When I was training with Amy my magic power, I accidentally discovered a book.
That book had strange symbols, it was written in the language of the elves.
She read it and said there was something very interesting for me.
It was called [Astral Equipment].
This equipment is something like materializing a ghost weapon.
It requires a lot of concentration. So for a whole year I was practicing it.
At first, I couldn't hold it and it faded away.
But thanks to my inner peace. I was able to learn it without any problems.
In my right hand a black-edged sword like night was showing itself.
Its handle was similar to that of a Japanese katana.
But the western style sword.
Small electric sparks were running through the sword.
I christened it. Gram.
In honor of the last good game I played before I died.
It was a sword that measured the same as a person's leg almost two meters tall.
I could handle it with no problem.
Once it fully materialized, I watched Lambert with his sword.
The blade was white with golden edges.
The handle was decorated as if it were an ancient statue.
A green colored gem was in the center, it looked like a French sword.
Our gazes met.
Hatred and bloodlust was visible in both of us.
Then...
◇◇
Attley Household is a margraviate that has served the empire for centuries.
When the last king of the Arklight Kingdom was in crisis, as an alliance called Unified Kingdoms, formed by the seven current dukes, decided to attack them.
I don't know the reason, but what I do know, is that the first ally left to that kingdom was a man named Lyonnet Attley. That is, my ancestor.
One by one they defeated the alliance, which was not very united.
According to the king, he offered them a truce so as not to destroy them.
The deal was that they would unite into a single state, which is how the Arklight Empire was born.
I, the next head of my family, was really happy to have such an honor.
The first emperor asked my ancestor if he wished to be a duke. But he refused out of modesty.
In the end, the emperor made him the first sword saint of the empire.
The title of saint, as opposed to [Holy Kingdom] came from my ancestor's honesty and values.
Joy coursed through my body. Therefore, I wished to hold the expectations of my ancestors high.
I didn't want to be the only one of the Attley's who is a weakness.
But, as time passed. No matter how much I trained the sword, I could do something right.
My father always practiced with me, he was very rough, but it was for my own good.
The son of a margrave must be strong, and even more so we who protect the emperor and one of the borders.
My skills were weak, but one day it is changed.
My aunt brought me to the birthday of a person I did not know. He was the third Regulux prince.
I was scared, my family belonged to the imperial family faction.
I must show my best and not embarrass them.
I was too nervous to speak.
So much so. That I secretly went to the bathroom to vomit.
Once I came out. I walked down a long hallway.
I got lost.
This place is huge.
I was trying to get back to the bathroom, but I couldn't find it, let alone the maid who led the way.
I was going to cry.
I am weak.
Even if I am a child, I was very weak.
I was about to get on my knees and call my aunt, when a kind voice called out to me.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
As I turned around, a well-dressed boy with blond hair and green eyes was talking to me.
His arms behind his back made him look very helpless.
"...No. I..."
"You got lost, didn't you?"
I was terrified to say yes. So I just lowered my head in embarrassment.
"No problem!" He said. With a smile on his mouth he said. "I used to get lost a lot too, but with practice, I'd find my way back."
"Huh?"
He was talking if he knew this place. So, there would only be one answer.
"This... you're His Highness Regulux?"
He puffed out his cheeks like a balloon.
"I don't like being called that!"
"I'm sorry..."
"Never mind. It's just that all the adults around here are so annoying."
"Really?"
"Yes. Hey, would you like to be my friend?"
"Huh?"
It was the first time in my life that someone had ever asked me if I wanted something. They never had, they just said things like "do it" or "it's your obligation".
But never if I wanted something.
"Umm... yes, please."
"Good!"
His Highness grabbed my hand and then pulled me to follow him.
"Since we're friends, let's go play in the garden!"
"B- But, what about the party?"
"Forget about that. They just use it to get together."
It was like that, how I met my first friend.
We became close, so much so, that we called each other by short names as a symbol of our friendship.
I was happy, so much so, that I swore something to myself.
"I will protect him."
"I will dedicate my sword to protect him and thus, one day become a sword saint like my ancestor. For, I am sure, Lux will become emperor."
He always tells me that there are problems with faction stuff between his older brothers. So something like a feud between them wouldn't be uncommon.
That's why he wants to be emperor. To put an end to those pesky family feuds.
