191
Tyranno
“What the heck is going on?”
Imperial Knight Jarn frowned at his subordinate’s question.
‘Rather, I would like to ask.’
Jarn muttered, looking down at his empty right arm.
Jarn also couldn’t understand what was going on.
Looking back, it was wrong from the start. It was strange to be sent to the East during a time of chaos on the continent.
There was a sudden attack by the Knights of the Holy War and the addition of rebels. Two Imperial Knights were lost in this strange situation where the Aura was cut off.
Among them was Full Harta. He was a brat who only pretended to be cool, but he was a person of significance to Jarn.
Of course, Jarn himself was responsible for feeding it, but that wasn’t enough.
At that time, a fire broke out and the situation was put out.
It was a very serious matter for the Order to join forces with the rebels and attack the Imperial Knights, so Marshal Balhar Khan ordered them to stand by.
At first, they followed orders, but everyone was gnashing their teeth. How dare they point their swords at the royal knights.
As major events occurred one after another, it was difficult to keep up.
With even the enemy Balhar Khan gone, Jarn was able to hold his ground for the time being.
Then came the order from Marshal Balhar Khan.
‘The great devil.’
I wondered why the Great Demon was only leading the external security forces.
Since it was an order, I had to follow it, but I was suspicious of the changes in content compared to before.
‘If it’s Aaron, then he is the person that Lord Balhar Khan asked me to bring.’
Lord Balhar Khan had ordered the capture of a man named Aaron and Lady Vivian.
Among them, he had even told a man named Aaron to bring him to him by name, but now that opponent is the great devil…
It didn’t make sense. It could be that he was extremely nervous because of Full Harta’s death, but it was a problem that couldn’t be easily overlooked.
“Then what about the church?”
The man next to him asked in a trembling voice. The other royal knights had similar expressions.
The Templar Knights joined the rebels and turned their swords on the Imperial Knights, killing two of them.
Of course, the casualties on the other side would have been several times greater, but this was clearly treason. Treason was a matter that had to be dealt with first and foremost.
But I couldn’t help but feel dissatisfied when I was suddenly told to focus on slaying the Great Demon.
The Archdemon was a serious problem, but not as much as the religious sect that joined the rebels.
Jarn bit his lip. It was right to follow orders, but he couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
Marshal Balhar Khan told them to focus on the Archdemon, but…
‘There are still Templars and rebels in Cassidy. It is not a matter to be taken lightly.’
They were imperial knights who were in bad shape due to the battle. They were treated with potions, but they did not trust the sect, so they did not accept their treatment.
Jarndo’s right arm was cut off. He could recover later when he returned to the palace, but for now, there was nothing he could do.
Even though ten imperial knights were more than enough to deal with the Great Demon, the problem was the sect and rebels behind them.
‘No, there was no way the church could defeat the great devil.’
In particular, the hatred of the Knights of the Temple towards demons was beyond imagination.
Jarn’s eyes narrowed. Marshal Balhar Khan had told him to focus on slaying the Archdemon, but had not given any instructions on how to do so.
Of course, the credit for decapitating the Great Demon had to come from here. After all, since we had come all the way to the border, there had to be something to gain.
dripping.
“I came from the church. The purpose is to request a discussion about what happened earlier.”
The imperial knight guarding the door relayed the message.
I don’t know why he attacked the imperial knight, but he had clearly come to his senses now.
‘First, they say there is a great devil without revealing his identity, and then they spread out a net to surround him···.’
Jarn nodded at the concrete plan.
“The target is Aaron, the leader of the 4th division of the Cassidy Outer Wall Guard. He is believed to be the Archdemon, so everyone should be careful. He intends to use the cult, so the identity of the Archdemon is a secret.”
Jarn said in the driest voice possible.
“Then what do we do with those guys?”
One of the imperial knights pointed to the inner room and asked.
There were the lord of Cassadic, the leader of the rebels, and the knights imprisoned there.
