The Heibrun Subjugation, Part 5
"Ah..."
Adelia held her breath without realizing it, her eyes locked onto the battle.
Heukgol and Pokryong. The coordinated assault of the two Sword Masters targeted Jacques with lethal precision at every turn.
Whooooosh!
A terrifying sound of parting air echoed through the area.
Witnessing this, Adelia's eyes widened.
That is...
Heukgol's swordsmanship bore a striking resemblance to Jacques's.
It was a style that fused the massive weight of the sword with the user's entire body weight to generate unstoppable momentum.
Boom!
Jacques blocked Heukgol's strike with his executioner's sword, but at that exact moment, Pokryong's blade lunged in from the opposite side.
"Urgh!"
Jacques stumbled.
His massive frame swayed.
His center of gravity was slightly thrown off, and the trajectory of his sword wavered minutely.
Although his defensive timing was practically perfect, his unfamiliar, corrupted body reacted awkwardly to his commands.
Whoosh, whoosh!
Heukgol's Zweihander did not stop. Once the greatsword began to swing, it rode its own inertia, continuously tracing deadly arcs.
Blocking it once was not the end. The strikes flowed seamlessly into the next trajectory, and then the one after that, in an endless cycle.
"...!"
At a glance, it seemed like a simple attack.
Just repeatedly swinging a heavily weighted sword.
But Adelia could perceive the precise calculations hidden beneath Heukgol's seemingly simple movements.
No matter which direction Jacques blocked, Heukgol's sword had already calculated the recoil to determine its next path.
Clang! Whoosh!
The moment Jacques was forced to parry the heavy blade, a brief opening was created as he was pushed back by the recoil.
Heukgol never missed that fleeting window.
It felt as if he were swinging his sword already knowing exactly how his opponent would react.
A series of precise, cold strikes followed, as if he were foreseeing the future.
Screeech!
And Pokryong slipped right into that opening.
The moment Heukgol forced Jacques to defend, Pokryong targeted his blind spots. Conversely, when Pokryong pressured Jacques, Heukgol's massive sword cut off his retreat.
...It's perfect teamwork.
The two Sword Masters moved as if they shared a single body.
Each other's attack timing, the trajectories of their swords, and even the options available to Jacques—everything was meticulously calculated.
Boom! Crash!
The corrupted Jacques resisted fiercely, but he was steadily pushed back. The massive figure, propped up on four limbs, began to retreat slowly but surely.
"Damn it...!"
Anxiety crept into Jacques's voice.
At that moment, Adelia realized something.
The true terror of a coordinated attack did not lie simply in numbers.
It lay in systematically eliminating the opponent's options.
That was what a real 'coordinated attack' meant.
She, too, had already instinctively grasped this principle.
When she had faced Jacques using Tristan's Cloak, she had limited his choices by alternating between visibility and invisibility.
That, too, operated on the exact same principle. Adelia had simulated the effect of a coordinated attack all by herself.
"..."
Slide.
As her thoughts reached this point, Adelia's hand unconsciously gripped the hilt of her sword.
Something stirred inside her mind.
The principles she had just witnessed fused with what she had already mastered, beginning to evolve into an even deeper state of comprehension.
Hummmmm—!
Without her even realizing it, the door to a new realm of mastery swung open.
Yet Adelia did not even notice. All of her senses were entirely focused on the battle before her.
Whoosh!
Heukgol's Zweihander traced another massive arc.
This time, Jacques could not evade. Pokryong had cut off his retreat with exquisite timing.
Boom!
The impact sent Jacques's massive body hurtling backward, out of the gates of Midtemple and toward the untamed wilderness.
"How dare you...! How dare you!"
Jacques let out a roar of pure fury.
Yet the two Sword Masters remained completely unfazed. Instead, they pressed their advantage even more precisely and relentlessly.
As the battle raged on, Jacques was pushed further away from the city. Just as Gaon had intended, the battlefield was shifting to an area where civilian casualties would be minimized.
"..."
Adelia did not miss a single detail. Her swordsmanship had already taken a leap forward, but she could not afford to be satisfied with just that.
She had to observe and learn even more. Because that was exactly what Gaon expected of her.
She glanced sideways.
As she immersed herself in the fight, Adelia turned her head to look at the man beside her.
Gaon was also watching the fierce clash between the two Sword Masters.
Perhaps because they had spent a fair amount of time together, she could now read the subtle nuances in Gaon's expressionless face.
On the surface, he looked as indifferent as ever, but beneath that facade, she could clearly detect a sense of intense curiosity and analysis.
Gaon, too, was finding this battle intriguing.
Suddenly, a question arose in her mind.
What was Gaon thinking right now?
Was he interpreting the battle unfolding before them in a completely different way than she was?
While she was focusing on the techniques, skills, and flow of the fight... was he looking at something far beyond that? The end of the battle? The structure of victory and defeat? Or perhaps something even more fundamental?
"Sir Gaon,"
Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, Adelia spoke up.
"May I ask what you are thinking about?"
Gaon replied casually, as if it were nothing of importance.
"It's nothing much."
"..."
"I was just thinking about how I would have fought if I were in their place."
Hearing his answer, Adelia asked again.
"How would you deal with that monster, Sir Gaon?"
"..."
Gaon stared at her in silence. In that brief quiet, Adelia felt a strange sense of dissonance regarding the word she had just uttered.
Monster.
It was a word that had slipped out of her mouth naturally.
The dignity and honor of Jacques von Heibrun, once a giant of Midtemple, had long since vanished.
