Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: How to Seize the Initiative (4)
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Whoosh!
A faint golden light emanated from the sword wrapped in the aura blade, spreading outward continuously.
It then formed a perfect cube, enveloping the entire training grounds precisely.
Thus, this place became his domain.
“Space Sword! The young master has mastered the Space Sword!”
“What in the world is that guy? He was only in the Tyrant’s Chamber for a few hours—how does it make sense to comprehend the Space Sword so quickly?”
“He’s completely transcended the category of genius!”
Everyone watching was stunned.
Martin holding his own against Vincent was already absurd enough.
Of course, they all knew Vincent was going easy on him to some extent.
But considering that most people struggled just to endure against Vincent, it was an achievement that couldn’t be dismissed.
So they thought there couldn’t be any more surprises, but they were wrong.
Martin had pulled off yet another impossible feat.
Space Sword.
The pinnacle technique among those that could manifest as an innate ability of the space affinity, the driving force that allowed the Adalbert family to reign as the empire’s foremost house in the Alteria Empire.
The technique that made every direct descendant of the Adalbert family revered had been recreated.
By Martin, who had entered the Tyrant’s Chamber just once—and stayed for only a few hours at that.
“...You’ve earned the right to show that confidence. Before the Space Sword, the difference of one circle is negligible. And since it’s unleashed with an aura blade, the issue of insufficient power is resolved as well.”
Vincent muttered with an incredulous expression. His gaze remained fixed on Martin.
“The former family head would’ve been flabbergasted if he saw the young master now. He struggled for five whole years to master it, but the young master grasped it in mere hours.”
“Well? Five years or not, Father was only fifteen at the time. I’m an adult by comparison. Naturally, I have to show results befitting that.”
“Even so, the gap between five years and a few hours is overwhelming. It can’t be explained by age alone.”
Vincent shook his head at Martin’s words.
“The young master’s talent is unparalleled in the history of the Alteria Empire—no, the entire Crasian Continent. Among those afflicted by the Dragon’s Curse, no one comes close to you.”
“Thank you for the praise. Shall we continue, then?”
Martin replied with a smile.
However, his right arm was in poor condition.
It began trembling visibly, shaking roughly.
The Space Sword was still a technique his body couldn’t handle.
Fortunately, having reached the 7th circle meant activating it didn’t trigger a Dragon’s Curse outbreak.
‘Still, I can’t maintain it for long.’
Even at maximum effort, five minutes—no, three minutes was the limit.
Prolonging the Space Sword beyond that would provoke the Dragon’s Curse, leading to severe internal injuries.
Even so, his resolve to clash with full power remained unchanged.
Swoosh!
Martin finally swung the sword gripped in both hands.
The immense weight hindered his movement, but he overcame it successfully.
In accordance with his will, a crescent-shaped aura blade hurtled toward Vincent.
‘His physical abilities have improved dramatically too. Just look at him handling that weight.’
Vincent assumed only a defensive stance, with no intention of dodging.
The training grounds were already Martin’s domain.
He knew acting rashly could lead to disaster.
Thus, he waited until the end, swinging his greatsword only when the golden aura blade was right before him.
Slash!
But the greatsword’s blade merely cleaved empty air futilely.
The aura blade had vanished just before contact.
Vincent clicked his tongue.
‘Controlling the aura blade in that split second—his talent for wielding innate abilities is overwhelming too. Though I suppose it’s only natural, given he mastered the Space Sword in hours.’
His mind raced swiftly, but even that reached its limit.
There was no room for other thoughts before the Space Sword.
Proving the point, the vanished aura blade reappeared near his right cheek.
Swish.
Vincent urgently tilted his head back.
But he couldn’t prevent the aura blade from grazing his cheek.
Blood trickled down.
‘That was supposed to be my surestrike, yet all it left was a scratch.’
A wry smile tugged at Martin’s lips.
He had compensated for the Space Sword’s weakened attack power with the aura blade.