I was happy about his resolution, to the point that for some strange reason. I felt a tingling in my stomach.
I guess I shouldn't have eaten too many sweets.
One day, Lux spoke his truths to his fiancé. I always told her that I shouldn't meddle in her personal affairs, but a strange boy and his half-brother, the fourth prince, did a foolish thing like picking a fight with Lux.
He agreed to the duel, and that's how we ended up here.
I lost in a very cowardly way at the hands of the useless prince. Then Lux forgave me for losing even though I had sworn to him that I would win.
He is a great man no doubt, I would like to have a younger sister and have her betrothed to him.
Then we would be real family.
When Lux fought against that weird-face guy, he ended up beating him. It was a normal result.
But then an annoying creature appeared, that creature hurt my best friend.
But why did this happen?
The answer as the culprit is simple.
That weird-face guy, it's the one responsible for Lux being unconscious!
I won't let him escape!
I will use this opportunity to kill him to erase a future problem for him!
I pointed my sword, the inheritance of the first sword saint at him.
Our battle began.
◇◇◇
Razel and Lambert were ready to fight.
Both of their swords were ready, their feet gathered magic power to rush out instantly.
But at that moment they forgot that Xerxes was present.
He seemed to be fighting against the ships of the people who came to watch the duel.
He used his technique again.
Big stomp.
The area where the two were standing was right next to each other.
They were lifted by the blow, then hit as they fell, but it didn't end there.
The ground was fractured in two.
One part was caved in and the other lifted up as if it were a ladder.
Razel was trying to grab onto a tree to keep from falling.
But Lambert gave him no chance.
Using falling speed, he was going for Razel's neck.
He realized what his opponent was up to, so he let go so he wouldn't cut.
Lambert's sword attack was so sharp that it cut the tree in half like butter.
But it didn't end there.
Seeing that Razel was heading to a place not so steep, he decided to follow him.
The magic attribute of both of them was the same, lightning.
Razel activated his ability which he used against Squall. God of lightning speed.
His body glowed a beautiful light blue as he ran.
Lambert was not going to let him escape.
As a Lyonnet Style practitioner, it was normal to learn footwork. But the footwork he learned was a different one.
It involved his magic attribute.
He called it. Ghost feet.
Leaving a residual illusory figure, Lambert was approaching Razel at high speed.
Debris of earth and trees were falling in the direction of both of them.
Razel was cutting trees and after cutting the last one falling in front of him. He watched Lambert swinging his sword up and down to finish him off.
"You fucking cheat!" Razel shouted as he defended himself.
Left and right, up and down.
Blows of metal against metal and blue sparks echoed in that great clatter.
A blue light from Razel's sword left a dazzling shadow each time he defended himself.
He couldn't attack, in the situation he was in, he had to watch his surroundings so he wouldn't trip or crash into a tree.
The moment his eyes were not on his opponent.
Lambert used a special attack.
"Lightning Magic: Great Catastrophe!"
A bright light emanated from his sword, it approached Razel and he dodged it.
A huge explosion happened.
Razel jumped straight to the side and was now rolling downhill.
Lambert was running towards him, leaving a shadow of himself which vanished almost instantly.
When he made the same move again. Razel prevented it by swinging his sword upward.
But Lambert didn't care, with the same force it was thrown, he brought it down.
Razel dodged it. His sword was now headed for Lambert's side.
A light leap he made to avoid the blow.
But the fall did not stop them.
The great column of earth that was now the area they were in was splitting into pieces.
Large fractions of ground flew out.
They used that to fight there.
Razel jumped in different places so that Lambert could follow him.
He stood waiting for him in a very large one, the size of a basketball court.
Once Lambert arrived.
They resumed their battle.
Razel was approaching, left to right. He would back up and move forward to strike his opponent.
The bloodlust of both was so great, that anyone could tell that these blows were intended to kill the other.
They were classmates from the same academy. Even if they didn't know each other or were friends, trying to kill each other was wrong.
Lambert was hitting Razel with all the force he could muster.
He screamed as sweat poured from his forehead.
"Why, how is that possible, I'm stronger than you!"
"Why can't I defeat you easily?"
Lambert couldn't understand. He being one of the swordsmen who had surpassed the master level. He was having trouble with a nobody.
