Ch.174About the First Horn (2)

The Empire’s Sword Master, Gerd.

This old man, who had served the Empire loyally for nearly 200 years, was less of an official and more of a knight, or rather, closer to a soldier. He was someone who prioritized rules and perfectly controlled his emotions and actions.

No one had ever seen Gerd waver. Even when his own daughter, son, and relatives joined the rebels, and even when he executed them with his own hands, Gerd did not falter.

He simply swung his sword expressionlessly.

That was the kind of man Gerd was.

If the Lighthouse Keeper of the Order stood immovable, then Gerd was unyielding. Never wavering, never faltering, he had maintained his position for a long time. That’s how it had been in the past, and he thought that’s how it would be in the future.

But not at this moment. A scene capable of shaking his entire life unfolded before Gerd’s eyes.

Gerd’s eyes trembled. His lips opened and closed repeatedly. The Empire’s Best Swordsman, the unshakable pillar of the Empire, was wavering. The old man, who had been staring at a single sword mark engraved on the ground, raised his gaze to look at Najin.

“This, this……”

Words leaked out without forming proper sentences. The Empire’s Best Swordsman who always spoke with firm conviction was not present here. Only an old swordsman who had witnessed a scene he had longed for over many years stood there.

“How did you, how?”

It didn’t take long for Gerd’s anger and suspicion when Najin mentioned “Alderan” to transform into astonishment. No complicated proof was needed, nor lengthy explanations.

Both Gerd and Najin were swordsmen.

A swordsman proves himself through his sword.

Najin demonstrated the Triumphant Sword, proving he had the qualification to discuss the First Sword Master. Only then did Najin speak.

“I served a helmeted knight from the Outer Continent. He introduced himself as the former Empire’s Best Swordsman, Alderan Basaglia, and……”

Najin unfastened the spear on his back and thrust it into the ground. The flag of the Golden Horned Knights was tied to the shaft.

“He said he was the captain of the Golden Horned Knights. I am his seed and disciple. He taught me the Triumphant Sword.”

This spear, this flag, and the Triumphant Sword I showed you are the proof. The expression on Gerd’s face at that moment was indescribable.

After a moment that seemed brief to Najin but felt like half a day to the Sword Master, Gerd finally managed to speak.

“He… was alive? And you’re saying he passed his sword technique to you?”

“Yes.”

“Unbelievable. His star fell long ago. Even memories and records of him were completely erased. No constellation could maintain itself under such conditions. Even if he were alive, he would have been a dead man.”

Gerd tried to make a rational judgment.

Rationally speaking, what he was saying was correct. No human, no constellation could survive under such conditions. That was the conclusion Gerd had reached long ago.

But the evidence contradicting that conclusion was right before his eyes.

A young man who possessed uncorrupted, complete information about Alderan Basaglia. This young man was proof that Gerd’s conclusion was wrong.

“But then, it doesn’t make sense that you have memories of him and can perform the Triumphant Sword. How on earth……”

How on earth?

To Gerd’s question, Najin answered briefly.

“He wasn’t a dead man.”

Najin smiled bitterly.

“Until the end, he remained a knight.”

Let me tell you.

About what kind of end he met.

2.

Najin, sitting on a rock, lit a spark with a snap. A small campfire formed on the prairie. Across the fire, Najin told Gerd his story.

How he met the Helm Knight.

What conversations they had.

What he learned and experienced from him.

As the story continued, Gerd’s gaze lowered. However, this didn’t mean he wasn’t moved. At Najin’s story, Gerd sometimes laughed, sometimes was surprised, and sometimes remained silent.

“He.”

“Yes.”

“He was surprised to hear that I had seven stars? Saying, ‘So that brat became that?'”

“Yes, that’s right. He seemed pleased.”

And he seemed proud too.

When he heard those words, Gerd silently raised his hand to cover his face. Stroking his face, he murmured, “Is that so.”

Until now, Gerd had thought Alderan was dead.

He had despaired, believing that his master and benefactor who had departed for the Outer Continent had met his death, and that death had no honor or pride.

‘No one remembered him.’

No one remembered him.

Though he was a great hero of the Empire, there were even those who dared to suspect him of being a traitor. While the world knew Gerd as the hero of the Dawn War, he knew this was incorrect.

The hero of the Dawn War was Alderan Basaglia.

He had merely cleaned up the remnants.

Burdened by the guilt of stealing his master’s achievements and bound by the promise his master had left, Gerd had lived for 150 years. He had spent a long time with the existence of the Empire’s hero, whom no one remembered, engraved in his heart.

He could no longer find his master’s star in the sky, nor could he find any record of him anywhere.

He had been the captain of some knightly order, but Gerd couldn’t remember which one. All he remembered was that Alderan Basaglia was a hero. And that he wielded the Triumphant Sword.

That’s why Gerd had dedicated his life to the Triumphant Sword. Because he believed that beautiful sword technique should not be forgotten.

“I’ll show you just once, brat.”

“Watch carefully.”

“This is the form of the Triumphant Sword.”

To imitate the form of the Triumphant Sword he had seen in his youth, to recreate it in his own way, Gerd had willingly thrown away his life. He had lived like this for 150 years.

“Najin.”

After 150 years, a young man now sat before Gerd.

“Najin, I ask of you.”

Gerd made a request to him.

“Would you watch the sword I’m about to wield? And please tell me frankly. Whether my sword is correct. Whether it resembles his sword.”

A Sword Master asking a Sword Seeker for guidance. Yet Gerd felt no shame in this. Rather, he welcomed the situation. Because he could finally compare his answer to the correct one.

