Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: 14-1. To the Knight, It's a Black Heart.
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Baek Mok-ryeon's words were spot on.
I'd only taken a single step toward the exit, and already the trees and the forest around us were shifting wildly. Even the path I'd carved out with my sword on my previous visit, marking it with clear traces, had vanished without a sign.
Every means of relying on memory or knowledge was blocked. It felt like my very perception was being twisted.
"It's real, alright. I have no idea which way to go."
"This is the authority of 'Ignorance.' Boy, how is it that you remember me and yet lack the talent to escape this place?"
"...I have nothing to say to that. Heavenly Demon."
I'm no hero, so of course not. I let out a sigh. No holy sword, no masterpiece gear. I didn't even have the skills to take down a Demon King head-on, so I'd resorted to pulling in the corruption route.
"But boy, why are you still wearing that Black Knight helmet? Your Demon King armor vanished, didn't it?"
"Ah, I can't take this one off."
"Hoh, I thought you were hiding your identity as the Demon King by wearing it around."
"That's not it, Heavenly Demon."
"I also figured it was the handiwork of those grumpy dwarf beardos with their eccentric tempers."
I wished it were a masterpiece like that. It was just comfortable to wear, and it let me breathe a bit easier underwater—nothing special otherwise.
But wearing this thing had twisted Magic Hat all up. What was that about, anyway? Was it a drop item from the start? If so, it made sense that it would misunderstand me.
"A bad-hearted person did give it to me, though..."
"Kehheheh! Well, then it's probably some item infused with demonic energy, right?"
Shouldn't a special perk come with something impressive? Yet here it was, making even a Demon King obsessed.
Classic [Black Heart] developers. They never let players have anything easy.
"You're right about that. Wise words indeed."
I placed a hand on the forehead of the helmet. One thing was certain—it resembled the Glass Knight's gear.
Maybe if I got closer to Mardol, something would come of it. There were paired items in the game, after all.
"..."
As my thoughts reached that point, I suddenly felt like I'd come off as someone rushing to their death before vanishing. I wondered if the Glass Knight was worried about me.
For Magic Hat, having his parents—Belling Granasia—captured must have been traumatic.
Five years since possession, time had passed, and I'd paid less attention to the crown prince, only recalling after seeing his face.
"...So, what do you mean you know the way out? You said we can leave from here."
I asked the Heavenly Demon how to escape this forest. The kids back at the academy were probably worried. I couldn't let myself get kidnapped and imprisoned by the real imperial family later on.
"A simple analogy. Neutralize the concept of the Demon King."
"Pardon? Is there an artifact here? Like a holy sword or...?"
"Heh, that's ridiculous, boy."
Baek Mok-ryeon burst into mocking laughter, as if it was absurd. Her dragon-race irises and fangs were visible. Did she have some hidden item?
"From the start, those ronin obsessed with holy swords or demon blades are the fools."
"Meaning...?"
"A sword depends on the user wielding it. If it chooses its master, it's a flawed item. Boy."
With that, Baek Mok-ryeon drew the sword at her waist. A plain black blade, unremarkable, with no jagged edges.
"Boy, could this sword not slay a Demon King?"
"Probably not...?"
"Then what do you call it when you nearly killed the Demon King with Drake's ultimate technique?"
So she'd seen through my connection to the Ten Heroes from the beginning. Testing me despite knowing—thorough personality. Blood rushed to my head. I'd heard something similar somewhere.
"Dragon Slayer kills the opponent's concept... Ah, no way."
"Yes, that 'no way' is correct."
"...A mere sword technique surpassed the Demon King's authority."
"Indeed. Swordsmanship is the art of will. If you have the resolve to cut, anything is possible. Therefore..."
As she began, Baek Mok-ryeon stopped before a massive tree.
"Obsessing over weapons betrays the essence of a true swordsman. Boy."
It was as thick as a house, the kind that might make someone cry out "World Tree." Though a real World Tree wouldn't just be a filthy huge tree.
"Even with an ordinary iron sword like this."
The sword she showed me didn't feel particularly impressive. Common enough to find in the academy's sword training grounds.
"...Even if what's before you is the sea itself, you can cleave it."
The Heavenly Demon lightly gripped her sword and performed a horizontal slash in place, drawing a straight line.
"Hundred Flowers in Full Bloom."
Then, the anomaly occurred.
A crisp slash echoed across the land. Every tree before us was severed clean as the horizon. Their tops flew off. The dense canopy turned into a straight line.
Like flower petals gently scattering in succession—a smooth, vivid sword path.
