Chapter 8

----------------------------------------------------------------- Translator: Ace Chapter: 8 Chapter Title: Sword User ----------------------------------------------------------------- Sword User. A swordsman who wielded mana. "......" That existence, like a walking disaster, pointed his sword at them. The overwhelming presence choked the air from his lungs. 'A monster.' Damian's instincts screamed in warning. This foe was on an entirely different level from anyone he'd faced before. Like a farmer confronting a starving beast. "One regular knight and three scrubs." The enemy's gaze fixed on Marcus, who stood at the forefront. The veteran of the 2nd Scout Squad. "Let's start with one." The moment the words left his mouth, the knight moved. No—vanished was the more accurate term. "Gah...?" Marcus didn't even realize what had cut him. His neck below felt simply... empty. His head soared through the air. Thud! The decapitated body crumpled to the ground. An utterly meaningless death. They'd lost three in an instant. Charles, Bailey, and now Marcus. "Scatter! Surround him!" Aaron Holt bellowed the order. And charged first himself. Knight against knight. Their only hope. But. Clanggg! Aaron's sword bounced harmlessly away. That alone made the situation crystal clear. 'He's on another level.' Even among knights, the gap in power was overwhelming. Aaron was a regular knight, born without mana affinity. This bastard, on the other hand. 'A clear Sword User.' A hopeless difference. "Ben, Damian! Hit him together!" At Aaron's shout, Ben and Damian sprang into action. Ben to the left, Damian to the right. A perfect triangular encirclement. 'I have to watch his movements.' Damian widened his eyes. Innate Dynamic Vision, Sensitive Senses, Agile Movement. He mobilized every ability he'd absorbed so far. 'I can see it.' The movements, the sword's trajectory. He could read it all. The problem was. 'Too fast.' He could see it, but his body couldn't react. That was the realm of mana usage. The terror of a Sword User. "Half-assed knight thinking he can do something!" The imperial knight swung his sword in a wide arc. Simple, but all the more destructive for it. Boommm! The impact sent Aaron Holt flying back. 'This is... the power of mana.' Not mere physical force. A more fundamental difference in power. "Gahhh!" There was no time to dwell on it. Ben's scream echoed moments later. A fountain of blood erupted from him, the next target. Thud! Ben rolled across the ground. Clearly out of the fight. "Squad Leader!" Damian ground his teeth. The tide had turned in seconds. Only Aaron and Damian remained. "Down to two now." The knight smirked leisurely. His gaze shifted to Aaron. Planning to eliminate the biggest threat first. "Huff... huff...!" Aaron's breathing grew ragged. No path to victory in sight. "Is this as far as we go?" Aaron muttered bitterly. He knew his limits better than anyone. He couldn't hold out any longer against a Sword User. The sorrow of a regular knight. "......

Damian." "I'm listening." "I have an idea." Aaron gripped his sword tighter and whispered. Resolve burned in his eyes. "I'll stop that bastard's movements. I'll create an opening, no matter what it takes... Finish him for sure when I do." Sacrifice. The only way. "What do you—" "That's an order. Survive and report everything to the Legion Commander." The conversation ended there. "Haaahhh!" Aaron roared and charged. A desperate movement unlike before. ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠A reckless rush abandoning all defense. "You only learn the hard way, huh." The imperial knight sneered and brought his sword down. A strike to finish the charging Aaron completely. But that's when the unexpected happened. A variable even the Sword User couldn't anticipate. "......

What?" Aaron didn't dodge the attack. Instead, he threw himself into it. Crrrrunch! The blade sank deep into Aaron's left shoulder. A chilling sound of bone shattering. And at the same time. "Wh-what are you doing?!" Aaron grabbed the imperial knight. With his remaining arm and his entire body, he locked around the man's waist. He even bit into the knight's neck guard. "You crazy bastard...!" The imperial knight twisted in panic. A reaction he'd never encountered before. "Grrraaah!" Aaron let out a beastly roar. The final restraint of one resolved to die. Even a Sword User's strength couldn't break it easily. "Damiaaaan!" Aaron spat blood as he shouted. The opening born of his sacrifice. A chance they absolutely couldn't miss. 'One shot. End it.' Damian clenched his teeth and lunged. Dawn flew toward the knight's heart. "Damn it!" The imperial knight thrashed wildly to shake Aaron off. In that moment of struggle. Stab! The trajectory aimed at the heart veered slightly. The blade slipped through a gap in the armor, piercing the chest. "Hngh...!" A deep wound stabbing the lungs. Fatal, but not instantly lethal. "You... you...!" The imperial knight vomited blood. His eyes filled with shock. "Pathetic... worm...!" Aaron's grip finally loosened. He had no strength left to squeeze. Thud! Aaron collapsed, the light fading from his eyes. Mission accomplished. And death. "Huff, huff, huff...!" Damian gasped for breath. 'I hit him right. Missed the heart, but pierced clean through.' It was definitely deep. No human could last long. But. "......!" Damian's eyes widened. The fallen knight was rising. "Kuh... heh." He groaned through the pain, laughing. Dark red blood gushed with every breath. "Wh-what...?" This wasn't human vitality. Was there only despair left? "You worms...!" His voice cracked. A metallic rasp. "You at least... cough...!" Muscles, blood vessels, even bones. A body enhanced by mana transcended common sense. "I'll kill you... with my own hands!" The imperial knight staggered forward. But his movements weren't the same as before. 'Noticeably slower.' The overwhelming power and speed were gone. His breathing ragged, balance crumbling. 'I can do this.' Damian was exhausted too. But the enemy was in worse shape. He had a real shot. "Grah!" The knight swung clumsily, mana barely infused. Crang! Clang! Kagang! Swords clashed in the air. A desperate fight for survival. No technique or strategy left. Only primal instinct remained. 'Just a bit more.' Damian focused on defense. Waiting for the enemy's strength to fade. Time was on his side. The bastard had lost too much blood. "Gahhh! Why! Why won't you die?!" The knight flailed in frenzy. His attacks growing wilder. Desperation seeped through. "Ngh!" Right then. Damian's sword slipped from his sweat- and blood-slick hand. Dawn flew into the air. "Kahaha! Stupid bastard! You won't die easy!" The knight seized the opening and charged. Confident of victory, delivering the finishing blow. '......

