“…Queen, I can’t just ignore that.”
Cardan’s voice rumbled back, heavy with gravity.
The formidable lion Beastman, clearly standing over two meters tall, was scowling, creating quite the oppressive atmosphere.
In response to the sudden turn of events, Eleonora, Kanak, and even the Beastmen on the other side all placed their hands on their swords simultaneously.
The mood suggested that if even one person crossed the line, it would lead to bloodshed.
However, I continued to ignore Cardan, fixating instead on the cat Beastwoman standing behind him, laughing provocatively.
“You can’t just brush that off. Did I hit the nail on the head and catch you off guard?”
Kanak, who was watching from the back, clearly showed signs of panic at my unplanned actions.
Eleonora couldn’t comprehend the situation, but she seemed to instinctively shift her focus to me, while Lavina alone quickly drew her bow and rolled her eyes, perhaps sensing some potential.
“Sorry about this.”
But it wasn’t like I had hidden my plans; I realized all of this only after arriving here.
No matter how much Cardan Lionheart displayed his anger, my thoughts remained unchanged.
“Queen, I’ll give you one last chance. If you apologize for the slip of the tongue, considering the effort it took to come here at today’s invitation, I might let this go—”
“How long are you going to keep up this charade? Shouldn’t you be the one protesting? Cardan Lionheart, I’m not here to talk with you, but rather for an honest conversation with the real Suwang.”
Cardan Lionheart is not the Suwang.
That was the conclusion I reached.
At that moment, the golden eyes of the cat Beastwoman caught the light in a startling way.
“To the end—”
“Cardan, that’s enough. That woman has already caught on.”
The cat Beastman, who had been silently guarding Cardan like a folding screen, suddenly stepped forward and interrupted Cardan.
It was a huge breach of etiquette, almost bordering on rebellion, something that wouldn’t happen if Cardan were truly the Suwang.
But surprisingly, or rather predictably, Cardan didn’t scold his subordinate for her impudence; instead, he stood up and took a step back without hesitation.
Kanak’s eyes widened in disbelief at the unfolding scene.
Meanwhile, the dark blue cat, who stepped forward, immediately took the seat where Cardan had just been.
“So you’re the real Suwang.”
“That’s right. Shete Raselo, the Suwang.”
From the moment I realized that a race of Beastmen existed in this world, I had imagined that a cat Beastwoman might speak in such a manner, and she replied just as I had imagined.
I wasn’t sure if this way of speaking was typical for cat Beastmen, but it struck me as quite absurd.
But I couldn’t laugh.
Despite her incongruous demeanor for the location, a sharp atmosphere, like a concealed blade, wouldn’t allow me to relax.
“Even among the Suwang Kingdom, there are more who don’t know than those who do… How did you know?”
“Coincidentally, you resembled someone I know.”
From the moment I set foot in this place, I sensed something was off.
There was no doubt that Cardan Lionheart was strong. Everything about him, from his stature, the scent of blood, and the life force he exuded, was extraordinary.
But what drew my attention even more wasn’t Cardan but rather the dark blue cat Beastwoman silently guarding his back.
It may have just been a momentary intuition.
But in that brief moment, I felt a familiar energy from her.
“Wasn’t she too perfectly ordinary?”
It wasn’t that she seemed strong.
What I was reminded of was the past encounter with Plona in Parella.
Despite Plona being incredibly strong, she looked so ordinary that I mistook her for just another village girl, something I’ll never forget.
Her presence was so perfectly controlled that even the eyes and sense of smell of a vampire could be deceived.
Shete, the cat Beastwoman, gave off a very similar vibe.
Her breathing, heartbeat, blood scent, posture, and gaze were unnaturally consistent to the point of seeming crafted.
Yes, it felt as though she was consciously mimicking the “elite of the Suwang Kingdom.”
Had I not experienced the precedent that was Plona, I might have easily overlooked it but my instincts and experiences told me she was stronger than Cardan.
“There shouldn’t be such a thing.”
I heard that there are no Beastmen stronger than the Suwang in the Suwang Kingdom.
So, I tossed out bait, hoping my knowledge wasn’t wrong.
And the response that followed from Cardan thoroughly convinced me.
—The Suwang is always the strongest Beastman in the Suwang Kingdom. If a new Suwang emerges, then the old rules simply apply; there are no exceptions.
