Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: The Lifelong Companion Reunited Across Time
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“Kyaaak!”
“What the hell just flew by?!”
The city was in chaos. Shop stalls displayed outside had been sent flying, and building walls were dented or even shattered.
Screams echoed from all directions. No casualties had emerged yet, but the townsfolk who caught sight of me and Catrine in hot pursuit scattered in terror.
I rounded the next corner and swung Yojjo with all my might. Just then, Catrine appeared ahead of me, thrusting Idrone straight at me. The clash of our two divine artifacts unleashed a massive shockwave, hurling my body endlessly through the air from the recoil.
Catrine hurriedly gave chase. For someone flung by the impact, I was flying farther and faster than expected.
She arrived at the spot where I should have landed, grinding her teeth in fury. I was nowhere to be seen—only a lone puppy casually pissing on the bookstore wall.
“You little rat bastard!”
At Catrine’s bellow, the puppy shot her an embarrassed glance before scampering off.
She tossed aside the basket she was carrying and burned away the cloth wrapped around Idrone’s blade with its flames.
She quickly scanned for my mana signature to pinpoint my location, then appeared above my head in midair via teleportation magic.
I pouted. Teleportation was a high-tier fifth-cycle spell.
“Why don’t you just advertise that you’re a Valkyrie? How’s a swordmaster supposed to handle a magic swordsman slinging spells like that?”
Catrine slammed down with Idrone, its flames erupting in an Aura Blade. The thunderous crash of two Aura Blades colliding sent flames scattering everywhere.
“There are plenty of magic swordsmen in the world.”
“But none who can wield an Aura Blade and cast fifth-cycle magic simultaneously without incantation!”
I grabbed a pole from a fruit stand’s awning that had caught fire and spun into a swallow flip. Watching Catrine soar away, I landed on the rooftop of a nearby building.
But Catrine reappeared before me in an instant.
“Then just claim it’s Idrone’s power.”
“That’s exactly why you fail—always cutting corners with that sloppy attitude of yours.”
Idrone and Yojjo clashed repeatedly. I was at an absolute disadvantage. After several exchanges, Catrine gained the upper hand in numbers and kneed me hard in the side.
This one hit true. The impact sent me crashing endlessly into the roof of the adjacent building.
As I scrambled up in a panic, Catrine flew in and swung her flame-wreathed Idrone at my face.
Bam!
The swords crossed, sparks flying like tiny flame auras. Idrone’s searing heat quickly scorched my face. Unable to hold out, I parried it aside, and Catrine seized the opening to smash her sword hilt into my face.
But it was the attack I’d anticipated. Deflecting it, I spun my body around and landed back on the street, then dashed forward swiftly.
Catrine blocked my path once more.
“You’re impressive, really. You’ve mastered the art of running away.”
“Yeah. Earned my master title with it.”
Catrine’s face turned icy.
“You should stop around now, though. I’m starting to get pissed.”
“What if you do?”
“You die.”
“That’s my racial trait. So common it’s become routine.”
“Don’t joke around.”
“I wish it were a joke. Heh heh heh.”
Catrine’s face flushed beet red.
“Words won’t cut it, then.”
I wiped the smirk from my lips and held Yojjo horizontally at mid-guard, assuming a serious combat stance. Catrine was now fully committed, unleashing her Valkyrie powers without restraint. Escaping wouldn’t be easy.
“Good, now you get it. Hyaah!”
With her shout, her body launched at me like a battering ram. In the blink of an eye, I flipped away like a swallow and scanned left and right as I rose.
Suddenly, my waist buckled sharply.
Catrine, who had kneed me in the gut, flashed a sinister sneer at me as I coughed in agony.
“How’s that? Can’t even see me, can you?”
“Fine, you win!”
I spun Yojjo in a wide arc to shake her off. Idrone, spewing crimson flames, hurtled toward me and clashed with Yojjo.
A brief contest of strength ensued.
Catrine swept Idrone as if shaking me off, and my body, unable to withstand the force, flew into the neighboring building with a crash.
Bricks crumbled with a roar. Covered in dust, I shoved aside the rubble pressing my abdomen and used Yojjo as a crutch to stand.
I’d taken internal damage—blood mixed with the slight vomit I spat up. I hawked it onto the ground and bolted out the back door of the shop.
Catrine, appearing before me, clicked her tongue.
“Shouldn’t you rethink this by now? Serve under me for a few years, and you’ll be free. No need to suffer like this.”
“But for some, those few years are their entire lives.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It’s a shitty world only adults understand. So shoo, kids!”
I gripped Yojjo tight and charged with momentum. A flurry of swift, concise strikes followed, but Catrine easily blocked them by holding Idrone horizontally. It was one-sided. I swung Yojjo in every direction, yet couldn’t even graze her clothes.
Clang! Boom! Crash!
Auras and flames scattered wildly. I blocked a wide horizontal slash, using its momentum to leap onto the roof of a nearby inn. But Catrine pursued immediately, bringing Idrone down once more.
The massive impact made Yojjo’s blade hum. My knees throbbed as if shattering, and my wrists and forearms trembled uncontrollably. Calming my ragged breaths, I pushed back at Catrine with all my strength.
She didn’t budge an inch.
“Surrender!”
“Screw you!”
As Catrine pushed back, our bodies flew into the rooftop of a two-story building across the way. Another round of strength contest. Cracks spiderwebbed across the roof beneath my feet, kicking up dust.
