Chapter 187
Chapter 187
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 187
Chapter Title: Chapter 5. Tree and Iron
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"!"
Before his feet even touched the ground, an elf shot toward him in a rush. Judah took in a sharp breath at the sight. Her icy gaze chilled him to the bone, like the dead of winter on a seaside shore. He knew her name.
'Sword Saint Via!'
He recognized her instantly. She had lived for centuries, her sword talent reaching its peak, earning her the moniker [Sword Saint] from past Spirit Sword wielders. The noblest among elves, a high elf blessed by the World Tree. He couldn't fathom why she was here of all places. She shouldn't be!
Judah spotted the sharp, slender blade closing in on his throat and immediately summoned Altemia. A red aura bloomed in his hand, forming the dagger. But the elf accelerated her swing the moment she saw it, clashing just before Altemia fully materialized.
"What!?"
A metallic clang rang out, and Altemia was flung back amid sparks, forcibly unsummoned. The sudden shock to his arm made Judah grunt as he landed. It had been a split-second exchange, but the airborne moment felt endlessly long.
'I’ve never faced anything like this.'
Altemia took only 0.1 seconds to fully summon. No one had ever timed an attack to that precise instant. Damn it—he barely had time to think the curse before regaining his balance and twisting sideways. His waist muscles screamed from the abrupt motion.
Shaaak—
He saw the sword slash from low to high in a diagonal arc. The transparent blade screamed Spirit Sword owner, confirming she was indeed Sword Saint Via. Judah summoned Altemia again and struck at her. He traced red lines through the air, stabbing alternately, but his dagger never reached her. She evaded with fluid grace, like petals drifting on the wind.
Via showed no mercy, offering no openings after dodging. Her famed title wasn't for show—Judah could barely keep up, dodging thrusts and slashes that blurred to his eyes.
Had she used a technique, it might have ended in one blow.
Kaaang!
His hand went numb. Each clash highlighted their power gap, tearing at his palms. The minor flesh wounds healed quickly thanks to his regeneration, but the mental shock from the skill disparity lingered.
He was a Spirit Sword owner now, had beaten countless knights, yet he couldn't even extend his blade toward her. Unbelievable.
"Not bad. But you're far from beating me."
Via stared into his eyes as she spoke. Then her sword doubled in speed. He might track it with his Demon Eye open. But Judah held back. Pure swordsmanship against her, yet he lagged in strength, agility, technique, and talent.
Kaaang!
"Urk!"
Lost in a frenzy blocking her mana-accelerated strikes, he dropped Altemia. The moment his gaze flicked to the flying dagger, she raised her foot and slammed it into his gut.
A heavy thud echoed as Judah's body lifted off. No chance for a proper landing roll. His back crashed into a massive old tree, and he slammed butt-first into the soft snow piled beneath.
"Ugh."
It had been a solid kick, but somehow he hadn't embedded into the tree. It stung, but not too badly.
As he tried to rise, a blade hovered at his throat.
"You've lost."
Via declared it flatly. He looked up at her. Before he could speak, she asked first.
"You're a Spirit Sword owner too, aren't you? Why didn't you fight with everything you had?"
"......"
"Did you think being one meant you'd win?"
"No."
Judah cut her off.
"I'm not here to fight you, Sword Saint Via."
Her eyes widened at his words. Immediately after, the elves who had come with him cried "Lady Via!" and dropped to their knees on the cold snow. They begged for his life, saying he had saved them, that thanks to him they could return here. Via coldly watched their pleading but kept her sword at Judah's throat.
After a brief wait, one of the scouts approached Via, stepping past the kneeling elves.
"Lady Via."
"Check if any magic is on the elves, and if they're bound."
"Yes."
Judah quietly eavesdropped.
"You must have suffered a lot at human hands in various ways."
"?"
"I risked my life to rescue your elves, and this is the treatment I get."
Via looked down at him with cold eyes. She seemed ready to thrust without hesitation.
'If I die now...'
He'd have to rescue the elves again, fight Asmodeus again, cross the Dechar Mountain Range again, trek back here, and kill many more. Not something he wanted to repeat.
