Chapter 80
Chapter 80
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Zenith's Sword (3)
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Sable staggered from the magic spell flying at him from behind.
His head spun from the unexpected attack. But it wasn't a powerful one, so he could endure it easily enough.
The real problem was the next attack.
"Eat this too!"
A compressed orb of holy power came flying straight at him.
He tried to defend, but his body stiffened for a moment. It was the effect of the previous spell.
'Lightning magic?'
Regardless of its destructive power, lightning magic numbed the nerves.
Sable looked troubled as he stared at the holy orb. He couldn't block this one.
Tsk- He clicked his tongue. He'd have to take it with his body.
A blinding light exploded, so bright he couldn't see.
He felt a pain like his whole body was burning away.
The hostile goddess's holy power brought him merciless destruction.
'Hmph.'
His face twisted involuntarily from the agony of his flesh sizzling.
Still, he could move.
Sable braced his legs and endured.
The authority of 'Reversing Cause and Effect' offered a way out of the crisis.
'The price.'
His right arm twisted unnaturally.
To escape, it seemed his right arm had to be sacrificed.
This was a bargain. If he'd stayed put, even he would have ended up in pretty bad shape.
But it wasn't over.
Swish-
The sound of wind.
Sable raised his sword with his remaining left hand.
Clang-!
His arm bent backward. A strike of terrifying power.
Another attack came flying in.
But having blocked it once, blocking it a second time wasn't hard.
Chaeng!
This time, his arm didn't bend.
Sable confirmed the face of the enemy standing before him, his massive greatsword locked in place.
"......Why are you here?"
"That's what I want to ask you."
Beryl frowned as he looked at Sable, who had blocked his attack with one arm.
He'd blocked a Sword Master's sword—wielding an authority—not once, but twice.
The first could be called a miracle, but twice? Not even as a joke.
Beryl kept his tension while questioning him.
"Explain why the marquis's aide is trying to kill the apostle of the Pyro goddess here. And that holy power I sense from you!"
"Things just got complicated. I thought you'd left Upton, but you intervened. A complete oversight."
"Cut the nonsense and answer the question."
"He's a paladin of the Zenith Church!"
The answer came from behind.
Riki, who had rushed to Ras's side, informed Beryl of Sable's identity.
Beryl glared at Sable with disgust.
"......A lackey of Zenith?"
"Lackey? Please refrain from such vulgar terms. I am, after all, the first sword of the Zenith God."
At those words, Beryl's eyes widened.
He knew what 'first sword' meant.
"So you're the leader of the Seven Knights."
"Haha. You recognize me."
"Filthy, repulsive bastard. By the marquis's side for five years......!"
Beryl couldn't hold back and lunged, but someone called out from behind.
"Sir Onyx!"
"Why stop me, Jamie."
Sable looked at Jamie, who had appeared behind.
The boy looked the same as always, staring at him with the same expression from before.
"J-Jamie!"
"Later."
Riki called out happily, but Jamie's response was firm.
Leaving the pouting Riki behind, Jamie spoke to Beryl.
"I have something to confirm with him."
"Does the young master have questions for me?"
"Cut the 'young master' crap."
"Haha. If it bothers you, gladly......"
"Why did you release the demonkin?"
Sable dropped his smile at the sharp question.
"Didn't even consider failure? Or did you not care if you got caught?"
"Young master. Quite perceptive."
"I said cut the 'young master'."
"Haha. You seem a bit angry. Well—both are correct. I didn't consider failure, and I didn't care if I got caught."
Jamie couldn't understand.
The former, maybe, but the latter would deal a massive blow to the Zenith Church.
A contract with demonkin, no less.
Demonkin were symbols of evil themselves, and humans who followed them were treated as traitors to humanity.
If a religion made a contract with them.
And if it turned out the leader was an archbishop-level figure in that church.
"Even the Zenith Church couldn't withstand that, right?"
"Precisely."
"Then why......?"
"No reason to tell you. We're not old acquaintances."
True enough.
Jamie half-turned and said to Riki.
"Heal Ras-hyung. You can do it, right?"
"Y-Yeah!"
"Jamie oppa's here?"
Anna, clueless about the situation, clung to Riki and asked.
The key to this fight was those kids.
He had to keep them from dying by Sable's hand. No matter what.
Jamie turned back.
"The floral scent is overpowering."
Beryl muttered as he gripped his greatsword with both hands.
Jamie agreed.
His head throbbed. It was far more intense than the scent when they first met.
"Looks like I'm cornered."
Sable scanned everyone gathered and continued.
"Is everyone here?"
Jamie shook his head.
"One more."
"Reinforcements, huh. Haha. This'll be tough."
"No. Just one."
"......One?"
What difference would one more make here?
Before Sable could ask who, Jamie dispelled his invisibility magic.
Sable's expression hardened at the revealed figure.
"Marquis."
The Bell Marquis had been hiding with invisibility magic in case of danger.
No need now.
The cold-faced marquis spoke.
"Sable. Make me understand."
"......"
"Did you orchestrate all this?"
Sable could only sigh at the question.
"I never imagined I'd meet the lord I've served for five years here."
Sable rubbed his nape and answered bitterly.
"Yes. Everything happened under my plan. Though it failed due to some variable."
Sable glanced at Jamie as he spoke.
Strangely, Jamie showed no emotion in his gaze.
The marquis said.
"Then your approach to me was all calculated too."
The marquis sighed lowly at the silent Sable.
"Do you remember five years ago?"
"I do. The war with Vickers Kingdom."
Five years ago.
There had been a small war with the Vickers Kingdom beyond the north.
