Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Ban of the Cho Clan (6)
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Ban’s sword sped up. Then slowed down again. Watching himself falter at the shifting sword speed, Shade realized that Ban had already seized control of the fight.
'What is this?'
'Scorpion Sword.' It was a sword art born from an old joint technique between two great swordmasters, adapted directly into dual-wield form. They said that once mastered, it had no equal. Countless people had challenged it, but only a handful had ever wielded it properly.
Shade had mastered that sword art before his beard had even grown.
— You’re like a guardian from legend, Shade.
That’s what people said. That he was blessed by the sword. Shade thought so too.
But what was this?
Why couldn’t his sword even graze Ban’s clothes?
He had paid attention. He had given his gaze to every single one of those wearing Cho Clan robes, but the one who stood out most was Ban. A sword path that anyone would call beautiful, nothing else.
A battlefield that should have been savage turned into a dance floor at his side. Each strike so clean it bordered on arrogance, as if he alone understood what a sword truly was in this world—making one wonder if he even grasped that this was a field of battle.
Even so, Shade hadn’t thought he would lose. His Scorpion Sword was too perfect for that. Defense and offense seemed separated, only to pour out and vanish in an instant, repeating in otherworldly patterns.
If he could just land a sudden assault, he thought he could even beat a knight.
He had never imagined losing to a mere novice not even at esquire rank.
'Surely he can’t sustain Qi continuously.'
Was he hiding his power? No, that couldn’t be. Shade had watched Ban’s match against Hazelrek. If his Qi proficiency had been that high, he wouldn’t have needed to cling to such inefficient tactics.
But the real problem wasn’t that Ban had learned to handle Qi. The more their swords clashed, the more seasoned Ban’s sword became. In those brief exchanges, it was as if he had grasped at least a glimpse of his ‘Scorpion Sword’...
'No way.'
Shade was a genius. Everyone called him that. And because of it, he couldn’t accept that such a talent could exist in the world. If someone like that did exist—if there was someone who could make his own extraordinary talent seem inferior—what was he?
Could the word ‘genius’ even fully encompass him?
"Huff... huff..."
Shade halted his assault and pulled back, creating distance. He was out of breath.
Ban simply watched him quietly. Unlike Shade, who had to swing two swords, Ban hadn’t depleted his stamina that much yet.
This was his chance. If he didn’t give Shade time to rest now, Shade would eventually collapse from exhaustion and fall to his sword.
But Ban didn’t.
No, there was no need.
‘The fight is already over.’
Ban’s eyes were cold, yet serene. He no longer looked at Shade as an enemy. It was almost embarrassing to call Shade his prey now.
He was a steak on the table, waiting only for Ban’s blade to slice into his flesh.
With each clash of swords, Ban absorbed Shade’s Scorpion Sword. He couldn’t wield it identically, but figuring out how its pincers and tail moved hadn’t taken long.
'Five exchanges.'
In about five more exchanges, he could kill Shade. Quietly, he asked,
"Do you intend to kneel and apologize to Ikyeong?"
"...What?"
"I asked if you plan to apologize for trying to take that guy’s life."
"Kh."
Shade laughed as if he’d heard some absurd joke. He lowered his stance. His right sword parallel to the ground like it was glued to the earth, his left slanted forward. Just like a scorpion’s pincers and tail.
'Fuck this.'
"...Yeah. I figured as much."
One might ask why. If he had some personal grudge against Ikyeong, or against them. But none of that mattered anymore. He wasn’t the type for proper conversation anyway—and above all, Ban had endured long enough.
He grinned like a wolf.
"That’s enough."
And in that moment, Shade bit his lip without realizing it, a chill running down his spine. He nearly stumbled back.
An overwhelming presence. Shade desperately read Ban’s eyes. His pupils scanned every blind spot of Shade’s in an instant, then his vitals, even reading his entire life story.
If he failed to read those eyes even for a moment, it felt like he’d be torn to pieces and collapse. No, it wasn’t just a feeling—it was instinct. A swordsman’s instinct. Like facing an opponent far stronger than him...
'Unfair...'
Shade twisted his lips into a smile. Now he understood why his old comrades always hid jealous glares when looking at him.
The gap in talent was overwhelming. Ban wasn’t faster than Shade. He wasn’t stronger, nor did he wield a sharper sword.
Yet from the moment they faced each other, Shade’s defeat was sealed.
Just like how the young Shade had grasped the feel of the Scorpion Sword after seeing it only once—a technique no one else could even comprehend.
That swordsman was seeing something Shade couldn’t understand.
Shade grinned idiotically. It was ridiculous. He had never even imagined it. Facing death in a tournament. He’d assumed victory was a given, entry into the Royal Knight Order, and then...
'Forgive me, Captain. But...'
Shade gripped the swords in both hands until they creaked. But even if it was a dog’s death, even if the opponent was some unlucky Cho Clan lackey, if it was against a monster like that...
It wouldn’t be a shameful death, would it?
The crowd’s noise fell silent. Perhaps they sensed the meaning of this standoff between the two swordsmen and shut their mouths without knowing why. Or maybe Ban’s eyes had drawn every nerve, making the noise inaudible.
Ironically, on the brink of death, Shade felt an exhilaration he had never known. An opponent he couldn’t overcome even pouring out everything. He’d seen countless stronger than him, but this was the first he felt he could never surpass.
And the first wall he’d ever truly faced was...
'Huh?'
For a moment, Shade’s eyes trembled. For some reason, he glimpsed the phantoms of other swordsmen behind Ban...
And as Shade’s attention was stolen by the phantoms, Ban’s eyes locked on.
'......Ah.'
A momentary lapse. A short sigh he couldn’t even voice. And then,
"Hup!"
Shade charged. Staying still meant certain death. Dodging meant death. Blocking meant death. His only slim chance was to throw himself at Ban with resolve to die. Nothing else.
But possibility doesn’t always bring results.
Ban’s sword moved. Jensen’s Overhead Slash. Obun’s thrust. Cho Clan swordsmanship. Ban hid not a single fragment of the techniques within. There was no need now.
Since his fight with Obun, Ban had never once unleashed his full power. In spars, he couldn’t charge with killing intent, and here too, he had no desire to take lives unnecessarily.
But now, he had finally found an opponent he could unleash everything on.
In terms of skill,
And in terms of circumstance.
No reason to hold back.
In that instant, that brief moment, the crowd fell into true silence, as if forgetting to breathe. In the vast arena, only the faint clash of the two swords echoed.
It had to be that way. Even those who hadn’t learned the sword realized it without anyone telling them. The moment when one human poured out everything he had built in his lifetime.
Shade’s sword was fast. His Scorpion Sword was seasoned and mature. It showed it had been stained with real human blood through actual combat. Facing crisis, his blade seemed even sharper than at the start.
Fast sword. Seasoned sword. Mature sword. Sharp sword. Scorpion Sword. Shade’s sword. A sword worthy of every praise in the world.
And a powerless sword.
Ban’s sword moved. No matter how otherworldly Shade’s movements, no matter how much he poured his full heart and soul into his swings, it meant nothing. Ban had already read him.
First, the left hand flew.
Before Shade could even look at his severed wrist, his Achilles tendon was cut,
The right sword swung as if for mutual destruction fell to the ground with his right arm.
A faint smile crossed the face of the swordsman who sensed death,
And the final sword shot toward his throat.