Chapter 100: Compatibility

The Fake Prince

The moment I returned the exact words I had heard from Seron, Ergo’s face twisted more violently than ever before.

“Hah.”

A stunned breath escaped from his lips, just as it had with Seron.
At the same time, anger surged in his eyes.

“I was going to let it slide out of respect for the fact that you are the cousin of the Third Princess.”

His simmering fury spread around him.
He wasn’t called one of the ‘Six Stars’ for nothing.
The golden killing intent radiating from him tightened around me.

“You are crossing the line.”

But I had long grown used to such killing intent.
From the rage-filled gaze of Isabel in the past, to Nikita’s murderous aura after being consumed by the remnants of the ancient dragon—
I had faced it all head-on.

At this point, Ergo’s killing intent was laughable to me.
So, I simply smiled in the face of it.

“What, are you scared?”

One provocation after another.

“You want this, don’t you?”

I raised the Parazon sword for him to see.
His eyes naturally followed the blade.

This was the Parazon sword I had gone through great hardships to obtain over summer break.
Since his original goal had been the White Nightmare Sword, I had planned to exchange swords with him anyway.
But knowing the true value of the Parazon sword, I decided to leverage it for an additional advantage.

“Do you think I will simply overlook today’s insult?”

“I do not take you lightly, Your Highness Ergo Parazon. Especially when it comes to politics—I know very well how skilled you are.”

I handed the Parazon sword to Iris.
She caught on to my intentions and accepted it.

“I have just transferred ownership of the Parazon sword to Lady Iris.”

Ergo’s eyebrow twitched.

“Which means that from this moment on, the parties involved in this exchange are no longer you and me, but you and Lady Iris.”

The Parazon sword, a weapon of historical significance.
Now, the Third Princess of the Empire had personally retrieved it and presented it to Prince Ergo.

This exchange would be recorded in history.
It symbolized a strengthened bond between the Hyserion Empire and the Parazon Kingdom.
And for Ergo, it was a chance to solidify his position before the people as the prince who had reclaimed the legendary sword of Parazon.

Now, would Ergo really want any scandal to taint such a historic moment?

The answer was obvious—he absolutely would not.

Naturally, today’s insult would never be recorded in history.
It would be silenced.
And since history would never speak of it, there would be no punishment for me either.

On top of that, thanks to this exchange,
Seron’s disgraceful remark—calling him a ‘fake prince’—would be buried beneath the greater news.

To call a prince, an heir to the throne, a ‘fake’—that was something the Parazon Kingdom could take issue with.

Ergo might let his emotions get the better of him, but he was no fool.
He had already realized that this conversation was also meant to bury Seron’s remark along with it.

“…It seems you think far too little of me.”

Yet, despite everything, his anger flared even stronger.

“You wanted a duel, did you? Fine. But.”

Ergo clenched his teeth.

“If you’re prepared to lose your life in that duel—then I’ll gladly oblige.”

“Alright.”

At my easygoing response, Ergo was momentarily dumbfounded.

“In exchange, Your Highness Ergo Parazon, you will apologize to the girl you fought earlier today.”

He stared at me, utterly at a loss.

“…Just to be clear, you’re telling me that you went to all this trouble, even wagering the Parazon sword, just to get me to apologize to that girl?”

A situation beyond all reason.
So much so that Ergo had to ask the question himself.

I simply smiled again.

“Yes, that’s right.”

Ergo stared at me blankly, as if he had never seen such a lunatic before.

“It’s simple for you, Your Highness. Duel me, exchange the White Nightmare Sword for the Parazon Sword, and return to your kingdom. Oh, and of course, I have no intention of harming your life.”

Well? Still nervous?

Ergo remained silent, watching me.
Then, a smirk crept onto his lips.

“Fine.”

Ergo’s defining traits were [Pride] and [Sadism].
And those two traits had just fanned the flames in his heart—
the fire that told him he absolutely had to crush me.

“When you die, tell the god of the afterlife that the one who killed you was none other than Ergo Parazon.”

With that, the duel was set.

* * *

There was no need to overthink it.
Ergo was eager to smash me to pieces, and I felt the same way.
So we slipped away from the professors’ watchful eyes and headed to a clearing in the nearby forest.

“Hanon.”

As I walked behind Ergo, Iris called out to me.

For her, this whole situation had come out of nowhere.
I thought she might be worried about me, but then—

“If it looks like Prince Ergo is in danger, I’ll step in.”

So basically, she was telling me to beat him up as much as I wanted.

Iris never even considered the possibility that I might lose.
Well, that made sense.
She knew I had fought Nikita, who wielded the remnants of an elder dragon.

Among the Six Stars, aside from Eve, Nikita was nearly unbeatable.
Using the magic of an elder dragon, Nikita was on an entirely different level.
And yet, I had defeated Nikita and saved Iris.

So, in her eyes, I was far beyond what most people thought.

“Understood. I’ll be counting on you, Lady Iris. I might end up going a little overboard.”

“Leave it to me.”

With that, our conversation ended, and Ergo came to a halt.

A clearing, shielded from view by thick trees.
It looked like the area had been burned down by lightning not too long ago.
A perfect place for a fight.

“Let me make this clear once more.”

Ergo lifted his hand.

In that instant, swords flew out from his waist, filling the air.

