Ch.45Demon Knight Bernhagen (3)

Knights of Atanga.

The moment that name left Najin’s lips, Bernhagen’s eyes wavered. Had Atanga already tracked him this far? That should be impossible. Anxiety and unease churned in Bernhagen’s mind.

But even a rotten fish is still a fish.

Bernhagen was a knight himself, and had even served as a knight commander. It didn’t take him long to organize his confused thoughts and regain his composure.

‘He said a seedling.’

The vanguard of the knights, or mere bluster.

Either way, it didn’t matter. The aura emanating from the young man before him seemed insignificant. Regardless, the right course of action would be to quickly dispose of him and flee.

Judgment, and conclusion.

The time it took was just over 2 seconds.

It was a quick judgment and a quick response. However, time is always relative. What Najin had mentioned wasn’t bluster to test Bernhagen. He was simply declaring his identity before battle.

In other words, the moment he uttered that sentence, Najin had completed his preparations for battle.

Bang!

Two seconds. More than enough time to close the distance. Najin closed the gap of over ten paces in an instant. By the time Bernhagen had made his judgment, Najin was already swinging his sword right in front of Bernhagen’s face.

“…!”

Fast. Even faster than expected.

Bernhagen’s eyes widened. Not enough time to counterattack. Pulling his arms inward, Bernhagen protected his neck and heart. As long as those areas weren’t penetrated, he could regenerate indefinitely.

Slash!

Najin’s sword, imbued with sword energy, grazed Bernhagen’s forearm shallowly as it passed by.

Indeed, shallow.

Confirming that his arm hadn’t been severed, a smile formed on Bernhagen’s lips. That speed was quite impressive, but he realized that the sword energy wasn’t threatening to him. However, that thought was short-lived.

“Urrrgh!”

Bernhagen’s eyes bulged.

The wound cut by the sword energy burned as if on fire. Sparks flew in his mind. He was accustomed to pain, and his body had become numb due to demonization. But the pain surging through him now was unlike anything Bernhagen had felt in his entire life.

Pain as if his soul was burning.

The demonic energy within him surged violently.

Bernhagen’s posture, which was about to counterattack immediately, faltered due to the pain. Najin wouldn’t miss such an opening. With a thwack, Najin’s kick struck Bernhagen’s knee. And at the moment his already faltering posture completely collapsed.

Thunk.

Gripping his sword tightly, Najin brought it down toward Bernhagen’s crown. A sword strike like a guillotine. A line of brilliant white sword energy traced through the air.

“You, damn… brat…”

But the sword failed to split Bernhagen’s head. Bernhagen had hastily raised his arm, blocking Najin’s sword with his forearm. The sword, which had penetrated about halfway into the forearm, was pushed out by the bubbling, rising flesh.

With a face contorted in pain, Bernhagen reached toward his lower back. At that moment, Najin’s eyes widened and he leaped backward.

His instinct warned him. To create distance.

In the end, that judgment was correct.

As Najin distanced himself, Bernhagen grasped the sword hilt protruding above his shoulder. Then, he drew the sword. The sword that burst out, breaking its scabbard, traced a pitch-black trajectory.

Swoosh!

Trees caught in the sword energy split apart.

The wind howled. Having created distance, Najin observed the sword Bernhagen was gripping. A sword closer to a greatsword, with a blade two or three times thicker than an ordinary longsword.

A sword of that size.

Swung with such speed.

It was a threatening strength, and the black sword energy enveloping the greatsword was quite menacing as well. The dark, murky sword energy was incredibly ominous.

Crack, crackle.

Bernhagen loosened his shoulder.

Originally, he had no intention of drawing his sword, but his mind changed the moment he received Najin’s attack. He judged that the sword energy this youngster was producing was anomalous.

The power of the sword energy itself wasn’t threatening. The problem was the pain that felt like his soul was burning when cut by that sword energy.

‘It doesn’t seem like sword energy with a special property.’

Sword energy with special properties, having its own form, is the symbol of a Sword Seeker. To Bernhagen’s eyes, Najin didn’t appear to be at the level of a Sword Seeker. However, it was certain that the sword energy this guy was producing had something special about it.

