Najin felt his inner world stir violently. The seeds buried underground yearned for the surface. They wanted to break through the thick earth and bloom in the world. Cracks spread through the ground where the seeds lay buried, and light spilled through the narrow gaps.
A flash.
Najin's sword aura grew more intense. One step forward. With just a single step left to take, he raced ahead.
CLAAANG!
The Star of the Horn swung his spear shaft, shaking off the Helmeted Knight, and turned toward Najin. The instant he saw the starlight Najin had kindled, his body froze.
The pause was brief. Then the Star of the Horn roared.
A Constellation that has lost its stars instinctively desires them. It craves a star that shines pure white—a star it can no longer possess. The Star of the Horn kicked off the ground like a beast. Indeed, there was no other way to describe his movements.
BOOM!
As though two legs were not enough, the Star of the Horn hurled himself at Najin using both arms and even the spear shaft in his hand. He struck the earth with his spear and used the recoil to close the distance, then lashed out with his hand.
... The Star of the Horn was a Constellation who had fallen decades ago. Through long years of injury and recovery, most of his flesh had already been replaced with starlight. By now, it was harder to find any part of his body that was human, which meant its inefficiencies had vanished.
Even his hands were little different from a beast's claws. When he swung one, it sounded like a blade slicing through the air. A harsh noise rang out as his clawing hand collided with Najin's sword aura.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!
Sparks flew. Even as he lashed out with one hand, the Star of the Horn swung the spear shaft held in the other. Seeing it bear down on him with the sound of tearing air, Najin did not block this time.
SHING!
He swung his sword and cut through the shaft.
No matter how thoroughly it was cloaked in aura, there would always be gaps. The old, weathered shaft could not withstand Najin's sword aura for even a second.
THUD!
But the Star of the Horn knew that as well. The instant the shaft was severed, he slammed down the foot he had raised to take a step. The earth shook, and another spear shaft sprang out of the ground.
He snatched it up and thrust in the same motion. There was no distinction between the two actions. Just as a master of the quick draw made no distinction between drawing a sword from its sheath and swinging it, neither did the Star of the Horn.
A warrior who had attained transcendence with a single spear. Naturally, his techniques were beyond an ordinary person's understanding.
WHOOOM!
His thrust was so fast that the air caught on the spearhead swirled, gathered into a single point, and even exploded. Najin was dumbfounded by a technique he could not comprehend despite seeing it with his own eyes.
And how could that aura be so sharp?
When he parried the aura-cloaked spearhead, it was not merely his hand that went numb. The impact traveled beyond his sword hand into his arm, from his arm to his shoulder, and from his shoulder through his entire body.
His joints creaked in protest. His eyes, held wide so as not to miss the Star of the Horn's movements, were bloodshot. Attacks he failed to evade completely tore away his flesh. Grinding his teeth through the blood filling his mouth, Najin swung his sword.
CLAAANG!
Without the Helmeted Knight continually attacking the Star of the Horn and covering his openings, Najin would have been sent flying with a hole through his body long ago. A formidable foe. One he could never defeat alone...
But, Najin thought.
'He isn't overwhelming.'
Yuel, Karon, Gerd.
He did not feel the same overwhelming pressure he had experienced when facing the continent's three Sword Masters. Unlike them, whom he had felt he could never defeat by any means, the opponent before him had openings.
A star that had once been a transcendent being, but had now fallen. That star could neither unleash sword aura that cleaved across hundreds of meters like a Sword Master nor spread his mental image over the area to pressure Najin. Of course he could not. How could someone who had fallen and lost himself imbue his aura with himself—with his mental image?
The Star of the Horn's aura was incomplete.
Its sharpness and weight remained, but it lacked the wondrous, mysterious quality transcendent beings invariably possessed... that firm, unshakable point of reference.
CLAAANG!
Of course, even that was powerful enough, but it did not make him utterly unbeatable. Najin trailed his sword tip low. Feigning a backward leap to open the distance, he swung his sword in a wide arc.
