Ch.152300 Years of Essence (2)

As Najin fell off the cliff, he thought.

Fight that thing without using sword aura? So, with just this longsword in my hand? Najin glanced at the Outer Continent golem roaring below.

It looked damn solid.

Obviously, a longsword isn’t a weapon designed to split something hard. Many swordsmen, including Sword Experts, might make you think otherwise as they slice through rocks and steel with sword aura, but longswords were originally made to thrust between armor gaps or cut flesh.

At the very least, it wasn’t a weapon used for splitting rocks.

Of course, with Najin’s transcendent strength and rare metal sword, he might easily split rocks even without sword aura, but the rocks forming this Outer Continent golem were quite different from ordinary rocks.

Rocks that had absorbed starlight and become incredibly hard. In Najin’s opinion, asking him to cut this golem without sword aura was an unreasonable demand. Najin looked toward the Helm Knight.

‘That person could probably do it.’

The Helm Knight’s single strike.

Recalling that strike which split the ground and cleanly cut through rock without using sword aura, Najin thought the Helm Knight could probably cut down this golem without sword aura.

The same went for Charon, Juel Lazian, and Gerd.

They easily blocked Najin’s sword even when he used sword aura. Something Sword Masters could do but he couldn’t. Najin exhaled briefly and adjusted his grip on the sword. Might as well give it a try.

Guooooooooo!

Najin raised his sword toward the golem that was letting out a monstrous roar. Since drawing out sword aura was as natural as breathing for Najin, he swung his sword while consciously trying not to release any aura.

Swish.

The sound of the blade cutting through air. Not as sharp as usual, but sharp enough to take off someone’s head. Unfortunately, what stood before Najin wasn’t a person but a golem made of meteorite.

Clang!

The golem’s outstretched rocky hand collided with Najin’s sword. If he had been using sword aura, he would have smoothly cut through the rock or at least pushed back the golem’s hand with the repulsive force of the aura…

Ting.

But now, neither happened.

Najin’s sword was deflected pathetically. As the golem’s fist approached relentlessly, pushing aside his blade, Najin felt like grabbing the back of his own neck in frustration.

Can I really cut this thing?

Twisting his body to avoid the golem’s fist while simultaneously running up the golem’s arm, Najin readjusted his grip on the sword. Isn’t there a saying that no tree can withstand ten strikes? If one strike didn’t work, he planned to try ten times.

Gripping the sword handle with both hands, Najin struck down on the rock like swinging a pickaxe. He swung his sword while recalling the teachings of miners he often talked with in the underground city. For a while, he performed pickaxe swings so perfect that even miners with decades of experience would applaud.

Ten minutes passed like that.

During those ten minutes, Najin gained one insight: the saying “no tree can withstand ten strikes” only applies when the target is a tree. Rocks that don’t break after ten strikes were surprisingly common. So common that one was right in front of Najin now.

Damn it…

Swallowing the groan that rose to his throat, Najin rubbed his tingling hands. The golem roared and tried to shake Najin off its body, but Najin kept moving around and hammering the golem’s body with his sword.

Another ten minutes passed.

By the time Najin’s pickaxe-like strikes reached triple digits.

“Oh fuck this.”

Najin threw down his sword.

2.

Fortunately, Najin’s sword was made of rare metal, and hammering rocks wouldn’t damage its edge. It wasn’t classified as the Order’s finest sword for nothing. A masterpiece worthy of being personally bestowed by the Star of Sword, the head of the Order…

Of course, Najin found it quite disappointing that even such a fine sword couldn’t cut through starlight-infused rock, but this was something even the Order of the Sword would find unfair. Who tries to break rocks with a sword without using sword aura?

“Tsk.”

Najin clicked his tongue.

Still moving around on the golem’s body, Najin tried swinging his sword in various ways. Striking down like a pickaxe, hammering like a mallet.

Did he gain any insights from this? Not really, but it wasn’t entirely meaningless either. After hammering at the rock for about an hour, he started to get a feel for it.

Crack!

As he brought down his sword, the rock split. Though it was just a tiny crack compared to the golem’s size, the fact that the sword tip had penetrated the rock made the strike significant. Najin reflected on that strike and continued swinging his sword diligently.

‘This seems more helpful than I expected.’

-Really? Looks pretty useless to me…

Giving a sidelong glance at Merlin who was yawning indifferently, Najin thought to himself. What would a magician know? Of course, Merlin heard that thought and let out a squawk. Using that sound as his work song, Najin continued swinging his sword.

Swinging his sword without aura, Najin realized how much he had been relying on sword aura.

Sword aura is excessively convenient. Even the sword aura produced by a Sword Expert-level warrior has cutting power that surpasses masterpiece swords that blacksmiths call their life’s work, and the sword aura of a Sword Seeker is beyond explanation.

Cutting power that easily slices through steel without much effort, heat that can melt rocks, repulsive force that can blow away giant beasts or break bones with shock…

And if mental imagery is added to it… sword aura becomes literally close to omnipotent. Having handled such sword aura as naturally as breathing, Najin had become heavily dependent on it.

‘Every movement is optimized for when I’m using sword aura.’

The way he applied force, the angle of his swings, the trajectory of the blade—everything was optimized for when he was using sword aura. Najin began to correct these movements one by one.

Ten minutes, then another ten.

The ten-minute intervals repeated until more than an hour had passed. The golem’s body was covered with small scratches, and its movements had noticeably slowed from exhaustion.

Najin was different.

Despite swinging his sword without rest, he showed no signs of fatigue—rather, he was moving even faster. Standing on the golem’s shoulder, Najin raised his sword high. Taking a breath, he brought the sword down at the moment his breathing aligned.

