Chapter 21
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Origin, Kaisen Alter Aradamanthel (4)
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He knew everything.
That this was a ploy to make him break the rules, the sword ban. That the moment he broke it, he would be expelled.
But even knowing, he couldn't bear it. It was a moment he shouldn't have to endure.
“Draw your sword!”
As the hemp cord was torn apart and dangled in the air, the flame burning in Kaisen's eyes was serene.
“How foolish.”
The corners of Arin Perry's eyes curved.
A sword was drawn from his waist, accepting the duel by meeting Kaisen's shortsword.
“Hmph, I'm acting in self-defense. I felt my life was threatened.”
And so the duel began.
There were no witnesses, no rules for victory or defeat—only killing intent.
Kaisen's sword bent in mid-air for an instant, aiming for Arin's vital points.
A chilling scream of steel erupted.
A flurry of fierce strikes rained down, so savage they sent sparks flying. Faced with the overwhelming assault, Arin's sword grew desperate.
“What's going on? Did they draw their swords?”
The cadets of the 997th class, moving through the hallway for their theory lesson, shook their heads at the sight of the bloody spectacle.
“This is why you can't do anything with men. So full of hot-blooded vigor.”
“No, I would've done the same.”
The one who put a stop to the disparaging remarks from their peers was Seira, the disciple of the 6th Seat, Alesia Alter Solang.
A direct disciple of a FakeWarrior.
Kaisen was a man, so his case was different, but in most instances, direct disciples held an absolute advantage over other cadets.
In both skill and reputation.
Seira, having arrived at the classroom earlier than Arin had calculated, had grasped the full situation.
“The other guy insulted his master.”
“No way…!”
“They say 'no way' gets people killed, right? If it were me, I wouldn't have even given him the chance to draw his sword. I would have just killed him.”
The difference in their strength was clear.
Within that clarity, there were three reasons Arin could barely block Kaisen's attacks and endure.
One.
Kaisen was half-blind.
Two.
Kaisen was using a shortsword, not his usual longsword, while Arin was wielding his main weapon, a bastard sword.
Three.
Arin had no need to go on the offensive. He didn't need to win this fight. Because.
“What do you think you're doing!”
A thunderous roar erupted.
The moment Kaisen thought he heard the sound, a flash appeared in the corner of his vision, and the hand swinging his sword froze in mid-air, heavy as lead.
“!”
Kaisen raised his gaze.
Head Instructor Olliere Dune Jeraye, who had appeared out of nowhere, was gripping both Kaisen's and Arin's arms.
Footwork trained to the extreme allows one to appear from a place beyond perception and strike an opponent's weakness. Olliere's footwork at that moment was just like that.
“You've violated the first rule for cadets! By rights, you should both be expelled.”
“…”
“The rule against drawing your sword is a test of a cadet's basic willpower! This is no different from admitting you lack that quality.”
At that, Arin Perry nodded as if he had been waiting for this.
“But there are exceptions. Instructor, I drew my sword because I felt my life was in danger.”
“Are you saying Kaisen drew his sword first?”
“Yes, you can ask the other cadets.”
Olliere didn't look at the other cadets. Instead, he looked at Kaisen.
Kaisen lifted his head.
Resembling Camilla, his calm yet cold eyes shone. Kaisen did not avoid Olliere's gaze.
“Why did you draw it?”
“Because I faced a threat greater than one to my life.”
“Are you saying Arin Perry drew his sword first?”
“That's nonsense!”
“No. Even if Arin Perry had pointed his sword at me, I would not have drawn mine.”
“Then why?”
“I drew my sword because that bastard insulted my master. Please let me cut him down.”
At those words, Olliere's expression hardened into a cold mask. A cold flame flickered in his eyes as he turned to Arin.
“Is that true?”
“…?”
“I'm asking you now. Did you insult Camilla with that mouth of yours?”
Arin shook his head.
After swallowing, he spoke with feigned innocence.
“There's no way I would do that, Instructor.”
Olliere scanned the surroundings.
The silence was deep. The other cadets, intimidated by the Muryeong Sword Sect's influence, dared not speak.
Arin Perry had been able to orchestrate this because he was backed by the current leading sword sect, confident that there would be no repercussions.
There were only two people to be wary of: the disciples of the FakeWarriors studying in the 997th class, and the daughter of Maengjakga.
‘One of the disciples is an idiot, so I only need to watch out for two of them.’
Just as Kaisen's eyes narrowed and his heart began to pound violently, a voice spoke up, a hand raised in testimony.
