The Radiant Transcendent Sword

"..."

It had climbed higher than he'd expected. The Stone of Omnipotence was a blatantly broken item, yes, but it had never amplified an item's options to this extent.

The Ring of Fortune, then. Has to be. A good thing was a good thing.

He closed his hand around the Radiant Transcendent Sword. The grip sat well, and the blade ran a little longer than the sword he had been using. He liked that.

Sword in hand, Yujun broke into a run toward the others. His percentage bonuses to every stat were absurdly high, and carrying a blade only made him faster. Up on the rooftops there was no one to collide with. In moments he was clear of the capital.

The party was waiting for him at a restaurant near the outskirts of the Koruna Kingdom.

"You made good time."

Hong Yeji shot to her feet with a grin.

"Where's Ju Donghyeon?"

"Oh, he said Future Sight burns a serious amount of mental energy, so he went to sleep. Asked us to wake him when it's time."

Paranet, who had been standing there without a word, drifted in at Yujun's side.

"What."

"Hm? Whatever do you mean? I simply wished to remain beside you!"

If a summon said so, there wasn't much to say about it. A summon belonging at its master's side was only natural.

Yujun sat and looked over his equipment. Nothing that needs repairing. He almost never had cause to use an equipment repair kit. He swapped his gear too quickly as his level climbed.

Time passed. Ju Donghyeon woke on his own and found his way to the restaurant.

"Future Sight. I'll use it now."

"Right. But shouldn't we go somewhere quiet?"

"There's no need. Once I activate it, I can't hear a thing anyway."

"Ah. And you can actually find them right now, with Future Sight alone?"

"Yes."

Ju Donghyeon closed his eyes. A tremendous flood of mana began to pour from his body, and he trembled, fine and constant. Everyone watched him with worried faces. The worry proved unnecessary. He opened his eyes almost at once.

"I've found them."

"Oh? Where?"

Yujun's face brightened.

"In the capital. Right now."

"The Koruna Kingdom? You're sure?"

"Yes. Certain. I saw the royal palace in the capital. Ah—and I just confirmed with Clairvoyance that they still haven't moved."

"What were they doing?"

"...They were speaking with someone."

"What did that someone look like?"

"A cloak hid the face, so I couldn't tell. But the build was enormous. Definitely not human."

"What were they talking about?"

"That, I don't know. Neither Clairvoyance nor Future Sight lets me hear sound."

"Lead us there."

"Understood."

The party set off for the capital. For Yujun, it meant turning around and covering the road he had just traveled.

"Why didn't they spread the plague in the Koruna Kingdom?"

Hong Yeji was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the one ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to raise it.

"Who knows. Still getting ready? Like I said earlier, if they're someone tied to the Koruna Kingdom, that would make sense."

"I'm curious why they spread it at all."

"Acting on someone's orders?"

"And if they were, someone connected to Koruna?"

"Could be."

Yujun left it there and sank into thought.

If this is going to end, it has to end here.

Let the player spreading the plague cross into another kingdom, and he might have to wait all over again for Ju Donghyeon's Future Sight before the chase could even resume. He wanted the man dealt with before it turned into a nuisance.

"Donghyeon. Can't we go any faster? We ought to save our stamina for the fight—"

"No. No need. I'm the only one who has to fight."

Yujun cut Hong Yeji off. It was the sort of line that could sound a little arrogant, but he was right. If anyone else stepped in, they would only get in the way.

"Understood. Then I'll run as fast as I can."

Ju Donghyeon had invested heavily in his Magic stat, and his physical stats were no less outstanding. An all-rounder, in other words. Hong Yeji was not about to fall behind either. Strangely enough, the more they raised the pace, the more easily she kept up. The party's speed climbed until the difference was plain to see.

An hour and a half after Future Sight. They had run without rest, and the capital was in reach.

"You said it was a place where the palace could be seen?"

"Yes. We'll be there shortly."

A dark alley the sunlight never reached. There stood the player who was, for all intents, the source of the plague, and before him a hulking, suspicious figure. The one who had spread the plague was, astonishingly, entirely human to the eye.

"Hm?"

That was when the plague player noticed Yujun's party.

"Who are you?"

"And what are you going to do with the answer?"

"Underworld scum?"

"No. What were you planning to do once you knew?"

Yujun's crooked tone put a scowl on the plague player's face.

"Well, well."

"You're the one who spread the plague. Right?"

"Came knowing that much, did you. Yeah. It was me."

"Good. Wasn't a wasted trip."

Yujun drew his sword.

"Guess we'll start with them."

"Fine by me."

The plague player traded a word with the hulking mystery, then thrust a hand forward. Five enormous spheres of fire formed around him.

Fwoosh!

They shot straight at Yujun. A few swings of his sword knocked every last one aside.

"You blocked magic?"

The plague player's eyes went wide.

That was not something the mere possession of a skill made possible. You had to strike the point where the mana had condensed, and that point was so small that hitting it was no small feat. Finding the condensed point in the first place was nearly impossible.

"A skilled one."

A thin, cold smile touched the plague player's mouth.

