“Please, withdraw that operation.”There was a subtle but unmistakable edge in Khan’s voice.But I couldn’t bring myself to agree with him.“If you want to persuade someone, you should go to her, not me.”“You don’t truly understand that monster. That’s why such a reckless thought could even cross your mind.”“Is that what you really believe?”The air was tense—one spark away from exploding.I could feel the stinging gazes all around me.Distrust.Cold emotions swirling like a storm.“You think Mergen lacks that much judgment?”“How dare you—!!”Khan’s roar burst out like a reflex. His eyes blazed.“Do not speak my mother’s name so carelessly. Her name isn’t one to be spoken so lightly.''“The one disrespecting her right now isn’t me, Khan. It’s you.”I looked around.Every gaze in the hall was fixed on us.Once again, I forced myself to endure it.I didn’t want to start a pointless quarrel.“You’re trying to persuade the wrong person. What I gave was a proposal—Mother made her own choice. If you doubt her decision, isn’t it proper to ask her yourself?”“Don’t think gathering a few small fry makes you important.”For a moment—I nearly lost my grip on reason. Barely, I held it together.“Cross that line, and there’ll be no turning back.”“You were the one who crossed it first.”I glanced down at my palm.In front of so many witnesses, the name of Ark had been openly ignored.As a leader, there was no retreat from this.A bitter taste filled my mouth—things had already gone too far.“Would it be enough if I proved it?”“Proved what?”“That even if all of you came at me, I could still handle it.”“What?”“Hold on, you didn’t really mean that, did you?”It was Bishop and Knight who reacted.Their faces were smiling, but veins stood out on their foreheads.“I don’t make jokes.”“You’re serious?”“How arrogant.”Khan’s two lieutenants stood at his sides, killing intent flashing in their eyes.I looked at them impassively and spoke in a dry tone.“Do you have a practice sword?”Something flew toward me.Tak!I caught it reflexively—a short training dagger.‘Short.’Barely the length of a forearm.Much shorter than Zero, and a little awkward to handle. But after a few swings, it felt usable enough.After testing its weight a few more times, I raised my gaze.“I don’t hold back.”Khan rolled his shoulders, his fighting spirit flaring.There wasn’t much left to say.I could tell he already harbored resentment toward me—Otherwise, he wouldn’t be speaking like this without even hearing the full story.He was a man of age and wisdom,A leader fit to command his own faction.He had to know what his words would provoke.No—he knew perfectly well.Before the eyes and ears of everyone present, he deliberately acted narrow-minded, hiding a blade behind his tongue.He was testing me.“Khan.”“……”“You’ll remember today as the day you made a mistake. You brought this on yourself—so don’t regret it.”We understood each other’s intent.There’s nothing left to assess.Light gleamed in Khan’s eyes as he raised his hand.“Sir!”“Leader!”“Do not interfere.”Khan stepped forward.He dropped his mask, speaking in a low tone.“I apologize for underestimating you.”“I don’t intend to accept it, so no need to apologize.”“But I’m genuinely curious—what makes you think you and she can take down that monster alone?”“You’ll find out soon enough.”A training greatsword was now in [King]'s hand.He let the tip hang loosely—at first glance, it seems to be full of openings. But they were all calculated, like the cracks of a mountain that never truly breaks.Charge carelessly, and you’d walk right into a trap.Still, I wondered—had Khan ever faced someone who could easily step over his own traps?“I’ll go first.”Let’s tear apart that confidence at its root.I surged forward in an instant.Trap or not—it didn’t matter.Crack!“Mmh!”A low grunt escaped Khan.He reversed his grip on the greatsword—more a defensive art than swordsmanship.His movements said it all: the moment he grabbed me, he’d drive me into the ground.But—My wooden dagger struck his wrist hard.The sharp crack was followed by his grimace of pain.Had I ended it there, his throat would’ve been mine—but Khan slipped low, striking for my lower body.‘A tackle.’Such a terrifying speed—The charge of a seasoned tiger.His two-meter frame gave him overwhelming mass.Take a hit from that, and you wouldn’t just fall—you’d break bones.No way I’d allow that.Thud!