Chapter 623
Chapter 623
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 623
Chapter Title: God's Atlantis
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She stared at me intently with her black eyes.
I was flustered. I never imagined I'd run into her here of all places.
"Greetings, Lady Arphis."
"Who are you?"
Seira Arphis.
Daughter of Black Sword Duke Noir Arphis.
"I am Sung Yu-jin, a knight of Valderte."
"Valderte..."
Seira's face twisted in a scowl the moment she heard the name.
"What business does that witch's knight have here? You'd better explain yourself fully."
She leveled her sword at me. A blue haze rose from the practice blade. Just as in the original story, she harbored no love for Elena.
To be more precise, she feels inferior to Elena.
Elena Valderte was a genius who had risen to one of the Empire's Five Dukes at a young age. Plenty of people despised her, but no one could deny her talent.
"I came to deliver a letter for Duke Arphis."
There was no reason to hide it, so I told her exactly what she wanted to hear.
"So it was Father's test after all. My apologies. He probably sent you here to provoke me into coming out."
"Because of you, Lady Arphis?"
"I've been staying here for three months. Father's scheme was likely to use you to goad me into leaving."
"Three months in this place? Is something wrong?"
"Training. While I'm here, I don't need to eat, and just resting restores my wounds and stamina. The Tomb of Swords is the perfect spot for it."
Just as she said, the Tomb of Swords was ideal for training.
That doesn't mean I plan to hole up here for training. It's practically seclusion.
I didn't have the luxury of leisurely training. I needed to escape the Tomb of Swords as quickly as possible and deliver the letter to the Black Sword Duke.
"Lady Arphis, would you consider coming back with me?"
"No."
She cut me off flatly.
"Father won't hold it against you if I don't go. Don't worry."
"Understood. That's a relief."
I scanned her body from head to toe. Seira narrowed her eyes sharply. No one enjoys being ogled so blatantly.
"How rude."
"Ah, my apologies. It's just been a while since I've seen a body as exquisitely trained as yours, Lady Arphis..."
"Is that so."
Her expression brightened at the praise for her well-honed physique.
But I had been eyeing her sexually.
Her height was about the same as mine—tall for a woman. Her build matched, with long arms and legs, ample breasts and hips. Her chest was like watermelons straining against her training robes, cleavage peeking through. At least a G-cup.
Her hips were wide, her thighs firm and toned.
Part of me wanted to pounce on her right then, but she was no pushover. I couldn't guarantee victory in a fight against her. And behind her stood the Black Sword Duke—I had to keep that in mind. Force her, and my head would roll.
"Lady Arphis, mind if I swing my sword beside you?"
"Do as you like."
Seira swung first. A clean strike. The follow-ups were equally precise.
Not a single deviation in trajectory.
I swung my sword as well.
From above to below.
A simple downward slash.
It was clean enough to satisfy me.
Then the second strike.
...Deviated? That was perfect.
I tried a few more swings. But each time, the system's response was the same.
I could match the trajectory decently for the first 2-3 swings. But beyond that, it always went off course.
Without seeing the trajectory, it's impossible to match perfectly.
I focused and swung again. With time, it grew more familiar.
My basic swordsmanship was solid, so I managed about 30 swings. The problem was the constant failures after that.
Is there even a point to this? Should I just give up and leave?
Standing there endlessly swinging downward was torture. Fighting orcs with a heavy sword sounded better than this mindless repetition—it just wasn't my style.
I glanced sideways.
Seira swung silently, once every two seconds, her trajectory flawless.
Impressive.
Purely in swordsmanship, she might even be stronger than me.
"What's wrong?"
Seira stopped abruptly and asked.
"Ah, sorry. It's not going as well as I thought, so I ended up watching you, Lady Arphis. You're incredible. I can barely manage 30..."
"I've been doing this training for years, so I'm used to it."
"What's your record?"
"Around 1,300. That's my limit."
"...That's on another level."
1,300 identical trajectories? The training required for that was unimaginable—terrifying just to think about.
"You must be eager to clear the Tomb of Swords as soon as possible."
"Yes. My mission is to deliver the letter to Duke Arphis. I'd love to head back right away, but he wouldn't acknowledge me otherwise."
"Smart. Let me give you a tip."
"Really?! Thank you!"
"You're disrupting my training anyway."
Seira swung at the wall. A harsh screech echoed as a long gash appeared.
A perfectly straight line.
"Follow this line with your sword. There's a big difference between swinging while looking and swinging blind."