There’s no benefit in prolonging the fight.

That was Bernhagen’s judgment.

With a clang, Bernhagen rested the greatsword on his shoulder and took his stance. In an instant, his aura changed.

Knight Commander of the Schulhauser family, Bernhagen.

Even before contracting with a demon, he had been positioned at the top tier of Sword Experts. Now, with his physical abilities dramatically enhanced due to the contract with the demon, he possesses strength comparable to a swordsman at the entry level of Sword Seeker.

That’s why Bernhagen is confident in his victory.

At best, his opponent is just a Sword Expert level warrior. He may have some swiftness, but that’s all. He believes that in combat, the level of mastery is absolute.

…That is, generally, a correct judgment.

But it’s not always the case that the difference in mastery determines the outcome. There are often cases where variables created by subtle, indistinguishable factors determine victory or defeat.

“Hoo…”

And Najin.

The boy who grew up in the underground city.

He has always created variables with his own hands and achieved victory. This time is no different. Najin exhaled deeply and widened his eyes.

Bloodshot eyes.

What is reflected in those two eyes is a temporary future.

2.

Since coming to the City of Opportunity, Najin has grown.

That growth is steep and unhindered, but Najin is still a Sword Expert level warrior. Naturally, he is weaker than Bernhagen, who is close to the Seeker level, and he can’t help but be inferior in absolute strength.

Technique, strength, and various other factors.

He’s probably inferior in most aspects.

But if there’s one thing Najin doesn’t fall behind in, it’s his senses and vision. Senses that are infinitely sharp and alert. And eerie eyes that capture everything.

A boy who was unparalleled in “seeing” from the beginning, and who realized his talent several months ago.

Najin’s eyes already exist beyond common sense… they are a kind of mystery. The world seen through those eyes doesn’t allow for ordinary understanding. It’s a landscape that only Najin can comprehend.

The swaying grass.

Breathing. The movement of Bernhagen’s eyes.

The way he grips the sword.

The black particles of rising sword energy.

And, the pulsation of muscles.

The moment Bernhagen took a step forward, Najin had already kicked off the ground and leaped. By the time Bernhagen swung his sword, Najin had already burrowed into Bernhagen’s side.

Slash!

As Bernhagen’s greatsword deeply gouged the ground, Najin’s sword, which had burrowed in, cut through Bernhagen’s skin. The wound is shallow, but Najin doesn’t stop there. With bulging eyes, reading Bernhagen’s movements, Najin took a deep breath.

Mana surges.

A mana cultivation technique that absorbs surrounding mana.

Normally, Najin’s mana cultivation technique would be close to self-harm in a battle against demons. If he were to absorb mana filled with demonic energy, his body would be ruined.

But Najin is the owner of Excalibur.

The moment mana enters his body, demonic energy is completely purified. Thus, Najin poured all the mana he absorbed and the mana that existed within his body into strengthening his physical form. An amount of mana he couldn’t have endured in the past.

But now, he can endure it.

Slash, slash, slash!

Acceleration. The sword, swung while leaving afterimages, slashed Bernhagen’s body. Despite showing just one opening, three sword strikes lacerated Bernhagen’s body.

Grind.

Gritting his teeth, Bernhagen stomped the ground with a thud. Dust flew up. Bernhagen knows that such shallow wounds won’t threaten his life. Knowing this, he chose a strategy of sacrificing flesh to cut bone.

The greatsword cuts through the air as it’s swung.

Najin hastily tilted his head back, and the greatsword brushed past above his head. Despite swinging such a large greatsword, there’s no opening in Bernhagen’s movements. Before the greatsword completed its trajectory, he twisted his waist.

The trajectory bends. The greatsword unnaturally halted and then descended upon Najin.

Having read that movement in advance, Najin threw his body backward to avoid it. However, he couldn’t completely evade even the sword wind created by the greatsword. Dust and shattered stone fragments rained down on Najin.

Splat.