Yet against Vincent, it amounted to just a minor wound.
He saw through the method immediately.
Right before impact, Vincent had unleashed a shockwave using spatial repulsion, neutralizing the aura blade as much as possible.
It showcased both his formidable durability and sharp senses.
But there was no time to dwell on the surprise.
Vincent’s body vanished the moment the wound appeared.
‘Above!’
The training grounds had long been his domain.
Without even searching, Martin looked up.
Vincent had appeared about 30 meters in the air.
Boom!
The instant he materialized, he swung down the greatsword gripped in both hands.
The largest sword strike since the duel began came crashing toward Martin.
“Hah!”
Martin shouted, thrusting his sword upward as a golden aura blade surged forth.
He swung only once.
Yet the golden aura blade ceaselessly absorbed mana from the training grounds and surroundings.
Two, four, eight, sixteen... The number of strikes multiplied endlessly.
Boom!
The singular silver sword strike traced its path, clashing against the golden strikes that filled the air.
At first, they were evenly matched.
But that didn’t last.
Boom!
The silver strike began shredding the countless golden ones.
‘Power is still lacking, after all.’
The Space Sword’s sole weakness held him back.
He had boosted its power with the aura blade as much as possible.
The problem was his opponent, Vincent.
At this level, it fell short of properly damaging someone with his overwhelming physical prowess.
Still, Martin didn’t give up.
If something was lacking, he would fill it.
Whirr!
Suddenly, wind whipped up, gathering around the blade scattering golden light.
Martin had manipulated the atmosphere with Distortion of All Things.
But there was a price.
Drip.
Dark red blood leaked from Martin’s mouth.
He was already straining to wield the Space Sword.
Adding this new force triggered the Dragon’s Curse at last.
‘Doesn’t matter.’
Compared to the pain he’d felt before, this was nothing.
Martin focused on manipulating the atmosphere, and the golden aura blade began spinning rapidly around the sword.
At that moment, the wind compensated for the aura blade’s weakened power under the Space Sword.
‘Truly, the young master is like an onion. The more layers you peel, the more absurd things you find.’
Vincent thought to himself.
How many times had he been shocked today because of Martin?
He too could control wind with Space Refraction.
But Martin had already deployed the Space Sword, with an aura blade on top.
That alone would be overwhelming, yet he was manipulating wind as well.
Boom!
And that wasn’t the end.
Kicking off the ground, Martin soared into the sky.
From the 7th circle onward, anyone could fly, but doing so while deploying every technique was astonishing.
But Vincent could see it.
Martin was overexerting himself.
So he made a proposal.
“That must be your full power, young master. Go ahead and swing with all you’ve got. If you wound me or land a solid hit, I’ll concede this duel as my defeat.”
“Understood!”
Martin replied energetically.
Manipulating the atmosphere and attempting flight made sustaining the Space Sword even harder.
Thus, he didn’t refuse Vincent’s consideration.
“Hup!”
Roooar!
With a shout, tremendous power gathered around Vincent.
He poured it all into his greatsword and struck down with full force.
The silver aura blade spread wide, forming a vast curtain-like barrier.
It easily swept away the sword wind made of aura blades.
‘Crushing the space itself!’
Martin was impressed.
It went beyond a mere shockwave—the space was dominated entirely.
Proving it, his Space Sword domain began to shake.
It couldn’t withstand Vincent’s power.
Yet Martin wasn’t overwhelmed.
Keeping a calm mind, he focused on weaving aura and wind into his sword.
The ceaselessly intertwined wind and blade extended long, transforming into a massive sword.
Crack.
The excessive force cracked his arm bones.
Thanks to repeated efforts strengthening his body, that was the extent of it.
But the damage didn’t end there.
The Dragon’s Curse fully erupted—blood vessels bulged in his eyes, and blood flowed from his nose.
Grip.
Despite the excruciating pain, Martin didn’t let go of his sword.
His gaze remained locked on Vincent.
Flinch!
Vincent shuddered involuntarily.
