Chapter: 312
Following my brother’s instructions, I moved to the open space behind the building. It was an area I was used to from playing foot volleyball, but thinking of standing here to be taught made me feel a wave of tension.
“That wasn’t exactly what I meant by ‘come out.’”
In the middle of the open area, my brother stood with a slightly awkward expression as he spoke.
It wasn’t just my brother and me in the open space. There were also Louise and Seira from the club room, along with Ainter, Rutis, and Lather, not to mention Tannian, who came back after ensuring there wouldn’t be any injuries during the sparring match, and Marcilio, who had returned after grading the magic students’ scores. It was astonishing how all the club members gathered here—it felt almost like they were watching from the hallway and decided to join in.
“Haha, if not now, when will we get to see the skills of our beloved instructor?”
“That’s not exactly the kind of show you’d want to see.”
Rutis’s comment made my brother respond nonchalantly, but at this moment, I had to agree with Rutis.
I knew how strong my brother was. He had fought in an actual war a few years back, and last year he had shown an overwhelming gap in skills against Rutis, someone I thought would be hard to beat. Taking someone down with bare hands isn’t something you just do with a mere skill gap.
However, I had never seen my brother wield a sword. I knew he was strong, but I couldn’t gauge just how strong. That curiosity was probably greater for Rutis, the one who had to face him.
“If something happens, wouldn’t it be better to have plenty of witnesses? Everyone will understand if injuries occur during a legitimate sparring match.”
Tannian’s words sent a chill down my spine. If I ended up spewing blood or had my limbs broken while sparring with my brother, the club members would testify that it happened during practice.
Of course, I wouldn’t complain if I got hurt during the sparring, but already thinking along those lines felt strange. What’s more, with the upcoming Sage-like figure involved, I worried my brother might snap my spine in half.
“It’s not a sparring match. I can’t let my little brother down.”
That sent another chill down my spine. So does that mean he would have taken me down if I weren’t his brother? No wonder he knocked Rutis out without a second thought back then.
“Oh, so you’re going against me? I’m up for it!”
“It’s not a sparring match, I said.”
My brother’s firm words brought a mix of relief and disappointment among the club members. Relief for those worried my brother would commit another royal assault, and disappointment, of course, mainly came from the red-haired prince.
“Experience isn’t just about physical clashes. Watching with your own eyes is an experience too, right?”
“That’s true. Observing a master’s techniques from a third-party perspective can be valuable for growth.”
Marcilio nodded as he placed a hand on Louise’s shoulder in support.
With Marcilio’s backing, the argument gained rapid persuasive strength. After all, who wouldn’t trust the pinnacle of magic, especially someone already nurturing students?
Yeah, the more I thought about it, the more I felt Marcilio was right. It’s only beneficial to witness techniques when a skill gap is appropriate; if it’s overwhelmingly large, one wouldn’t even know what hit them before collapsing. Just watching the sword techniques would surely be an advantage.
“Let me borrow your sword for a moment.”
“Oh, here you go.”
I hurriedly handed my brother the sword I had at my waist. It was a generic sword I had prepared for sparring, so it wasn’t of any great importance. I was planning to give it a quick polish after today and then shove it into a corner. That sword would’ve been more than happy to be held by my brother.
“Nice and sturdy.”
My brother nodded appreciatively as he tapped the blade and grabbed the hilt with his right hand.
“Honestly, we’re not in such a close range of skill, but if you keep working hard, you will reach my level. If I can do it, so can you.”
He then stepped forward with his left foot and extended his right hand forward, just like a knight showing respect before a duel.
“So, for now, aim for where I am. If you look too far ahead, you’ll just get lost. This distance should be just right.”
As he spoke, my brother slowly lowered his extended hand to the right. His arm extended diagonally from his body, and the blade pointed towards the ground—getting ready for an upward strike.
