Chapter 87: Monster (3)
Jeten is strong.
Not just strong, but overwhelmingly strong.
If he hadn't possessed such skills, he wouldn't have been able to exert influence in as many as three cities.
Of course, there were quite a few beings in the world, including Masters, that one should never encounter, but it was correct to assume that encountering them on the vast continent was almost impossible.
However.
‘To think that two such monstrous individuals would visit my guild!’
Moreover, they hadn't just visited; they were rampaging through the training ground, wielding Aura Swords of tremendous power.
Jeten’s expression crumpled.
The grand training ground of the Jeten Guild headquarters was a space he had meticulously designed, a place he usually paid great attention to for maintenance.
It could truly be called the pride of the guild, but he felt that too would end today.
Boom!
Boom!
Cra-boom!
Cra-cra-cra-crash!
Sounds like rocks from a catapult hitting a castle wall, rather than swords, echoed continuously, and the surrounding scenery was changing in real-time.
Jeten, who had been observing the scene for about a minute, soon wore a serene expression and muttered quietly.
“Let’s forget. Let’s just forget everything.”
It wasn't something he could stop even if he struggled.
Yes, if he had to put it one way, this was like a natural disaster.
Humans are bound to be powerless in the face of nature's immense power, so it was better to turn his thoughts elsewhere.
Once he put his mind at ease, the middle-aged man’s powerful swordsmanship came into clearer view.
It wasn't just mindlessly swinging a huge Aura Sword.
His appearance, fully utilizing the characteristics of a Strong Sword, created an ironic scene, as if a well-trained large Monster was wielding a weapon.
However, there was no expression more fitting than that.
Whoosh!
Whoooosh-!
Whoooooosh!
The moment his sword struck properly, it felt not like being cut, but like being shattered and crushed, a tremendous force.
The sword wind even reached him, who was quite far away, so there was no need to further explain its power.
‘Indeed…… the rumors rather fall short.’
He wasn't born of a swordsmanship family’s bloodline, nor had he studied at a famous swordsmanship hall.
Since he had spent most of his life wandering like a lone wolf, there was a slight tendency to disregard him, but today he keenly felt how wrong that thought was.
However, there was an even more unbelievable existence.
The protagonist was Harang, a young man in his 20s who was enduring dozens of exchanges from him.
‘That fellow…… What kind of monster is he?’
He had vaguely sensed it.
The fact that, contrary to what was known to the public, he was hiding tremendous swordsmanship skills.
Even during the duel, he had shown the unbelievable feat of instantly mastering his swordsmanship, so he had somewhat considered the possibility that he might be one of the few ‘Graduate-level individuals in their 20s’ on the continent.
However.
However……!
‘This…… this isn’t at that level.
Against a strongman whom I would have lost to before even crossing swords three times, he’s still holding on!’
Basically, his speed was incredibly fast.
On top of that, the preparatory motions that formed the basis of all his movements were almost non-existent, making it even harder to predict his next move.
It was a strange movement, almost like seeing a ghost or a phantom.
Of course, the middle-aged man’s sword was so fast and powerful that even Harang found it overwhelming, so he couldn't dodge everything, but at the moment of impact, he was deflecting the sword path with exquisite control, so there had been no effective hits yet.
Overcoming strength with softness!
He had only heard of it in words, but this was the first time he had seen it in reality.
Jeten felt a similar emotion watching Harang’s swordsmanship, which was several dimensions above his own, as when he watched the middle-aged man’s sword.
He hadn't yet realized that his own level was gradually rising in the meantime, but he knew better than anyone that he absolutely must not miss this moment.
“You’ve incorporated the water attribute into your swordsmanship.”
At that moment, the middle-aged man, who had been silently swinging his sword until now, opened his mouth.
Jeten was startled.
To have the leisure to speak even in the middle of a ferocious battle.
Could it be that he still wasn’t using his full strength?
His prediction was correct.
The middle-aged man, nodding slightly as if he had understood something, changed his stance.
Then, the sword momentum, which had been pouring down rapidly like hail accompanied by a storm, changed.
With larger movements.
However, exuding a heavy pressure that felt as if it were blocking space itself, he gradually pressed the opponent’s movement path.
Harang let out a faint groan, feeling as if he were facing a giant castle wall.
“Umm.”
It was surprising.
The opponent was also melting the properties of basic elements into his swordsmanship.
Through the dense earth energy, reminiscent of a large city’s walls, he was blocking the water path, the path of the sword he pursued.
He hardened his expression, feeling the illusion of crossing swords with a high-ranking administrator from the village.
Smirk.
Soon, he smiled.
It was a fierce smile, enough to make the tip of the middle-aged man’s sword, which had been blocking Harang’s right path for a moment, tremble.
“Nice.”
Harang said.
It was true.
He was currently engaging in battle with the most joyful heart since coming to the outside world.
He thought he had to become stronger.
It was for himself, for his freedom, but Harang was no longer alone.
To protect the numerous connections that had entered his heart, he needed to become stronger much faster than now, and for that, he was prepared to take any risk.
Just as he was thinking that, a rival appeared as if dropped from the sky.
No, perhaps an opponent who might be even more skilled than himself.
His body trembled.
The excitement and joy that had come after a long time, and the appropriate tension, heated Harang’s body and fully opened his senses.
This meant he was ready to absorb everything from the opponent, and at the same time, it meant he was ready to show his next stage.
