Chapter 61
The Flower That Bears a Sword - Chapter 61
Translation: godsn
"After experiencing the node at White Crow Canyon last time, I did some research. There's something called a starting point in nodes..."
Just as she had with Baraha, she briefly explained what she'd read in books. Yurien listened quietly with his eyes lowered. Even after her explanation ended, he remained silent for a while.
"Um... Lord?"
"...Understood. That starting point must be inside there. It's a hypothesis worth testing."
His slow reply came as he turned and headed straight into the shelter. Eki followed behind him.
[Why's he so angry?]
The magic sword muttered as if puzzled.
She wasn't sure. The mood felt strange. Part of her was fascinated by this rare sight of him angry, part of her felt guilty wondering if he was worried about her injuries, and part of her was simply confused about why he was so upset. Watching Yurien's back as he broke down the shelter door, she finally asked:
"Lord. Are you angry with me?"
She wanted to know why he was angry. At her question, his back stiffened momentarily. Without turning to look at her, he paused briefly before answering in a low voice:
"I'm not angry at you....My apologies."
The apology was unexpected. Not giving her time to ask more, he completely removed the door and entered. Inside the shelter, there was clearly some sort of mark in the corner where Shai had been crouching.
"That there?"
"Yes, most likely."
At Eki's answer, Yurien raised Langiosa. Watching him point the holy sword toward the starting point, she felt an inexplicably ominous premonition. It felt too easy. Could nodes really be escaped this simply? She suddenly wanted to stop Yurien, but Langiosa was already piercing into the starting point.
The white blade tip pierced through the mark in midair. Simultaneously, the entire space trembled.
Eki felt a chill run down her spine. The same intuition she'd felt at White Crow Canyon's node when first piercing the starting point, when all monsters had howled and turned their gaze upon her. Instinctively, she reached out toward Yurien. Just as Eki grabbed his forearm, Yurien too seemed to sense something and stepped back.
Where he'd stepped back from, something pillar-like crashed through the roof with a thunderous impact.
Without even a moment to exchange words, Eki and Yurien dashed outside the shelter. The moment they exited, that massive pillar-like thing swung around, completely demolishing the shelter.
Outside was a sea of fire. The flaming leaves had all fallen, revealing the open sky. Every spot where oil had been was now licked by crimson flames. There was barely anywhere to stand. Acrid, thick smoke filled the air everywhere. Eki turned her head to see what had crushed the shelter.
"Good heavens."
[That's monstrously huge. Is that the boss or something?]
A giant with arms as thick as tree trunks—its massive body wasn't made of mud but of black, metallic material like the surrounding trees.
The black giant that had utterly destroyed the shelter turned its head to look down at them. Its hollow eye sockets were terrifying. In its other hand, it held a massive rope noose. Like cracking a whip, it swung the noose down toward them.
Before Eki could react, Yurien wrapped an arm around her waist and leaped back. Where they'd been standing, a rope as thick as a human torso struck the ground, carving into the earth and sending sparks flying.
The moment they landed, Yurien set her down and spoke quickly:
"Echinacea, I'll leave that side to you."
After swiftly scanning their surroundings, Yurien pointed in one direction. Eki looked where he indicated. Beyond the flames, dozens of mud giants were swarming toward them. Though the giants seemed focused on Yurien who had disturbed the starting point, their path led directly to where the injured villagers lay.
"There aren't many with people inside. If you wound them and see blood, that means there's a person inside—be careful. There are about ten villagers left, and I've already rescued four."
He explained quickly, as if he'd already assessed the situation while rescuing the villagers earlier. Echinacea reflexively nodded and gripped Amethyst.
Yurien gave a faint smile at that, then raised Langiosa and distanced himself from her. The Black Giant swung its massive fist down at him. With a clean movement, he dodged and channeled mana into Langiosa.
Seeing that much, Echinacea drew Amethyst and dashed toward the approaching Mud Giants. Understanding the situation could wait—resolving it came first.
Flames surrounded them on all sides, and if she wasn't careful, the voluminous fabric of her dress could catch fire. She gathered the hem in her left hand and cut through the rising flames.
The moment she reached the first giant, she slashed shallowly across its waist. No blood. She confirmed this while dodging the fist aimed at her head. Immediately spinning, she struck again—this time deeper, a diagonal slash upward to pierce through its core.
Her blade met something hard as stone before shattering—the core most regenerative monsters shared. Echinacea sidestepped as the Mud Giant collapsed. Just as Yurien had said, no person was inside.
Well, there are far more giants than villagers. More pure monsters than humans transformed, I suppose.
Since Yurien had already told her how to distinguish them, she had no reason to hold back. Her eyes sharpened. She began darting through the flames like a bird in flight, swinging her sword. Embers inevitably scattered onto her dress, catching briefly before extinguishing.
[Boring. I wanna fight too. Let me out!]
Before finishing each giant, she always tested with a shallow cut at the waist. This time, blood welled. Echinacea stepped onto the giant's thigh, vaulted over its shoulder, and flipped backward. As she fell, she carved a long slash down its spine like splitting firewood.