'Should've saved right when I entered the elf forest.'
Fragments auto-saved upon acquisition, but manual saves were limited to once, so he hoarded them for moments like this.
Staring at the "Saved at current point" message made it feel truly like a game. While Judah saved, Via seemed lost in thought before continuing slowly.
"Humans are cunning, sly, and cruel. They approach with masks blending lies and truth, hiding ugly hearts. You're no different. I've never seen one who isn't."
Judah let out a long sigh. Via smirked faintly, one corner of her mouth lifting.
"Every single one approaches to gain our favor—but when scrutinized with the Eye of Truth, they're full of deceit. Are you any different?"
"...That's true enough."
He admitted readily.
"You're admitting it?"
"Not everyone is like that, but in the face of what you'll face, it might as well be."
"?"
"I never imagined meeting you so easily—the elf guardian deity—and talking like this, but thanks to that, I know the elves are still in the dark."
"What do you mean?"
"You have leeway. Your lack of anxiety says it all."
"Isn't that obvious? You can't beat me."
"True."
Via's eye twitched.
"If you're spouting nonsense, I'll kill you here. I was going to spare you if no spells were cast on my kin."
"It's not nonsense."
"Then spit it out straight."
"If you don't know, the elves below don't either. That humans have declared war on this forest."
"......? What are you saying?"
"Silan is marching to avenge past defeats."
Via narrowed her eyes at his words. Her pupils faintly glowed with mana—likely the Eye of Truth.
"I sense neither truth nor lie in your words. Impossible... How? The Eye of Truth fails? ...Unbelievable. Are you really human?"
A human immune to the Eye of Truth shocked her. Yet the young man before her was unmistakably human—one of the deceitful masses. Hard to overturn long-held beliefs. Via stared intently before continuing.
"...If you're telling the truth, humans are attacking the forest. Doesn't matter. No matter how many, they can't covet this forest."
Judah chuckled at her confidence.
"Of course, they can't challenge a forest with you in it, Sword Saint or not. But what about the other elves? You can't protect them all alone."
"Why assume I'm alone?"
"You are. The elves have held out this long because of you. Or are you counting on the lord's fragment, [Lucien Ardahan]?"
Seeing her eyes widen round, Judah pressed on.
"A 210,000-strong army marches on the forest. Impressive as you are, you can't shield everyone. Elves will be pushed back to the World Tree. The forest burns over days, countless elves kidnapped and sold across human society."
"Is that a curse?"
"No, the future. Lucien Ardahan will let you hold the World Tree—at least. But fragments don't guard eternally. It's whimsy now; it'll leave when the true owner comes... or the time arrives."
"Nonsense."
"You know it's not. Ask the elves I brought if you doubt. Watching them panic under your precious Eye of Truth wouldn't be bad."
Via stared silently.
War. War.
The word churned in her mind. Strangely, this young man's words—indiscernible as truth or lie—didn't feel false. An inexplicable trust in his voice unnerved her. She bit her lip, then withdrew her sword from his throat.
"Wait. Don't try running."
Relief washed over him as the blade lifted; he exhaled. Via approached the kneeling elves begging for his life and verified something.
Entering the elf forest: good.
Meeting Sword Saint Via right away: good.
Piquing her interest in the war: good.
Smooth sailing. Get the fragment from the elf forest, holy water from Gabriel's temple, and done. But even with all that, how to evade Silan's army approaching the forest?
Ignore the elves, grab what he needs, and slip out?
Or help them? Only now did the war's reality hit him. Killing one or hundreds differed from this. Over 200,000 armed troops advanced. But such worries were pointless.
'I already have the answer...'
He'd aid the elves—in exchange for the fragment. But against 200,000? In the game, elves suffered heavy losses. Their power waned, Silan grew rich selling them, rose to superpower status under Duke Iyes.
'I have to overturn my own setup.'
Rout Silan's great victory, protect the elves from capture, save the forest from flames. Possible? Bigger question: would Sword Saint Via accept his help? Having gotten her answers from the elves, she approached the seated Judah with a stern face. Still cold, visibly reluctant, she gazed at him before speaking.
"...It seems we need to have a long talk."