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"...!"
Shirley froze solid at the oncoming sword wind. She couldn't even dream of dodging it. All she could do was tremble, crushed by the sheer pressure.
A black sword wind as tall as Shirley herself grazed past her. In that instant, one of her braids tumbled to the ground.
Soon after.
Splat! Crunch! Crackle...!
The sword wind that flew past Shirley's back toppled countless trees. Hearing that sound, Shirley stood there dumbfounded, cold sweat pouring down her face. She looked like a statue turned to stone.
Only when the crashing of trees finally stopped could Shirley open her mouth.
"H-how..."
Shirley wondered if this was all a dream. Just a few days ago, Bin couldn't even use his right arm properly. Yet here he was, unleashing such a devastating attack on her...
She was certain. If that strike had hit her, her body would have been cleaved in two.
It took her a long while to notice that her pants were soaked through.
Bin's attack had stunned more than just Shirley. Billy, who'd been clutching his groin, gaped in disbelief beside her.
"S-sword wind...?!"
Billy couldn't believe it. In the Bascon family, which prized strength above all, only one in a hundred could wield sword wind by age ten. And now Bin was doing it? On top of that, Billy had never seen a sword wind so massive.
'When did Bin get mana like that...'
Mana. In the Bascon house, which pursued raw power relentlessly, it was the indispensable source of strength. Sword wind typically marked the level of a 5th Class knight.
'Impossible... How could trash like Bin...'
Bin slowly approached Billy, who still hadn't gathered his thoughts. Thud. Thud.
Only then did Billy realize something was terribly wrong. Bin's gaze, which he'd always dismissed with contempt, felt razor-sharp today.
'What the hell is going on...'
He and Shirley had chased after Bin, who was heading into the Forest of Death for a hunt. They'd planned to torment him harshly here, away from prying eyes—as payback for treating their loyal lackey so casually. It was meant to prove their superiority to the other siblings.
They'd never imagined the Forest of Death would turn against them.
Bin glanced back and forth between Billy and Shirley with a sly smile. Then, eyeing the fallen Erymanthian boar, he spoke.
"Who wants the pig head over there on their altar?"
"...!!"
Billy and Shirley couldn't even respond under Bin's piercing stare. Shirley's legs gave out, and she collapsed right there.
Chin.
But Bin didn't stop there. He raised his sword, gazing intently at the smooth blade.
"Or maybe I don't need it. I could just use your heads instead. No point keeping those pig-brained things attached anyway."
Billy and Shirley crawled toward him on their bellies. Pride and face meant nothing now.
They clung to Bin's legs, begging shamelessly.
"L-little bro, calm down. We're sorry. We w-won't do it again..."
"S-sorry! Forgive us just once. We're blood siblings, right?"
Bin scowled at the word "siblings."
"What? Blood siblings?"
Sensing his displeasure, Billy and Shirley shuddered and exchanged nervous glances, racking their brains for a way to appease him. But in this situation, no clever idea would come.
"W-what do we have to do... to fix this?"
"Y-yeah, just tell us what to do!"
Bin's expression didn't budge at their pleas.
"Simple. Just stick your necks out."
Bin swung his sword at them with full force.
Swish.
Thud!
Their hearts plummeted. Blood began to pool on the ground.
Startled, Billy and Shirley screamed in agony.
"Aaaagh!!"
"Aaagh!!"
Bin watched them coldly.
"Be grateful I didn't aim for your necks."
Billy and Shirley stared at their arms with tear-streaked faces. A deep red gash ran horizontally across each one. They wouldn't be wielding a sword with their right hands for years.
Groaning in pain, they clutched the wounds with their opposite hands.
"Ugh..."
Bin lowered his eyes, pondering as he gripped his sword. Seeing this, Billy and Shirley dropped to their knees before him.
Thud!
"Sob... W-we'll never mess with you again."
"Urgh... We'll do anything. Just spare us."
Blood pooled thickly on the ground, but Bin regarded them impassively. Tears streaming, Billy and Shirley clasped their hands in desperate plea.
Finally, Bin sheathed his sword. Billy spoke up.
"Sob... Th-thanks, little bro."
Of course, Bin had never intended to kill them. He just needed to teach them a harsh lesson. If he hadn't acted now, he'd have been their punching bag every time, just like in his past life.
Compared to the torment they'd inflicted back then, this was pure self-defense.
Looking at their swollen, tear-puffed eyes, Bin flashed a sly smile.
"You did say anything, right..."
"..."
To survive, Billy and Shirley blurted out whatever came to mind. But Bin's expression filled them with dread, and they glanced at each other warily.
A moment later.
A massive beast tusk was wedged between two rocks. Billy and Shirley gripped swords awkwardly in their left hands, frantically sharpening it against the stone.
Scrape—scrape—
Unaccustomed to their off-hands, the motion felt clumsy, but survival left no choice. Sweat-drenched, they looked like drowned rats.
