Tugui swallowed dryly as he watched Raon, who had suddenly appeared and split Marang's body into three parts.
"Amun?" he whispered, disbelief freezing him in place. The fighter known as the Black Fox had suddenly appeared and killed Marang. Tugui had personally summoned Amun to verify his martial prowess and aura; this situation seemed unreal, leaving his mind blank.
Twin swords of flame and frost glimmered in Raon's hands. Tugui's jaw trembled. "Those swords… could it be?!" He had heard that when Raon Zieghart opened his Sword Domain, a Divine Sword blazing with flames and a Demonic Sword condensed with frost would manifest. Looking up, he saw the sun and moon rising on the arena ceiling. It was certain—the fighter known as the Black Fox, Amun, was the Kingkiller Raon Zieghart.
"Raon Zieghart!" The White Demon Swordsman, realization dawning, bit his lip until it bled.
"Tugui! Did you betray us?" he shouted, drawing his sword at his waist and pointing it at both Raon and Tugui.
"You fool! How can you say that after seeing this?" Tugui frowned, pointing at the arena, now a chaotic mess like a riot had broken out. "It doesn't matter where the information leaked from right now." He glared at Raon, grinding his teeth. "We need to catch that arrogant brat to resolve this situation." Tugui drew a red greatsword hanging on the wall.
The White Demon Swordsman erased his doubts about Tugui and drew a black-stained longsword from his waist.
[Don't move right away.] Tugui sent an aura message to the White Demon Swordsman while keeping his gaze on Raon. [Marang will revive soon.] Covered in demonic energy, Marang wouldn't die immediately from sword wounds. They needed to buy time to ambush Raon.
"They're Zieghart's brats! Don't leave a single one alive! Kill them all!" Tugui stomped his foot hard and roared to the arena.
"You move too!" The White Demon Swordsman ordered his White Demon Squad to attack the Light Wind division. At the Deputy Floor Master's shout, the Black Tower's demonized humans also surged forward, forming a black wave against the Light Wind division.
"Raon Zieghart," Tugui said, nodding toward him, who remained calm amidst the chaos. "If you stay still like that, all your subordinates will die." He sneered, hoping to make Raon anxious.
"My subordinates, you say?" Raon chuckled. Tugui's face reddened at the mockery, yet inwardly, he calmed his excitement.
'It's moving.' Marang's corpse twitched. If they could buy a little more time, he would revive and attack.
"How did you find this place?" The White Demon Swordsman asked, bloodshot-eyed.
"I looked at a map," Raon replied with a wiggling finger.
"Raon Zieghart!"
"Die!" Tugui and the White Demon Swordsman simultaneously struck, surging waves of aura toward Raon's neck and heart. Raon crossed his Divine and Demonic Swords, cutting through their attacks.
"You're holding back," he said, lowering his swords. "Is it because of the guy behind me?" He stomped on Marang's twitching corpse. It shattered. "Sorry, but that one can't be revived."
"W-What nonsense!" Tugui's eyes widened.
"I've fought the Black Tower more than once, so I struck the soul, not the body," Raon said, revealing eyes red as the sun. "This is the end for Marang."
It worked perfectly. Black Tower's demonized humans often revived even from fatal wounds, but Raon's Divine-Demonic Harmony sword strike, amplified with Beast King Ogram's Fierce Wave Arts, had severed Marang's life force.
"Still, it's two against one! We just need to kill him in one go!" Wrath muttered, impressed.
Tugui thrust his greatsword downward while the White Demon Swordsman leaped to the ceiling, stabbing with his longsword. As their combined attacks descended, a green wind wall appeared, pressing down on them and erasing their strikes.
"No, that's not right." Rimmer appeared on the observation deck. "It's not two against one. It's two against two."
"Light Sword..." The White Demon Swordsman bit his lip deeply. "Division Leader," Rimmer greeted, stepping beside Raon. "Want to bet 100 gold coins on who catches them first?"
"Sounds good," Raon said, standing before Tugui.
Tugui's face turned red with anger. "I'll show you why they call me Greedy Demon!"
"Because you're crazy for money."
"No, because I'm crazy for money and fighting!" He surged forward, marble floor undulating like a wave.
Raon anticipated Tugui's obvious attack, shifted his weight on his toe, and swung both swords upward. The clashing blades exploded with force, collapsing part of the observation deck. Raon stepped on the falling steel frame and unleashed the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation Revolving Sky, frost forming sharp saw teeth aimed at Tugui.
"Hmph!" Tugui blocked easily, but Raon's calm observation marked the perfect timing. Using Supreme Harmony Steps, he penetrated Tugui's space, hammering the greatsword relentlessly with interlocking Divine and Demonic Sword strikes. Tugui struggled to defend, forced onto the arena floor.
"You're still far from matching me," Raon said coldly, shattering Tugui's Astral Ring barrier.
Tugui, wounded and desperate, realized his only advantage was his eyes—he could analyze swordsmanship—but it wasn't enough. Raon changed his sword path, combining speed, precision, and spirit, pushing Tugui back.
"Y-You're not tired, are you?" Tugui gasped.
"I still have many sword techniques left to try out," Raon said.
Tugui unleashed his Thunder Spear technique, but Raon countered with the Mystic Soul Sword, enveloping Tugui entirely. Blood burst from vital points; he fell to his knees, then collapsed.
"I told you to hang on a little longer," Raon muttered, surveying Tugui's lifeless body.
"Are you really human?" Wrath whispered.
"You're just an angel obsessed with martial arts!"
Raon flicked Wrath's forehead.
The spectators gasped, while Tugui's subordinates trembled. "Raon Zieghart… the rumors were true…"
Raon retrieved the sword manual and the white mist necklace from Tugui's body. Just as he prepared to inspect the manual, an explosion erupted from the observation deck—Rimmer and the White Demon Swordsman clashing. Storm clouds darkened the arena.
"Just die already! The other side is finished!" Rimmer shouted.
The White Demon Swordsman extended his longsword, swinging with impossible angles. Raon licked his lips. "He looks like he'd be fun to fight." Infusing aura into his swords, Raon leaped to the observation deck.
"Huh…? Raon Zieghart?" Both Rimmer and the White Demon Swordsman widened their eyes.
"I'll be your opponent from now on," Raon said, nodding toward the White Demon Swordsman.
"Hey! I'm bored too. You're the only one having fun…"
"You lost the bet, right? I won't take the 100 gold."
"Deal!" Rimmer stepped back, as expected from the money-minded elf.
-Wrath glanced at Raon, twisting his lips. 'If you were going to do this, why didn't you fight that demonic energy user earlier?'
-He tilted his head, leaning in. 'Are you planning to ditch Zieghart and join the Holy Sword Alliance?'
…