Little Pink Starfish

The first to move was Zachary.

Closing the distance with Theodore in an instant, he raised his sword high into the air.

──── Clang!

The clash of swords rang out, and the arena erupted in excitement.

Zachary followed up with a relentless barrage of strikes, but Theodore swiftly dodged each one. Twisting his body, he flipped lightly through the air, and the crowd cheered in awe.

“You don’t even flinch… as expected of the Heroic Black Knight.”

“……”

Zachary grinned, his eyes gleaming.

However, Theodore was not as relaxed as he appeared. Zachary’s attacks were all aimed at fatal points—if he made even a single misstep, the result would be deadly.

“This is supposed to be an exchange match.”

“If I don’t go all out, I’ll lose. Besides, we are knights. The moment we draw our swords, we must be prepared to stake our lives… So, Theodore-dono, fight me with the intent to kill.”

There was no deception in those gleaming eyes.

He seemed like the strict, serious type at first, but… I see now. He’s a battle maniac. What a pain.

Tightening his grip on his sword, Theodore kicked off the ground and closed in. He aimed for Zachary’s opening, but Zachary immediately noticed and lowered his stance, swinging a roundhouse kick.

Theodore narrowly dodged and swung his sword in response.

──── Clang!

Sparks flew as their blades clashed with tremendous force.

The repeated clang of steel filled the arena, sending ripples of excitement through the crowd.

Amidst the growing tension, Theodore remained perfectly calm, analyzing everything—Zachary’s breathing, his gaze, his stance. He wouldn’t miss a single detail.

To an ordinary human, Zachary’s subtle movements might have been undetectable, but Theodore’s beastman blood granted him exceptional vision. He could see everything, down to the tiniest shift in weight.

Predicting the next attack, Theodore leapt diagonally to the right.

A fraction of a second later, Zachary’s sword sliced through the air just past the tip of his nose.

For an instant, Zachary lost his balance—Theodore didn’t miss his chance.

Planting his foot firmly on the ground, he launched his attack.

To the audience, Theodore’s movements seemed like slow motion.

But it was an illusion.

His speed was simply too fast for their eyes to follow.

All they could do was watch, stunned, as Zachary’s sword flew high into the air.

It spun in the air before embedding itself into the ground. Until that very moment, not a single person in the crowd uttered a word.

“……!”

Unarmed, Zachary stood frozen, sweat dripping down his forehead as he stared at Theodore.

To his shock, Theodore hadn’t even broken a sweat. His expression remained as composed as it had been before the match began.

Then—cheers erupted. Applause filled the air.

“The second match—victory goes to Black Knight Theodore!”

The moment those words were spoken, Zachary broke into a grin and extended a hand toward Theodore.

“As expected. For a second, I thought you had cut my arm clean off.”

“I wouldn’t do such a thing.”

“Haha… And you didn’t even break a sweat… You really are incredible.”

Zachary’s gaze lingered on him, but Theodore turned away, looking toward Asher’s seating area.

Asher was watching with anxious eyes. When their gazes met, Theodore felt a natural smile form on his lips.

It was only for an instant—too brief for anyone else to notice.

But Asher noticed.

And in response, his eyes softened as he smiled back.

It was a beautiful smile—one Theodore wanted to gaze at forever.

But the next match was about to begin.

Forcing himself to look away, Theodore returned to the waiting area.

──────・・・・・・

“O-Oi, the first match… and the second match ended just like that? Are the Temple Knights just for show?”

“Even the vice-captain of the Temple Knights wasn’t all that impressive.”

“No, you don’t get it. The vice-captain isn’t weak. It’s Black Knight Theodore… His movements… I couldn’t even see them.”

“But that Zachary guy was keeping up at first… That means he’s still strong.”

“The force of their swords clashing made the air tremble… That was incredible.”

“So that’s the Heroic Black Knight…”

The audience murmured in amazement, unable to contain their excitement.

Among them, seated in the guest area, Reachalf silently observed Theodore’s retreating figure.

“…So that’s the half-blood knight, huh…? If he were purely human, that kind of strength would be unnatural.”

Shifting his gaze, Reachalf looked toward Samuel, who sat in the waiting area with a faint smile. His sharp eyes narrowed.

“Honestly… What is that arrogant prince planning?”

The sudden letter from Samuel.

A forceful summons to the royal castle.

It had angered Reachalf. He had known Samuel since childhood, but Samuel had always been arrogant and cold toward him.

However, as the Shinkan-chō (High Priest), the opportunity to leave the temple was invaluable.

Normally, he wasn’t allowed outside the temple—his position was like that of a prisoner. Samuel’s letter provided the perfect excuse.

Even if it meant forging a falsehood—that Asher was the Kamiko (Child of the Gods).

Only the High Priest or the Grand High Priest could determine whether a soul truly belonged to the long-lost Kamiko. If Asher’s soul was unfit, the deception would be exposed immediately.

Reachalf had told Samuel that it was impossible to fake, but Samuel had ignored him, sending letter after letter.

For Samuel to go to such lengths, there had to be a reason.

Reluctantly, Leachalf had agreed and gone to the castle, where Samuel revealed his plan.

“…But to think his soul would actually be that beautiful… Ugh, I let my own greed get the better of me and got involved in something troublesome.”

With a sigh of regret, Reachalf recalled something else.

“Oh, right…”

He remembered the knight standing behind Asher when they met in the training grounds.

That knight had been Theodore.

Samuel was trying to take his younger brother, Asher, to the temple by force.

And the one always by Asher’s side—was Theodore.

“Of all people… it had to be you, Theodore.”

Reachalf thought back to Samuel’s words—and then to the brief moment between Theodore and Asher.

When the match ended, Theodore had looked up.

It had been difficult to see from his seat, but Asher was there.

And in that instant, the usually expressionless knight had smiled.

“……The half-blood knight… and Asher-ouji…”

Reachalf smirked as he gazed at them.

“Hmm… I see now…“

His instincts were rarely wrong.

And if he was right this time, things were about to get a lot more complicated.

“Things are about to get interesting…“

Touching the crystal earring on his right ear, he glanced at Asher—then at Theodore.

His jade-colored eyes gleamed as his lips curled into a knowing smile.

“The boredom is finally over… And just following the plan would be dull, wouldn’t it?”

Shifting his focus back to the arena, he watched as the third match began—Black Knight Karl versus Temple Knight Captain Dita.

The moment they stood face-to-face, the arena erupted in cheers.