Exhausted, Billy and Shirley panted heavily.
"Huff... huff..."
"Heh... heh..."
Still, they persisted, arms pumping furiously. They'd ground so hard that their palms were raw and red, on the verge of blistering.
Billy spread his inflamed hands and blew on them.
"Phew. How did we, heirs of a noble house, end up sharpening pig bones..."
Shirley replied.
"At this rate, our bones'll wear down first. What's he even gonna use this for..."
She hung her head, staring at her burning palms. Blisters were already forming, stinging sharply.
Shirley whined petulantly, sniffling.
"Waaah, what now, bro... Look. Blisters... How am I supposed to get married with these hands..."
Billy glanced at her face, then tilted his head.
"You weren't gonna get married anyway because of your hands."
"...You!!"
Shirley shrieked at his brutally honest words.
As their voices rose, Bin approached, drawn by the noise. His eyes fell on the tusk they'd sharpened.
"Hm... That'll do. Next task."
"N-next task?!"
"What? There's more?!"
Billy and Shirley's eyes bulged in shock. But Bin's icy glare silenced their protests.
"What? Don't like it?"
"N-no, of course we'll do it."
"Y-yeah, sure!"
Forcing smiles, they managed their expressions. Just then, as Bin led them onward—
Thud thud.
Splat!
The ground beneath Billy and Shirley suddenly gave way. They plummeted into the pit, clutching their waists and wailing.
"Ah... What the hell..."
"Ugh..."
It was the trap Bin had dug to catch the Erymanthian boar. He smirked down at them.
"Rest up down there. I packed it full of your favorites."
Realizing the truth, Billy and Shirley gnashed their teeth.
"Bin... You bastard..."
"You made a promise..."
Bin replied leisurely.
"You broke yours first. Have fun."
As he turned to leave, they shouted.
"Where are you going...!"
"Get us out now!"
But their mouths snapped shut moments later.
A hundred or so ants swarmed into view before them.
"Th-those are sawblade ants...!"
Sawblade ants. Growing up to 2.5 centimeters long, they were among the deadliest ants. Their stings inflicted pain equivalent to childbirth—thirty times worse than a honeybee's, by some accounts. People likened the agony to flesh being ripped by a saw blade, hence the name.
As the sawblade ants closed in, Billy and Shirley grimaced.
Soon, hordes of them swarmed their bodies. Unable to endure the excruciating pain, Billy and Shirley screamed at the top of their lungs.
"Aaaaaagh!!"
* * *
In the smithy near the inner walls of Plentel Castle, weapons hung neatly on the walls, and tiny sparks floated like fireflies. In the corner stood a massive stone forge.
As always, the rhythmic clang of hammers echoed from the smithy today.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Bin, his hair damp and face flushed red, sweated like rain. Tongs in his right hand, hammer in his left, he hammered with all his might.
Itos, the smithy owner, watched in a daze.
"...!"
The balding middle-aged man spotted it immediately. Bin wasn't a beginner. His strikes were rhythmic and controlled. The iron yielded smoothly, already taking the shape of a blade.
It was just a warm-up for Bin, but Itos gaped unwittingly.
'How...'
Even for Itos, with over ten years of experience, this was no easy feat. Yet a mere ten-year-old matched his skill—perhaps surpassed it.
Itos glanced cautiously and spoke up.
"Y-young master, that's enough. Let me take over."
"I'm just starting to hit my stride."
"Ah? Y-yes..."
Itos mumbled awkwardly. It wasn't just "good"—it was innate talent.
As Bin's uniform grew caked in iron dust, Itos's anxiety mounted. If the boy got hurt, the blame would fall on him.
Bin, meanwhile, smiled contentedly at the boar tusk glowing in the forge. Seeing it honed so finely reminded him of Billy and Shirley sweating over it.
'Even dog shit has its uses.'
It wasn't perfect, but for amateur work, it was impressive. Desperation had driven them well.
Bin peered into the forge at the blade.
'Erymanthian boar's a 6th Class monster with ideal carbon content. Time to get serious.'
High-grade weapons demanded precise carbon levels. Too much made them brittle despite their strength. Monster bones and tusks provided that perfect balance, improving with the beast's rank.
Bin's excitement built—this was forging after so long.
'Finally, a decent sword.'
Gazing at it, he felt one step closer to Luminare. And that reminded him of someone obsessed with famed blades: Helden Grander, head of the Grander family—the man who'd killed him.
Helden was infamous for his sword fixation. He'd murder owners to claim blades he coveted. Some called him sword-mad.
Bin was certain.
'If Luminare becomes known, he'll come for me. Or I'll bait him first.'
Clenching his right fist at the thought of Helden, black smoke began to rise from his hand. Bin gritted his teeth with resolute eyes.
'This time, Luminare's edge will find you.'