I'll kill you after I finish this game!

You won't die, huh? You think I'm afraid of death? Was all my previous inner conviction just empty talk and a joke?

"Stop looking down on people!"

This time, gripping the sword hilt tightly, Matilda, determined to win and kill her opponent, raced through her memories of secretly observing and learning sword techniques from the knights, and charged directly at Reiji.

This time, it was no longer a test, but a direct horizontal slash towards the other's neck. The other was not someone she could underestimate or test. This man was very strong, so strong that he could not be assessed from a human perspective.

Therefore, Matilda must do everything in her power and be prepared to kill her opponent.

He swung his sword, unleashing a crescent-shaped pressure, delivering a fatal strike.

Of course, this is what Matilda could do at the beginning and at the end.

"Pfft—!"

A tearing sound, like ripping silk, suddenly rang out.

The exploding blood splattered into the sky.

Matilda's pupils suddenly contracted. One second Rhine was holding his knight's sword and hanging it down, and the next second the longsword appeared in front of her.

In his hand, the knight's sword had already transformed into a chilling gleam, slicing Matilda's arm in two and sending it crashing to the ground.

Matilda couldn't even feel pain.

Immediately, with the girl's next blink, she saw Rhine plunge the knight's sword into her chest, her vision and consciousness once again swallowed by darkness, and then pulled into the abyss.

......

……

"Buzz—!"

In a moment of extraordinary feat of reversing the flow of individual time, Matilda's departed soul returned to her body, and her injuries and severed arm were restored.

In the dense, deserted forest, Matilda stood there blankly, one hand gripping her knight's sword, the other clutching her heart, speechless for a long time.

He was killed again, truly killed once more. Why was the other party able to take his life so easily?

Is it because men are naturally stronger than women? No, Matilda could sense that the other party hadn't used any special power; the force that struck her sword-wielding hands last time was still within an acceptable range.

"This is the difference?"

Recalling the two battles that had ended without any suspense, Matilda was speechless.

His eyes were fixed on Rhine in front of him without saying a word, as if he were thinking about something.

Observing the opponent's sword-wielding posture and recalling the opponent's previous sword moves, the speed was astonishing, but the power was within an acceptable range.

Why is it that the opponent can unleash an attack stronger than oneself with limited power?

"Because of technique?"

The slow-motion replay of Lei Zhe's previous actions was incredibly clear in her mind; because of his death, she remembered it all very vividly.

"That's right, use your life to learn properly. If you want to step into the inhuman Shura Alley, you must have inhuman awareness!"

Each time someone dies, Raiji makes their soul deeply reflect, recording their own mistakes and the enemy's techniques.

Rezé's teaching methods were entirely learned from Scáthach: train until you're exhausted, so that he can see and bring out Matilda's aptitude and potential to the fullest extent.

As he said this, Razer, like a cold-blooded killer, unleashed a burst of killing intent and once again charged toward Matilda with his sword, his steps unpredictable!

"Pfft—!"

In a moment of carelessness, Matilda's neck was severed, and a large amount of blood gushed out.

The skills and previous movements of Lei Zhe were etched into her consciousness and soul, and her own weakness and powerlessness infuriated the girl.

"Come again!"

Gritting her teeth to overcome the fear of death and the vulnerabilities brought on by pain, the stubborn and unyielding Matilda absorbed the fighting techniques that Reiji had taught her in the face of life and death, like a sponge, and began a bloody sparring match.

------

A month later, in a deserted, dense forest, the flashing of swords was intense and rapid, with swords clashing violently at terrifying speeds.

"Crimson Sword Dance—!"

The crimson sword light bloomed as magnificently as a lotus flower, carrying a chilling and scorching killing intent, as if it could melt people.

Such a terrifying, fiery sword dance erupted from a woman's crimson knight's sword.

The demonic sword, as if heated to a scorching red from the furnace of hell, unleashed waves of blazing sword light like the karmic fire of the red lotus!

That was a magic sword given to her by her swordsmanship mentor, while on the other side, Reiji held a black magic sword and easily parried Matilda's unusual and exquisite swordsmanship attacks.

"choke----!"

Almost simultaneously, the jet-black knight's sword transformed into a beam of light, carrying a chilling arc of light, and turned into a surging wave that blocked and held the blooming red lotus in place.

"Qiang————!"

A sound like steel clashing against steel echoed through the air.

The crimson knight's sword clashed with the jet-black knight's sword, sending sparks flying everywhere.

Through the sky filled with sparks, Reiji and Matilda gripped their weapons tightly, casting calm yet defiant glances at each other.

"It's not quite done yet..."

Lei Zhe calmly assessed the other party's astonishing progress over the past month.

A month ago, she was a girl who only knew some basic self-defense martial arts, but now she has become a female swordswoman whose moves are so exquisite that she can be called a master swordswoman.