For sure, the fundamentals of Krasius swordsmanship—no, all swordsmanship—are downward and upward strikes. Was he starting with the basics? Instead of feeling disappointed, I was actually quite excited. My brother was a martial artist who was leagues ahead of me, and now I had a chance to see how his foundation was built.
‘We’re of the same mind.’
Rutis, who had been several steps behind, had now approached my side. It seemed he wanted to see my brother’s sword path up close.
When I glanced at his face, rather than his usual mischievous grin, it was now filled with seriousness. This guy might have a penchant for antics, but his martial spirit was strong.
“I progressed after witnessing this technique too. I believed if I put in the effort, I would someday reach that level.”
His grave words made me freeze. What’s this? That’s not something you say while just showing the basics, is it? Shouldn’t that be something reserved for an incredible, life-altering strike?
At the same time, I felt an extraordinary aura emanating from my brother’s body. No matter how dull a swordsman might be to mana compared to a mage, ultimately, they’re still a master of mana. If there was intense mana manipulation happening right in front of me, I wouldn’t miss it.
And right now, my brother was engaged in that very intense manipulation.
‘Crazy.’
I could feel it—mana exploding from his heart surged through to his right chest before having a secondary explosion. Once tempered twice, the mana consumed his right arm and sword, releasing a menacing aura.
‘Wait, what?!’
Why the hell was the mana visible to the naked eye?
It was shocking. I wanted to look at the reactions of the others, especially Marcilio, but I couldn’t bring myself to break my gaze. If I missed even a second of the spectacle unfolding before me, I knew it was something I’d regret for life.
In that silence, my brother slowly began to raise the sword. So slow, yet with every slight movement, a deafening roar erupted, and the ground began to tear apart.
It felt like watching a predator. As the sword chased its prey, the air screamed as it vanished from view.
And then, just as my brother calmly lifted the sword, he suddenly slashed through the air—
‘…….’
In that instant, all sense of reality was lost.
I opened my eyes to find nothing but a pure white space unfolding, my ears wide open but void of even the sound of wind. My skin felt as though it wasn’t even my own, unable to sense any sensation, and I couldn’t even smell the simplest scent of grass.
It was as if the world before my eyes had vanished, or I had been cast out from existence itself.
But that feeling of strangeness was fleeting.
—■■■■■■■─!!
With a sound that felt like a weak being being forcibly dragged back into existence, my senses returned.
“How’s this?”
And with a mouthful of blood, my brother smiled faintly while pointing at the air.
Following his gesture cautiously, I lifted my gaze and couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.
“That was the technique displayed by the Reverse Celestial during the Great Hunt War.”
Ignoring my dazed expression, he continued to explain.
“That guy wasn’t called the Reverse Celestial just for challenging fate. If he had only been a mere challenger, he would’ve simply been seen as a lunatic, and if he had merely united the nomads, he would have been regarded as a schemer.”
The sound of metal clashing against the ground reached my ears, as if he had thrown down his sword. But I remained transfixed, staring blankly at the sky.
“He was called the Reverse Celestial because he insulted the heavens and overturned the natural order; because as a human, he had dared to interfere with the heavens.”
Those words made me feel both awe and horror at the notion of the Reverse Celestial I had only read about in textbooks.
“The battle during which the Reverse Celestial earned his name. The calamity he summoned against the imperial army—”
Not long after, awe and fear transferred to my brother.
“The imperial forces called that calamity ‘calamity obliteration.’”
What the hell does my brother do, following such a calamity?
“Well, it’s a name that’s unlucky to speak aloud, so we usually called it ‘Heaven’s Slash.’”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. Heaven’s Slash, what a straightforward and definitive name!
I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the void, the wounds etched in ugly black against the cerulean sky.
“…He cut it.”
“Heaven’s Slash, you see.”
The sky had been torn.
*
Whoa, seriously.
‘Is this for real?’
I surprised myself. I hadn’t pulled off a move like that since the war, and I never thought I could succeed so smoothly. I was prepared to say, “Well, the Reverse Celestial did that upward slash beautifully,” if I failed.
