The title bestowed upon the strongest knight in the empire────Five Heavenly Swords.

Originally, these five knights were swords meant to protect the emperor who ruled the nation and the people who lived there. But now, they had been reduced to mere lackeys of a single transcendent being looking down upon the world—Shadow Dragon.

How much time had passed since the previous emperor────Ruindbel Shade-End had passed away? Before the empire could even mourn his death, Shade-End was quietly, yet unmistakably, taken over by this dragon.

Ever since the Shadow Dragon took control of the empire, the existence of the once-glorified Five Heavenly Swords only held meaning for their new sovereign, the Shadow Dragon. Their number had been five before, but after the incident with Claym Bradley, Tylus Arnell had been defeated, leaving his seat vacant. The Shadow Dragon made no effort to fill the empty position.

This was not simply due to the Shadow Dragon's negligence in replenishing personnel. Various reasons were intertwined in the outcome, but ultimately, it was still a result brought about by this dragon.

And now, standing before Chronos and Schvia, blocking their path, was the Fourth Sword of the Five Heavenly Swords, clad in black and gray armor.

"My name is Lamia Garrot. One of the Five Heavenly Swords of the Shade-End Empire and a knight of the Black Shadow Order in service of the esteemed Shadow Dragon, Scarshade. I apologize for the impertinence, but may I ask for your names?"

Ensuring that Claym and the others had completely left the garden, the knight before them had, at some point, escaped from Schvia’s binding magic. She then gracefully introduced herself.

"……"

From her soft yet high-pitched voice, they could tell she was a woman. However, what mattered more was the fact that she had freed herself from the binding magic without them noticing. Their vigilance heightened instinctively.

They had anticipated that a Five Heavenly Swords would be present in the Imperial Capital, especially within the Imperial Castle. Currently, in the chaotic battle between the Kingdom Army and the Empire Army at the Zaraam Plains, their forces were being led by the Seven Peerless Swords, who were equal in strength to the Five Heavenly Swords. All of them were at the forefront of the battle.

How many of the Five Heavenly Swords had been allocated to the plains? Chronos and Schvia did not know the exact number. But now that one of them stood before them, the balance of power in the battlefield was undoubtedly shifting.

Normally, there would be no reason for the Kingdom to lose this war. However, they were facing an army led by the Shadow Dragon. It was possible that an unpredictable strategy was being used to throw the Zaraam Plains into disarray. Taking that into account, the battle remained evenly matched—there was no room for complacency.

At the very least, with this knight before them, the number of Five Heavenly Swords on the battlefield had decreased. Their opponent was clearly superior in strength. But since they had sent off their allies with confidence, they could not afford to falter.

────All they could do was fight with everything they had.

Chronos tightened the strap of his helmet.

"Chronos Chronostaria."

"Schvia Gravitell…"

After a brief pause, they stated their names. Upon hearing them, the knight's voice carried a hint of amusement.

"Oh my! To think you are the Second Prince of the Kingdom…! And beside you, your fiancée? For two esteemed nobles to venture so deep into enemy territory────It seems that that ‘blood’ guardian is highly respected, doesn't it?"

"……"

Tilting their heads slightly within their helmets, they responded to the knight’s question with silence, keeping their senses sharpened on her every movement.

The way she had moved from the pavilion earlier and how she had escaped the binding magic—just these two feats were enough to brand her as an anomaly. While they were deep in thought, the female knight let out a relaxed sigh.

"Don't look so scary~…Well, I suppose you can’t help it. Honestly, I’d rather not do this, but…this is an order────"

With that, the black-gray knight slowly readjusted her crimson spear and declared coldly.

"Struggle as if your life depends on it. Otherwise, I might just be crushed by the guilt."

"!!"

In the blink of an eye, the female knight had closed the distance, her crimson spear thrust sharply toward Chronos' throat.

"Chronos-sama!!"

Schvia was forced to retreat due to the force of the attack. There was no detectable magic emanating from the knight. Then what was the principle behind her incredible speed?

────Was it purely physical ability? No, that doesn't matter right now!!

Her thoughts wavered for just a moment. But above all, ensuring Chronos' safety took priority────

"Oh my, as expected of a prince. I intended to kill you with that strike, but you handled it well~."

"Don’t underestimate me!!"

The sound of clashing steel rang through the garden, accompanied by an angry shout. The impact sent a gust of wind sweeping through the garden, scattering flowers into the air.

Chronos had barely managed to parry the spear with his treasured sword. The battle had already begun. Now that she had confirmed Chronos’ safety, Schvia immediately channeled her mana and cast her magic.

"Gravitational Cage – Grajaile!!"

It was a spell that increased gravity within a specified area, causing everything within it to become significantly heavier. The intensity of the gravity depended on the amount of mana used—this time, she had set it to ten times normal gravity.

