The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

But right now, the most important thing is to survive.

Wiener cleared his mind of unnecessary thoughts and held his breath.

Then abruptly—

He suddenly accelerated with both feet, and launched a charge towards the burly, dark-skinned man.

The memory of those bandits' deaths was still fresh in Viner's mind. He dared not expose his back to them; it would be better to take the initiative and perhaps seize a chance to survive.

Using the acceleration from his sprint, Venere swung his sword down with a fierce blow, but the man simply parried the sword away with his axe.

Undeterred, Wiener gripped the hilt tightly with both hands, flipped the blade, and thrust it fiercely into the gap in the axe blade.

The man reacted swiftly, using the groove on the inside of the axe blade to catch Vener's longsword, and then with a sudden burst of strength—

"Qiang!"

A mournful metallic sound rang out.

"It didn't break?"

The man was somewhat surprised.

He didn't hold back at all; his aim was to break the opponent's weapon.

Since the enemy is relying on the advantage of weaponry, he must destroy their fighting spirit from the front.

The sturdiness of the sword far exceeded his expectations.

However, he reacted extremely quickly. While using one hand to hold down Wiener's hands with the axe, he used his other hand to throw a punch.

Viner was sent flying backward by the punch.

Lisette seized this opportunity.

"Ancient flames, awaken here! Engulf everything with your pure and immaculate flames—"

As the chanting faded, the surrounding air seemed to grow heavier and more oppressive.

Black flames spread through the night, lunging towards the burly, dark-skinned man.

"Emblem magic?!"

The man in the black brick was clearly not expecting that the noble lady, who was already stunned by fear, would suddenly launch a sneak attack from behind.

He immediately abandoned the idea of ​​pursuing and dodged the dark flames coming from behind.

If I dodge, that brat will be the one who suffers.

The man thought to himself.

But how could all of this go as he wished?

As the man dodged, the ball of black flame seemed to have eyes, changing direction in mid-air and heading straight for his face.

Chapter 5 Gundoraf

Under the cover of night, a black flame danced wildly.

It swallowed the burly, dark-skinned man whole.

"Are you OK?!"

After unleashing the emblem magic, Lisette's face turned much paler.

However, he immediately ran to Vina's side and helped him up.

After all, Venere got involved because of her, and it's not her style to ignore it.

"Well, what do you think?"

Wiener coughed up a mouthful of blood and said with difficulty.

The burly, dark-skinned man's fist was extremely heavy, slamming into him like a cannonball.

With just one punch, Viner felt as if his internal organs were about to be displaced.

Even so, he did not let go of the Murakami sword in his hand.

If it weren't for the fact that Vener's physical abilities had improved to a certain extent after his emblem awakened, that punch would probably have sent him to meet the hero.

"Phew... at least I'm not dead."

Seeing that Vena was still breathing, Lisette finally felt relieved.

As long as it's not an immediate death, or an irreversible serious injury like losing an arm or leg.

With the constitution of a Herald, even if they are left with only a breath, they can recover.

"Go check on that guy."

Wiener reminded her.

Heraldry is a marvel that transcends human wisdom, making the growth of heralds unpredictable.

If ordinary people want to become stronger, they usually choose to cultivate one of the two systems: combat skills or magic.

A herald can become a powerful being simply by fully understanding the abilities contained within their own herald.

The moment Vena charged forward, she was gambling that the noble lady's crest power would become the hope for breaking the deadlock.

“He has been hit by my emblem magic and is no longer a threat.”

Lisette said confidently.

Compared to Wiener, her condition wasn't much better.

That emblem magic drained all the magic energy from her body, so its power was not to be underestimated.

When I was being chased, I didn't decide to use this emblem magic because it consumed too much energy. If I couldn't kill all the enemies in one strike, I wouldn't even have the strength to escape.

On the other hand, even Lisette herself is not yet able to control the power of this move well.

The black flames created by this heraldic magic will only be extinguished when the enemy is completely devoured.