Like when he first learned swordsmanship, Najin concentrated on every minute detail of his body and each movement. The sound of the sword cutting through the air reached his ears.

The fundamental movement of Imperial swordsmanship.

The movement the Helm Knight had demonstrated.

When he brought down the sword, crack! A sound similar to when the Helm Knight swung his sword was heard. The result was also similar. Najin’s sword didn’t get stuck in the rock but cut through it, severing the golem’s arm which fell to the ground.

Thud, boom!

The falling rock made a loud noise. The Helm Knight, who had been watching, said:

“That’s it.”

The Helm Knight, who had come down at some point, looked at Najin and said:

“Sword aura is convenient, but once you get used to it, it hinders growth. What is a Sword Master? It refers to those who have perfectly mastered the weapon called the sword. What good is it if you can only draw out sword aura well? Then you’d be an Aura Master, not a Sword Master.”

He shrugged and continued:

“Don’t rely on sword aura. Don’t swing sword aura, swing the sword. Remember how to use the weapon called a sword.”

The Helm Knight swung a blunt sword.

Najin watched. Earlier, he couldn’t understand how that movement produced such results, but now he felt he could somewhat grasp it.

“Don’t waver. Be confident. A Sword Master refers to someone who can split anything with a single sword. If you dream of becoming a Sword Master, shouldn’t you be able to split rocks even without sword aura?”

A swing so simple.

Yet, that single swing contained the essence of the sword as a weapon. The Helm Knight’s sword precisely found the gap. It created a gap in the seemingly gapless body of the golem.

Like water flowing through a narrow stream, like light seeping through a small hole, the Helm Knight’s sword tip wedged into and penetrated the gap.

Crack.

The Helm Knight’s sword tip cut off the golem’s leg. The cut surface was clean. Almost unbelievably so for not using sword aura. Pointing at the staggering golem, the Helm Knight smiled.

“Try it.”

He wasn’t one to speak at length when teaching something. He believed showing once, letting someone experience it once, was faster.

“This time with sword aura.”

Najin did as instructed.

He raised his sword.

Concentrating on each movement, sweat beaded on Najin’s forehead. Focusing on precision made all his movements excessively slow. It was a technique that could never be used against a moving opponent in actual combat.

Sword aura shone from the tip of the sword.

Though he used sword aura, Najin swung the sword as if he wasn’t using it. The sword raised high fell like a guillotine toward the golem’s head.

Then, crack.

A single line was drawn from the golem’s head to its feet. The golem split along that line. Even Najin, who had swung the sword, widened his eyes. He hadn’t imagined it would be so easy to cut through.

“That’s exactly it.”

The Helm Knight said.

“Remember that sensation. Right now, you need to focus on each movement and be conscious of them to make such a strike, albeit slowly…”

He pointed to himself.

“Being able to do that as naturally as breathing is what makes a Sword Master. If you want to become a Sword Master, you should be able to do at least that much, right? How about it? Does it feel like you’re learning swordsmanship now?”

“Yes, at first I wondered what you were talking about… but this method is actually helpful?”

“Right?” The Helm Knight grinned mischievously.

“Then today, let’s have you cut exactly ten golems. Without using sword aura, of course.”

The Helm Knight enthusiastically blew a horn he produced from somewhere. Then he promptly fled to the top of the cliff. Najin soon understood why he had run away.

Thud, boom!

Golems were gathering from afar, drawn by the sound of the horn. There seemed to be well over ten of them. Looking at the golems, Najin laughed incredulously.

“Fine then. Let’s give it a try.”

Najin readjusted his grip on the sword.

3.

After swinging his sword until his hands were numb beyond feeling, Najin collapsed on the ground. Though he hadn’t kept exact time, it felt like he had been swinging his sword non-stop all day.

“I’ll take the night watch.”

Showing consideration for Najin this time, the Helm Knight volunteered for night watch.

“Rest well. From tomorrow, I’ll start teaching you my swordsmanship in earnest.”

“Weren’t you reluctant to teach swordsmanship?”

“Was I?”

“But now you seem to be enjoying it.”

“Do I?”

“Yes.”

The Helm Knight chuckled.

“Maybe it’s because you learn everything quickly, and find answers with just a few hints, making teaching enjoyable.”

“I’ve always been a quick learner.”

“Actually, it’s closer to stealing than learning. With those abnormal eyes of yours.”

He pointed to Najin’s eyes.

“When you first fought me, and when you fought that Krinbel fellow, your eyes didn’t miss a single movement. You didn’t just see… you instantly understood and made it your own, didn’t you? That’s why your sword shows the skill of someone who has wielded a sword for decades.”

He was right. As Najin remained silent, the Helm Knight touched the sword hilt tied at his waist and said:

“Go ahead and steal as much as you can. Take as much as you can. I’ll show you everything I can.”

“That sounds good.”

“Get some sleep. Tomorrow will be even harder.”

Najin closed his eyes, leaning against a rock.

For Najin, who could sleep well even in trash-filled alleys, falling asleep was quick. However, despite the Helm Knight’s consideration in taking the night watch, Najin woke up after just a few hours.

“…”

Rising, Najin reflexively touched his neck. His expression had hardened. His heart was pounding loudly.

“What is it? Had a nightmare?”

“Something like that.”

“What did you dream about?”

“A dream where my head was cut off.”

Najin said, touching his neck.

Just like when he experienced the memories of Shurain, the captain of the Sacred Knights, this time he had experienced the memories of Krinbel, the Knight of Silence.

And the content of that experience was so intense that it was enough to make Najin’s heart race violently.

In the dream, Najin’s head was cut off 317 times.

By a woman known as the Empress of Bliss.