Damn.
A rib might be cracked; my side was staining red. Pain choked my breath, and my heart pounded wildly, pumping blood to my rigid muscles.
The situation was dire. Catrine was clearly trying to wear me down through these clashes. No escape, though. She relentlessly blocked my paths, forcing the contests.
Staring at me over our locked blades, Catrine said,
“You stubborn fool... Help me, and this incident vanishes. You’ll gain honors and glory beyond imagination. Why refuse?”
Her words ignited a long-dormant rage deep within me.
All I wanted was to live freely with Yojjo, yet obstacles came from every side as if I’d committed some grave sin. Family duties, power struggles, envy of my talents—they all hemmed me in.
The irony? These torments were fruits others would kill for.
Yes, I had it all. Lineage, power, wealth, talent—nothing lacking. Even my looks were decent. And Catrine offered glory and honor on top.
Yet I despised it all. Slaughtering kin for power? Sacrificing my life for family? Bowing to some woman for fame? No.
I just wanted freedom. Even if it cost my life, I’d press on.
“Take your damn prizes and shove ’em!”
I dismantled the Aura Blade in Yojjo and poured every ounce of mana into my body. Muscles tore fiber by fiber, blood surged like my heart would burst—but I ignored it. I would surpass Catrine and seize my freedom.
“Yojjo! I believe in you! Hold on!”
Catrine’s eyes widened in shock. Yojjo held firm against Idrone’s flame-wreathed Aura Blade—without a shred of mana in it.
Incomprehensible to her. An Aura Blade could slice steel like tofu. Only orichalcum or another Aura Blade could withstand it.
“Wh-what the hell is that sword?!”
“The world’s strongest—Yojjo!”
With my shout, Idrone bent sharply in her grip. Not from my strength. She simply couldn’t bear Yojjo’s immense weight pressing down.
Magic? But no mana stirred from Yojjo.
“Urk!”
The building couldn’t support Yojjo’s mass and collapsed in a roar. Dust billowed as screams rose from bystanders. The evacuated owner stamped his feet in dismay.
Dazed, I stood and scanned around. No sign of Catrine—likely buried under the debris at my feet.
My gaze drifted to Yojjo.
Hey, what was that? You’re not that kind of sword.
But questions could wait. Catrine might claw out like a zombie anytime. Escape first.
I dashed past the cursing owner toward the nearest temple—the one dedicated to the Goddess of Chastity, my original goal.
I discarded the pendant around my neck, then cleaved a roadside tree into logs. Grabbing one, I headed for the outer women’s restroom at the temple.
Almost there. Freedom!
Shoving my head into the toilet bowl, I grinned wickedly.
Bracing my hands on the floor, I slowly lowered myself into the septic tank. My feet hit bottom amid shit up to my chest.
“Where’s that damn brat?!”
Catrine’s voice boomed across the temple grounds. She’d regained her senses and dug out. Ignoring her, I pressed on.
Ugh, the stench.
I pinched my nose against the foul reek. A desperate escape route from the past, but I’d never get used to it.
A trickle of water nearby. Another visitor had beaten me here.
Locking eyes with an elf priestess below the toilet, I awkwardly offered,
“Red paper or blue?”
“Kyaaak!”
The elf priestess shrieked, kicking the door. So startled she hadn’t fixed her skirt, she tripped over the hem while fleeing.
Must hurt. Sorry.
Bam! Crunch!
As she bolted out disheveled, massive flames swept the restroom ceiling, revealing the clear sky. Catrine had arrived.
I plastered myself against the wall, the sacred sunlight gleaming through the septic grate behind me.
“Brat, you’re here! Where are you?!”
Covered in dust, Catrine snorted furiously. Her eyes blazed with fire—she was livid.
Her gaze dropped, then filled with horror. She’d pinpointed me but couldn’t believe it.
“You... don’t tell me you’re...”
“Eat this!”
I leaped from the toilet and flung shit water at her face. It hit—some even splashed into her mouth. Catrine retched violently.
Spitting and wiping her mouth, she glared murderously.
“I’ll kill you...”
“Try it, you firebug bitch!”
I kept hurling sludge. Furious to the core, Catrine dodged the flying filth but couldn’t bring herself to close in.
No surprise—even monsters gave up chasing me over this. A Valkyrie or not, no chance.
“You!”
“Come on in. Gotta catch me first to kill me, right? Heh heh heh.”
Battered by the barrage, Catrine retreated far into the air.
“Come out! Or I’ll really kill you.”
“Do it! Can’t? Then you’re a shithead, dung fly! Catrine ate shit~ Ate shit~”
At my sing-song taunt, her expression turned glacial. Even she had limits. Immortal or not, this humiliation was a first.
Flames roared fiercely from Idrone, forming a massive fireball cloud above the restroom.
The precursor to Idrone’s signature magic, Dragon Flame Descent. Slow to cast but devastating once unleashed, turning the area into a lava hellscape.
“Come out! Do it now, and you live!”
I raised my middle finger from the toilet.
“Screw you!”
“You’ll die!”
“...”
“You’re really gonna die!”
A massive pillar of flame crashed onto the women’s restroom, boiling the area in molten heat. The filth vaporized to ash—and so did I.
A glorious, fitting end. True to form, I was gone in the final moment.