Matilda gritted her teeth upon hearing this, though to be honest, she felt extremely pleased with her terrifying progress over the past month.

But she just couldn't get the so-called sense of accomplishment and honor. The man who was teaching her never once praised her for her rapid progress.

It was as if she had achieved everything now, and in the other person's eyes it was all taken for granted, or even insignificant.

The girl yearned for and sought the recognition and praise of the teacher who had bestowed upon her unparalleled martial prowess and astonishing swordsmanship.

I've died so many times, can't you even give me a little praise for improving to this extent?!

With a mood like a girl throwing a tantrum, Matilda used mysterious breathing to generate even greater fighting spirit within her body. Her grip on the sword tightened suddenly, and the strength added to the sword instantly increased.

However, trying to use force against the man in front of her is not a good option.

"grumble----!"

The two knight's swords clashed violently, sparking even more intensely.

A crimson and fiery power surged into the Crimson Demon Sword, unleashing a dazzling red glow.

"Zheng—!"

Matilda's crimson knight's sword suddenly burst into a burst of intense flames, breaking the stalemate between the two figures. Then, the crimson knight's sword instantly transformed into a series of sword shadows, slashing wildly at Rezé's body with lightning speed.

The dreamlike crimson sword dance exploded once more. Derived from the Phantom Sword Dance taught to her by Rai Zhe, she created her own sword moves to retaliate against her mentor.

"Hmm...not bad, then...Shungoku Nayuta!"

Faced with a dreamlike sword dance capable of turning a person into dust, Lei Zhe still gave a very fair assessment. The dark killing intent also surged into the knight's sword in his hand, and as he swung it, it immediately stirred up a dark abyss of sword blade formed by the killing intent.

It's like a black hole or a tsunami, ready to devour everything in its path into a pitch-black hell.

"Clang clang clang clang—!"

Suddenly, a series of metallic clanging sounds rang out.

In the vast, dense forest, two blurry figures, one in black and one in red, clashed repeatedly, unleashing a dazzling and mesmerizing sword dance storm.

The dazzling crimson sword light clashed frequently with the pitch-black abyss sword light, creating gusts of wind and sparks that left onlookers mesmerized.

"Pfft——!"

The final sound ended with the tearing of flesh and the splattering of blood. Matilda was torn to pieces, turning into a bloody mess as she died.

The light of time reverses once more, and Matilda is resurrected and returned.

He had no complaints about Lei Zhe's ruthless actions, because it was because the other party respected him and treated him as an equal opponent that he attacked seriously. Even if he died, he would have no complaints.

"...We lost again."

However, she would still get angry when necessary. Matilda bit her lower lip tightly, looking at Reiji's face, which was still not covered by the white hood, with a strong and unyielding expression.

Half of the attacks just now were aimed at the opponent's head. In the past month of transformation, besides wanting to gain Lei Zhe's approval, the girl also wanted to see this man's face.

However, he failed every time. Reiji faced her fierce attacks with only one hand on his sword. At first, the girl didn't even have the chance to make him move an inch.

A month after they met, Matilda learned skills from Reiji and became adept at running away from home. She would come here almost every day to fight this man she could never defeat, a man whose clothes she could never even touch.

I genuinely enjoy my progress, as well as the tension and exhilaration of battle, and I use all my wisdom and strength to compete with the enemy.

Matilda loved this life; she could train freely and was greedy for the excitement and joy that battle brought.

Being able to fight freely was such a happy, wonderful, and joyful thing for her!

However, Matilda, who is still within the realm of mortals, cannot defeat Razer.

She also wanted to gain the approval and high praise of Rhine, the man who was so powerful that there was still no end in sight. He was someone that Matilda wanted to conquer.

"In the realm of humanity, you are very powerful. There is no need to belittle yourself by comparing yourself to me."

The black magic sword in his hand dissipated into elementary particles. Rezer looked at the stubborn and unconvinced Matilda in front of him and softly told his proud little apprentice about her achievements.

"Then how can we transcend the human realm and achieve strength beyond that of humans?! Rhine!"

Matilda neither appreciated nor listened to Rezer's comforting praise; what she wanted was the highest level of recognition and approval, for this man to reveal his complete truth to her.

So when Matilda heard Reiji say that there was something even stronger than humans, her eyes lit up as she asked Reiji, who had always longed for power.

Just as Rez was about to begin teaching Matilda the new realm, he suddenly stopped and turned to look to his right.

"What!?"

When Matilda saw Rezé suddenly stop moving, she also felt a strange and unfamiliar sensation.

Following Lei Zhe's gaze, his eyes immediately filled with panic and anger.

Thick smoke and towering flames suddenly billowed from the distant forest, shattering the tranquility of the place.

Matilda, having honed her superhuman senses over the past month, also heard terrified cries for help from a large group of people, including familiar voices.

"The direction of the castle... Father!"

Matilda was well aware of what was in that direction; besides the town in her father's territory, there was only the castle.