The Reincarnated Lizardman Wants a Hamburger

Clang!

Kang!

Newgoros, who seemed to have gone mad with rage when facing Albert, now displayed the demeanor of a seasoned veteran, showcasing refined and controlled swordsmanship.

It was true that he had momentarily lost his reason due to Albert’s betrayal, but that was only for a brief moment.

After all, one who has reached the level of a master should not lose themselves so easily in combat.

Though Newgoros swung his sword with cold precision, there was no sense of crisis in his heart.

‘Even if this is a battle between masters, my opponent is merely someone whose level I’ve already gauged. There’s no reason to struggle against someone I’ve already defeated once… None at all!’

It wasn’t arrogance or carelessness.

It was simply the result of a cold, objective analysis.

“Kekeke. You little lizard. You were utterly defeated just seven days ago, and now you think you can win by fighting again? Do you dare hope for luck in a battle between masters? You know as well as I do—there’s no such thing as luck in a fight between masters.”

It was truly a joyous occasion to have another chance to kill the Lizardman he thought he had missed before.

Thus, even though the Lizardman had interfered and stepped in to protect Albert, Newgoros decided to face him with a pleased heart.

However, the Lizardman’s attitude was not what Newgoros had expected.

Despite the clear gap in strength revealed during their battle a week ago, the Lizardman’s unflinching gaze, refusing to back down, displeased Newgoros.

So, wanting to see the Lizardman’s face crumple, Newgoros decided to share a piece of information.

“Hmm. Let me tell you something good. His Majesty the Emperor has made thorough preparations to exterminate you. Do you know what that means?”

“…You talk too much.”

“Kekeke. Just listen. His Majesty has personally deployed the Empire’s top three masters to deal with you scoundrels. The Empire’s number one master is none other than Duke Qualiac. Do you know who the second is? It’s me! Did you think you wouldn’t face the Empire’s greatest swordsman? The traitor Delphine is only the third-ranked. A battle between the Empire’s top two masters and a mere third-ranked Lizardman master! You have no chance of winning!”

Clang!

Kang!

Newgoros taunted Kurt as he pushed him back.

“Hmm… Does the Empire really believe that the outcome of a battle is determined by such trivial rankings? How barbaric.”

“…You dare call us barbaric, you inferior non-human?!”

But Kurt didn’t flinch at those words. Instead, he responded with a bored expression, as if to say, “Is that all you’ve got?”

“Enough! It was foolish of me to explain the meaning of rankings to a lowly non-human like you! Stupidity is a disease that can only be cured by death! I’ll cure you with death!”

Newgoros roared and continued to swing his sword fiercely.

He didn’t like the Lizardman’s unyielding attitude, but that would soon change.

Once he kneeled before true strength, that brazen expression would disappear.

‘His level is at best mid-to-low among masters. Even that is only due to the Lizardman’s unique strength and speed. If I avoid a direct clash of strength, his skills are no better than the lowest-tier master.’

Not all masters are equal in combat prowess.

In fact, the gap in skill and experience between masters is even more critical. Especially since I am the Empire’s second-ranked master, and he, even with his strength and speed, is only around fourth or fifth. In terms of skill and experience alone, he’s barely at the level of a master.

Kang!

Clang!

Dozens of exchanges in less than a second.

Duke Newgoros stopped his trash talk and calmly, methodically, pressed forward, slowly but surely overwhelming his opponent.

‘Just a little more… Just a little more pressure…’

Like peeling away layers in chess, accumulating small advantages until they form a significant advantage—that is the Newgoros style of swordsmanship.

Ching!

Clang!

Fifty exchanges.

‘Just half a step more. No, even a quarter-step, and the initiative will be mine!’

No need to rush.

Calm and deliberate.

Remove the opponent’s options one by one, and by the time they realize it, they’ll be backed against a cliff.

As always, slowly.

Slowly seize the initiative.

Kwang!

Kwa-kwang!

About a hundred exchanges.

But it doesn’t come.

No. I can’t take it.

‘The initiative… I can’t seize the initiative!?’

In less than 30 seconds of real time, but after over a hundred exchanges, he realizes.

One more step.

Just one more step, and I can seize the initiative.

