Just as the Sword King began doubting his decision, Benedict shook his head and said, "First of all, I must thank you for rescuing me. However, I need to ask… What happened to the Lannisail Household? To Elizabeth?"
"… Hidek, explain to him what happened afterwards."
The man grunted and recounted the events. He skimmed over sensitive topics like their master being the former captain of the First Hand and focused on the important details. Benedict's eyes grew wider and wider with disbelief. What in the world? He could not believe it at all! To think that one of the Grand Nobility Households, the Lannisail Household, would fall like this. They were practically erased from existence! That explosion was so strong that it rocked the capital cities to their core and the fireball could be seen provinces away. The full power of the heavens was unleashed, bringing down divine judgement on the Lannisail Household… at least, that was what he wanted to believe. Besides Lord Wenmord and Elizabeth, who could say what happened for real?
Speaking of Elizabeth, Benedict's heart dropped. If she were wrapped up in the center of everything… no matter how many lives she had, it would not be enough! Unfortunately, no news had been released to the public, so no one knew about her harrowing condition. All Benedict could hope for was that no news was good news. Still, with her situation uncertain, he did not have the patience to wait around. Who knows? Maybe the kingdom was still in the dark! That alone gave him enough reason to confirm things for himself. He could not trust the words of these strangers! After all, it was too convenient that he would be rescued in the nick of time by the Sword King!
Benedict thought quickly, and he hid his growing suspicion. Until he figured these people's true intentions, it was best to play along. He asked, "Where are we? Is this still the capital city?"
"You don't need to know that," Lanar snorted, earning Benedict's quiet grunt. "What? You want a fight? I didn't know you had a death wish!"
"Now, now…" the Sword King cut in with a smile. "What say you, Benedict? I went through a lot of trouble to save you so I hope that you will consider my offer well enough."
This was not a lie. These were genuinely his thoughts! Although he appeared middle-aged like Protector Avin, the truth was that they were both almost a century old! A century old, a full hundred years of time… It was hard to imagine what a life that long would entail. Yet, all life had a beginning and an end. Even with his paramount strength as an Instinct Realm, he was no different. He was a mortal in the end and the Sword King envisioned his end soon! To continue his legacy and nurture the next generation should be the goal of every swordsman! Who would not want their story to be heard for generations to come? If Benedict were trained properly, he could be the next Sword King!
The knight looked at this man deeply and said, "Could you tell me why you chose me then? I don't think I'm particularly special to gain the Sword King's favor. I'm certain there are more qualified candidates out there."
"Because I saw a hint of sword essence from you," the Sword King replied simply.
However, his words struck like thunder to his two disciples and they turned their astonished faces to Benedict. What was sword essence? To put it bluntly, it meant that he had achieved a profound mastery of the sword, cutting straight toward the heart of swordsmanship! In more formal words, it was coined as Sword Intent. Much like the physical Realms of Mastery and the magical Core Levels, a similar system existed for categorizing the mastery of any field. This was Attainment! But it was a somewhat obscure system that few remembered and fewer used. Benedict had no idea as well and raised an eyebrow. Why was it barely used? Because everyone remained in the first stage, Sword Form! Even those sword masters were the same. What was the point in distinguishing then? It was better to call everyone the same.
The first stage, Form, and the second stage, Intent. To realize how overwhelmingly rare the Intent Stage was, one could consider how many Perception Realms there were. There were over a thousand Perception Realms in the Alzar Kingdom, three hundred of which were directly employed by the crown. Each of them had broken through the limits of humanity and achieved an extraordinary level of power. But of those five hundred, there was likely not one who grasped the Intent Stage! In fact, in the entire kingdom, the number of Intent Stages would be a handful. It was many times rarer than a Perception Realm! Only someone like the Sword King Sin Quelldown could achieve Sword Intent, where even his disciples were far behind. So, to think that Benedict could exhibit the slightest resemblance of Sword Intent was mind-blowing!
After that, the conversation continued a while longer with Benedict making vague promises. The three then left him alone to rest, but he was already plotting his escape. Although he was grateful that they helped him, he was not about to trust their words so easily. When twilight came, Benedict gritted his teeth and suppressed his pain. Grabbing his sword, the boy hobbled out of his room and into the streets. The night air chilled his breath and made him shiver from head to toe. There was not a person in sight, making it ten times creepier. He ambled slowly before sprinting down the street. Growing up with a Perception Realm as a father, Benedict understood exactly how frightening they were. Since Hidek, Lanar, and the Sword King had reached that realm, he needed to exercise additional caution.
He tried everything he could to cover up his trail… but it was not enough. Suddenly, a blade pierced toward him at unbelievable speeds. He could not react in time! It then skewered Benedict through the chest, blood splattering on the ground with Benedict coughing up more. It happened so fast that he stared at the blade blankly. His brain slowed down as his life force emptied out. He grabbed the sword blade and struggled to turn around. Even if it was a glimpse, he wanted to see who was behind this! When he finally turned his head, his eyes fell upon a… monster. It was a monster!
What was this? Benedict paled white as a ghost. His attacker… Their eyes were deep and unfathomable. With cold-blooded eyes radiating killing intent, Benedict felt submerged in a frozen ocean. His limbs locked up, his heart jumped, and his breathing stopped. Every part of his body was screaming out in danger! For an instant, he felt he was standing beneath a giant. And that giant's foot was slowing crushing down on him, churning him to dust! Like a thousand blades slicing into him from every angle, he felt suffocated. It was different from when he fought the Second Hand. Vice-captain Julie might have killed many, but she derived pleasure from it. It was her sick fetish to brutalize people. However, right now… There was no morbid fascination. It was simple but pure killing intent, far stronger than he had ever experienced! This was a true killer!