Benjamin twisted the blade, his wrist maneuver adding more power to the strike.

It was a fierce aura. The atmosphere was saturated with a palpable tension, as if they wanted to tear each other apart.

The blade was eager to slice through the opponent’s neck.

“Damn it.”

Tatante tilted his head and sneered.

“Your swordsmanship is as crude as you. I can’t predict where you’ll strike. If you’re aiming for my neck… Don’t you think aiming for vital points is excessive?”

Tatante swung his sword in annoyance. The blades grazed each other.

Metal scraped against metal roughly.

Benjamin twisted his wrist and struck forcefully. No flamboyant technique; just a blunt, heavy blow.

“You can dodge, can’t you?”

“Are you trying to mark me before I return to my homeland?”

They were well-acquainted, so neither hesitated to aim for vital points. Tatante spoke while coughing.

“Your skills have sharpened over the years.”

If the citizens of Taran saw, they’d criticize: Where else would you see a madman dueling an emperor of another nation with real swords?

“The sword has transformed into a weapon that kills. It kills efficiently, without unnecessary moves. It’s hard to believe you’re the same person who used to slay monsters. You’ve obviously struggled to secure your throne.”

The blade brushed against Tatante’s cheek. He wiped away the blood from his grazed skin.

“Next time, it might be my neck.”

“I could easily behead you right now.”

The tension that could sever their throats at any moment lingered in the air. That heartless man was targeting only my neck.

“Your swordsmanship has become sloppier over the past five years. Have you been slacking?”

“Taran is a nation surrounded by border regions. Do you think I’ve had time to slack? Monster fighting is different, you know. When you say that, I feel belittled.”

Benjamin kicked Tatante in the abdomen and clicked his tongue.

“Your mind is empty again.”

The raw sword energy radiated in all directions. Even Tatante was startled by the murderous intent that seemed to tear the skin.

“You’re stubborn.”

“You still haven’t fixed your exposed flanks. Do I have to cut from your arm to your shoulder to get you to understand?”

Benjamin jabbed Tatante’s side with the back of the blade.

“I told you to properly defend your right shoulder.”

“You’ve always been cruel and vicious with your swordsmanship. I’ve often seen you rampage like a wild dog while hunting monsters. You’ve become quite toxic.”

A dense aura penetrated them as if they were skewered with iron hooks. Tatante brushed off his training suit and changed the subject.

“… I felt it when passing by the Foputa coast. The nearby monsters have become more ferocious. And while cutting off the Kraken’s tentacle, it felt rubbery. They seem to have mutated. Even though border monsters often change, look into it. Considering the recent palace incident, perhaps…”

“Is it their active period?”

Benjamin swept back his short hair and clicked his tongue.

“If the toxicity is intensifying, then it’s probably their active period.”

“We should soon form a suppression squad.”

“The border is showing signs of weakening, and the toxicity has increased significantly. Be careful.”

Border monsters cyclically go through active and recovery periods, and their toxicity deepens during the active period.

The past five years were a recovery period, so the toxicity was relatively low.

This led to lax monster hunting schedules, but once the recovery period ends, it’s a different story.

Five years have passed. The active period is about to start.

They are undergoing transformations, becoming more monstrous during this period.

“Recently, the monsters’ restlessness is intensifying…”
Monsters were drawn to poison, and the poison originated from dark magic. As dark magic was banished from this land, so too were the monsters driven underground, and until now, that balance had been maintained. But lately, those wretches have been crawling on the surface.

“Annoying.”

Benjamin dodged the blade by twisting his neck.

“…Have you abandoned all sense of dignity?”

“If I don’t do this, when will I ever defeat you?”

Benjamin aimed a kick at Tattante’s abdomen and harshly slashed his sword down.

The blade was as sharp as a serpent’s fang. The cutting edge that sharply lunged felt as if it was tinged with poison at its very tip.

The tip of his blade stopped a moment later.

“Charlotte.”

Benjamin withdrew his blade.

Charlotte looked at the figures before her with scrutiny.

“You seem to trust.”

A belief that the blades wouldn’t steal each other’s lives.

The blade’s aura scraped against her cheek. It felt like it was puncturing and tearing her skin.

Charlotte touched her cheek, and her skin was tingling.

Even from a distance, the blade seemed to pierce the skin. If the servants saw, they would be alarmed.

“It’s harsh. It would be wise to avoid this place.”

“Let’s go.”

Just as she was about to turn around, a shadow was cast over her head.

“If you came, you should talk.”