Chapter 64: Disaster (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 64: Disaster (3)
My mind was a complete blank.
My memories of the battle with Agor were shattered like fragments.
I could remember gripping my sashimi knife and unleashing a fierce onslaught, but after that, a wave of excruciating pain sliced through my brain and cut off my consciousness.
'...Am I dead?'
Feeling dizzy, I barely managed to hold onto my thread of consciousness. Within my severed awareness, I groped for my forgotten bodily senses. Then, I felt a desolate wind brushing against my cheek.
I was still alive. I could tell instinctively.
Is this what it feels like to come back from the dead? But it was too early to celebrate. I sharpened my senses further to awaken my mind. Soon, I felt blood circulating to every corner of my body through my veins.
Starting with touch, my senses of taste, smell, and hearing returned one by one. A hot wind sharply scraped my skin, spicy and dry air seeped onto my tongue, and a burning smell pierced my nasal cavity.
However, perhaps because my eyes hadn't fully focused yet, the scenery before me was shrouded in a murky gray.
Reflexively, I channeled sensation back into my hands. The sensation of gripping a hilt was engraved into my knuckles.
My sigh of relief was short-lived, replaced by a growing question: how was there no excruciating pain even though the Blessing of Painlessness had ended? Far from agonizing pain, my head felt as clear and refreshed as if it had been thoroughly aired out.
'...'
A sense of déjà vu washed over me. It was similar to when my wooden sword broke during my sparring match with Chloe. However, unlike then, my mind was growing clearer. There were no ominous whispers echoing inside me, either.
As I was lost in thought, the scenery gradually began to come into view. My blurry, double vision soon resolved into sharp, distinct shapes.
"Cough, cough."
At the sound of a thick, wet cough reaching my ears, I snapped my eyes open and looked straight ahead. What met my eyes was the back of the Sword Emperor.
But the Sword Emperor's left side looked empty. His left arm was gone, all the way up to his upper arm. Flames were searing the side of his armpit. An unpleasant smell, like burning flesh, wafted through the air.
"...Sword Emperor?"
"Cough, cough. Are you back to your senses?"
He turned his head halfway to look back at me. Forcing down his pain-contorted expression, he squeezed out a smile. Blood leaking from between his teeth trickled down his chin.
My eyes trembled as I stared at his missing arm. The Sword Emperor spoke in a slow, deliberate voice.
"Pull yourself together while your body recovers. Looking at the situation, things are a complete mess."
"...Sword Emperor, your arm..."
The Sword Emperor merely shrugged his remaining shoulder and replied.
"It's fine. Why would I need both hands to hold a sword? Don't worry about me, just focus on recovering. The situation remains desperate, after all."
Even in this state, the Sword Emperor pulled up the corners of his mouth further, as if trying to reassure me. Then, he immediately turned his gaze back to the front.
Agor tilted her head, scanning the Sword Emperor and me, before speaking.
"How strange. You, old man. How did a mere human like you cut through my magic?"
The Sword Emperor panted heavily and did not reply. Gripping his sword with his remaining right arm, he took a stance. Agor let out a deep sigh and shook her head.
"Ha, how annoying. I guess this body really doesn't agree with me. To think I'm struggling against a brat and a half-dead old geezer."
Agor's face contorted in irritation. As she clicked her tongue, anger flared in her eyes.
Then, condensed fire wrapped around Agor's forearms like gauntlets.
Instantly, the sea of trees dried up, steam rising and evaporating with a sizzling hiss.
As Agor unleashed her murderous magic power, it took on a physical form, binding my body. From behind, I saw the Sword Emperor's shoulders heave slightly.
"Old man, I don't know what kind of trick you pulled, but—"
Before she could even finish her sentence, Agor stomped her foot.
Boom!
With a deafening roar of exploding air, she closed the distance to the Sword Emperor in an instant and swung her arm.
The unnatural, violent wind scraped against my skin.
I wanted to help the Sword Emperor with all my heart, but perhaps due to the backlash of the Blessing of the Sword God, I couldn't even wiggle a fingertip.
"—die."
