Your Holy Sword Has Shattered

Ashley was a genuine magic genius.

Born into a noble family in the Imperial Capital, she had been destined from the very beginning for a life unlike that of ordinary people.

After graduating from the magic academy, she became a saint of the Alchemy Holy See at fourteen, a cleric at nineteen, and a near-fourth-rank caster at twenty. Then she became an examiner for the Saint Trial. Her life had always gone this smoothly.

Serving as an examiner was merely a stepping stone toward her brilliant future, nothing more than a tiny, insignificant interlude.

She was different from those commoners—Ashley knew that perfectly well. She was destined for an incomparably dazzling life.

Those without talent, those born in remote places, could only be left far behind by her. They could only gaze at her retreating figure in awe.

But when Ashley stood naked before everyone, her muscular body exposed as she felt those people's awestruck gazes upon her,

the only emotion she felt was shame.

Unparalleled shame.

Shame unlike anything she had ever known.

Ashley covered her bare chest, her legs pressed tightly together because there was nothing to conceal her crotch. The bleak, frigid wind pierced her skin, but what truly turned cold was her heart.

She could feel pair after pair of eyes from the surrounding audience falling upon her sturdy body. Of course, even more gazes landed on those brilliant gold underpants, stabbing at her like needles.

She lightly bit her lip, her cheeks flushing faintly with shame.

If that had been all, it would have been bearable.

What shamed her even more were Arthur's words.

"Why is a seven-foot man acting like a bashful maiden?"

Damn it!

Who the hell was a seven-foot man?!

I'm a maiden to begin with!

Ashley mourned inwardly, but Arthur had never had any intention of showing tenderness toward women. His lion-like gaze fixed tightly on her body as that staff-holy sword came crashing straight down from above her head!

He had put real force into this blow. The staff tore through the air with a howling whistle.

Ashley had never had any experience in fighting. Since childhood, she had been a magic genius, not a holy knight genius.

Fortunately, the Saint-tier Alchemy Array could perfectly replicate the candidate's physical attributes.

Relying solely on the instincts of this warrior's body, Ashley subconsciously took a step back. The staff brushed past her face and barely smashed into the ground, producing a dull boom.

Arthur struck again. Ashley blocked by instinct, and metal sparks burst forth as the two staffs collided.

Damn it, his staff was made of alloy!

"Let us have a duel filled with honor!" Arthur pressed his staff against Ashley's face. "Knight Ashley!"

Cheers erupted from the audience. Though no one knew why a duel between mages had turned into a brawl between muscular men, seeing a battle between such powerhouses made failing the exam worth it.

This bastard from the borderlands.

Ashley slowly took a breath and forced herself to calm down.

Don't be afraid.

Their physical abilities were identical.

As long as she gradually figured things out, perhaps she could keep up with his rhythm—she clenched the staff in her hand, her muscles rapidly tensing as her powerful heart pounded fiercely, carrying strength through her blood and into every organ of her body.

They had already exchanged several moves. Though Ashley had been getting beaten one-sidedly, she had gradually adapted to the rhythm of battle.

Or rather, this replicated body of Arthur's had learned how to fight through instinct alone.

She copied Arthur's stance and swung her staff backhandedly at him.

This strike was just as powerful and heavy, carrying immense wind pressure—Ashley wanted to prove that as long as one was a genius, one could swiftly surpass ordinary people in any field.

She had already sworn in her heart that she would use the cruelest methods to humiliate and torment these barbarians from the borderlands.

And defeating him in the field he excelled at most would be the ultimate humiliation.

But unfortunately, what Arthur excelled at most was not swordsmanship, but being a bastard.

In the field of not being human, Ashley would forever be an ordinary person standing at the foot of the mountain, able only to look up at the god atop its peak. A lunatic.

Facing the staff bearing down on his face, Arthur slowly closed his eyes.

Arthur recalled the words his father had taught him as a child. Grand Duke Annan had once said, "For knights of the Sun Family, offense is the best defense."

