The Bloom of Eyes – The Sudden Awakening of the Sword God
“Kyaaaah!”
The attack came without any warning. Lancelot and Ariel collapsed where they stood, their screams ringing out in pure despair.
“Lancelot! Ariel!”
“Haha, no need to worry. Their pulses are still there. If they drop here, their friends will get to watch me take the life they hold dear.”
The Blood Lion strode forward with deliberate slowness, his words dripping with arrogant certainty. The scene was soaked in the unmistakable arrogance of a man who believed he was already the victor.
“……!”
The fingers wrapped around the hilt of my sword trembled violently. But the odds were stacked so heavily against me. A 7th-rank master who had no intention of holding back was simply too strong.
“Kuahaha! The world we live in is fundamentally different from yours!”
Swoosh! CRASH!
A ferocious roar split the air as the Blood Lion lunged. Crimson mana immediately flooded the space around him like blood from a ruptured vein. I raised my blade to block, but the torrent of mana he unleashed slammed into my entire body once more.
Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
“Kugh…!”
From scalp to soles, random showers of blood rained down, widening every wound. The world before my eyes began to blur as ordinary circulation failed.
Crunch!
I ground my teeth until they ached, forcing the overwhelming mana into my body and standing my ground against the tide of raw power. This path led to ruin. I needed something—something powerful. Something truly powerful.
“It ends here. Die!”
Flash!
The pitch-black blade dropped like lightning. I twisted desperately to evade, but the difference in speed was night and day.
Shatter!
“……ugh!”
The slash had not been fatal. But it had shattered my will to fight.
A long, jagged gash opened along my side. Fresh blood began to pour freely, confirming it was no ordinary wound.
Clatter!
I backed away, breathing hard, and forced my mind to steady.
*More strength.*
I needed strength.
Strength.
*Strength powerful enough to protect everyone!*
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
The Blood Lion’s blade carved arcs of blood as he charged. I dodged at the last instant, barely missing the pool of his own dripping blood.
* * *
Clang!
“Kuuhng!”
“Hahaha! You really won’t give up, huh? Fine, I’ll grant you that much resolve!”
The Blood Lion toyed with me, savoring every second of my pain. His goal had never been victory in battle. He relished the slow, exquisite agony of making his prey thrash and die.
Shatter!
“Hihihi!”
Fresh crimson blood burst forth again. The Blood Lion licked his lips. He was already savoring the taste he imagined.
“Don’t give up. Do you know what this moment can bring?”
“……khah! Khah!”
The mana-reinforced body screamed. Even speaking felt like a luxury I could not afford; every breath was an effort.
*…Enlightenment?*
Spurt! Spurt!
I focused on the blood pouring from every cut and forced the question into my mind.
What is enlightenment?
If I possessed it, could I turn this hopeless battle around?
“Khah! Khah!”
“Haha. The end is nearly here. My favorite scene.”
The Blood Lion’s mocking laughter washed over me as I once more recalled the question.
Enlightenment. The thing that separates one rank from another. If that is all it takes, could I defeat him? Where in the world would such a ridiculous setting exist?
“Enlightenment… enlightenment…”
My eyes sank deeper into the abyss of despair. In this situation, only one hope remained.
.
.
.
Enlightenment.
My legs moved on their own, resisting the relentless blades and mana. Yet an unyielding will pierced the fog in my mind like never before.
“Enlightenment… the act of moving forward, shattering one’s own past. Like a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis, leaving behind a miserable old story and blooming into something glorious.”
And then—
“Destroying the world without hesitation. Freeing oneself from the chains of reality.”
Whoosh!
In an instant, every emotion I had ever felt flooded my mind like a tidal wave. It replayed every second of my life in vivid, merciless detail.
Despair upon falling into an alien world.
The terror of the orc that once nearly claimed me.
The tension born of the challenger’s resolve.
My mother’s love.
The bond of friendship.
The unconditional faith of my supporters.
The innocent affection of an unknown childhood friend.
The assassin’s malice.
The sage’s affection for the one who taught me.
Helplessness before an enemy I could never defy.
And then—
Naturally, my head rose in fury. Or despair. Hatred. Those very emotions.
“Moreover—without rejecting any of them.”
Sssss!
Even though my body bled out in endless crimson, my vision cleared as though a filter had been lifted from a video.
The sensation expanded. It was not merely the growth of past sensations. The very world—my world—began to lose color. The monochrome reality shook violently.
Crack!
I felt it.
Something was shattering. Fine powder formed, too fine to be gathered again.
“Shattering the world while holding onto what is precious.”
A single miraculous fact surfaced.
