Ch.97Black Starlight

The moment they clashed, it shattered. Se-erin watched as the wind dispersed from her body and starlight climbed up her arm. The sharply honed blade of light rotated rapidly, slicing through her skin. At this rate, she was about to lose her entire arm.

Se-erin immediately used mana release to create distance between them.

BOOM-!

The blue remnants of mana scattered and disappeared, consumed by the black starlight. Handel’s sword, which had emitted a tremendous wave of energy, became hazy like a summer mirage before appearing in front of Se-erin as if it had leaped through space.

“Kugh…!”

Even the wind armor protecting her body was useless against that starlight sword. Se-erin hurriedly drew her Moonlight Sword from her waist.

CLANG-!

“What a fine sword…”

Handel’s gaze swept over the sword in Se-erin’s hand. It had collided with the starlight sword made of Sword Energy Star Steel yet maintained its form completely. Not even the blade was damaged—it was truly worthy of being called a masterpiece.

Handel stopped in place. Though he had the advantage, he didn’t pursue Se-erin. He simply looked around silently and glanced up at the sky once.

Everything in the world felt new to him. He had opened his eyes in a new body after crossing dimensions. He was no different from a newborn infant, and even his original memories weren’t intact.

‘Who am I?’

It was a question he had endlessly asked himself since opening his eyes in this unfamiliar body. As he swung his sword to fight, those memories began to become clearer.

‘The Knight of Starlight.’

That was what he had been called.

Se-erin, having created distance between them, breathed heavily. At some point, Handel’s aura had changed. More precisely, it happened right after he forged his sword from starlight. His previously casual stance had found a proper form, and faint starlight settled on his shoulders, forming the shape of a cape.

The image of Handel that she remembered began to fade away. It was as if someone else’s information was being overlaid on top of it. Se-erin bit her lip and pointed the tip of her sword at her opponent.

‘He’s getting stronger in real-time…’

She could still hold on for now. The question was how long she could endure. She wondered if it would have made a difference if she had brought the other two swords she usually carried.

‘No… the Formless Flying Sword technique wouldn’t be much help right now.’

Drip-

The moment blood dripped from Se-erin’s arm, it served as a signal. The forms of both girls became blurry.

CRASH-!

Another collision. Sword met sword, releasing a massive shockwave. A storm-like wind followed, sweeping through both girls’ hair.

“Kugh…”

With each clash, it was Se-erin who suffered damage. Yet she couldn’t avoid crossing swords. If she didn’t block her opponent’s blade, she would inevitably be wounded. Se-erin swallowed the blood welling up in her throat and swung her sword.

Unlike Se-erin, Handel remained completely at ease. With a light smile, he watched Se-erin before swinging his sword belatedly. Nevertheless, the starlight sword reached its destination faster than Se-erin’s.

CLANG-!

A light strike broke Se-erin’s stance. Through the wide gap between her body and arm, her startled gaze was revealed. Handel stepped forward through that opening and whispered.

-It will all be over when you wake up.

A chill ran down Se-erin’s spine the moment she heard those words. Immediately after, she faced seven stars covering the space before her. In an instant, seven thrusts occupied the air. There was nowhere to escape.

THUD-THUD-THUD-!

Her arms, legs, and shoulder were pierced. The attacks skillfully avoided vital points. It felt as if there was no intention to kill, only to render her unable to fight. Through the wounds, an invading energy began to cover Se-erin’s meridians.

It was a technique that combined attack and acupressure simultaneously.

Yet Se-erin didn’t fall. The White Dragon Heart Sutra had the ability to suppress pain throughout the body. Pain that would have made an ordinary person faint felt only dull and numb to Se-erin. Even the acupressure wasn’t a major problem. From the beginning, Se-erin didn’t use internal energy. She used different meridians.

“Huu…”

One breath. The minimum time needed to cast a technique. She sacrificed her body to buy that time. Mana flowed from Se-erin’s entire body, spreading in circles on the wind.

Perhaps sensing something strange, Handel’s expression hardened.

Step-

One step. The distance Se-erin advanced. As the gap between her and Handel narrowed, a small murmur escaped Se-erin’s lips.

Inner World Manifestation

A World for the Empress

The mana that dominated the space moved with a single purpose, creating a mystery. Pure white snow accumulated on the pitch-black ground, and the gentle breeze transformed into a storm carrying biting cold.

