“Oh, what the heck is going on? Aaaah…”
On the flagship of the Allied Forces’ 1st Fleet.
Leaning against the control panel in the command room, Jill was blubbering uncontrollably.
Things were going weirdly wrong.
Even though they had detected the movement of a massive demonic energy and immediately deployed to contain it with a barrier.
For some reason, one of their great mages was calmly standing next to that huge source of magic.
And Rex, who had set out to save her, was charging into the fray like a crazy person, despite being heavily injured.
Rex’s gaze was directed toward an empty void.
No, it was…
A void that felt strangely alien.
“What is he seeing…?”
The opponent was invisible, unable to be observed with magic or mana.
From the void, an unknown ‘will’ kept surging out, attacking Rex.
But Rex was dodging it as if he could see it, fitting his movements perfectly.
What could he possibly be seeing?
If he could see something, how on earth was he doing it?
Rex’s line of sight was driving Jill crazy with curiosity.
That’s why Rex couldn’t die.
He had to come back and tell her what he saw and who he fought.
If he died out there, it would all be meaningless.
“Don’t worry. Rex is definitely not weak,” Mia said softly.
“Priestess…”
Mia recited those words with a calm expression.
Not a hint of worry could be found on her face.
Even with a great mage held hostage and a high-ranking warrior of Elvenguard facing imminent death, she seemed strangely unfazed.
“Rex is no longer the same as before.”
Once obsessed with revenge, he had honed his sword with everything on the line.
After pushing his body to the limit, he had quickly become a master of Merida-style swordsmanship.
He had become the strongest force in Elvenguard.
But that strength was all an illusion.
Rex’s might was not truly his own; it was for the sake of revenge.
He could only train for revenge, use it for revenge, and once it was over, it would all fade away into nothingness.
In reality, after losing his target for revenge, Rex had crumpled down.
The power he had built up had nowhere to go.
The 800 years of lifespan he had consumed just evaporated into thin air.
But after that day’s battle…
Rex had definitely changed.
On the surface, he seemed to have lost his purpose and will, looking despondent, but that wasn’t the case.
He quietly and resolutely began to walk the right path again.
Instead of taking the shortcut of burning his lifespan, he started walking the right way.
It looked slow, but it wasn’t.
Rex had discovered that the longest road could sometimes be the fastest route.
At that moment…
Rex’s eyes were filled with a determined will.
It wasn’t a will pointing somewhere else.
It was directed inward, toward his own self.
For himself.
His only purpose was that one thing.
The one will that was the strongest and wouldn’t break until the day he died.
…
“Something is interfering with my perception.”
He had known it for a while.
The strange sense of alienation.
And the unpleasant feeling of being toyed with by someone.
Someone was standing right in front of him now.
He had been wielding a sword made of magic just moments before.
But now he was putting down the sword as if to prove he was not the Great Demon.
“My memory is being altered…”
Even the attack he launched had been erased from his memory.
The process of being attacked had vanished.
All that remained was the injury he received.
It felt like someone was deliberately trying to obscure the opponent in front of him.
“Now I understand. That person is trying to engage me in conversation.”
Amidst the deadly attacks, he could feel ‘will’ contained within.
It wasn’t just an attack aimed to harm him.
If so, the person could have killed him many times over.
Thus, what was contained within those sword strikes was a will other than murderous intent.
He couldn’t yet know what it was precisely.
But it was something he was supposed to discover starting now.
“Will my will reach him?”
Though he couldn’t feel or remember it, he could sense his will being conveyed.
With weapons laid down, how was this possible?
It was clear he had reached a realm beyond his comprehension.
Could he pour his entire will into an attack like that person?
Who knows?
Whether it was possible or not, for now, he would just do his best and clash!
“Merida-style Secrets…!”
The level he had briefly glimpsed by burning up 800 years of his lifespan.
An area he might not reach even with a lifetime of training.
At the very least, he needed to grasp the Secrets to match that person in combat.
What was the Merida-style swordsmanship passed down through generations of the elf race?
It was swordsmanship imbued with the desire of the founders who established Elvenguard to protect this land.