The troll leather protected his body, but it couldn’t protect his face. Blood spurted from the torn skin. For a moment, his vision was obscured by dust. Through the dust, Bernhagen’s greave extended. The iron greave kicked Najin’s abdomen.

Clang!

He hastily pulled his sword to protect himself, but a cracking sound echoed from the forearm that supported the sword’s surface for defense. Superhuman strength. Najin frowned.

Sliding backward, Najin caught his breath.

Although he can read movements in advance, whether he can block them is another matter. His forearm throbbed. One hand couldn’t grip properly.

“You’re annoyingly nimble.”

Crunch, crunch.

As if trying to endure the pain from the sword energy, Bernhagen cleared away the dust with a contorted expression, grinding his teeth. After swinging the greatsword once to secure his vision, he looked at Najin and raised the corner of his mouth.

“What kind of guts made you attack me? You must have seen many corpses of knights on your way here. Seeing those foolish ones with their heads smashed…”

Snickering, Bernhagen kicked the ground.

Superhuman leg strength. Approaching Najin in an instant, he swung his greatsword and sneered.

“Didn’t it occur to you that I’m not an opponent you can handle?”

A greatsword enveloped in black sword energy. Facing the descending greatsword, Najin expressionlessly raised his sword.

“I know.”

Sword energy collided with sword energy. Najin’s knees bent under the weight of the greatsword, but the sword energy didn’t yield at all. Bernhagen felt a sense of discomfort at that fact.

Clang!

Najin parried Bernhagen’s sword. Forcibly stabilizing his body that was creaking under the weight, Najin continuously blocked Bernhagen’s sword.

Clang, clang, claaang!

Najin’s body screamed under the weight of the greatsword pressing down. However, Najin met Bernhagen’s sword head-on. Sometimes borrowing the swordsmanship of the Order, sometimes borrowing the technique of deflecting the sword that Ivan had shown him.

“I know, but.”

Najin raised his head.

The moment their gazes met, Bernhagen felt a chill. The bloodshot eyes of the boy. Those unwavering eyes resembled those of a beast.

Eyes that gleamed ominously, as if they would sink fangs into the nape of the neck at the slightest carelessness.

Momentarily overwhelmed by those eyes, Bernhagen roughly swung his sword to push Najin away. Then, with a thud, he stomped the ground and tightened his grip on the sword hilt.

Crack, crackle!

A posture as if compressing power. Bernhagen swung the greatsword, which he had pulled back behind him, horizontally with a shout. This was a technique that was symbolic of Bernhagen during the days when he made a name for himself as the Knight Commander of the Schulhauser family.

A swordsmanship that could bisect a troll in a single stroke.

The greatsword, enveloped in black sword energy, traced a crescent trajectory. The moment the sword, swung in an arc, collided with Najin’s sword, a pressure wave surged. The trees standing on either side of Najin split with a crack.

Najin, unable to fully withstand the power, slid backward. Pushed back more than ten paces, Najin only stopped after his back hit a tree.

‘…He blocked it? That?’

Bernhagen, who had swung the sword, widened his eyes.

How did he block a sword that could split even a troll in a single stroke, and moreover, a sword swung with enhanced strength? Bernhagen had no way of knowing the strange movement Najin had shown toward the swinging greatsword.

“…I had something I wanted to ask.”

Najin, detaching himself from the tree, gasped for breath.

His breathing is rough. Having completely broken one arm while blocking the previous strike, Najin raised his sword with one hand, letting his right arm hang limply.

Pointing the tip of the raised sword at Bernhagen, Najin said:

“What does being a knight mean to you?”

Perhaps it was a question Najin was also asking himself.

3.

What is a knight?

Receiving that question, Bernhagen burst into laughter. Is he trying to buy time? Bernhagen didn’t feel the question was worth answering. With a thud, he took another step toward Najin.

“What are honor and pride to you?”

Najin asked. As he asked, he took his stance.

Boom, the greatsword tore up the ground.

As if refusing to play along if he was trying to buy time, Bernhagen continuously pressed Najin. Najin, being pushed back, lowered his stance with a grunt.

“Answer me.”

A moment of acceleration.

