Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: The Second Guardian Spirit
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A familiar knight raised his sword high above his head.
"Young Master, forgive me."
I didn't know his name, but he was a middle-aged man whose face I had seen countless times around the castle.
His eyes, intent on harming me, were filled not with killing intent, but with fear.
He was clearly a knight from the hunting squad, not the guard unit. So whose orders had brought him here to kill me?
The knight squeezed his eyes shut.
Shiiik—
The blade sliced through the air.
It was just an instant, but not only his movements, but the entire world seemed to slow down.
Even the distant bird cries sounded interrupted, confirming that the flow of time had gone awry.
Brunhilt's voice rang in my ear.
Without thinking, I extended both hands forward as she instructed.
I hadn't even concentrated my energy, yet mana swirled in my palms, completing an unknown spell.
Mana in a mysterious form I'd never seen before—like a blade without a hilt.
She had only told me to visualize a shield in my mind.
There was no detailed explanation of the technique, yet I understood what she wanted.
I used the same method as when creating an Aura Blade. Gripping the mana, I imagined the shield in the form I desired.
Ziiing.
At that moment, the mana blade swelled, transforming into a circular round shield.
Kang!
The knight's sword was blocked by the mana shield.
"Wha—what?!"
As he stumbled back in surprise, I sprang to my feet and swung the shield at his head.
Thwack.
The knight let out a short groan and staggered sideways before collapsing.
Thud.
I rushed forward, kicking him in the face with my foot.
Crack!
Then I battered him thoroughly with the shield.
Thud, thump, thump!
"Pl-please spare me! Spare me, Young Master!"
"Spare you? You were trying to kill me just moments ago, and now you're begging me for your life?"
"Urk, guk, kuhk. I-I'm sorry!"
"Even touching my body is unforgivable. The crime of trying to kill me demands your life in repayment."
"Kuhk... Young Master!"
Blood gushed from the middle-aged knight's mouth. Though clad in steel armor, it had all crumpled in an instant, losing its original shape.
Luckily, my current weapon was a shield. If it had been a sword, the armor would have been shredded, leaving him beyond recovery by now.
"Hoo— I'll give you a chance to prolong your miserable life."
"Kuhk..."
"Answer me. Whose orders brought you here to kill me?"
The middle-aged knight glanced at me with dazed eyes before lowering his head and groaning.
"Th-that..."
"I don't want to hear anything else. Just tell me the name of the one who put you up to killing me. Say anything other than that, and I'll sever your head right here."
To intimidate him, I picked up the sword from the ground.
At that moment, seeing the emblem engraved on the hilt revealed who was behind this.
Typically, a knight's sword bears the 'epithet' of the one they serve, etched as an image or letters.
And clearly engraved in the center of this sword's crossguard was the 'White Tiger'.
The middle-aged knight opened his mouth to speak.
"Brother Gunter, huh."
He froze upon hearing my words.
He couldn't even respond. He just stared at me with a face full of terror.
"How long have you been spying on me?"
"Y-Young Master..."
"Enough. Answer my questions briefly."
"I-I'm sorry. Please kill me."
I grabbed both of his hands with my left, wrapped in Aura, and twisted them behind his back.
Crack.
"Kaaak!"
Then I struck the back of his head with the hilt of the sword in my right hand.
Thump!
"Fine, I'll kill you. So no one dares plot something like this again. Right here, where everyone can see."
The knight slumped, dropping his head.
Thud.
"Left."
Siegfried turned his body to the left.
"No, right."
Brunhilt turned her body to the right.
Both wanted to go in different directions despite signs pointing to the same destination.
"No, left."
"Right is faster."
"That's what you think. Left is much quicker."
"You wench? Do you really want to die?!"
The two Guardian Spirits growled at each other again, glaring murderously. Red Aura and blue Mana pushed against each other, blazing fiercely.
I stepped between them, waving my hand and sighing.
Hoo—
"Enough, enough. No matter which way we go, we'll reach Strange Castle anyway. Why waste emotions on something like this?"
Siegfried twitched his eyebrow.
"Because I'm right."
Brunhilt replied, channeling Mana into her fist.
"Why not just admit it?"
"Bullshit! You're really insane? How are you still the same?!"
"Same goes for you? I begged you before we parted. And you're still clinging to that pointless pride, living like trash."
"Living? What living? Do I look alive to you right now?"
"Ha...! If only you could shut up."
Tiring bastards.
