Chapter 20. Exemption Mission and Non-Mages (5)
The inner world was as clear and expansive as ever.
The ground beneath my feet stretched out like a semi-transparent lake, forming a black sky and a vast horizon.
Glimmering shadows flickered in the sky like stars.
To avoid being overwhelmed by the atmosphere, I slowly took a step forward.
Before I knew it, small white letters were floating in front of me once again.
? Swordsmanship Proficiency Increased Through Practical Combat
? Form 1 - Explosive Sword Proficiency: Slightly Improved
? 「Enoch Elsyde’s」 Understanding of Mana Increased Through Practical Combat
? Upon Reaching a Certain Level, Memory Inheritance of ‘Enoch Elsyde’s Past’ Possible Through
<Heir of the Sword>
I smiled as soon as I saw the messages.
My assumption that practical experience was the key to growth was correct. As expected, my growth was steadily progressing.
‘Come to think of it.’
A question suddenly crossed my mind.
‘Until now, I’ve been calling this place my inner world, but what exactly is it?’
The system window, which only appears in this inner world and is exactly like the one in the original game, and the incredibly realistic sensations that don’t seem like a simple inner world.
‘There’s still so much I don’t know about this place.’
Suddenly, as if cutting off my thoughts, a familiar presence arose from the space in front of me.
The Empire’s Last Sword Saint.
His appearance was even clearer than before.
I could see not only the robe covering his entire body, but also his white beard and the veins on the back of his hand.
As expected, the more I inherited the Sword Saint’s skills, the clearer his appearance became.
Ting—
Without a word, he raised his longsword and aimed it at me once again.
Whoosh—
Instantly, crimson mana flickered in the form of flames, rising from his sword.
I wore a faintly twisted smile.
“…I’m already looking forward to this.”
I will be cut again. I will die again.
Before I knew it, my instincts were enveloping my body, whispering sweetly.
It's enough now.
The pain of my brain boiling.
The agony of my arms and legs being torn apart by the sword.
Death is too painful.
This is the world of the mind, but all the senses are exactly the same as reality.
Even the pain of death, which one experiences only once in a lifetime, is the same.
I've already repeated that terrible experience countless times. Logically, there's no way I can continue to endure these pains.
Like a cunning beast, instinct whispered in my ear.
So, let's run away right now.
Release the inner world and run away.
But instead, I smiled fiercely, extending my right arm into the air.
Swish—
Shadows gathered in my grip, and a longsword identical to the Sword Saint’s materialized.
Death here was still unfamiliar….
‘But it’s a hundred times better than actually dying.’
The enemies I had to face in this mission. And the incidents I had to overcome were numerous.
To do that, I had to become stronger than I am now.
I suddenly recalled the battle with Lien that took place at the banquet hall.
From the beginning, she engaged in the battle with the intention of subduing me, not killing me.
Nevertheless, the battle ended in a one-sided defeat for me.
Mages of rank 10 or higher who use unique magic are that strong.
‘If I’m afraid of death in the inner world and fail to grow, it will eventually be difficult to avoid death in some way.’
If I am afraid of the pain of change and cannot move forward, I will eventually remain stagnant forever.
Ting
I aimed my sword at the Sword Saint.
The same stance as the Sword Saint, as if looking in a mirror.
My eyes, which faced the Sword Saint in that way, flashed dark blue for a moment.
And the next moment—
The Sword Saint charged towards me.
In an instant, his figure appeared in the air before my eyes. There was no time to be surprised by the unbelievable speed.
-Whirl
The next moment, the Sword Saint's body rotated in the air.
The Sword Saint's sword rotated greatly diagonally in the air. That was all I could see in that instant.
Immediately after that, my body was torn to pieces and flew away.
“Cough!”
Spewing blood from my throat, which was growing colder, I opened my eyes wide and looked at the Sword Saint.
‘What was that just now…?’
I wasn't mistaken.
In that instant when he charged towards me.
In 'all the space' in front of me, lines of mana foretelling the trajectory of the attack were drawn.
‘No way.’
The Sword Saint’s sword was unbelievably cutting through all the space around it in one strike.
‘I’m used to the movements of Form 1. Even so, the attack is so fast that I missed the form of the sword for a moment.’
I desperately began to read his sword path.
But before I could, as soon as I was revived in the inner world, the Sword Saint kicked off the ground and charged at me again.
The sword that had cut off my breath a moment ago flew again, cutting off my neck. Pain as if my brain was burning ran through my body. My thoughts were cut off and my consciousness was torn apart.
But I finally regained my stance.
‘Don’t back down.’
I stared straight at the Sword Saint's shadow.
‘Just like with the inheritance of Form 1, Form 2 can only be inherited by dying and directly grasping its mysteries.’
I watched the flames swirling around the Sword Saint’s sword.
Facing the light of the flame reflected above my eyes, my dark blue eyes glared straight at him.
The Sword Saint charged again.
Soon after, a fatal and rapid series of attacks unfolded that I couldn't keep up with with my eyes.
But my eyes were gradually catching up with those movements.
‘It’s not just accelerating the movements like before.’
My jet-black eyes widened with sudden realization.
‘What the Sword Saint is accelerating is the sword itself!’
It ignites the mana projected onto the sword itself.
It is to cut down the enemy by accelerating intensely with the recoil.
If I understand this much, I can guess how to use this form.
Whoosh!
The Sword Saint charged towards me again and levitated.
At that moment, I was convinced.
‘I can see it.’
The flames lingering in the air along the trajectory of the sword strike rotate diagonally, drawing a huge circle.
