Chapter 230
Chapter 230
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 230
Chapter Title: Part 2, Chapter 12: What the Hell Is That Sword? (1)
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“Chase him! Don’t let him get away!!”
The blaring sound of horns echoed through the mountains.
The man, drenched in sweat, ran relentlessly toward the summit.
To be precise, it was to escape the horns blaring from below.
“Huff—huff—huff—huff—!”
His harsh breaths cut through the cold night air, making his throat feel like it was tearing apart.
Gritting his teeth, the man clutched his right arm tightly as he ran.
Drdddr—
The bizarre object attached to his right arm scraped against the dirt floor, making a racket.
“Damn……”
Knowing he couldn’t make noise, he laboriously lifted his right arm.
It was a sword.
A massive sword.
The peculiar thing was that it clung to his right arm like a parasite.
The blade was caked in blood, hardened in layers at different times.
Proof that countless lives had fallen to this blade.
‘I can’t get caught here.’
“There he is! Pick up the pace! What the hell are those support mages doing?!”
The commander’s voice drew closer.
Maybe it had been impossible from the start to flee with something this heavy attached to his arm?
Then what should he do?
The man glanced at the sword with a troubled expression as he ran.
‘One more time……’
The man halted his run.
His stamina had reached its limit.
His lungs were so full of air that every breath tasted of blood.
It had been years since he’d run like this.
“What the…… what the hell happened to me to end up like this.”
If only he’d held back that momentary desire……
The man ground his teeth.
He’d be executed if caught anyway.
A simple execution might let him die easily, but judging by the blood on this sword, they wouldn’t make it painless.
In that case, he’d just kill them all.
“I won’t die…… won’t die.”
Bloodlust flashed in the man’s eyes.
“Grrrrrrgh!”
The blade glowed reddish.
The veins in his connected right arm swelled grotesquely, then began writhing.
As his blood circulated at high speed throughout his body, his flesh turned bright red like the blade.
“Graaaaaah—!”
Red blood qi erupted from him.
The man exhaled white steam from his mouth and spun around.
He could feel the pursuers closing in.
Supporting his right hand with his left, he gripped the sword firmly.
Overflowing malice enveloped him.
“I……”
The man assumed a charging stance.
And hurled himself toward the pursuers, who appeared as mere dots.
“Will survive!”
“Why leave the easy path and take this route?”
Jamie tossed more firewood into the campfire, shooting Jin an annoyed look.
They were currently crossing Bepos Peak in the Ierko Mountains.
This area bordered the Yvon Kingdom on the northern Olbia continent; once they crested the summit, they’d be in Yvon territory.
There was no need to take this treacherous mountain path.
“Just go through immigration checks. There’d be plenty of places to rest there too.”
Jin replied casually, gnawing on a rabbit leg he’d hunted.
“I have no ID.”
“So why don’t you have one?”
“Never needed it.”
“That make sense?”
“What doesn’t?”
Jin, wearing a mask with a mouth hole, chewed his meat vigorously with a what’s-the-problem face.
Jamie wondered if everyone from Rye was a barbarian.
But recalling Han’s appearance, he seemed quite refined.
Unlike Jin, anyway.
Come to think of it, he was curious about Jin and Han’s relationship.
“Got a question……”
“Shoot.”
“What’s your relation to Han? Same homeland and all, figured you’d be pretty tight even in the Frontier.”
“Not really.”
Jin shoved more wood into the fire with a skewer.
“Same origin, different status. So Han and I aren’t that close.”
“Different status……”
“Han was like nobility here, while I…… was a slave, I guess?”
“……A slave?”
“If you wanna nitpick, slave-born. Good at fighting, caught some general’s eye by luck, became his personal slave, proved my skills, and got freed.”
In short, Jin was the protagonist of a rags-to-riches story.
Going from slave to freeman was like reaching for the stars.
“But origins are like roots. Even as a freeman, I faced heavy discrimination.”
“So you couldn’t get close to Han?”
“My issue, really. That noble bastard…… Han seemed to want to get chummy, but being ex-slave, I’ve got a chip on my shoulder.”
Nothing to say to Jin on that front.
Especially with one born a slave and the other a noble.
From the ex-slave’s view, no matter how friendly the noble acts, you can’t shake the feeling they look down on you.
Perfectly human.
Discrimination from status runs deep.
Even as a freeman, Han must seem lined up with his old masters to Jin.
Not thinking a million things just from looking would be weirder.
“That’s how it is.”
“Makes sense why you’re not close.”
Jin stared at Jamie as he spoke.