If it were true, they would have beheaded and hung him long ago, but now there was no point in provoking the rebels.
Anyway, when Jarn returned after finishing his work, he planned to hold both the church and the rebels responsible.
“For now, we will focus on the Great Demon as ordered by Marshal Balhar Khan. We will hold you accountable when we return to the capital.”
Everyone nodded at Jarn’s words.
“Call the wyvern.”
Jarn, who had given the order, nodded his head.
The door opened for him-.
The knights of the temple and a stern-looking priest entered.
Jarn’s eyes narrowed.
“I am the abbot of Brighton. First, I will treat you.”
A man who introduced himself as the abbot approached us briskly.
Jarn unconsciously took a step back at her bold steps.
***
‘···You ate my flesh.’
The sword master muttered as he looked at the old man’s sword filled with aura.
He checked his left shoulder. The flesh was coming back up, but recovery was extremely slow.
It was a wound I received from that guy earlier. I thought he was just an ignorant beast, but he had a sinister side.
‘···Was it possible to do it with flesh?’
The sword’s master furrowed his brow. He was an old man who had never used transcendence before, so he didn’t know much.
The old man charged straight ahead without answering. It was an honest and foolish swordsmanship that suited the old man. The swordsman lightly took him in.
It didn’t matter if the old man used his aura. After all, there was no way he would lose once he held the sword.
Kwaang! The old man’s sword was blocked by the sword that had been drawn late, and the old man’s body shook violently.
The aura on the old man’s sword was momentarily disturbed. However, it quickly regained its momentum.
Even if it was the same aura, there was bound to be a difference in its usability.
But the old man did not stop his sword.
The sword’s owner calmly returned the sword to the old man. Then the old man circled around and continued swinging his sword.
Since they learned from the same master, their swordsmanship was quite good. It was a swordsmanship skill that could be called the best on the continent, excluding himself as the master of the sword.
However, right now, the opponent was himself. No matter how many times he did it, the result was the same.
If the old man realized one thing, the sword master would realize a hundred. The gap would only widen.
Still, he was more fun than the others, so the sword master continued to accept him.
I kept hanging out with him, expecting him to get discouraged at some point.
Then, at some point, the old man’s sword changed. The overflowing hatred gradually decreased in size. The sword became dull. The sword’s trembling gradually decreased.
“You noticed.”
The sword master raised the corners of his mouth.
The old man burst into laughter. Bloody tears welled up in the corners of his eyes and flowed down. The sword shook again.
“But it’s not easy, right?”
The sword master looked at the sight and laughed. He was the one who took the lead in killing his own flesh and blood. How can one kill hostility?
The exchange of swords continued. The old man’s sword kept shaking and stopping. The sword’s owner continued to support him from his position.
‘Not enough. More.’
The sword master wished for the old man to rise one level further. Even his current level was not enough to quench his thirst.
The sword’s master truly wished that the old man would let go of his emotions and reach a state of transcendence.
The aura split the ground as it crossed. The air burst and made a loud noise.
If that sword could no longer shake, it would mean that the past had been shaken off. Then, true transcendence would be achieved.
‘Tsk.’
The old man was there. Although it seemed unwavering, the old man’s sword was shaking slightly.
“Your bloodline has tough neck bones. No matter how much the knights complained-.”
As soon as I brought up the subject, the old man’s shaking became more violent.
The tears of blood that had stopped falling began to drip again. The corners of the lips that had been raised with force fell again, and through the gap the roar of a wild beast leaked out.
The sword’s owner shook his head at that ugly appearance.
The old man will never be able to shake it off. He will not understand the great meaning.
Old people were not qualified to transcend.
Judging him became a chore.
The sword master clicked his tongue and roughly flicked his claws. The old man’s aura split open at once. The impact caused the old man to roll on the floor.
The old man, who had been rolling around for a while, got up and grabbed something. It was the arm of the ignorant man who had cut it off earlier.
The old man had a bunch of severed arms tied around his waist, who didn’t know when he’d gotten them.