"Good. Perfect material for a Vector. You take him."

At that, the cloaked figure stepped forward.

"Should we handle that one?"

Hong Yeji asked.

Yujun shook his head.

"I'll take both."

"Okay. Got it."

Hong Yeji knew his skill well enough. She moved aside without another word.

I'll have to focus.

Neither opponent's strength looked ordinary. One was the plague, the other the bulk—a plague-and-bulk duo. To meet them, Yujun kicked off the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ground and shot forward.

In an instant he was in front of the hulk. The hulk drew, moving to cut him down.

Shhk!

But Yujun's slash was faster than the man had reckoned. Before the hulk's sword could even extend, Yujun's blade had already sheared through his upper body and carried past. Upper half and lower half came apart.

"Gyaaaah!"

And yet the hulk did not die. What? Undead? Otherwise there was no explaining a thing cut in half that refused to die. Yujun dropped a long way back. Plague magic slammed into the spot he had just left—fire, again.

Boom!

"Situram! What are you doing?"

"S-sorry. That one's fast."

The hulk's upper body seated itself on the lower once more. Not even a trace of the cut remained.

No matter how high the regeneration, is that even possible? It was a sight hard to believe with both eyes on it. He hadn't even used a potion. Interesting. And that was the whole of the review.

Fully restored, the hulk charged. Yujun could see the attack coming. It was slow, and honest, and the force loaded into the sword was nothing worth mentioning. He moved the hand on his hilt from high to low.

Shk!

A single flash. Light, quite literally, seemed to flare. This time the hulk was bisected with exactness from the crown of his head to the soles of his feet—a situation much like the last. The body, however, did not knit itself back together so quickly. Perhaps because the head had been severed. For a while there was no sign of regeneration at all.

Yujun looked at the one he thought of as Plague. The man's face was tight with anxiety.

"W-wait. I've got something to say. Aren't you curious why I'm spreading the curse... the plague?"

"Why?"

He was genuinely curious. Plague seemed to think there was room to negotiate. The corner of his mouth lifted.

"Not long ago, the trade agreement between the Koruna Kingdom and the Kingdom of Sitahel ran into trouble. I was a bargaining chip. Something to threaten them with, if Sitahel refused to keep the agreement going."

Yujun listened in silence. Watching his face, Plague opened his mouth again.

"Looking at what's become of the Kingdom of Sitahel, you can roughly guess how it went, can't you? Heh heh. They were punished."

"Koruna put you up to it?"

"That's right, that's right. And I wasn't exactly fond of those bastards throwing their weight around, either."

"Who gave the order. Exactly."

"Telling you that much would be laying everything bare..."

"..."

Yujun didn't bother to ask again. Sword in hand, he only walked slowly toward the man.

"A-all right. I'll tell you everything. Marquis Lucas of the Koruna Kingdom. He asked me to do this himself. And Lucas is of the royalist faction. All of it must have been the will of Koruna's king."

"Isn't the loss enormous? Wiping out the dwarves' country. You're neighbors, even."

"It is. A waste. But how many nations border the Kingdom of Sitahel? More than one or two. Better to erase it than hand it to someone else. That must have been the judgment."

"Ah. So that was it."

Yujun nodded. He had the whole story of how the plague had come to the Kingdom of Sitahel. The others would have heard it too.

"I told you straight. So—letting me live. Is that possible?"

"If I let you live, can you get rid of the plague?"

"...Y-yes, I can! Of course I can!"

Plague shouted it, face gone slack with panic.

"How?"

"...I just have to cancel the skill. See? Simple, right? There's no need to kill me!"

"Isn't killing you a method too?"

"D-don't be ridiculous! Do that and things only get worse!"

"..."

Yujun activated a skill.

In a breath he was before the plague player's eyes. It was the first skill he had used. The man, of course, could not react.

"Ah, n—!"

The cry never finished. Yujun swung without a shred of hesitation.

Shhk!

The plague player's head came off. However he turned it over, there had been no reason to leave the man alive.

"Huh?"

There was an item like this? Defeat the Root of Darkness, and obtain the Root of Darkness?

I never ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠saw anything like him back in War of the Gods...

The man had looked human, so Yujun had assumed human, or demonkin. He was neither. The race's very name was Root of Darkness. He couldn't make sense of it, but at any rate he had brought down the plague itself.

The hulk he had felled earlier jerked to a halt halfway through regenerating.

Because I killed the Root of Darkness?

That was when Ju Donghyeon, who had been watching from behind, came running.

"Is it over?"

"Yes."

"As expected... it went just as the foresight showed."

"The future you saw was exactly this situation?"

"Yes. Down to the scene."

"That future never misses?"

"It would have split depending on the choice you made after hearing the future. If you had refused my request, it would have missed. Of course, even that isn't certain."

"My head hurts."

"There is no fixed future. I only saw one possibility among several."

"Is it all right to tell me all of this?"

"You're my benefactor. Saying this much is fine. And if you need help again, contact me anytime. Whatever it is, I'll help you."

At Ju Donghyeon's words, Yujun broke into a wide, beaming smile before he knew it.

Perfect.