Chapter 45: The Sword Saint's Proposal (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 45: The Sword Saint's Proposal (3)
"Yes! Just what I wanted! Of course we have to settle this!"
It was Jeong Do-hyeon who jumped up from his seat.
He was certain that Cheon Yu-seong had singled him out because of what had happened in front of the Association building.
But then...
"Fool. He didn't point at you."
Hong Deok-pyo, who was sitting next to him, grabbed Jeong Do-hyeon's wrist and pulled him back down.
"Huh? Boss?"
Jeong Do-hyeon questioned him, but Hong Deok-pyo didn't answer.
Instead, he stared intently at Cheon Yu-seong with an excited expression.
Yes, with that kind of skill, it's only natural to want to fight someone strong.
He understood.
After all, battles against the strong had always made his own heart race.
I'm liking him more and more.
When he first heard Cheon Yu-seong's rank, he had thought of him as merely a chess piece he wanted to possess.
And after Jeong Do-hyeon failed, seeing the martial prowess Yu-seong displayed in the training ground made him think he would grant whatever conditions the boy desired.
But now...
Seeing Cheon Yu-seong's actions now, he was finally certain.
He had to use any means necessary to obtain him.
And if he couldn't have him alive, he would have him even if he had to kill him.
"It's been a while since I've had a proper warm-up."
Hong Deok-pyo took off his suit jacket.
His well-toned muscles strained against his white dress shirt.
However...
Cheon Yu-seong remained absolutely still, his sword still raised.
What?
The moment that thought crossed Hong Deok-pyo's mind, his eyes narrowed.
Could it be...?
Looking closely, the tip of the sword was pointing in a slightly different direction.
It wasn't pointing at Jeong Do-hyeon, nor at himself, but slightly further to the right.
Sitting there was a man with an expression of utter annoyance written all over his face.
"Whew."
The man let out a long sigh and dragged himself up from his seat.
At the same time, Cheon Yu-seong lowered his sword.
He had acknowledged it in front of everyone.
Exactly who his chosen opponent was.
"W-What?"
"It's not Representative Hong? He pointed at someone else?"
"Who is that?"
"I don't recognize his face..."
"Run a database search right now!"
A massive commotion broke out.
Guild officials hurriedly tried to look up the target's information.
After all, if he was inside the Association building, it meant he had at least taken the Awakening test.
Naturally, there would be records on him.
[Player Kang Jinhyuk, F-rank]
A moment later, they pulled up the man's profile.
"No way. An F-rank?"
"Is... is he seriously challenging an F-rank right now?"
"I didn't think he was that kind of guy. Does he have a hobby of bullying the weak?"
The clamor grew even louder.
It was only natural, given how utterly absurd the situation was.
Right then, Jeong Do-hyeon bellowed at the top of his lungs.
"B-Boss! That's him! That's the bastard who blindsided me!"
"What?"
"Didn't I tell you there was a guy with Cheon Yu-seong earlier? The one who supposedly came to cheer him on. It's definitely that bastard!"
"That guy...?"
Hong Deok-pyo stared at Jinhyuk.
Jinhyuk glanced back at Hong Deok-pyo.
Their eyes met.
"I don't know why Cheon Yu-seong pointed at you, but if you know your place, refuse. This is no place for a nobody like you."
A cold but realistic piece of advice.
The surrounding crowd chimed in, agreeing with Hong Deok-pyo.
"Exactly. A spar only makes sense when the levels match. It'll be over in less than a second."
"He'd be lucky to even survive. If even a fraction of power goes into that sword, an F-rank will be sliced in half."
"True. Even in a friendly match, accidents can happen."
Even with good luck, he would suffer severe injuries.
With just a bit of bad luck, he would end up paralyzed or dead.
That was the unanimous consensus of everyone present.
Yet, despite their earnest warnings, Jinhyuk slowly began walking down toward the arena.
"Sigh."
His face was still a picture of pure annoyance.
