The blade in Salif's hand was called the Black Fang.
Its full name was the Black Fang of Avalon. It was a standard, classic one-handed battle sword of the shadow elves, bestowed by the Spider Lady in ancient times. It possessed all manner of supernatural abilities and was said to have been forged directly in Avalon, the divine kingdom, just like the Three Sacred Oak Blades.
There were thirteen in all, each held by one of the thirteen shadow elf families. They were symbols of the power of shadow elf civilization.
But most matrons were priestesses of the Abyssal Sisterhood and weren't very skilled with such melee weapons. As a result, the swords became symbols of the family war chiefs, who were almost always male. In that sense, this sword was the highest ideal of every ambitious shadow elf man.
The problem, however, was that even a family war chief ranked at the very bottom of the ruling class in a shadow elf family. Thus, this blade, which seemed glorious but was in truth a source of misery, represented the "glass ceiling" left for men in the twisted, female-dominated shadow elf society.
When Bertie saw Salif draw the Black Fang, he knew the matter couldn't end peacefully.
He retreated without hesitation to Penny's side and spread his wings, ready to take off into the sky at any moment. As a fighter who had always served as support, he would only be a burden to Penny if he stayed.
At the same time, as the shadows around them stirred, a standard Hydra Shadow Barrier formed with Salif's advance. The shadows parted, then closed around the area again, transforming it into a shadowy domain through which the assassins could move freely.
Bang!
An iron fist wrapped in plasma flames slammed toward Bertie's