Ch.225EP.50 – The Knight Ruminates on Defeat (4)

…come to think of it, Ihan might never have properly experienced the species known as Aura Users until now.

He knows they possess superhuman strength worthy of being called superhuman.

He knows they accomplish impossible feats and are opponents he cannot defeat no matter how hard he struggles.

However, he never actually knew why they were called Aura Users.

And now.

Woooong!

He thought he understood the origin of the name.

“For an Aura User, using life force (Aura) isn’t difficult. Other knights have to use intense concentration to artificially manipulate life force, but for us, it’s simply an energy we can naturally use. Just like how those spell-casters use magic power.”

“……”

“In other words, showing off such things in front of us is meaningless. Well, I’m not saying it’s not impressive. Using ‘Aura’ without even crossing the ‘boundary’ is certainly remarkable. I’ll give you credit. Among young ones, you’d probably rank among the best, haha.”

“…That’s not quite right.”

“Hmm?”

“There’s that annoying spear-wielder from Galahad, and that irritating hulk from Lionel.”

The most talented individuals he knew, and two knights he had never definitively settled things with.

When Ihan mentioned them, Baltar pondered for a moment, then…

“Ah, you mean those fellows. Indeed, they existed. Their talent might even surpass mine in my younger days, heh heh. Have you already met them?”

He nodded, remembering their faces.

“Met them? I’ve fought them both.”

“Who won?”

“……”

“Tsk tsk, pathetic. What good are you if you can’t even defeat such opponents?”

“I didn’t lose… I didn’t exactly…”

“Excuses! You’re problematic too. Having such a body yet unable to decisively win… That’s all because you lack effort, effort!”

“Damn it!”

Ihan was irritated but couldn’t bring himself to charge at Baltar.

The sword energy that normally seemed magnificent to him looked particularly…

‘Weak, this thing.’

It looked like a toothpick compared to what he faced now.

Thirty beautiful sword rings danced in the air around Baltar, poised to strike at any moment.

Each ring contained overwhelming mass and destructive power that could surpass sword energy with just one hit, and there were thirty of them.

Drip…

Ihan broke out in a cold sweat like rain.

The pressure from the sword rings weighed down on his body, and his stamina was draining in real-time.

He had the provocative thought of striking the rings with his sword energy, but…

‘This won’t work. If sword energy collides with the sword rings, the sword energy will definitely break.’

He was certain based on the power they emitted.

If his sword energy collided with the rings, not just his sword but his arm would disappear as well.

…In that case!

Swish!

“Hmm? You still refuse to surrender?”

“Why would I surrender?”

“Oh? Such audacity? Or do you think I won’t shoot these masses at you? Either way, it’s arrogance.”

“It’s not like that, so mind your own business. And don’t call them masses!”

Call them sword rings or force rings-

Whoosh!

Ihan planted his foot firmly with his sword raised.

A thrust, simple as could be.

Though it was a straightforward motion, it showed how much Ihan had trained with the sword. Despite being a raw thrust, its power and sharpness carried a more threatening force than any advanced sword technique.

“My, look at this?”

Baltar showed more surprise at this simple thrust than when he saw Ihan’s sword energy.

‘This fellow! He’s imbued the sword with intent (疑念)!’

He thought Ihan had grown, but to think he could imbue intent into the tip of his sword!

Well, since compressing life force to such a degree requires formidable concentration and willpower…

Setting one’s intent at the sword’s tip isn’t impossible.

Clang!

“That’s hefty. Though your intent is still at a sapling level, if you continue nurturing it that way, you’ll gradually get closer to my level, haha.”

“What nonsense!”

“…Tsk, so you’re using it without even knowing.”

It seems the person himself isn’t yet consciously using this ability.

Well, he’s not a martial artist who fights with enlightenment or technique, but rather a beast who fights with instinct and sensation, so it makes sense.

‘Amusing fellow.’

Well, that’s what makes him interesting to watch.

Clang!

Ihan and Baltar’s swords collided repeatedly.

Crackle-!

Sparks flew as sword energies collided.

However, for these two, sword energy was merely a supplementary means. They continued crossing swords as if performing a sword dance, without consciously focusing on the energy.

…Except.

BOOM!

A powerful shock, like lightning striking lightning, produced an intense thunder, creating the eerie and rare phenomenon of lightning surging from the ground rather than the sky.

They were simply fighting earnestly, but it was a confrontation that seemed like witnessing the end of the world.

Dragon versus tiger.

The saying goes that dragons and tigers are evenly matched, but their battle truly embodied the destructive descent of dragons and tigers in combat.

At the point where one might worry the royal castle would collapse…

Whoosh!

“We mustn’t let the royal castle collapse, so let’s end this now.”

The sword rings moved and descended upon Ihan.

Though each ring was only the size of a bowling ball, contact with one would create a clean hole in any body part.

Ihan-

Swish!

As if he had been waiting for this moment, he introduced a variation to his sword energy.

Whiing!

The condensed energy rippled and transformed.

This wasn’t simply compressed energy, but sword power (劍力) containing enlightenment that a certain knight had acquired in the underworld.

Swoosh!!

Muae Sword.

A blue circular sword energy, as if containing the vast sky, sliced through the sword ring.

Like an ultra-high-pressure water jet cutting through steel…!

“Huk! Huuk!”

Despite achieving the miraculous feat of cutting through a sword ring, Ihan’s face showed no sense of accomplishment.

He just had a pale expression like someone who had narrowly escaped death, filled with cold sweat and tension.

“I-I just aged ten years…”

“……”

“O-Old man, you were really trying to kill me!”

“…What was that just now?”

“After trying to kill someone, that’s what you’re curious about?!”

“Haha, this fellow, really! How much more are you trying to entertain me!! Hahaha!!”