“Seira, disciple of Alesia Alter Solang. I heard it, Head Instructor.”
Seira Panton.
Pale skin and a dazzling beauty.
The eyes of the Margrave of Panton's eldest daughter were beautiful with a playful glint, and the braided hair flowing over her shoulders looked elegant.
Her appearance wasn't important.
What was important was that she was one of the dangerous figures Arin Perry had to be wary of.
“Is that so? What did he say?”
“He uttered the outrageous lie that Kaisen was born from Camilla Alter Aradamanthel sleeping with Johan Wolf Frost.”
For a moment, a dark shadow fell over Olliere's face. Seira spoke with a nonchalant expression.
“If someone had said such a thing about my late master, I wouldn't have bothered with a duel. I would have just torn his mouth apart on the spot.”
“!”
“That boy was honorable to a fault. I testify to this, staking my honor and that of my master. That is all.”
As Seira finished with a bright smile, Arin's face turned noticeably pale, his lips trembling.
When?
No, how could she be here already?
And of all people, why did it have to be Seira?
In that moment.
A very brief instant.
Arin's head snapped to the side, and fragments of a broken tooth and a spray of blood scattered in the air.
“From before she became a FakeWarrior, and from the moment she did until the day she died, Camilla lived only on the battlefield.”
“In-Instructor…”
“While you were peacefully suckling at your mother's breast and washing yourself with warm water, Camilla drank blood and washed herself in sweat. So that you—so that even human scum like you—could live in such peace! And you… you dare insult someone like that with your mouth?”
He probably would have killed him.
If Olliere hadn't been the head instructor and Arin hadn't been a cadet.
He swallowed dryly, suppressing the rage rampaging within him.
“Arin Perry, get out of here right now. I'm expelling you from the Sword Hall of Prowess.”
“Th-This is unfair…!”
“Unfair? Ask any instructor, and they'll say you should be expelled. Tell the leader of the Muryeong Sword Sect that as long as I am the head instructor, no FakeWarrior will ever come from your sect.”
* * *
“How are your eyes?”
“With my glasses, it's manageable. But only just.”
“Kid, you don't have to emphasize it like that. I get it.”
Olliere's pace was fast.
As they walked through the ascending corridor of the Papal Office, clouds danced in the blue northern sky.
Like the hazy scent of raspberry wine, the sky at sunset was fragrant.
“The expulsion process for Arin Perry is complete.”
“That was fast.”
“The True Dragons have entrusted the instructors with all matters concerning the cadets' education. So… try to calm down now.”
Kaisen couldn't understand the instructor's intentions. He spoke in a bewildered tone.
“You seem to be more upset than I am.”
“You think so? Hmph, I have my reasons. Camilla would never have mentioned it, but she and I were in the same class at the Sword Hall of Prowess.”
“With my master…?”
“She was a real pain in the ass. Always taking the top spot and never showing a hint of pleasure in it.”
Camilla's classmate?
That was quite a surprise.
Kaisen was intrigued by Olliere's tone, which revealed a side of Camilla he'd never known.
“And look at this. In the end, she was chosen by the hero's holy sword, Aradamanthel, while I'm stuck here playing instructor, as you can see.”
There was no real criticism in his tone as he spoke of Camilla. His voice was steeped in longing.
“Still, she wasn't a bad person.”
“She wasn't.”
“She must have treated you pretty well, huh? Otherwise, you wouldn't have drawn your sword. If I hadn't known the full story, you'd have been expelled on the spot.”
Kaisen once again stared out the window at the distant summer sky. His eyes flickered for a moment.
That day.
The day everyone died.
He recalled the events of that dawn when the first monsoon rains poured down, and the endless screams of his comrades.
- Go on a journey.
He remembered the bloody battle with Kishun, Camilla's smile as she laughed with a mouthful of blood, and the final warmth of his master's touch on his head.
“…”
Kaisen was unable to speak, a deep sorrow seeping into his chest. Understanding his expression, Olliere placed a hand on his shoulder.
“She was the one who boasted to me that she'd never take a disciple, so when you showed up, I was completely baffled. To be honest, I was happy.”
“…”
“And that's when I remembered. She asked me to pass on a tip if her disciple ever came. Of course, with her personality, I never thought she'd actually get a disciple, so I'd forgotten all about it.”
“A tip?”
“Kaisen, why do you think no man has ever become a FakeWarrior?”
“…?”
“There are many reasons, I'm sure, but Camilla thought it might be a matter of mindset.”
“What kind of mindset?”