* * *
Various types of weapons were laid out around the arena.
Jinhyuk picked up a longsword lying on the floor.
It was light, and the balance wasn't bad.
For a mass-produced model, that is.
"I'm begging you, if you lose this time, please stop challenging me."
No, seriously.
I would be truly grateful if you could just learn to give up.
"You talk as if my defeat is a foregone conclusion. Can you still say that after watching my fight just now?"
"Well, you've definitely improved. You must have trained hard."
He had built up some solid muscle, too.
To the point where Jinhyuk wanted to ask what his big three lifts were, or what kind of protein powder he was taking.
Surely he didn't hop on steroids, right?
"Is that all you have to say?"
"Ah, I also realized just how much of a pain it is to get a single invitation."
"..."
Cheon Yu-seong's face contorted.
At the same time, the density of the mana infused into his sword shifted.
Crackle!
[Cheon Yu-seong activates Lv 6 'Soul-Chasing Sword Qi'!]
A blue mist so bright it made the eyes water.
The materialized Qi and his long-suppressed murderous intent merged into one.
Tingle! Tingle!
A heavy pressure pressed against Jinhyuk's skin.
So he was holding back during the tournament.
It felt as if he was unleashing everything he had bottled up, saving it all for this very moment.
"That's all well and good, but this is a friendly match... right?"
The atmosphere felt like they were standing in the Colosseum.
Under deathmatch rules, fighting until one of them died.
"If you want that invitation, you'll have to fight seriously."
Cheon Yu-seong assumed a stance, extending his sword forward.
He shifted his right foot, lowering his center of gravity.
He intended to close the distance in an instant.
Rumble!
The ground, made of magic crystals, began to vibrate violently.
"M-My god..."
"He's actually going all out!"
"Damn it, call the guards! He's really going to kill him!"
The spectators shrieked.
They had assumed Cheon Yu-seong would hold back, so his sudden release of monstrous bloodlust naturally threw them into a panic.
But right then...
Hummmmm!
A new wave of mana enveloped the entire arena.
It was a force incomparable to Cheon Yu-seong's.
A black energy, ominous and downright sinister, manifested.
[Unique Ability 'Grave of Swords' is activated!]
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The air trembled as the Sword Force completely enveloped the longsword, surging over a meter past the blade.
"Gasp!"
"S-Sword Force!"
"Are you crazy? How is an F-rank using Sword Force?"
"And it's not even unstable; it's fully mastered. You can count the number of players in the world who can manifest Sword Force at this level on one hand."
It was only natural for them to react with sheer horror.
Even Hong Deok-pyo stood up, his eyes wide with shock.
"What on earth is this..."
The guards who were about to intervene froze.
"...I can't believe my eyes."
The watching guild officials, too.
Everyone swallowed hard.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Their hearts beat wildly.
Perhaps...
...witnessing this duel might mark a new turning point in their lives.
* * *
Amidst the soaring tension, Jinhyuk asked,
"Do you really think Sword Qi is enough? Surely you haven't forgotten what happened in the ruins?"
Overcoming the hierarchy of abilities was by no means easy.
Especially when it came to the sword.
"Indeed, my Sword Qi cannot withstand your Sword Force."
However...
"I can make something similar."
In that instant,
Crackle...!
Another layer of Sword Qi was superimposed over the first.
Once. Twice... and so on, seven times.
Like donning multiple layers of armor, the stacked Sword Qi coalesced into a single form.
Oh?
Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.
Indeed, with that kind of application, he could hold his own against Sword Force, at least for a short while.
Though the drain on his mana and stamina would be immense.
He plans to settle this quickly rather than dragging it out.
Even Cheon Yu-seong wouldn't be able to last more than three minutes.
But Jinhyuk couldn't just play keep-away to waste time either.
Jinhyuk looked down at the longsword in his hand.
He could already see cracks forming along the blade.
It was only to be expected.
A common sword found lying around the arena couldn't withstand the pressure of Sword Force.