His instincts warned him.
That strike was truly dangerous.
“Come at me, young master.”
Even so, Vincent chose to block it head-on.
In response, Martin swung his sword down from above.
Vincent thrust out his greatsword as well.
Boom!
Despite his fearsome physical prowess, his aura-reinforced arms ached.
The attack was so heavy it felt like he’d crash into the training grounds floor any second.
“Raaah!”
Martin squeezed out every ounce of his power. His halted greatsword began moving again.
Crack.
Moments later, cracks formed in the spatial curtain Vincent had deployed. A small but distinct fracture appeared on the greatsword too.
Heh.
Vincent grinned brightly, then withdrew his greatsword.
The golden blade then tore the curtain apart completely.
Boom!
The entire training grounds split in two.
“Hah... hah...”
Martin panted heavily.
Blood streamed down with each breath.
“Why did you withdraw your sword...”
“Drink this first.”
Vincent opened his subspace and pulled out a glass vial.
It was the highest-grade potion, capable of healing any wound as long as life lingered.
Martin accepted Vincent’s kindness, sheathed his sword, and drank the potion straight.
Then he sat and steadied his condition.
The bleeding stopped, and his body became somewhat movable.
Seeing Martin’s state improve, Vincent smiled faintly.
“What a pity. Seeing a body that can’t keep up with its overwhelming talent. Well, it’s still much better than before.”
“It’ll get even better from now on.”
“Even so, I’d advise you to steer clear of dangerous things like dragon blood. Looks like you’ve picked up some new martial arts too.”
“You noticed?”
“Your breathing technique is different. How could I not?”
“As expected of you, Vincent.”
“That wasn’t said to earn your praise, young master. Just don’t overdo it.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“So you’ll ignore it completely. Well, since I’ve lost, I can’t press the point.”
He hadn’t gone all out.
But hadn’t he promised earlier?
One solid hit, and it’s his victory.
He had no intention of breaking that promise.
“Honestly, I took pride in that technique just now. Never imagined it could be broken, but you actually did it, young master.”
“Hmm. Since you didn’t go all out, I don’t think it means much... but we’ll leave it at that for now. Plenty of chances to clash again anyway.”
“Indeed. I look forward to sparring with you ongoing, young master. It’s a welcome addition to my lonely life.”
“Thank you.”
Martin smiled in response.
In effect, Vincent had declared he’d stand with him.
That alone made challenging him to this duel worthwhile.
‘But this isn’t the end.’
Now, he just needed to proceed to the next step according to the groundwork laid.
That would corner the opposition.
Martin rose and surveyed his surroundings.
Most looked at him with eyes of awe.
Of course, some didn’t.
The branch family successors, led by Stefan.
Their expressions varied slightly, but their flushed faces were identical.
Karline maintained the most composure, but her gritted teeth were plain to see.
The smile usually on her lips was nowhere now.
“I declare once more from this spot: I alone am destined to become the head of the Adalbert family. With the Space Sword now mastered, I possess more than sufficient qualifications.”
“There’s no need to discuss qualifications! The only one fit to be head is the young master!”
“Glory to the Adalbert family!”
“Long live the young master!”
The knights cheered fervently.
They had intuited from Martin’s overwhelming talent.
That he would carry on the Adalbert family’s glory.
‘The label of incompetence is gone. No reason to hesitate now.’
‘We must stand with the young master. The tide has turned.’
The young knights all sent him fervent gazes.
Eager to prove their loyalty and earn his recognition right then.
“Please become our head, young master!”
“Eternal Adalbert family!”
“Woooah!”
The knights’ cheers grew louder.
Martin glanced at them briefly before turning away.
There stood the three elders: Arlen and Marius with stoic faces.
In contrast, Oriana’s face was etched with clear anxiety—perhaps even fear.
‘Next up is you, Elder Oriana.’
However, he had no intention of winning her over with Vincent’s brand of kindness.
Her value was that of a puppet, nothing more or less.