The wooden sword swung horizontally,
And in an instant, as the wooden sword passed through, a massive wind stirred in the space where air had vanished.
But.
That was exactly where it ended.
“… There’s no feel to it.”
I didn’t feel at all like I had struck anything at the tips of my fingers.
I stared blankly at my hand that had swung the wooden sword.
I haven’t even put in any strength, but did I really miss from that distance?
Hmm, this isn’t satisfactory.
My pride was hurt, and I bit my lip.
“Professor! Did you take care of it?!”
Out of breath, Arnold shouted toward me, as the movement of the corpses slowed down.
I shot a glance at Arnold and waved my hand.
“Wait there.”
“…Huh?”
I frowned as I brushed away the dust stirred up by the wind, keeping my nerves on edge since I didn’t know when an ambush might come.
As I moved forward about five steps.
“Tsk.”
Corpses armed with swords rushed at me from all directions, and I slammed the wooden sword down to shatter the ground.
The swords swung by the corpses surrounding me were effortlessly blocked by the wall that had risen up to envelop me.
“Don’t hide and come out.”
I surveyed my surroundings with the wooden sword raised, but there was no reply.
Sighing deeply as the situation didn’t unfold as I wanted, I closed my eyes and focused on the flow of energy around me.
Hmm, I can’t even catch the energy…
To be exact, there was too much energy around me for me to discern who was who.
It felt like trying to find a needle in a desert.
“Seriously, are we playing hide and seek here?”
I squinted and swung my sword horizontally.
As the dust from the wind settled, countless corpses appeared in sight.
… But the Reaper was nowhere to be found.
“Don’t tell me.”
I quickly turned my head to the direction where Arnold had been.
What I saw in that instant was a chilling scene.
“Ugh…”
The Reaper’s hand grasped Arnold’s neck.
Arnold’s legs were flailing in mid-air.
“… Let go.”
I spoke in a cold voice, aiming my wooden sword.
The Reaper turned his head towards me at the sound of my voice, and green flames ignited in his empty eye sockets.
“I’ll ask again. Are you reconsidering?”
“…”
I bit my lip tightly and glanced around.
The corpses surrounding me and the uneven terrain were all in view.
There was no clear solution.
… Should I act like I’m listening to the Reaper for now and observe the situation?
My pride was hurt, and this was not something I wanted to do.
Frowning, I glared at the Reaper.
“…”
Did I look like I was pondering?
The Reaper lifted Arnold even higher.
Arnold’s complexion grew pale.
“Don’t think of useless things.”
It felt like Arnold’s life was about to be in danger, so I lowered the wooden sword I had aimed.
What should I do…?
Even if I swung the wooden sword right in front of the Reaper, there was the chance that the Reaper could make a move and escape, just like before.
Without knowing how that had happened, I couldn’t just blindly swing my sword.
Hmm, it looks like there’s no choice.
I sighed heavily and slowly relaxed my grip on the wooden sword.
“You’ve thought well.”
For now, I would lower my pride and wait for an opportunity.
Just as I resolved my mind and moved towards the Reaper,
“… Pro, fessor.”
Arnold, grasped by the Reaper, spoke with a trembling voice.
But the Reaper tightened his grip on Arnold’s neck even harder.
“Ugh!”
“Shut up.”
The moment I heard Arnold’s voice, a loud thud echoed in my head, prompting me to pause and look into Arnold’s eyes.
Despite the weakness, Arnold’s eyes still shone brightly.
“I got it.”
Grinning, I tightened my grip on the wooden sword again.
A satisfied smile spread across Arnold’s face as he saw me.
*
I don’t know why this is popping into my mind right now, but Professor Cheon Ha-rang suddenly said something during her lecture.
“Meditation isn’t just about observing oneself.”
‘… Meditation, really?’
I thought that swinging my sword one more time would be more helpful than that.
I used to think like that.
But at this moment,
With that skeleton hand squeezing its way around my neck.
‘I can’t breathe…’
I finally began to understand the professor’s words to some extent.
Trying to conserve every breath for survival, I closed my eyes and focused on my breaths,
Gradually, the noise around me faded away, and I began to concentrate on myself.
I could feel the beating of my heart that I never noticed before,
And I could sense each and every bone of the Reaper’s hand gripping my neck.
I could feel every individual fiber of my school uniform and clothing through my skin.
My senses sharpened,
Arnold clutched the Reaper’s wrist.
