Ch.541Ancestral Blessing

“Ahem, ahem.”

Rotholandus, who had looked like he might tear apart any dwarf in sight, deliberately composed his expression to appear solemn, and kept clearing his throat as if embarrassed by his emotional display.

“This is unexpected, but what’s done is done. We have no choice but to consider it a pass.”

“Is that really acceptable?”

I tilted my head as I tapped ash from my half-burned cigarette onto the ground. I’d essentially gotten a free pass on a test. While that’s good for me, isn’t it too casual?

“It doesn’t matter. Hero-level. And not just any hero-level, but one who has matured in both achievement and Karma of Murder. Someone like that couldn’t possibly fail against a Colossus. Even if there had been no issue with the Colossus, the result would have been the same.”

Hmm… he’s not wrong. If the Colossus had been in proper condition, I would have struggled a bit, but I still don’t think I would have lost.

Though just a fragment of a soul, he was able to accurately assess my abilities as befitting one of the Great’s Twelve Knights. Though he doesn’t seem to have noticed Hersella’s presence.

Come to think of it, it’s quite ironic. I was actually just a foreigner with no connection to Rotholandus.

The one who inherited the bloodline of the Twelve Knights wasn’t me but Hersella. That self-proclaimed Heavenly Demon who’s busy mocking her ancestor in my head.

Nevertheless, it was I, not Hersella, who was acknowledged as the successor to the Twelve Knights by Durandal and Rotholandus. She didn’t seem to care much, but it’s truly ironic.

Well… there’s no point in feeling uneasy about it now.

I exhaled cigarette smoke toward the empty air, letting go of a thin, coin-sized guilt.

When you think about it, things turned out this way because Hersella’s personality was so foul that Durandal cut ties with her. So it wasn’t my fault.

If she had been as virtuous as me, she could have become Durandal’s master long ago. Though in the game, she never gained recognition as its master and ended up breaking it.

—-

“So, what kind of blessing is it? Personally, I’d appreciate it if you could remove some of the restrictions on the sword.”

It performs well, but it’s annoyingly inconvenient to use. What good is being able to cut through space when it won’t even activate unless I’m facing a Mein or monster I have no chance against?

Powers like Karma amplification or vitality supply almost always activated, but I’ve only been able to use spatial cutting twice so far.

It wouldn’t even activate when facing Isabella, saying I had a chance of winning. That’s how restrictive it is.

Since it’s a power that only unlocks when facing an unbeatable opponent, the stronger I get, the harder it becomes to use.

“That would be difficult. Those restrictions were placed by myself in my prime, so in my current state as just a fragment of a soul, I cannot remove them. If you wish to lift the restrictions, you’ll have to become stronger than I was back then.”

Unfortunately, Rotholandus flatly refused my request, saying it was beyond his current abilities.

At least he offered a solution, which is something.

It seems that if I want to freely use spatial cutting, I’ll either have to discover the principle myself or become stronger than the Twelve Knights in their prime.

…Though I wonder if there’s any point in removing the restrictions after becoming that strong.

After that, as if to make up for refusing my request, Rotholandus began explaining various things about Durandal.

About the exact nature of the restrictions, and the five powers that manifest as the restrictions are lifted.

I had roughly figured most of it out through experience, but thanks to the original owner’s explanation, I could turn my vague conjectures into certainties.

The power of indestructibility, ensuring it never breaks in its master’s hands.

The power of sanctity, amplifying the achievements infused in the body to draw out greater strength.

The power of fortitude, supplying endless vitality as long as fighting spirit remains.

The power of magic destruction, cutting through and nullifying all techniques based on mana.

And finally, the power of severance, which embeds Rotholandus’s own heroic tale as a power.

“The most important power is ‘Severance.’ Originally, it was a power only I could use… but as I engraved my power into Durandal, it transformed into a form of power.”

An unstoppable slash that cuts through space and leaves a wound in the world. That was the essence of the heroic tale of Rotholandus of the Twelve Knights—”Severance.”