Huh?' The knight's movements faltered. His body wouldn't obey. 'He's at his limit too.' No matter Sword User or not. A fatal wound was fatal. Excessive bleeding and excruciating pain. Even mana could only hold out so long. Thud! The knight dropped to one knee. His sword slipped from his grasp. 'Now.' Damian staggered to his feet. Both weaponless. Only battered bodies left. 'A mud-wrestling brawl.' In that case, Damian had the edge. 'Street Brawling.' The skill stolen from the fake patrol. The moment it would shine. Not refined knightly combat, but gutter mercenary scraps.

"You filthy roach!"

The knight roared and lunged. Swinging fists instead of sword. No—flailing. Whoosh! Damian didn't let it land. He dodged the punch and hooked the man's leg. A technique impossible to evade with broken balance. Thud! The imperial knight hit the dirt. A brutal mud-slogging brawl began. Smack! Thwack! Fists flew, blood sprayed. Headbutts, bites, groin strikes. Every means for survival unleashed.

"Gaaah!"

The knight screamed. Damian's thumb gouging his eye. Vile, but effective. 'Now, now!' And more. Damian swiftly mounted the man's back. Then wrapped both arms around his neck.

"Let go! I said let go, you lowly... gack...!"

The imperial knight thrashed. Writhing in the mud. But Damian didn't release. He squeezed harder.

"Die!"

Every ounce of strength poured in. Let go now, and he'd be the one dead.

"Ngh... gack...!"

The knight's struggles weakened. His face turned purple, breath cut off.

"Die, you bastard—!"

With a desperate cry.

"......"

Finally. Finally, the knight's body went limp. Complete death. The end of the long, grueling battle.

"Hahk! Hahk! Haahk...!"

Only then did Damian's held breath explode out. Tension released, his whole body throbbed. 'I won.' He'd survived a Sword User. No—he'd killed him. The realization hit.

⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙

[‘Knight Gilling Dundaff’ defeated.] [Acquired ‘Proficient Imperial Swordsmanship’.] [Acquired ‘Acquired Mana Sensitivity’.] "......!"

Damian's eyes bulged. 'Two?' Until now, only one at a time. This time, two abilities. Proof of how ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠powerful the foe had been. 'Imperial Swordsmanship.' A flood of information poured into his mind. Aggressive and destructive, unlike Kingdom Swordsmanship. But the real prize was elsewhere. 'Acquired Mana Sensitivity.' Damian doubted his own eyes. Mana sensitivity—what was it? A blessing for the rare few born with it. Or a miracle snatched at infinitesimal odds. 'I... can sense mana?' The world looked different. Countless specks of light floating in the air. Things invisible before now felt vivid. 'This is... mana?' Warm, soft, yet immensely powerful. He felt it seeping into his body. 'Me... with mana?' He'd gained mana sensitivity. He, once a mere farmer. '......

Head back first. The mission isn't over.' No time for sentiment. He was still deep in enemy territory. 'Survivors...' Damian looked around. A gruesome scene. Aaron Holt, Marcus, Charles, Bailey. Four of the six-man scout team slaughtered. A victory impossible without their sacrifice. '......

Squad Leader Ben.' Damian's gaze turned to Ben, collapsed nearby. He still breathed. But his condition was dire. Blood poured from wounds everywhere, unrelenting. "Ngh... Damian...?" Ben cracked his eyes open with effort. His focus blurry. "Did we... win...?" "Yes. We did." Damian approached Ben. Checked his wounds. 'Critical. He'll bleed out like this.' Even a medic would struggle to save him. Especially in this hellish ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠forest. "Good... You really are... something... " Ben smiled faintly. He sensed his own end. "I was wrong. Hurry... tell the Legion Commander... everything..." The rational choice. A natural order on the battlefield. "And... one request." Ben paused. Forcing his mouth open. "Kill me." Knight Arger Veil. The same plea. "I don't want to die in agony. Or be a burden." That instant. A fierce impulse surged in Damian's mind. 'If I kill him.' Kill the squad leader. He could take his abilities. The experience of a veteran who'd seen countless battlefields. That cunning savvy. 'I'd get stronger.' A dying man anyway. Like with Arger Veil—send him off painlessly and claim the power. The merciful act, even. "......" Damian ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠picked up Dawn from the ground. Aimed the blade at Squad Leader Ben. But only for a moment. '......

No.' Damian lowered the sword. If he killed Ben here. 'Then there's no turning back.' This bizarre power to steal abilities by killing. The one way to prove he was still human despite it. "Don't talk nonsense." Damian tore strips from his clothes. Bound Ben's wounds tightly. Crude first aid, but the best he could do. "What are you...?" Ignoring Ben's protests. Damian silently supported him. "We're going back together." Sometime later. Fortune smiled. They encountered the follow-up scout team sent by the Legion Commander. Not one survivor recorded, but two.

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

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