But I can’t.

‘Is it luck…?’

No. There’s no such thing as luck in a battle between masters.

His head grows cold.

‘Why… Why am I being pushed back…? By a mere low-tier master, a rookie?’

“What’s wrong? Weren’t you going to cure me?”

Clang!

Step.

The Lizardman’s face looms closer.

Despite all the exchanges, Newgoros hadn’t gained even a single step.

No, not even half a step.

Kurt, as if mocking Newgoros, effortlessly took that one step, like tearing into freshly baked bread.

“Guh…!”

“Running away?”

Only then does he realize.

That with just one step forward, he had taken three steps back in fear.

‘Am I… afraid? Me? Duke Newgoros, the Empire’s second-ranked master? Of some nameless Lizardman?’

“What… What is this? How?! Just a week ago, you were a rookie with no skill or experience!”

“Interesting. Techniques designed solely to fight humans. I trained in them for the first time.”

“…First time?”

“Yes. Before, I only knew how to fight monsters. So, I desperately created a spear technique in the past week—one for fighting humans.”

“Lies! In just a week?! You expect me to believe you created a spear technique and improved this much in such a short time?! Even for a master, that’s impossible!”

“It wasn’t impossible. I had your swordsmanship as an excellent reference. It helped a lot in creating my spear technique.”

A master isn’t someone who can be mass-produced with money, time, and effort.

Each one is a genius, a natural-born talent, a gem among gems.

What Kurt said was something even Newgoros, a master, couldn’t comprehend.

Just in his mid-twenties.

He became a hunter in his mid-teens, living without a master, and naturally reached the level of a transcendent by his twenties.

In the Empire, even with full support, the best masters, trained under the best teachers with the best equipment, usually reach that level in their forties or fifties.

And even then, they are hailed as geniuses.

If so, Kurt must be a genius among geniuses.

Though he lived in the Verde Jungle, teeming with monsters, hunting for his life every day, he reached the transcendent level through self-taught methods in just over a decade.

Having only fought monsters until becoming a transcendent, he never needed to learn human combat techniques. And after becoming a transcendent, he was too strong to need them.

Kurt hadn’t grown stronger since becoming a transcendent, nor had he tried.

Thus, his combat prowess hadn’t advanced a single step since then.

But then, another transcendent appeared—one as skilled as him but more experienced and systematic—blocking his path.

If Newgoros had finished Kurt then, his second life would have ended.

But Newgoros didn’t finish him.

And so.

The dormant dragon awoke from its long slumber.

Slash!

Ching!

Ka-gang!

As Kurt’s spear flew toward Newgoros’s chest, Newgoros had no choice but to desperately block it.

But as he blocked, Kurt’s spear twisted unnaturally, as if it had planned to, and fiercely stabbed toward his collarbone, throat, and philtrum.

In the end, Newgoros, sweating profusely, was forced to take three steps back under the relentless assault.

If you give up one attack, you lose one step. Lose one step, and you lose three.

It wasn’t a lie that he had referenced Newgoros’s swordsmanship. Just as Newgoros had done a week ago, Kurt was now overwhelming him even more decisively.

“Fighting humans is truly fascinating. Hunters always prioritize the most free stance to adapt to any monster or situation. But knights limit their opponents to humans, restricting the possible attacks and their own paths. Leaving only the optimal moves. Is this the difference in perspective between a hunter and a knight? You could call it the beauty of restraint.”

“How… How did you… in just a week…?”

Though the battle wasn’t over, Newgoros’s spirit was already broken.

Newgoros asked again, his face pale. In that brief moment, he looked as if he had aged drastically, resembling an old man.

“You said you’d tell me something good earlier. Let me tell you something too.”

“A week? Really just a week? If… if what you’re saying is true…”

“A hunter only goes on a hunt when they’re fully prepared to hunt.”

Kurt’s spear charged fiercely at Newgoros once more. Newgoros reflexively tried to step back, but he couldn’t—his heel hit something solid.

He had been pushed against the wall, with nowhere left to retreat.

“…What have I awakened?”

Kurt’s spear, drawing a blue line, flew toward the cornered Newgoros.

In the end, as always, the hunter succeeded in his hunt.

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