Chapter 22
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: The Secret of the Holy Sword
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Only Chris could make the holy sword submit.
That was the truth.
‘Not even the Demon King could do it, due to the nature of the holy sword’s blind spot.’
Submission.
Actually, that wasn't it.
The reason Chris could handle the holy sword—or more accurately, the reason he could hold it without issue—was because he was exploiting a loophole in the principle that made the sword reject magi.
In other words, a trick.
‘Far from making it submit, I’m gingerly handling it, walking on eggshells using a workaround.’
Whatever. It didn't matter.
Whether it was through submission or a trick, the important thing was that the holy sword was in his hand.
"Impressive. To make the holy sword submit. But have you truly subjugated it?"
Melin asked, standing in the training grounds.
"Not completely. About halfway… I suppose?"
In truth, it was less than half of a half—he was practically groveling to it—but he said it with confidence.
"If you're starting to admire me, feel free to just pledge your loyalty."
Melin smiled.
"You're certainly an interesting one, Young Master. This is fun."
With those words,
*Fwoosh!*
Melin lunged.
She was fast.
It was a speed incomparable to when she had used her 1-Star magi before.
‘I can’t keep up with her speed.’
Chris acknowledged it.
The gap in their skill, or more precisely, their ‘weight class,’ was just too vast.
The physical abilities and magi he could command were no match for hers.
But it didn't matter.
Why else had he gone through all the trouble to acquire the holy sword?
‘Up high. A downward slash!’
He couldn't match her speed, but he could predict her movements.
That allowed him to react, even with his slower speed.
Reacting would be meaningless if she could just shatter his defense with overwhelming power, but what Chris held in his hand was the holy sword.
The natural enemy of magi.
*Clang!*
Melin’s descending sword clashed with the broken holy sword.
The magi enveloping Melin’s blade dissipated against the holy sword’s neutralizing effect. It was the same principle as fire and water meeting, both turning to steam.
Only then did Melin realize what Chris had meant earlier.
—An exceptional weapon can certainly close a gap in power.
Chris had brought the holy sword as a countermeasure against her magi!
No matter how skilled he was, he stood no chance if she simply overwhelmed him with powerful magi.
‘So you think you can face me as long as you can block my magi?’
Melin scoffed.
Magi was just one of her many strengths.
The true power of a Majin who specialized in demonic combat was their martial arts, honed to the extreme.
Melin began to press Chris in earnest.
Her signature powerful sword strikes rained down on him.
*Clang! Clang!*
Chris was pushed back.
He was clearly outmatched.
He looked as if he might fall to his knees at any moment, but as time passed, Melin's expression grew more and more perplexed.
‘He’s blocking my attacks? All of them?’
Though he was clearly struggling, he hadn't allowed a single clean hit.
Melin soon understood why.
‘He’s reading my attacks. And he’s doing it in advance.’
In advance.
That was the key.
Before she even extended her arm, Chris was already moving, as if he had glimpsed the future and knew exactly how her attack would come.
At first, she thought it was a coincidence.
It wasn't.
If it were a coincidence, the same thing wouldn't be happening over and over again.
‘How on earth…?’
Melin’s face was a mask of disbelief.
Of course, predicting an opponent's movements wasn't impossible.
The higher one's level and the deeper one's understanding of martial arts, the more naturally one could read an opponent's actions.
Melin herself could often see the next move of a lower-level opponent with perfect clarity.
But this wasn't the case with Chris.
In fact, Chris was predicting her movements through an entirely different method.
‘I happen to have a pretty keen eye.’
There are commonalities in the movements of swordsmanship.
For example, to execute a certain move, one must inevitably assume a certain posture.
Just as you have to raise your hand to swing down.
And before that posture, there was another required motion.
To raise a hand, one must first move the muscles of the shoulder and upper arm.
This was a common factor, regardless of whether one was a master or a novice.
And Chris, with his vast knowledge from the past, had a deep understanding of human movement. With his exceptional eye, he was catching these minute motions and predicting her next move.
Meanwhile, the spectators watching their duel stood with their mouths shut tight.
They were in shock.
"…What do you think, sister? Was I not right?"
"…"
"He may be my son, but he is a true genius."
"…Do you even hear yourself?"
"Pardon?"
Count Cazar frowned.
Merian had never liked Christian, thanks to all the ruffianly deeds he'd committed.
But his talent was undeniable, wasn't it?
Who else could pull off something like this?
No young lord from the main house could block the sword of a 4-Star Majin while being only a 1-Star.