The belt at his waist was a special treasury imbued with ‘spatial magic’.
It allowed him to store an unlimited number of swords, and all his finest blades were kept there.

“I will fight with the intent to kill you.”

He had spoken the words himself.

If I died here today, I would have no right to complain.

“Take responsibility for those words yourself.”

Ergo glanced toward Iris.

Iris, who had agreed to serve as the judge for this duel, raised her hand above her head.

“Begin.”

The moment her hand dropped—

Ergo’s Skyborne Swordsmanship was unleashed.

Swords filled the sky, all rushing toward me at once.

Each one, sharp and relentless, came at me like the fangs of a beast.

I stood there motionless, doing absolutely nothing.

As if I had resigned myself to death.

Ergo looked at me with a confused expression, unable to comprehend my actions.

But he didn’t stop his Skyborne Swordsmanship.

If I had given up, he would simply cut me down.

If I had a plan, I had to break through head-on.

The swords came at me from every direction, aiming to pierce my body.

It was a veritable rain of blades.

Yet, I didn’t so much as blink.

KAGAGAGAGANG!

The next moment, Ergo’s eyes widened at the sight before him.

All the swords he had launched had reached me.

From the side, I must have looked like a hedgehog bristling with spikes.

But among all those blades—

Not a single one had pierced me.

Mystery
Skin of Steel

Bladed weapons like swords could do me no harm.

My clothes might have been torn a little, but my body remained unscathed.

Ergo’s eyes widened in shock.

At this moment, he must have realized—

He and I were the worst possible matchup.

“Your Highness Ergo Parazon.”

I casually brushed aside the swords surrounding me with my hand.

“Didn’t you say you were going to kill me?”

A smirk laced with provocation spread across my lips.

Sorry, but you can never kill me.

The instant my foot struck the ground, my body lunged forward.

Seeing this, Ergo quickly recalled his swords.

Blades chasing from behind.

Blades flying toward me from the front.

Facing them head-on, I swung my bare hand.

KANG! KANG!

The swords I struck clashed against my hand and bounced away.

Ergo frowned as he watched me fight without even drawing a weapon.

This kind of battle—

It was a first for him.

A full-frontal charge, unarmed.

Normally, that would be suicidal.

But as I deflected his swords and took another step closer—

Ergo’s expression hardened.

I was an unstoppable war machine.

And that pressure weighed down on him completely.

If I reached him—

Would Ergo be able to stop me?

The sheer killing intent radiating from my body.

That oppressive force ignited a chain of doubts in his mind, one after another.

But I had no intention of giving him time to reach a conclusion.

I stepped forward—

With even more precision.

I put strength into my lower body.

I raise my guard with even more precision.

Closing the distance is my specialty.

In the past, during my prime, this technique left many opponents bewildered.

I keep pressing him, narrowing the space for thought.

The murderous intent radiating from my entire body constricts Ergo.

KAANG! KANG KANG!

The number of deflected swords continues to increase.

The closer I get to Ergo, the fiercer his Skyborne Swordsmanship becomes.

Yet, despite everything, he still fails to leave a single scratch on me.

The moment Ergo’s face completely hardens—

At last, I reach him.

An opening.

A single line traces itself in my vision—along Ergo’s head and hands.

Following that line, my hand slices through the air like a blade.

KAGAGAGAGAGA!

Right in front of Ergo’s nose.

My hand abruptly stops.

Around it, swords have gathered in an instant, crossing to block my strike.

The way the blades converged in a circle almost resembled a blooming flower.

The sheer force suppressing my arm prevents it from moving an inch forward.

As expected of some of the world’s finest swords, each radiates an extraordinary presence.

Between the gaps in the blades, my gaze meets Ergo’s.

“Remember this.”

Then, between the shadows of the swords, Ergo’s lips part.

“This is the unbridgeable gap between you and me.”

At that moment, the swords wrapped around my wrist suddenly gain weight.

With the abrupt increase in pressure, my arm is yanked downward.

THUD!

My entire body follows, pulled straight to the ground.

And like wolves pouncing on a prey that has bowed its head, the swords rush in all at once.

THUNK! THUNK! THUNK!

Blades drive deep into the earth, pinning my limbs at every joint.

In an instant, I am completely immobilized.

“You must have some kind of power that makes you immune to being cut.”

At that moment, Ergo swings a massive greatsword with tremendous force.

The flat of the blade comes crashing toward my face.

“If I can’t cut you, I’ll just beat you until you lose consciousness.”

Just before the weighty greatsword smashes into my face—

A flash of light bursts from my arms, bound by the swords.

BOOM!

With the activation of a magic inscription, an explosion erupts, tearing away the swords restraining me.

The flat of the greatsword is mere inches away.

I extend my right hand and strike the blade directly.

KAGUGUGUGUGUK!

A deep, wrenching sound echoes—like metal warping.

Ergo freezes in place.

Because my fingers have pierced straight through the steel of his greatsword.

And, of course, those fingers belong to me.

“You said this was an unbridgeable gap, didn’t you?”

I clench my fingers tightly.

KIIIIIIIK—

In that instant, the greatsword’s blade crumples inward.

Between the warped steel—

My crimson eyes gleam.

“Let’s see if you can still say that once all your swords end up like this.”

CLANG!

Sword Breaker.

In that moment, Ergo’s greatsword—

Was utterly destroyed.