“Ghk!”Reflexes.Speed.In every respect, I was one step ahead.Even in hand-to-hand combat, I could overwhelm him physically.Khan and I fight in entirely different ways.Even as a transhuman with multiple implants, his main weapon is firearms.Mine is the blade.If I can’t gain the upper hand in close combat, there’s no meaning in choosing a sword at all.In close quarters, I must be better than anyone—only then can I stand on equal ground with the gun-wielding survivors.In that sense, I had to admit—I was impressed.‘As expected of Khan.’He’d taken hit after hit to his joints and muscles, yet still held firm.That stoic endurance, those eyes searching for a single opening—it was chilling.He was waiting for one chance.Trusting in his body’s power to turn the tide in an instant.A beast’s resilience and grace.Solid yet fluid.If not for my heightened senses and this dagger, I might not have been able to match him.Still, I felt a twinge of disappointment.For some reason, he hadn’t yet unleashed his full strength.Was he holding back because he still thought he could win without it?At this rate, it would only end in his defeat.I stopped my assault and met his eyes.A brief lull.Khan was breathing heavily, ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) but his gaze didn’t waver.“You might want to swallow that pride of yours soon.”“Hrrgh!”His answer came not in words, but in a rushing blade.I dodged lightly, deflecting his wrist with my shoulder.“As long as you keep hiding your power, you’ll never be my match.”“You’ll never know till you try—!!”Using my shoulder, I broke his stance.He swung his dagger wildly, grabbing at me with his other hand—then came a strike aimed at my throat.‘He's sharp.’I bent backward like a drawn bow, evading—and counterattacked.Thud!“Ghhk!”But in that moment—“……!?”Khan twisted in close, locking himself around my dagger.He lunged forward, driving his head and torso in for a crushing blow.It looked dangerous at first—but with a clear mind, it was easy enough to read and counter.I released the dagger.His grip twisted his own stance, a fatal mistake.Crack!“Gghhh…”My knee slammed into his solar plexus.Judging from the dull impact, his organs might’ve ruptured.But I didn’t stop.If I retreated now, the fight would drag on—and his suffering would only grow.I raised my hand to strike the back of his neck, to end it cleanly—Whirr!Something lashed out like a snake, halting my hand.“You’re not going to call that cowardly, are you?”Rin.She’d used a leather belt to bind my wrist.‘Not bad.’And she wasn’t alone.Eric grabbed my left ankle and yanked hard.My balance wavered.With Rin restraining my upper body, the only option was to roll.But—“Too slow.”Even their unexpected moves mean little without speed.I kicked off the ground, twisting midair, and broke free from both Rin’s belt and Eric’s grip.“You—”“Ugh!”I snatched my dagger off the ground and drove it into Eric’s shoulder.Thud!“Argh…”Rin’s kick came next, slicing toward the back of my knee.If it connected, my leg would be wrecked.I slipped past it easily, scanning the scene.Eric lay sprawled on the floor.Khan was nowhere to be seen—but I knew why.“Enough.”“You all right, Leader?”“...Huff…”Thanks to his subordinates buying him time, Khan had recovered.Sweat poured down his temples as he steadied his breath.Then—a strange vapor drifted from his mouth.It wasn’t cold enough for misted breath to form.That could mean only one thing.“You’re finally going to show me?”Khan was fully activating his implants.“The arrogant one wasn’t you—it was me.”Steam thickened between his teeth as he smiled coldly.And then I saw it—‘[Threat detection].’A faint red light flickering at the edge of my vision.My instincts screamed: danger.The air around him changed completely.Khan—the first transhuman, the man who’d survived the harshest augmentation—was finally revealing why they called him King.Hunting creatures and fighting humans are two entirely different things.Humans use tools—and tools exist to overcome human weakness.Implants are tools, too.And now, facing Khan,I understood why the title “King” suited him so perfectly.The pressure was like standing before a wild beast.“Khrrrgh…”Bloodshot eyes.Saliva dripping from his lips.He’d stepped beyond the limits of humanity.Then—his silhouette blurred.“Mmh!”I raised my dagger just in time.The blade met his fist head-on.Boom!“Haahhh!!”My arm trembled violently from the shock.‘Stronger than Jimba… maybe even more.’The impact was enough to furrow my brow.A hit like that to the body would be catastrophic.Khan’s rampage continued, every blow sharper than the last.Eventually, I had to retreat— by only one step.But the tension turned into exhilaration.“...Haa.”A smile crept across my lips.Why? I couldn’t say.Maybe because, finally, I could fight without holding anything back.

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