Benedict shot forward and slashed upward. The blade narrowly grazed the enemy's clothes. It appeared close, but it was infinitely far away! Everything was under the man's control! He merely shrugged his body and dodged the hit. In fact, he moved even before Benedict attacked! By now, he had already grasped the entirety of Benedict's moves and stances. They were nothing much before a sword master! He had seen enough. It was time to end it! The sword master stepped into Benedict's blind spot easily and stabbed. Benedict could not react in time! It pierced straight into his torso and through the other side! He spat out blood between gritted teeth and stumbled away from the blade. It was exactly the same wound as the one he inflicted earlier!
His opponent flicked the blood from his sword and declared, "That one was for my partner. The next one will kill you!"
I can't defeat him with the Hawken Style! Benedict lamented.
It was not that the Hawken Style was weak, but his application was still lacking. The style was composed of five different stances. The first three offered a mixture of offense and defense. The latter two focused on perfecting the style by incorporating transitional stances, effectively making it seamless to transform between them. Sir Roland took decades to completely master all five stances, establishing himself as one of the most accomplished swordsmen in the kingdom! How could the Hawken Style be weak? So, while Benedict could now use the three stances, they were too independent. It was not enough to defeat a true sword master!
Benedict had to do something different. And it had to be done quickly! As his opponent dashed toward him and closed the distance in a heartbeat, time seemed to slow down for Benedict. His body went hyper-sensitive and the world drowned him in a myriad of colors and information. His sword felt as light as a feather. He remembered in that instant… a saying that his father once said long ago. It was probably ten years ago when his father had just comprehended the Hawken Style, reached Perception Realm Expert, and became Prince Ranir's Protector! At that time, Sir Roland said something strange to his brother.
"Lorenzo, you're now the heir of the Hawken Household! It is your duty to master the Hawken Style and succeed your predecessors."
"I will try harder, father," he respectfully said.
Sir Roland looked pleased but shook his head. "It's not a matter of effort, but a matter of mentality."
"Mentality?" Lorenzo wondered. "Please enlighten me, father. I do not understand."
"What do you think of the Hawken Style, my son?"
Lorenzo became quiet before replying carefully, "I believe it is a wonderful style that incorporates offense and defense perfectly. It is unyielding yet compromising. It is slow yet fast. It is gentle yet fierce. Much like a river, it can twist, bend, and adapt to all sorts of situations and environments. It is worthy of its fame as a mighty swordsmanship style."
"I see…" Sir Roland said plainly. "This is why I said it's a matter of mentality. Understanding the Hawken Style is not about understanding the five stances. It was never about that. Never has been. No matter what, the style and the sword… is but a tool. When you finally understand that, then you will have become a sword master!"
Back then, Benedict happened to overhear the conversation. It was engraved deeply on his mind as it was one of the few teachings he had ever received, albeit it was through eavesdropping. But he did not understand it. Everyone knew that the sword was a tool. Was it not obvious? Yet, it was clearly not what his father referred to. Sir Roland was a master swordsman, he would not utter such simple words. Instead, there had to be a deeper, more profound meaning! His brother was also confused and had not understood at that time either. However, Lorenzo seemed to grasp something and soon mastered the first two stances!
Benedict once asked his brother and he replied, "I cannot help you. Even if I explain it to you, there's no point. You have to figure it yourself."
Many years passed since then, and he never came closer to enlightenment. That was partially why his father was so dissatisfied with him. He could never make that leap! Why did those words come back now? Benedict felt confused, but… as if a veil were lifted from his eyes, he glimpsed at the profundity of his father's words! Was this situation not describing those words exactly? The Hawken Style became a shackle that bound him! It was not enough to topple this sword master in front of him. He needed to… break beyond the Hawken Style! His eyes shined with a deep light. That was right! If he could not use the Hawken Style to win, then he just had to change it so it could! Those thoughts passed in the faster than the blink of an eye. In the present, his opponent was already upon him as sword light flashed!
He's finished! the vice-captain remarked calmly. What a waste of time this was. Even the captain began losing interest.
But something miraculous happened! When the guard struck, Benedict used a bizarre counter stance. It was unlike anything that was shown before! It looked like the first stance, which used footwork techniques to defend, but also a bit like the second and the third. In addition, there was a foreign element mixed in. To the untrained eye, it almost looked like he made a mistake and fumbled his sword. His opponent felt confident in killing Benedict! Yet, at the instant the two swords intersected, it seemed like Benedict's sword defied logic and pierced through his opponent's guard! The guard grew terrified. Everything happened too fast. They skewered each other through the chest!
They both spewed a mouthful of blood as their organs were pierced. Disbelief was written across the sword master's face. He wanted to say something, but Benedict's sword was too fatal. His body was too weak to do a thing. Very quickly, he died! Benedict was not far behind either. He glanced down at the bloodied sword poking out his chest. Hot blood poured out from the wound, drenching his already red clothes further red. His strong lifeforce enabled him to stay alive a bit longer, but it was not enough. His vision was already fading. He smiled wryly. This situation was awfully similar to the one earlier… Would he really die this time?
The sound of joyous laughter filled his ears as a cloaked figure appeared. It was the captain of the First Hand! The man's face was beaming with happiness, a stark contrast to the dying Benedict. "Excellent fight! Excellent fight! To touch upon the essence of the sword so young, you are truly worthy of being my successor!" he trembled in excitement.
"Did you forget? We're supposed to be detaining the Second Shadow, not searching for your successor!" the vice-captain gnashed his teeth.
All along, this captain had worn down his patience. This was a mission to investigate the rouge actions of the Second Shadow. After all, the five Shadows jointly agreed to never instigate the Alzar Kingdom. The organization was about benefits and there were no benefits to angering the kingdom. It was equivalent to suicide. No sane person would do such a thing! That was why when the First Shadow, the Leader of the Whispering Shadow, heard the news, he thought Lord Wenmord went insane! He sent the First Hand to interrogate Lord Wenmord, destroy any evidence, and kill anyone involved if necessary!
One must know that the First Hand was almost never deployed. It was like a hidden executioner's blade, waiting to annihilate anything that opposed the organization. The rumors surrounding their monstrous power allowed the First Shadow to rule with an iron fist! Unless the fate of the organization hung in the balance, these people would never appear! It was obvious how dangerous Lord Wenmord's actions were. Despite all that, their captain seemed more interested in finding a successor than resolving the current crisis. How insulting was that!
"As if I care," the man snorted while healing Benedict. "I joined because I was bored and nothing more. If I want to leave, what can you do?"