"Is it?"

The voice of the burly, dark-skinned man suddenly rang out.

The man enveloped in black flames suddenly moved.

A dark golden light flashed in the man's eyes.

Then, with just a wave of his hand, the originally fiercely burning black flames were instantly torn apart by a mysterious force.

Even when the fragments of black flame were scattered, they remained burning.

The flames did leave some marks on the man's skin, but not enough.

“That’s impossible!” Lisette exclaimed in shock.

"Sigh. Don't you see? This guy is a Herald user too!"

Wiener sighed.

"Good eye," the burly man commented, then looked at Lisette.

"Your emblem is quite impressive. If the user weren't so inexperienced, I probably wouldn't have been able to escape so easily."

"I'm proud that two fledgling heraldsmen can cause me some trouble."

With such a commotion, the teachers at St. Freya Academy aren't blind; it won't be long before someone comes to investigate.

Therefore, the man did not intend to delay.

"If that's all the tricks you have left, then get ready to hit the road."

The man's aura suddenly became sharp.

Unlike his previous nonchalant attitude, he was serious from this moment on.

"Could you do the emblem magic trick again?"

"Vina asked in a low voice."

Lisette shook her head.

Whether they survive or not is up to fate.

Wiener couldn't help but smile wryly.

With her sword in both hands, Vena stood in front of Lisette.

From leaving Lumiel Village with the awakened emblem and lofty ambitions, to the imminent death of his body in the wilderness.

If this is the end for him, Wiener.

At least that.

Let him show off one more time, shall we?

What do you think, Gundoraf?

Viner took a deep breath and summoned the emblem within her body with all her might.

The mark on the left hand finally responded.

The mysterious patterns etched beneath the skin seemed to come alive, flowing with an unusual luster.

The luster gradually flowed from the left hand to the Murakami sword, and then completely emanated from the Murakami sword, covering the entire body.

A surge of power filled Vina's entire body, but the source of this power was—

Village Sword?

By the time Viner came to her senses, Murakami Yoshitsugu had completely changed his appearance.

The descriptions have all turned into a dense array of question marks.

Seeing the powerful aura that suddenly erupted from Vina.

The burly, dark-skinned man naturally wouldn't sit idly by and wait to die.

It planted both feet on the ground, leaving a shallow pit in the spot.

The speed increased instantly to a point that was difficult for the naked eye to perceive.

If he had used this speed from the start, Vener would probably have died under his axe before he could even see his opponent.

Of course, Viner still couldn't see the burly, dark-skinned man's movements.

However, his body reacted faster than his brain.

A dazzling silver light burst forth from the Murakami sword, arriving before the man and blocking his path.

The silver light contained an aura of destruction, forcing the burly man to abruptly interrupt his attack.

But since he was able to stop, Wiener could naturally continue the pursuit.

A beam of sword light shot out from the village sword, landing precisely to block the man's escape route.

The man tried to block the attack with his axe for a moment, but it was sliced ​​in two as if made of paper. If he hadn't reacted in time, his entire arm would have been cut off as well.

The severed axe blade was as clean as a mirror, and the right hand, pierced by the residual force of the sword's edge, had completely lost sensation.

Only the burly, dark-skinned man clearly saw the change that occurred in that instant.

From both an observer's and Wiener's perspective, it seemed more like the burly, dark-skinned man had deliberately charged into the sword's edge.

The stinging pain from the lingering sword energy within his body awakened memories etched into his very bones.

The Murakami sword, now completely transformed, made him cry out in surprise.

"The Sword of the Hero!?"

"what?"

When the man called out the name, Viner paused for a moment.

Wiener had no idea why the other party called the Murakami Sword the Sword of the Hero.

He was in a very mysterious state, and the weapon in his hand seemed to have its own consciousness.

In layman's terms, it's called "proxy playing".

With a single sword strike, he severely injured the burly, dark-skinned man, whom he had never imagined he could defeat.