‘From now on…….’
Shwaaaak!
Kwwaaaaang!
‘……Let’s have a little more fun.’
He didn't say it out loud.
There was no need to.
Harang, who fully expressed his feelings with his eyes, vigorously repelled the middle-aged man’s sword and raised his Aura.
Crackle, cra-cra-crack-!
“……!”
The middle-aged man’s eyebrows twitched.
It was impossible to actually hear it.
But it seemed to linger in his ears.
The bright yellow energy of lightning, splitting the night sky and falling, seemed to bloom like a flower from the opponent’s sword, from his feet.
That was no exaggeration.
Harang, who had instantly changed his attribute from water to lightning, retreated backward at an incredible speed, then charged forward at an even faster speed.
Crackle.
Zip.
Cra-cra-crack-!
It wasn't a simple straight charge.
Harang’s movement, changing direction in a zigzag like lightning usually does.
It was as swift as if inertia didn't exist.
The middle-aged man, hardening his expression, took a middle stance.
“Haaaaaap!”
He executed a strong upward cut towards the opponent who was pushing in from the left.
Without being deceived by that unpredictable movement, he had performed the optimal attack at the best timing.
Of course, Harang didn't back down meekly either.
Harang, momentarily rooting himself to the ground using the wood attribute, gripped his sword with both hands.
In the meantime, he simultaneously drew up the energy of fire and iron and pressed down on the middle-aged man’s sword with all his might.
Kwwaaaaaaaaaaaaang-!
Strength against strength.
Power against power!
An enormous shockwave spread out in concentric circles from the first direct clash of strength since the battle began.
The Jeten Guild members who were engrossed in training were startled and looked towards the grand training ground, and the noise was so loud that several ordinary people outside the guild mistook it for a volcanic eruption and collapsed on the spot.
"It was a clash so intense that even Jeten, who had been watching the duel in a daze, had to cover his ears with both hands."
His eyes widened to identify the two swordsmen amidst the dust and stone powder.
After a few seconds passed like that.
What was revealed through the thinning dust cloud was Harang, whose upper garment was ruined by the shockwave, and the middle-aged man, who had managed to avoid an unsightly appearance thanks to wearing good quality leather armor.
It meant that even in that ferocious clash, neither of them had suffered any injuries.
“…….”
There were no words.
He absolutely couldn't say anything.
Jeten stared at the two with his mouth wide open, regardless of whether dirt and dust entered it or not.
Neither of them seemed human.
“A crazy young man.”
Although not as much as Jeten, the middle-aged man also looked at his opponent with a considerably surprised expression.
He rotated the wrist holding the sword back and forth as if it were aching, and Harang, watching him, grinned and spoke.
“You’ve been saving it, haven’t you?”
“What?”
“You haven’t shown everything yet, have you? I can tell. You are a cautious person. So unless it’s a very dangerous situation, you’d probably hide about 30% of your usual skill.”
“…….”
“It’s the same for me. Ah, actually, I don’t know for sure. Whether the power I’ve hidden is 20%, 30%, or even more than that. It can’t be easy to measure something like that properly, can it? It’s not like there’s a proper opponent. Actually, I haven’t met a worthy opponent for a while.”
Harang’s words were true.
For a year before he was freed from the village, he had no memory of crossing swords with a proper opponent.
The chief administrator and other high-ranking administrators rarely visited the village due to busy schedules, and the top-ranking peers, including Maya in 2nd place and Gael in 3rd place, were engrossed in personal training and only watched for his openings, not openly challenging him.
In addition to that, his relatively peaceful life outside by his standards meant that he hadn't had a chance to swing his sword with all his might for quite a long time.
“So.”
Woooooong……
“Let’s go a little further.”
Woong, wooooooooong……!
An even more sinister presence flowed from Harang’s body.
That’s right.
It was closer to a dangerous and gloomy energy rather than an intense one.
A sickening feeling, like one might experience in a damp cave entered by cutting through a dark mountain valley on a midwinter day with a biting wind, subtly rose from his body.
Jeten’s expression hardened even more as he watched this, and the middle-aged man also responded with a tremor around his eyes.
However, that was as far as it went.
Crack, cra-crack-
Clang!
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
The grayish-white energy that enveloped Harang’s sword.
No, an Aura Sword that shone a little darker than an ordinary Aura Sword.
It finally caused trouble.
The cracked and corroded sword blade, broken from the middle, lay wretchedly rolling on the grand training ground, and Jeten, seeing it, thought.
‘It seems the sword broke, unable to withstand the impact of the collision.’
It wasn't unreasonable to think so.
However, the middle-aged man’s judgment seemed different.
Smirking, as if he had expected it, he walked towards Harang.
Harang, while wary of him, did not retreat, and soon the distance between the two became very close.
A moment later.
A small voice, audible only to the two of them, flowed from his mouth.
“An Aura that corrodes swords. If you don’t want it known…… How about we talk a bit? Just the two of us.”
“…….”
“Why, you don’t want to?”
“Before that…….”
Harang, who had moved two steps away from the middle-aged man, looked straight up at him.
He still couldn't get a feel for it.
Who on earth was he, what kind of being was he, to possess such extraordinary swordsmanship skills?
“Who are you?”
He asked, and this time, an answer came.
“Austin.”
“Austin?”
“Yes. The head of the Mercenary Brokerage, Austin, is my name.”