Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Third Book Repository: Sirius (3)
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The sword inspector of the Eight Swords Society, Priella Atria.
To her, who had swung a blade since childhood, a sword was merely a tool to showcase her own skill.
She believed that a sword should only hold the wielder's prowess, never the other way around—she must not be ruled by it.
Even in defeat, she would never blame the sword.
That was the lifelong creed etched in Priella's heart as an inspector of the Eight Swords Society.
True to her exceptional talent with blades, Priella had never once faulted her weapon for her shortcomings.
At least, not until now.
"Urgh...!"
Clang! Scraaaape—!
As Priella's sword deflected the fierce strikes.
Deep in her chest, as she clashed blades with her foe, the creed of her past was shattering miserably.
In the heart of the Great Forest appeared a knight cloaked in jet-black armor.
In the battle that ensued against this mysterious knight, Priella felt the gap in their equipment for the first time.
- "[Mana Amplification]."
...!
Whiiiiiir—.
From the back of the black-armored knight's hand, a sharp blade vibrated, swirling with wind.
A straight thrust.
An amateurish strike that any seasoned sword inspector could easily read.
Judging from the fight so far, in pure swordsmanship, he was at least five levels below Priella—
Her opponent was no match in skill.
'This... is too unfair!'
The problem was his equipment was far too superior.
Clang! Claaaang—!
Each swing from the black knight sent razor-sharp wind blades slicing along straight paths.
Fierce strikes racing along the ground.
From the blade's edge, slashing gales whipped across a wide area.
Clang! Scraaaape—!
The ground scarred by the sword winds bore vivid marks.
More than enough power to cleave human flesh.
"Eek...!"
Priella, barely dodging the sword wind, glared at the knight before her.
Ziiiiing—.
The knight, emitting purple glow from his eyes, regarded her with an emotionless face.
To evade the raging sword winds, she had to close in and fight up close.
But even that was no easy choice for Priella.
- "Since you drew your sword first, I won't hold back."
Whiiiiiir—.
A transparent blade humming with compressed wind.
The blades embedded in both the knight's hands posed a greater threat than the ground-scarring sword winds.
'If I block those head-on, my sword will snap.'
Priella narrowed her eyes, staring at the vibrating blades on the knight's hands.
The knight's blades, infused with ebony sheen, extended farther than the eye could see.
Powerful wind magic extended their reach.
Ruuuumble—.
Moreover, everything that touched those razor edges crumbled to dust.
Even Priella's sword, which had deflected strikes multiple times, was already chipped and battered.
- "You're suddenly so quiet. Lost your confidence?"
"Urk...!"
Swoosh—.
As the knight swung again, Priella raised her sword with a tense expression to meet it.
A diagonal arc.
Clang! Scraaaape—.
Thanks to the overwhelming skill gap, Priella deflected the follow-up effortlessly.
Five levels her inferior, she read his path with ease.
But regrettably, her sword had taken considerable damage from the deflection.
'At this rate, the blade will be ruined...!'
Priella's eyes fixed on her wounded sword.
Even after mostly parrying the attacks, it was in pitiful shape.
Dodge, and the sword wind hits.
Deflect, and the sword degrades.
The black knight relentlessly forced this hellish dilemma upon Priella.
"Non-Sword Style, Form 21—."
Of course, Priella wasn't content to stay purely defensive.
She had been attempting counters after each parry.
But strangely, her attacks proved utterly inefficient.
Boom—!
An explosive thrust loaded with power.
Priella's counter lunged to cleave the knight's body.
As the dominant strike bore down, the knight responded with an inexplicable maneuver.
"Ah...!"
Clack—.
A pebble bounced from the ground, twisting the strike's trajectory.
"What... the hell...!"
Right after, Priella's attack grazed the knight's pauldron at an angle.
Scraaaape—!
The blow pierced the barrier but merely scratched the armor.
Extreme luck.
There was no other way to describe it.
After this baffling moment, the knight's onslaught resumed.
'How does this keep happening...?'
Horror etched on her face, Priella faced another unfair dilemma.
Clang! Scraaaape—.
Her sword deflected the violent wind slash.
An incomprehensible scene.
In it, her eyes locked onto the black knight.
'No way... all those "lucks" so far weren't coincidences?'
The skill imbalance was bizarre.
Lucky movements repeatedly thwarted her attacks.
If intentional, it bordered on divine skill.
Yet the knight's attacks were so crude.
A barrage of simple, inefficient slashes—
His fundamentals were solid, but he lacked beyond that.
- "......"
The emotionless sword swung relentlessly.
Clang—!
Priella's blade chipped away.
Clang! Scrape—!
Amid flying metal shards, combos erupted.
Her sword crumbled, and Priella's face darkened.
She felt wronged.
It was an utterly unfair duel.
With equal weapons, it would have ended in her victory long ago.
'I wouldn't even wish for his gear—.'
She didn't covet his sword winds.
Even if he weren't human.
If only her blade had been a bit sturdier, she could have pressed from advantage.
"Ugh...!"
Crack, craaaack—.
Lost in thought, cracks spiderwebbed her blade.
Clang! Scraaaape—.
Recoil from perilous deflections accumulated damage.
'My sword... can't hold much longer...!'
Eyes met.
Metal fractures spread.
Beyond them, the black knight swung for the finish.
Clang! Craaaack—.
A simple, straight strike grazed past Priella's sword.
- "Do you still intend to continue?"
With the shattering of metal, the black knight leveled his blade at her.
Plop—.
Broken fragments rolled across the ground.
Priella's sword had finally given out under the strain.
"...I yield."
Staring at the hilt-only remnant, Priella spoke with a resentful expression.