Fiercely blazing flames aimed for the Sword Emperor's neck. His eyes snapped wide, and he raised his blade. A silver trajectory slid past Agor's arm.
Slash—!
The sound was sharp, and the movement was concise. It was a motion akin to a dance.
A swordsmanship brought to its absolute peak, stripped of all superfluity, cut through the uncuttable.
Immediately after, one of Agor's arms rolled on the ground. The intense heat melted the earth like lava.
Agor blinked, her expression blank with shock for a moment. Then, terrifying veins began to bulge on her face.
"How dare this insect...!"
As Agor shrieked, madness erupted.
The air currents swirled violently like a tornado, and the flames consuming the sea of trees rose like a massive curtain, forming a wall of fire.
All moisture in the atmosphere evaporated, drying my mouth in an instant.
At that moment, the Sword Emperor scraped the parched earth with the tip of his blade. A thick cloud of dry dust billowed up, and he vanished into the dust, hiding himself from the enemy's sight.
"You persistent rat!"
Agor snapped her fingers, and hundreds, thousands of fire spears materialized behind her, immediately launching forward.
Thwack-thwack-thwack—!
A shower of flames surged toward where the Sword Emperor was.
Tap!
A light footstep. The hidden Sword Emperor thrust his blade, which was enveloped in a pure blue aura. The aura targeted Agor's vital points like a blue whip.
The fiercely momentum-driven sword contained a single human's skill, talent, and experience. The series of movements performed by the Sword Emperor and his blade materialized and projected within my Mindscape Domain.
The sword, forged over a lifetime by a single human, finally struck Agor's neck.
Slash—!
He cut her.
But simultaneously, a sickening sound of tearing flesh rang out.
Crunch!
"Urgh...!"
One of the countless fire spears that erupted from the ground had impaled the Sword Emperor's abdomen. Sizzle— the sound of burning flesh. Kicking off the ground to widen the distance, the Sword Emperor coughed up a torrent of blood.
The Sword Emperor lowered his eyelids slightly to check his condition, and his pupils shook violently.
A hollow, circular hole was gouged into his abdominal cavity. Seared by the overwhelming heat, there was not even blood or flesh leaking out.
"Cough, argh..."
His lips parted a few times before the Sword Emperor let out a pain-filled groan. Soon, his knees hit the ground, and the light in his eyes began to slowly fade.
Agor sneered and walked slowly toward him. Her severed arm had already reattached and healed without leaving a single scratch.
The gap between humans and demons was not merely a difference in the power they wielded. Even in that split second, Agor had cast mind-attribute magic to distort the Sword Emperor's vision.
"Damn it!"
I bit my lower lip hard. My front teeth dug into my lip, drawing blood. My body wouldn't budge. Agor glanced at me out of the corner of her eye before turning her gaze back to the Sword Emperor.
"Old man, you're quite impressive for a human. But what's impossible is impossible. No matter how hard an insect bites, it's still just an insect."
The Sword Emperor exhaled a long breath and stared at Agor. He smirked, refuting her words.
"You are afraid."
"...What?"
Agor's finely shaped eyebrows furrowed. Steadying his fading breath, the Sword Emperor spoke.
"I do not know exactly why you crossed over from the Demon Realm to come here. But I can see it. Fear is clearly dwelling in your eyes."
"Ha, ridiculous. Look at you getting cocky just because I played along a little. Hey, insect. Just because you got lucky and cut off my arm once doesn't mean you and I are on the same level."
"Haha."
When the Sword Emperor laughed softly at her words, the corners of Agor's mouth twitched.
The Sword Emperor raised his head slightly and looked straight into Agor's eyes. His golden eyes shone brilliantly.
"Old man, those eyes... could you be a descendant of Aaron?"
Narrowing her eyes, Agor tilted her head and asked coldly. The Sword Emperor merely chuckled and continued what he was saying.
"How amusing."
"...What kind of bullshit is that all of a sudden?"
"To be called an old man by a monster who has lived for over a thousand years—it's bound to be amusing. Even that old hag of a comrade of mine would look like a fresh young maiden in front of you."
