Chapter 83: Lord of the Southern Realm (Requesting Monthly Tickets)

The training ground.

“Good.”

Boge lowered his head to hide his twisted expression, and after a long while, forced the word out through clenched teeth.

When the Night Shadow Viscount heard the title shouted by Sir Solin and the others, the nightmares he had long suppressed deep within his heart resurfaced.

Starving villagers reduced to skeletons, his father beaten nearly to death for poaching, young village women forced to sell their bodies for a single piece of black bread to feed their children.

All these nightmares stemmed from that mad lord who taxed even breath, banned hunting, seized every grain of food, and forbade even the gathering of wild greens.

The very man standing before him, smiling.

“I won’t use magic. If you can touch my body with your sword, you win.”

Victor took the longsword offered by Sir Solin and said with elegant poise.

Clang!

Boge gave no reply—only swung a downward slash straight at Victor’s head.

Clang clang clang!

The clashing of blades rang like rapid drumbeats, echoing across the entire training ground.

The longsword in Boge’s hands moved with the fluidity of an extension of his own limb—like a venomous snake coiled and ready to strike, attacking Victor from every treacherous angle.

His assault was fierce and swift, the blade slicing through air with a shrill whistle.

Yet no matter how he attacked, Victor effortlessly blocked each strike with a sideways parry.

“Not bad. Not bad at all.”

Even so, Victor’s gaze grew increasingly admiring.

From his perspective, he could clearly see that Boge’s strength already ranked among the pinnacle of the Extraordinary tier.

His swordsmanship was also exceptional—fast, brutal, every strike precisely aimed at Victor’s weakest points.

But it was overly vicious—each thrust targeted his throat, eyes, or groin. It was merely a sparring match, yet Boge treated him like a father-killer. Truly remarkable!

With proper refinement, he could become a sharp dagger in my hand.

“Boy, judging by your eyes, you’re a Hunter, aren’t you?” Victor asked while parrying the attacks.

Boge said nothing, only pressed forward with relentless strikes.

“Where are you from?” Victor frowned again.

Boge remained silent, but his attacks grew even more ferocious.

“Boy, didn’t your father ever teach you to answer when someone speaks to you?” Victor’s brow darkened as he demanded.

Boge still said nothing—only attacked with bloodshot, frenzied eyes.

Victor finally grew irritated. Could this boy have turned into a battle-mad lunatic just because he became a Hunter?

If so, a madman wasn’t worth taking on as a squire.

“Hmph.” Victor let out a cold snort, dropped his restraint, and swung a powerful slash straight at Boge.

Clang!

At the moment of blade impact, a sharp metallic shriek rang out, and a shockwave erupted, kicking up dust across the training ground.

Tap tap tap.

The immense force from the blade sent Boge stumbling backward several steps.

Then—

“Sensory Enhancement.”

“Eagle Eye.”

“Death of All Things.”

Three abilities activated simultaneously on Boge, overwhelming his body with immense strain while instantly boosting his power to its absolute limit.

Rustle rustle rustle.

In Boge’s vision, the entire world instantly turned black and white, and time itself seemed to slow by half.

The grains of sand in the air, the sound of wind whipping up dust, the cracks along the blade’s edge, the irritation on Victor’s face—all these details flooded into his mind, converging into one optimal path to hunt his prey.

Swish!

The next instant, Boge’s body became a blur—a terrifying speed beyond human reflex—as he charged at Victor with sword outstretched like a released arrow.

Of course, such speed was still within the safe range for Victor, a Grand Knight.

But as the boy closed in, Victor caught sight of his eyes—suddenly turned icy blue.

What a magnificent hue—like a reflection of death itself!

Victor froze in surprise.

And in those few milliseconds of hesitation, Boge seized the opening, finally breaking through Victor’s defense and thrusting his sword toward Victor’s left thigh.

Just before piercing the skin, Boge halted his attack, and his icy blue eyes gradually returned to brown.

“...Good. You’re excellent.”

Victor snapped back to awareness, staring at the swordtip now resting just before his left thigh—only an inch away from piercing his skin.

Yet the target was the thigh, meaning the boy had no intent to kill. His earlier frenzy had truly been born of respect for combat.

