Chapter 124
Chapter 124
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: Hero's Lineage
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"The Caras!"
The Cavalry God roared. He straightened his lance and charged fiercely toward the Four Vicious Gods.
The Four Vicious Gods saw it too. But their limbs wouldn't move as they wished. The triple-layered Gravity Fall had dissipated, but the shock from it still lingered fully in the Four Vicious Gods' body.
It was the Cavalry God.
None other than the Cavalry God unleashing a lance charge.
The power was earth-shattering. The force concentrated at a single point surpassed that of an ordinary mid-tier god.
Boom!
The Cavalry God's lance shattered. The Four Vicious Gods tumbled across the ground. They had somehow twisted their body at the last moment to avoid a direct hit, but even the glancing blow inflicted massive damage. Cracks spread across the Four Vicious Gods' entire form, and their right half was nearly half-erased.
The Cavalry God, who had flown far beyond the impact point, released the broken lance from his hand. He turned back toward the Four Vicious Gods, his arm dangling limply.
The single strike had expended everything, so his arm wouldn't rise again. Unleashing another blow like that one was impossible.
But the Cavalry God wasn't worried. Instead, he flashed a triumphant smile.
For the same reason as Cheon-ho.
And she wasn't the only one.
The one who could finish off the Four Vicious Gods—the one who could deliver a fatal strike to it!
From the sky to the ground.
Cheon-ho descended. Like a falcon snatching prey, he hurtled toward the staggering Four Vicious Gods on the ground.
It was a single sword strike.
True Origin.
But this was different from before.
It wasn't Chris's True Origin, nor Father's.
The Sword of Dawn incorporated the mysteries of True Origin.
Mitra, infused with the sun's mana, emitted a golden flash. She roared alongside Cheon-ho.
The single sword strike cleaved the Four Vicious Gods.
It didn't divide into the white death Idmus and black death Paramus. It destroyed the unified body of the entity, shattering its divinity.
Light and darkness exploded. It was the moment a fragment of the evil god, who had once ascended to the viceroy realm, lost its divinity.
The Great Labyrinth took notice. The Labyrinth World remembered.
Heaven and earth quaked.
Cheon-ho lowered Mitra. Silence enveloped the surroundings, soon shattered by massive cheers erupting from all directions.
The survivors. The angels and soldiers gathering toward the center.
The Cavalry God grinned brightly too. She looked ready to collapse at any moment, but she stayed mounted. Slumped over her warhorse's back, she let out a sigh of relief.
The God of Purification blinked repeatedly. A single thought dominated his mind.
'Uh, when did he get that strong?'
Of course, Cheon-ho hadn't defeated the Four Vicious Gods alone. Without the Cavalry God's strike just before, even Cheon-ho at his newfound strength couldn't have obliterated it in one blow.
But even so, it was the Four Vicious Gods. Fallen as it was, it had once been a fragment of an evil god who held the viceroy position.
Come to think of it, this was the first time he'd seen Cheon-ho fight in person. During the Winter King battle, he'd collapsed from mana depletion while recharging divine power. And during the spar with Makina, he'd stayed behind in Aiterium, just waiting for Cheon-ho's return.
Chris's mind was a bit more complicated.
Four Guardian Kings Martial Arts.
The son of that man and that woman.
Father's first love.
He seems stronger than me. Way stronger.
Amid the whirlwind of thoughts, she blinked, then gave up thinking altogether. For now, she'd rejoice in the victory like everyone else. From her perspective as someone who'd jumped in midway, it felt a bit awkward, though.
"Hero!"
Lucille flew toward Cheon-ho. He wanted to spread his arms to her as always, but it was impossible.
It was just like after the Primordial Forge. He'd poured everything into that last strike.
But Cheon-ho didn't collapse. He stood firm, and Lucille embraced him.
"You were amazing."
She truly was. Lucille's exploits had been astonishing. The direct hits on the Four Vicious Gods had come from the Cavalry God and Cheon-ho himself, but without Lucille's ingenuity, the attack opportunity wouldn't have arisen in the first place.
At Cheon-ho's praise, Lucille's eyes reddened slightly. Her cheeks flushed rose-pink as she beamed.
As his attendant angel, she finally felt like she'd caught up to him, even if just a little.
Praises continued to pour in. Cheon-ho leaned on Lucille with a satisfied smile, while Mitra smiled brightly in the mental world.
Victory.
But it wasn't over yet.
The most important task remained.