In practice, he would look at those who had potential. But none of them were worth the trouble.
So...
Why was Razel so strong?
The blows of their swords resounded more and more.
Lambert was so annoyed, that he purposely destroyed the ground where they were standing.
All the fractions of land were still flying, but the one they were both fighting on. It began to fall.
In the middle of that fall, Lambert was trying to kill Razel.
They were both falling at high speed towards the ground.
Razel pushed Lambert to go to a ground that was still in the air.
But he wouldn't allow it.
In a savage way, Lambert grabbed Razel by the collar of his clothes. To push him to the ground.
They were closer and closer to his death.
But they didn't care about that.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
"AaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAhhhhhhh!"
From the bottom of their throats they struggled intensely, just before they hit the ground, they both pushed each other to fall in different places.
Lambert fell into some branches that were breaking at high speed, while Razel fell straight into a tree, splitting it in half.
Noticing this, Lambert laughed.
"Hahaha, you deserve it!"
He chanted victory against his opponent.
"I win! Now, time to eliminate his bro-!"
Immediately the words were cut off. Not because he bit his tongue.
But because his face was struck by an electrified rock.
He was thrown at high speed.
His cheek was red.
Blood dripped from between his teeth.
In front of him was Razel with scratches and blood dripping from everywhere.
But even with that, he was in perfect condition.
Lambert's face was euphoric.
His white teeth were covered with blood.
"Why don't you just die! Aah!!!"
Once again, the attack began.
Lambert was lunging in a straight line to slash at Razel.
Backing away, he dodged it.
It was all thanks to the Hawkeye that was activated.
"One more time!" said Lambert.
His sword moved diagonally or horizontally.
It didn't matter which direction it took.
Razel smoothly dodged it.
He even parried Lambert's sword with his own sword.
Lambert was trembling because of what he witnessed.
His own sword was trembling, but Razel was not.
Then, for the first time in the fight and in his life, he stepped back.
"Wh- what was that?"
His sword was shaking, no, it was his hand that was doing it.
Lambert was watching something he had never seen in his entire life.
Razel... was emanating a strange black aura.
That aura took the shape of a skull with red eyes.
He was laughing in a gloomy way.
Lambert looked into the eyes of that skull and a message appeared in his head.
Instant death!
That was what he saw.
His own death was being announced if he continued to fight this opponent.
Lambert had different thoughts as he gasped.
(What is this?)
(Why? Why do I feel afraid of this guy?)
(I don't understand... he's just a normal guy who made the worst mistake of his life. Fighting those three shouldn't have been a big deal. But this is out of this world!)
A blow came to his untouched cheek.
It was his own hand.
"Don't fuck with me!"
He glared angrily at Razel.
"A guy like you!"
"A moron like you!"
His teeth were being pressed so hard, blood was coming out of his gums.
"A dirty bastard like you, can never defeat me!"
"That doesn't matter to me anymore."
Lambert never noticed, that Razel had moved right behind him.
As he slowly, like in a horror movie turned around. Razel was striking his cheek with the handle of his sword.
Lambert was sent flying several meters in a straight line.
Little by little he went down until he crashed.
Like a car crash, he left a great deal of damage wherever he fell.
He was briefly unconscious.
But he raised his head.
Blood was dripping from his mouth, nose, ears and eyes.
He couldn't understand what was happening.
He was supposed to be strong.
He was part of the 12 candidates to be the next sword saint.
Part of the three swords, those who are better than a master swordsman.
So, why was he losing?
Lambert didn't understand anything, his head was still spinning.
Slowly, Razel was approaching.
Lambert used all his strength to stand up.
His legs were shaking.
His sword, which was a family heirloom, had cracks and seemed to be about to break in two at any moment.
One of his eyes was soaked in blood.
No one could imagine that his condition had been caused by a nobody.
Lambert muttered.
"You... you're not a mere human are you?"
Shadows covered Razel's face.
For a second, Lambert was reminded of the mysterious criminal named Licht that has been talked about in the palace lately.
He burst out laughing.
"No, that can't be. Now that would be silly."
The laughter echoed in time with the destruction behind him.
Lambert was smiling.
His smile was calm, but it gave a sinister feeling.
"This is the first time in my life I've ever tasted my own blood. It's just like chewing iron, very disgusting."
Razel did not respond.
