Chapter 160

When the swords first clashed, Hasan was certain of his victory.

He's already at his limit.

He noticed Kinaine's hand holding the sword trembling finely, as if in spasm. Come to think of it, Kinaine was in a state no different from having one foot in the grave. So he must have given his all from the beginning to end the duel quickly, and now his limit had arrived.

Wasn't it impossible for him to even hold and swing a sword in the first place? He was a patient who should have been bedridden. With a body that had nothing left but bones and skin, where did he find the strength to wield a sword?

The swords clashed again. This time, Kinaine's feet slid backward. Though Kinaine appeared calm, as if unshaken, Hasan thought he was just acting.

"Don't be disappointed. Even at your best, you couldn't have beaten me."

Hasan whispered.

"That's the limit of that body."

"......"

You yourself are not special. It's your body, the things you were born with that are special. Anyone with dominant traits could become like you. Just as I did.

Hasan looked at Kinaine with eyes that said as much.

Kinaine pushed back the sword and retreated. Then he changed his stance and charged again.

It wasn't the swordsmanship of the Hairak royal family. Hasan smirked at the swordsmanship that lacked both discipline and aesthetics, truly the kind that only lowly mercenaries from the streets would use.

"Seven years must have been long. I wonder what those who praised you would say if they saw your sword now—ugh!"

In the blink of an eye, Kinaine's sword suddenly split into two and attacked Hasan. As the tips of his hair were cut by the attack coming from an unpredictable angle, Hasan glared at Kinaine expressionlessly.

"That sword, it's not ordinary after all."

Kinaine didn't answer and charged. Hasan knew there were swordsmen who used two swords. But since dual swordsmanship wasn't treated as a proper technique by the royal family, this was his first time facing it. Until now, Hasan's opponents had only been royal knights or magical beasts.

With just one more sword, the methods of attack expanded to an unpredictable range. Moreover, irregular techniques that could never be considered royal were interspersed throughout. It was hard to find any composure left on Hasan's face.

"Such lowly tricks...!"

"When I was in the palace, I too thought I was excellent."

Kinaine, who had been silent all along, opened his mouth. Blood flowed down his pale cheek. It was quite a deep wound, but Kinaine didn't seem to notice, not even making a gesture to wipe away the flowing blood.

Only then did Hasan realize why Kinaine could wield a sword in such a physical state. Pain was a warning sent by the body. But Kinaine's body no longer sent warnings. That's why he could move his body beyond his limits.

Kinaine muttered.

"But nothing I had could protect what I wanted to protect."

Whatever Hasan had desperately craved was useless to Kinaine. Because he couldn't protect what he truly wanted.

"But this time..."

"Die!"

Hasan thrust his sword with murderous intent. Though he had always been outmatched by Kinaine in the past, Hasan's swordsmanship was also excellent. Above all, as time went on, Kinaine's breathing became irregular and the speed of his sword slowed. Hasan didn't miss that opening.

Thud!

Realizing that Kinaine's left side reacted slightly slower than the other, Hasan concentrated his attacks there, and finally succeeded in piercing his left shoulder. The blade dug into the wound that had been healing.

Got him!

Elation spread in Hasan's eyes.

But far from retreating, Kinaine instead reached out and pulled Hasan toward himself. In an instant, the sword dug deeper into his shoulder, and the smell of blood intensified.

Hasan looked down in confusion at Kinaine's face, which had come close enough to be just a finger joint's distance away.

"Huh...?"

Belatedly sensing danger, he tried to pull out his sword, but this time, he was the one who was too late.

Kinaine's right hand moved as fast as lightning.

"Guh."

Hasan, who had been fumbling at the sword hilt that had penetrated his abdomen, soon staggered backward.

"Im-impossible... Why did I, cough, lose to you again..."

"......"

"You're just 'me'..."

Staggering, Hasan lost his balance and fell. He looked up at Kinaine with a miserable face. That face that had once been his own.

If he had been defeated by black magic, it wouldn't have been this desperate. But hadn't the situation been absolutely advantageous for him?

Yet how was it that once again his brother was standing, while he was sitting miserably, looking up at him!

"This can't be, cough! D-did the dragon help you?"

"......"

"No, what was in that strange sword?"

"......"

"Tell me. Tell me what trick you pulled!"

Hasan, even while spitting blood, urged an answer from the silent Kinaine with gleaming eyes.

Yes, there must have been some strategy he didn't know about. Otherwise, how could Kinaine, who had lost everything, snatch victory from him again?

If that's not it, then I...

"Answer me!"

Kinaine, with his mouth shut, slowly approached Hasan. Instinctively, Hasan scooted backward on his buttocks, but realizing that he looked like he was running away, he bit his lip and stopped.

Standing in front of Hasan, Kinaine bent his knee and reached out. Hasan thought Kinaine would assault him, but that didn't happen.

