Chapter 256: Sword Demon, Mad Demon, Heavenly Sword...
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 256: Sword Demon, Mad Demon, Heavenly Sword...
A searing pain that felt as if it were melting my optic nerves, and a wracking agony as if my brain were being squeezed in a vise. If I didn't have the [Blessing of Painlessness], I wouldn't have even dared to use it.
I agree that the [Blessing of the Sword God] is a transcendent power, but I have no idea why it has to come with such unbearable agony.
If I had to make a guess, it's probably because of the 'monstrous amount of information rushing in all at once.'
To put it simply, it's like cramming infinite data into hardware with a limited capacity.
It's just a hunch, but it's the most likely hypothesis—at least among the ones I can come up with.
Anyway, the point is this: the agony from the [Blessing of the Sword God] is fucking insane. And unless you have a pretty damn sturdy piece of hardware (body), you can't handle it.
Even Balor Joaquin found this power overwhelming. That's proof enough that no human, not just me, could easily endure it.
Which raised a question in my mind.
Is this power—or rather, the accompanying pain—limited only to humans? Would it also apply to superior hardware? That is, bastards like the Majin, especially top-tier ones? Questions like that.
But opportunities to test this were rare, and even when I had them, my life was hanging by a thread both times. In short, I didn't have the luxury to run experiments. I wasn't crazy enough to fool around when my life was on the line.
But life is full of twists and turns. Opportunities always arrive unexpectedly.
Just like right now.
This son of a bitch, held in my grip with his eyes rolled back, was the test subject to answer my long-standing question. Of course, I couldn't escape the pain of the [Blessing of the Sword God] either.
But humans are creatures of habit.
Having suffered through this mind-numbing pain for a whole year, I'd gotten somewhat used to it. I was definitely not sitting there with tears and snot streaming down my face like before.
"Ah, fuck."
The curse slipping from my mouth was a knee-jerk reaction. Let me emphasize that I was merely used to it. Just because you've been stabbed a lot doesn't mean it stops hurting.
I genuinely felt like I was going to drop dead any second. I had bitten my lower lip so hard the flesh was shredded to ribbons.
My thoughts were jumbled and incoherent. My train of thought stuttered, severed as if cut with scissors.
"Hahaha..."
Still, watching Permush's face crumple like aluminum foil brought a smirk to my lips.
Slap!
Permush suddenly gagged up a spray of blue blood, so I slapped his cheek. Don't you dare pass out on me.
"You bastard, you think you're the only one in pain?"
Permush writhed in terror. But so what? It was a futile struggle.
"How does it feel to be the weak one? The humans you killed earlier with a flick of your chin died before they could even squirm like you. Why? Did causing earthquakes, summoning titans and golems, and flipping the sky make you feel like a god? Don't give me that bullshit. You're nothing but a bug—no, less than one."
"Mmph..."
"Stay still, you bastard. You're drooling on my hand."
I thought about slapping his other cheek, but instead, I gripped his neck with all my strength. It looked so thin I thought it would snap with a click, but it was surprisingly tough.
As expected of the 4th Corps Commander. I like it. The grin on my face grew wider and wider.
"In the world I used to live in, there's a saying."
I whispered into his ear, my lips stained crimson with blood. The agony was threatening to shatter my sanity, so I had to keep babbling anything to stay focused.
"Crying when things are tough makes you third-rate. Enduring when things are tough makes you second-rate. And smiling when things are tough... makes you first-rate."
Permush glared at me with bloodshot eyes. Wow, look at that fierce glare. He looked like he was about to hit me.
Regardless, I kept babbling whatever popped into my head.
"But the more I think about it, the dumber it sounds. Categorizing people based on whether they cry, endure, or laugh. Permush, do you agree or not?"
"...Ugh."
"Shut up. Don't answer. You're not even human, so whatever you say doesn't matter anyway."
"..."
"Woah, this bastard really didn't answer? Making me look bad while I'm talking to him. What a rude little piece of shit."
As I snickered after saying that, Permush's expression contorted strangely. It was like watching someone who had never felt fear in his entire life desperately try to express it. It was a bizarre, ghastly sight, but in this moment, I could thoroughly enjoy watching it.
Honestly, I didn't even know what I wanted to say or what I was saying right now. Whether I was actually moving my lips to speak, or just rambling inside my head.
What mattered was that Permush was dying while fearing me. That was the core of it. Compared to that, the pain from the [Blessing of the Sword God] was a mere sideshow.
"After Agor and Vesna, now I've planted fear in you too, Permush. You guys should be grateful to me. After all, I enriched your dry, withered emotions. Go play with the other Corps Commanders swimming in the pits of hell first. I'll make sure to drop Kuarne, whom you love so much, into the same place soon."
Thump.
"..."
With my laughter as his lullaby, Permush's head slumped forward. Blood dripped from his nose down his upper lip and onto my hand, tap, tap. Even when I patted his cheeks back and forth, he didn't budge. His breath had ceased.
"I said it hurt enough to kill, but you actually went ahead and died."
I removed my hands from him. Deep blue handprints remained etched onto his thin neck. Moments later, Permush, lying crumpled on the ground, began disintegrating into dust starting from the tips of his limbs.
"Impatient Majin bastard."
The realization I gained with Permush and myself as test subjects: the pain of the [Blessing of the Sword God] drives humans insane, but it kills Majin.
