Building My SSS-Rank Universal Empire: From Trash to Cosmic Overlord-Chapter 264: You know nothing

"Never, brother mine! I stopped underestimating you when you refused to be killed by the Borderland. But let’s be serious. You recently gained the Errant Rank. There is no way you can match me, who gained it a while ago.

"Honestly, I have no intention of killing you. We can make a deal—you will serve me. We can meet knights who deal with the mind to make you swear the oath. That way, you will not betray me, and I will not kill you."

Vale stared at him for a while before he stood from his tree stump. "Have your soldiers get out of here because I don’t intend to hold back."

"They are Errant Knights."

"They’ve not faced my type of fire before," Vale said, a clear warning in his voice.

Thrain stared at him, then clapped. "No matter what trick you want to play, Vale, know that it will be ineffective."

Vale resisted the urge to point out that Thrain was the one who looked like he had a bag full of tricks.

The soldiers emerged from the tents. Without saying anything, they bowed to their lord before walking away into the forest. Vale only felt the presence of one person remaining in the tent.

The Master Knight. The one Vale was most wary of.

"What about him?" Vale asked.

"The Master Knight? Don’t worry about him. He’s not going to interfere. He’s just going to stand by and make sure everything goes smoothly."

’...You mean make sure he kills me when it’s not going your way... Honestly, you said you don’t underestimate me, but you sure think I’m stupid...’

Vale smiled and nodded in turn. "Then you won’t mind?"

Thrain frowned, but before he could ask anything, Vale raised his hand toward the sky, his head following. He shouted, "I know you have been following me! Come out now!"

Thrain became alert immediately. He sat up and looked at the moonless sky but saw nothing. It was as if Vale was talking to empty air. "What are you doing?"

Vale sighed. "Pomora! You’ve been following me since I left my place. Come out now! There’s a duel about to happen, and Thrain’s Master Knight thinks he’s the only one here!"

Thrain stood up this time and whipped his head around. "What?"

This time, the sky reacted. The clouds shook and trembled as if something moving at extreme speed had just passed. They sloped, tilting before crashing down like a waterfall.

Before reaching the ground, the waterfall solidified into a figure—a woman dressed in a fitted green robe. Pomora. She floated down toward them.

At the same time, one of the tents rippled, and a man emerged, covered in trails of golden light. He stood behind Thrain as they all watched Pomora touch down.

She turned to Vale with a smile, raising her brows. "How did you know I was following you? You shouldn’t have."

"Once you enter the range of my tower, I know you are there. Of course, I don’t know who’s following me at first, but the way the clouds around me were acting strange, I knew it was you."

That seemed to satisfy her, and she nodded. "I hope you are not angry, but we had a secret meeting among ourselves. We cannot allow you to go to dangerous places alone. And now, I’m glad that I did come." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Vale had been watching Thrain throughout Pomora’s explanation and saw how his surprise transformed into anger. Thrain hadn’t planned for Pomora to reveal herself when he thought he had Vale in his grasp.

Vale smirked. "I hope you don’t mind, brother." He put stress on the word "brother." "Now we have two Master Knights to watch the match and be witnesses. That’s what you wanted, right?"

"What I wanted," Thrain repeated. He clenched his fist, his eyes narrowing as if he would snap at any moment. Then, he took a deep breath and relaxed. So what if Vale now had a Master Knight behind him? It’s not like she was the one going to fight for him.

’...I just have to crush him...’

"Very well. This changes nothing. Terrix Choxa and Pomora shall bear witness. A fight between two Errant Knights only. No interference. To the death." His eyes flashed as he said the last words, as if waiting for Vale to counter them.

Vale did no such thing. Instead, he confirmed, "Are you sure it’s to the death?"

Thrain frowned and nodded firmly. "It is to the death."

Vale bowed. "As you wish, brother."

Pomora and Terrix Choxa glanced at each other. Without another word, they constructed platforms of light and water beneath them and ascended into the sky, where they would watch until one of them died. More importantly, they would watch each other to ensure there was no foul play.

"Do you know how long I’ve waited for this? Yes, I would not cry if assassins killed you, but I want to be the one to kill you with my own hands. If you were not my brother, and we didn’t have the Clan’s army split between us, then I would have fought you on the battlefield, slowly grinding you down until I crushed you.

"But we have to fight under a moonless night because we need the Clan strong. Stronger. And it will be, once I...."

Vale snorted. "You talk too much. Don’t you have subordinates to talk to? You sound pathetically lonely."

Thrain blinked. It occurred to him then that, indeed, he was a bit lonely. But he was a king, an emperor. What need did he have for friends? He sneered. How could he trust his subordinates? Even his Master Knights were only there to follow his orders. "You know nothing, Vale."

Vale sighed. He could guess what was going through Thrain’s mind. The man had likely set himself as the highest authority in his court, never interacting, only giving instructions and commands. But he saw Vale as his equal, someone he could speak to as an equal.

To get things started, Vale reached out his hand and formed his sword.