Leaning on Lucille, Cheon-ho used his visible hand. He pulled a vitality potion from his belt and dumped it into his mouth.
[My liege?]
"You have to eat it while it's fresh."
With a slight recovery of stamina, Cheon-ho quietly asked Lucille for something. Supporting him, she took a step forward.
Two of the Four Vicious Gods.
The white death Idmus and black death Paramus.
The split entities had taken the form of demonic swords with sprouting limbs.
Mitra broke out in cold sweat and swallowed a groan at the horrific sight, but there was no avoiding it.
[Ugh.]
"Close your eyes and eat."
She even covered the golden gem with her palm for him.
[Uuugh.]
Mitra grumbled in distress but didn't refuse to eat.
Cheon-ho and Lucille brought Mitra to the Four Vicious Gods' corpse. Golden light flared from Mitra's blade as always.
[Kugh.]
[Urk.]
Letting out pained groans, Mitra absorbed the two fragments of the Four Vicious Gods. True to their name, the absorption process was far more grueling than with Soul Eaters. It took much longer too.
But as expected of the Four Vicious Gods.
The moment absorption completed, Mitra felt power surging through her entire body. She'd achieved a leap in rank that an ordinary magic sword couldn't reach even after absorbing dozens.
[Aah, aahh!]
Mitra exulted. Cheon-ho, sharing her senses, felt her ecstasy too.
She'd grown stronger. Just one more step to her ultimate form.
A light panel appeared before Cheon-ho's eyes.
The same appeared before Mitra's.
Holy Sword skills had originally been viewable only in the mental world. But with heightened sensory and ability sharing levels, it was now possible outside.
Thus, Cheon-ho and Mitra knew.
The newly acquired Holy Sword skill.
The technique just before the ultimate.
As expected, it was Clone.
Mitra let out an awkward laugh, and dozens of ideas flashed through Cheon-ho's mind simultaneously.
But that wasn't all.
One more light panel remained.
Something not originally in the Holy Sword skill tree.
But born from absorbing the mighty evil god fragment Soul Eater and now the Four Vicious Gods.
Demonic Sword Transcendence.
It surpassed Magic Sword Transformation, which had simply amplified existing demonic sword skills.
Cheon-ho blinked. Mitra uttered a dazed voice.
* * *
[The Labyrinth World remembers your astonishing tale.]
[Level increased.]
[Level increased.]
[Level increased.]
[Level...]
[...]
[Evil God Slayer title acquired.]
[Ally of the Benevolent Gods Lv1 acquired.]
[Ally of the Benevolent Gods Lv2 achieved.]
[Dawn Sword Lv3 achieved.]
[Four Guardian Kings Martial Arts Lv5 achieved.]
[...]
[Sensory Sharing Lv5 achieved.]
[Ability Sharing Lv5 achieved.]
[Holy Sword Skill: Clone Lv1 acquired.]
[Extra Skill: Demonic Sword Transcendence Lv1 acquired.]
Chapter 16? Hero's Lineage
Three years before Cheon-ho was born.
The man who returned to Earth after finishing his adventures in Phaien first sought out his parents.
It had been nearly ten years since he'd come home, but fortunately, his parents were still hale and hearty.
The man pondered. How should he explain it to them? Should he tell them everything about Phaien? And if he did, would they even believe him?
Of course, with the woman by his side, it would somehow work out. Even if his own abilities and her identity didn't prove Phaien's existence, they at least evidenced that he'd gone through something extraordinary.
"These are my parents, so behave yourself. Got it?"
"Got it, I said. Your parents are basically mine too."
The woman replied in a tone begging him to drop it. Truth be told, it was natural for her to respond that way. She'd heard variations of that line over a hundred times already.
But the man had no choice but to keep at it persistently.
Because the woman was special.
She was a transcendent being who could rightly claim to be a god.
In Phaien, no one received honorifics from her. It was questionable if she even could use them. She'd probably never done so in her life.
The man loved the woman, and she loved him back.
Thus, to her, his parents weren't ordinary humans. Regardless of their birth or abilities, they were special existences.
She truly believed that, and the man knew it.
In fact, he felt terribly sorry for repeating himself like this.
But they were his parents.
Parents he hadn't seen in nearly ten years.
In any case, the woman reaffirmed her vow earnestly, and the man went with her to meet his parents.
At the sight of their son returning after over ten years missing, the man's parents reacted with overwhelming emotion.
Crying, laughing, scolding, giving thanks.