"!"

Having fought alongside Schvia for years, Chronos was completely familiar with the preliminary motions of her magic. He swiftly escaped the designated area. The female knight, however, noticed the magic a few seconds later.

────There's no way she can escape!!

Schvia was certain that her spell had captured the knight. However────

"Oh my, that heavy magic again? It activates quickly, and if I let my guard down, I'll be crushed like last time~."

"What!?"

Once again, the female knight made an inexplicable acceleration, effortlessly escaping the magic’s range. The impossible sight left Schvia shaken. But before she could panic, Chronos’ words brought her back to focus.

"Calm down, Schvia. If you don’t know what she’s doing, her movements might seem nonsensical. But once you understand her trick, it’s nothing special."

"Chronos-sama…"

Wiping the cold sweat off her forehead, Schvia steadied herself. The female knight, having recalibrated her distance, chuckled.

"Oh my? Could it be that my ability has been figured out?"

"Of course. As royalty, I have access to classified information regarding the Five Heavenly Swords. And more importantly────"

Chronos smirked confidently as he continued.

"────Strictly speaking, that ability isn’t yours. It belongs to your magic spear, doesn’t it?"

"Oh my, you got me! Looks like you’ve figured out everything~…"

The female knight responded playfully, though her demeanor showed no hint of concern. In her hands, the spear had shifted from red to blue.

────I had only heard rumors, but seeing it firsthand, this power is truly troublesome…

Chronos sighed inwardly, looking once again at the blue-colored magic spear────Bipolar Magnetic Spear – Libert Zwei.

The Fourth Sword of the Five Heavenly Swords, Lamia Garrot────also known as Reversed Game Lamia. Her true strength lay in the power of the magic spear Bipolar Magnetic Spear. It granted a bipolar magnetic field to anything and controlled it. Anything—whether people, objects, or even herself—became a target, allowing her to manipulate battle conditions and execute attacks with unnatural speed.

"Red is '+', blue is '-', and you use them to assign properties to the ground, us…even yourself, allowing for high-speed movement."

"Oh my, you really do know everything~."

Feigning distress, the knight smiled confidently. Despite her secret being exposed, she had no doubt that she could defeat these two.

"Well then, let’s get serious…Let's see how well you can keep up."

"Tch────!"

Before he knew it, her magic spear had turned red again. The moment he realized it, the knight had already made her move. Chronos frantically scanned his surroundings.

The color of the Magic Spear was "red." If that were the case, then either he himself, Schvia beside him, or somewhere else should have shown the attribute marking of either "red" or "blue." His eyes darted about rapidly, scanning his surroundings at the fastest possible speed yet with the shortest path, seeking out the slightest change.

But to demand such a feat was, in essence, an impossible task. Even if, by sheer luck, he managed to spot the attribute marking—

"Chronos-sama! There's a 'blue' attribute mark on your back...!!"

"Too slow~. If you keep dawdling like that, I could skewer you two a hundred times over while you're still looking for it, you know?"

Just as the female knight had said, this moment of hesitation had become a clear opening for attack. The instant Schvia spoke, Chronos realized he was the target and attempted to shift into a defensive stance. But before he could, the knight's Magic Spear pierced sharply through his shoulder.

"Gah—!!?"

A scream of agony tore from his throat. Blood splattered across his vision, and as the deeply embedded lance was withdrawn, even more gushed forth.

"Are you alright!?"

"Is this really the time to be worrying about others~?"

Schvia instinctively tried to rush toward Chronos, who was on the verge of collapsing from the pain, but there was no way the knight would allow that.

"Tch!!"

The female knight had suddenly closed the distance, appearing right in front of Schvia. Her face was hidden beneath her helmet, making her expression unreadable, but her voice was lighthearted, almost carefree.

"You two are engaged, aren't you? Then let me gift you the same 'blue' mark."

"〈Gravi—"

"Too slow again~."

Before Schvia could even finish her chant, the color of the Magic Spear shifted once more—turning "blue." At the same time, the same attribute mark was placed upon Schvia's left chest.

"The same attributes can never intertwine. No matter how much they may wish to be together, the world will never allow it, forcing them apart instead—"

The tip of the blue lance lunged toward Schvia's chest. However, the moment it touched her armor, a powerful repelling force was triggered, and she was violently thrown backward, sent crashing toward the gazebo.

"Guh—!!"

"Isn't that just the most tragic and cruel thing?"

The knight's words carried a double meaning, as if she were speaking about more than just the battle.

Flower petals of all colors swirled around the battlefield, painting a strangely fantastical scene. Yet, given the reality of what was happening, the sight felt utterly out of place. In the midst of it all, the petals swayed unnaturally.