Without hesitation, Lambert's sword was raised to point at him.
"You are dangerous and very much so. I will not allow you anywhere near His Highness... Lux. Here and now, I will finish you."
Lambert smiled with his teeth covered in blood.
"This is a battle to the death between the two of us!"
"If you beat me, I will acknowledge that you are stronger than all the candidates combined!"
"In this country, power is everything, for that reason the empire is a glorious nation that prides itself on its warriors!"
"Someone like me... losing to an insignificant rat like you... would be worse than death!"
"I will no longer do it for Lux, but for myself! I, Lambert von Attley, recognize you, whoever you are, as my true rival and sworn enemy!"
"The blood of one of us, shall bathe this earth!"
With those words, Lambert began to glower.
"Admire the move with which I can match a sword saint! Lightning magic!"
Magical power was gathering at his feet now.
Something similar to wings was materializing.
"God walk!"
Lambert vanished.
No.
He jumped.
He jumped from his spot to a tree near Razel.
Razel wasn't even looking.
Then he repeated that pattern until he left a glittering trail.
Tree after tree was hit by his feet, leaving a blue trail.
He would yell at Razel as he almost touched him.
"This move allows me to leave residual images of me! No matter what you see, you'll never guess which one is me!"
An army of Lambert clones jumped back and forth.
Trying to cut Razel down and failing.
This was the final move he was learning in the game.
Razel knew it perfectly.
He sighed a little and then said to Lambert approaching from above to cut him in half.
"You know, I used to be like you?"
For a moment, Lambert lost focus.
Razel turned his face toward him.
A sinister smile was mirrored, the blood not helping to take away the sinister.
"It was a joke~ idiot~"
"I just wanted to try that phrase and see how effective it was. It seems to only work on self-conscious guys like you."
Lambert seeing how he was being teased, shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Aaaahhh, you miserable son of a-!"
He was stunned by what he was observing.
"Let me show you a real secret technique to wipe out your enemies. Lightning magic."
Imitating a move from an anime he saw long ago.
Razel's arms glowed, seemed to move slightly and then....
"Flurry of super-fast strikes."
Both arms disappeared.
No.
The arms moved at a speed similar to a swallow's flutter.
They were so fast, only the palms of the fists could be seen.
Those fists were moving at high speed against Lambert.
Hundreds of them were inches away from touching his body.
Ribs, kidneys, heart, intestines and, above all, the face.
Little by little they were sinking from the force of the impact.
Before he could feel anything, Lambert muttered something that Razel did not hear.
"...Lux, I-"
"I guess, I can be a sword saint can't I?"
"Huh?"
At that moment, a new world of pain opened up for Lambert.
"Afajafahahajakajakajafahahagada!"
Lambert's body was being ground into blows that traveled at a speed that, without exaggeration, could be said to be the speed of light.
His eyes were blank, only the odd sound came out of his mouth.
It was only 20 seconds before Razel stopped.
But before he did, he threw one last punch against his jaw, sending him flying straight into the sky.
Lambert was no longer conscious, but to Razel, that didn't matter.
He just wanted to generate some violence.
He too leaped into the sky, his right fist aimed at Lambert's stomach.
It was all going to end right now.
"With this, I guess I shouldn't expect you to defeat any demon kings, should I?"
The fist was aimed impacting the stomach, in such a way, that Lambert bent into a V-shape as he fell straight to the ground.
The impact was so hard, the layer of earth buckled like a hospital bed.
There, covered in dirt, blood and missing a few teeth, his eyes rolled back in his head.
There lay the strongest capture target, and also, the next sword saint.
With this, Razel could see that he doesn't need any of the capture targets, only Lily.
Though he wishes she doesn't really needs them.
Falling slowly over the large hole, Razel thought.
(Now what the hell am I supposed to do with this?)
Falling, he scooped Lambert up in his arms to set him down in a safe place.
His sword was already broken, so it didn't matter.
Even if he's a bastard, I can't leave the heir to an important house lying around.
(If anyone found out about this, I'd certainly be sent to the gallows.)
As he checked where to leave Lambert's badly wounded man, he remembered that there was another menace.
As he looked in the direction where Xerxes should now be.
Razel shouted.
"Wh- What the hell!"
And inadvertently, he dropped Lambert.
From what he could see.