Here is the swordsmanship training ground inside the academy.
The thud of wooden swords colliding echoed all around.
Iria, the top student of the first year, had crossed swords with Ariel, the top student of the second year and the academy’s strongest.
The matchup between the two drew the attention of those nearby.
No need to mention Ariel, but Iria had recently defeated Sera, causing her evaluation to skyrocket.
In truth, everyone had an inkling of the outcome, yet somehow thought, “What if Iria could do it?” After all, Iria, who defeated Sera, the second-year runner-up, might just hold a candle to Ariel.
Thus, many were watching intently. It had been a while since all the academy students had witnessed one of Ariel’s duels after he had swept everyone aside.
No one dared challenge him with a sword. Regardless of who won, it was sure to be an entertaining spectacle.
If Ariel lost, the title of the academy’s strongest would change hands, and if Iria lost, her previously flawless record would finally have a blemish.
One way or another, the atmosphere was thick with anticipation.
–Taan!!
The thud of impact reverberated.
Their sword strikes were similarly matched in strength and weight.
Iria gripped her wooden sword with both hands, assessing Ariel. Their swordsmanship overlapped in an unusual way.
Both wielded swords that derived from the same master.
‘So, he truly is a Sword Saint’s student.’
Freya, the Sword Saint who taught Ariel, was the creator of the Imperial Sword Style.
She had improved her swordsmanship for others to use easily, spreading it among many in the Empire.
That’s why there were overlapping elements. Iria had never formally learned swordsmanship and borrowed elements from others.
And the style she used most often was also the Imperial Sword Style, as it was both practical and powerful.
But it was still different.
Though the sword styles were the same, what each conveyed was distinct.
Iria poured her physical prowess into the weight of her strikes. Some might criticize her heavy-handed style as being unrefined, but that was just nonsense.
In a world governed by the logic of strength, whatever is strong is deemed right.
Thus, Iria’s swordsmanship was straightforward yet robust. Her sword’s trajectory was startlingly honest, lacking any technical flair.
But it was heavy. Each strike was as overwhelming as a mountain, rendering everything her opponent had powerless.
A strike that could not be blocked even when anticipated. That’s why Iria, wielding her sword, was terrifying.
On the other hand, Ariel was the type to gracefully deflect incoming strikes using speed and technique.
He calmly swayed away from Iria’s heavy strikes. After that came his counterattack.
His sword swung in a maneuver derived from the sixth technique of the Imperial Sword Style, where the trajectory bends mid-swing.
“……”
Iria leaned back to evade.
After exchanging several sword strikes, her assessment of Ariel’s strength was as follows.
Technically, he was superior to her, but slow. To the average student, he might appear quick, but not comparably so to Iria.
Also, he lacked weight. There was a deficiency in decisive power needed to tip the scales in a crucial moment. While he might seem outstanding to regular students, he still fell short of Iria’s expectations.
The first thing she felt was confusion. Up to that point, she could not fathom him being the strongest in the academy.
In fact, she felt Sera was superior. How many times had she been surprised during their duels? Compared to that, Ariel was utterly disappointing.
“Did I misjudge him?”
Iria tilted her head.
It was only after observing a bit more closely that she identified the source of her unease.
Previously, Lucia, with whom she exchanged wooden sword strikes, had infused her sword with mana, showcasing explosive power in an instant. Though Sera lacked swordsmanship, her ability to apply mana in pressure tactics was remarkable.
However, Ariel lacked that element. In contrast to those she faced earlier, there was no trace of mana in Ariel.
It wasn’t that he wasn’t using it; rather, the very essence of mana was simply absent from his body.
He was hiding something. This piqued Iria’s curiosity.
“Should I provoke him a little?”
Intrigued, Iria changed her grip on her sword. She infused the basic sword techniques borrowed from others with her overwhelming physical abilities.
–Taan, the sound of her foot striking the ground marked her disappearance.
She leaped with such speed that not even an afterimage remained. Iria unleashed a relentless barrage of strikes toward Ariel.
She kept swinging, curious how long he could withstand it at a speed invisible to the average eye.
Yet, when Iria picked up her pace, Ariel did not falter. He accelerated as he deflected her strikes and began to match Iria’s rapid speed.
Something felt off. Ariel reacted precisely after visually processing Iria’s strikes.
This was beyond human reflexes. Unless he were like Sera or Albert, enhanced by mana, Ariel was responding without any such aid.
Was that truly possible?
To cut to the chase, no. This was the realm that didn’t belong to the human race. Iria was not human, so it was feasible for her, but Ariel was.
If that was the case, he was likely using some sort of trick to elevate his speed.
What that was would become apparent the more she pressed him.
Iria cranked up the speed even more. Now, aside from a few elites, her movements became imperceptible.
When her speed reached the point where even Ariel struggled to respond, she powered off the ground with her mighty strength, momentarily catching Ariel off guard.
“Ugh?!”
A moment of panic flickered on his face as Iria swung her sword to finish him off.
And then, just before Iria’s strike made contact, a brilliant white-gold aura erupted from Ariel’s body.
*
The records of the legendary hero, Elion, can be easily found in the academy’s library.
He was undoubtedly human, but was born without the rare ability to handle mana. More accurately put, instead of mana, another substance occupied the space where mana should be.
Something beyond mana.
The white-gold light surrounding the holy sword was referred to as the hero’s starlight.
Now, at this moment, Ariel was recreating the starlight of the forgotten hero as Elion faded from people’s memories.
The burst of white-gold starlight stopped Iria’s strike. It was sturdier than a mana-based barrier. After that, the starlight turned its magic against her.
Though Iria was startled, Ariel seemed even more taken aback.
He quickly set down his wooden sword and approached Iria, who had also dropped hers onto the ground.
“Sorry! Are you okay?!”
“……”
Iria sat down, furrowing her brow.
The starlight had scorched her arm severely. Unlike usual, even healing felt burdensome. Just a slight touch, and the starlight was eating away at her body.
What Ariel had hidden hurt more than she had anticipated. The hero’s starlight didn’t harm humans, but when it touched a monster, it caused a purification reaction.
Ariel approached, examining Iria’s condition right away. Though she hadn’t been struck directly, the burn on her arm was severe.
He reached out to help Iria, but she didn’t take his hand.
“……Don’t touch me.”
Iria glared at him with fierce eyes. Feeling a momentary threat to his life, he had no choice but to back off.
Iria turned on her heel and left the swordsmanship training ground. A flurry of commotion filled the area.
Even after she left, Ariel couldn’t lift his head for a while. He seemed to think everything was his fault.
At the back, Sera, who had been watching everything with her arms crossed, spoke up in a quiet voice.
“You really went too far this time, Ariel.”
“……I’m sorry.”
“You don’t need to apologize to me. Want me to set up another opportunity next time?”
“Please do.”
This incident wasn’t Ariel’s fault.
He still hadn’t mastered the hero’s starlight. He was in an unstable state where he could lose control at any moment.
That’s why he hesitated to use it. He hadn’t intended to reveal the starlight during his duel with Iria.
Yet, the starlight was somewhat different from mana. Regardless of his will, if his owner was deemed endangered, it autonomously entered a defensive mode.
Up to this point, there were no issues. The hero’s starlight did not impact the human body.
But for Iria, it was deadly.
Whatever the outcome, there was no rationale for him to feel responsible.
Ariel still didn’t fully understand his own strength. He seemed to consider any simple act of self-defense as an overload reaction due to his control mishaps.
Unintentionally, this incident gave Ariel a reason to seek out Iria.