A snowstorm approached, covering the black night sky. On the snowfield that spread out, Se-erin raised her sword. It was a domain that rejected all powers except her own.

The starlight sword in Handel’s hand disappeared. The starlight wrapped around her like a cape vanished as well. When the starlight, swept away by the freezing cold, completely disappeared.

A massive wolf appeared behind Se-erin.

[Growl.]

The composure disappeared from Handel’s face. She frowned as she looked at her hands. The moment her internal energy flowed outward, it vanished. It completely escaped her control and disappeared. This meant she could no longer gather starlight to create a sword or use protective energy to shield her body.

This was a world completely different from what she knew. Handel, the Knight of Starlight who had lost her name, realized this fact painfully.

“I was too complacent…”

Crunch-

A faint footstep echoed across the white snowfield. Immediately after, Se-erin’s form approached as if sliding, swinging her sword wrapped in the snowstorm. The wolf’s widely opened mouth followed, enveloping the space.

CRASH-!

The wolf that fell with the sword struck the snow-covered ground. A massive explosion occurred, and Handel’s body was thrown backward, unable to withstand the impact.

Se-erin pursued Handel and thought to herself that she couldn’t hold out much longer. Blood continued to flow from her pierced wounds. If the fight dragged on, it would be herself, not Handel, who would collapse.

“Haa…”

She steadied her breathing and prepared for the next attack. At the same time, the entire space shook. The white snowfield revealed to the outside world was Se-erin’s mental landscape. Every time she prepared an attack, a significant change occurred in the space.

Swoosh-

The moment Se-erin’s form leaped from the ground, the wolf standing behind her melted and sank beneath the snowfield. The next moment, the wolf appeared directly beneath Handel.

The wolf that rose from below opened its mouth wide and swallowed Handel whole.

CHOMP-!

Just as Se-erin’s sword was falling, the wolf’s head that had swallowed Handel began to swell, and from within, a blood-covered girl burst out.

Though her entire body was covered in wounds as if torn by sharp teeth, her eyes remained vibrant. Immediately after, Se-erin’s sword plunged toward Handel. The sight of it falling from the sky was like a white lightning bolt striking down.

Just as the Moonlight Sword wrapped in the snowstorm was about to touch Handel’s shoulder, Handel’s fist struck Se-erin’s sword.

CLANG-!

Unable to release internal energy outward, she had no protective energy to shield her delicate skin. It was bare human flesh striking hard steel. Her hand couldn’t possibly remain intact. The skin was crushed, revealing white bone amid the red blood.

This caused the sword’s path to deviate. As Se-erin’s sword grazed Handel’s shoulder, Handel rotated her body and extended her other hand for the next attack. A tremendous wave of energy burst from the small girl’s bare hand. But Se-erin didn’t dodge.

The wind still wrapped around her entire body. She thought it could easily block a light fist attack, unlike the starlight sword.

Se-erin also prepared her next attack. After releasing the sword that was swinging downward, she rotated her body and extended her leg.

The next moment, Handel’s arm struck Se-erin’s abdomen, and Se-erin’s leg hit Handel’s head. Both girls were simultaneously thrown back.

CRASH-!

Se-erin flew helplessly and rolled continuously across the white snow. The world spun before her eyes, her arms and legs flailing randomly. Thanks to the White Dragon Heart Sutra, she didn’t feel much pain.

But she couldn’t put strength into her arms and legs. This meant that her opponent’s attack had penetrated the armor of wind. Se-erin came to a stop after several more exchanges between ground and sky.

“Haa…”

Her vision blurred momentarily. Se-erin slowly raised her body. Though she couldn’t maintain a proper stance due to her trembling arms and legs, she somehow managed to stand up.

She looked at the world through her flickering vision. The biting snowfall raged fiercely. Her created world was still intact. Through the raging snowstorm, Se-erin raised her hand.

Simultaneously, the Moonlight Sword that had fallen to the ground slowly rose.

‘Ashen…’

With her vision impaired, she spread her sensing field to find her opponent. However, Se-erin had to tilt her head in confusion. Handel’s presence couldn’t be felt in her widely spread sensing field.

After staring at the world for a long time, Se-erin lowered her arm. The Moonlight Sword fell to the ground, and the white snowfield began to disappear. Through the fading mental world, one alien hole collapsed. Around it, black starlight faintly settled.

“She got away…”