“Men are physically stronger than women. It's frustrating, but it's a fact we have to accept.”
“That's why women are better at handling Manachains.”
“Magic is something you learn to use, but physical ability is innate. Because of that, they have a strong tendency to overestimate their own strength.”
Kaisen tilted his head.
He couldn't grasp what Olliere Dune Jeraye was trying to say.
Olliere stepped into the elevator, and as Kaisen followed, he pressed the button for [98].
“And women aren't?”
“Of course not. Since it's relatively harder for women to rely on their physical abilities, they come to rely on something else.”
“Something else?”
“Tools, Kaisen. The reason women are better at handling Manachains—the way a swordsman uses their main power—and the reason they're chosen as FakeWarriors, is probably because of this.”
“…!”
“To humble oneself, to know one's limits, and to earnestly pray to the holy sword for everything. That is the way to use a holy sword.”
Olliere said that much, then gave a short, self-deprecating laugh and leaned heavily against the glass wall.
“What meaning is there in someone like me, who wasn't chosen by a holy sword, saying this… but anyway, this is what Camilla told me.”
Kaisen stroked his chin.
Rely not on your own body, but on the holy sword. And pray to the holy sword for everything?
That day, Kaisen hadn't listened carefully to the teaching his master had left with her friend; it had gone in one ear and out the other. And for good reason.
“Head Instructor, but…”
“What is it?”
“I don't know if those words have any meaning for me, someone who has failed the Dragon Spirit Stone infusion five times already. It seems all that's left is the expulsion process.”
“Whether it has meaning or not will likely be decided today.”
“Pardon?”
Clank. A heavy metallic sound announced the elevator's arrival at its destination.
He slid open the metal grating.
The place Olliere led Kaisen to was the 98th floor, the Dragon God Hall, a sacred place opened only when the cardinals delivered the Light Dragon's revelations. Everything around them glittered with gold.
「This is a holy place. Remove your shoes, Kaisen, disciple of Camilla Alter Aradamanthel.」
A solemn voice echoed through the round, golden world. The voice, which made the very air tremble, was sublime. And familiar.
This voice…?
It was a presence he had felt before, an authority he had heard before. Kaisen, who had knelt to remove his shoes, dared to lift his head, and his eyes trembled.
「Child, have you been well?」
It was Cardinal Yosuhar.
The Golden Dragon who had accepted him into the Sword Hall of Prowess…
There was no way he could forget that golden silk robe and the solemn dragon's head.
“As you can see, I have not been well. I went blind during the first Dragon Spirit Stone infusion process.”
“Hey, Kaisen! What kind of way is that to speak! My apologies, Your Eminence.”
Olliere quickly tried to stop him, but Yosuhar raised a hand to show it was alright.
「No, child. What blinded you was your arrogance.」
“…?”
「Do you despair after falling just once? Were you so confident that you could achieve anything in the world in a single attempt? Arrogance is the most cunning and patient of assassins.」
“What am I supposed to do, having been crippled by that one fall?”
An edge inadvertently crept into his voice.
Yosuhar, who had been sitting on a distant throne, took a deep breath and stood up.
「If it cannot be achieved through ordinary means, then you must achieve it through extraordinary ones.」
As Yosuhar descended the stairs, Wyvern priests in ceremonial robes presented a divine object wrapped in blue silk.
It was a Spirit Stone.
By infusing this Spirit Stone with the Dragon Tongue, it becomes a Dragon Spirit Stone that can inhabit a FakeWarrior's body.
「Normally, those who create Dragon Spirit Stones by carving away their own life force are the Wyvern priests here.」
Over the stone chunk held by Yosuhar, he chanted words of true power.
The Dragon Tongue.
The language of dragons was different from that of humans; depending on their hierarchy, a single word could change the heavens, part the seas, and raise the land.
「Pa bei ro ni Gen jetsu ro shi…….」
The waves of power unfurled by the chanted words surged, a power of absolute authority.
A raging gale, a flash of light.
He would have collapsed to the floor. If Olliere, who was just about to leave the hall, hadn't supported him… the power was that immense.
“No way…”
“What is it?”
“This is huge, absolutely huge, Kaisen. A True Dragon is personally infusing power into the Spirit Stone you'll use!”
The boy's eyes widened.
The power of a True Dragon?
A stone imbued with the power of a True Dragon?
“A normal Spirit Stone is made from the souls of Wyvern priests! The difference in power between a Wyvern and a True Dragon Cardinal is beyond comparison! But why? Why would he give up hundreds of years of his lifespan to do this…?”