Honestly, ever since I got stabbed by the Kagan, I hadn’t dared to try again. The moment I attempted to activate it, my body would scream in protest. I was certain my body would have exploded in the process of amplifying the mana within.
But with Marcilio’s potion speeding up my recovery, I could finally replicate something that had previously seemed only possible in theory. Truly remarkable, Marcilio—you’re awesome.
‘That little monster.’
Spitting out another mouthful of blood, I wiped my mouth. It seemed like my insides were wrecked as blood kept rising, and the sword I borrowed from Erich glimmered brilliantly before shattering into pieces. Damn, now that I pay attention, I don’t have any feeling in my right arm. Did I cut a nerve or something?
Anyway, redoing that move reminded me again that Kagan was the top of the beasts. This copy was weaker than the original, yet even using this move wrecked my body, as I felt like hell afterward. Kagan used it without even breaking a sweat.
Although it’s possible he was just putting on a show, unlike me, who was bleeding everywhere while he looked perfectly fine. At least on the surface.
“Isn’t it great?”
I spoke to Erich, who was still fixated on the void. As he slowly lowered his gaze, his face was a mix of emotions.
“When I first saw Kagan, I thought, ‘What kind of freak is that?’ No matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t believe a human could do that. I wondered if a dark god had descended.”
I was dead serious. There’s a passage in the Dawn Sect’s scripture that says that Enen sealed dark gods in the northern regions of the continent, and isn’t it the nomads that live there? I thought maybe they brought back a dark god and made it their chief.
But at the very least, he was still human, and if he could do it, then so could I, fueled by a twisted sense of determination.
…Of course, he was more than just human—he was an apostle of the gods.
“Turn that emotion you feel now into pride. If you do, you might be able to become like me.”
Maybe.
“Oh, Onii-chan!”
While Erich snapped out of his daze, Louise, who had been silent, rushed over in a flurry.
To confess, it helped having Louise and Marcilio around to bolster my resolve. The duty of showcasing a great display to family is a patriarch’s responsibility—
“Y-your arm!”
“Huh?”
At Louise’s voice, tinged with tears, I looked at my arm only to find that the sensation had vanished, and it was lying on the ground.
Ah, so it wasn’t my nerves that were cut; it just fell off…
“A-Are you okay!?”
Marcilio rushed over with trembling hands, anxiously checking my face.
Of course, I was fine. Losing a limb was practically an everyday occurrence up north. With the continent’s magic and divine power, limbs can regrow in no time.
Plus, thinking of it as something I left behind in the past era isn’t that tragic. If this incident sparked some motivation for Erich, a missing arm is nothing.
*
I really messed up. Looking back, it might have been better to just have Erich bleed a little while we sparred rather than create this whole spectacle.
Caught off-guard by the torn sky, along with my severed arm, Louise and Marcilio were so shocked they decided to share the incident with Marghetta and Irina. I spent the whole day trying to calm all four of them… Thankfully, Tannian was quick to patch up the wound, but sadly, the startled hearts couldn’t be healed.
Of course, it wouldn’t have been a big deal if it just stopped there. If I saw a loved one’s limb blasted off, no matter how well it healed, I would still be horrified. I’d have to reflect on how careless I was.
‘Damn it.’
The real problem came afterward. With noises that felt unreal, the academy was thrown into chaos due to the gash in the sky.
And when there are many witnesses to an incident, someone has to take responsibility.
[ We request you promptly return to the capital for a detailed account from the Executive Manager currently stationed as an inspector regarding the disturbance caused at the academy. ]
Just a day later, I received a summons from the Crown Prince. Did that request for an explanation mean they wanted me to justify why I did such a thing?
Well, it doesn’t matter if it’s something I’d take lightly. After all, I’d been detained before, and my punishment cooldown had reset.
‘One disciplinary action won’t hurt me.’
People tend to be bold when they have nothing to lose.
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