Chapter 52
Chapter: 52
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 52
>Chapter Title: Clanos (4)
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Divine power.
>The blessing bestowed upon this world by the Lord God, and the most irrefutable proof of His existence.
>Yet it could not simply be lumped together as the power of a holy deity.
>The power of [Healing] that mends wounds and helps overcome illness.
>The power of [Blessing] that wards off misfortune and summons good fortune.
>The power of [Evil Extermination] that discerns the wicked and eradicates the impure.
>Those who possess divine power exhibit all three characteristics, though the degrees vary from individual to individual. Typically, one was exceptional while the other two were so faint as to be barely noticeable.
The Order of Saint Terbakia, which made exorcism its primary duty, was specialized in the power of Evil Extermination, while the Order of Saint Grazia, devoted to service and sacrifice, was filled with those strong in healing or blessing.
Of course, high priests or cardinals possessed such overwhelming divine power that they excelled in all three. At that level, they could perform near-miraculous feats in their specialized domains.
But no spectacle could match the "miracle" unfolding here for sheer awe.
As a dazzling white light enveloped Prince Mores's body, wooden splinters were instantly pushed out from his wounds, fresh flesh filling in behind them. The hand that had burst open, its muscles torn apart, regenerated smooth sinew and grew soft, pale new skin.
All those wounds vanished without a single scar, smooth as ever. Even the face, slightly tanned from days of rolling around in the training grounds, brightened to a fresh glow.
It was a wonder: an immense surge of life force poured into a single person.
That was the "miracle" as seen by ordinary folk.
To the eyes of the clergy, however, it appeared differently.
The rainbow-hued, radiant aura enveloping the Holy Emperor and the prince. The faint, sacred fragrance spreading widely around them. The occasional glimpse of a bright golden halo around the Holy Emperor.
Who could witness this and dare doubt the proxy of the Lord God?
The higher the rank of the cleric, or the stronger their divine power, the more intensely and profoundly this scene struck them.
"Ooh..."
"Lord God..."
Behold the high priests, utterly overwhelmed, dropping to their knees on the spot and making the sign of the cross.
Cardinal Digory had collapsed to the floor, his face enraptured, tears streaming freely. Even the cantankerous Cardinal Benedictus was making the sign of the cross, his eyes misty.
Seongjin, of course—with no divine power to sense anything—simply lay there on the stretcher, bewildered as people suddenly rushed out of the conference room, knelt en masse, and began weeping.
Once the wounds had healed and the pain fully vanished, Seongjin sat up on the stretcher and gazed in wonder at his perfectly restored right hand.
'Whoa, this is divine power...'
Even to Seongjin, ignorant as he was, the Holy Emperor's ability was extraordinary. It was leagues beyond the few healings Francis had shown him yesterday. Not only did the wounds vanish without a trace, but even the lost blood seemed fully regenerated—no trace of anemia remained.
The Holy Emperor withdrew his hand from Seongjin's forehead with a sigh.
"Didn't I tell you to behave and focus on your training?"
But Seongjin felt wronged.
"Uh, but Father, I was training. I did exactly as you said and listened well..."
He couldn't finish. The Holy Emperor's eyebrow twitched, and without warning, a flick flew straight at him.
*Thwack.*
"Eek!"
Seongjin clutched his forehead and rolled on the stretcher. What the heck? Why did this hurt more than when the wooden sword exploded?
Regardless, the Holy Emperor rose and approached Masain, who stood dejectedly beside the stretcher, head bowed.
"Your Majesty..."
"Why blame yourself when it's that rascal causing all the trouble, Masain? I sent you as his sword instructor, not his nanny."
Masain's face twisted into an expression somewhere between a smile and a grimace. The Holy Emperor patted his shoulder, then turned.
"Louis."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"What's my afternoon schedule like?"
The loyal chief chamberlain looked troubled. Today was meant for an audience with Prince Mores, but the backlog of official duties from the past few days was immense.
"Your Majesty, I'm afraid..."
As the chief chamberlain trailed off, the Holy Emperor nodded.
"Then lunch is ready, I take it."
But Your Majesty, you skipped breakfast...
Brushing off the flustered chief chamberlain with a wave, the Holy Emperor looked down coldly at Seongjin, still groaning and clutching his forehead.
"You and I need to have a little talk, son."
*Hic.*
No idea why the hiccups started all of a sudden.
Seongjin was meekly dragged to the Holy Emperor's office. Though both were covered head to toe in blood, neither paid it any mind.
Trailing behind the Holy Emperor, who strode ahead with robes billowing, Seongjin occasionally stole glances at the back of his head. He looks a bit tired—am I imagining it?
Once in the office, the Holy Emperor dismissed the attendants, sat at his desk, steepled his fingers, and nodded toward the opposite sofa with his chin.
"Sit."
"Yes."
"Explain."
"Yes, sir!"
Seongjin eagerly explained how aura had leaked into the wooden sword. Why he'd tried to make it surge.
He started with Masain's brilliant strike against the larva, which naturally led into a brief account of the battle at the Digory estate.
Since it came up, he boasted about his progress in aura cultivation lately and how his proficiency had suddenly skyrocketed after the fight.