Najin, showing movement surpassing Bernhagen’s, cut Bernhagen’s wrist as he swung the greatsword. The sword didn’t completely sever the wrist, but it left a wound as deep as a finger joint.

Slash!

Blood spurted up, and Bernhagen frowned. Although the skin would soon regenerate, he couldn’t properly swing the greatsword like this. He kicked Najin away.

Najin didn’t immediately rush in.

He was just asking.

What is a knight to you, what is honor, what is pride? I need to hear that answer. Bernhagen exhaled with a sneer, as if willing to play along with that meaningless dialogue until his wrist healed.

“You asked what a knight is?”

Bernhagen answered.

“A knight is a means to rise in the world. It’s merely a means to obtain money, power, and strength.”

That’s what a knight is to him.

It was the way he, a commoner, could elevate his status, and it was what allowed him to obtain money and power that a commoner couldn’t possess.

“Honor and pride are the same.”

Bernhagen laughed.

“You gain nothing by preserving them, but they have immense value when sold or discarded. You wouldn’t know, boy, how much a knight’s pride, that worthless thing, can be sold for.”

When betraying a master. When selling a master’s weakness to a noble from another territory. Or, when turning a blind eye to the disloyalty of a family’s retainers. Each time, they would hand over hundreds of gold coins, claiming it was the price for tarnishing a knight’s pride.

There’s nothing to gain by preserving it.

But when violated, what one receives is sweet gold.

“Pride, honor, precepts… You must have seen it on your way here? What happened to those who clung to those worthless things. Look at me. By discarding all of that, haven’t I obtained such strong power?”

Using a knight’s honor as an excuse, he infiltrated deep into the family and stole a sealed demonic artifact. Using a knight’s pride as an excuse, he lured out his comrades and killed them.

Foolish ones who cling to honor and pride.

Bernhagen knew that nothing was as enjoyable and easy as manipulating such people. A smile spread across his face. The young man before him wasn’t a knight, but he had the same foolishness as a knight.

“Even you, aren’t you the same?”

When you cut my wrist.

If you had continued to rush in, you could have inflicted at least some wounds on me, but you’re giving me time just to hear an answer about honor and pride.

“Utterly foolish.”

Bernhagen genuinely thought so.

Najin, who had been listening to the story, lowered his head. Is he angry? Or is he despairing at the fact that he’s losing to someone who knows neither honor nor pride?

It was neither.

When Najin raised his head, he was smiling.

“…Why are you smiling?”

“Just, I was thinking how fortunate I was.”

With a smile, Najin said:

“I’m glad that the first knight I met wasn’t someone like you.”

A knight who knows honor and pride.

A knight of Atanga who, even though he had fallen to the bottom, didn’t lose his pride and chose to be a knight until the very end.

The first knight he met.

The knight who planted a dream in him.

Najin thought he was fortunate that it was Ivan, that he was lucky. Listening to the story of the Fallen Knight Bernhagen, who weighed honor and pride against mere gold coins, Najin could now realize.

What kind of knight he aspired to be.

What Najin recalls in his mind is… the first knight and star he encountered. Najin recalled the image of a certain knight who, in the underground city where starlight doesn’t reach, had stars in his eyes.

‘No matter where one falls.’

Even if one falls endlessly.

Even if one falls to a place where stars don’t reach.

‘Hoping to regain what was lost, and preserving the pride that remains…’

Without forgetting that one is a knight.

‘A knight chasing stars.’

A knight chasing the stars in the night sky.

That was the kind of knight Najin wanted to become.

‘A knight who carries honor and pride, chasing stars.’

Honor. Pride. And stars.

The concept of a knight, which had been incomplete in Najin’s mind, was ironically completed after encountering someone who was furthest from being a knight. A goal taking shape. A completed picture.

It was at that moment.

Najin’s sword energy surged brilliantly white.

Sword energy with increased output in an instant. A technique he had unconsciously mastered during his previous battle with Ivan, but had never used until now. However, unlike then…

There are no platinum particles in the fiercely surging sword energy.

Because at this moment, what Najin recalls is not a star but a certain knight.