Chapter: 584
Following Lucy Alrn, Arthur arrived at the Partran Duke’s residence.
Despite the war being decisively over, the Partran mages remained steadfast in their posts.
Arthur surveyed those glowing with anticipation as if readying for yet another battle and wondered,
What on earth are they all up to? What sort of situation has them gazing into the forest with such eager eyes?
– Indeed. The Queen of Spirits must be planning something interesting.
‘Could you explain that in a way I can understand?’
– Speak politely, and I’ll gladly enlighten you.
With that, Arthur brushed off the commentary as he stepped forward.
“Here we are. You can smell the loser vibes from afar, can’t you?”
As he arrived at the tent, dread crawled up his spine, holding his legs in a tight grip.
A voice filled with resentment echoed in his ears. Even knowing no one was glaring at him, he felt the scornful stares brush against his skin. It was mixed with the falling rain, whispers of how dying together would’ve been preferable. And then,
“Gah?!”
Clutching his stomach from a blow aimed straight at his solar plexus, Arthur staggered back, furrowing his brow and lifting his chin in defiance.
He thought he’d hear another jab from Lucy Alrn, but she had already turned her back, walking toward the tent.
“Have you arrived? I’ve been waiting…”
“You pathetic loser! Coming to flaunt your newfound strength like that is simply sad♡ Were you wanting to show off?♡”
“What are you suddenly talking about?”
“Puhuhuhu♡ What will you do when I finally strip your dignity away?♡ Can you give me a heads-up so we can eagerly point out just how pathetic you really are?♡”
Caught off guard by Lucy’s abrupt insults, Erginius discovered Arthur peeking in from beyond the entrance and chuckled.
“Oh dear, my apologies. It wasn’t intentional. Just got a bit carried away.”
As Erginius bowed his head to do something, the ominous presence that had been creeping over Arthur vanished. Releasing a sigh of relief, he wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
– It’s the power of darkness. Having faced it once before, it has easily invaded your body.
‘Are you referring to last night’s nightmare?’
– Just enduring it is already impressive. An ordinary human would’ve gone mad by now. Perhaps it’s due to the few blessings you’ve received…
Although the words spoken by the fragment of Soladin, one of the figures from the mythological era, carried weight, Arthur found it hard to simply accept the praise.
If that’s the case, what about Lucy Alrn in front of him? That brat, standing boldly in front of the Evil God, how is she unaffected?
Is it because she’s an apostle of the divine? No. It’s the other way around. She must have been chosen as an apostle by the gods because she can stand proudly before Erginius, who has attained divinity.
“Prince of Soladin, I have wronged you. Please forgive me.”
Erginius, now before Arthur, bowed again.
“No… it’s okay. Thanks to Lucy Alrn’s quick thinking, there are no issues.”
“Thank you for your forgiveness.”
Darkness swirled around Erginius. Starting as a human and now elevating to the status of a god—this was a story worthy of myth.
Now that he considered it, the great mage before him was also a figure straight out of mythology.
“The reason I summoned you here relates to the fragment that follows you.”
“I’ve heard about that. What significance could something that only prattles on hold for this thing?”
“There are many meanings you don’t know at the moment, but additionally, I wish to add another meaning as a reward for this endeavor.”
As Erginius reached out, the fragment attempted to flee, sensing something amiss, but no matter how much it struggled, its body remained suspended in midair.
“Do you know about spirit magic, Your Highness?”
“I’ve seen it in fairy tales, but why ask that?”
“I intend to enable this fragment to perform similar feats. Also, I’ll fix some outdated aspects along the way.”
– Wait a moment. Lord Erginius, this individual has not officially passed the trials. Giving it excessive authority is…
“Enough with the chatter.”
After finishing his task, Erginius took the fragment away, leaving Arthur pondering if he should’ve asked for it to be made more polite.
*
Rebuffed by Lucy’s sparring challenge, Frey stealthily infiltrated the Fairy Forest to meet the Sword Saint, dodging prying eyes.
In reality, he had no idea if the Sword Saint was even there, and even if she was, he had no way to find her, nor did he know the woods’ pathways. But Frey didn’t dwell on such things.
After all, she wasn’t the type to think before acting.
Fortunately, the fairies of the woods remembered Frey, who had wielded a sword for them just the day before.
– Sword Saint?
– That scary woman?
– I know! She’s inside!
– Follow me!
The fairies loved playing pranks but weren’t ungrateful, so they gladly honored Frey’s request.
“How did you get in here?” one of the fairies asked.
“Easily.”
Upon their reunion, the Sword Saint was swinging her sword in an open area. Something must have ticked her off, for her strikes were fiercer than usual.
Frey noticed this intensity as she held her sword up.
“So, why did you come?”
“How do you perform that ‘swoosh!’ thing?”
“Swoosh? Ah, are you talking about the sword that cleaves darkness?”
Most people, including Frey’s friends and even her father, would have been confused by her question, but the Sword Saint Uden understood immediately.
Perhaps because their sword skills were similar, or maybe because their levels were comparable, Frey was thrilled that her words resonated.
“That was amazing! I want to do it too.”
“You can’t just ask to do it. To put it simply, that act is about casting magic through your sword.”
What might seem simple when done effortlessly belied its complexity, and Uden rambled on, while Frey tuned out.
Casting magic with a sword—that’s some powerful-sounding stuff!
