Splicing On
With a thunderous crash, the greatsword I swung collided with the sword of the Raging Wave Sword.
The Raging Wave Sword was, after all, a man of some renown—famous enough that even Extreme Line knew his title. So there was no reason for me to hold back against the bastard.
That was why the sword I swung was ferocious—so overwhelming, even I thought it was monstrous.
And yet the Raging Wave Sword’s blade took that blow without the slightest difficulty.
Of course, a flicker of surprise crossed his face. But that was all. A little surprise, nothing more.
It was a strike that proved something simple: wild hacking and slashing, with no form or subtlety behind it, meant little to a true master.
And then Cheon Ji-oh’s sword moved.
Unlike the one I’d just swung, his blade traced a path so exquisite it was worth admiring, cutting toward me with a clean, beautiful arc.
When I raised my greatsword to block it, another explosive bang! rang out.
But at the same time, the pressure I’d felt on the blade vanished, and once again that dangerous whoosh cut through the air.
The Raging Wave Sword.
A sword style whose fierce attacks kept coming, one after another, like a storm-tossed sea surging endlessly forward.
It was a relief I’d already gotten a look at it. That said, I certainly hadn’t figured out every last line of his sword path.
Still, because I’d seen what kind of sword it was, blocking the next line of attack wasn’t difficult.
The problem was that the sword never stopped.
Waves don’t cease. They surge without rest, again and again.
The rock that endures them gathers the foam in silence, but before long even that rock is slowly worn down.
The Raging Wave Sword was that kind of blade—a sword that battered its target until the stone itself was ground away and broken.
A strange sword, one that blended strength and softness in just the right measure.
So I, too, gave up on blocking it carelessly and started thinking with all my might.
The Indolent-Soft Boundless Sword Art. More specifically, the subtlety of heavy sword technique that Extreme Line had taught me.
I tilted my greatsword at an angle. At the same time, I let the mysteries of heavy sword and clumsy sword techniques unfold through it.
It was still crude, but the martial art itself was not.
Just by holding my greatsword at an angle, I could limit the Raging Wave Sword’s path and nudge it toward a specific direction.
Bang! Bang! Bang! After blocking three blows in rapid succession, I saw the Raging Wave Sword’s eyes widen.
“Ha! Just who is this child, to have even been taught her master’s own martial art!?”
Apparently he’d recognized the Indolent-Soft Boundless Sword Art, because he roared that out and swung again.
The aura in this strike was different from the one before. What I’d thought of as waves crashing on a stormy day had really been nothing more than waves on a day when the wind was a little strong.
The sword came on savagely. Stronger, faster, sharper.
And the skill with which he adjusted that power and speed was truly something else.
If I eased off slightly and let his strike come in more slowly, he would suddenly pour on power and slash harder and faster. Then, in that instant, the blow would feel more than twice as fierce as the attacks before it.
Controlling the same force and still driving an opponent into the ground so deftly.
I should learn how to do that, too. If I could, that is.
“This is delightful!”
While I was lost in thought, the Raging Wave Sword cried out as if he were having the time of his life, continuing to swing his sword.
Was he pleased that I was managing to block all his attacks, even if imperfectly?
His momentum was getting a little too intense, wasn’t it? Was this really okay?
Maybe the Raging Wave Sword was taking out on me the frustration he couldn’t vent on Extreme Line.
No, that had to be it. Absolutely.
He was using me as a proxy, huh? And besides, Extreme Line had told him to cross swords with me directly. I’d even paid for it with my life—well, one life, anyway.
Come to think of it, this was probably fun for him. Right—because he was a martial artist and all that.
And that meant I couldn’t just keep defending forever, either.
But the waves crashing at me were far too fierce. They were hard enough to keep my head straight.
Because Extreme Line’s Indolent-Soft Boundless Sword Art used clumsy sword and heavy sword techniques, blocking the attacks was manageable, one way or another.
The parts where I lacked skill, I could force my way through with raw strength.
The problem was offense.
I couldn’t see my clumsy attacks ever reaching the Raging Wave Sword.
Still, I’d try it once.
The seventh form of the Indolent-Soft Boundless Sword Art: Feigning Injury to Lure the Enemy.
A form inspired by birds that pretend to be wounded in order to draw enemies away from the nest and protect their eggs.
I raised my greatsword and clashed head-on with the Raging Wave Sword’s oncoming blade.
With a sharp clang!, I let my sword appear to be pushed back naturally, exposing an opening.
Clumsy sword techniques required both the wielder and the opponent to be at similar levels—or at least to be clever.
If you went to the trouble of showing an opening and they still couldn’t exploit it, then there was no point in using the form at all.
Fortunately, the Raging Wave Sword had both the level and the insight to match, so he immediately swung toward the opening I’d shown him.
Seeing that, I twisted my body and swiftly swung the greatsword that had been pushed back.
That was the subtlety of the seventh form: predicting the enemy’s incoming strike, evading it, and attacking the opening that naturally appeared as a result.
Kakakakak!
But the Raging Wave Sword quickly withdrew his blade and blocked my greatsword.
The defense was so exquisite it was almost stunning. And on his face was a grin.
“A pity! That was a little too shallow! But! If I hadn’t known this sword, I’d have fallen for it!”
Damn it. So that was it after all. I really was still lacking if I wanted to land a counterstrike.
Once again, Cheon Ji-oh’s sword came surging in. The waves kept rolling in without end.
Attack after attack, each one swung just hard enough that I could barely manage to block it.
A sword with proper pacing. Such a level of skill.
Of course, even just blocking like this, I could feel myself improving.