The old man glared at the sword’s owner and put it in his mouth. The thick arm disappeared in an instant.
The old man’s demeanor changed again. His rough shell rose and his eyes turned yellow.
‘Is that why you kept turning? It’s useless.’
I clenched my claws in deep disappointment.
The master of the sword originally did not give a name to his swordsmanship.
Even if the master of the sword lightly swung his claws, it was higher than the swordsmanship that others admired. If you gave a name to such a trivial thing, it would be impossible to remember.
Moreover, I thought it was a stupid thing to do because the sword’s power would not change no matter what name I gave it.
There were a few names that the sword’s owner had given them. No, he didn’t name them, the names just came to him.
At this level, I think I can even cut off my foolishness.
With a neat aura and posture, and long, drawn-out breathing, the old man drew his claws downwards.
‘Cloud cutting-.’
The border stretched from top to bottom. Everything was divided into left and right along the drawn line.
From the ground you are walking on to the clouds in the sky.
There were no exceptions.
At that moment, the old man swung his sword horizontally.
A sword with a rough aura like that of a wild beast stood guard over the boundary. The old man’s sword shook violently, but its direction was constant thanks to the strength gained from the shell.
A rough and unstable line drawn horizontally.
That wasn’t Cloud Slash. In the first place, Cloud Slash wasn’t a sword technique that could be imitated by watching. It was a sword technique that only the master of the sword who had reached the pinnacle could perform.
The old man’s swordsmanship was nothing more than a poor imitation.
That poor imitation drew a small line when it came to the body that had been gained by eating the arm of an ignorant man, and the aura it had gained from the master of the sword.
The ‘cloud beating’ that had never been an exception was slightly off for the first time.
The old man’s left arm rolled on the floor. The old man glared with bloodshot eyes and took another step forward. The sword master chewed his lip and twirled his claws.
Kwaang-! The new form shook with a loud noise. The sword master blew off the old man’s right arm.
I could have hit the neck, but I thought that would leave me with this uncomfortable feeling, so I aimed for the right arm. I thought it would work until I shook it off.
The old man, whose arms had been blown off, instead advanced forward. The old man bit the sword master’s nape.
The swordsman’s mind became clouded by the sharp pain he felt in his neck.
The sword master swung his claws with a clawed face. However, the old man had already fallen.
The old man, expressionless once again, chewed. Red blood dripped from the corners of his mouth and eyes.
The sword master groaned softly at the pain he felt in his neck. Pain was unfamiliar to the sword master who had always won overwhelmingly.
Gulp-. The old man swallowed heavily and tore off the arm of the man tied to his waist.
Ugh. With a small scream, the old man’s two arms grew back. They were arms encased in shells. The old man continued to move his jaw while looking at the sword’s owner with a blank expression.
The sword master could no longer contain his anger and took a step forward. The step was directed at the old man.
The old man raised the corners of his mouth when he saw him.
“So the target was me.”
The old man stepped back slightly, mumbling in a voice filled with laughter.
The sword master grimaced. Pain clouded his judgment, and he ended up showing the old man the direction his footsteps were taking.
“I wonder where fate will lead me.”
The old man who had been mumbling like that jumped back.
‘Running away – you’ve definitely changed.’
The sword’s master followed him with a very wrinkled face.
The steps were light. That meant the opponent was clearly in danger. However, the old man’s steps were even faster.
It was as the old man said. As a side effect of transcendence, the sword master always had a goal in his steps.
This time the target was an old man, so it was clear that the footsteps would be directed towards him until the old man died or a more obvious threat appeared.
‘I wondered why it was only now that I turned to the old man… It turns out he was the cause.’
The sword master followed the fleeing old man and assessed the situation.
Why did the footsteps that had never been directed towards the old man continue?
The sword master guessed that the cause was the encounter with the ignorant man earlier. Since then, the old man’s demeanor and attitude had completely changed.
After walking for a while like that, the surrounding scenery had changed.