“Each time you manifest that power, you should feel the sensation of cutting through space itself. Someday, you’ll be able to wield the power of severance even without Durandal. That is why we engraved our own powers into the oath swords.”

“…If it’s such an important power, shouldn’t it be made more accessible? Despite all the hardships I’ve been through, the power of severance has only manifested twice.”

I’ve vaguely grasped the feeling thanks to my overflowing talent, but generally, one would need to experience it dozens of times to get even a hint. Wouldn’t most people die of old age before that?

“It means you’ve had relatively easy battles. Eight hundred years ago, fighting enemies with a chance of victory wasn’t even considered hardship.”

“Ah…”

…I didn’t expect the “back in my day” argument, and worse, I couldn’t even refute it because it was true.

Looking at the heroic tales of Carlos the Great and the Twelve Knights, they faced overwhelming disadvantages more than once or twice, to the point where one would wonder how they ever prevailed.

Unlike us who nearly got wiped out by a single demon, in that era, it was commonplace for a passing dragon to melt an entire castle and disappear. It was said to be nothing short of hell.

—-

“I’ve digressed too much. Back to the main point… you asked what blessing I would bestow? The blessing I will give you is the Protection of Bulin. A blessing of steel-like protection that will prevent you from being wounded by enemies’ spears and swords.”

“That sounds good.”

I nodded as I stamped out the remaining stub of my mana herb.

A blessing that enhances defense. It probably won’t be perfect invincibility like Orhan’s Unyielding Flesh, but it was still an excellent blessing beyond my expectations.

Even if I enhance my physical abilities with the power of Karma, my body is still made of human flesh and blood. That holds true even for me, who boasts of being the strongest in the Empire.

I mostly block attacks with armor and Karma of Murder or dodge them by reading their trajectories, but if a blade hits my bare body, I’ll be cut and bleed just the same.

But after receiving Rotholandus’s blessing, I wouldn’t have to worry about blind strikes anymore. They would simply bounce off.

Once I master spatial cutting, I won’t lack in attack power, and if I train Defying Fate to its limit, I won’t fall behind in speed either.

With the Protection of Bulin added to that, my last remaining weakness would be covered.

“Are you done checking? Then I’ll explain that blessing in detail.”

Rotholandus, who had somehow returned to sitting on the sarcophagus, addressed me.

He seemed about twice as transparent as before, suggesting he had consumed most of the power sustaining his existence by bestowing the blessing upon me.

“The Protection of Bulin. A blessing bestowed upon me by Elpinel, which makes all skin except the soles of your feet become as hard as metal the moment it receives an attack.”

“Why not the soles?”

“I don’t know. It’s always been that way.”

…Well, it doesn’t matter. How often would I get attacked on the soles of my feet during a fight?

“When the blessing activates, you can almost perfectly block cutting or piercing attacks like plate armor, but if you’re hit by a heavy blunt weapon, the impact will still be transmitted. Be careful.”

[Hmm. That’s a bit unfortunate. Orhan is quite skilled in unarmed combat.]

So I should be more wary of bare fists than swords?

I’ll take less damage than without the blessing, but I should still try to avoid impact-based attacks when possible.

“And about the defensive power of the blessing… hmm, this is awkward to explain…”

“Is there some problem? Another weakness besides the soles?”

“…No, not that. It’s just… the Protection of Bulin is the grace of the celestial deity Elpinel permeating your skin. Therefore, its power grows stronger the more contact points you have with the heavens. Do you understand what I mean?”

What is he saying?

“Do you mean it gets stronger when I climb to high places?”

[…That’s not it.]

‘Then what is it?’

[…]

Hersella hesitated to answer, as if she understood the meaning but couldn’t bring herself to tell me.

What could it possibly be?

Giving up on getting an answer from Hersella, I tilted my head and looked at Rotholandus with an expression that said I didn’t understand and needed a proper explanation.

“Haah…”

Rotholandus let out a deep sigh as if he really didn’t want to explain, then slowly opened his mouth.

“…It means the more skin you expose, the stronger it becomes. If you were to fight completely naked, you could block even the slashes of Masters or Heroes.”

What the fuck?