14. A Heroic Tale
14. A Heroic Tale
The night sky.
A being sat on a tree branch that soared as if to pierce the stars.
A succubus.
A succubus with horns on both sides, the being who had been observing the battle between Yuma and the Sword God Kronos just moments ago.
"...They called him the God of War, and I thought it was bullshit."
Her feet and knees, where she stood on the tree, were trembling.
Wasn't that level of martial prowess more than enough to earn such a title?
It was the first time in her life she had seen a sword strike that far surpassed common sense.
"A joint attack, my ass."
Death.
If you confront that ash-gray-haired man, you will die without question.
That conviction filled the succubus's mind.
"If you're going to die, die alone, Keilon."
The succubus resolved to refuse the cooperation offer from Keilon, the vampire and Third Seat of the Empire.
Pat!
The body of the succubus, standing on the tree branch, vanished.
***
A hero's tale spread.
The hero's tale of the God of War who saved the transit city of Akan.
The Sword of the Princess, who stopped the Underground King Belak, who had tried to dominate the city by covering it with drugs.
That tale of bravery spread throughout the entire empire.
The eloquence of the Akan guards seemed to be quite exceptional.
Ironically, Belak had died directly from the single sword strike unleashed by Kronos.
Nevertheless, revelations about the crimes Belak had committed began to pour out from the mouths of his former underlings.
Revelations about the crimes of distributing drugs using the commercial route established by Mayor Gelmour.
And even the transaction ledgers connecting the nearby nobles involved in the drug trade.
In the end, even members of the Astes Empire's 3rd Knight Order came down to the city of Akan.
The Empire's 3rd Knight Order, unlike the 1st and 2nd Orders, performed the role of inspectors investigating internal imperial corruption.
A total of 20 personnel.
Deploying 20 members of the 3rd Knight Order was proof that the empire viewed this situation as quite important.
Yuma was trying to sleep in the luxurious lodging provided by Mayor Gelmour.
When he opened his eyes.
What filled his vision were windows of the same kind that had unfolded before him when he first fell into this world.
[Ultimate Rank - You have defeated one who has reached the state of 'Grand Master'.]
[You have achieved an accomplishment that far surpasses your own capabilities.]
[Reward is being granted!]
New!
[Skill - Hyper Focus(★★★★) : If you set your mind to concentrate, you can clearly see through the essence of things. This includes enemy attacks and skills, all of it.]
New!
[Skill - Indomitable Will(★★★★) : At the very moment of performing a parrying action, the player will not collapse from most damage and impact. However, you will feel the pain.]
[Growth potential does not exist.]
[Increasing stats as a reward for the achieved accomplishment.]
[Name: Yuma Lv.20 Alignment: Good Personality Trait: Cool-Headed Strength: 30 Endurance: 45 Defense: 30 Agility: 50 Growth Potential: 0 - Mortal]
The Sword God Kronos was one who had attained the state of Grand Master.
A transcendent martial artist who had surpassed the Master state, the limit line of the human species at Level 149. That was Kronos.
Yuma stared intently at the status window.
His crappy stats had become slightly less crappy.
All stats had increased by 20.
'This damn body has no talent.'
The growth potential of 0 demonstrated that.
The description of 'Mortal' attached next to it was practically a death sentence.
The only talent he possessed was solely 'Parrying', which he had as <Don't Screw Me Over>.
To increase his stats like this in the future, he would need to achieve out-of-standard feats.
'It seems like the imprint system exists here too.'
Imprint.
An element that also appeared in 'Loof Blood', which could be called the predecessor to this world, and the Loof series before it.
A system of carving imprints onto the body to obtain a type of 'skill'.
Yuma felt the need to gather information on imprints.
While confirming the newly obtained skills.
Knock knock─
The sound of knocking on the door rang out rhythmically.
"Who is it?"
At Yuma's words, a vigorous voice came from beyond the door.
"It is Rohan of the 3rd Knight Order, sent down from the capital. I have come to see Lord Yuma, the agent of Her Highness, the 1st Princess Brigitte."
"Wait on the first floor."
"Understood."
***
Yuma got dressed and went out.
"Yuma-nim!"
He saw Cloné approaching with a bright smile.
"Did they call you too?"
"Yes, I was called too. As Yuma-nim's colleague!"
You're probably the main, not me.
You're one of the main figures in the oracle, after all. Yuma stroked Cloné's head.
Yuma and Cloné went down the stairs side by side. As soon as they descended the stairs, two knights kneeling on both sides, paying their respects, came into view.
As if rehearsed, they spoke in perfect sync.
"We behold Lord Yuma, agent of Her Highness the 1st Princess Brigitte, the Sword of Her Highness. I am Inspector Rohan of the 3rd Knight Order."
