### Chapter: 413
The Sword King, Raia Balheim, rose to his feet.
His hands were empty, grasping nothing but air.
However, neither Kraush nor Charlotte thought he lacked a weapon.
After all, he wielded the art of swordsmanship without a sword.
Thud!
As expected, in between Kraush and Charlotte, an enormous sword suddenly embedded itself into the ground.
With a sword the size of a person stuck in place, their gazes naturally drifted upward.
What they found was an overwhelming number of swords—hundreds, to be precise.
These swords were all different, from their sizes to their shapes.
Emperor’s Annihilation Sword.
It was the secret of Raia’s swordsmanship.
Rumble!
And then, the rain of swords began to pour down.
The blades that filled the sky were directed toward Charlotte and Kraush.
Clang, clang, clang!
In response, Charlotte and Kraush swung their swords simultaneously.
Kraush could counter any attack thanks to his instincts and the wall of Lightning.
Charlotte relied purely on her incredible reflexes and spatial awareness.
As the storm of swords raged fiercely, their swords kept moving constantly.
Normally, they would have pressed forward.
However, Raia’s swordsmanship was relentlessly attacking Charlotte and Kraush.
The two found themselves trapped in a storm of blades, unable to advance at all.
Their opponent was none other than the Sword King, Raia Balheim.
Especially since he was now infused with divine power due to a god’s manifestation.
He was an incredibly powerful adversary beyond imagination.
Realizing this, Kraush and Charlotte exchanged glances amidst the tempest of swords.
At the same time, their gazes locked in agreement.
The sword aura burst forth from Charlotte’s body.
Kraush’s body radiated the aura of a dragon.
In an instant, the combined auras momentarily stopped the incoming swords in their tracks.
Charlotte was the first to strike the ground.
With her sword enveloped in a fierce blue aura, she launched forward like a cannonball.
As the swords rushed to intercept Charlotte, she grinned sharply.
“Is this how you intend to stop me, with swords you don’t even hold?”
With that, the shimmering light surrounding her sword began to engulf everything around her.
“Do you really think you can block me with this?”
In a flash, the light shot ahead and shattered all the swords in its wake.
Raia’s eyebrow twitched.
The deity that resided within him was Lepira, the god of matter.
Earlier, when Charlotte and Kraush were battling in the storm of swords,
Raia had belatedly noticed that they had masterfully weakened all the swords, creating precise cracks.
And just moments ago, Charlotte’s sword’s flash had seeped into those cracks, destroying the swords effortlessly.
What a pair of utterly reckless siblings!
As the broken swords lay scattered, Charlotte twisted and took hold of a new sword.
Her body seemed to overflow with endless aura.
In the blink of an eye, she charged at Raia.
However, just as she was about to reach him,
Her vision was flooded with light.
Clang!
In an instant, Charlotte’s sword clashed against something.
The impact was so strong that it forced even Charlotte to stumble backward.
She recognized what she had just blocked.
It was Raia’s light sword, a gift from Balgor, the Poison King.
A sword created by copying Balgor’s divine power using the skill Lepiten.
True to its name, the speed of the light sword was utterly insane.
Moreover, the power it contained was enough to send chills down Charlotte’s spine.
“Hmm?”
But there was another issue at hand in this moment.
Charlotte’s eyes reflected not just one, but many light swords.
Behind Raia,
A total of twelve swords circled around, each glowing brilliantly.
This was a far cry from when Raia had overwhelmed the World Devourer with just one sword in the past.
These light swords were infused with his divine powers.
With the manifestation of Lepira, Raia had generated even more powerful light swords.
Charlotte’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
Her lips curled up in delight, as if she was enjoying the challenge ahead.
The stronger the opponent, the more fiercely her spirit ignited.
“Alright, big brother.”
Charlotte slowly lowered her sword.
“Do you think you can kill me?”
With that question, the twelve light swords launched simultaneously.
As they cut through the air, they all aimed for Charlotte’s life.
Watching this unfold, Charlotte quietly inhaled and exhaled.
Suddenly, a green light burst forth from her feet.
The genius of swords.
A star born from a sword.
Charlotte, who lived up to the descriptions thrown at her,
was not merely a genius; she was someone who could catch up to realms others would spend their lives trying to reach.
A beam of light surged from her sword.
That beam resembled the light sword wielded by Raia.
“I’ve watched my dad use this with my own eyes.”
Back when she was closing the Kingdom of Jeblam’s Demonic Bastion,
she had witnessed the technique of the Poison King, Balok Balheim, firsthand.
For her, Balok’s swordsmanship was in a realm far beyond her own.
And it was something she deeply coveted.
She craved it.
So, what should one do in such a situation?
The genius Charlotte had a simple answer.
She would steal it and make it her own!
A smirk spread across Charlotte’s face.
Before the onslaught of the twelve light swords,
A sword glowing with blue light showcased its immense power.
“All hail the unrivaled genius!”
Charlotte was a natural!
With the power to seize everything this world had to offer and make it her own.
The entire space began to glow with a bright blue light.
The energy radiating from her sword was so overwhelming that the twelve light swords halted in their tracks.
The moment Raia witnessed Charlotte’s smile,
A blue flash engulfed everything, severing it all in its path.
Unrivaled Supremacy.
Martial Supreme.
Raia faced multiple massive, powerful swords stacked before him like shields.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The swords shattered one after another, but Raia did not falter.
To combat the technique Charlotte unleashed, he activated Lepiten to the fullest extent.