“Why stare?”
“……Weird.”
“Suddenly?”
“Usually when I bring this up, folks don’t know what to say.”
Fair enough. Revealing you’re ex-slave isn’t easy.
Nor hearing it.
Exposing your dirty laundry, normal reaction is freezing up, like Jin said.
But not Jamie.
Not out of pity, either.
“So what? You’re not a slave now, right?”
“True.”
“Then we’re good.”
Jamie stretched his hands toward the campfire like it was no big deal.
Still summer by season, but the north of the western Arisha continent was edging into winter.
If someone from the northern continent’s Seldam Kingdom—still summer there—asked why the western north was winter, no answer.
Just how it is.
“Damn it. Wanna just fly.”
“Mana Zone’d catch us.”
Borders have invisible walls.
Called Mana Zones. Use magic there recklessly, and you’d draw pursuit from both neighboring countries.
He wanted to punch through, but unfortunately, Mana Zones were dragon power.
Most folks don’t know, but all high-ups do.
Jamie only learned upon becoming a Magic Tower elder.
‘Damn lizard bastards.’
Dragons and humanity don’t meddle now, but that’s easy talk from ignorance.
High-ups propagandized and fabricated to shape public view that way.
Issue is, humanity still relies on dragons.
Some nations resist, but it’s tough.
Opponent’s dragons.
‘At least they don’t manage directly.’
That was fortunate.
Barring another black sorcerer like Ganon from 700 years ago, dragons stayed out of human affairs.
They’re Dragon God Brahman’s spawn.
Roan continent under 12 Gods’ rule, so they can’t interfere in other gods’ turf willy-nilly.
“Grab some shut-eye. Move at dawn.”
“Thought I could sleep anywhere after roughing it, but this sucks.”
In his Diablo Volpir days, he slept fine on rock. Now? Unbearable.
How long after closing his eyes?
Campfire dying down, about an hour till dawn. Both masters snapped awake simultaneously.
“Presence nearby.”
“Humans.”
Who’d be in these mountains this late? Anyway, they moved fast toward it.
Night posed no issue for the masters.
No light magic needed; their night vision matched daytime.
Pushing through untamed brush, they heard running water.
“I’ll go first.”
Jamie teleported.
Misjudge spatial jump in dense woods, and you’re dead. But a half-9th class grand mage like him nailed it.
Hyper-calculating coordinates, he landed in the night ravine instantly.
And spotted it.
“……What is that. A person?”
A man, soaked, unconscious, with a massive sword fused to his right arm.
Disheveled hair, scruffy beard. Hard to see swept by water, but his clothes bore unwashed dried blood.
“Didn’t fall in long ago.”
Jamie’s gaze traced the ravine upstream.
Seemed swept from near the summit, barely visible.
Heartbeat meant alive, but left like this, not for long.
Jamie levitated him with psychokinesis.
“Gut’s punctured?”
Proper stab wound; red blood mixed with water poured from his abdomen.
“Jamie Welton!”
Jin’s voice from behind.
Jamie laid the man down, channeled holy power from his left hand to heal the abdominal wound.
Then conjured fire in the air to warm the surroundings.
His pallid skin flushed with returning vitality as body temp spiked visibly.
“Pretty bad.”
Jin arrived, checking the man.
Jamie’s first aid improved his color, but consciousness wasn’t returning soon.
“What’s with this sword?”
Jin frowned at the blade linked to the man’s right arm.
“Fused to the arm…… artifact or something?”
“No magic I can sense.”
“So they just jammed it into his arm?”
“How should I know? Can’t tell without cutting it off.”
“Fair.”
“He’s past the worst.”
Jamie withdrew holy power, examined the man’s eyes.
Burst blood vessels suggested extreme fatigue.
“Mechanical linkage. These thin lines replacing nerves?”
“You know machines?”
“A bit.”
“Surprising. Not just a prosthetic?”
“Could be.”
“Looks like a mercenary. Probably some freak who lost an arm and shoved a weapon in instead.”
“Odd weapon. First sword this wide. Thin lines like nerves connect to the flat. Not ordinary……”
“Sword master eyeing the blade, huh. Let’s go. He’ll sort himself when he wakes.”
After helping so many lately, Jamie had no urge to save more.
Especially unrested.
“Don’t wanna…… die……”
Then the man muttered weakly from behind.
Probably unconscious rambling.
Jin said,
“He says that.”
“Damn it. Why am I such a softie. Let’s take him.”
“You. Lucky bastard.”
Jin smirked at the unconscious man.