Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Former Sword Saint and Man-Hating Disciple (6)
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Karin's sword, which had sliced through the necks of the two men one after another, now turned toward the man in the bear mask.
Unlike before, having tasted blood, Karin's blade had grown a level stronger.
The aura emanating from that sword was reminiscent of Yuri himself.
"...Who would've thought a little girl like you could take out two of our boys. Sure, they were only half-assed peaks, but still."
"As expected, they weren't proper peak experts."
She had anticipated as much.
No matter how skilled Karin was, her opponents were undoubtedly peak experts too.
Of course, the gap between novice and mastery was wider than between first-rate and third-rate, but something still felt off.
Both had been cut down by Karin's sword without even landing a single exchange.
"It's the result of relying on drugs. But I'm different from those two up front. Surrender now, and I'll make you my woman."
"No thanks."
"Ho ho. A woman needs spirit to be a good one, after all."
The sinister smile beneath the bear mask sent chills down her spine.
'This guy's the real deal... a peak expert, and at the same mastery level as me.'
Unlike the previous two, his presence felt entirely different.
A power on par with hers, or perhaps greater.
A life-or-death duel with him would be an experience worthy of the name.
—Whoooing!!
As Karin raised her sword, it let out a resonant hum.
Proof that the blade sensed him as a dangerous foe, just like her survival instincts.
"I'll fuck you like a dog. Hahaha!!"
The bear-masked man hefted a massive greatsword that looked to weigh at least a hundred kilos and closed the distance.
Karin responded in kind, straightening her blade.
The moment their eyes met, sword strikes flew from both sides without hesitation.
—Kagagagang!!!
The greatsword crushed down on Karin's blade with sheer weight and power.
As a heavy sword practitioner, the force behind that massive blade was no joke.
'Better avoid a head-on clash.'
Her master Yuri had taught her that there was nothing stupider than facing a heavy sword user straight-on.
Heavy swords were sturdy and weighty, unleashing their greatest might from the front.
'...Of course, their weaknesses are just as clear-cut.'
Despite their immense destructive power, few wielded heavy swords for a simple reason.
Their flaws were obvious.
Especially with a greatsword—its weight made trajectory adjustments and rapid strikes difficult.
The ideal counter was measured parries to gradually wear down the enemy.
"Nngh...!"
She angled her blade to deflect the greatsword while thrusting swiftly to slash the bear mask's side.
Of course, she had to hit and retreat quickly, so the wound was shallow—but the point was, the enemy was injured.
"...Insolent bitch!"
—Whoooing!!
Unlike before, the greatsword now swung heavily from the side, cleaving the air.
One solid hit would surely be fatal, but the attack was predictably straightforward.
Dodging with minimal movement and a parry was feasible.
—Kaaang!
Karin's sword, looking three times thinner than the bear mask's, deflected the man's blade once more.
The instant the enemy's sword slammed into the ground,
Karin's blade tore into the bear mask's shoulder.
"Guh...!"
A shallow but undeniable wound.
Aware of it, the bear mask began swinging his sword with even greater ferocity and weight.
—Whung whung
Mighty slashes tearing through the empty air with ferocious momentum.
But in battle, impatience was a sin.
"Wearing a bear mask—did it turn your brain into a bear's too?"
—Slash!
Her blade ripped across the bear mask's body.
It was pure, one-sided domination.
Deflect the greatsword's swing, counterattack.
After several cycles of this, the bear mask's body was a shredded mess of wounds.
"W-what the hell are you? The intel from upstairs didn't mention anyone like you!"
Battered and broken, he raised his voice in accusation.
She had no reason to answer, so she replied with silence, raising her blade.
A stance signaling the end of this drawn-out fight.
"Goddamn it. Gonna kill me, huh?"
Instinctively sensing his imminent death, the man let out a hollow laugh and dropped his greatsword.
"...You're really a swordswoman?"
Facing an enemy, for a swordsman to discard their blade was an implicit surrender, steeling oneself for death.