Subconsciously, he might have thought: Father seems busy, so if I ramble on, maybe I can kill time and shorten the scolding.
Unexpectedly, the Holy Emperor—who'd seemed ready to bellow—simply listened quietly.
"So I was timing the aura surge when suddenly the wooden sword went 'boom,' and that's how it happened."
"..."
As Seongjin finished his long explanation and sneaked a peek, the Holy Emperor, lost in thought for a moment, glanced at the wall clock before speaking.
"The technique Masain used is called [Aura Burst]."
Oh. Looks like no scolding after all.
"It's nicknamed things like [Storm Slash] or [Crescent that Cleaves the Heavens] among the palace knights, but ignore that nonsense. It's understandable why it looked like a surging aura to you, but the actual principle is a bit different."
The Holy Emperor briefly explained the technique's essence.
The key wasn't the aura channeled into the weapon, but a thin layer of aura formed on the blade's surface, corresponding to the external air. Thus, it required first stably manifesting an aura blade.
What appeared as an aura surge was actually infusing the blade's resonant hum at a specific frequency. In other words, not random fluctuations, but precisely controlled vibrations stacked to maximize destructive power.
The conclusion: You're not ready to imitate it yet, so focus on building your aura layer properly.
"The idea itself was interesting, but testing it on your weapon was extremely dangerous. Understand?"
"Yes..."
A novice barely stepping into aura basics had gotten ahead of himself.
Scratching his cheek in embarrassment, Seongjin heard a light knock from outside. It was the chief chamberlain.
"Your Majesty, it's time for your audience chamber."
The Holy Emperor sighed softly and rose.
"Well, even after this explanation, some new idea will pop up and you'll want to try it anyway."
"Uh..."
Couldn't deny that. Seongjin knew his own flaw: unbearable curiosity.
As the Holy Emperor moved toward the door, he reached for the sword at his waist. With a *click*, the long blade slid free. He handed it, scabbard and all, to Seongjin without a word.
"..."?
Reflexively taking it, Seongjin felt the weight of the real sword—not heavy, but solid—in his hands.
"Play with this instead of wooden swords from now on. It won't break easily, no matter what you do."
"Uh... thank you?"
He'd braced for a thrashing, but got a sword instead.
Stunned, Seongjin replied, and the Holy Emperor's lips quirked faintly—the first smile Seongjin had ever seen from him.
He lightly patted Seongjin's head a couple times, then turned.
As he stepped out, the Holy Emperor gave one last instruction.
"Mores."
"Yes?"
"Don't tell Masain it was an accident from imitating him."
The knight commander had been unusually self-blaming since yesterday.
Seongjin nodded solemnly.
* * *
"...Nutcracker?"
Masain, waiting outside the palace for Seongjin, spotted the sword at his waist and cried out, eyes bulging.
Nutcracker? What's that?
At his words, the resident knights of Pearl Palace, including Haven, swarmed over.
"Huh? Nutcracker?"
"His Majesty's beloved sword? The real Nutcracker?"
Plain-looking, but apparently famous.
The Holy Emperor's favorite sword—some legendary weapon? But why that name?
Seongjin drew it for a closer look.
It was an ordinary longsword, unadorned. The blade was shallow and short, but the hilt long enough for easy two-handed swings—better suited to a boy Mores's age than a full-grown adult.
The edge was a unique dull gray metal, not sharply honed. No one could call it well-maintained.
Too shabby for the empire's supreme ruler, no?
But the resident knights said otherwise.
"That's the sword famous for being unbreakable—even grindstones can't scratch it!"
"Even blacksmiths can't temper it properly in the forge!"
"The legendary one said to have been forged long ago by a dragon to crack nuts..."
Hold up. Dragons exist in this world?
And why make a sword for nuts?
Plus, for a legendary blade, the name... Nutcracker? Doesn't exactly evoke dread.
If anything, it seems like it'd crack human skulls better than nuts...
Sure enough, Haven glanced around, then whispered conspiratorially.
"I heard that when His Majesty was active on the front lines in his youth, this sword cracked thousands upon thousands of heads."
Really?
As Seongjin gaped, the other knights chimed in.
"Yes, truly. They say the shattered skulls formed mountains."
"And the blood from those mountains formed great rivers..."
"Even now, headless ghosts wail and wander there at night..."
"..."
What the hell did this guy give me?
Even the unflappable Sir Francis looked genuinely shocked, frowning at Seongjin.
"His Majesty never parted with that sword for a moment— what did you say to make him give it to you, Your Highness?"
Seongjin tilted his head.
"Just that my wooden sword broke during training, so he said to play with this instead. It won't break easily."
Masain looked deeply shaken, his pupils trembling.
"...Instead of a wooden sword... to play with?"
*Tsk.* Sir Francis clicked his tongue.
"Masain, isn't it time to drop that ridiculous fantasy? It's not the legendary artifact you imagine."
Sir Masain must have idolized Nutcracker.
"But still, that sword..."
"You should've known since His Majesty used to crack nuts with it on the mountain when you were kids."
Oh. So it really was for nuts.