‘Coming into the mountains. What are you thinking?’
The sword master frowned as he walked. No matter how dense the mountains were, he could not shake off his determined steps.
‘Are you just wasting time?’
Pitter-patter. The sound of rain falling could be heard from afar. Somewhere, an insect was scurrying. Grass that had grown up to my ankles swept over my knees.
It was dark because the sun wasn’t shining…
‘Shallow numbers-.’
The sword master swung his claws lightly. There was no way he could be affected by something like this, since his vision was blocked.
Talk.
The flying thing was split by the claws swung by the sword master. Kuung-, the huge old tree beyond it was cut in half and fell down.
‘A stone?’
The sword’s owner furrowed his brow.
Hey knight- Hey knight-.
At that moment, a low, gloomy melody heard from somewhere grated my nerves.
‘You’re talking nonsense.’
The sword master frowned and took a step forward. The steps continued for a long time. He was not tired, but his nerves were tense.
At that moment, I felt the coolness again.
Talk.
The sword master swung his claws roughly.
The trees in the direction where the sound was heard were cut down all at once. A huge hole was created in the dense forest.
This time it was a stone again.
I started to feel frustrated and annoyed.
Far, far away – run away -.
The sound of the song heard again grated on my nerves.
The sword master understood what the bastard was thinking.
‘You’re hunting me.’
The result will be the same anyway.
It just makes things more annoying.
Hey knight- Hey knight-.
A deep sense of annoyance rose up in me at the song whose direction I had no idea about.
‘Did you think you could hide in a place like this?’
The sword’s master adjusted his claws.
This time the world was divided horizontally.
***
‘Still the same. No, it’s gotten even better. … That damned genius.’
The predator smiled wryly, caressing my waist.
I knew he was impatient from the start, but to cut down all the trees in front of me – he was ignorant.
The predator clicked its tongue, took out the arm it had been holding at its waist, and put it in its mouth.
The disgusting taste made me feel nauseous. However, I held it in and kept pushing it in. It was a gift from my grandson.
‘Letting go of your emotions… It’s not easy.’
The predator gritted its teeth and muttered in the rising heat.
I understood it in my head, but he was the one who killed my own flesh and blood. How could I suppress my emotions when such a man was right in front of me?
‘From the beginning, he was a guy who only cared about himself.’
He muttered, glancing at the guy in the distance.
He talked as if he knew everything about transcendence, but he was the only one who knew anything about it to begin with.
Moreover, he had never been defeated with that ridiculous talent, so it would have been easy for him to meet those conditions.
‘···Lisa.’
The predator muttered while caressing my face. My daughter’s face had been trembling since a while ago. I couldn’t think of the faces of my other blood relatives.
“I wonder where my footsteps will lead when you die. That guy earlier was quite a threat, so I think it would be good to deal with him in one go.”
The voice came closer, mixed with irritation. I bit my lip at that.
As if he couldn’t find his way due to the side effects of transcendence, he would only move towards his goal. Once his goal was set, he wouldn’t be able to turn back.
Since he was the target of the bastard, he had no choice but to pursue him as long as he didn’t die. As long as he didn’t get caught…
‘···What a bad old man.’
The predator shook its head. That wasn’t enough.
‘This is hunting.’
The predator rose from his seat, holding his breath.
It was easy to catch a beast that only knew how to advance. However, the problem this time was that the beast was a very large one.
‘Opportunity comes.’
The old man forced the corners of his mouth to rise as he looked at his grandson’s gift hanging on his waistband.
Now, there are four gifts left.
Before he can use him, the beast will inflict a fatal wound that will cause him to return to his lair.
Even if the past is erased-.
If you can’t erase your feelings, you can erase your memories.
The old man looked down at his ugly fist and forced a smile.
***
‘···Twice. Now there’s only one left.’
I licked my lips as I watched the clouds split left and right.
The flesh given as a gift suited his taste, and the swordsman Daiso was able to stand up to the swordsman’s master quite well.