But that beautiful purpose and performance were separate.
Though time had led to many improvements, due to the closed nature of elven society, they couldn’t achieve modifications as superior as those of human swordsmanship.
Therefore, even after a long time, what had been passed down was fundamentally the original, highly offensive swordsmanship.
Considering that human swordsmanship focused on unity of attack and defense, it was somewhat outdated.
“But that doesn’t matter!”
What are secrets?
The ultimate realization of swordsmanship’s direction.
It is the ultimate technique that doesn’t get hindered by any constraints or limits.
In secrets, the inferiority or superiority of swordsmanship doesn’t matter.
The reason and purpose behind honing swordsmanship.
If one delves into that extreme, theoretically, anyone should be able to acquire those secrets.
Of course, that’s only a theoretical statement.
It’s akin to saying that by sufficiently emptying one’s mind and meditating, one can reach enlightenment.
Is it even sensible to only focus on the ‘will’ contained in swordsmanship?
Until now, he had been thoroughly taught technical skills on how to wield a sword and how to defend, so why this sudden talk about the clouds?
Everyone would think that way.
He thought so too.
“Swordsmanship is just a means to share intent.”
But at this moment…
He was finally realizing.
Swordsmanship isn’t important in itself; it’s merely a tool.
Though swordsmanship may differ, the will contained within is the same.
Even if the forms differ, the secrets share a common creed.
So, he understood.
To confirm that person’s true nature, he must be able to use the secrets.
It was the minimum requirement!
The minimum requirement was the secrets!
Only those who were scarce in number across the world could dare to recognize that person.
“…!”
Gugugugug.
Though no shape was visible, parts of the strikes from the opponent began to enter his field of vision.
And then he instinctively understood.
Whether he was hit or dodged, he would lose this memory again.
He couldn’t let that happen.
That person’s will couldn’t just scatter into the void due to his incompetence.
He would undoubtedly fight back!
“…?!”
At that moment, a gigantic web unfolded right before his eyes…
No. No way.
It was the energy of the sword that transcended its limits, slicing through space.
“Damn it! Is that really a sword strike?!”
Staring at the approaching web, he could understand the will embedded within it.
It was the will to hit the target, regardless of distance or the path of the sword.
The pinnacle of strikes.
If so, it was now his turn.
It was time to show his will to that person.
He asked himself once more.
What are my secrets?
“What is the great purpose of Merida-style?”
To protect Elvenguard.
To shield the nation and its people.
He attacks to protect.
He knows that the best defense is in offense.
Yet, this is an absurdity as the unity of attack and defense hasn’t been realized.
“Landgride!”
Thus, the shape of the secrets appeared as a shield.
To protect the line behind him.
To break through the front, and further beyond.
A pure white shield resembling wings unfurled in an instant from his sword’s tip.
The web of sword energy approaching him was blocked by the shield and couldn’t advance any further.
By attacking, he realized defense.
This was the great purpose of transcending the limits of Merida-style and breaking the contradiction.
The secrets.
“Did I block it?!”
Just as he thought he had succeeded…
The pure white will forming the shield began to crack one by one, and fractures appeared.
“Was it insufficient?!”
Even though it was a wide-spread attack, he couldn’t defend against it.
Was his will lacking?
In an instant, the pure white shield shattered into pieces, and just as the sword energy was about to engulf his brow, he felt death looming.
There was no regret.
He had done his best—he just fell short.
Having realized what he could not achieve even after a lifetime of training in Merida-style secrets, he was ready to die…
“What are you thinking with a face that looks like you just took a dump after a month’s wait?”
“Eh…?!”
Just when he thought that…
He was awakened by a voice mocking him.
He should have been pierced by the sword energy and dead.
But when he opened his eyes, the scenery unfolding was a dense jungle.
It looked similar to the old Elvenguard.
What on earth is happening?!
As he jumped up, he felt a presence behind him.
As he quickly turned to look, he found an unexpected face.
“Don’t be too surprised.”
“Yoo Jin?!”
Yoo Jin.
The unlucky guy he thought was dead was casually sitting on a tree, grinning cheekily.
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