Mordred stood silently at the ter of ay space within the massive warehouse the Bights have set their base in temporarily.

  It was once filled with several burais. But after their operations in the port of Yokosuka, some of them were damaged, and they were now ongoing repairs in another area. Thus, the space became emptier than usual.

  He stood with a wooden sword in each hand, waiting for Tohdoh to finish ging from his military uniform into a kendogi.

  Meanwhile, standing on the sidelihe Four Holy Swords and Karen waited as well as they observed the silently standing Mordred.

  Will he be okay, Karen thought in her mind. She had no doubt in Mordred’s skill with the sword when he’s piloting a knightmare. But this was different…

  His physique might be the best she had ever seen. And… she knew how pact, hard, and strong those muscles were after having uionally touched them. Mordred had also shown how strong he was pared to everyone in the bights from how much more weight he could carry when they’re moving stuff.

  But… Would he be skilled with a real sword as well?

  He might be strohan Tohdoh physically, but swordsmanship required more than just physical strength. If he’s only slightly above mediocre in terms of teique, then he wouldn’t be Tohdoh’s oppo.

  “Is he skilled with the sword?”

  Karen snapped out of her daze and go her side.

  Chiba Nagisa, one of the four holy swords and the only woman in it, had just asked her a question with narrowed eyes.

  She had a stoid posed… or cold appearance, and the tone of her voice reflected it well.

  But, it was uandable for Karen. She must have unbreakable faith in her leader, who was famous and known to be a great swordsman.

  Having him go against Mordred, whose skills were unknown, must’ve seemed like a waste of time to her. Or worse, an insult to her leader.

  When she asked that question, Karen couldn’t help but think of it as her asking if “Mordred was worth Tohdoh’s time”.

  Holy, she set at her for looking down at Mordred. But, she herself didn’t know the ao that question. So, she couldn’t defend Mordred as well as she wanted.

  “He’s peerless with the sword when he pilots Excalibur. But… I’ve never seen him use a real sword.”

  “I see.”

  Karen ched her fists and narrowed her eyes at the bck-haired woman when she heard Nagisa snorted. Or at the very least, that’s what Karen imagined she did wheurned her face away from her.

  “Now now, there’s o be this tense over a friendly spar, right? In the end, this is just for a bit of fun! And Tohdoh-san seemed to be enjoying it too!”

  Ashina Shogo, the man with the spectacle and another of the Four Holy Swords, said with a cheery voice, trying to erase the tense air between Nagisa and Karen.

  “Umu. It is just a friendly spar. There is o be so serious.”

  Senba Ryoga, the rge, slightly rotund entleman with white hair, nodded solemnly as he tinued the young man with the devil’s mask in the distanbsp;

  Mordred’s physique was excellent. That much was obvious from just a gnce. But he too wondered about the young man’s experieh a real sword. Would his physique reflect his skills? Or would he simply take advantage of his incredible physical capabilities to try and win?

  If it was the tter… Then he would be a bit disappointed.

  “That’s right. I, for one, am pretty excited to see how well that youngster does. I wonder if he’d be able to give Tohdoh-san a good time.”

  Urabe Kosetsu, the man with spiky hair and the final member of the Four Holy Sword, ented casually as he put his hands behind his head.

  At first, he was actually quite surprised that Tohdoh would want to spar with the kid. After all, although he was the Grim Reaper of the Bights, that didn’t mean he could use the sword like he did with his knightmare.

  At most, he might just uand some sword teiques and apply it to his swordsmanship with the knightmare. Then, his knightmare, which was most definitely much more advahan any other knightmare he had seen, would do the rest and give him the illusion of beiremely skilled with the sword.

  At least, that’s what he assumed from the rumors surrounding the Grim Reaper of the Bights.

  “Oh, there he is.”

  Everyourheir attention back towards the ter of the area where Tohdoh, donned in his white kendogi a-bck hakama, approached Mordred.

  Mave one of the wooden swords to him respectfully, with both hands, which Tohdoh received with both hands iurn for his courtesy.

  They then turned away from each other, walked a few steps, and turned around, having created a bit of distaween them.

  “Let us have a good match.”

  “Likewise. Please take care of me.”

  The two bowed respectfully towards each other, a into their stanbsp;

  Tohdoh stood with his right leg forward and held his wooden sword straight before him with both hands. It was a standard kendo stance called Seigan no Kamae. It was a stance which poihe tip of the swht at the enemy’s eyes.

  Mordred took on a simir stance, and the two came to a stand off.

  There regnant silehat fell upon the area, and the four holy swords immediately felt the tenseness of a raging battle on their skin.

  Their eyes widened, not expeg such heaviness from the atmosphere alone when their leader was just going against some youngster whose skill with the sword was unknown. They could all feel the air tingle for some reason as Tohdoh and Mordred’s aura began to fre, causing goosebumps to all the spectators.

  Tohdoh narrowed his eyes as his lips splitted into a grin. While he did expeething from the youngster, he truly didn’t expect him to put on such a dispy.

  Then, all of a sudden, without a signal, the two uowards each other and cshed their wooden swords. Its sound reverberated throughout the entire area.

  Gasps erupted from Karen and the Four Holy Swords, but the ce to catch their breath as Tohdoh and Mordred tinued exging flurries of blows.

  Attag. Defending. Blog. Sshing. Defleg. Striking. Parrying. Each blow shook the air with the sheer iy behind them.

  And as they tio exge strikes, their movements became faster, stronger, and more intense as the four holy swords quickly became uo follow their movements.

  “I-I-Impossible…”

  “I-I didn’t expect this…”

  “Monster…”

  “Mmm…”

  Karen was simirly shocked at the ued iy of the battle. But, as she watched Mordred fight so amazingly with the sword, she couldn't help but feel excitement and proudness rising from within her chest.