However, the sword master Daiso did not use the sword master countermeasure method that I devised.
‘Just close your eyes and do it… tsk.’
He was an ignorant medieval man, so he didn’t implement the solution even though I told him.
It seemed like he didn’t understand the simple concept of sticking a sword into his arm and it turning into a claw.
Ugh.
“This is all falling apart.”
I clicked my tongue at this thin sound.
The five eldest sons were gnashing their teeth because they were so angry. They were in that state the whole time when I tried to stop them from going to help.
If you go into a fight with monsters where the ground splits, clouds split, and the terrain changes with every clash of swords, it’s clear that you’ll only be a hindrance rather than a help.
The five elders were strong, but the level of their opponents was too high.
“In the end, I······.”
The man muttered in a voice filled with guilt and self-loathing. Suddenly, an itch rose up on his left arm.
“Oh, it itches. Hey, scratch here.”
Because of the side effects of the erosion, I couldn’t move my neck below the level of my stomach. It was almost torture to not be able to scratch the itch.
“What is that now… Can’t you see it!”
The five elders shouted. Something that was either rainwater or saliva sprayed out roughly from the bastard’s mouth.
I didn’t understand why he was taking out his anger on me for not being able to help because he was weak, but I endured it because I was his only filial son.
“Yeah, I can’t see it anymore. Oh, it tickles.”
The sword master and the sword master had already gone to the second round. The loud noise that had been heard was now barely audible.
“Clearly, just now···.”
The five elders blinked and muttered stupidly.
“Oh, scratch it a little.”
“Damn it! Shut your mouth!”
“If you scratch it, it tickles.”
When I urged him, the five elders scratched their heads and screamed softly. They looked crazy.
“···where.”
The five elders, whose faces soon gave up, asked.
“Here. Under my elbow.”
I pointed in the direction with my eyes. The expressions of the five elders, who were crouching down and muttering curses, became mysterious.
“What’s wrong? You look anxious.”
“···.”
The fifth eldest son lifted my arm without answering. When I saw him, my expression became similar to his.
“Crazy. Why is it like this?”
– Ahem···.
The severed part of his left arm had grown back ambiguously.
The original thick and handsome manly arms were gone, replaced by the cute little arms of a baby. They looked like the hands of a 23-month-old.
‘Why are you doing this, you little tenant?’
– I used up all my strength.
He frowned at the tenant’s answer. He had overdone it, so he must have run out of blood, but-.
‘But this is not right. It would have been better to just leave it alone. Just attach the severed arm to the abbot.’
I was so shocked that I jumped up without realizing it.
My whole body screamed in excruciating pain, but what was more shocking was my tiny arm.
I moved my left arm slightly, and the baby’s arm wiggled. It was just a baby’s arm, and even the fingernails were very cute.
‘Fuck.’
I couldn’t help but curse at the unexpected, deadly cuteness.
‘So you’re saying that all I have to do is collect blood?’
– hmm.
I took a deep breath and calmed down.
My mind was hazy and my body was shaking as if my physical strength was at its limit, but I was able to move.
at that time-.
Kkeeeeek!!!
Amidst the sound of the rain, a familiar sound could be heard from afar. When I raised my head, I saw a line of wyverns flying towards me.
“···The first one will target you.”
The five elders immediately cursed. That sudden declaration gave me a headache. No, it seemed like my head started hurting after seeing the adorable baby’s arms.
“Why him again.”
“If it’s him, I’ll send the imperial knights. He himself will show up at a certain moment.”
I asked back with a lot of irritation, but the five elders gave different answers.
“So why are you after me? We used to be close. We even rode wyverns together. We even did bubibubi.”
As I was pressing my temple with my left hand because of the headache, I was surprised by the softness of the baby’s hand.
“We have to move before he catches up.”
The five elders only said what they wanted to say. I wanted to hit him once, but I held back because I thought that if I hit him with a baby’s hand, he would make a ‘pop!’ sound.
He searched inside the torn breastplate and took out a pocket.
