Ch.785How Did I Get Selected?

While waiting for Demian to regain his vitality, I examined the changes that had occurred in my body.

‘It’s just as I thought. My strength has increased.’

To be more precise, the upper limit of my strength had dramatically increased.

My normal strength felt the same as before, but when I tensed my muscles to their limit with the intention of using my full power, I could exert several times more strength than before.

Even without awakening the power of Karma, I could press down on the blade of a black iron dagger with my fingertips until it broke, and spin it in my palm, compressing it like a metal ball.

[Hmm, how strange. You look no different on the outside.]

Hersella muttered in an excited voice, finding it interesting.

It was indeed bizarre, just as she said.

Despite my physical strength increasing several times over, the thickness of my limbs remained unchanged.

Rather than bulking up my muscles through training like ordinary people, it was as if someone had removed human muscles and transplanted beast muscles in their place.

Well, it was fortunate for me.

I wasn’t particularly keen on having a grotesquely bulky physique like a bodybuilder who had injected drugs to the limit.

About thirty minutes later.

Demian, who had nearly evolved into a frozen human, finally returned to normal condition thanks to the heat from the bonfire and the warmth from his dried leather clothes.

Perhaps it was also thanks to the warmth of the stew I had boiled and handed to him, thinking we might as well fill our stomachs while resting.

“If you’re done resting, let’s head down.”

Seeing Demian put down his empty stew bowl, his trembling completely gone as he exhaled warm breath, I stood up, thinking it was time to move on.

We still had a long way to go to reach the holy sword.

—-

What awaited us after breaking through the bottom of the lake was a crystal cave so deep that the bottom was invisible, and as vast as the frozen lake above.

It was a cavity that opened downward like a passage to the abyss.

Crystal formations the size of small boats protruded like horns from the blue cliffs surrounding us, casting shadows everywhere.

The place where Demian and I had lit a bonfire to warm ourselves was also one of these protruding crystal structures.

– Woooong…

I’m not sure if these translucent crystals emitting a vivid blue light and humming could actually be called crystals.

[It’s strange no matter how many times I look at it. What are these things?]

As I looked down at the scenery below my feet, filled with blue crystals like teeth growing in an esophagus, Hersella also seemed curious about the nature of these formations.

‘Well, I don’t know either.’

These blue crystals were neither mana stones nor ordinary crystals.

All I knew about them was that they weren’t naturally formed structures, but crystalline formations created by the influence of the holy sword.

Even that was half conjecture.

Well, the identity of these blue stones wasn’t my concern. The only important thing was that the holy sword was stuck down there.

“Let’s go, Demian.”

After gently patting the back of Demian, who was staring blankly as if mesmerized by the beauty of the glowing blue crystals, I threw myself down toward the cavity below.

– Kwang!

I repeatedly fell and landed, using the crystal formations as stepping stones, like hopping across stepping stones.

Rather than slowly descending at a moderate pace by precisely controlling the propulsive force of Karma, this way was much faster and consumed less Karma.

– Kwarrrr!

“Huk…!”

Occasionally, minor accidents occurred when crystal platforms couldn’t withstand the impact of landing and collapsed.

After descending vertically for a few hundred meters like this.

It was around then that something strange was added to the scenery of the pit, which had contained nothing but blue rocks.

“What is this?”

Demian tilted his head and bent down, as if trying to touch something wrapped around the blue crystal rock beneath his feet.

“Chains…?”

Chains made of brilliant white light, as radiant as Lacy’s holy light, were wrapped around the crystal rocks everywhere and extended downward toward something below.

As if binding and sealing whatever lay beneath.

It was a sign that we were approaching our destination.

“Looks like we’re almost there. Let’s keep going down.”

After tapping the chains, which had a distinct weight like metal despite being made of light, I urged Demian to continue deeper.

After proceeding for about ten more minutes, we finally reached the bottom of the underground passage.

And at last, we found it.

In the center of the ground, which had turned into a blue ice sheet from the frozen lake water that had poured down, at the tip of a crystal formation that stood like a small mountain, was a protruding white greatsword.

“See? I told you we could find it.”

I grinned at the sight of the holy sword Joyeuse stuck in the crystal rock, a scene that looked exactly like the one in my memories.

A greatsword shaped like a cross overlaid with a small circle, like the holy symbol of the Church of Elpinel. Unlike Demian’s Jin, the blade width itself wasn’t much different from an ordinary greatsword.

The blade emitted a pure white radiance like sunlight on a snow field.

The blade, wrapped in chains of light, was covered with indecipherable holy script, and upon closer inspection, one could see that the ends of the light chains were connected to each character.

As if the light emanating from the holy script had transformed into chains.

