Chapter 240
Chapter: 240
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 240
>Chapter Title: Sword Master (4)
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>Captain Bruno, who had left Seongjin behind, returned quickly. He was accompanied by Gustav, a priest specializing in healing.
"I mainly handle external injuries, so my divine power itself isn't that strong. If Your Highness has no special wounds, wouldn't it be better to bring another priest?"
Gustav spoke with a displeased expression. His words carried resentment toward this outsider who had dragged him away amid a stream of urgent casualties.
What urgent need could the prince, surrounded and protected by knights, possibly have for a priest?
But Bruno's attitude was firm.
"We don't have time for that. Please hurry."
Prince Mores remained slumped against the parapet just as Bruno had left him. Only now his head had drooped downward, an omen that boded ill.
Realizing at last that the situation was unusual, Gustav straightened his expression and quickened his steps.
"Your Highness."
Bruno approached cautiously and shook the prince. But the limp body simply slid powerlessly into Bruno's arms!
"......!"
The prince's face, revealed as he collapsed face-down, was as pale as a corpse.
Bruno's heart sank.
"Your Highness!"
They hurriedly laid the prince on the ground and checked his condition.
"Why is there blood......"
Though greatly flustered by the prince's face, smeared messily with blood from his eyes, Gustav quickly composed himself and began channeling divine power.
Fortunately, his heart hadn't stopped entirely; a pulse could be felt intermittently.
However, it was far too precarious to call a proper heartbeat—like the meaningless contractions of a heart trembling sporadically just before stopping.
"What on earth happened to Your Highness? To treat him, I need to know the cause for certain."
At the priest Gustav's question, Bruno shook his head in confusion. No matter how he thought about it, he couldn't guess.
He had simply assumed the prince's condition had steadily worsened since morning due to accumulated fatigue.
"I can't handle this alone. His heart feels like it's about to stop. We'll need help from other priests."
At Gustav's grave voice, Bruno nodded and rose to seek aid.
"Huh......?"
He froze in shock and slumped back down. A blood-soaked woman had appeared out of nowhere, staring down at them intently.
Blood was dripping steadily from the menacing curved sword she held.
"...Lady Sharon?"
Bruno barely recognized the familiar presence. He had been too preoccupied to notice her approach.
Covered head to toe in beast blood, with no presence detectable, he had for a moment truly thought her a ghost.
"Ah......!"
But at his call, the exorcist did not respond.
With a low sigh, she tossed her curved sword to the ground and seized the prince's hand. Her already pallid face had turned an unprecedented shade of blue.
"Mores, Mores, what should I do with you? Mores, Mores, what am I to do?"
Her thin voice endlessly repeating the words made Priest Gustav's eyebrows twitch upward.
But Bruno realized she was channeling and urgently asked.
"Lady Sharon. Something's wrong with His Highness. Could you possibly request His Majesty's aid?"
Lady Sharon gazed blankly into the void for a moment before shaking her head.
"His Majesty cannot respond right now. We must handle this ourselves."
It was a rare, clear voice from her that Bruno heard.
As Lady Sharon channeled divine power into the prince, she spoke in a composed tone.
"Brother Gustav, please request more brothers with strong divine power."
"No! I'll go! Let me go!"
Before the priest could move, Bruno shot to his feet and shouted.
"It'll be much faster if I go. I can't do anything here anyway, right? So in the meantime, Priest, please channel even a little more divine power...!"
Then Lady Sharon's sharp voice halted him.
"Stay here, Captain Bruno!"
"......!"
Her wide eyes met his, and the exorcist's usually vacant black eyes burned with fierce determination as they fixed on Bruno.
"Absolutely not. Don't you realize? Your role is the most crucial here right now!"
"Me...?"
When he asked in a dazed voice, she nodded.
"Yes. Please hold His Highness's hand. Stay by his side! Keep him from drifting away anywhere else—bind him firmly here with your karma."
Karma.
Before he could even process the word, Bruno clumsily grasped the prince's hand.
'I heard it from Arenza! She said my karma belongs to His Highness, right?'
He didn't know exactly what that meant.
Yet from Lady Sharon's desperate voice, Bruno instinctively sensed that this karma was more vital now than any priest's divine power.
"Your Highness......"
He gripped tightly.
The small hand, pulsing faintly, made Bruno suddenly realize anew. The reliable boy he had so comfortably relied on was, in truth, such a small and young child.
