“Agghhhhh!”

Killian slashed down his longsword with a loud roar. Even though it was a dull blade, the weapon contained a fierce momentum and aimed to crush Isla’s shoulders. But as the blade neared its target, Isla disappeared like a mirage.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

Killian wobbled back along with a dull sound. Isla had instantaneously moved behind Killian’s back and struck Killian’s buttocks with his spear.

“…...”

Isla repositioned his spear to his side, then beckoned Killian as if nothing had happened.

“You bastarddd!”

Killian’s face turned red with shame, and he swung his blade with powerful force. The powerful strikes tore apart the air, and loud shockwaves could be heard throughout the training area. But Isla avoided all the attacks with minimal movement, and his spear never left his side the whole while.

“Agghh!”

Killian’s shout grew even louder with extreme anger. In addition, his eyes began to turn red, and an unfamiliar spirit started to exude from his body. Vincent narrowed his eyes.

‘This is…’

He was certain that even though it was feeble, it was the Spirit of the Dragon.

‘Has Soldrake’s energy affected him? Well, his family is said to have served the Pendragon family for generations, so they might share some blood as well.’

Since Killian had a superb physique and he was raised as the duchy’s knight ever since he was young, it was not strange that the Spirit of the White Dragon had slightly permeated him as well.

The large figure ran rampant like an angry bull. However, he did not lose his posture and maintained his stance, not betraying his 20 years of experience as a knight. His movements became bigger, but his blade sharpened and became more concise.

Naturally, the addition of a spirit would have empowered his attacks, and for the first time, Isla’s eyes filled with interest. And for the second time, Isla removed his spear from his side. It was not because he wanted to. It was an inevitable choice he had to make to block Killian’s attack.

Clang!

“Hmm!”

With a short moan, Isla retreated back a few steps. He had not blocked Killian’s attack head-on, but he still felt a tingling sensation in his wrist due to the immense power behind the attack. Had it been a real sword, it was a blow that might have split the spear in two.

Killian gave Isla no time to think as he took the opportunity and pushed Isla back even further. The blade came from all directions and forced Isla to remain on the defensive.

Clang! Clang!

Sparks rose from the metal rim connecting the spearhead and the shaft. Isla knew that if the opponent’s blade was sharpened, three strikes were enough to completely shatter the spear.

“Uaagh!”

‘He’s pretty good. No, he’s much better than I thought.’

Both his strength and technique were beyond what Isla had imagined, and with the spirit added on, it gave birth to a ferocious combination. But that was not the only reason Isla was surprised.

One of the most important criteria in distinguishing between strong and weak knights was the ability to distribute one’s power: endurance. Anyone would become exhausted after a short while if they pushed themselves like Killian was doing so. Even an experienced knight would lose their momentum after the time it took to drink a cup of tea.

But Killian did not show even the slightest hint of tiredness. Even in extreme anger, it was clear that he was reading the flow of the battle and naturally controlling how much strength he was putting into each strike. He would have displayed a different style of battle if he were wearing full plate armor that weighed nearly 50 pounds. In other words, Killian was not simply a strong simpleton, but a first-class knight who could properly distribute and use his extraordinary powers to adapt to each situation.

‘Even still…!’

A glare appeared in the eyes of Isla who had been on the defensive until now. The muscles of his scarred upper body wriggled like a snake and his spear drew a beautiful arc through the air. It was as if a large serpent was drawing back to pounce on its prey.

Wooooosh!

“Ugh!”

Killian jumped back in shock, then rolled onto his side. At almost the same time, Isla’s exquisite attack slashed through the air. It had changed directions three times in a short moment as if the spear were alive.

“Damn it!”

Killian jumped to his feet from the ground while swearing.

“…….”

It was a comedic sight for the duchy’s elite knight, but none of the spectating men laughed. They all knew that it would have been impossible to dodge the attack with any other movement. And very few of them were confident in showing the same movement to dodge Isla’s attacks.

Killian and Isla fixed their posture while facing each other. Although his clothes and face had been dirtied by mud, Killian’s eyes still glowed red as he stabilized his breathing. Isla also disregarded his disrespectful attitude and took the flag-bearer’s stance with one foot pulled back.

“…...”

The muscles of the two knights, glistening with sweat and dirt, swelled in a tense silence. Everyone knew that the match would be decided when the two knights broke the silence and clashed once more.

It was then.

“What are you two doing?”

“Heuk!”

Everyone turned in surprise at the sudden sound of the voice.

A slender young man, dressed in light clothes with only a shirt and pants, was coming down the steps of the training ground with his hands behind his back. The two knights, as well as the onlookers, all bowed their heads with a thud on their chest.

“We greet the master of Pendragon!”

“We greet our lord!”

The roaring cries of knights and soldiers echoed loudly.

Raven responded with a slight nod and walked towards Killian and Isla, who had lowered their weapons and heads.

“Hmm…”

Raven observed the two men, who still had their heads bowed awkwardly. He could figure out what was happening based on the atmosphere.

“Good job, both of you. The duchy’s knights duking it out with each other, first thing in the morning.”

Raven spoke bluntly as he casually took out a heavy wooden sword from the armory. It weighed the same as a regular longsword.

“……”

The two knights’ heads dropped even lower. Raven continued while tapping his wooden sword against the spear and the longsword.

