Chapter 167: Respect for the Sword
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 167: Respect for the Sword
‘Shit.’
No matter how great the gap in our swordsmanship was, I didn't expect to be sliced apart so instantly. To think even my brain, which I had been protecting most fiercely, would be split in half.
The blade that had wedged in from my crotch traveled precisely along my spine, cleaving all the way up to the crown of my head.
Queen Arachne’s vision had definitely detected his attack. The reason I hadn't dodged was...
‘I didn't think a move like that could actually split me in two.’
He had parried my attack with his shield while simultaneously pivoting half a turn, gripping his greatsword in a reverse-hand grip, and simply lifting it.
It was insane enough that he could effortlessly spin a greatsword—which an ordinary person would struggle to swing even with two hands—in mid-air to catch it in a reverse grip.
But the fact that my hardened exoskeleton was sliced through like butter by a sword he had just casually lifted was beyond absurd.
“Knight Lord.”
After my vision flickered and cut out, I regained consciousness to find myself back in that initial state.
“Do you know me?”
“I’ve come to borrow your sword.”
“To borrow my sword, you say...”
I had to earn his recognition. This was a guy capable of dominating my mental world and preventing me from waking up with just a single mana core. From the looks of it, he seemed far more powerful than even Tenebrax.
Just like when I first consumed the Dragon Heart, I had no guarantee that I wouldn't lose my sense of self and go on a rampage.
‘At least Iris said he was a man of moderate ideals.’
The fact that he hadn't immediately taken over my body despite possessing this much power could be seen as proof of that.
“May I ask exactly what you mean by that?”
There was only one way to leave this place alive.
“Give me your teachings. One day, I will overcome you.”
“....”
The Knight Lord tightened his grip on his sword and lightly raised his shield.
“You have excellent eyes.”
* * *
“Knight Lord!”
“Do you know me?”
“Ha, fuck’s sake, seriously. I’ve died to you way too many times.”
“You speak nonsense. Well, mental illness is common on the battlefield.”
He’s almost endearing now, this lunatic. Once the death count surpassed triple digits, I stopped counting. I’d guess I’ve died about 200 times, though.
“Let’s trade some blows.”
“Regrettably, I have no hobby of cutting down the sick. I can, however, treat you with the courtesy due to a prisoner.”
“Can’t you be a little less serious?”
Our first conversations always went like this. Having developed a sense of internal familiarity, I spoke casually, while the Knight Lord looked at me like I was a madman.
But in my perception, it had already been days since we started clashing blades. We hadn't rested or slept; we just kept crossing swords. The reason 200 deaths only felt like a few days was because I was being sliced up as easily as tofu.
I think it was around the eighth time. I wondered if I could talk him around, so I tried channeling my inner Dr. Oh Eun-young to rehabilitate this "problem child" who knew nothing but his sword and shield.
‘As always, it ended with a test of skill and me being turned into cube steak.’
Thus, I found a method. A so-called "tutorial skip." I was sick of the conversation leading up to the fight.
—Clack!
“...Very well.”
“That’s more like it.”
A gesture honoring the honor between knights. Holding the sword in the right hand with the blade facing forward, raising it vertically to shoulder height. Then, bringing the right hand to the heart.
It was like a skip button; this one gesture initiated combat immediately.
The problem was...
—BOOM!!!
“Ugh...!”
He came at me with terrifying sincerity. It seemed he believed holding back was a dishonor.
* * *
“Knight Lord. Tell me about your first love.”
“You are a madman.”
“No, really.”
* * *
“Do you have a family?”
“...Die.”
“What, you motherfucker.”
* * *
“Where did you learn to use a sword?”
“The world was my master. Life is the lesson, and I am always the student.”
“That’s cool. I’m gonna use that line later.”
* * *
*
*
*
* * *
—Clink....
“Knight Lord. Let’s cross swords. If I beat you this time, you have to do me a small favor.”
“Have we crossed swords before?”
“Just now, and before that. And before that, too. Constantly.”
—Clack!
“On my honor as a knight.”
“...Very well. On my honor as a knight.”
The Knight Lord stepped down from the pile of corpses, took his stance, and wreathed his sword in Aura. Somewhere along the line, I started to see it. I felt like I could read his emotions through the Aura Blade.
—Crackle!
‘Here he comes.’
I began to see mana gathering at his feet. I realized the Direwolf Alpha’s vision had become even more sophisticated at detecting mana.
—BOOM!!
Almost simultaneously with the explosive sound of him crushing the ground, a diagonal downward slash came at me. He intended to carve out my entire upper right torso.
Screeeech—!
I met the blade at a perfect angle, parrying it and letting it slide off to the right. As I thrust my shield toward his exposed flank—
‘He’s going to spin back and clash shields...!’