"Urk!"
Fresh regret surged within him. He should have served the prince more properly!
'I thought I was serving His Highness with all my heart, but in the end, wasn't I just enjoying my life at my own whim!'
He had focused on reclaiming his own realm, and lately become engrossed in mentoring Karmen belatedly.
He didn't have to follow the prince for distasteful tasks; he could hole up in the Pearl Palace and savor fine teas to his heart's content.
How could such a life, like a gift from the heavens, even exist?
'All of it was thanks to His Highness.'
The pasture the prince had arranged for him was so vast and free that he had momentarily forgotten the fence protecting it even existed.
"Holy Emperor Daddy still can't move. Must make Mores's heart beat. Quickly, quickly, quickly!"
Even amid this, Lady Sharon muttered incomprehensible words without pause.
"Can't just wait for Daddy His Majesty. Slow down Mores's time. Slowly, slowly, slowly!"
Was it his imagination?
With her words, the prince's fading pulse seemed to return, if only slightly.
In his desperation, Bruno clutched the hand, now carrying a faint trace of warmth.
'His Highness bestowed so much upon me, yet what have I ever done for him!'
He was no longer his old Decaron Knight self. Though he maintained an imperfect aura balance, in pure martial prowess, he still fell short of Sir Masain or Lady Maria.
And not just that.
His amateur channeling skills barely bridged him to Arenza; compared to the exorcist Lady Sharon, he was far inferior. This far from the capital, receiving their strong thoughts was the best he could manage.
As if reading his thoughts, Lady Sharon smiled faintly at Bruno.
"Don't blame yourself needlessly, Captain Bruno. Your mere presence is a tremendous strength to His Highness."
"Lady Sharon......"
"Even for the sake of protecting the karma bound to you, His Highness won't recklessly throw away his life. You know he's not that kind of person."
"......!"
Yes. Though they hadn't served together long, it had been time enough to know the prince's character.
Straining not to miss the slow, sporadic pulses, Bruno bowed his head and let a single tear fall quietly.
* * *
Kwachik! Jjeok!
Puk! Rumble rumble rumble!
The change wrought by the Sword Master and one Glacier Troll charging into the front lines was dramatic.
Thud thud thud!
Especially the Glacier Troll, Vince's, exploits were astounding.
With all the front-line Glacier Trolls chasing at its heels, Vince—cloaked in Sigmund's veil—charged toward the mountainside. It didn't forget to smash the stragglers one by one.
"It's Prince Mores! He's controlling Vince!"
Sir Oscar, who had already witnessed its prowess once at the canyon fortress, shouted excitedly.
Even some Lycanslopes veered that way, easing the front lines considerably. Thanks to this, Sir Ilma could detach more troops to reinforce the relatively vulnerable southwest.
Old man Vincent and Sir Sebastian were leading forces there, but they still seemed to be struggling.
'This is the difference between a Decaron Knight and a Sword Master!'
Sir Ilma inwardly clicked his tongue.
A Decaron Knight was one who achieved aura balance.
And one who imbued that perfected aura blade with intent, piercing the world's truths, was called a Sword Master.
'How did Prince Logan achieve a realm surpassing Vincent at such a young age!'
In any case, morale surged anew on the front lines.
Only Sir Masain's face, as she occasionally glanced at Vince, bore unconcealed worry.
She recalled how the prince's condition had seemed off when he controlled Vince at the canyon fortress.
"Sir Ilma. Once the front stabilizes, I must go to His Highness immediately. Is that alright?"
"Yes, of course, Sir Masain. Thank you for your help so far!"
Ilma nodded hastily.
Sir Masain was unequivocally one of the strongest forces here. That the knight who never left the prince's side had fought on the front lines for so long was gratitude enough.
Meanwhile, Logan, racing through enemy lines alongside Vince, thought.
'Even without me, could Seongjin have held them off alone?'
Vince's performance was so impressive that such a thought crossed his mind.
The ice monster, having felled the seventh Glacier Troll, straightened tall and swung its shoulders.
The sight of the veil fluttering confidently made Logan chuckle, reminiscent of a smug Seongjin.
But there was no more time to waste.
With the enemies' eyes fixed on Vince, this was Logan's golden opportunity.
Logan suppressed his presence and swiftly passed through the foes.
A Decaron Knight could unleash dazzling worldly techniques with vast aura—or, if desired, erase their presence entirely and slip anywhere unseen.