Kinaine merely whispered as he retrieved the sword embedded in Hasan's abdomen.

"There was no trick."

"No, that can't be..."

"You just lost to me, as always."

"Nooooooooo!"

A scream with bloody foam echoed throughout the arena. But Kinaine passed by Hasan. Without looking back even once.

Hasan, clutching his bleeding abdomen, stared vacantly at the retreating back of his brother.

He had thought the reason Kinaine always won was because he was fortunate enough to be born a dominant alpha. He believed that if he could just take away that trait, Kinaine would be as insignificant as himself. He had to rationalize his inner self-hatred and inferiority complex in this way just to breathe.

But at this moment, Hasan realized that no matter what skin he wore, Kinaine was just Kinaine.

That realization brought greater pain than the shock of having his abdomen pierced.

Because it meant that whether he was a dominant alpha or a recessive omega, his essence was just that of a loser.

The spectator stands were silent as if frozen. What broke the silence was someone's scream.

"The black mage has killed the king!"

Starting with that, even the remaining people screamed and fled in all directions.

"Your Majesty!"

Armed knights rushed over.

"Call a doctor immediately!"

The knights protected the injured king and surrounded the black mage, pointing their spears at him.

But Kinaine acted as if he didn't see them. As soon as he pulled out the sword that had pierced his shoulder, Chirpy transformed into armor wrapping around his shoulder and began to compress the wound to stop the bleeding.

But perhaps because he had already lost a lot of blood, his vision was blurry. Kinaine rubbed his hazy eyes once and approached Asad.

"Lord Asad."

Kinaine stood in front of Asad and called him worriedly. Then Asad, who had been covering his face with one hand, slowly raised his head.

His beautiful face was soaked with tears.

"I, had no intention of breaking my promise."

"I know."

"But the moment that human's ring touched me, suddenly I remembered..."

Kinaine wasn't surprised. He had expected this since Asad showed abnormal symptoms.

It was said that dragons were beings that could not be harmed by anything. But Asad occasionally wore a pained expression. The cause was always the same. When he recalled his past.

"How much do you remember?"

Asad stared down at Kinaine. His two differently colored eyes were wet with confusion.

"Almost everything."

"......"

"So now I know that everything the king said was right. That man and I were truly lovers, and Hasan, you..."

Pain crossed Asad's face.

"You hated me and Kinaine."

"......"

"When we first met, you called me Helio. You already knew who I was. Did you really approach me knowingly? To use me, as the king said?"

"...If I said no, would you believe me?"

It was a question thrown as if in resignation. But Asad gave an unexpected answer.

"I'll believe you. Whatever you say."

"......"

"So just say no. Then nothing will change."

What does that mean...

Kinaine stared blankly at Asad. Asad's face still couldn't hide his pain.

Asad hated lies and couldn't forgive being deceived. Yet he was saying he would believe Kinaine's words if he just said one thing. Even if it was a lie, even if Kinaine really was trying to use him, he would let himself be used.

How did it come to this?

His heart grew cold. He couldn't stop thinking that something had gone wrong.

"I..."

Kinaine barely opened his lips. One word that he wasn't trying to use Asad. He knew that if he just said that one word, everything would end safely.

But...

Kinaine lowered his head.

He hated Hasan for deceiving Asad.

But in truth, wasn't he also deceiving Asad, who had lost his memories?

Even now. Lying now would mean living a life of deceiving Asad forever while hiding the truth. Yet he had been willing to choose such a life. For his own happiness alone, he had wanted to ignore the suffering Asad would endure.

He felt ashamed. Why had he changed like this? Surely the person Asad had loved wasn't such a pathetic person.

Kinaine raised his head again, taking in the appearance of his lover. Eventually, a faint smile appeared on Kinaine's lips.

"I no longer want to deceive Lord Asad."

"Nine."

"I've told too many lies. I thought it was for Lord Asad's sake, but thinking about it now, it was for my own."

"Just say no!"

Did he sense something ominous? Asad's tone grew rough. But Kinaine calmly shook his head.

"One lie would be easy. But that lie would require another lie, and so I would continue making excuses and telling lies. The future I can offer Lord Asad is only that."

"I don't care about such things..."

"I don't want to make Lord Asad walk such a path."

If Asad walked with Kinaine, he would soon be covered in blood. A life full of lies and deception would only hurt Asad.

It was okay if he couldn't live long, if he couldn't become Asad's bride. Kinaine knew that for what he wanted most of all, he had to stop here.

It was time to stop all lies and speak only the truth.

"Lord Asad, I am not Hasan."

Kinaine wondered if Asad's surprised expression was because he had said he wasn't Hasan, or because he had just coughed up blood.

He had felt something was wrong, but without realizing it, his body had tilted. Asad, who caught him as he fell, seemed to be shouting something, but he couldn't hear well.

Before his heart stopped, Kinaine said.

"Asad... to me..."