A large shield has only one fixed point in the center. If an attack hits the top or bottom of the shield, it inevitably tilts and slips. The way to prevent that is to swing the shield horizontally.
—Thump!!
Even if the opponent blocks the surprise attack, I have to follow up immediately. I thrust the sword I’d pulled back between his legs and lifted.
—Thud!
The blade got stuck in the ground as the Knight Lord stepped on it with his metal greave. It looked like I was in danger, but he was the one taking a gamble. As long as his two feet weren't planted on the ground, I held the advantage in any situation.
The strength left his shield as we struggled for dominance. Because his foot had left the ground...!
“Hyaaaah...!!”
I pushed forward without pulling my shield away, shifting my weight. The weight he’d used to step on my blade slipped away. I recovered the sword instantly. A deep lunge.
—Screech!!
He twisted his upper body to dodge. To prevent him from trapping my sword against his side, I quickly struck it against the ground and delivered a shallow cut to his left thigh.
“Sss...”
The trajectory was short, so the power was low. But the aftereffects would be significant.
—Whoosh!
The range of motion in his left leg decreased. A horizontal slash came flying in an instant; I lowered my body and met his sword diagonally, parrying it upward.
Recovering a sword that has been swung is easier when it's parried upward rather than downward. Parrying his sword upward might actually work in his favor.
However, that makes the next attack faster and the timing easier to predict. By parrying his sword upward, my own sword received downward force, and my sword was harder to recover than his.
—Crash!!
‘I knew it...!’
Predicting his sword would be faster, the Knight Lord drove the upward-parried sword straight back down. Since I had already given up on recovering my sword and pivoted my body, I could easily dodge it.
The sword the Knight Lord currently held, stuck in the ground, was harder to recover than the sword I held, which had been swung downward.
Which meant... my next attack would be faster...!
“Hup...!!”
—Screech!!
‘Is he insane...?!’
I intended to swing my sword horizontally to cut him, but he wedged his body beneath his greatsword that was stuck in the ground. Simultaneously, he pushed the blade with his shoulder as he rose, pulling the sword from the earth; his recovery was faster than I anticipated.
However, the sword I swung struck the Knight Lord’s sword before he could fully stand, causing him to stagger for a moment.
Whoosh—!
Without fully pulling back the force of the horizontal slash, I spun my body, using the rotational momentum to thrust my shield.
—Bang!!
He raised his shield to block as well, but my attack was delivered from a much more stable position.
“Whew....”
“Excellent skill.”
“Ha... finally.”
The Knight Lord used the impact of the shield bash to put distance between us. How much time had passed since we first crossed swords for me to finally land more effective hits than him? As each bout grew longer, I learned more from him, mastering the Knight Lord’s swordsmanship at an even faster rate.
“You said I must grant you a favor.”
“Yeah.”
“What is this favor?”
“Lend me your strength. That is my request.”
“I am curious to know for what purpose that strength is needed.”
I had finally earned recognition of my skill from the Knight Lord. It had taken roughly 500 attempts. Through being sliced over and over, I’d even learned how to survive having my brain split in half.
But such things were meaningless to the Knight Lord. He only cared about seeing true swordsmanship. Even if I won by firing destruction rays from my eyes or paralyzing him with Evil Eye magic.
Ultimately, if it wasn't through the sword, I couldn't move his heart.
“I’ll skip the trivial details.”
“Very well.”
“I was dragged to a foreign land against my will. I have a mother lying in a hospital bed and a younger sister who needs to go to school.”
“....”
“I am building my strength so I can return. It has to be me.”
The Knight Lord fell silent. That silence felt like an eternity, though in reality, it was likely only a fleeting moment.
—Whoosh...!
Indigo flames flickered over the wound I’d carved into his left thigh. The time was brief, but afterward, his gait returned to normal.
“...Tell me your name.”
“Yoo Eon. It’s Yoo Eon. A name my biological mother gave me with pride.”
The Knight Lord plunged his sword into the ground before him and bowed his head slightly.
“I pay my respects to your sword.”
“Thanks, Knight Lord.”
* * *
“Gasp!”
I opened my eyes, but my vision was blurry. My heart was pounding as if it were about to explode, and my back felt incredibly damp, likely from cold sweat.
“Am I back...?”
A strange scent pricked my nose. Was I smelling my own sweat because I’d perspired so much?
—Drip, drop...
“Uh, what the?”
A few drops of liquid fell onto my right shoulder. Turning my head slightly, I saw Iris sitting on the table, masturbating.
“You’re, you’re... awake... ugh.”
“No way.”
Shit. It wasn't sweat that had soaked my upper body.
“This bitch, seriously.”
Grip—
When I pinched Iris’s nipple hard, liquid leaked out.
“Eek...”
—Pshhhhh....