Soon, Logan confronted the demon hiding amid the dense underbrush.
As Seongjin had said, it appeared as a young woman in a deep hood.
[...What?]
Before the demon noticed his arrival, Logan's powerful holy barrier captured it.
Granius Defense Barrier, Form 0.
The most basic yet flawless barrier, completely encircling the foe with holy power.
[Such! When did you—?]
Surrounded instantly by the silver veil, the demon looked flustered for a moment. Then, eyeing Logan, it tilted its head.
[Ah? You, from where......?]
But soon, as if realizing something, it regained composure and curled its lips smugly.
Despite the holy barrier that could incinerate it any moment, the demon smiled enchantingly, unperturbed.
[Whose soul shines so brilliantly! Indeed, the East's Last Sword—you yourself!]
An epithet unmistakably referring to Gael Bertrand.
Logan flinched and asked.
"You know me?"
[Of course I do. Kyakyakakyak!]
The demon shifted to a brazen attitude and shouted confidently.
[I saw you up close! You were meant as an offering to the Penitent One! My master grieved your loss greatly, yet here you hide unscathed—how delightful!]
Offering to the Penitent One?
He had never heard of it. Was this demon truly speaking of his past life?
Logan replied skeptically.
"I merely perished in the civil war. I know nothing of demon offerings."
The demon chuckled unpleasantly.
[Is that so? Such innocence. More hung on your death than you think! Had the guardian not spirited you away, much would be different now.]
Truth.
Logan furrowed his brow and glared at the demon.
[How about it? Release me? Do that, and I'll give you vital information.]
Lie.
The demon merely sought escape. It had no intention of revealing anything.
"Just one question, demon."
Logan's eyes gleamed with icy coldness as he stared at the woman.
"Did demons destroy my homeland Ortona?"
[Well, various human affairs intervened, but ultimately, yes. Curious for details?]
Of course he was.
Leading the subjugation force for years had revealed things.
Why traces of long-standing demon worship across Ortona.
Perhaps Ortona's fall hid deeper machinations.
As Logan pondered, thinking its words persuasive, the demon coaxed slyly.
[Come, ask anything. Your soul was one my master cherished dearly. Stand before my master with me, and any wish, whatever you desire, shall be granted.]
A wish.
A bitter smile tugged at Logan's lips.
"Then, is there a way to restore my fallen homeland?"
[...What?]
"Can you return my homeland to me?"
The demon paused, then grinned viciously.
[Haha. What nonsense. How to revive what's offered and gone? Raising a human nation consumes vast karma. My master wouldn't intervene lightly.]
Truth.
Logan nodded.
"Then there's nothing more to hear."
He clenched his fist.
[Wha? No, wait! Wait! You must be curious! Any human would......!]
The demon paled and flailed, but the holy barrier contracted in an instant.
Tssst!
The silver holy power enveloped the demon, billowing acrid black smoke.
[Kwaaaaaak!]
Watching the demon writhe in agony, Logan said coldly.
"Did you think I'd only learn the truth through you? Regarding your vile schemes against my homeland, I'm already coordinating investigations with other holy knight orders."
Did you think that silver-tongued deceiver could manipulate me at will?
"Besides, Seongjin insisted I eliminate you no matter what."
I promised the boy I would.
[Kwaaaaaak!]
The demon thrashed amid white holy flames. But soon its form shrank, crumbling into a handful of white ash.
The only traces of its presence were two ice shards rolling on the ground.
Those were the ice hearts the demon had used to control the Glacier Trolls, though Logan had no way of knowing.
He merely sensed something ominous in their faintly pulsing light.
'Come to think of it, didn't Seongjin have one of these earlier?'
Tilting his head, Logan slowly picked up the ice shards. Black demonic energy swirled from them, seeking to ensnare him.
An item of the demon's, steeped in foul corruption—enough to erode an ordinary person on touch.
But to Logan, with his immense holy power, it posed no threat.
'An important item? Why hold onto it so preciously?'
Logan rolled the shards carefully in his palm.
His decision was swift.
'Shall I take it as evidence? If it's nothing, give it to Seongjin. He'll be bedridden awhile and bored—might as well let him play with it.'
Logan meticulously purified the ice hearts with holy power, then pocketed them swiftly.
Of course, at that moment, he had no inkling how delighted Seongjin would be upon receiving the "gift."