There’s never a Beastman stronger than the Suwang. If one appears, that being becomes the new Suwang.
But that cat Beastwoman was probably stronger than Cardan.
Therefore, there was only one conclusion.
The Suwang is not Cardan Lionheart, but Shete Raselo.
“Is this for real? I never imagined I’d notice something like this.”
Nya ha ha, Shete chuckled, slapping her forehead.
In the midst of the unexpected lightness and cheer, I momentarily entertained the hope that perhaps communication with her wouldn’t be so burdensome.
“Then, die.”
Suddenly, the folding table between the Beastmen and us soared into the air.
The table cracked in half as it tore through the tent’s ceiling, and a chilling wind rushed in through the gap.
Even before I could confirm with my eyes that Shete’s seat was empty, my body was already reacting instinctively.
“Nya ha! I didn’t think you’d block that!”
“You seem quite excited.”
The shadowy fingertips were surging toward me with a sharp impact.
Seemingly conjured from under the table was a spear longer than the petite cat Beastwoman herself, and the Suwang, Shete, was aggressively pushing me away.
‘Fast.’
Beastmen cannot use magic. Their affinity for any elemental spirit converges toward zero.
But with loss comes gain. They sacrifice magic but gain a robust and relentless physique.
“Nya!!”
With a crunch, my shadow entwined around my hand shattered effortlessly.
When it comes to superior physical abilities, there’s a somewhat common understanding among all races, and it can be difficult to feel it when facing weaker Beastmen, but reaching the pinnacle of a race reveals why their physical prowess is often renowned.
“Nya ha! Surprised, are you? Magic isn’t omnipotent, you know!”
Even the fake Suwang, perhaps I should call him the acting Suwang? Anyway, though Cardan Lionheart was publicly known as the Suwang, if we evaluated his pure hand-to-hand combat skill without considering factors like dark magic or regeneration ability, he’d definitely be on par with a Vampire from the Grand Duchy.
So how powerful must it be when it comes to the top echelon of Beastmen?
I was about to experience that very answer now.
Fast. And incredibly heavy.
There was no explosion of power that could possibly come from a petite girl’s body.
Shete moved dynamically around me, swinging her spear wildly with a vigor that made it hard for me to keep my eyes on her.
Had I not boasted an ability derived from Blood Magic that detects life itself, I would have likely been pierced through my heart before I could take five hits.
At the same time, I was having the rare experience of seeing my shadow shattered purely through brute force, and I instinctively sensed I wouldn’t avoid bleeding if I let her thrust reach me four times.
“Indeed. So this is the Suwang, huh.”
The sharp sensation of ribs breaking and the spear sinking into my side.
But even as my body was speared, I maintained enough composure to keep my facade intact.
“In that case, it’s my turn now.”
Stepping forth like a skewered kebab, for the first time, I saw Shete’s gaze waver.
A fleeting moment—an instance that could hardly be called a mistake.
But in battles between those who had reached the pinnacle of their respective races, even an instant’s opening could turn the tide significantly.
“…There’s a world of difference between hearing about it and experiencing it firsthand.”
“Considering that, you’ve managed to dodge quite well.”
“Nya ha, are you mocking me now?”
Shete tsked at me while pointing at her blood-soaked right arm.
But her fierce gaze and low stance were those of a predator ready to spring at any moment.
“You probably haven’t had much experience fighting strong Vampires until now.”
The Suwang Kingdom, located at the easternmost edge of the continent, is like an island of land rather than an actual island.
To the north, it borders the Greysia Empire, and to the south, the Perkina Mountain Range stands tall.
Unless one traverses the continent’s second most daunting trial or crosses the Greysia Empire, there is no other way to reach the center of the continent from the Suwang Kingdom.
The Sahelrn Duchy lies in the central part of the continent, and the Helraig Duchy is to the northwest, so the main living area of Vampires resides directly opposite the Suwang Kingdom.
Of course, that doesn’t mean there aren’t any Vampires in the east, but I doubt there are any that rise beyond the level of count.
Moreover, how about Blood Magic?
No matter how much one gathers information, experiencing it in person is entirely different from hearing about it or reading about it.
So for now—
“I’ll teach you a bit about decorum.”
To invite me over on such a long journey for what was called a meeting, and then send an acting Suwang, only to immediately stab when my identity was revealed?
Yeah… I definitely needed to hit someone.
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