A curt surrender.
The battle, sparked by ruined stew, ended in Priella's humiliating defeat.
* * * * * *
The magic armor Sirius—or rather, Austin Rainer's prowess—could charitably be called that of a "strong fighter," but nothing more.
Among novice holy knights baptized mere years ago, he was decent at best—
A precise assessment of Holy Knight Austin Rainer: capable only within his own mount.
Thus, Austin could view his current self objectively.
Since discarding his flesh for Sirius, he had grown incomparably stronger.
Sirius's performance far exceeded his imagination.
The Eight Swords inspector it felled was someone a holy knight Austin couldn't have dreamed of beating.
- "So, that flying stew was your only food?"
"...Yeah."
But shedding his body hadn't stripped his conscience.
Though now a limb of a perilous archmage, Austin Rainer's core remained a holy knight devoted to his god.
He felt at least minimal guilt for destroying an innocent's last meal.
Creak—.
Sirius's gaze shifted to the girl hugging her knees, head buried.
"I'm useless now... completely..."
- "......"
"My sword broke... Without a sword, I can't do anything in this forest..."
Was the shock of defeat by the magic armor Sirius greater than imagined?
Priella, the Eight Swords inspector, hung her head, wallowing in self-recrimination.
Sigh—.
Heavy sighs escaped her lips, laced with raw despair.
"Without a sword... I'm just a mouth to feed, a parasite..."
- "......"
"Soon enough... I'll starve in this Great Forest..."
Austin could somewhat understand.
Her last supper ruined, sword shattered against its destroyer.
Nothing remained for Priella.
Swish—.
Sirius's purple gaze lingered quietly on her.
Soon, Austin posed a question.
- "Lady Priella. What brought you to the Great Forest originally?"
Though battle had erupted suddenly, Austin's goal was singular from the start.
The reason he sought people in the Great Forest.
To gather intel on it, he questioned Priella.
She replied in a drained voice.
"The leader... Raparia requested support..."
- "Raparia? You mean the Sword Demon of the Eight Swords, Raparia?"
"...Yeah."
Sword Demon Raparia.
One of the continent's famed Seven Counts slipped from Priella's lips.
Hearing this, Austin couldn't hide his surprise.
He'd guessed she came on Eight Swords business, but not involving that notorious "Sword Demon."
Moreover, her next words sufficiently muddled his thoughts.
"The Brotherhood's leader... Isaac is prowling the Great Forest. Probably called me for cleanup."
Isaac Leoblant.
The Brotherhood of Leoblant's head was here.
- "The Brotherhood's leader? Isaac Leoblant is in the Great Forest too?"
"Sorry, Raparia... I'm starving... Gonna die of hunger here..."
Priella ignored Austin's reaction, continuing her self-flagellation.
Creak—.
Watching her, Austin turned his gaze to survey the Great Forest once more.
He'd anticipated wilderness exploration here.
But Priella's tale suggested a more complex scenario.
'Two of the Seven Counts lingering in the Great Forest.'
Two Counts present, each with their agendas.
Other factions could intervene anytime without surprise.
Could he claim the fruit bypassing two Counts?
Pondering, a library conversation with the Doctor flashed in his mind.
—"You'll need it, for sure."
The Third Repository's spell.
The Doctor had given clues to cast it.
Now, Austin grasped the intent somewhat.
The Great Forest was a arena where factions maneuvered with hidden motives.
A chaotic melee where friend and foe blurred.
'Not a simple tangle of one or two groups. No need to make enemies recklessly from the start.'
This intel sufficed on the Forest's state.
Next, rely on his instincts.
- "Lady Priella. We should move now."
"...Move? Where?"
- "Let's go together for now. Since your sword's broken, I'll help until you reunite with the Sword Demon."
Austin Rainer's decision.
Aid the Eight Swords inspector before him, Priella Atria.
* * * * * *
That evening.
Mounted in Sirius, Austin walked the Great Forest with Priella gnawing meat.
Naturally, the meat was one he'd hunted.
Apology for ruining her last meal: a nearby bird roasted.
She'd drawn first, but he was the one who'd blasted her dinner.
"Mmm..."
Priella quietly trailed Sirius, eating the skewer he'd grilled.
Munch, munch—.
Seemed to suit her taste.
She ate without complaint.
- "Lady Priella. Any guess where the Sword Demon might be?"
"Near the elves' village, probably. But I don't know exactly."
Thud, thump—.
Beside Sirius's heavy steps, Priella's voice carried as she ate.
"The guide Raparia assigned ditched me and ran."
Austin eyed her curiously.
Her light steps.
So feather-light, no footfalls sounded.
Proof of elite Eight Swords training.
'Trained to silence footsteps professionally.'
Human Austin would've fled sensing danger before engaging.
Only as steel flesh sans blood and meat could he match her caliber.
Still, Austin felt the need for adaptation training.
Thud, thump—.
Thus, as Sirius and Priella trekked the Forest's night path side by side.
"Someone, anyone—save me!"
Beyond the moonlit woods.
Both gazes snapped the same way.
In their periphery, someone fled desperately.
Arrogant bulk.
Greedy gleam.
Opulent robes for high clergy only.
The hefty priest, speed defying his size, veered straight for Sirius.
"Hey, you! Huff...!"
Pant, huff—.
Gasping, he rushed Sirius.
Grabbing the armor, he pleaded urgently.
"Ho, honor! If you know honor, help me! Some lunatic thief's been hunting me...!"
- "......"
"My men—nearly half slaughtered by that one! I swear reward in the Cardinal's name! Please...!"
Sirius's gaze fell on the priest.
On his heaving chest below the black knight: the White Order's emblem.