Hmm, right. That’s definitely the kind of magic burly Joy and pathetic Prince use. Just waving magic around, right?
But with a sword?
Frey tilted her head, attempting to trace the grandest magic circle she could remember with her sword, yet she achieved nothing.
“It’s not working?”
“Of course not. When I say magic, that’s a metaphor. Metaphor—do you not know what that means?”
“I know. You’re saying the Sword Saint is like an auntie.”
“That’s not a metaphor!”
“Is it not? Hmm, then what is metaphor?”
Uden facepalmed at Frey’s innocent curiosity.
In some ways, this brat was worse than Lady Alrn. She poked and prodded without malice, making it hard to be genuinely angry. Damn it.
“You’re too dumb for a complicated explanation, so I’ll put it simply.”
“Okay! I’m a fool! Explain it to me!”
“…Haaa.”
Having realized during their previous encounter that debating with her was futile, Uden decided to simplify it and move on, trusting Frey would eventually grasp the concept.
“Watch closely. When you swing your sword and say swoosh, you cleave through the air.”
As Uden casually sliced her sword, the air parted with a sharp sound that resonated in the open space.
“Focus on narrowing the range as much as possible.”
“Narrow? Why? Your ‘swoosh!’ seems to cover a massive area!”
“I’m not sure. When I did it for that guy Luca once, I think he mentioned something like ‘focused will comes into contact with manifestation.’ Anyway, narrow it down. That’s how I did it.”
Narrow it down. As Frey mulled over Uden’s words, a furrow appeared on her brow, but she eventually nodded.
Hmm, maybe something like this? Swoosh. Frey’s sword cut through the air with a loud, fierce sound.
To the naked eye, it looked no different from any other swing, but for Uden, it was a completely different story. You really think you got the hang of it with such an explanation?
“I think I can do even better.”
Swoosh!
Swish.
Frey swung her sword repeatedly, each time the sound diminishing.
The cry of the air being cleaved grew fainter.
While Uden admired the scene, she suddenly panicked when the sound completely vanished.
What’s that reckless brat doing? If she swings it towards the forest, it’ll turn into chaos!
Silence clashed with silence. The wills of more silence Alpha and Beta sparred for dominance. The desire to cut what lay before her shouted to the heavens.
Though the sword had not touched anything, the struggle faded like a feeble sound into the world.
“Ugh. That’s not right. Something’s off.”
“Hey! Use it carefully! We’re almost in a state of catastrophe here!”
“It didn’t get cut, did it?!”
“That’s not the point! Aaaaargh! Seriously!”
“Don’t be mad, Sword Saint! Otherwise, you’ll get wrinkles!”
“Who do you think is causing this mess?”
Ignoring Uden’s full-blown tantrum, Frey tried to swing her sword back up at the sky when a blue spear manifested in front of her.
[The God of Martial Arts is watching you.]
To everyone else, this spear was something all warriors desire to possess, but not to Frey. She swatted the blue spear away as if swatting a fly.
[The God of Martial Arts…]
“Get lost.”
[Martial Arts…]
“Just, no thanks.”
[No…]
“Leave me be.”
*
[May the God of Martial Arts meet your friend.]
…Huh? My friend? Why say that to me? Just go talk to that guy instead.
If the God of Martial Arts is trying to reach out to someone, he’s probably hoping for some friendly vibes…
Ah, but not Frey. That guy wouldn’t even read the message.
I usually wouldn’t help without some payback, but I owe the God of Martial Arts a favor.
So, I’ll make an exception this time.
Next time, please make your request with a reward in mind. Otherwise, I’m sending it back.
“Pathetic Prince, do you know what this fool of a Sword Saint is up to?”
“Dunno. I haven’t seen that guy today.”
“Ugh, useless.”
“What do you want me to do if I haven’t seen him?”
As Arthur listened, crossing his arms, he turned his gaze toward the fairies, hoping for an answer.
– He’s in the forest!
– The others showed him the way!
– He’s with a scary woman!
With that vague hint, he tilted his head. The scary woman must be the Sword Saint!
Good. Let’s head back deeper into the forest. It’s not every day you get a chance to earn the favor of a god!
Having regained some energy, Arthur perked up and froze, spotting someone walking toward him in the distance.
Oh? Why is the busy 1st Prince here?
Is he here because of spirit magic?
Then I’ll just act natural and slip away quietly.
[He seems to be coming in your direction.]
‘Why is the 1st Prince coming toward me?! He hates me!’
[How would I know?/]
Hearing the warnings from his grandfather, Arthur turned, only to see the approaching 1st Prince and his escorts.
What?! Is this really happening? Why is that guy heading over here?
Is he here for revenge for what happened in the dungeon city?!
Tch! Whatever! Bring it on! If I get hurt, my friends won’t just stay quiet!
Feigning confidence, I faced the halted 1st Prince, feeling a cold sweat trickle down my back.
“Brother. What brings you here?”
“I have business to attend to. Younger brother.”
“Does it involve Lucy Alrn?”
“Indeed.”
What?! What’s going on? Hurry up and tell me! Don’t tease me with suspense!
“It’s been a while, Lady Alrn. Your beauty, said to manifest the goddess, grows ever more radiant.”
…
Is this guy under some weird curse or something?
Cleanse him!
“It’s nice that the pure deity is warm, but what’s all this for?”
Isn’t this a curse?!
Why?!
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