The objective of the work unit from the very beginning was the assassination of a single person—the "Sword Saint."

Among the members of the work unit taken down by my senior apprentices, the young man who stabbed Blythe was nowhere to be found. Later, we learned that among the old man's tribe, there was no such youth. By the time the tribe was captured, he had already become a prisoner of the work unit, battered, feverish, and barely alive. That was why no one from the tribe ever doubted him. Who could have imagined that it was all an act? The youth’s skin was tanned, like that of the wandering people.

He was a spy.

But the story does not end here.

King Kilpus’s rage surpassed even my own fury. He then had the intelligence officers he had planted in the Republic—now I know exactly who he meant, most likely "Intelligence Officer" Juanere—thoroughly investigate the young man's background.

His name was William Nesep.

He was the illegitimate son of President Nesep of the Republic, born to a woman of the wandering people.

He wanted his father, Rugulus Nesep, to acknowledge him. He wanted to be loved like the children of the legitimate wife. According to Juanere’s report, that seemed to be his driving motive.

He voluntarily joined the work unit, and took on the dangerous mission of assassinating the "Sword Saint" of the Kingdom of Galliant. And William succeeded.

Then, did he receive the love he sought?

What William obtained by killing Blythe was a secure position within the Republic’s military, a vast fortune, and the honor of being called a "hero" who defeated the "Sword Saint." But were those truly Rugulus Nesep’s love?

Now, we will never know. William is no longer among the living.

I pleaded with His Majesty. I begged him to send me to the Republic as an assassin—to kill William Nesep.

But His Majesty never gave his approval.

—I will create the opportunity for revenge. But not now. Hone your skills.

He said that.

Years passed. Blythe’s faction disbanded. Having lost their central weight, each member quietly drifted away, like paper blown by the wind.

I joined the military with revenge in my heart. I fought, fought, and climbed the ranks within the Knight Order.

Several years later, William Nesep appeared once again on the battlefield—not as a spy, but as the "hero" of the Republic who had slain the Kingdom's "Sword Saint."

Now I understand that it was not President Nesep who crafted this hero image. It must have been King Kilpus and Intelligence Officer Juanere working behind the scenes.

I waited for him to show himself on the battlefield. But His Majesty waited for something else.

He waited for the birth of the Republic's "hero." He waited for William, the illegitimate child, to be acknowledged within the Republic as a "hero." He waited for the Republic to revel in William Nesep.

Of course, assassination could have been carried out at any time using the "Intelligence Officer."

There were two reasons for not doing so:

First, to protect the honor of Sword Saint Blythe—to prove he had not been killed by a mere agent.

Second, though still concealed at the time, to raise me as the new "Sword Saint"—the Kingdom’s new "Sword Saint" who defeated the Republic’s "hero."

Simply killing him through Juanere’s assassination would not have sufficed to achieve these goals.

—The Kingdom’s "Sword Saint" shall not perish. That indomitable will is inherited.

As the battle commenced, I disobeyed the orders of the battalion commander of the Knight Order I belonged to at the time and was the first to charge forward.

At the same time, my senior apprentices, who had not appeared at the reserved inn since that incident, also began single-man charges from various directions.

A dozen or so beasts were unleashed onto the battlefield.

Each beast ran far ahead of the Knight Order’s lines, even though they were alone.

Just as Blythe had once done, I charged straight into the Republic's army.

I could not tear apart their ranks with brute force as he did. But that was fine. "No form" changes its shape depending on the user and the enemy.

I dodged spear tips, leapt over shields, slashed while descending, landed and immediately kicked off the ground, keeping low, moving my feet as Blythe had taught—forward, always forward.

Slash, slash, when a weapon broke, I stole another, and when my hands were full, I wielded two swords at once. Blades grazed my body countless times. As long as I could avoid a fatal blow, that was enough for now.

My side was slashed, the spearhead pierced my back. Without the tanned fur cloak for warmth, I would have been killed.

I aimed for the gaps in their armor—the neck and joints—and swung my blade. Before the enemy could fall, I was already moving onto the next. Advance, advance, do not stop. Keep running, keep moving.

A bloody wind raged. A river of corpses formed behind me.

I dodged arrows, used slain enemies as shields, slashed through, severed legs to topple foes and ran past them. It was like embarking on a never-ending journey.

The lessons of Blythe, which I had once scoffed at as mere spirit and guts, now drove my exhausted body beyond its limits.

The enemy knights began to part the way, terrified of my charge. Still, the brave ones attacked me with roars. I killed them. Killed them. Killed them.

I killed countless foes and finally stood before William Nesep. Screams echoed from behind their lines too.

William was unable to retreat because another beast was closing in from the flanks.

The Republic’s "hero," upon seeing me, turned his back immediately without even drawing his sword.

Anger and sadness welled up inside me. I threw the sword from my right hand and pierced his leg, making him fall.

The moment he raised his face, he began to beg for his life—without ever crossing swords even once.

—This kind of man killed Blythe…!

Everything about him was infuriating. I cut off his raised right hand. As he screamed and tried to clutch the wound with his left hand, I cut that off too.

I slashed the legs that tried to crawl away with terrified eyes. I pulled the sword from his pierced leg and, wielding two swords, hacked at his body over and over, finally beheading him.

And then, I howled at the sky.

I barely remember what happened after that.

I must have already exceeded the limits of my breathing. Suddenly, my vision went black, and I collapsed on the spot.

It is probably thanks to my senior apprentices that I survived.

When I came to, I was receiving treatment from the Kingdom Knight Order's magical medics.

After I recovered, His Majesty pressed me to accept a knighthood—not a noble title, but the title of "Sword Saint."

But, you see—

I was already tired.

He was defenseless. He was like a repulsive insect. The "hero" William Nesep. I tormented and killed him. After accomplishing my goal, nothing remained. Only my anger disappeared, and my sadness grew even greater.

So, I—

—I will retire in a year’s time.

I told His Majesty that, almost unconsciously.

During my final year, I dedicated myself not to killing, but to protecting others. I rushed across battlefields saving stranded allies and innocent civilians, just as Blythe had once done.

I was tired of both loss and killing.

The young huntsman I met during that time gave me a lot of trouble, though.

And thus, the new hero, the "War Maiden," was born.