"Brilliant... Let me try."
I swung along the line a few times. As she said, it made a huge difference. No need for intense focus anymore.
This is more of a cheat than a tip.
With this, 100 swings would be easy.
Success.
I lowered my sword and rolled my shoulders. A few mid-sequence failures had forced restarts, leaving them a bit stiff.
"You cleared it, huh."
"Yes. Thanks to you, Lady Arphis."
"You already had the basics. You'd have gotten through soon enough without my tip."
"It still would have taken time. I truly appreciate it."
"Spare me the flattery. You have your path—go."
"Will you stay here longer, Lady Arphis?"
"I came to train. Can't leave until it's done."
"What drives your training?"
"Only one reason to train: to grow stronger."
"What I mean is, why do you want to grow stronger?"
"Must I tell you?"
Her eyes sharpened. I hastily apologized.
"Forgive me. I overstepped."
I didn't want to part ways like this. Leaving now, I'd just be another of Valderte's knights in her eyes.
That wouldn't do.
I might not bed her right away, but I needed to leave an impression.
"Enough. Fulfill your duty."
"...One more impertinent question, if I may. Is one reason for your training related to Elena?"
"...You speak your lord's name lightly."
"I'm only telling you this, Lady Arphis, but I'm not officially Valderte's knight."
Seira's eyes lit up. I'd piqued her interest. Selling out Elena had been the right call.
"Not official? That witch isn't one to go soft. What's your relationship with her?"
"Not your standard liege-vassal. It's... complicated."
"Romantic?"
"Something like that."
I grinned. Seira eyed me with skepticism. Knowing Elena, she knew how absurd that sounded.
"Do you want to beat Elena, Lady Arphis?"
"Why think that?"
"You've reacted sensitively to Valderte since earlier, so I guessed."
"...Yes. I want to defeat that witch. She's one of my goals. So what? Now that you know, what of it?"
"You helped me. Thanks to you, I cleared this room easily. It's only right to return the favor."
"You think you can help me?"
Her response was icy, but not overwhelmingly pressuring.
"Elena's power is illusion magic."
"No one in the Empire is unaware of that witch's abilities. It's why she's called the Illusion Duke."
"Her illusions don't work on me."
"...What?"
Seira's eyes widened.
No one in the Empire could fully resist Elena's illusions—not even the other Five Dukes.
"Hard to believe. You expect me to buy that?"
"It's true. It's why she takes an interest in me."
"..."
"Aren't you curious why her illusions don't affect me, Lady Arphis?"
"Some special skill or trait, probably. The world's vast. An ability nullifying that witch's illusions wouldn't be so strange."
Elena's illusions failed against my Absolute Mind. But that alone wouldn't let me beat her—she had other magic even without illusions.
Can't admit to Absolute Mind here.
The Heavenly Demon King's watching.
"I don't have any such ability."
"...Then why don't her illusions work?"
"Mental fortitude."
"Just your willpower? You think I'll believe that?"
"You might not, but it's the truth."
"Enough. My mistake for getting hopes up. Be on your way."
I was taken aback. I thought that would hook her.
But yelling about willpower out of nowhere? From her perspective, it sounded ridiculous.
"The foundation of that willpower is my martial art. Ah, but that counts as a special ability too, doesn't it? Retract that."
Seira, turning away, looked back with interest.
"Your martial art?"
Her eyes gleamed more keenly now.
"It's called the Heavenly Demon Divine Art."
"Never heard of it. What's its rank?"
"SSS-rank."
"...!!"
Seira's eyes nearly bulged. SSS was top-tier.
"Lady Arphis, keep this secret."
"I'm not one to blab."
She lowered her sword.
"You've got my interest. I'd like to see this Heavenly Demon Divine Art with my own eyes. Mind if I watch while you tackle the Tomb?"
"Of course not."
Perfect.
Should've led with the Heavenly Demon Divine Art instead of Elena or willpower.
???
Seira followed, observing me closely.
With her guidance—the Tomb's resident expert—I cleared rooms with ease.
Dozens of swords materialized around me. I had to find the real one and shatter it.
As I gripped my practice sword, they scattered, flying every which way.
One sword hurtled toward me. I dodged with a backstep. It hit where I'd stood and vanished silently—a fake.
Even staring wide-eyed, I can't tell which is real.
Knocking them down one by one was tedious.
Better to sweep them all at once.
Black sword aura turned to wind, raging outward and battering the swords. Fakes vanished entirely; the real one tumbled to the floor, toyed by the gale.