Though my mind and body were thoroughly shredded as tuition... how should I describe this feeling? It felt like someone who had only ever worn ill-fitting off-the-rack clothes putting on a custom-tailored suit for the very first time.
At any rate, this was the moment I realized my brain had gone just a little bit crazy.
Right now, I wasn't the Sword Demon, but the Mad Demon.
Actually, it didn't matter. Sword Demon, Mad Demon, Heavenly Sword. All three were me, yet at the same time, none of them were.
As I babbled nonsense like this for a while, my eyelids grew progressively heavy. I tried to lift my head to look at the sky, but I couldn't muster any strength in my jaw.
‘Ah, that time has come.’
Thinking that when I opened my eyes again, I would probably be staring at a hospital ceiling—
I calmly accepted the pitch-black darkness washing over me like a wave.
* * *
[You have obtained the Sixth Fragment of 【???】: 'The Barrier between Man and Demon'. Total acquired: (6/7).]
—Flash!
* * *
『I sought to sever Man and Demon, constructing a grand barrier.
Yet in the end, I realized that this too was the trickery of the Heavens.
How long must we be danced on their strings?
It is heartbreaking. Miserable. Infuriating.
What could possibly be the reason for those who call themselves gods to go this far?
What on earth are they afraid of?
And what is that entity that reduced the Heavens to mere street thugs?
I pray.
Where are you?
If nothing else, grant me at least your noble name.
Have pity on this foolish creature.
Please, answer me.
I beg of you, and I pray again.』
* * *
[NEW! You have completed the Main Quest 'Human-Demon Unification'. Rewards have been granted.]
♪♫♬♩♫
[▷ You are now able to manifest 'Blessing of Painlessness 〈True〉'.]
[▷ You are now able to manifest 'Blessing of Communication 〈True〉'.]
[▷ The proficiency of 'Blessing of Borrowed Power' has increased exponentially.]
[▷ 'Blessing of the Sword God 〈Awakening〉' is close at hand.]
[…….]
[…….]
[Thank you for your hard work.]
* * *
Silence settled over the crowd.
"Ugh..."
The bearded man barely managed to open his eyes before looking down. It was at that moment he realized only the wind swirled where his right arm used to be.
The man let out a hollow laugh as he surveyed the battlefield. Golems frozen mid-motion and crushed piles of flesh. For a moment, he felt the illusion that the world—no, time in hell itself—had ground to a halt.
The man muttered helplessly to himself.
"...So many died."
The corners of his mouth, buried in his beard, were bitter beyond measure. The relief of surviving was nowhere near enough to raise a smile.
The bearded man pressed his left hand against the ground and stumbled to his feet. He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the warmth of the sunset peeking through cirrus clouds against his skin.
"Hey."
A voice, familiar yet strange, drifted into his ears. The man slowly opened his eyes.
The archer he had been chatting with a few hours ago was limping toward him. Since one of the archer's legs was gone, his pace was slow.
Only then did a smirk lift through the bearded man's facial hair. He quickly stepped forward and moved close to support the archer.
"Trading an arm and a leg instead of our lives... I'd say you and I got lucky."
The archer spoke. The bearded man supporting him burst into a hearty laugh.
"Lucky indeed!"
Spurred by his voice, survivors began pushing aside the rubble and emerging. In this hellscape once filled with death, life bloomed like wildflowers.
Feeling the bitterness in his mouth wash away into refreshment, the bearded man laughed even louder. This time, the archer joined in. One by one, the other heroes added their laughter to the chorus.
Just then, two figures descended to the ground, stepping on the arms and hands of a colossal Buddha-statue titan. As the approaching sounds grew nearer, everyone turned their eyes toward them. It was the Spear Saint and the Sword Emperor.
The bearded man narrowed his eyes. He saw a boy cradled in the Spear Saint's arms. The boy was in a truly horrific state, drenched head to toe in crimson and purplish blood. Judging by his condition alone, he was even more battered than the man and archer who had lost limbs.
The bearded man stared at the boy in stunned silence. The archer offered him a faint smile and asked:
"Since I'm missing a leg, could you help me get down on one knee? It's a bit tough to manage on my own."
The bearded man readily complied with his request. But that wasn't all.
"I was just about to do the same."
He bent his own knee as well and spoke.
As the archer opened his eyes wide, the man scratched his beard.
"You know... back before the battle, when he gave that speech to us. He intentionally lowered himself to meet us at eye level. At the time, I thought it was just for show, but it wasn't. He fought at the very front lines against the enemy more than anyone else."
"So you mean it bothers you to look down on a man like that standing tall."
The bearded man nodded sheepishly.
"Well, something like that."
The archer's eyes crinkled in pleasant amusement before he suddenly raised his bow high into the sky and shouted with a thunderous roar.
"Lord Heavenly Sword!"
Someone echoed back sonorously.
"Lord Sword Demon!"
Shouts chanting for the boy rang out one after another. As more survivors joined in, the cheer grew deafening enough to split one's ears. However, the names they chanted were disjointed and uncoordinated.
"Heavenly Sword!" "Sword Demon!" "Heavenly Sword!" "Sword Demon!"
Heavenly Sword, his epithet among the Seven Stars, and Sword Demon, his given name. As the chants continued, the two titles fractured and stitched together.
Until finally, they converged into one, giving birth to a new title.
The fierce warriors chanted that new title in unison.
""HEAVENLY DEMON!""
Like a roar of victory.