And at that pivotal moment,
Charlotte’s Martial Supreme legacy began to fade, weakening bit by bit.
His immense power drained, leaving Raia dizzy.
But it was no time to get lazy.
Since Charlotte had used so much energy unleashing her technique, she would be weakened too.
This was the time to strike!
Just as Raia began to reshape swords with Lepiten,
A chill ran down his spine.
His gaze shifted to a boy with ash-colored hair, identical to his own.
By the boy’s forehead were two horns and scales.
With wisps of ash-gray smoke curling from his lips,
It was none other than the Dragon Lord, Kraush Balheim.
“Geez.”
From the Celestial Sword Kraush wielded, ash-gray sparks flew.
Although Kraush had hidden himself using Invisibility to gather firepower,
Charlotte had surpassed all expectations.
What a monstrous sister!
He never imagined she would put up such a struggle against a fellow member of the Ten Great Lords.
“This is nothing short of a total mess.”
But what could he do?
He had to take action.
Kraush raised his sword to draw it back.
Raia’s gaze naturally rose to follow the sword.
Because the immense power contained in it could make Raia feel helpless.
“Big brother, let’s have a little chat with our eyes wide open.”
The ash-gray flames ignited fiercely.
As he looked at the troublesome siblings, Raia seemed to smile bitterly.
Before he could gather himself, Kraush swung his sword down, engulfing everything in ash-gray flames.
—
After Raia fell,
Kraush was the first to activate the Black Hood, stealing Raia’s skill.
This meant that Raia no longer had Lepiten, severing his connection to the gods.
Although Raia wouldn’t be able to use his skills anymore,
His capabilities wouldn’t diminish significantly.
After all, his swordsmanship was tied to his innate abilities.
“Hey, sis, your brother seems to be smiling.”
“Just let him be. Maybe he’s dreaming sweetly.”
Charlotte let out a long yawn.
It seemed wielding the Martial Supreme had drained her aura—and her energy levels, too.
Even she couldn’t wield Balgor’s techniques without consequences.
“…Charlotte, Kraush.”
At that moment, Raia spoke up.
Having hastily used a Darling-brand potion for first aid,
He managed to recover through sheer willpower.
“Are you awake?”
Kraush inquired, as Raia slowly opened his eyes.
“I’ve stolen your skills to prevent divine manifestation.”
Raia nodded nonchalantly, as if anticipating this.
He appeared completely unfazed about losing his skills from the very beginning.
“Brother.”
Kraush decided to ask.
“Did you purposefully let the gods manifest?”
Upon hearing this, Raia fell silent.
He slowly lifted his hand to wipe his face before he spoke.
“The elders were causing a ruckus in Balheim.”
So it was true—Raia did intend to kill the elders.
“Ruckus?”
“Kraush, they aimed to make you the head to swallow up Icarus.”
Kraush’s brow furrowed,
Finding the thought of those detestable elders further infuriating when he realized their connection to their mother, Aria.
“I concluded that Icarus shouldn’t be tied to specific groups like Balheim. Furthermore, it would negatively impact Balheim in the future.”
“Is that why you killed the elders?”
“Ultimately, the elders’ votes influenced who becomes head of the family.”
Kraush let out a short sigh after hearing everything.
Though he too shared a reckless disposition, Raia wasn’t that different.
‘Well, I guess it runs in the family.’
Regardless of their differing personalities, they were still brothers who shared the same bloodline.
“More than anything,”
Raia then glanced at Kraush.
“Kraush, you’ve never wanted to be bound to the head’s position.”
Upon hearing this, Kraush blinked in surprise.
He had indeed consistently rejected the role of heir to the Balheim family.
There was a heavy weight to the Balheim title, and he was reluctant to take on more responsibilities.
Plus, he was thoroughly tired of everything related to Balheim.
He couldn’t recall a time in his life when being associated with Balheim had been enjoyable.
Raia was well aware of this.
He’d asked Kraush time and time again about the head position.
After a brief silence, Kraush managed a dry smirk.
Raia had acted to eliminate the elders with his divine manifestation while taking Kraush’s feelings into account, clearly.
“It seems I’ve got myself a pretty decent older brother.”
“You think only I’m decent?”
“Of course, I’m talking about you too.”
As Charlotte casually chimed in, she was equally acknowledged.
At that, she stood on her tiptoes and playfully ruffled Kraush’s hair,
Despite the fact that she always treated him like a child, no matter how old he got.
“Big brother, like I said, I have no intention of becoming the head.”
“Me neither.”
As Kraush spoke up against becoming heir, Charlotte quickly joined in.
“So please take care of the Balheim family head position from now on.”
Upon hearing this, Raia sighed deeply while leaning his head against the ground.
“Being too free-spirited as siblings can be quite problematic.”
Isn’t the eldest brother’s responsibility always burdensome?
Watching Raia accept their claim, Kraush and Charlotte exchanged knowing smiles.
“Charlotte, Kraush, Big Brother Raia!”
In the distance, a voice echoed.
At that, the trio turned to see Lilish rushing over.
All the siblings gathered here.
For a split second, Kraush thought of their second brother, Belorkin,
but he quickly shook off the thought.
Just because they could reverse time didn’t mean everything could be made right.
The Balheim family, referred to as the strongest in the world,
was once embroiled in intense fights, fighting amongst themselves for the headship.
Now, they had changed so much that those comparisons were no longer relevant.
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