Chapter 89
Chapter 89
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: True Moon Blade and Sun Wheel Blade
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〈 89화 〉 True Moon Blade and Sun Wheel Blade
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As soon as the sunset glow flickered out, the imperial treasury returned to silence.
‘It wasn’t a dream.’
The iron sword was still embedded exactly where it had been before, and when Roca grasped and pulled it free, it came out easily this time.
Once drawn, it was nothing more than an ordinary iron sword without any mystical properties or divine power. The supernatural essence that had dwelled within it had taken root as a seed and seeped into Roca’s very being, leaving only this empty husk behind.
“Thank you.”
The grateful wolf lowered her head in thanks. Regardless, the swordless swordsman—a complete stranger—had kindly taught her all sorts of things without a master of his own. She had no idea where he had gone, but one thing was certain.
If she reached the first-rate realm he had spoken of, she would probably be able to track down Heron’s whereabouts. For now, lacking the qualifications, all she could do was offer her gratitude.
‘He said the blade doesn’t suit me as well as the saber.’
In a world where not getting pickpocketed was already good luck, that man had even filled her pockets with all sorts of things.
There was no reason for such a person to lie and deceive his successor, so Roca decided to look for a saber. She reinserted the iron sword back into its place and searched for one suitable for a child to wield.
Hum!
As she glanced around, Roca suddenly spotted a single saber. The moment she saw it, glowing with a soft moonlight as if forged from moonstone, the lunar mana within her resonated and vibrated.
—True Moon Blade.
Below the saber’s guard, a nameplate was inscribed. Someone had written it there to reveal the weapon’s origins.
—Blade used by the Moon Maiden, Master of Moonlight, Terezia.
As if entranced, the girl reached out and stroked the blade. No matter how it had been forged, the impossibly smooth surface like ice activated the moon’s power with each touch, turning the spot transparent where her hand made contact.
—One of the legacies left by the ancient dwarven race. Its power amplifies when used together with its twin blade, the Sun Wheel Blade.
Long ago, the artisan dwarves had crafted these weapons to recreate the power of sun and moon upon the earth.
Of that pair, the one symbolizing the moon—the True Moon Blade—now rested in Roca’s hands.
She didn’t need to look at anything else; it fit her perfectly. Just as she lifted the saber,
Boom!
A loud explosion rang out from outside, and the ground seemed to tremble slightly.
“W-What’s going on?”
Roca poked her head out the treasury door and asked the elderly keeper, trying to hide her bewilderment. She worried that this commotion might have been caused by her drawing the True Moon Blade.
“Hmm, no idea. It doesn’t seem to be coming from inside the palace, but you’d best hurry back. Just in case, I’ll close this place off for now.”
It didn’t appear that someone was using the disturbance to raid the imperial treasury, but he had to prepare for any possibility—that was his duty. Seeing that Roca had already chosen her weapon, the old man continued.
“That’s the Moon Maiden’s True Moon Blade, eh? Not bad for a young one to pick.”
“Is it good?”
“You pick it and then ask me? Of course it is. The only downside is that it was originally made as a pair—one becoming two—so it can’t unleash its full power without its twin, the Sun Wheel Blade. Even so, the Moon Maiden of old became a continental legend wielding just this one.”
Sun Wheel Blade? Roca asked absentmindedly.
“I didn’t see it in here, but where’s the Sun Wheel Blade?”
“Kid, if the empire had gathered both the True Moon Blade and Sun Wheel Blade, it would be a treasure on the level of the Dragon Fang Sword—they wouldn’t leave it in a place like this. They’d hide it far more securely. But that’s not the case. Nope, not at all.”
“So where is the Sun Wheel Blade?”
“It ended up in the hands of that ancient demon king, Grimudo. No one could steal the Sun Wheel Blade from him, so the two blades will never be in one person’s hands again.”
The treasury keeper chuckled. He didn’t hide the truth from Roca.
There was no need to. Even if he told her, she couldn’t obtain the Sun Wheel Blade. If it were that easy, the empire would have already sent their powerhouses to retrieve it.
“To him, the Sun Wheel Blade was no different from a dog bone, even though he’d gone to the trouble of acquiring it. That bastard just fed the treasured saber to a monster. So right now, the Sun Wheel Blade is probably sitting in the belly of the Monster Sovereign. That thing possesses solar power all because of it.”