The entity before Adelia's eyes now was nothing but a beast stained with destruction, madness, and sticky greed.
If so...
How would Gaon handle that monster, which two Sword Masters had to join forces just to push back?
Right then, Gaon delivered his answer in a detached voice.
"That is a pointless concern."
"Pardon? What do you mean by..."
"It means that regardless of how to deal with him, a single swing of my sword is more than enough."
"...!"
Adelia's eyes went wide.
If anyone else had said those words, she would have dismissed it as mere bluffing.
But Gaon was different. Having witnessed his actions up to now, Adelia knew all too well that he was not a man to make empty boasts.
"Bullshit!"
"Stop talking out of your ass! If it's that easy, why don't you come over here and fight him yourself?!"
"..."
"..."
...Of course, the two Sword Masters currently fighting Jacques immediately barked back in protest.
...Why do those guys have such sharp ears?
As expected of superhumans, their senses are unnecessarily sharp.
To think they're eavesdropping on my conversation with Adelia while fighting for their lives.
Well, putting that aside...
Gaon looked down.
I scanned the messages floating in the corner of my vision.
Level Up! (Lv. 38 → Lv. 39)
Level Up! (Lv. 39 → Lv. 40)
Indeed.
Before I knew it, my level had reached 40.
To think I'd grow this much just by spectating a fight.
Of course, I knew very well that what I had done was far from simple 'spectating.'
The trajectories of their swords, their movement patterns, the flow of the battlefield, and the intent hidden behind it all. The two Sword Masters were exceptional in their swordsmanship, but what impressed me even more was their tactical design of the battle.
It wasn't just about the sharpness of their strikes, but the design that directed where that sharpness went. It was a calculation focused on stripping away options, transcending a simple clash of strength and technique.
It was not a fight to determine whose strength was greater or whose technique was superior.
It was about what moves you could force your opponent to make. What flow you could induce. The one who could design the entire structure of the fight was the one who truly ruled the battlefield.
You have analyzed the flow of the battlefield and fully comprehended the structure of the combat.
Perception has increased significantly.
Sensory Acuity has increased significantly.
...
Reward: Sub-stat [Leadership & Command] has been unlocked.
Reward: Sub-stat [Charisma] has been unlocked.
With the massive increase in my Perception and Sensory Acuity, the sub-stats had unlocked.
Both were stats that directly influenced a character's leadership and charisma.
But that was only the beginning.
I scanned the notifications piling up above the level-up messages.
Mental Strength 'MAX' resonates with the new traits.
Leadership & Command has increased significantly.
Charisma has increased significantly.
...
Trait: [Dragon Body] synchronizes with the expanded stats.
Strength has increased.
Agility has increased.
Stamina has increased.
The [Dragon Body] trait reacted to the explosive rise in my sub-stats.
As the realm of the mind (心) elevated, the body (體) naturally began to follow suit.
My nervous system expanded, raising the resolution of my sensory organs. The conduction rate between muscle and nerve improved, and my spatial awareness and reaction speed also shot up exponentially.
And...
...This was the result.
Level 40.
I had achieved a spec only attainable in the mid-game during the absolute early stages. Considering I was an irregular, my actual combat capabilities were likely far higher than the number suggested.
I didn't expect such an explosive growth.
I figured I'd gain something, but I never imagined I'd reap this many rewards.
Well, whatever the case, it was a good thing.
Considering the trials that lay ahead, the faster I grew, the better.
By the way...
I shifted my gaze back to the battlefield.
The tide of battle was clearly in favor of the Sword Masters. Jacques was continuously being pushed back, and the number of clean hits he took was steadily rising.
However, there was one problem.
Sssss!
The wounds on Jacques's body healed in real-time.
It was the unique regeneration of an evil god worshiper.
Even when his flesh was slashed, pierced, or severed, his monstrous vitality regenerated the damage in an instant.
"Aaaargh! This is so annoying!" Heukgol screamed in frustration.
"There's no end to the cutting! This damn bastard!"
Pokryong also clicked his tongue with a grim expression.
"...Tsk."
Although they clearly held the upper hand, the inability to land a decisive blow was growing frustrating.
"Bwahahaha!"
Jacques's laughter boomed across the untamed wilderness.
Rumble!
Having fully adapted to his mutated body, Jacques's counterattacks were actually growing fiercer by the second.
Adelia seemed to grasp the situation as well, casting a sidelong glance at me. Her silent gaze asked how long I planned to just watch.
Right.
I had already obtained all the rewards I could get from spectating.
It's about time I stepped in.
Having reached that conclusion, I drew the Feather Sword from my waist.
Shring—!
As the faint ring of the blade echoed, Adelia's expression softened with relief.
...I shouldn't use [Soul of the Sword Master] just yet.
My steps toward the battlefield grew heavier. My pace slowed in tandem with my deepening thoughts.
If I killed Jacques right now, all my plans would go awry. The timing of his death had to be precise.
Specifically, the exact moment his final phase begins.
The key was dragging Jacques to that point.
A monster that regenerated in an instant, no matter how many times he was slashed, pierced, or run through.
While they could temporarily suppress him, maintaining dominance indefinitely against that horrific regeneration was practically impossible.
...Well, under 'normal circumstances,' that is.
Of course, I am different.
No matter how it was for others, that monstrous regeneration meant absolutely nothing to me.
Because...
Eternal Slayer Jin
Negates all forms of immortality and regeneration possessed by the target.
...I was the only one who could completely seal off his monstrous regeneration at its source.