Chapter 49: Oh Yeah? Then Bring It On! (6)
“Ugh! Shut up. Are you trying to make me flustered?”
“You’re already plenty flustered. You don’t think you’re still not flustered, do you?”
“Sh, Shut up! Come at me!”
“Indeed. So that’s how it is.”
“What?”
I grinned and lightly loosened my stance. Standing comfortably, I lowered my sword and extended my left hand towards him.
“Don’t you have the courage to come at me first?”
“Ugh……!”
“I’ll stop before it becomes an insult. But isn’t just standing here an insult to those standing behind you?”
I shrugged. The meaning behind that action was clear. It was far too careless an act to take during a duel where honor, more important than life, was at stake.
“You bastard!”
Perhaps greatly reassured by my actions, Pilledvan shouted and charged. Ah, is that not reassurance but frenzy?
I adjusted my stance and focused my gaze on the tip of the spear. And I predicted his attacks by watching the lines drawn by his arms and legs. Even though he was angry, the movements ingrained in his body seemed to be surfacing.
With that……a middle attack? Then, after deflecting it, I should dig in……
It was the moment I moved my feet with that thought. Suddenly, the thought that it was dangerous surged up.
His honestly stepping legs. His gaze clearly showing where he was aiming. His arms and legs drawing the same lines, the spear digging into the center. An honest thrust that couldn’t be more so.
Why? Why does it feel dangerous?
I questioned. And then discarded the thought. There was no need to think twice.
That premonition of danger reminded me of the time I charged on horseback.
This is the premonition of ‘death’.
I twisted my body to the side. To escape the spear’s trajectory, I moved my legs to the side, my body following, and dodged the spear while blocking the front with my sword.
With a terrifying momentum, the spear shot towards that spot.
Shhhhiiiik!
A terrifying wind that shook the air brushed past me. The unrefined attack carried enough power to even bring down Joey. Wh, What is this?!
“Chaaat!”
Pilledvan swung his spear down towards me. A downward swing, a less lethal blow that could attack an enemy who had entered within range. But when it unfolded in Pilledvan’s hands, it became a sufficiently lethal blow.
Kwaaaaaang!
I quickly threw myself forward, charging towards the front of the spear blade. The spear shaft barely grazed the bottom of my front, swirling a terrifying wind. It was like standing at the edge of a cliff, facing the wind falling below.
Th, This is ridiculous! What kind of power is this?!
“Tch!”
I rolled forward, got up, and simultaneously jumped back.
There were only two attacks, but his spear was filled with an enormous power that absolutely could not have come from that body.
This is cheating!
“What’s wrong? Come at me like you were so boldly chattering!”
Pilledvan shouted triumphantly, his morale boosted. He was probably under the illusion that the hidden power within him had been revealed today. I subtly rolled my eyes. This is someone’s doing.
The duel was originally supposed to be overseen by Achuni. To prove that, the priests used dispel magic, and within the Imperial Palace grounds, a powerful barrier is in place to prevent anyone from using magic.
If Pilledvan came out empowered by magic, then that tension was intentional, and that expression was also intentional. But I know him. His mask is still too thin to deceive people.
I glanced around, and for a moment, there was someone who caught my attention.
Artshever.
I didn’t know how or why he did it, but my intuition told me it was him. The only person here whose brief profile I couldn’t even create.
He looked at me and deepened his smile. As if to say, go ahead and try.
Damn it! Was this your doing?
“Huu……”
I took a deep breath. For whatever reason, he seemed to have drastically increased Pilledvan’s strength. Without telling anyone. There was no proof, but it was hard to imagine anyone other than him doing it.
Pilledvan pointed his spear at me. And I closed my eyes tightly once and then opened them. Thinking of him as Joey would solve all the problems.
Levidian, very wisely and very wickedly, had me spar with Joey. The purpose was to learn how to withstand immense power.
The power from just now was the same as Joey’s, or perhaps a little better. Even at that level, there would be no one who could withstand it, but it wasn’t something to be particularly afraid of.
“Here I go!”
Pilledvan, completely triumphant, thrust his spear. An erratic and lethal attack began to pour down, with speed that was understandable but power that was not.
