Ophelia, the Blood-Stained Warrior, only rose to prominence after Teresa had already left the Organization, so she did not recognize Teresa at first.
However, there was a simple rule among Claymores:
If a Claymore appeared in another warrior's territory without a subjugation mission, then she must be either a traitor or an Awakened Being.
Because of that rule—
Ophelia blocked Duran's group.
"We're not suspicious people!" Duran said quickly.
"Oh really?" Ophelia sneered.
"You're traveling with two Claymores and still claim you're innocent?"
"You think I'd believe that?"
Ophelia had no hesitation calling the warriors 'Claymores' rather than the Organization's preferred term 'warriors', which made the others present uncomfortable.
"And you're carrying Claymore swords," she continued.
"So you haven't awakened yet."
"I hate traitors the most."
Shing!
Ophelia drew her sword.
Then suddenly—
Her arm stretched forward unnaturally.
The blade appeared directly in front of Duran's group.
The attack had no visible motion beforehand.
Even Duran was surprised.
CLANG!
Two swords collided.
Teresa had already blocked the strike.
By sensing the flow of Yoki inside Ophelia's body, she predicted the attack.
Ophelia froze in shock.
She slowly withdrew her sword.
Her attacks normally had no predictable trajectory.
Yet Teresa had blocked it effortlessly.
"So your limbs can extend infinitely?"
"That's a strange ability," Teresa said calmly.
A cold smile appeared on her face.
The legendary smile of Teresa, the strongest Claymore in history, had returned.
Seeing that smile—
Ophelia instinctively stepped backward.
"My name is Ophelia, current Rank 4," she said cautiously.
"To block my attack so easily…"
"Your former rank must have been higher than mine."
Golden curly hair.
A calm smile.
Suddenly Ophelia realized something.
"Wait… could it be…"
"The Smiling Teresa?!"
"I didn't expect the younger generation to still remember me," Teresa replied lightly.
"I'm touched."
The Organization had told Claymores that Teresa had disappeared after battling Priscilla.
Only Irene, the wielder of the Quick Sword, secretly knew Teresa was still alive.
"So what are you planning to do now?" Teresa asked coldly.
"You should know that even if the four of you attacked together…"
"You wouldn't defeat me."
"Let me make it clear."
"I will not hold back."
Ophelia glanced at the three Claymores accompanying her.
Then she spoke:
"We still have a subjugation mission."
"We've already confirmed Teresa's survival."
"There's no reason to fight."
"Let's go."
The three other warriors sighed in relief.
"Understood."
Coincidentally—
Both groups were traveling in the same direction.
The Western Abyssal One, Riful, had only one subordinate—Dauf.
Because of this, she often captured Claymores and forced them to awaken.
Most of those newly awakened beings were immediately killed by Dauf.
Only a few extremely lucky ones managed to escape.
But even then—
They would eventually run into a Claymore subjugation team.
Sometimes these Awakened Beings even became bait used to lure Claymores into the Abyssal territory.
Unlike Ophelia's team, Duran's group moved slowly.
Duran constantly stopped to:
take photographs
flirt with Teresa
enjoy the scenery
So by the time they encountered Ophelia again—
Only one Claymore remained.
Ophelia lay on the ground.
Heavily wounded.
Unconscious.
The Awakened Being they had come to kill was already dead—
But it had been killed by Dauf.
Ophelia had been lucky.
After she lost consciousness, the careless Dauf assumed she was dead and left.
The other three Claymores had not been so lucky.
Dauf had crushed them easily.
"She's unconscious… and badly injured," Duran said after checking her.
Then he took something out.
"Senzu Bean!"
Ophelia immediately woke up.
She looked around at the devastated battlefield.
Without saying a word—
She erected three gravestones for the fallen Claymores.
After a long silence, she finally spoke.
"This is your fault."
"You were too weak."
"Yes… that's right."
"It's because you were weak."
"It's all your fault."
Tears streamed down her face as she repeated the words.
At that moment—
The Blood-Stained Warrior began transforming into someone who despised weakness.
Even the deaths of her comrades no longer inspired sympathy.
"The weak have no right to live in this world!"
Teresa and Sophia were praying at the graves.
They heard Ophelia's words.
Teresa frowned.
If Ophelia continued like this, she would destroy both herself and others.
"No."
A voice interrupted.
Clare stepped forward.
"You're wrong."
"What's wrong?" Ophelia snapped.
"The weak only become burdens."
"They can't protect anyone."
"They die without even understanding why."
"You're wrong," Clare repeated.
Even though Ophelia's presence frightened her greatly.
"The weak deserve to die!"
Ophelia shouted.
"Only the strong deserve to live!"
"That's the rule of this continent!"
"Look at them!"
"These Claymores were weak!"
"And now all that remains is their sword graves!"
Clare knew Ophelia was wrong.
But she couldn't find the words to argue.
Then Duran stepped forward.
"I once heard a story."
"It was about a brother and sister."
"In a world like this—where only the strong survive—you would expect them both to die."
"Because Yoma attacked their home."
"But that's not what happened."
"The brother died."
"And the younger sister survived."
"Why do you think that happened?"
"Serves him right," Ophelia said coldly.
"The weak deserve to die."
Duran shook his head.
"The brother stood in front of his sister."
"He blocked the Yoma with his body."
For a moment—
Ophelia remembered something.
A burning house.
A shadow standing between her and a monster.
"That was just weakness!" she shouted.
"If he hadn't tried to protect someone stronger than himself, he wouldn't have died!"
"Was that really weakness?" Duran asked quietly.
"I think it was something else."
"Love."
"The greatest power of all."
"And the thing this continent lacks the most."
"Ophelia, right?"
"The Blood-Stained Warrior?"
"Compared to that brother… you are the weaker one."
"You may be stronger physically."
"But your heart is weaker."
Everyone stared at Duran in confusion.
He seemed like a completely different person.
"To change this continent's fate," Duran continued,
"Someone must be willing to sacrifice themselves."
"To die for a greater cause."
Everyone looked completely confused.
"What are you talking about?" someone asked.
Duran scratched his head awkwardly.
"What I mean is…"
"Whether someone deserves to die has nothing to do with strength or weakness."
"All humans die eventually."
"But their deaths can carry different meanings."
"Some deaths are heavier than mountains."
"Others are lighter than feathers."
"What's a mountain?" someone asked.
"A big one in my hometown," Duran replied.
Teresa nodded thoughtfully.
"Important isn't how we die."
"It's how we live."
Then Teresa spoke with determination.
"We Claymores fight Yoma on this continent."
"But we are not merely tools of the Organization."
"And the Organization itself is the source of this tragedy."
"If we truly want to save this continent…"
"We must create a deeper change."
At that moment, Teresa looked like a revolutionary leader.
Sophia and Ophelia stared at her with admiration.
"Duran," Teresa said firmly.
"I've decided."
"I will break the chains binding the Claymores."
"And from now on…"
"I will no longer call myself a 'warrior.'"
"Let them call us Claymores."
Duran felt completely overwhelmed.
What just happened?
It felt like he had just witnessed the birth of a revolution.
Like the beginning of a massive movement centered around the Claymores.
And it all started…
With a small spark.
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