Close-quarters sword practice. Attacks of real caliber.
It felt like being compressed into a hyper-efficient training program and forced to follow it.
Experience points were just pouring in. Where else was I ever going to get attacked like this?
But I still couldn’t be satisfied with that. More than anything, I wanted to give that man a solid hit.
No one steps into a duel already planning to lose.
Even if everyone else says you’re doomed to fail, the person in question shouldn’t be thinking that way.
Clang! Kaang!
His attacks were sharp, and mine—now that I’d grown used to their rhythm—could at least respond in a clumsy way once I noticed the variations.
And the Raging Wave Sword, seeing that, only pressed harder.
This couldn’t go on. If it did, I’d just end up losing to the bastard and that would be that.
Then, all of a sudden, in the midst of it, the Raging Wave Sword’s blade seemed to slow.
It was an uncanny sensation. Like everything had slipped into slow motion.
Clearly, the sword itself hadn’t actually slowed. I knew that much.
Then had my thinking sped up? Like a flash of life passing before my eyes?
Either way, I wasn’t about to let this moment slip away.
You don’t throw away a chance when it comes. That would be stupid.
So I watched Cheon Ji-oh’s sword as it swung toward me and traced its path in my mind.
Then I searched for the form that fit it best.
I rifled quickly through the memories in my head.
The second form of the Indolent-Soft Boundless Sword Art: Striking the Bell, Its Sound Rings Forth.
A bell only rings through all creation when someone strikes it.
That was why the Indolent-Soft Boundless Sword Art often struck only after blocking or deflecting the enemy’s sword.
The problem was that the Raging Wave Sword’s blade was not the sort that could be blocked easily.
Its power and speed were no joke. And it wasn’t merely strong, either.
It mixed in softness as well, taking an odd, twisting line as it came for me.
Then something else occurred to me.
The Raging Wave Sword was blending strength and softness beautifully as he unleashed his sword.
Then couldn’t I do it too? For example, wasn’t it possible to use clumsiness and speed at the same time?
Once the idea came to me, it blossomed into countless possibilities in an instant.
And a certain form surfaced in my mind.
The fourth form of the Splinter-Light Sword Art: One Instant, a Thousand Li.
A sword that was faster than any other, a blade that delivered an overwhelming strike even at the cost of straining the body.
I could definitely do it.
By combining the second form of the Indolent-Soft Boundless Sword Art, Striking the Bell, Its Sound Rings Forth, with the fourth form of the Splinter-Light Sword Art, One Instant, a Thousand Li, I could swing faster than any ordinary sword could manage.
In theory, it was possible. The question was whether I could actually pull it off.
Well, let’s try it. What’s there to hesitate about?
The slowed world surged back into motion.
Cheon Ji-oh’s sword, carrying immense force, came smoothly to within inches of me.
KAAAAAAAAANG!
My blade and his collided. The sound of friction spread outward like the reverberation of a great bell, sharp yet resonant as it echoed in every direction.
At the same time, my body moved with explosive speed.
Both hands gripping the greatsword felt as if they were being torn apart, but thanks to the Golden Dragon Body, my hands remained perfectly fine.
And thanks to the Iron Body Weight-Adding Force, I didn’t lose my greatsword, either.
“Hngh!”
Still clinging to my blade, I swung.
One Instant, a Thousand Li. My sword crossed the short distance between me and the Raging Wave Sword as though leaping through space.
For a moment, I saw the Raging Wave Sword’s eyes go wide. I even saw the gooseflesh rising on the back of his neck.
“Aaaah!”
And then Cheon Ji-oh twisted his whole body and forcibly turned his sword to block my greatsword.
Kaang!
And then my greatsword was cut in two with infuriating ease.
But the Raging Wave Sword, seeing that, let out a breathy puh! and exhaled.
“That will do.”
From behind me came Extreme Line’s voice.
I let out a sigh of relief, glanced once at the greatsword now split in half, then stepped back and said quietly, “This girl has lost. Thank you for your guidance.”
The moment I bowed, the Raging Wave Sword suddenly bellowed, “Lost? Don’t be ridiculous! This isn’t your defeat! If the sword you held hadn’t been such a cheap piece of junk, I’d be the one rolling on the ground right now!”
“But I’m the one who came out with a worthless sword, aren’t I? I have no intention of blaming defeat on my weapon.”
That was how I honestly felt. A loss was a loss.
Sure, I wanted to blame the sword, too... but doing that wouldn’t get me anything. It would just be ugly.
“No! Wrong! Fine! Then let’s call this a draw! No—let’s say the sword broke before the match could be decided! That way there’s no winner! And no loser either!”
Honestly... what a strange man. Usually it’s the other way around, isn’t it?
I could understand trying to argue after losing.
But insisting it was a draw after winning? That was unusual.
“Enough. Since it is settled, you may go now. I have no further business here.”
Extreme Line said that, and the Raging Wave Sword immediately fired back at her.
“Hey! If you’re going to drag around a child, at least give her a decent sword! What is this supposed to be!? This!?”
“That will be taken care of by this lady herself. So go on—leave. Must I repeat myself twice for it to sink in? Or would you rather waste the chance to keep your life?”
Then the Raging Wave Sword glanced at her, muttered something under his breath, and turned to leave—only to whirl back around and shout at her one more time.
“I hear Manyaja has come to Kaifeng! Thought you’d want to know! That’s all I came to say! I’ll be taking my leave now! And don’t you forget your promise!”
With that, the Raging Wave Sword hurried away.
And Extreme Line stared at me in silence, looking as though she had a great deal to say.