A more shameful act than a wound in the back.
"Ha! Better than dying, isn't it?"
"...And you call yourself a warrior?"
Judging by the killing intent permeating his body, this man had slain far more than a hundred souls.
For such a killer to now discard his sword and beg for mercy.
As Karin regarded him with pity and contempt,
The man who had dropped his greatsword vanished from sight in an instant.
"Wha...!?"
He had been there moments ago, but now he was gone.
Startled, she spread her senses—and gasped in horror.
"...Didn't they teach you not to drop your guard in battle, girl?"
The man who had signaled surrender just ten seconds ago now gripped her throat and hoisted her up.
"H-how...?"
It made no sense.
The foe she had been overwhelming unilaterally was suddenly stepping into transcendent realm, overpowering her.
As Karin racked her brain in confusion,
The bear mask, as if resolving his final curiosity before death, answered her bewilderment.
"Our Presia inscribes spells into the body for emergencies like this."
"What...?"
"What the empire calls the Reckless Elixir, I think?"
The Reckless Elixir.
Even Karin, raised in the empire's magical nobility, had heard of it.
A bizarre spell blending shamanism and magic—a forbidden alchemy that forcibly elevated one's realm, whether mage or martial artist.
The realm rose with 100% certainty, but the user’s mind began crumbling in tandem.
Due to the mental collapse causing widespread harm, it was banned as forbidden alchemy.
And this man claimed to have used it himself.
"You... that thing...!"
"You know. Slowly dying. But better than dying shamefully to a girl, right?"
"And you're still calling yourself a warrior?"
"A warrior's pride? Bullshit. It's all kid's play and hypocrisy."
Sneering at Karin's words, the bear mask tightened his grip on her throat.
Her oxygen supply dwindled, and her mind grew hazy.
She teetered on the brink of life and death.
Her dimming vision signaled a lean toward death.
'...If only I hadn't let my guard down.'
It was all her fault for getting careless.
She had relaxed when he disarmed, allowing the counterattack.
She hadn't killed cleanly and swiftly, giving him time for the elixir.
'To think I showed this many openings.'
She felt ashamed of herself for lecturing others about exploiting gaps.
'How can I face Master...?'
Yuri's face, always warning her against carelessness, floated in her mind.
Why, at death's door, it was Yuri's face instead of family—she didn't know.
But seeing it brought her strange comfort.
As strength ebbed from her body and her sight blackened completely,
"Let go of her, you fucking bastard."
A familiar, reassuring voice arrived alongside a flying sword from afar.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Was he truly one of Presia's high executives? The old man in the white mask was stronger than expected.
To hold out this long.
"M-monster!! Are you even human?!"
Calling me a monster at his whim and shrieking like a banshee.
Pathetic, for someone his age to lose all dignity.
"Damn. I fought you with respect for your elders, and you still bitch."
"W-what!? You arrogant bastard!!!"
A dozen swords floated behind the old man.
Showing off as a transcendent, mimicking Qi-controlled flying swords.
A bit flashy with the levitation spells, though.
"...Wouldn't it be better to just swing them normally?"
"Y-you!!"
Without true resonance and unity with the blades to control them from afar, floating swords in the air had no merit.
Just looks cool. Compared to standard swordsmanship, it lagged in power, speed, and finesse—a one-trick style.
It offered none of the real benefits of true Qi Sword Control.
—Whoooing! Whung!!
I bared my teeth in a grin at the old man.
At least he'd go comfortably.
"Let me show you the real thing, so watch closely."
—Whoooing!!
The moment my sword resonated, it righted itself in midair.
"T-the real...!?"
"You've seen something cool, so no regrets in death, right?"
"What are you—Gahk!!"
Before the old man finished speaking, my swordtip had pierced his gut and returned to hovering.
My killing intent must've spurred it to move ahead of my command.
'Alright, time to check on Karin. She'll win, but just in case.'