Once they seemed somewhat calmed, the man mustered his courage and spoke of his Phaien experiences.
Summarizing over ten years' events into a three-minute spiel to avoid dragging on.
Then the man's father condensed it even further.
"You were summoned as a hero to a world called Phaien, defeated the Demon King, and came back?"
"Uh, um, yes."
It was the truth, but still hard to say outright. His face flushed red for no reason.
But the man's father was serious. Without changing expression, in a voice of pure earnestness, he continued.
"And you married this young lady you met there...?"
"Yes, Father."
The woman answered prettily. Contrary to the man's worries, she used honorifics very naturally. Her posture was elegant and refined, like a noble lady.
It was a novel tale, but the woman was Phaien's greatest beauty, and seeing such a beauty come as their daughter-in-law and respond affectionately, the man's parents couldn't help but smile.
The man's father, who had unwittingly let slip a goofy grin, shook his head as if collecting himself, then spoke with a resolute face.
"Son, it feels awfully late, but I guess it's time to come clean."
"Fath...er?"
Come clean? About what?
The man rolled his eyes sideways. His mother wore a similarly baffled expression.
The man's father looked at his wife, the man's mother, then gave a wry smile. He turned back to the man and continued.
"Our family bloodline carries the Hero's Blood."
"What?"
The man blurted without thinking, and his father flushed slightly. Clearing his throat to cover the awkwardness, he spoke in a somewhat softer voice.
"The Hero's Blood."
"Uh... because I'm a hero...?"
"Not you. Before you."
"W-Wait! You don't mean Father too?"
"No, I'm an ordinary human. So is your mother. Look at her eyes—she's thinking what nonsense is this guy spouting."
The man glanced over and nodded in understanding.
His mother wore an expression much like his own.
The man tried to stay calm. He took a deep breath and faced forward again.
"Then Grandfather?"
"No, your grandfather was an ordinary human... well, not entirely, but he lived ordinarily enough."
"Father?"
Why trail off like that?
Not ordinary—then what was he... no, what kind of person?
The man sensed the conversation starting to tangle.
His father did too.
"Anyway, for now, the closest one is your great-grandfather."
"My great-grandfather was a hero?"
"Yes."
"Like me, saving another world?"
"Yes."
The man blinked. Meanwhile, the woman looked intrigued.
His father continued.
"Son, remember the older sister next door from when you were little?"
"Mira sis?"
"Yeah, Mira sis. The one who played with you a lot back then."
"I remember."
How could he forget? He'd once liked her even more than his mom.
It was from very early childhood, but he still vaguely recalled memories with Mira sis.
Mira sis from next door.
Pretty and kind Mira sis.
Mira sis who played well with him.
"She's your great-grandmother."
"What?!"
The man shot to his feet. His mother widened her eyes.
At their reactions, the man's father couldn't help but smile. It was the storyteller's thrill.
"Your great-grandmother wasn't human."
No matter how young he was back then, a great-grandmother should look like one.
But Mira sis had been a girl in her late teens.
Grandmother.
Mira sis as great-grandmother.
As the man flailed in shock and horror, his father pressed on.
"Son, do you know about atavism?"
"Th-That thing where a genetic trait suddenly manifests after generations... right?"
"Yes, it seems it manifested in your generation."
The ancestor's blood.
The power of the hero lineage passed down through generations.
"No wonder. It makes sense. I knew you weren't just human."
No wonder he got stronger at night.
The woman murmured softly, and the man blinked. He unwittingly admitted it.
'Four Guardian Kings Martial Arts.'
One of the few items he'd brought from Phaien.
The manual for Four Guardian Kings Martial Arts, stumbled upon by chance in the warehouse.
He'd thought it like those cliché novel or comic tropes—something that had circled around and ended up in his family warehouse.
Literal serendipity.
But no.
Not chance, but inevitability.
Clearly a martial art used by his great-grandfather or great-grandmother.
"Then Mira sis... no, Great-Grandma, what was her race...?"
You said she wasn't human.
The man's father didn't answer right away. He let out a long breath.
It wasn't particularly meaningful. Just the storyteller teasing his audience.
Gulp.
Gulp.
The man, the woman, and the man's mother all swallowed dryly almost in unison.
The man's father savored the storyteller's thrill once more and opened the wardrobe.
He pulled out the carefully stored item and showed it to the man.
The thing revealing his great-grandmother's race.
The man looked at the woman, and she nodded.
It helped her understand, just a little, the power that made him stronger at night.