“Would you like to become my squire? Officially appointed—not just in name.”

“I, Victor Night Shadow, swear by my honor: you shall hold a position second only to me in my domain, and I shall exhaust all resources of my lands to purchase magic potions to help you ascend to Master Hunter.”

Victor declared loudly, gazing at the boy who had once again lowered his head—his eyes brimming with admiration.

What an outstanding young man!

If I could just lure him away from Langbao, it would finally repay the years of Kallen stealing my subjects!

I’d even come out ahead—those subjects, who only fed me pain, were worthless compared to this boy of heavenly talent.

“My Lord Viscount, Boge is already a squire to a noble—and he has been formally appointed.”

Before Boge could answer, Sir Solin quickly interjected.

Victor’s smile instantly froze. He glared furiously at Sir Solin.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“My Lord Viscount, you never asked!” Sir Solin spread his hands, feigning innocence.

“Hmph.” Victor snorted again, his expression darkening once more as he left the training ground, seething with resentment.

He’d wasted his time acting as a sparring partner!

“So close… just one inch closer…”

After Victor departed, Boge kept his head down, fists clenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms—yet it did nothing to ease the agony inside.

Victor and Sir Solin might have thought he’d merely aimed for the thigh—but only he knew he’d targeted the Death Point projected by Death of All Things!

Had he pushed the blade forward just one more inch, this greedy lord who had killed his father, his childhood friend, and the villagers would have died—and vengeance would have been served.

But he had stopped.

Because reason and loyalty to His Highness told him he could not.

If he were alone, unbound by ties, he would have slaughtered Victor without hesitation.

But he was His Highness’s squire, His Highness’s hound—in a sense, he was the embodiment of His Highness’s will.

The Night Shadow Viscount was a guest of Langbao. If Boge killed him, it would bring trouble upon His Highness.

Even though this man was his long-hated, soul-deep enemy, he could not do it.

“Filth, if one day you stand in His Highness’s way, I will return every ounce of pain you’ve inflicted on us!”

Boge ground his teeth in silent fury.

He felt that day wouldn’t be far off—after all, His Highness’s ways and Victor’s were nearly opposites.

What he needed to do now was learn from the castle’s torturer how to properly torment others.

Meanwhile—

At the gates of Langbao.

As more lords arrived, dusk approached.

Now only one guest remained—farthest in distance, and most noble in rank.

Under the eager gaze of Kallen and his wife, a dark dot finally appeared on the distant, golden horizon.

The dot grew larger, and as the sound of wheels crunching over dirt echoed, a luxurious carriage emerged from the twilight.

This carriage was more opulent than any that had arrived before—its body inlaid with crimson patterns, intricate and exquisite, like flowing flames.

On either side of the carriage rode two middle-aged knights atop giant crimson foxes.

The foxes stood over two meters tall at the shoulder, their fur glowing like burning fire under the setting sun.

Above each knight’s head floated a line of text—deep purple: “Noble.”

“Big brother! Second brother!”

Seeing this, Danielle’s face lit up with excitement. She ran forward with arms outstretched like a little girl.

The two knights swiftly dismounted and caught her in their arms, holding her tightly for a long moment before finally letting go.

“It’s been too long, my dear sister. You’re as beautiful, kind, and innocent as ever. Has that crude Kallen mistreated you?”

The elder knight lifted Danielle’s hand and pressed his bearded lips gently against her knuckles, speaking softly.

“I’ll beat him up for you,” said the younger knight coldly.

Kallen, who had just arrived to greet them, flushed with embarrassment upon hearing this.

His two brothers-in-law had both reached the New Moon tier—if they truly wanted to beat him, he’d have no choice but to endure it.

“You mustn’t say that anymore—Darling treats me like his heart!”

Danielle gripped Kallen’s arm and glared at them discontentedly; the two older brothers could only awkwardly look away.

“Hey, you three siblings are so busy catching up, you’ve forgotten this old person.”

At that moment, the coachman pulled back the curtain, and an elderly woman with silver hair descended from the carriage, smiling warmly—it was Rosa Marsha, Lord of the Southern Region.

At this very moment, all the lords of the Southern Region had arrived at Langbao to attend Hayden’s infant honor ceremony.

(End of Chapter)