The Bell Marquis participated as overall commander.
Vickers was a small nation compared to Selham Kingdom. Victory was far more likely. The battles were easy too.
So he thought ending the war was just a matter of time.
Then the enemy launched a massive counterattack. They brought forces beyond what their kingdom could afford.
The war's dynamics shifted, and the battlefield grew fiercer.
That was when arrows flew at the marquis.
-Danger, Marquis!
A young man he'd never seen threw himself to block the arrow.
In a moment everyone else missed, only the youth did his utmost to protect him.
-What's your name?
-Sable. A wandering mercenary.
That was their first meeting.
Without regard for background, he hired his lifesaver into the family.
And surprisingly, his abilities were outstanding.
Despite being a wanderer, he outperformed the nobles working for the family.
-Guarding the seat beside the marquis is my dream.
Sable, who could smile amiably, earned the marquis's trust.
He always completed assigned tasks with almost no mistakes.
Thanks to him, the family's business revenues soared several times over.
The marquis trusted him, and Sable steadily rose in position.
About three years later.
The existing aide returned to his hometown due to illness.
-Let me do it. I can serve the marquis to the best of my ability.
Since Sable was reliable, the marquis gave him the aide position.
He truly gave his all. And brought results proportional to his efforts.
-Become my adopted son.
It was a waste for such talent to rot as a commoner.
This one surely wouldn't tarnish the 'Bell' name.
But Sable refused.
-Bell is too much for me. Being by the marquis's side is enough.
Not even greedy.
The marquis respected his wishes.
Even without adoption, nothing changed.
He was a trustworthy aide and the marquis's pride, faithfully handling all duties.
Until this incident.
"Where did the plan start?"
"From the beginning."
"......From the moment the arrow flew at me."
"The one who shot that arrow was my subordinate."
All of it planned for today.
"You must have subordinates, so why did you, the Seven Knights' leader, step forward?"
"Isn't that more fun?"
Sable's expression was innocently pure as he said it.
The marquis closed his eyes.
Thanks to Sable, he'd gained much profit and joy. He wished it all false, but reality was always cruel.
His regretful face now hardened coldly.
When he opened his eyes again, only emotionless chill emanated from the marquis.
"Then that's enough. Die here."
A dry voice.
Sable realized he'd truly been cast aside.
In five years by the marquis's side, he'd seen many sides of him. From now, the marquis would use any means to kill him.
"Beryl. Bring me his corpse."
"Understood."
At the marquis's command, Beryl gripped his greatsword with both hands and approached Sable.
Then Ras's voice came from behind.
"H-His authority advances the result! Reversal of cause and effect! Just keep that in mind!"
"Haha. My ability's exposed. Should've kept quiet."
Sable joked with a laugh.
Beryl vowed to crush that smile.
"Jamie. You know already, right?"
"Leave it to me."
He considered assisting Beryl, but it was a Sword Master duel.
Helping might just hinder.
Jamie gathered Riki's siblings, Ras, and the marquis. He'd roughly checked a hiding spot above.
"Be careful."
"Don't worry."
At Beryl's confident voice, Jamie teleported without hesitation.
Only two Sword Masters remained on the battlefield.
Sable grinned and taunted.
"You're not quite enough."
"You'll change your mind after a taste."
Wind swirled around him.
Sable thrust his sword, sensing the oncoming sword strikes.
Jamie teleported everyone to a clearing near the cliff.
The marquis landed safely and walked to the cliff's edge to observe the battle.
"You! How'd you get here?!"
Riki, who had been quiet, grabbed Jamie's arm and asked.
Jamie yanked his ear close and whispered so no one else could hear.
"How? You're my undead before you're an apostle. I can sense when you're in danger."
"Knew it."
Riki had suspected as much.
He grinned contentedly and shared about Pyro.
"The goddess recovered."
"I know. How could I not, with her holy power pouring out like that?"
"Hehe. If we get through this, she'll make a spot for us."
"Got it. Keep watching Ras-hyung."
Ras was in bad shape from the vital point strike.
Fortunately, Riki had received holy power from Pyro and could heal him given time.
"Don't worry."
"Anna, stay quietly by Riki. Got it?"
"Yeah!"
Jamie patted Anna's head and went to the marquis's side.
"Grandfather."
"I'm fine."
The marquis stood with hands behind his back, watching the two Sword Masters fiercely clashing swords.
Jamie looked too.
'Even following with eyes is overwhelming.'
All he saw were afterimages in their movements.
And the gale from Beryl's authority whipping up dust.
Ras said Sable's authority was the 'power to reverse cause and effect.'
'Hard to grasp from words alone.'
Even in the fight with Beryl, he hadn't seemed to use it much.
They clashed a few more times, then distanced and faced off.
Then.
"Guh!"
Blood spurted from Beryl's right shoulder. He clutched it, widening the gap from the sudden wound.
Jamie's eyes widened.
Sable hadn't attacked. Was it a flash too fast to follow?
'No.'
He hadn't moved.
Didn't even swing his sword.
Then Sable mimed a swing.
Now Ras's words made sense.
"A truly fearsome authority."
Jamie nodded unconsciously at the marquis's mutter.
Tense Beryl, leisurely approaching Sable.
He looked up at the cliff and smiled.
Skill and composure overwhelming even another Sword Master.
Sable moved again.
Beryl reacted immediately, but—
"......!"
His face twisted.
Jamie ground his teeth seeing the object flying through the air.
"He might lose."
Beryl's cleanly severed arm fell onto the sticky mud.
Zenith's first sword was ruthlessly powerful.