How do they fight every ten steps?
Even a god would click their tongue seeing this.
No matter what I say, their questions and answers turn combative, ending in anger and conflict.
For these to be called legends, the world is truly cruel.
"I said stop it!"
Raising my voice louder than ever before,
Siegfried and Brunhilt both looked at me simultaneously.
"Hey, idiot knight. What's wrong with that guy?"
"No idea, moron witch. He goes crazy like that when he's too tired sometimes."
Witch?
'Brunhilt von Glazer', mother of all mages and called the great sage. Calling her a 'witch', the betrayer of the sanctuary.
Siegfried deserved a slap for that.
But Brunhilt's reaction was unexpectedly calm.
"Witch— It's been a while since I heard that."
She accepted it.
'...It was real?'
She wore a thoughtful expression for a moment.
"Why? Nostalgic after so long?"
"...A bit."
"A bit my ass. Think of the hell you put me through!"
"What hell did you go through? Without me, you wouldn't have even climbed the tower."
"What did you say?!"
"What I said!"
Just listening revealed the situation.
I listened only until it veered into unnecessary territory, then stepped between them again as they started fighting, cutting off the conversation.
"That's enough. Save the useless talk for after we get back to the castle."
Siegfried crossed his arms and turned away. Brunhilt, watching him, whispered softly.
"What kind of man has such a narrow mind."
"Lady Brunhilt."
"Yes?"
"Sorry, but could you grant me one request?"
"What."
I formed a blazing Aura like flame in one palm and answered her.
Fwoosh—
"I am a knight."
"Right."
"I formed a contract with Sword God Siegfried in front of many people."
"Yeah."
"And you are from the Glazer Family, blood enemies of the Strange Family."
"I get it. You want me to hide my identity."
"Yes. That I have a second Guardian Spirit. And that it's you. I don't want others finding out easily."
"That's not hard."
She snapped her fingers in the air.
Snap!
With a 'pop', blue smoke rose, and she turned into a blue cat.
Meow~
The blue cat climbed onto my shoulder and licked my cheek.
Lick.
"How's this? No need to worry about prying eyes."
A coastal village in the east.
Two men clashed fiercely over a man belonging to the assassin group 'Red Worm'.
One was Gunter de Strange, eldest son of the Strange Family and one of the continent's Five Generals.
"I won't forgive any more disturbances."
On the opposite side, Roys's second son, Hysteria, smirked leisurely.
"And what if you don't?"
Both gripped their sword hilts, ready to clash at any moment as they spoke.
"I'll stop it with force if needed."
"So you want to fight me after all? Why not say so from the start? That you came to kill me."
"It's not about fighting. I just came to stop your atrocities."
"Atrocities? What atrocities."
"Didn't you kill the Glazer Family mages on your way here? They're ready for war to hunt you down."
"Oh... So the Glazers are hunting me to kill me? Ha! That sounds fun. I was hoping to kill a few more mages anyway."
Gunter glanced at the Red Worm assassin collapsed beside Hysteria.
"Cut the nonsense and go back south. I'll handle him."
Hysteria grabbed the assassin's hair and forced him up.
Kuhk—
"Why should you handle the one I caught?"
"The east is my territory. I take responsibility and end everything that happens here."
"Ah, yes. So our big brother takes responsibility for everything in the east? That's why a mere assassin group dares target the Strange Family?"
"Don't mock me."
"No, no, it's not mocking—it's unbelievable. You said the east is your territory, yet assassins here tried to kill the youngest. Ha! What does that mean?"
"......"
"Could it be the Strange Family's eldest sent assassins because he's afraid of the youngest's talent? Scared of losing the next family head position?"
As soon as the question ended, Gunter swung the massive two-handed sword from his back.
Whoosh—!
Hysteria blocked the strike with his two swords.
Clang—!
"I'll call Valentine."
"Do what you want. I'm moving on the Strange Family's orders anyway."
"What?"
"Remember what Father said after this year's ritual?"
"After the ritual?"
"Yes. No matter what, never touch the youngest in the family. Whoever does it, he won't forgive."
"......"
Hysteria grinned and gestured into the air.
"Kyahaha! Hysteria, is it finally my turn?"
At the same time, his clown Guardian Spirit sprayed threads onto the assassin's body, weaving them.
The Red Worm assassin spoke without realizing it. He struggled to close his mouth, but his body moved against his will.
Hysteria smirked at him.
"How's that? My gift for you."