“It seems like one of you wants to have their remaining egg removed, while the other seemed to have been lying about their loyalty towards me.”

“N, not at all!”

“M, my lord!”

The two knights hastily raised their heads, flustered.

“Then what is it? Why doesn’t somebody explain it to me?”

Raven looked around, but everyone avoided his eyes with an embarrassed expression.

One person came forward with a smile.

“It was just a friendly duel to promote friendship between two knights under the same lord, Your Grace. Isn’t that so? Sir Killian? Sir Isla?”

“Y, yes. That’s what it was.”

“……”

Killian nodded hurriedly, but Isla remained silent with a somber expression.

“Is that so…?”

Raven briefly glanced at Vincent, the man who had spoken up for the two knights, then turned around.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

Along with a groan, the spear and the sword left the two knights’ hands and fell to the floor.

“Heuk!”

The spectating men became flabbergasted. No one had seen any movement. Furthermore, they could not believe that the small, slender man had caused two of the most powerful knights in the duchy to drop their weapons without having a chance to respond.

It had an even bigger impact on those who belatedly joined the duchy. They had only heard rumors about their lord and his actions in Sisak and Leus and had not actually seen him in action.

Raven spoke with a grin while looking at the two grim-faced knights.

“Let’s not hold any more friendly matches from now. When weapons bicker with each other, it is the one holding the blade who gets injured. But… I do not want to get hurt, so I will have no choice but to throw the weapon away, right?”

“Heuk! N, no, please!”

“M, my lord….!”

Killian became wide-eyed with shock, and even Isla, who was usually inexpressive, showed astonishment. After silently gazing at the two knights for a moment, Raven patted them on the shoulder.

“I never throw away a blade after I obtain them. That’s why I want the blades to only be unsheathed for me. Especially if they are the sharpest swords in the world. Do you understand what I mean?”

“Yes!”

“I will keep that in mind.”

Both men answered simultaneously in a loud voice with touched expressions. Raven smiled at them, then looked around.

“Good. Now, everybody, why don’t we go grab some breakfast together.”

“Huh?”

“A, are you talking to us?”

The warriors murmured in confusion, to which Raven responded with a frown.

“What? I thought the food was quite good recently. Do you guys not enjoy it?”

“N, not at all! The food is great!”

“Let’s go then.”

The men looked around at each other with baffled expressions before quickly following behind Raven. Vincent also joined in with a smile, and Killian and Isla also followed behind slowly.

Suddenly, Raven jerked his head around.

“Ah, before I forget.”

The men flinched and stopped. Raven resumed his words while staring at the two knights.

“Why don’t you just continue solidifying your friendship for the rest of the day?”

“Y, yes?”

Killian and Isla tilted their heads in confusion, and a large grin appeared on Raven’s face.

“What do you think, sharing in each other’s warmth is the best way to promote friendship. Would you not agree?”

“…...”

An unknown ominous feeling struck the two men.

***

The dining hall for the soldiers and knights living in Conrad Castle was very large and spacious. But today, the dining hall was eerily quiet, unlike its usual, bustling atmosphere.

It was because Alan Pendragon, the master of Conrad Castle and the Pendragon Duchy, was having breakfast together with the knights and the soldiers. Even lower nobles such as barons did not eat together with their soldiers unless it was a special occasion.

Naturally, the nobles consumed different types of food as well. However, Alan Pendragon was casually eating breakfast that consisted of bread, omelets, and lamb stew - on the same table as soldiers, sitting in their midst.

But rather confusingly, the eyes of the maids carrying food and the soldiers were not headed towards their lord, but someone else -- a knight with a large physique and another knight who sat shoulder to shoulder with him. They were none other than Killian and Isla. The only thing that seemed out of place were their gazes, which stared blankly into nothing, but other than that, there was nothing strange about the sight of two knights eating side by side.

However, the people who glanced at the two knights hurriedly turned their heads with bizarre expressions or lowered their heads under the table while coughing awkwardly.

“E, enjoy your meal, pfff!”

The maid was serving steaming omelets to the two knights when she was also forced to hurriedly turn her head while suppressing a laughter that threatened to burst out.

“Keugh!”

“Ehem!”

Her response caused the two knights to become miserable and angry.

The person who sat across from the two knights while enjoying his meal looked up and casually spoke, “Why? Does it not suit your tastes? I think it is quite delicious.”

“N, not at all. It’s…. very delicious.”

“…...”

The two people suppressed their emotions and resumed eating in silence once more. One with his right hand, the other with his left hand… Even though both were right-handed, they could not help it.

It was because the two prestigious knights, who respectively held the title Captain of the Knights and Captain of the Griffon Army, were holding hands with each other. Raven continued to watch the two proud men with a satisfied expression.

“What a great sight. There’s nothing better to build up friendship than a handshake.”

“……”

“……”

The grip on the knights’ hands tightened unknowingly.

“Do not forget. Both of you will be promoting your friendship with each other the entire day. If I hear or see you separating your hands, there will be three more days of it.”

“….Yes.”

The two knights answered like a gentle lamb and bowed their heads as laughter broke out from all over the place. That day, everyone was able to see the grandiose sight of the Stormbreaker and the One-egged Demon holding hands until the sun finally set.