The Sword Emperor's breathing was ragged as he spoke. A strand of gray hair clung to his cheek.
Yet, instead of collapsing, he drove his blade into the ground and slowly pushed himself up, using it as a cane.
"Demons are certainly stronger than us humans. To an absurd degree, in fact. In my youth, I resented the world for that. A wall that cannot be overcome no matter how hard one tries is a despairing thing. But... at this age, I have finally realized something."
Gripping the hilt with his right hand, the Sword Emperor straightened his back. Then, turning his eyes toward me, he offered a faint smile. At his gaze, goosebumps erupted all over my body for some unknown reason.
"Agor, you must know this as well. Humans develop and progress day by day. That is what the demons fear most, and the very reason you constantly seek an opportunity to invade the Human Realm."
The Sword Emperor pulled his blade from the ground and aimed it at his enemy. The color drained from Agor's face, which was growing increasingly dark with anger. But soon, as if finding it utterly absurd, she let out a hollow laugh and shook her head.
"Ha, I really can't listen to this anymore. I wondered what kind of grand last words a dying old man would leave, and this is what you come up with? Honestly, whether seven hundred years ago or now, you people are so cliché."
With those words, Agor turned her steps. As her toes pointed toward me, panic rapidly spread across the Sword Emperor's face.
"Your opponent is me!"
"Whatever, you dying geezer. I have no intention of dealing with a living corpse like you. Since I'm staying in the human world anyway, I'd rather play with a young boy."
Agor snorted and replied nonchalantly.
"Are you turning your back on your enemy now?! That boy is just a mere cadet!"
"Hey, Aaron's bloodline. Are you applying human standards to me right now? I thought you were somewhat smart, but you're just a senile old man."
Shouting at the top of his lungs, the Sword Emperor rushed forward with his sword raised.
However, Agor had already reached right in front of my eyes. As she muttered and chanted a spell, the mind-attribute magic that stretched out bound my body.
"No! Kang Geomma, run!"
With one arm gone and a hole in his stomach, the Sword Emperor's steps were noticeably sluggish. Agor glanced at him coldly, then whispered in my ear.
"I don't agree with that old man, but looking at you, maybe humans really are evolving creatures. Your body looks quite useful, so I'll be taking it, child."
"..."
Agor's sinister mockery and the Sword Emperor's desperate cries tangled together, filtering into my ears like background noise.
Agor gently stroked my head with her outstretched hand, and then, out of nowhere, she kissed my forehead.
"This is my parting gift."
Then, placing her hand on the crown of my head, she began to rummage through my mind with her unleashed magic power.
"Hehehehe, your body will be used for the desire of us demons. Don't resent me too much, and let's meet in hell, Kang Geomma."
With those final words, the noisy background sounds instantly ceased.
Flash—!
[Unauthorized external intrusion detected.]
In an instant, my mind went completely blank, as if a white shadow had been cast over it.
Beep—
[Unauthorized external intrusion detected. Deploying internal defense program.]
At that moment, along with a sharp, single-toned notification sound, an emotionless female voice rang out repeatedly inside my brain.
[Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred! Error occurred!]
[※※An unexpected error has occurred.※※]
[The user's Rank is still too low for the program to operate.]
[The worldline's Rank is still too low for the program to operate.]
[Location – Code. A temporary increase in Rank is possible using Yggdrasil as a catalyst.]
[The program utilizes the Counterforce to proceed with worldline readjustment and synchronization.]
Hum—
[Conditions as 【? ? ?】 have been met.]
My mind gradually grew hazy, and an immense sense of exhaustion assaulted my thread of reason.
[Forcibly elevating and manifesting the Ranks of all the user's Blessings.]
[Divine Blessing of Painlessness and Divine Blessing of Regeneration are manifested simultaneously.]
[Divine Blessing of Transfer utilizes both Blessings to halt the pain and tearing of the worldline.]
[Considering the load on the worldline, the manifestation time is limited to 60 seconds.]
Hum—
An unfathomable sense of euphoria.
Soon, something snapped.
[Blessing of the Sword God — False Appellation has been deactivated.]
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《Look down upon us.》