From the tips of his fingers, I could vividly feel the tiny muscles, the wrist, the arm, and every mechanism of muscle used in his shoulder.
Every fleeting moment felt sharp and clear.
… Is the professor really living in a higher-dimensional world than this?
How ridiculous.
‘No, now is not the time for such useless thoughts.’
I need to find a way out of this situation.
And, coincidentally,
I have that kind of power within me.
The issue is that I’ve never succeeded in doing this before.
‘If it’s now…’
If my senses are heightened to this extreme, it might be possible.
And as long as there’s even a bit of possibility, I can’t afford to give up.
Arnold gathered the little mana remaining inside him,
Compared to his father, the mana and power were far too little.
But it was enough.
Arnold opened his eyes wide and threw a glance at the professor.
Then he infused all the mana he could into his voice.
“Pro, fessor…”
The resolve carried in Arnold’s voice reached the professor.
He couldn’t yet give a command like his father’s ‘Imperial Decree’, but…
‘If it’s just a request or my thoughts, resolve….’
It must have been communicated well enough.
And whether Arnold’s expectations were correct or not, Professor Cheon Ha-rang smiled and grasped the wooden sword.
‘What a relief….’
Consciousness faded to black.
*
“I told you not to do anything reckless.”
Slowly opening my eyes, I took a slow breath in.
“Do you still not realize that it’s useless to try and cut me?”
The low-toned voice of the Reaper echoed,
I grinned softly and continued to prepare my stance.
Alright, let’s see who isn’t grasping the situation.
I don’t know how he used that premonition, but I learned quite a bit.
Bringing him along was the right choice after all.
Surely…
When I swung my sword, and at the moment the Reaper’s body crumbles,
He would have seen the green flame igniting in the eyes of the corpse in front of me.
What that means is, that guy can transfer his consciousness into the corpses he has created.
I don’t think he left any consciousness behind in the brain… but if it’s true.
What an absurd ability.
So how would I obliterate that guy all at once?
It’s simple.
I’d have to blow up this mountain along with the cave.
And.
The Divine Slaying Sword Technique has a yet-to-be-completed technique that strikes the widest area.
“… Am I crazy? Do I really not care what happens to this guy?”
“If you can do it, go ahead.”
Just like Lucius once did,
Pushing back against the Reaper’s reckless behavior with a burst of energy.
“What a ridiculous…!”
Even these kids much younger than me have something to teach.
Grinning to myself, I closed my eyes.
Exhaling while gripping the wooden sword,
And formed the most ideal posture for the actions I was about to take.
Removing the loss of kinetic energy occurring between the connections of movement,
I adjusted the angle of my toes, contracted my calf muscles, focused my gaze, and tightened my waist.
“Ha.”
In due time, my center of gravity leaned so far forward that it was precarious.
The focus of my eyes locked onto the point where I would swing the wooden sword without any tremor.
Though I couldn’t find the perfect posture, reducing the completeness still made it clear.
Divine Slaying Sword Technique
Reaper, you too are striving for that clumsy transcendence.
6th Technique
Truly befitting of your end.
Creation of Heaven and Earth
Just after plunging the wooden sword into the ground.
– KWAAM!
The space trembled.
*
As soon as Cheon Ha-rang swung the wooden sword,
The academy, in the face of the sudden deafening sound, forgot it was in an emergency and peered out the window.
“… What is that?”
“I don’t know… It’s scary.”
And the students who looked outside carved the terrifying scene into their diminished pupils.
The sky was caving in,
The ground was soaring up to the sky.
The space twisted, and twisted again, creating a new sky and earth.
– WUUUING!
An alarm signaling an emergency resonated throughout the school.
“It’s real! Everyone grab your weapons and gather!”
The teachers called out with calmness, but the students didn’t heed their words.
“… Are we gonna die?”
The students sat on the floor, looking as if they had lost all hope.
The glimmer of hope was nowhere to be found in their eyes.
In this desperate situation,
Anna, the head of the academy, prepared to throw herself, gripping her sword tightly.
Her expression hardened, but it seemed she had made up her mind.
However, a hand rested on Anna’s shoulder, stopping her.
“Don’t interfere…!”
“Anna.”
Anna turned her head to look at the owner of the voice.
When her eyes met Mu-myeong’s, he shook his head slightly with a smile.
“You need not worry, she is our master.”
The response Anna received was a confused,
“… Huh?”
A silly question from her.
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