The Legendary Sword (2)

At this point, there's only one place left to lean on. Everyone's eyes turned to the same spot.

"I'll give it a shot."

Cliche stepped forward boldly. Hotse backed away, panting heavily.

"I... already pulled out... 90%~~ of it!"

Estial and the Caffeine Colonel nodded as well.

"Since we all chipped in, it should be easier to pull now."

"What a shame. Ah, if only it weren't for this hyperhidrosis."

Somehow, everyone who fails at opening a bottle cap says pretty much the same thing. A strange sense of camaraderie was budding between Hotse, Estial, and the Caffeine Colonel.

And then.

"……."

The red sword and Cliche faced each other. A sharp gust of wind sliced between them. Gritty sand stung their faces. The calm before the storm.

Cliche didn't bother arguing with those who claimed they'd pulled out almost all of it themselves. Whether they were pathetic or he was would be proven by the results.

Crack! Pink veins bulged on Cliche's pale forearm. Gripping the sword, he yanked with all his might.

Grind!

But the sword didn't budge an inch.

"No way... the Captain's... strength... is getting... blocked!?"

Hotse gawked in horror at the sight. She'd felt it firsthand back in that underground cave. Even if he was still sluggish from just breaking his seal, a single punch from her had knocked out the mighty Hotse. And this sword was withstanding that power?

Meanwhile, Estial and the Caffeine Colonel were equally stunned. They'd seen it earlier when he smashed those massive stone monsters—like crumbling soft tofu doused in soy sauce, Cliche's grip had pulverized the stone golems and gargoyles. Yet the sword was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠holding firm against his strength. Though it was trembling violently now, unlike before.

"Beep! Hold the line, go go go!"

For some reason, Alphago was cheering for the red sword, not Cliche. Had she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bought some weird coin recently? That must be why she was rooting for the defender.

On the other hand.

"……Well, now."

Cliche's competitive spirit ignited. Crack— He brought his other hand up to grip the hilt. Using both hands for the first time since facing the spider queen Curequium in the western badlands.

"Worst case, I'll just collapse the whole cave."

Cliche tossed out the terrifying line casually.

"……."

Everyone fell silent at his words. They knew he could actually do it.

Soon enough, Cliche poured his strength into it like he was about to split the earth itself.

Crunch! Crraaack! Grriiind!

Cracks spiderwebbed across the bedrock. The cave looked ready to collapse before the sword even budged. The ground and walls began shaking violently, like a massive earthquake.

Boom! Brrrboom!

The fissures in the floor widened, climbing the walls to the ceiling.

Rumble! House-sized boulders plummeted from above.

"B-block it!"

At Estial's shout, the Red Bulls knights raised their massive shields against the falling rocks.

"Kyaaah! What kind of bullshit is this!?"

Roin screamed, surrounded by shields. What kind of dungeon lays out all the treasure just to turn deadly at the very end?

Meanwhile.

Crunch— Craaunch— Groan— Groan—

Slowly, the sword began to rise from the ground. It was the tiniest shift, but everyone gathered there could tell.

"It's... coming... out... Power... up! Breath... steady~~!! Hoo! Ha! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Hoo! Ha!"

"Heh! Hey, hey. Time for a smooth delivery."

"Beep! Push it out quick! We're filming!"

The entire Pink Dragon Knights cheered hotly. It felt like a sacred, solemn moment witnessing new life being born.

And right then.

Kaboom!

An enormous blast of heat erupted from the sword, hurling Cliche far back.

"Wh-what!?"

Everyone stared at the sword in shock.

"Huh?"

Even Cliche, sprawled on his back, looked up at it in bewilderment. What the hell was this out-of-nowhere lightning bolt?

Grrumble—

The red sword stood proudly amid a vortex of crimson flames. If an ordinary person had been there instead of Cliche, not even a handful of ashes would remain.

"Oof……."

"Are you alright, little brother Your Highness!?"

If Estial hadn't quickly thrown his cloak over her, Roin would've suffered burns.

As everyone panicked over this sudden turn.

Shockingly, a shrill voice emanated from the red sword embedded in the rock. It was incredibly irritable and hysterical.

Everyone's faces lit up with surprise at the sword's words.

"The sword... talks? Magic-infused... sword, huh... that's rare~"

"Beep! Ego Sword. A sword with a soul dwelling within. Considered top-tier among all blades. Market value varies, but averages around 50 billion gold."

"Heh! A talking sword? Hey, hey. Feels like we've isekai'd or something—heart's pounding."

Hotse tilted her head and stepped up again. After receiving a few buffs from Diablo, she grabbed the sword and yanked hard once more.

The sword blasted hot wind again, sending Hotse flying.

"That... damn... fire... bitch... should I just... smash~~ her to bits... feel... big sis's... fire mace... just a lil~~!!"

Everyone barely stopped Hotse from drawing her kukri.

"……Looks like this guy's not in the mood to be pulled out."

Everyone agreed with Cliche.

"……."

After pondering briefly, Cliche turned to Alphago.

"Hey, Alphago. What's the usual way to pull a sword from a rock?"

Alphago spun up her search engine furiously.

"It's blasting hot wind right now, so it's wide awake... No good. Rejected."

Cliche shook his head. Alphago pulled up the next option.

Roin chimed in.

"Rok's a monarchy. Too early for that. Rejected."

Alphago ran one more search.

Cliche tilted his head at Alphago's final suggestion.

"Hm? Its name...?"

Cliche glanced at Roin. She shook her head regretfully.

"Even Int bro, who knows everything about Rok, has no clue. No records in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the ancient texts either."

If even the all-knowing Int didn't know, no one in the kingdom did.

"Hmm……."

Cliche stroked his chin. Pulling this sword should reveal clues about the dragon scent...

That's when Alphago spoke to Cliche.

"What is it?"

Alphago whispered the secret technique into Cliche's ear.

"You think that'll really work?"

Cliche nodded. He approached the sword in the rock and spoke carefully. He even knocked on the stone with his knuckles.

"Is our sword in there? Open the door a bit."

Roin slapped her forehead at the words. What kind of roleplay was this? Like some dad dealing with a moody kid.

But?

Surprisingly, it seemed to be working on the sword. Alphago kept feeding Cliche the next lines.

"Sorry if mixing my undies with yours pissed you off."

Roin slapped her forehead again.

"Treating it like some angsty teen girl!? Let me talk to it."

Roin dragged Alphago and Cliche away and knocked on the rock herself.

"Hey. Any reason you're not coming out?"

"Alright, got it. I won't force you. Anything else you want?"

"……Really? So you won't come out, huh."

A bunch of nitpicky demands followed. Alphago's eyes sparkled as she listened to Roin and the sword's exchange. She signaled the next line to Cliche.

Cliche spoke up.

"Anime? That's just sticking comic panels together and flipping 'em fast, right? And Hero Killer? That's super niche—even among fantasy stuff, nobody knows it or watches it anymore; it's totally abandoned now... You don't mean...?"

The sword shuddered uneasily. Cliche enunciated slowly, letter by letter.

"O. Ta. Ku?"

Crack!

A loud snap echoed as the rock split. The red sword trembled and screamed.

Blood trickled from Roin's ears amid the sword's machine-gun rant.

"Wh... what insane aggro-to-value ratio. One word and it won't shut up."

Cliche picked at his ear, watching the quivering sword.

"So, what's your name?"

"I'm asking 'cause I don't know. What's your name?"

"Ah, so your name is Otaku?"

The red sword huffed in rage, then bellowed triumphantly.

…….

That day, Cliche became the master of the red sword Zenkaeno.