I paid quite a lot of money for the dwarven armor, but I didn’t feel bad about it because I was still alive.
I took out the clothes and armor I had kept as spares from my pocket. My body was constantly lacking strength.
‘Why is it like this again?’
When I touched it, I checked my right arm through the torn clothes. There was a sword blade sticking out from the palm of my right arm.
‘It’s really all sorts of things.’
My left arm is a baby’s hand, my right arm is a sword’s hand – I was really annoyed, but since I did both, I had nowhere to vent.
‘Still, it would be good to reduce the length.’
I muttered and carefully put on my clothes. However, because I had baby hands and sword hands, I was extremely slow.
“Can you help me?”
“Tsk.”
“Don’t touch.”
“···It’s noisy.”
The five elders grumbled as they put on the armor with skilled workmanship. It was not the first or second time they had done it, so it quickly became clean.
“···Why is the color like this? Do I have a disease that prevents me from recognizing colors?”
The fifth eldest asked in a very serious voice. He looked me up and down with frightened eyes as if he was looking at someone with an infectious disease.
‘What would an uncivilized medieval man know?’
I didn’t bother to point out his aesthetic sense. As long as the armor was strong and sturdy, that was the end of it.
“Phew-.”
I took a deep breath and moved my body slightly. My body was in a mess, but my mind was more of a problem.
– Hehe.
The tenant’s voice boomed. It felt like the barrier between them had disappeared.
If you let your guard down even a little, it feels like the tenants will take over.
It seemed to be a side effect of excessive erosion. It may be fortunate that it was passed over to this extent, but…
– I would choose that stupid Young-ae···.
‘Fuck you.’
I shook my head at the muttering of the tenant who suddenly came to my senses. I chewed the inside of my mouth to somehow pull myself together. As the pungent scent of blood spread, I came to my senses, albeit a little.
I had a lot of work left to do, so I wanted to avoid drinking alcohol as much as possible, but my throat was so dry right now. So I took out my water bottle and put it in my mouth.
A hot heat went down my esophagus. The heat cleared my dim mind.
“The bugs that haven’t been dealt with are also waiting for their chance. I think they’re losing their minds because of the strong smell you give off.”
The five elders pointed to the forest a little distance away. The insect-like creatures probably referred to the swarm of warlocks or their minions.
It was actually a blessing in disguise for me, as I needed fuel at the time.
I stared at the five elders for a moment. The eyes of the one looking at me were strangely complete. It seemed that he had experienced the effect of the twitching legs while dealing with the master of the sword.
‘···That’s why being handsome is tiring.’
I clicked my tongue and ran my hand through my wet bangs. Perhaps because I had just faced the master of the sword, the imperial knights didn’t feel that heavy.
“You go to Cassidy.”
The faces of the five eldest sons were distorted.
“You crazy bastard. Did you hear me correctly? First, I will mobilize the royal knights to chase you down. And then there are the bugs over there-”
The five elders were furious and swearing awkwardly. The worries of the straight-eyed man were extremely burdensome. That was why the wiggling legs were dangerous.
“Ah, be quiet. My head hurts, so stop talking. If you tell me to go, go. I’m running away, so I’m going to have a hard time. It’s one of my strengths.”
I gave him a thumbs up and smiled. However, since it was a baby’s hand, it didn’t look all that bad.
“It’s over if Cassidy collapses anyway.”
I won’t explain it at length since you probably already know.
I don’t know how things are going, but right now, Cassidy is important.
Besides, I, who had torn off the shoulder of the sword master, could not possibly lose to an imperial knight.
“Don’t die.”
The five elders who had been glaring sharply stepped back.
Soon the bastard disappeared into the thick raindrops.
I looked up at the sky for a moment.
The raindrops were getting heavier. I had just shaken off the master of the sword, and now he was an imperial knight.
‘Anyway, I’m telling you, it’s a shitty place.’
I chuckled and dragged my heavy body.
It seemed like I was going to be late for the appointment.
