The Gap Between You and Me - Chapter 137

The confrontation between the two men was much more heated and fierce than initially expected. Every clash of their swords in the air caused sparks, and a sharp sound of iron reverberated through the dry air.

The actions of the Kustan and Velician soldiers who were fighting like crazy around them gradually slowed down. The murderous energy was so prevalent that it was difficult for an ordinary soldier, not a knight, to handle.

The eyes of the soldiers naturally focused towards the sound of metal hitting. Realizing that the confrontation that was happening was none other than their leaders, some of them even let go of their hands and watched the two of them.

When one strikes the other with a sword, the other adequately blocks it. The same was true when the direction of the attack was reversed. Like they had expected it, they bent the angle of their sword and easily parried the opponent’s attack.

Like the sword movements had been planned in advance, the two’s movements were clean and precise. In addition, it was so fast that it was difficult to follow.

The two men clashed their swords dozens of times. At first glance, it was so tense that one side could not be said to be dominant.

In terms of skills alone, it’s not that bad. More than anyone else, the ones who were most surprised by that fact were the Velician soldiers.

It was Bernard, who was known as a playboy and scoundrel. After his coming-of-age ceremony, he is the troublemaker of the royal family who has not been able to achieve anything worth mentioning. It was just a surprise to them that he could fight the notorious Black Knight on equal footing.

‘Was he that skilled?’

The mouths of the Velician soldiers naturally opened at the completely incomprehensible sight.

‘Has he been hiding his sharp teeth all this time?’

Bernard was the only legitimate son of the royal family. No matter how imperfect his character was, if he had been known to have that level of skill, he would have been greatly recognized by the king and his ministers.

In fact, the soldiers who saw how easily the former crown prince, Siorn, fell at the hands of the enemy during the Battle of Butron, did not have high expectations for Bernard either. But that turned out to be a completely wrong idea.

Even though Bernard and Siorn were blood brothers, they did not resemble each other in the slightest. If Siorn was like a gentle spring breeze embracing everything, Bernard was like a rough wave crushing a hard rock.

And now, the leader they needed was Bernard, not Siorn.

Little by little, hope began to dwell in the eyes of the Velician soldiers who had been filled with despair.

* * *

Bernard clenched his teeth. When he first started the confrontation, he thought that the Black Knight and him were equal in skill. The Black Knight was as strong as he had been told, but not so much that he couldn’t be matched.

If he’s lucky he’ll be able to cut the Black Knight first. If so, it would not be very impossible to reverse this dismal situation. Bernard had such positive thoughts.

Unfortunately, that idea didn’t last long. As time passed, and the more their swords clashed, Bernard gradually began to realize.

Although it was subtle, there was clearly a difference in skill between the two men. Not strength, not skill, not even the speed of movement. The Black Knight had a slight advantage over him. And unfortunately, the difference became even more pronounced as the showdown progressed into the second half.

He was starting to get short of breath.

The accuracy of attack and speed of defense. Everything was collapsing little by little. In contrast, the man in front of him looked no different from the beginning. He wasn’t out of breath like Bernard was, and he didn’t even look tired.

A bad, foreboding feeling.

Just as Bernard was thinking about that, the Black Knight attacked again. A blade struck slanted downward from the left side. As soon as a silver arc was drawn in the air, the wind split in two.

“!”

Bernard quickly moved his hand holding his sword.

Clang!

The two swords collided with a loud sound. It was close, but he was able to manage to block the attack. But that wasn’t the end. Bernard unknowingly let out a small sigh of relief, but the Black Knight’s blade twisted.

The loud sound of metal scraping against each other.

The Black Knight’s sword glided over Bernard’s. The Black Knight’s blade, which moved very smoothly as if it was moving on an ice sheet, rode Bernard’s sword in an instant, then turned and flew into his chest very naturally.

“Ah!”

A short exclamation escaped Bernard’s lips. Recognizing the opponent’s intention, he quickly dodged his body backwards, but his movement was slow. Without missing that opportunity, the Black Knight’s sword rushed into Bernard’s chest. Then it cut through his armor.

Red rain fell where the sword passed. There was hot blood pouring from the long cut in his armor. It was then that the excruciating pain came.

“Keugh!”

Bernard gritted his teeth and groaned. As he stumbled backwards, the Black Knight struck him hard on the shoulder with the hilt of his sword. With a dull sound, Bernard lost his balance and fell from his horse.

It took a toll on his mercilessly thrown body. He hit the ground and his body seemed to bounce several times.

His mind went blank, and at the same time his eyes went dark. Did he fall off the horse and hit his head on the ground?

Bernard closed his eyes hard to try to come to his senses, then opened them. As soon as the color returned to his blurry vision, a black shadow was cast over his head.

“Only you.”

The Black Knight got off his horse and stood by Bernard’s head, aiming the tip of his blade at his neck.

“She might have lived if it hadn’t been for you guys.”

‘She?’

Bernard blankly looked up at the Black Knight’s incomprehensible murmur.

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