The fiery dance that scorches the space engulfed me.
A giant wheel of fire that the sword rotates and unfolds around the body of the swordsman.
Like a scorching sun.
A fierce sword form that cuts through all directions in one strike.
—Slash!
Once again, the sword came rushing in with a fierce trajectory.
Agony covered my brain.
But this time, I was able to understand the mysteries of that swordsmanship.
? 「The Empire’s Last Sword Saint」 Swordsmanship Inherited
Form 2 - Fire Wheel
While levitating, explode the mana projected onto the sword, and use the recoil to rotate and cut down multiple enemies in one strike.
Three wide-ranging consecutive attacks performed in the air while advancing at a speed beyond human limits.
When enemies from all directions cover me with countless hostilities.
Only then did I unfold the sun that would burn them all with my sword.
After reading the explanation, I paused for a moment to think.
‘…Fire Wheel, huh.’
Form 1 was a technique to enhance mobility with mana.
On the other hand.
‘Form 2 is a wide-area skill that explodes the mana projected onto the sword and delivers a rapid series of attacks that cut through all directions!’
And the intention of drawing the trajectory of the sword so spectacularly in all directions was clear.
‘This is definitely a form created with mass battles in mind.’
It was close to the swordsmanship specialized in fighting against many opponents that I originally needed in this mission.
‘I should say I’m lucky. I never imagined I’d learn swordsmanship suitable for mass battles in this inheritance.’
I should have been happy.
But my expression was rotting away.
Why?
Because the more I inherited, the more unsettling things there were.
‘…I thought it was strange from the beginning.’
The swordsmanship inherited from the Empire’s Last Sword Saint was all about attacking.
From Form 1, which enhances mobility by exploding mana, to Form 2, which accelerates the sword itself in the same way.
Nowhere in his swordsmanship and movements was there….
‘There’s no movement that considers defense!’
Of course, swordsmanship is meant to subdue opponents.
An offensive aspect is definitely necessary, but even considering that, the swordsmanship is too extremely focused on attacking.
At this point, an appalling speculation was simmering in my head.
‘The Emp’s Last Sword… Could he have been a macho man in his younger days who put everything into mobility and attack power?’
Since there are no defensive movements, if you make even the slightest mistake in actual combat, it will immediately lead to death. It's literally a precarious swordsmanship.
‘Why?’
Why did the Sword Saint use such a deformed swordsmanship that didn’t even consider his own safety?
I glanced back at the Sword Saint. His gray beard came into view under his hood.
‘Judging from the fact that he lived well until his hair turned white like that, it means there were no particular problems with this swordsmanship.’
I clenched the lowered sword once again.
Even though I had clearly completed the inheritance, unlike last time, I felt unsettled in many ways, leaving many questions.
‘There’s still something missing.’
While inheriting the Sword Saint’s swordsmanship this time, I somehow felt that way.
‘There is still something fundamentally lacking.’
I stared silently at the Sword Saint’s shadow.
‘Even though I can imitate the Sword Saint’s movements, I can’t understand them.’
There is ultimately some difference between the Sword Saint’s sword movements and mine.
‘Should I try it out?’
I raised my sword again and took a stance.
As if responding to that, the Sword Saint opposite me also moved.
The two swords, moving identically as if looking in a mirror, stopped in the air in the same stance, aiming at each other's necks.
The next moment, the two simultaneously exploded towards each other and leaped into the air.
Whirl—
My sword and the Sword Saint’s sword rotated, drawing huge circular trajectories in opposite directions.
Form 2, Fire Wheel.
Two circles, one made of red light and the other of dark blue light, intersected intensely in the air.
It was clearly a movement performed at the same speed, but….
The outcome was as expected.
“Keuk.”
My body was cut by the Sword Saint’s charging sword.
Even in the poisonous pain that made me want to vomit blood, I raised my head and glared at the Sword Saint.
The same weapon.
The same movements and stance.
Form 2, Fire Wheel, performed at the same speed.
Even so, I couldn’t catch up with the sword of 「The Empire’s Last Sword Saint」.
‘Even if I inherited it right away, it means the completeness of my swordsmanship is still lacking compared to the original owner.’
What is the fundamental cause of this?
At that time, a sharp realization flashed through my head.
‘Could it be.’
Maybe the approach was wrong from the beginning.
‘Swordsmanship is a unique movement created by projecting the mana that contains the swordsman’s ego.’
If so?
‘The swordsmanship that is so extremely focused on attacking must also be related to the past he lived.’
In other words, it’s not just about imitating the movements.
The unique mana that a swordsman puts into his sword originally contains the person’s life and will.
I have to understand that.
‘But I still don’t know about the Sword Saint’s life.’
I raised my head.
The swordsman standing in front of me with his sword lowered.
The Empire’s Last Sword Saint was facing me, quietly engulfing his sword in burning mana.
‘So, what I truly need to inherit from 「The Empire’s Last Sword Saint」 is….’
I slowly closed my eyes.
‘I must understand everything about the life that The Empire’s Last Sword Saint lived.’
At that moment—
? The hidden ability of the trait <Heir of the Sword> is activated: [Inner Reflection]
—A pale message appeared before my eyes.
? Greatly Increases Insight and Understanding of the User of the Sword
? Notice: Experience Inheritance Through <Heir of the Sword> Has Reached a Certain Level
? 「The Empire’s Last Sword Saint」: Start Recreating the Experience Imbued in ‘Unique Mana’!
And once again,
The inner world beneath my feet rotated and changed.