry, Jayden. That won’t happen.”

A bone-chilling, merciless remark, devoid of any warmth.

It was Ophelia’s true voice, stripped of all pretense and mockery.

“Huh? What’s that—”

The moment Jayden tried to respond,

a blade of wind pierced straight through his skull.

The fragments of what was once Jayden scattered in all directions, accompanied by a spray of blood.

“W-what the hell?!”

Claire, now covered in bits of flesh, flinched in shock.

So startled that even the lightning she had conjured dispersed.

Ophelia, drenched in blood, smiled calmly.

“Honestly, sister. Even if your body is worn out, you wouldn’t hand me over to such trash, right? …Really, it’s been driving me crazy just thinking about all the other men who’ve touched you.”

Cold sweat dripped down Claire’s cheek.

Not from anger or pain, but from a creeping sense of dread that something was terribly wrong.

The woman standing before her was no longer the younger sister she knew.

“You have no idea how long I’ve waited for today… for this moment. From the very beginning, I never intended to hand you over to anyone.”

In the eyes that mirrored her own, there was a desire so dark it seemed almost black.

====[Ha-shal-leur]====

Four longswords danced.

While a sinister drama unfolded beside me… I focused solely on my role.

What I do best.

Immersed in the task of turning people into corpses.

I deflected the thrusting longsword with Durandal and kicked the staggering knight.

The black iron armor caved in, and the knight, his spine bent, flew backward.

“Tsk.”

Clicking my tongue, I grabbed another longsword aimed at my head with an Ice Blade.

In the distance, I saw the guy I kicked staggering to his feet.

So, he hadn’t been sent flying by my strength alone.

He had thrown himself back to mitigate the blow.

Seeing him wobble, it wasn’t like he took no damage…

But it didn’t seem enough to hinder the fight.

A more skilled response than I expected.

Whether from experience fighting stronger opponents or just instinct.

Annoying bastards. Each one’s a pain.

– Screech!

The longsword gripped by the Ice Blade scraped against my palm, digging in.

Indeed, the strength of a seasoned master was somewhat effective even against my raw power.

Effective, but only to a point.

I tightened my grip.

The Ice Blade, tinged with red energy, firmly seized the longsword again.

With a sharp sound, the icy edge slowly began to pierce the blade.

I planned to crush it completely.

If not for the chilling sense of danger creeping up from behind.

I released the longsword as if tossing it aside.

The knight, losing balance, staggered and was sent flying with another blow.

I quickly turned to face the third enemy.

A sword strike aimed at my spine.

The sharpness of the slash, cutting through reeds, was impressive.

Durandal, raised high, glowed faintly.

Like a crescent moon descending, its pale light extended in a sweeping arc.

The clash of blue and black slashes resonated with a clear, metallic sound.

The relentless exchange continued.

Blue and black intertwined and separated repeatedly.

Like a crescent moon casting light into the dawn and the night sky trying to swallow it.

Dazzling flashes erupted one after another.

Sparks scattered in all directions, igniting the reeds.

The unending dance of metal.

The two who had been knocked back joined in again, and the deadly dance grew even fiercer.

Three men ganging up on one woman, wielding hard, dark objects.

I’ve seen this scene before. Not exactly wholesome, though.

Three masters.

Just a few months ago, I had been seriously injured by one—Nigel. Now, I had enough leeway to even entertain stray thoughts while fighting three.

Even I was surprised by how quickly I’d grown.

“Haaaah!”

The energy gathered by the Ice Blade pulsed.

A crimson vortex enveloped my body, and a brutal force infused my strike.

The slash arrived before the sound.

Following the blue trajectory, the air itself seemed to burst.

The three masters were sent flying, scattering pieces of armor as they tumbled to the ground.

At least they didn’t drop their swords.

“Ganging up three-on-one, attacking from behind… The title of knight must be weeping.”

I shook off the numbness in my left arm and sneered. No response came.

I was the only one speaking, the only one shouting.

These knights didn’t even let out a groan when struck. Creepy bastards.

They staggered to their feet.

Despite the torn black iron chest plates and gaping wounds in their abdomens, they were ready to charge again.

Definitely not normal humans.

Given that Durandal was only half as effective… they were still human, I guess.

The pale blade was still sharp and strong enough to cut through black iron.

But the engraved runes remained silent, and the blessing-like protection from the sword showed no signs of activating.

Right now, Durandal was just an ordinary silver sword.

A sword that doesn’t reveal its full power against humans? I couldn’t help but laugh at the blatant restriction.

So inflexible. These guys are half-dead and still not considered human?

No matter. Even without Durandal’s blessing, these weren’t enemies I couldn’t defeat.

Once again, the song of the sword continued.

My wrists began to burn.