The Sun Wheel Blade was currently digesting peacefully inside the belly of the immortal monster bird, Phoenix.
That crimson nightmare spewed endless flames. No matter how vast a human army, it was like ants charging into lava—they’d just produce piles of charred remains, unable to extinguish it.
There were far cheaper, simpler, and more ethical ways to make charcoal, so even knowing its location, the empire made no attempt to reclaim the Sun Wheel Blade.
Grimudo was fearsome, of course, but the fundamental reason was that even one Phoenix was too much to handle.
“Monster Sovereign?”
Seeing Roca’s interest piqued, the old man’s eyes sparkled.
Already bored, he closed the treasury door, sat down in front of it, and beckoned Roca over. He kept his senses alert around them, but the commotion seemed to be coming from outside the palace, not his jurisdiction.
“It’s another name for the immortal monster bird, Phoenix. You wouldn’t know why it’s called the Monster Sovereign. That thing is the primordial demon king’s most cherished herald and harbinger of doom. The demon king rarely acts personally. His monster legions handle everything under his command.”
When it came to Grimudo and his monster legions, the old man was something of an authority. After all, how many could claim to have returned alive from facing that one?
Unaware of the old man’s feats, Roca looked bored. She didn’t dare interrupt and quietly listened to his tale.
In her head, she just wished it would end soon.
“Oh dear, has this old man taken up too much of your time?”
“No, it was very enlightening.”
“Kid, loosen up that expression when you say it.”
The hermit Geher laughed heartily. With a flick of his finger, a scythe hanging on the wall tore through the air with a bursting sound and floated to his side.
“Long ago, Moon Maiden Terezia was called the Master of Masters, the Grand Master. Truth be told, the title isn’t all that special. If you claim to be above all other Masters of your era, you’re a Grand Master.”
Roca’s ears drooped, thinking it was another dull old story, but the old man’s words were utterly unexpected.
“Since you’ve become the successor of such a woman, I’d like to see your skills. How about some exercise with this old man to help you digest?”
“Successor? Me? I didn’t even see that person!”
Roca’s eyes widened round. She knew what successor meant.
Something like disciple, right? But what connection did she have to the Moon Maiden? If it had been Heron’s successor, she might have accepted it.
“You may not have seen her, but the blade did. Weapons forged by the now-extinct dwarves aren’t like ordinary dead weapons. They live and breathe. The Moon Maiden’s saber arts are imprinted within it.”
Of course, this wasn’t a challenge.
For someone like Geher to duel Roca would be like an adult racing a child.
Winning was a given, and losing wouldn’t just be embarrassing—it would mean admitting he’d become obsolete and waiting for his coffin. All he’d gain from sparring was the infamy of bullying a junior.
“I’ll teach you how to draw out that power. And it’s not just for your sake. This old man wants to witness the Moon Maiden’s Moon Saber Arts too.”
It would be a spar, closer to one-sided instruction. Roca welcomed it. Though she held the True Moon Blade, she had no idea how to wield it.
The swordless swordsman had said the saber suited her, so she’d picked one, but this was the first time in her life she’d ever held a saber. Geher smiled.
“I’m a farmer from the countryside. I spent my whole life tilling fields and only stepped outside the village for the first time in middle age, hoe in hand.”
“Why?”
“I’d rather not say, so let’s skip that. Anyway, I’ve been through it all—things I should and shouldn’t have. Realizing I’d live by the blade after a lifetime as a farmer, I figured I needed to master whatever I held. Not to brag, but I can wield just about any weapon.”
In his youth, under the alias Hans, he had reigned as the Mercenary King. Not only basic weapons like spears, swords, axes, hammers, and polearms, but even unconventional ones like flails, fans, whips—he handled them all near-perfectly, earning the title Weapon Master.
After his defeat to Grimudo, he had cast off all that fame to become the hermit Geher, but the prowess of those days hadn’t vanished. He was an expert on sabers too.
“Let’s see how much you can learn.”
Even without knowing the details, Roca could instinctively sense he was incredibly powerful.
She had no reason to refuse such a teacher. She’d learned from Ardane’s example that a master was unbelievably more efficient than wandering alone.
“That scythe breaks, don’t blame me.”
As Roca steeled her resolve, the old man laughed in amusement.
“This scythe? I bought it on my way back from drinks to tend the backyard. Let’s see if that fancy blade of yours can even scratch it.”
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