"Tch—What!?"

"Hiding your voice and presence was the right move. But, you see, when your magic aura is blazing that intensely, it's as if you're screaming 'Look at me!'"

Chronos had launched a surprise attack from behind, but the female knight effortlessly blocked it. Seeing his pained expression, she responded with cold detachment.

"If you truly thought you could kill me with such a pathetic attack, you are gravely mistaken. Now—fly."

The Magic Spear turned "red" again. The next moment, an identical attribute mark appeared on Chronos' chest, and just like Schvia before him, he was sent hurtling toward the gazebo.

"Guh!!"

The marble gazebo had already lost its original shape. Amid its ruins, the two of them lay, collapsed together.

"Hah... I expected more since you talked so big, but this is just disappointing. Your combat skills and magic proficiency are far too crude. I really thought you'd put up a better fight..."

The female knight let out a sigh of genuine disappointment. Meanwhile, Chronos and Schvia remained motionless, their ragged breathing the only sign of life—no, they only made it appear that way.

"Schvia, I'm going to do something reckless. Just hold her down, even if it's only for a few seconds."

"Understood. Leave it to me... this Schvia will not fail you."

Gone was the despair from her eyes. In its place burned a glimmer of hope.

"Let's go!!"

"Yes!!"

Their exchange was brief, and in the next moment, they had already put distance between them.

"Oh? You forcibly nullified the attribute marking using each other's magic?"

Both Chronos and Schvia had been marked with the same "red" attribute. Normally, this meant they should have been stuck together unless the knight removed the marking herself. However, using their respective bloodline magics, they forcefully separated themselves.

—Just as I expected!

One had escaped into magic space, while the other used gravity magic to anchor herself. It was an impromptu gamble, but Chronos' prediction had been spot on. And from here, the real gamble began.

"Well, even if you're apart now, it won't last long. Besides, I can pinpoint the prince's location just by tracking his magical aura—huh!?"

The knight, leisurely preparing to turn her lance "blue" again to finish off Chronos first, suddenly found her confident expression twisting into one of shock.

"Multiple coordinates!?"

Normally, a user of Flash Magic would only need a single exit point. However, with Chronos' current lack of control over his magic, doing so would make his location blatantly obvious. Instead, he had scattered a multitude of false exit points to confuse his enemy.

—Not that it's as easy as it sounds!

In reality, marking multiple coordinates required an immense amount of brainpower and magical energy. Chronos barely had the endurance and skill to manage it.

Thirty different exit points, and maintaining them drained his strength like a saw cutting through his skull. The pain was unbearable, like having his blood forcibly drained. Frankly, dying seemed preferable. But still, he had chosen this path.

"Then I'll just change the attribute marking and have your attacks deflect off automatically—"

"That won’t work, will it? Your Magic Spear's power only affects targets you can see."

The knight's smug expression vanished. She shouted in frustration, as if trying to convince herself.

But the one who refuted her claim wasn't Chronos. It was Schvia—who had broken free of her gravitational bindings and was now charging straight toward the knight.

"Wha—!?"

The Magic Spear was "red," while Schvia's attribute mark was "blue." In other words, they were magnetically attracted. The knight instinctively changed the lance to "blue" to avoid an unwanted collision.

"Are you sure about that? Once you change an attribute, you have to reapply all of them, don't you?"

"Tch... How do you know that—!?"

"Because you've been keeping us within your sight this entire time."

In battle, it was common sense to watch one's opponent. That, in turn, had allowed her to conceal the lance's true weakness.

"Since when—!?"

The knight bellowed in frustration. Schvia didn't answer. Instead, she cast her magic.

"This close is more than enough—〈A Thousandfold Cross That Even Binds Dragons—Gravitell!〉"

The spell targeted a precise area just large enough to enclose a single person. Within that space, gravity was amplified by thousands of times, forming a cross-shaped seal of judgment.

"First—"

The knight sensed danger and tried to evade, but it was already too late. The magic had been fully activated, and even though she barely managed to twist her body away, the effect struck her remaining exposed leg.

"Gaaaahhh!!"

A bone-crushing scream rang out. The overwhelming gravity obliterated her right leg.

She attempted to escape using the power of the Magic Spear, but she had already lost. Chronos, appearing right before her, swung his blade—severing her head.

"This is the end—"

"Stop—"

The vibrant flower petals were dyed red with blood. Among them, a shattered helmet lay beside a severed head, revealing the knight’s true face.

"We... somehow won..."

"Yes..."

Witnessing the gruesome scene, the two realized their battle had finally come to an end. It was a victory—albeit a hard-fought one. Both were barely clinging to life.

But a victory was still a victory. Supporting each other, they pressed onward to reunite with their allies.