Several members of the Second Order collapsed, their legs giving way from shock. Count Leon felt like joining them.

Unlike the stunned onlookers, Erin remained composed. She turned to Derek and said, “Sir Derek, please take the injured to the infirmary with my friends.”

Derek and the beginner class students nodded with dazed expressions. Though they had learned about it before arriving here, witnessing it firsthand remained extraordinary.

Count Leon raised his sword toward Erin. “I believe I’ve proven my innocence, haven’t I?”

“You… insolent…”

Count Leon couldn’t accept it. How could someone so young become a Sword Master? Even the formidable Duke Asili had only reached that level in his mid-thirties. This defied all common sense.

“I follow the Emperor’s orders. Erin Liserth, you won’t leave here alive,” he declared coldly. “The same goes for them. Karon Liserth and your companions will die here.”

Erin briefly looked up at the sky before turning her gaze back to him. “I have no intention of letting you go either.”

* * *

After her conversation with Ferdin, Erin had firmly resolved not to tolerate anyone who threatened her loved ones. Count Leon had toyed with Ferdin’s knight candidates and even dared to injure Ferdin himself.

‘He wounded his body.’

Erin struggled to maintain her composure as murderous intent threatened to melt her mind. She wanted to repay Count Leon in kind for what he had done to Ferdin.

“Lady Erin, Amon’s condition is critical. If we delay any longer…”

Derek, who was examining Amon, felt utterly miserable. The beginner class knights shared his desperation.

“Leave now,” Erin commanded.

At her words, Philip slammed his fist into the ground. The only help they could offer Erin now was to move Ferdin and his knights to the infirmary.

“D*mn it, this is pathetic.”

“…”

“Shouldn’t we stay and help you?”

Erin shook her head. “It’s fine, Philip. I’m enough for this place on my own.”

Hearing this, Count Leon’s face reddened with rage. “How arrogant, Erin Liserth!”

Erin was treating him like he didn’t exist. Looking at her, Count Leon was reminded of Duke Asili, who had also treated him with similar disdain. But that was tolerable coming from Duke Asili.

He had no idea how Erin had become a Sword Master, but one thing was clear.

‘I need to eliminate her now.’

A Sword Master in her early twenties—she was a threat. The neutral faction had already become formidable with Duke Asili as one of the Sword Masters.

But what if a new Sword Master supported the Second Prince? Especially after the Emperor had already framed House Liserth for using black magic? The situation had passed the point of no return.

‘Surely I’m still stronger,’ he reassured himself.

Just as there was a gap between Duke Asili’s skills and his own, differences existed even among those of the same rank. Erin Liserth, who had just become a Sword Master, couldn’t possibly be stronger than him.

Count Leon studied Erin carefully. At first glance, she looked like an ordinary woman—shorter than average with a frame that didn’t appear particularly strong. But appearances could be deceiving when it came to Sword Masters.

‘I’ll eliminate Erin Liserth and deal with all witnesses.’

The very fact that Erin was a Sword Master needed to disappear from any narrative involving House Liserth. Count Leon shifted his gaze to where Derek and the beginner class knights were tending to Ferdin and his knights.

“Derek Athern, didn’t I say I had no intention of letting you go?”

At Count Leon’s words, the Second Order knights moved to block Derek’s path. But soon, their faces turned pale.

BOOM!

When Erin plunged her mana-infused sword deep into the ground, a grotesque sound echoed as the earth split wide open before them. The Second Order knights all stumbled backward, with some letting out groans of distress.

“Is this even possible?”

“What in the world…”

Erin’s face remained cold despite the tremendous feat she had just performed. Derek and the beginner class knights’ expressions hardened with resolve as they seized the opportunity Erin had created and fled.

“Such insolence…!”

Count Leon’s eyes blazed with fury as he tried to swing his sword at the escaping group. But Erin’s blade moved faster, flying toward him without warning. Had he not rolled away instantly, it might have been a devastating blow.

“How underhanded…” Count Leon muttered.

Erin opened her mouth. “That’s rich.”

“What?”

“Not exactly something that should be said by someone who became a Sword Master only to bully knights weaker than himself.”

After speaking, Erin closed her eyes and reopened them. Her gaze had completely transformed. The warmth she had shown her companions was nowhere to be found. It was like winter had taken residence in her eyes, emanating an intense cold that seemed to freeze one’s flesh.

“If you had just left them alone, it wouldn’t have come to this.”

“…”

“Why do you keep targeting my people? Why do you keep… continuing…”

For the first time since becoming a Sword Master, Count Leon felt fear. Despite her voice filled with anger, Erin’s delicate face remained terrifyingly expressionless, as though devoid of all emotion.

Erin Liserth had revealed her true nature. There was no other way to interpret it.

“Mon… monster…” muttered one of the Second Order knights watching her.

As though she had removed a mask, Erin’s demeanor changed dramatically the moment Ferdin and his knights disappeared.

‘What is this k*lling intent?’

The Count couldn’t maintain his train of thought as Erin began to move in earnest.

* * *

“My Lord, what will you do?”

At the chief knight’s question, the Duke gazed at the sword hanging at his waist with an unreadable expression. Duke Asili had halted on the path to the academy while leading his knights.

He couldn’t bring himself to move forward easily. The chief knight understood Duke Asili’s feelings well.

‘She was a talent the Duke truly appreciated after so long.’

The Duke had been extremely pleased with Erin. After sparring with her, he would occasionally gaze into the distance with wistful eyes, seemingly recalling their match.

Though the chief knight had felt jealous of Erin, he never wished for her to end up in such a situation. Instead, watching Erin gain the Duke’s recognition had given him a goal to strive for: 

‘Someday, I too will spar with the Duke and earn his recognition.’

As a knight, he wanted to defeat her someday through skill, not see her meet such an end.

“I’m not sure,” the Duke replied.

He had been confident in Erin’s talent. But if she had indeed grown stronger through black magic as the Emperor claimed, then dealing with her would be the right course of action.

There was no way to redeem someone who had used black magic. Knights believed that using black magic to transform into monsters corrupted one’s very soul.

“But Marquis Liserth wouldn’t do such a thing,” the Duke said with a bitter smile. “Neither he nor I were good parents, but… he’s not someone who would do that to his daughter.”

As he spoke, Duke Asili’s gaze remained fixed in the direction of the academy. Suddenly, his face hardened.

“My Lord?”

The chief knight looked at him with surprise.

“That person…”

The Duke placed his hand on his sword, continuing with a confused expression, “That person has appeared.”

“Pardon?”

“The Sword Master who appeared during the monster subjugation—it’s definitely them. This k*lling intent is intensely chilling.”

The chief knight nearly fell off his horse in shock. The First Order knights who heard the Duke’s words had similar reactions.

“That person… has appeared?”

“So they really were one of those who participated in the subjugation?”

“Such tremendous k*lling intent…”

The normally solemn atmosphere among the knights became chaotic. The existence of “that person” was a matter of great interest to the knights of the First Order.

Another Sword Master besides the empire’s three great Sword Masters—an unknown entity who might be from another kingdom or a hidden master. The knights’ faces tensed at the thought of this potential ally or enemy.

“Are you saying that person is at the academy now?”

“Yes.”

The Duke began moving quickly toward the academy. The chief knight, who had been stunned by this revelation, hurried to follow him.

Once inside the academy grounds, Duke Asili’s stride became even more determined. The chief knight nearly lost sight of him several times. Though Duke Asili typically showed consideration for his knights, he was now too excited to remember such courtesies.