Chapter 1

The metallic clang and screech of blades colliding burst through the air. The pounding thumps in the chest and palms drowned out the surrounding noise. The impact was so strong that the body felt like it was violently torn apart. The breath of air lodged at the back of the throat burst through the lips, and a pair of green eyes flashed dangerously from within the helmet. ‘If I hadn’t been riding my horse, I would’ve been knocked down by now,’ he thought. The instant their blades had connected, a dull pain shot through his body and it felt as if he’d been thrown to the ground.

‘A woman?’ A strong sense of suspicion led him to closely observe his opponent. At first, he had assumed he was facing off against an average knight of a slimmer build, but now he could clearly see that it was a woman. As realization dawned on him, his thoughts immediately zeroed in on one person—the woman heralded as the goddess of war.

“I thought it was merely a rumor…” For Kael, crown prince of the Perkan Empire, this was the first in a long time since he’d entered the battlefield that the corners of his mouth lifted upwards into a grin. ‘She still has the energy to speak too… She must be pretty skilled. Truly, a worthy opponent to face!’

The purple eyes that stared back at his green eyes burned with fiery competitiveness. As the hand that gripped her sword was raised, the arc of her mouth also lifted upwards to match his. The eyes of Irene—commander of the 2nd division of the Knights of Ventus and the greatest knight of the Theorin Kingdom—was brimming with life. There was nothing to hinder her momentum, and her high spirits were reflected in the reddish gleam in her eyes that shone like amethyst jewels.

As the blades that had fallen away from each other struck once more, a sharp twang sounded through the air. Both trembled as they felt the heavy pressure of the impact pulse through them, just as it had done before. Though it was obscured by his helmet, Kael’s jaw muscles trembled with excitement. Similarly, joy flashed in Irene’s eyes, as she incomprehensibly seemed to revel in the pain, though it lasted but for a mere moment. The gaze that had been locked on Kael’s green eyes almost instantly shifted away.

“Am I not worthy enough of a challenger? You’ll be injured if you callously look away like that.” As Kael chided her decisions as unwise, he swung his sword down on her without hesitation.

With a smirk, Irene skillfully dodged the arc of his sword. Then, she grabbed the short dagger that hung at her waist and threw it out. The flying dagger immediately pierced the head of an imperial knight that was taking aim at a knight of the kingdom. “Since I saved my knight, it was worth it to look away,” Irene retorted. Normally, she didn’t bother to engage in unnecessary conversation other than to issue orders, but strangely enough, she felt compelled to respond at this moment.

“A pleasant voi— Vigorous, aren’t you? Shall we see how good you really are then?” Kael quickly stumbled to cover the words that had unwittingly slipped from his mouth. Her voice sounded much purer than what he’d imagined based on the rumors, and it had made his fingertips tremble. Struck by this unfamiliar feeling, he briefly wondered if he’d somehow mishandled his sword.

“If that’s what you wish.”

“Then, I’ll gladly…”

Irene had acted as if she was preparing to properly engage Kael, but instead she skillfully dodged Kael’s next swing. With a swift, powerful kick to her steed, her horse immediately launched into a gallop towards its intended direction without a single command. In the blink of an eye, Irene had escaped far into the distance.

“What just happened?” Dumfounded, Kael could only stare blankly at the spot from which Irene had disappeared. He was certain she would counter his attack. Surely, this was an insult! He glanced down at his palm, which still stung from the impact of the previous swing of her sword. This was absurd.

When he raised his head and turned to look in the direction that she’d escaped, he let out an absurd laugh upon realizing her intentions. He couldn’t believe that as the leader of her knights, she’d chosen to undertake such a course of action on the battlefield. She was just as others had described her, yet totally different. “She’s really determined to take care of her own people, huh?” he chuckled to himself.