“???”

Ihan flinched and stepped back.

The old man was looking at him with eyes full of madness.

What’s with that expression?

It’s almost like…

“Yes, what else will you show me? Surely that’s not all you have? Show me more, more!”

“……”

…The face of a professor being flirted with?

Like the face of a professor watching a student presenting a brilliant thesis at the academy debate hall the day before?

‘Did that student end up becoming a graduate student?’

Ihan felt like he had become that thesis-presenting student and sensed something ominous.

…Perhaps surrendering earlier would have been better.

* * *

Roar!

From the moment he unleashed the Muae Sword, the movement of the sword rings became even more threatening.

They were threatening before, but now they seemed to move in an organized manner as if determined to kill him. Would you believe it?

Feeling like he was standing on the edge of a cliff, Ihan was forced to perform acrobatics.

Whoosh!

He narrowly avoided it, but when a ring merely grazed the armor on his shoulder, the armor instantly evaporated.

The fairly thick armor disappeared in an instant.

“!!?”

Ihan didn’t even have time to curse inwardly as he had to test his limits.

Dodging again and again, instinctively…!

Swoosh!

He swung the Muae Sword.

It was the only thing he could rely on now.

…However.

Flinch!

“…!”

“Feeling dizzy? That’s to be expected. A blade tempered with intent… Using such a thing in real-time naturally causes extreme fatigue. It’s only because it’s you that you’re enduring. If it were someone else, they might have lost consciousness or died after using it once, heh heh.”

“Kugh!?”

Baltar’s words didn’t even register in his ears.

Blindly dodging and swinging his sword was all he could do.

A critical situation where even his vision was becoming blurry.

But for Ihan…

‘I’ll land at least one hit on that old man!’

He wanted to strike that man who was still looking at him with contempt, even just once.

So…

‘I’ll go all the way!’

Crack!

Ihan overcame his fatigue with sheer determination and pressed forward.

Slash!

Cutting!

Crash!

Breaking!

Swoosh!!

Slicing.

Breaking through everything that blocked his path, Ihan’s blade gradually drew closer to Baltar.

There were no more sword rings blocking him, but Ihan knew.

Even without the rings, he couldn’t do anything to Baltar.

So…

‘Sorry, sword!’

He resolved to execute a new technique that would surprise even a superhuman.

Ihan apologized to his Nth sword and activated Sword Resonance.

Woong!

The steel sword, resonating as if to say it was fine, began to vibrate intensely.

This might be an unprecedented attempt.

He was already using the Muae Sword energy, and now he was trying to add another sword energy on top of it.

Perhaps this attempt was only possible because he was in a situation where proper judgment was impossible.

When taking a path that no one has tried before because of recklessness…

Fwaaak-!

Sometimes a new “possibility” can bloom!

Pat, paat.

Plum blossoms bloom from the soil of the sword.

Rustle, rustle, rustle.

One blossom.

Two blossoms.

Four blossoms.

Eight blossoms.

The plum blossoms blooming exponentially were larger than any plum blossom Ihan had produced the day before, and simultaneously…!

Swoooosh!

They were ever-changing.

It was difficult even to read their flow, and they carried magnificent sword energy, inheriting the ferocity of the Muae Sword.

At the moment when the Plum Blossom Sword, previously deemed incomplete and of uncertain completion date, coincidentally attained functionality close to a complete sword technique (劍技).

And the versatility of the completed Plum Blossom Sword…

Slash.

“……”

Created a change that even a superhuman couldn’t react to in time.

Baltar’s sleeve was cut off, and to this, Baltar…

“Excellent…! To see such a ‘splendid flower’ in this season, and even land a hit! Haha, was I the one showing arrogance! Hahaha.”

He didn’t hold back his praise.

When a Sword God held a sword, no one had ever dared to land a hit on the Sword God with a sword, yet to cut his sleeve—remarkable.

“…As a reward, I’ll show you something impressive too.”

Baltar assumed a middle stance.

A thrusting posture.

If Ihan’s thrust showed the spirit of a general filled with power, Baltar’s thrusting posture evoked the image of a Taoist master (道人).

And befitting a Taoist’s sword, Baltar’s thrust…

—Whoop!

Demonstrated a mystical thrust as if performing Taoist magic.

Swoong!

…In an instant, a hole appeared in the plum blossom.

This wasn’t strange. It was natural for a hole to form when something was pierced.

However…

“…What?”

How could holes appear in all the flower petals that surrounded him in a 360-degree direction?

Ihan doubted his eyes, blinking to check if he was seeing an illusion, but reality remained unchanged.

Swoong-!

…All the plum blossoms continued to develop holes.

And Baltar was kind enough to explain.

“-It’s called [Thirty-Six Swords].”

He directly explained how this phenomenon occurred.

“It’s a sword technique that delivers thirty-six sword strikes with a single swing. It’s Albert’s specialty technique. …Though that gentleman performs it with an awl rather than a sword.”

“……”

“Well, if I wanted to, I could deliver 72 or even 144 sword strikes in an instant, haha.”

If dozens of blades descend upon your body, you simply need to swing your sword faster to block or pierce them all.

-Hearing such an outrageous statement from Baltar, Ihan’s blood pressure suddenly rose.

“D-Damn it, o-of all things, Thirty-Six Swords, w-what the…”

It reminded him of the Zongnan Sect’s sword technique from martial arts novels, the mortal enemy of the Huashan Sect. Ihan deeply felt the emotions of a Huashan swordsman defeated by a Zongnan swordsman in those novels, and then…

“Kugh…!?”

He lost consciousness.

Not from fatigue, but from his rising blood pressure, he fainted…

‘I lost again, damn it…’

He had to swallow his Nth defeat.