SHAAAASH!
The sword aura compressed along his blade stretched out. It swept across the area like a whip. The Star of the Horn knocked aside the aura with ease, its density diminished by its length, but that had never been Najin's aim.
The spear shafts filling the area split apart beneath his sword aura. Najin immediately closed in and split the Star of the Horn's spear as well. Now, to take up another spear, the Star of the Horn would have to put distance between himself and Najin.
Just as he roared and began turning to find another shaft, Najin's sword aura touched the Star of the Horn's body for the first time.
CLANG!
It was not a meaningful blow, of course. Najin's sword tip merely scraped his armor. The Star of the Horn had not blocked precisely because the attack posed so little threat.
An attack that meant nothing to the Star of the Horn.
But not to Najin.
"What knight lets out such undignified shrieks?"
What Najin's sword had cut was the helmets attached to the Star of the Horn's armor. It was those helmets that had been roaring like beasts with their visors open. As one shattered and fell, the Star of the Horn's roar grew quieter.
Najin raised his sword tip, the corner of his mouth curling upward.
"If you mean to attack like a beast, then yes. Go ahead."
A star shone at his sword tip.
"I'll face you as a knight."
2.
A star was shining.
The worn-down star watched the star burning pure white. The light pouring from that white-burning Nova was something he had lost long ago. At the sight, the old star unwittingly burst into laughter.
'What a lunatic. Truly.'
That was the Helmeted Knight's inward assessment as he pressured the Star of the Horn in time with Najin's movements. The Star of the Horn was powerful. He was too much for Najin as he was now, and that remained true even with the Helmeted Knight's help.
One wrong move could leave him dead or grievously wounded, yet the boy was becoming even more aggressive, as though he had lives to spare. More surprising still, he was gradually growing faster.
His wounds multiplied, blood flew, and even after being knocked down and sent rolling across the ground, he sprang up and charged again. By this point, it was hard to tell which of them was the undying monster.
CLANG, CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!
Thrusting his spear at the Star of the Horn, the Helmeted Knight tasted bitterness in his mouth. The Star of the Horn was not watching him. He was focused on Najin, who kept charging at him. This despite the Helmeted Knight having inflicted more wounds and being the stronger, more dangerous opponent.
What a coldhearted fellow.
His commander had gone to all this trouble to visit him.
Despite his grumbling, the Helmeted Knight could not deny that he was enjoying this moment. Each time Najin's sword aura struck the Star of the Horn's body, his movements changed.
'A little more.'
The Helmeted Knight thrust his spear. He swung it and kicked off the ground, pressing the Star of the Horn. Whenever the Star of the Horn's arms began spreading like a beast's, beyond the range of their joints, he swung his shaft to interrupt the movement.
'A little more. Step in more boldly.'
By hindering the Star of the Horn, the Helmeted Knight guided Najin's movements. Sure enough, Najin understood his intent and immediately followed his lead.
A flash.
Najin's sword aura flickered more fiercely.
The Helmeted Knight understood the instant he saw that flash of light. The boy was trying to make his seeds sprout. He was trying to step into the stage known as Sprouting.
Having passed through that stage long ago himself, the Helmeted Knight could understand what Najin was attempting.
Right. In that case, he could hardly stand idle either.
Openings were gradually appearing. But as they appeared, Najin's injuries were mounting too. If this dragged on any longer, the balance would collapse.
'So now is the time.'
The Helmeted Knight made his decision. He swung his spear shaft hard to drive the Star of the Horn back, then stamped forcefully on the ground.
THUD!
He gripped his spear shaft with both hands.
"Najin!"
The instant he called his name, Najin hurled his sword high into the sky. Then he stamped on the ground, just as the Star of the Horn had done moments earlier.
THUMP.
A spear shaft planted in the earth sprang free and flew toward Najin. Snatching it up, he assumed the exact same stance as the Helmeted Knight. Even to the Helmeted Knight's eye, his form was quite crisp.
Teaching him had been worthwhile.