Whoosh! Shhhiik! Pabak!
Thrusting, thrusting, then changing trajectory. A powerful blow that would likely break my arm in the opposite direction if I met it with my sword. I couldn’t even bring myself to meet it with my sword.
Half a step back, to the right, lower my upper body. It’s alright. The spear is withdrawn and thrusts again. Taking a short breath, twisting my legs, to the side!
Paaaak! Kwaang!
The spear struck the stone floor where I had been just moments before, shattering it. Shards flew, showering my left side, which hadn’t quite escaped the range, with fragments.
“Kuuugh!”
Sharp fragments grazed my exposed forearm and face, leaving wounds that felt like sword cuts. Red blood quickly welled up, stickily brushing against my cheek and dripping down.
Thud. Thud.
“This is unbelievable……”
“Such unbelievable power……”
Words of astonishment erupted from among my observers. However, the opposing side was watching as if it were a matter of course. Only Borionen was looking at Pilledvan as if he found it strange.
Indeed. Is it something that only the Salain family knows?
I gritted my teeth and clenched my sword tightly. The floor was terribly shattered, marked as if a giant from myth had struck it.
“Hu, Huhu. Did you see? My power!”
Pilledvan was overjoyed, his morale completely boosted. He was probably under the illusion that the hidden power within him had been revealed today. I glanced slightly to the side at Artshever.
The enemy of Lynin, with his milky white hair and green eyes, was still grinning.
The various wounds on my left arm and face caused a burning sensation in my left side. On top of that, blood was rushing to my head, making me feel like I was going to explode. Right now, I was practically being toyed with by Artshever!
Just as I was about to explode in anger, I suddenly looked at Levidian. The beautiful woman who had taught me so much, even if it seemed like she was just going through the motions, was looking at me with a resolute expression.
Her eyes were saying:
Bearing my honor, as my student, you will win.
Seeing those calm, black eyes filled with trust, the hot blood swirling in my head descended to my chest, and my head cooled down again.
Head cool. Heart hot.
Not the belief that ‘I can win,’ but the belief that ‘I will win.’ That was the trust she was sending me now.
I shifted my gaze slightly to Aila. Her golden eyes, which I always found mystical, were looking at me as if to test me.
That’s not all you’ve got, is it? Show me everything you’ve got.
My mind snapped back to focus.
Right, this isn’t all I have.
Within me are the hellish knight training I endured and the countless experiences of the battlefield, which was literally hell. And there was also the time I fought my way through hundreds of monsters with Joey to reach Levidian.
I released the tension in my hand gripping the sword and relaxed my stiff shoulders. As the unnecessary tension dissipated, I looked at the triumphant Pilledvan with cold reason and hot instinct.
Looking at the sword, and at the ‘enemy’ beyond it, I recited:
“My sword. It dances, playing with space.”
“Ha? What nonsense!”
Pilledvan gripped the spear shaft with both hands and swung it. And unlike before, when I had been dodging, I threw myself into the space where that immense power was about to rampage.
Come on, Pilledvan, show me all the power you have!
The spear spins and thrusts. The dust around it swirls, forming a vortex, a testament to the powerful thrust.
Into that, barely dodging it, I dug in, leaving a gap of just 1 centimeter. And I pressed my sword against the spear and pushed outward with all my might.
Tang!
The spear shaft faltered, its direction shifting due to the unexpected force applied. I had aimed for the moment when the motion was complete. And the moment a motion is complete is when anyone releases their power.
“Haat!”
Puck!
Having struck the spear shaft with all my might, my body turned in that direction. And using that momentum, I delivered a spinning back kick with my left foot towards his chest.
“Kuhk?!”
He staggered back with a gasp, his breath cut short. It was proven that only his strength had been enhanced, and his resilience was at the level a sixteen-year-old boy would have.
Good! When it comes to resilience, I’m superior!
Taking advantage of the gap created as he staggered back, I grabbed the spear shaft and pulled it towards me. Simultaneously, my sword thrust forward, aiming for his chest……!
“으랴아아-!”
Suddenly, the ground beneath my feet disappeared. For a moment, I recalled the scene in Breedpo where Joey threw Levidian with his spear shaft. Because that’s how I was being flung right now.