"At this rate, he’s even better than you were at his age…"
"It's not just 'that much,' you fool!"
"…What did you say?"
"Can't you see it? The way that boy, Christian, is moving his magi!"
As Merian raised her voice, Count Cazar's eyes widened.
Only then did he see it.
The movement of Christian's magi was bizarre.
The flow was unnatural, and the magi in his core was showing a strange tremor.
"Why…?"
Count Cazar frowned, unable to understand.
The son he knew had displayed magi control so exquisite it was hard to believe he was only a 1-Star.
During training, his control had been perfectly stable, without a single tremor.
‘Could there be a problem with Christian’s core?’
But that didn't seem right either.
Count Cazar realized Chris was intentionally moving his magi in that way.
But why?
Wasn't that like fighting while juggling his magi?
"I don't understand why he's doing that."
"…Hah, you don't understand? I suppose you wouldn't."
"Sister?"
"He's deliberately moving his magi like that to avoid the holy sword's rejection!"
"!!"
Merian pressed her lips together.
‘Insane. Does a human capable of such a thing really exist?’
She was the daughter of the Demonic Lord, Duke Nordian.
The daughter most favored by Nordian among his many children.
That was why she had been there when the Old Lord had attempted to subjugate Grunade.
—I'm not doing it.
—Even you cannot do it, my lord?
—No, it's not that I can't, it's that I won't. It’s too dirty and cheap a trick.
The Old Lord grumbled as he looked at the broken holy sword.
—It's possible. If you have an insane sense for magi manipulation.
—Has your own magi control not reached the pinnacle, Father?
—It’s not something you can do just by reaching a high level. This requires an innate talent, the ability to handle magi as naturally as breathing. On top of that, you’d need two brains in your head.
—??
The Old Lord explained it piece by piece.
—What is magi?
—It is essence converted into the energy of darkness. Mana is essence converted into the energy of light.
—Then what is darkness? And what is light?
—…
Merian couldn't answer easily.
She knew, and yet she didn't know; such were 'darkness' and 'light.' It was that difficult a question.
—Even a high-ranking Majin like you can't answer that easily. So how would this thing, the holy sword, distinguish between darkness and radiance? It’s nothing but an inanimate object.
—…
—It’s about its properties. Magi has unique properties that differ from mana. The holy sword uses various magical methods to detect those properties. Usually, it detects them by comparing wavelengths. Magi and mana have fundamentally different wavelengths.
The Old Lord flicked Grunade with his finger.
Surprisingly, despite the contact, the holy sword didn't react.
—But this thing is broken, so the part that senses those wavelengths is partially lost.
—Then?
—It means it's possible to trick it by operating your magi at a wavelength it can't detect. The fallen hero was probably able to use it because his wavelength happened to match.
The Old Lord continued to flick the holy sword as if playing with it.
The sword remained unresponsive.
—Then can’t you handle it too, Father? Bending the wavelength of magi is a simple matter for you.
—While fighting in a real battle?
—…
Merian didn't answer.
The Old Lord flicked the holy sword hard, as if to spite it.
*Zing.* The sword trembled as if in pain.
—It would work for a moment. But as you know, the wavelength of magi constantly changes with every movement. That means with every move, you'd have to endlessly modulate it to a wavelength this thing can't detect.
—…That would be impossible.
—Indeed. If there were someone who could do it, they would have to be born with the ability to handle magi as naturally as breathing.
The Old Lord continued.
—And that’s not all. You’d have to be able to fight while performing this circus act with your magi. One mistake, and you'd suffer an internal collapse. It’s not something a human can do.
The Old Lord added one last thing.
—That person would be a crazy monster who finds handling magi easier than breathing, gifted with an innate sense and two brains. Not that such a human exists. Perhaps a demon from Gehenna… or a demon dragon might be able to do it.
Such a human would not exist in this world.
Merian had agreed with him.
Changing the wavelength of magi was a matter of innate talent.
It required being born with a sense that allowed one to move magi as naturally as breathing.
But even such individuals couldn't wield the holy sword.
Because this trick had to be performed while fighting an opponent.
As the Old Lord had said, it was impossible unless one had two separate minds—one to control the magi, and one to focus on the fight.
And yet, the impossible was unfolding before her.
‘And he’s not just fighting. To think he’s predicting Melin’s movements while performing that kind of circus act with his magi?’
Just one of those things would be astounding, but he was pulling off several unbelievable feats at once.
"…You are incredible."
Unable to break through, Melin retreated a step and began to conjure black magic.