Though he had never expected him to learn this quickly.
The Helmeted Knight and Najin thrust their spears at the Star of the Horn almost simultaneously. Air curled around the spearheads, forming vortices, and storms raged along the blades as they shot straight forward.
Battering Ram.
A technique every member of the Order of the Golden Horn had been able to use. Their pride and their symbol, and the technique the Star of the Horn had been most confident in. It erupted from the tips of the Helmeted Knight's and Najin's spears.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!
Unlike the Helmeted Knight's, of course, Najin's storm was weak. He had not yet mastered the technique. But it was enough to impede the Star of the Horn's movements for a moment.
The Helmeted Knight's spear pierced the opening created as the Star of the Horn blocked Najin's Battering Ram. His flank burst where the spearhead impaled it. Armor shattered, and black blood sprayed upward. The shaft in his hand was swept into the storm and smashed apart.
Spraying blood. A shattered spear shaft.
And the cross-star spear piercing his flank.
The Star of the Horn could have taken up a new spear. Countless shafts stood planted in his stellar domain. But he did not reach for another.
He seized it.
The Star of the Horn gripped the shaft piercing his flank with both hands. His gaze met the Helmeted Knight's. In truth, even the Helmeted Knight could not tell whether that was a gaze. His eyes met the black star that served in place of the Star of the Horn's head.
... Spearmen generally have an answer prepared for shaking off an opponent who grabs their shaft. They also know how to steal an opponent's weapon. The Star of the Horn, once a Master-level warrior, was no exception.
He twisted his hands around the shaft.
The shaft spun within his palms.
The Helmeted Knight lost his grip on the spinning shaft. He had never expected such a technique at this moment. And naturally so. That technique was meant to be used with the spearhead aimed at an opponent, not embedded in one's own body.
WHOOOM!
The shaft piercing the Star of the Horn's flank spun, tearing through the wound. Blood spurted from his side like a fountain. Shredded flesh pattered to the ground.
But as though such damage meant nothing to him, the Star of the Horn stepped back and gripped the shaft tightly.
GRRRK...
He slowly straightened as he pulled the spear from his flank. Swinging it to shake off the entrails caught on the blade, he held the spearhead upright.
"..."
Until now, he had been hunched over like a beast, shrieking. But at this moment, the Star of the Horn made no sound. Standing straight with both feet planted on the ground, he gripped the spear in both hands.
The cross-star spear.
Its blade shone in its original owner's hands.
3.
Starlight struck his body.
It struck the blackened star and the flesh that had become Lost. Of course, no miracle occurred to restore the Star of the Horn's reason.
He was still one of the Lost.
He was still a fallen star.
Yet even so,
there was no rule that his star could not shine.
The blackened star was bleached by the star shining pure white. Though it could no longer shine on its own, it could shine again by reflecting the starlight another star scattered.
The Star of the Horn shone.
The black star scattered its own light. That light was not radiant. Nor was it warm. It was murky, dim, and far removed from starlight.
And what of it?
What mattered was that the star was shining.
The Star of the Horn planted both feet on the ground. He straightened his hunched back. As his shattered gauntlets fell away, human fingers emerged from beneath them. With those human fingers, he gripped the spear shaft tightly.
He still had no reason.
Only instinct remained in his flesh.
And his instincts cried out. The memories etched into the deepest part of his life cried out. Take your stance. Grip your spear. Show the best you have to offer. For that is the respect you owe your opponent.
And so the beast became a knight while remaining a beast.
The black star that had replaced his head subsided. Through the gaps in that sunken star, the night sky showed. The stars shining in the night sky twinkled through the black star's gaps. They took the place of the Star of the Horn's two eyes.
The Star of the Horn did not blow his horn.
Nor did he shout.
He was simply silent.
A silent knight.
Krünbel, the Knight of Silence, gripped his spear. Its tip was aimed at Najin. To the star that made him shine, Krünbel would show—
What?
The most powerful strike he possessed.
Battering Ram.
A storm raged around Krünbel.