This was the knight speaking.
"We behold Lady Cloné, the mage and close confidant of Her Highness. I am Inspector Ermel of the 3rd Knight Order."
This was the female knight speaking. Cloné's eyes widened into circles. A close confidant of Her Highness! It was a modifier that seemed meaningless, but the implication of having that title attached was significant.
It meant that Brigitte had personally notified the imperial knights of Cloné's existence. That she was indispensable. Her close confidant.
Aspiration welled up in Cloné's golden eyes once again.
'Next time, I'll make sure they call me Archmage Cloné-nim!'
So that she could continue to stand beside Yuma-nim.
Cloné cultivated her passion for magic.
"Have you come down to investigate the Belak incident?"
Rohan nodded his head.
"That is correct. We came down to the city of Akan to investigate the Belak incident."
The female knight, Ermel, opened her mouth. Ermel's sparkling eyes were filled with respect for the ash-gray-haired man standing before her.
"We have already received testimonies. From the guards of Akan. That Lord Yuma saved this city. And...."
Rohan's eyes, too, were sparkling brightly.
"We also received testimony that you felled the former 2nd Seat, the Sword God Kronos, with swordsmanship. That you lightly deflected Kronos's single sword strike, and then severed his breath with a horizontal slash."
"...."
Yuma kept silent.
Rohan truly viewed Yuma as a swordsman of a sublime state.
Because he had seen Kronos's corpse with his own eyes.
And had witnessed the devastation of that single fatal strike left on the Sword God's body.
A sword strike that completely neutralized and seeped through the protective energy armor wrapped around Kronos's body as if passing right through it.
That sublime swordsmanship.
And the nearby buildings with a streak of fatal cracks caused by the shockwave of that swordsmanship!
He had thought his master's words, that a swordsman who reached the utmost extreme could cut space itself, were an exaggeration.
But that wasn't the case.
Because the Sword of the Princess before his eyes was one who could accomplish it.
"We are sorting out the situation. Mayor Gelmour's younger brother has also commenced holy healing. The problem is the other corrupt nobles associated with Belak... The judgment on those nobles will likely be carried out by the Council of Elders."
"Is that so."
Yuma slowly nodded his head.
Frankly speaking, he had little interest in however the situation unfolded.
Ermel nodded her head so vigorously that her orange hair shook wildly as she spoke.
"Lord Yuma's name is becoming known to numerous nobles through this incident. Thanks to that, Princess Brigitte's standing is growing! At this rate, it's thought that equaling the standing of His Highness the 1st Prince is not far off."
That was quite an encouraging result. Ermel continued speaking.
"Her Highness Princess Brigitte has said that, given this disgraceful incident, you may return to the Imperial Palace for a round of rest and maintenance before starting your journey again, if you wish."
There seemed to be no need for that.
"I'll just get through today and head for County of Rübelt tomorrow morning."
Ermel and Rohan were already in a state of genuine admiration for Yuma, who spoke of ending this whole situation as if it were nothing.
Ermel and Rohan bowed their heads.
Rohan spoke.
"May blessings be upon all your endeavors."
Ermel and Rohan departed.
Yuma headed for Mayor Gelmour's office.
Because there had been an earnest request to come by once before leaving.
Gelmour bowed deeply at the waist to Yuma.
"Oh, you've come."
"Sit."
Gelmour quickly sat in his own chair as if he had heard an oracle.
"...Thank you. Lord Yuma. Through this incident, I have realized my incompetence and shortcomings."
Yuma had nothing particular to say to Mayor Gelmour, the leader of this land, Akan, who looked extremely dejected. It was probably because he wasn't very interested.
He decided to offer some very formal advice.
"The empire still believes in you. So, pull yourself together and lead this city again."
Gelmour's eyes widened.
"...Thank you. Truly, thank you. Lord Yuma."
His voice was trembling. It was a tremor soaked not in fear, but in deep emotion.
'Why is this one acting up again?'
Yuma rose from his seat with a still expressionless face.
"Then, I'll be going."
Gelmour bowed his back once more.
"May only blessings accompany Lord Yuma's great steps."
Goodness, everyone really loves blessings.
Yuma waved his right hand half-heartedly.
Of course, since the esteemed trait was always applied, in Gelmour's eyes, it appeared to be a noble gesture.
"Repaying the grace to Lord Yuma. That is, in other words, to assist the path of the 1st Princess becoming Emperor."
Mayor Gelmour's eyes glowed with motivation.
More than any other time in his life.
"I will absolutely repay the favor."
He would make this city so much greater that he could exert influence over the empire.
Gelmour's mind began to churn.
His mind was filled solely with thoughts of making Akan a mightier city.