  “Amazing…”

  The exge of blows and stalemate tinued for a few while. But soon, Karen and and the Four Holy Swords noticed something that shocked them to the very core.

  “T-This is impossible…! No, there’s simply no way…!”

  “T-Tohdoh-san is… being pushed back…?”

  “Is this real…? T-That Tohdoh-san is being… pushed back… in a csh of swords?”

  “...I’ve never seen anything like this.”

  Slowly but surely, Mordred began to gain the upper hand as he began pushing ba Tohdoh.

  Tohdoh felt his body reag his limits. His hand began to numb after receiving all of Mordred’s blows, each heavier tha.

  He quickly realized how much more superior Mordred was in terms of physical abilities from the moment they exged their first blow. Thus, Tohdoh decided to try and with by using the teiques and skills he had honed and perfected over the years.

  But… He couldn’t find an opening. Every single one of his strikes were blocked. Every single one of his feints were seen through. And every single one of his blocks were slowly being weaker and weaker, uo stand against such powerful strikes over and over.

  Oher hand, he could barely defled defend against Mordred’s attack. And while his eyes and instinct might’ve told him about a feint, he was barely able to rea time and defend against it.

  In just several exges of blows, he quickly realized that he was pletely outcssed in every single aspebsp;

  But… he didn’t stop. No, why would he stop?

  This was the most fun he had for years! Even if he was losing, who would stop during su exhirating match?!

  His grin grew rger and rger as he tinued being pushed back, stepping bae step at a time, as his arms slowly turned numb, his shoulder tensing unfortably, and his muscles ag.

  Before he k, he was at his wits end, and a loud crack resouhroughout the spabsp;

  The tip of Mordred’s wooden sword rested right before his throat, and his own wooden sword was left only with its has other half, down on the ground, snapped.

  If it was silent before the match started, it was a vacuum now. Karen and the Four Holy Swords were speechless from the match they’ve seen. And Tohdoh were simirly shocked at the results.

  But, soon after, a loud ughter filled the entire spabsp;

  “Ahahahaha! What a good fight! This was the best fight I’ve had in years, perhaps even ever!”

  Tohdoh ughed out loud, and Mordred lowered his sword.

  “I lost. You were far more impressive with the sword than I expected.”

  Mordred lowered his head slightly in a bow and responded.

  “Thank you very much for your praise. And I would like to say the same thing. Yend seemed to have been true after all.”

  “Ahahaha, stop that. Most were exaggerated. If they’re true, then I would’ve been able to enjoy su exhirating fight a few seds longer.”

  Tohdoh patted Mordred on the shoulder and began to talk with him with a clear, happy smile on his usually stoic, stern fabsp;

  And as they did, Nagisa and the rest of the four holy swords were still frozen in shock at the se.

  They… They’ve never seen their leader smile so much before. And its towards someohey’ve known for only a few hours.

  They feel like they’re dreaming right now.

  “Well then, Kyoshiro-san, I’ll o return to my task now, so please excuse me. It has been a pleasure.”

  “Oh, of course. Thank you for apanying me. And please dive me for taking so much of your time.”

  Mordred shook his head.

  “It’s not a waste at all. I e as well, Kyoshiro-san. Then, please excuse me.”

  Tohdoh nodded with a smile as Mordred bowed towards him and walked towards Karen.

  He gave a brief nod towards the four holy swords and turowards Karen.

  “You know, if you keep your mouth open for that long, a fly’s bound to get in.”

  Karen quickly snapped out of her daze and shut her mouth instinctively. And only then did she realize the teasing tone in his void narrowed her eyes at him as she blushed.

  Mordred surned, and walked off towards the hangar part of the warehouse, where the Excalibur and Guren were kept.

  “e on.”

  “Y-You bastard…!”

  She gritted her teeth and quickly followed after him, leaving the four holy swords and Tohdoh, who watched them leave, behind.

  As they walked, Karen silently stared at him, w what else she hadn’t known about him yet.

  There was a heavy feeling in her chest when she came to a realization. A realization that the longer she knew him, the more she seemed to not actually know anything about him

  “What? Are you that mad about that little teasing?”

  “...No. It’s just…”

  Mordred turned his head and saw Karen looking slightly downwards with a look of… subtle sadness on her face. And… Loneliness?

  “We’ve known each other for quite a bit. But… I never knew you were that good with the sword. And… It feels like the longer we know each other, the more I don’t know about you.”

  Karen stopped iracks, and Mordred stopped as well after taking a few more steps after her, and turned around.

  She looked up to him, her eyes gazing right at the eyes of the devil’s mask of Mordred’s full body armor suit, trying to see through it. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t… And the fact caused her eyes to redden and became slightly wet with tears.

  “I don’t even know what you look like… Or even your real name. What more do I not know about you… Mordred?

  There was silence as the two tio stare at each other.

  And then… a soft sigh.

  “I’m sorry… I ’t tell you now…”

  “...”

  Karen ched her fists ah, and looked down to her feet.

  “I ’t tell you now… But I promise. I will tell you soon.”

  She raised her head and looked up to him once more, her eyes widened as a sense of hope filled her chest.

  “Really?”

  Mordred nodded.

  “Yes. At that time… I hope you won’t be angry.”

  Karen looked at him weirdly and snorted.

  “I would be angrier if you old me.”

  She let out a deep sigh and began walking once again, going around Mordred who stood before her.

  “e on. We don’t have all day.”

  Mordred turowards Karen, who had already walked away with her back towards him, and shook his head.

  “I should just bite the bullet…”

  He took a deep breath, and followed after karen while thinking to himself how to best break the news. That Mordred was Alexander all along… And that none of those were his “true” name.

  VergsX