"..."
The sound arrived after the sword. Crack—the trunks exploded outward all at once. So this was the Heavenly Demon Baek Mok-ryeon. Different texture from Drake's swordsmanship.
"Keh, talk is cheap, though. I've already taken a bullet from the Head. Can't leave this place."
She flashed a sinister smile at me. Even with this level of power, she couldn't escape the forest. The trees restored themselves.
Insane performance. Was this even swordsmanship?
"...Can I learn this too?"
"What? You, boy? Impossible. It uses inner energy—worlds apart from mana."
"I can do it. My constitution's unique."
"It's not about skill. You need to reach a realm no mere human can touch. Boy."
I had to learn it now. It might even suit my mana-deficient body. Instinct told me this sharp technique could fell a Demon King.
"I'm a disciple of Dragon Slayer Drake. I can handle it."
"Hah, disciple of that snot-nosed brat? With Ignorance wiping me out, did he slap on that weird title? Absurd."
"Probably so, Heavenly Demon."
To return to the academy, I needed to grow stronger. If a realm truly existed that neutralized Demon King authority through will alone.
"Please. I beg you."
It was exactly what I needed now. With Magic Hat on the move, the Nameless Saintess's safety was uncertain. No telling when it'd recover and become a threat again.
"...Why should I teach you, boy?"
The Heavenly Demon snorted, crossing her arms in clear refusal. Had she forgotten what I'd said to save her just moments ago?
"If I wield your swordsmanship, Baek Mok-ryeon..."
Assume neutralizing Demon King authority through will was possible.
"Dennis might fully remember you."
"Keh... True enough. You evade Ignorance well, boy."
I could protect this love line without catching the Head. Professor Dennis would find a way to rescue her from this forest.
"Quite clever. I don't usually take disciples. But if you're that man's student..."
A pure-hearted man who cast spells on himself to barely remember his cursed lover the moment she was afflicted.
"...No reason to refuse."
She now knew my link to Dennis. Pleased, the Heavenly Demon smiled faintly. The cursed dragon of spring gazed at me with hope.
"...Thank you."
Excluding the Head, I was the only one left who remembered Baek Mok-ryeon. Lucky I was a [Knight Heart] hardcore player.
"Very well, boy. It'll be grueling training. Can you keep up?"
"I never had a choice to begin with, Heavenly Demon."
"Kehheheh! We'll see how long you last saying that, boy."
And so, that day, I became the Heavenly Demon's disciple. Drake might get mad if he found out.
"I'll give it my all."
Getting out alive and letting them know took priority.
Meanwhile, at Grand Hearts Academy's dormitory.
"Where the hell did Licht go...?"
The blond hero clutched his head in worry. His friend had left to fight the Demon King, and days had passed with no return.
"Just come back. I'll spread rumors about that white-haired saintess or whatever everywhere."
He didn't even know Licht doubled as a holy knight. He knew next to nothing about the man.
"...Was he even my friend? Was it one-sided?"
Only recently had he learned why Licht wore the helmet, and Licht knew all the holy sword's weaknesses. His advice to protect thoroughly made sense now.
"If I'd hesitated back then, Ariel would've been in danger."
He'd jumped first and taken the hit, pulling her back. Pre-Licht Kainel would've judged people by whether the Light Holy Sword trembled.
"Hah... Kainel, you idiot..."
He bowed his head. Even becoming the Demon King, Licht had tried to protect them. Kainel lamented his own lack of resolve. Fear gripped him no matter how he thought about it.
"..."
He'd been despised by villagers just for being chosen hero, so he'd taken his mission lightly.
Before meeting Licht, he'd vaguely thought: Just protect the world from bad guys.
"This won't do."
Ariel's scarred face flashed in his mind. Healed by holy power without marks, but the wound in Hero Kainel's heart ran deep.
"I need to protect Ariel for sure, not this world."
Pondering his remaining options, the hero stood. Advice Licht had once given him.
"...If I'd been stronger, you wouldn't have gone alone, right? Licht."
Gripping the returned Light Holy Sword tightly, he steeled his resolve. Seeing the weapon that abandoned his friend fueled his anger. This is a holy sword? Absurd.
"Screw being a hero. Like you said, Licht—focus on speed."
Thinking of the Black Knight who'd protected him and Ariel, Kainel vowed to catch even his friend's toe-tips.
"...If you're really dead, I'll chase you to hell's end and Shine Strike you."
Imagining Licht returning casually, smirking and teasing Ariel and him, the blond hero headed to the training grounds.