He still remembered his father's teachings. He would not betray his father's expectations, nor would he tarnish the honor of the Sun Family.

At that moment, inspiration struck.

Offense was the best defense.

Arthur gave up resisting, a smile even appearing on his face.

A bright, unrestrained, free smile.

Like the sun itself.

He directly launched a powerful upward kick, carving through the air with a fierce whoosh. This kick had a clear target and an unmistakable purpose, carrying Arthur's purest and noblest will. It was a kick filled with honor, determination, and courage, and it had only one destination—

Ashley's crotch.

That was also why Arthur was not wearing any clothes.

The golden underpants were the first to meet Arthur's instep. The fabric was compressed by the wind pressure, then caved inward, continuing forward, advancing upward with irresistible force!

Forward!

Upward!

Advance with determination and will!

Piercing through every hardship and obstacle,

like a charging knight,

this was the song of courage written by Arthur Sunny!

Ashley's staff-swinging posture froze. The metal staff stopped before Arthur's face, but she no longer had the strength to push it forward. Her entire body went limp.

"Crack."

Her expression froze.

Her eyes stopped moving first, staring wide open. Her mouth and nostrils flared open, her brows lifted, and the skin of her face slowly tightened.

In the end, even her breathing stopped.

"Hiss—" Her teeth clenched as a sound rose from the depths of her throat.

"Hiss—" The male audience members all felt a chill in their lower halves. They experienced phantom pain.

The Saint-tier Alchemy Array was perfect. It perfectly replicated every physical condition of the candidates, so naturally, it could perfectly replicate that kind of suffering as well.

It was a sensation Ashley had never felt in her twenty years as a young lady, an experience she had never undergone, a sense she could not even comprehend.

First came a faint chill, then soreness. A wave of sourness spread from her lower abdomen through her organs, churning within her stomach and intestines like a venomous snake burrowing wildly about. After that sour, cold force passed, pain followed.

It was neither a stabbing pain nor a throbbing pain, but a dull, heavy pain. It came suddenly and left slowly, taking away all of a man's stubbornness and dignity as it came and went.

This was one man's

ultimate humiliation of another man.

"Hiss hiss hiss—hiss!"

Ashley clutched her crotch and collapsed onto the ground. She twisted on the floor like a maggot, and when her eyes looked at Arthur, they were hollow and helpless, as though she were looking at something inhuman.

What broke Ashley even further were Arthur's words.

"Knight Ashley, as a holy knight, your holy sword has shattered."

He wore the lonely expression of a peerless master. "And my holy sword is still standing strong."

Stop insulting holy swords! Ashley was in too much pain to speak.

"What an honorable duel."

Arthur sheathed his staff with knightly grace, that bright smile still on his face. Sunlight from outside the courtyard shone through the frosted trees, falling upon his handsome profile and reflecting off his statue-like perfect body, making him seem almost sacred.

"But you are still a one-ball warrior."

He extended a hand to Ashley like a gentleman, then loudly addressed the surroundings, his voice echoing through more than half the alchemy hall. "I acknowledge your courage, Knight Ashley."

"Good!" Brother Ansu took the lead in applauding, and Liszt clapped along in agreement, praising their fellow countryman's courage.

Exam End

The voice of the Scales of Order rang out.

The examiner can no longer continue.

Candidate Arthur Sunny, Candidate Number 59, score: 100.

Please prepare the next candidate, Candidate Number 60, Liszt Muen.

Your courage was stripping naked in public, and your honor was throwing a crotch-kicking foot in full view of everyone?!

Ashley was so angry she nearly vomited blood.

The Alchemy Array had already stopped, and her simulated form vanished along with it. All of her injuries and pain disappeared as well.

Yet for some reason, whenever she walked, Ashley could still feel phantom pain.

"Borderland trash." She bit her lip, her gaze filled with fury. "The next one is from the borderlands too?"

She stared from afar at Liszt on the waiting platform.

This time, she would not underestimate her opponent as she had last time. Nor would she fall for the same tricks again.

He was just another one of those borderland minnows.