In the center of the cross shape, at the middle of the ricasso, there was a ring-shaped ornament with an empty center, and inside the ring floated a sphere of white light like a sun.

The golden ricasso and hilt were so intricately crafted that they displayed a beauty like a work of art in themselves, and the counterweight at the end of the hilt gleamed with a silver-blue luster, as if inlaid with silver.

“Is that…?”

“Yes, the holy sword Joyeuse. The cause of all our trouble and your new sword.”

Demian’s reaction seemed somewhat bewildered.

Since my Durandal was rather plain and modest in design except for the blade, perhaps he had thought Joyeuse would also be an ordinary, unremarkable sword?

If so, it’s unfortunate, but Joyeuse had an incredibly splendid form befitting a protagonist’s weapon. It was so magnificent that anyone in the world would recognize it as a holy sword.

Perhaps unlike Rotholandus, who pursued simple functional beauty, Carlos preferred a splendid design that could display the imperial dignity and holiness to the world.

“What are you waiting for? Go and pull it out.”

“Uh….”

I gently patted Demian’s back to urge him on, but instead of running toward the holy sword, he turned to look at me hesitantly.

“What’s wrong?”

What’s the problem? Did he suddenly feel aversion because the sword was too ornate in person?

“Well… I’ve been thinking, and it seems a bit too much for me… I think it would suit you much better, Haschal. Why don’t you try pulling it out, just as a test?”

“What?”

I looked at Demian with an incredulous expression.

Seriously? He should be rushing over to grab it and shouting “I am Demian, the warrior of the holy sword!” but now he’s trying to pass it to me?

Is he trying to dump the hero business on me while he enjoys a leisurely hero’s life from behind?

Or is this some kind of high-level teabagging? Telling me to pretend to pull out a sword I can’t possibly draw?

“What do you mean ‘try pulling it out’? I won’t be able to pull it out anyway.”

After letting out a hollow laugh, Demian tilted his head with an innocent expression, as if he couldn’t understand.

“If someone with your strength can’t pull it out, doesn’t that mean no one can?”

“……”

Um… come to think of it, it was a reasonable question.

I had told him about the origin of the holy sword, but I had never mentioned the qualifications needed to pull out the holy sword or the fact that Demian was chosen as the hero.

Originally, the concept of “hero” itself was just a term coined by users for convenience and wasn’t mentioned in the original work. Even Carlos the Great, hailed as the savior of humanity, was simply called “the master of the holy sword.”

So naturally, Demian, not knowing the qualifications needed to pull out the holy sword, would think that I could just yank it out with my strength.

“Well, it’s not about strength… how should I explain this…”

As I was scratching the back of my head, wondering how to make him understand that only he could pull out the holy sword without explaining my knowledge of the original work—

“…No, it’s better to show you directly.”

Recalling the old saying that seeing is believing, instead of talking, I threw myself onto the crystal rock where the holy sword was embedded and grasped the golden hilt.

And then.

“Haaaap-!”

With a rough battle cry, I pulled on the hilt with all my might.

– Kugugugugung!

Vibrations and roaring sounds shook the crystal cave.

The chains of light that had been hanging loosely became taut, and the crystal formations, crushed under pressure, cracked and scattered transparent powder like rain.

My superhuman strength, enough to drag dragon remains, was concentrated on the hilt in my grasp.

“Urgggh…!”

But no matter how much strength I squeezed out to pull the hilt, the blade embedded in the crystal formation didn’t move even 1mm, remaining firmly fixed in place as if rooted.

“See… it won’t come out…?”

And then.

As I turned my head toward Demian with gritted teeth, showing that I was using all my strength, and smiled at the expected result—

– Kwaddddk!

With a thunderous roar, my body fell backward. As if something that had been resisting the applied force had suddenly been pulled out.

“Huh…?”

What? Why is it coming out?!

Too shocked to regain my posture, I tumbled backward and landed on my back on the ice sheet.

“Haschal!”

Startled, Demian called my name and ran over, but I was too preoccupied to look at him.

If I had really pulled out the holy sword, my plan to raise Demian as a hero and benefit from it would be shaken to its core.

Ignoring the faint pain running down my spine, I immediately turned my head to look at my right hand grasping the hilt.

And I saw.

The white greatsword lying on its side, held in my hand—

– Wooong!

—and the huge crystal chunk that had been pulled out by the roots and was now vibrating.

[You were told to pull out the sword, but you’re pulling out the rock instead. There’s a limit to brute force. Was your father a troll or an ogre?]

That’s right.

I hadn’t pulled out Joyeuse. As I expected, this sword wasn’t something I could pull out.

“…So this comes out.”

…I had simply pulled out the entire crystal hill that was firmly holding the blade.

I could only laugh hollowly at the situation.