[Tch, I hope that stupid Amethyst snaps. Break already! Break!]
Amethyst remained sturdy and razor-sharp.
Through the fissures in the crumbling mud, she glimpsed the nape of a human neck. With her empty left hand, she seized it and yanked the person free. Mud sprayed like a fountain.
[So troublesome. Just kill them. Doesn't it hurt your hand?]
She flung the rescued villager toward the others. The burns on her crushed left hand throbbed sharply, but the pain was bearable. As the giant collapsed, she dodged and lunged at the next one.
[I don't get why you're making this hard on yourself. Pretend it's a mistake and kill them—it'd ease your bloodlust too. Master, won't you use me? You killed one before, but your bloodlust isn't even half-sated yet!]
Sweat dripped steadily as she carved through giants amid the scorching flames. Echinacea wiped the sweat trickling down her jaw with the back of her hand and briefly checked her condition.
An ordinary person would've been covered in burns, but by subtly using mana to protect her skin, only her dress was singed here and there. Her makeup probably hadn't smudged, so her face should be fine. I'll sneak a peek in a mirror before returning to Yurien. With that thought, she muttered under her breath.
"Shut up, Bal."
[You won't even let me talk when I'm dying of boredom?]
"I'm busy, so just—"
Mid-sentence, she leaped straight up. The lasso swung by the giants grazed where she'd stood. Flames from the surroundings clung to it, turning the rope into a burning whip. Echinacea landed atop a giant's shoulder.
"Be quiet for a second."
[What's so busy about this? If there were hundreds of regenerating monsters without cores, maybe.]
"There are people mixed in, and I can't use Sword Energy. Yurien's right over there."
From her perch on the giant's shoulder, she swung her sword downward. Confirming no blood spilled, she leaped off and cleaved the giant in half. Mud poured out like water.
[What does it matter? Ugh, I'm bored.]
She seized another giant, yanked out the person trapped inside, and flung them away. The swarm of dozens rapidly dwindled. Once their numbers had reduced enough to count on one hand, the remaining giants—perhaps recognizing her as a threat—began charging at her first. This was more convenient than chasing down those trying to slip past her. She could simply cut them down as they came.
With some breathing room now, Eki stole a glance through the flames. Yurien was locked in combat with the Black Giant. The creature was so massive that Yurien appeared no larger than its palm. Against such a disparity in size, even a Master would struggle to land effective blows—yet with each flash of his white blade, long gashes split open the giant's body. This was thanks to Langiosa amplifying his mana, enlarging the Sword Energy Yurien unleashed to the scale of a greatsword.
Yurien was the one pressing the attack. His superior speed allowed him to engage the giant effortlessly. The problem was the Black Giant's wounds closed the instant they formed. They needed to locate its core, but it wouldn't be easy. Just as Eki's sensory range had narrowed earlier, the flow of mana from this giant was nearly imperceptible. Its body seemed to share the same composition as the wooden pillars.
She guessed they'd have to stab every inch of its body to find the core. In fact, Yurien was already systematically slicing across the giant's form. Of course, with the Magic Sword's abilities, Eki could immediately discern where the core lay. She wanted to tell him, but had no explanation for how she knew.
[Hey, behind you, behind!]
"I know."
Eki pivoted mid-swing, her blade precisely severing both arms of a giant poised to crush her. Wound, check for blood, pierce the heart if none flowed. This repetitive sequence executed rapidly. As she swung, her mind turned to the Node.
'Comparing the White Crow Canyon incident and what just happened... It seems we'll need to completely clear the Node's interior before touching the starting point.'
Once they got out, she'd have to research Nodes more thoroughly. As long as she and Yurien sought to alter the present—unlike their erased timeline—they were bound to encounter Nodes again.
'After all that suffering to turn back time, and now Nodes block every attempt to change anything.'
Her irritation flared, roughening her sword strokes. An unlucky giant collapsed in near-severed chunks. Dodging the mud clumps, Eki moved toward the next target when a sudden question struck her.
If Nodes formed as Rakia-giosa's backlash against Kairos-giosa whenever major changes were attempted, why hadn't they appeared when the massacres she'd committed as the Demon of the Magic Sword—like the Roaz Manor slaughter—failed to occur? Those events were supposed to happen originally.
'Is there some rule? Or is Rakia-giosa just acting arbitrarily?'
Considering Kairos-giosa—another Divine Sword—had possessed sentience, perhaps the self-willed Rakia-giosa moved according to its own whims.
Either way, it warranted contemplation. If they could predict whether their altered actions would trigger Nodes, they could prepare in advance. Though something told her things wouldn't unfold so conveniently.
'I'll investigate after escaping. Nicole might know something—she is a mage after all.'
As she leisurely dispatched the last remaining giants, Eki glanced back to check on Yurien. The moment she turned, her pupils dilated. Beyond the serpentine tongues of flame, she saw blood spraying.
Everything registered in agonizing slow motion. The Black Giant's swinging hand. The arc of crimson following its trajectory. And the owner of that blood—