Gerd swung his sword.

After a series of movements, he performed the form of the Triumphant Sword. Gerd’s sword swept over the single sword mark Najin had drawn on the ground.

The First Sword Master, Triumphant.

With a slashing sound, the prairie split. After swinging his sword, Gerd looked at Najin. It was a gaze demanding an answer. But Najin, receiving that gaze, only smiled silently. The meaning of that smile was simple.

‘You already know without me having to tell you.’

Gerd looked at the sword mark he had left. The single sword mark he had engraved on the prairie matched the one Najin had left. Exactly, without the slightest deviation.

“Ah.”

The old man who had dedicated 150 years to recreate a form he had seen once in his youth finally realized. That his 150 years had not been meaningless. After 150 years, he could finally compare the answer to his solution, and thus realized he had not been wrong. The old man smiled.

“How is it, brat?”

“Isn’t it amazing?”

Recalling his master who had smiled at him, Gerd laughed. He laughed out loud. He couldn’t even remember when he had last laughed so heartily.

‘You give me the answer only after 150 years.’

By realizing his sword was not wrong, he realized he had achieved greatness long ago. Realization leads to conviction, to self-confidence.

“…Ah.”

Najin unconsciously looked up at the sky.

Next to the seven stars hanging above the tower of the Empire’s Best Swordsman, a new star was rising.

The eighth star.

Gerd’s new star was shining in the sky.

3.

“I owe you a great debt. Truly, a debt too great to repay.”

“It was a realization you gained yourself, wasn’t it?”

Gerd shook his head.

“I thank you. For giving me enlightenment, for giving him an honorable duel, for ensuring the Triumphant Sword was not forgotten but passed on, for all that you have accomplished.”

He gave Najin a sword salute.

The First Pillar of the Empire, who would not bow his head even before the Emperor, willingly lowered his head to show respect to Najin.

“Although… he may not have found peace, I dare to presume that he was satisfied with his end.”

After showing his respect.

Gerd gritted his teeth.

“So what remains is the disciples’ duty.”

Gerd had heard from Najin.

Who was the culprit who had made his master that way, and who had disturbed his master’s peace.

“Until now, I’ve suspected that what made him forgotten was a constellation wielding the power of oblivion and incineration. I’ve investigated that constellation for a long time but couldn’t find anything. Because it was a star that erased even records about itself.”

A constellation wielding the power of oblivion and incineration.

The only remaining records about that constellation were related to ‘Rondinell’. Neither its constellation, sacred realm, nor true form could be known.

“I had anger, and the will to wield my sword in anger, but I didn’t know where to direct it.”

It’s difficult to express anger towards the unknown. Gerd’s anger had remained deep within him for many years, unable to find an outlet.

“But not anymore.”

The stagnant flames overflowed.

The old man’s eyes were no longer dry. They contained raging flames.

“Empress of Bliss.”

Gerd spat out the name.

The raging flames in his eyes burned fiercely, as if they would consume Gerd and move his body at any moment, but Gerd was not consumed by anger.

Having reigned at the pinnacle of the Empire for many years, Gerd is skilled in politics. He is experienced, cunning, and thorough. He knew that what was needed for revenge was not hot anger but cold reason.

“You came to me to request help in subjugating the Empress of Bliss. Is my guess correct?”

“Yes, it is.”

“And depending on my response, you were going to use the right you possess.”

“I was planning to, but there’s no need for that now.”

“Of course. This is a duty I must uphold even without being forced by someone. I swear by my position as the Empire’s Best Swordsman and by my name.”

The Empire’s Best Swordsman declared.

“From today, you are under the protection of the Empire. By Empire, I mean the Empire’s Best Swordsman, myself.”

The Empire’s Best Swordsman is the Empire.

A declaration that might seem arrogant, considering himself to be the Empire, but no one would dare call Gerd arrogant. In reality, the power and weight that Gerd, a single human, possessed was comparable to the entire Empire.

“As long as your sword points towards the Empress of Bliss, I will spare no support for you. Even if you make choices that harm the Empire, if it’s to kill the Empress of Bliss, I will cooperate with you.”

Gerd, who had dedicated everything to the Empire, said he would cooperate even if it meant making choices against the Empire. Najin was not foolish enough to not understand the weight of that declaration.

“I don’t care what you’re hiding or what you possess. The First Pillar of the Empire does not forget favors. Does not forget promises. Remember. The tower of the Empire’s Best Swordsman is always open to you.”

That’s enough for this conversation.

Saying so, Gerd exhaled briefly.

“Now, we should discuss how to kill the Empress of Bliss. Gathering information would be the priority.”

“I’ve thought about that too, but finding materials isn’t easy. Not only are related records erased, they’re also distorted…”

“There’s no need to worry about that.”

“Pardon?”

“Standing before you is the Empire’s Best Swordsman.”

The Empire’s Best Swordsman said.

“The entire Empire moves at my gesture, at my word. They erase records, you say? They conceal and distort, you say? Let them try.”

He snorted.

“The seven magic towers of the Empire, the pillars of the Empire, all the scholars and magicians of the Empire will rummage through everything related to the Empress of Bliss from today. I will make it so.”

The Empress of Bliss has not revealed herself and has cleverly manipulated information while hiding behind a black curtain. But Gerd says. Now, from today, he will drag the Empress of Bliss from behind that curtain and place her on stage.

“Beheading her and displaying her head on the First Tower would please the master. I look forward to that day immensely.”