He had deliberately chosen this weapon to prevent anyone from recognizing him as Unknown, which he would risk if he fought only with daggers...
But as a result, he was just as pressed for time.
"Here I come!"
Cheon Yu-seong was the first to move.
Boom!
He kicked off the ground, closing the distance in the blink of an eye.
Unleashed from a drawing stance, his sword lunged straight for Jinhyuk's throat.
Jinhyuk met the strike head-on.
Clang!
It was merely the collision of two deadly weapons.
Yet, the shockwave generated a violent gust of wind.
He was fast.
And fierce.
Clash! Clang! Clang!
A rapid succession of offenses and defenses unfolded.
Cheon Yu-seong executed sword forms so fast they were invisible to the naked eye.
Jinhyuk deflected every single blow of the tempestuous onslaught.
Flashes of light erupted as countless sparks bloomed in the air.
Rumble!
Mana ran wild.
To the point where the magic crystal arena could barely hold together.
"Whew. That was incredibly fierce. I almost got blisters on my palms. So, is that it?"
"I've... barely even started."
Cheon Yu-seong's blade suddenly dyed a deep crimson.
'Soul-Chasing Sword Dance'.
The layered Sword Qi split off in different directions.
'Second Form'.
The blazing Calamity Fire flared up violently, threatening to engulf the entire arena.
Soul-Chasing Flame Emperor!
This was the second form of the Soul-Chasing Sword.
A power that incinerated any enemy in its path.
'Soul-Chasing Flame Emperor'.
It was scorching.
Jinhyuk felt the searing heat wash over his face.
This guy really is a genius among geniuses.
To think he could already execute the Second Form of the Soul-Chasing Sword.
Of course, it was far from perfect, but being able to grasp even a fraction of the notoriously complex Soul-Chasing Sword was proof of his monstrous talent.
Whoosh!
Seven crimson petals bloomed.
This was dangerous.
Jinhyuk knew instinctively.
He must not take this attack head-on.
In that case...
Jinhyuk deactivated 'Grave of Swords'.
At the same time, he channeled the mana he had used for Sword Force into activating a new skill.
[‘Ice Sculpting’ is activated!]
Countless particles of ice coalesced to form a rectangular shield.
Cheon Yu-seong's brow twitched.
He seemed taken aback by the unexpected ice-attribute skill.
But it was only for a split second.
No matter what happens, I won't let it shake me. Not this time!
Regaining his composure, Cheon Yu-seong swung his sword, unleashing the fully bloomed petals.
Boom!
Ice and fire clashed head-on.
Complete opposites.
However, the mastery of the skill was clearly in Cheon Yu-seong's favor.
I got him!
Cheon Yu-seong smiled triumphantly.
Although he couldn't see through the massive cloud of steam rising from the impact...
He felt the heavy feedback of the ice shield shattering.
But then...
"...?!"
The moment he was sure of his victory,
[‘Daylight’ is activated!]
A beam of light flashed through the steam.
It wasn't an ice-attribute skill.
A skill of an entirely different attribute was about to be unleashed.
"Ugh!"
Cheon Yu-seong gasped.
He had sworn to himself that he wouldn't let anything surprise him this time...
But the sight that followed plunged him into despair once more.
[Cheon Yu-seong deploys Lv 6 'Sword Barrier'!]
It was a defensive skill deployed purely on reflex.
At the same time...
KABOOM!
A straight beam of light pierced through the magic crystals and blasted right through the outer wall of the arena.
* * *
Sssssss!
"Kh... ugh."
Cheon Yu-seong's body swayed violently.
Smoke drifted from his entire body.
Jinhyuk had adjusted the power, so it wasn't life-threatening.
Still, blocking an anti-army skill, even with a Sword Barrier, was an absurd feat.
"Just how many... skills do you... have?"
He barely managed to squeeze out the words.
And with that...
Thud!
Cheon Yu-seong lost his balance and collapsed.