When I grabbed the spear shaft, Pilledvan had lifted it and thrown me backwards!
“Huuoooh!”
The oppressive feeling of all the air being forced out of my lungs.
The spear shaft, bent to its limit, looked as if it would snap at any moment. But unable to withstand the pressure and elasticity, my hand released the shaft, and I perfectly understood how a stone launched from a catapult must feel.
“Uwaaa-!”
The chilling sensation of my entire body’s weight disappearing, as if gravity had been released. Freed, and thus even more anxious, the slave of gravity plummeted towards the ground in search of its master.
Kooong!
“Kuhk……! Gah……!”
I fell on my back, and unconsciously executed a breakfall, lessening the impact. But the sudden shock paralyzed my entire body, and a few seconds passed where even breathing was difficult.
The aftershocks of the impact were scattering throughout my body, gnawing at me. My head was also spinning, and even though someone lifted me up by my armpits, I only realized I was standing three seconds later. But……who is this……?
“You’re sturdy.”
Suddenly, familiarity, unfamiliarity, and aversion surged up simultaneously. Only one person had ever given me this feeling.
Artshever had helped me up.
He patted my shoulders from behind and whispered:
“It’s a gift. I prepared it for you. I hope you like it. If you’re alright, let’s continue! Come on, come on!”
He deliberately spoke the last part loudly and pushed me from behind. And I had to try very hard not to look back.
The lingering aftershocks of the impact were still coursing through my body, but the fact that the opponent I had suspected had so readily confessed made my head feel like it was going to explode.
You prepared it for me?
Pilledvan was triumphantly gripping his spear shaft and swinging it around. His clumsiness and arrogant expression further fueled my anger.
You prepared it for me, is that it?
I smirked and wiped the blood irregularly flowing down my cheek. The wound on my cheek scraped against the glove, making it feel like it was being sawed by a serrated blade, but it soon turned into a small, throbbing pain.
“So! Let’s continue! I haven’t used all my strength yet!”
Pilledvan shouted with the smug look of a wolf gazing at its prey cornered in a dead end. And I took another deep breath and looked at the ‘thing’ Artshever had prepared for me.
Prepared, you say……? Oh? Then I’ll accept it.
That gift of yours!
“Haaaa……!”
Lowering my sword and bending my upper body forward, I charged towards Pilledvan, my eyes fixed on him. He held his spear upright, then with a complacent expression, he brought it before me.
The spearhead spun in his hand. Its blunt chisel, shaped like a ball, spun round and round.
Then, at some point, it ripped through the air and charged towards me.
Shhhiik!
And at that moment, I thrust my sword upwards with all my might.
Pakaang!
My sword collided precisely with the spearhead, sparks flying. My arm trembled from meeting the immense power imbued in the spear with force, but the spear was thrust upwards. And I squeezed my body through that opening.
“Trying to get past me!”
Wheeing! Kwadddeuk!
“Kugh!”
Failure.
The spear, thrust upwards, plunged down with force, shattering the protector on my right shoulder.
The wooden protector shattered into pieces, and this time, fragments flew towards my right cheek.
“Tch……!”
It burns. It feels like my cheek has been pierced, and even the inside of my mouth is burning.
I created distance and reached out to roughly pull out a few fragments embedded in my face. Damn it. Today’s a day for shedding blood, it seems. I’ve never even donated blood to a mosquito.
“So, how is it? You can’t be my opponent! Why don’t you just surrender!”
Compared to me, he was unharmed. At most, he had only received one spinning back kick to the stomach, but my face was already covered in wounds. I’m certain that without that power, he would be lying on the ground, beaten up by me right now.
It’s not my place to say this, but to be so arrogant with suddenly gained power!
I chuckled and said:
“It’s a shame I can’t turn you into a few drops of ink.”
“Ink……? What’s that?”
I straightened my shoulders and swung my arms. The lingering aftershocks of the impact felt like they were binding me, and the wounds on my face burned as if they were on fire, but I was certain of one thing.
I will not lose. No, I will win.
As the wind blew past my cooled head, it felt much more refreshing. I smiled brightly and said:
“The ink on the list of the dead.”
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