The world I had just left was overflowing with every brilliant color. Vivid, like a photograph developed in living color.
But the world before me was different.
The world in front of me was monochrome. Yet strangely, this fact did not feel like a curse. The reason was simple. I already knew who would paint it with color.
*Me. And everyone beside me.*
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
The miracle unfolded at that very instant.
The sword I held in both hands trembled. It was not mere exhaustion. A massive crack spread across the blade like a great fault line.
Ssshhhh…
“What, what now? What is this?”
The Blood Lion’s smug expression vanished. His eyes widened in genuine shock.
He could not comprehend what was happening. The very idea of obtaining enlightenment during combat was something he had never imagined.
The one truth he had overlooked:
The opponent was me. A transmigrator wrapped in blessings thicker than any hero’s. And right now, the man who most desperately wished to become stronger than anyone on the continent.
Clang!
The trembling sword shattered into countless pieces, landing with a thunderous crash on the black floor like glass on stone.
“Y-you! You bastard! Where the hell did this monster come from?!”
The Blood Lion staggered back, sword raised in disbelief. He recognized the scene exactly.
This was the butterfly emerging from the cocoon, the transcendent trapped in the world, the hero drenched in blood finally revealing himself before the eyes of the world. In other words…
…Enlightenment.
The mocking tone of his own voice had been met by something actual, something that had truly occurred.
“Die, you monster!”
Panicked, the Blood Lion rushed forward.
In that split-second, he understood everything. This was his last chance. Otherwise, the formless blade that had once shattered would pierce his heart.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
“————.”
The pitch-black blade descended toward an unguarded head. The tension of the moment and the trembling of my lips were almost peaceful.
“Heaven and sun combined to become the sky. Taishan and sea combined to become the sea.”
And freely walking the boundaries between them—Heavenly Cloud Walk.
Sssss!
And—
Nothing that could not exist—Void. But something that wanted to exist—Emptiness. The sword that released that meaning. Ultimately, the swordsmanship recorded in the story manifested as the Unnamed Sword.
“————.”
Karma. Inevitability.
Fate. Destiny.
Heavenly Mandate.
To resist it—
Crack!
“W-what…?”
I leapt backward, barely dodging the falling blade. The Blood Lion’s mouth gaped in shock at the unnatural movement.
Left foot on Taishan. Right foot on the sea.
Left arm wrapped in darkness. Right arm wrapped in light.
And—
Both eyes filled with the universe.
The sword in my hand with karma.
Light that refused to gaze upon the head.
Crackle! Crackle!
Black qi began to gather on the blade, even though the hilt was empty.
“T-that was just a moment ago…!”
The Blood Lion pointed a trembling finger at me. His finger, which had touched the ground, now hovered in the air. That was why his eyes saw something they should never have been allowed to see.
*Clang!*
I steadied the sword.
A 5th-rank and a 7th-rank clash that should have been impossible.
“With everything I am. With my very life burned to ash… I will break you.”
Tears streamed down my face. They were not clean tears. They were soaked with emotions I refused to discard, burning bright red.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each emotion ignited a hurricane.
And now, the pure black of the previous color gained an even whiter flash.
Grrrrrrrr——!
Black and white. Demonic mana and innate pure qi. The sublime will to sacrifice everything and defeat the enemy.
“I—! Even if I fall, even if I am destroyed, even if death awaits at the end—I cannot be defeated!”
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The ground trembled violently beneath the immense force, unable to withstand it. I unfolded the sword technique engraved in my mind and charged toward the enemy, the blade blazing with light.
Flash! Flash!
The Blood Lion, facing this impossible phenomenon, was stunned. His face remained dazed, as though something had left his soul.
“Chu… Heavenly Demon’s Qi Control…”
BOOM!
A black qi and a pure white qi merged into light. The light swallowed the Blood Lion whole.
…
..
.
Shatter! Shatter! Shatter!
[An impossible achievement has been born.]
Shatter! Shatter! Shatter!
[Trait upgrade in progress.]
[**Trait: Sword God** has been strengthened.]
[**Trait: Genius** has been strengthened.]
[**Trait: Heavenly Sword Record** has been acquired.]
Shatter! Shatter! Shatter!
[The epic of a Mythic-grade item is being written.]
[The target’s **Unique Trait** is being recorded.]
**[Frey ■ ■■■■■■]**
**[Unique Trait <■■■■>]**
**[Progress: 8% until completion]**
Shatter! Shatter! Shatter!
[Warning! Innate qi consumption rate has exceeded 99%.]
[You will soon die.]
---
[Impossible achievement has been born.]
**Sword God** has been strengthened.