Chapter 188 - FOUNDING ANNIVERSARY BALL (5)

Chapter 188 - FOUNDING ANNIVERSARY BALL (5)

Terms used in this chapter:

Solar Flare?– this was actually the blinding light attack move Jude used on his match with First Sword in the Banquet of Swords. It’s a reference to Dragon Ball’s Solar Flare move, and Solar Flare is also known as Sun Fist or Solar Fist.

What happened?

Why was First Sword on the Lord Protector’s side?

First Sword in the game.

He was not in the royal capital.

To begin with, the Banquet of Swords itself was not held, so he went back to the Sword School after taking care of a few things in the royal capital.

What had happened after that?

He wasn’t involved in anything big.

He was a character whose setting was close to Princess Daphne and Prince Dion.

After the S?len Kingdom was nearly destroyed, he also died when the Sword School was destroyed by one of the 7 major calamities, Georg the Slayer, but that was all that they knew about him.

Even if Jude and Cordelia were rotten waters, it was impossible for them to know what was not known in the game.

It was the same reason why they didn’t know how Lena died, or where and what Velkian and Fran were doing at this time.

‘But… but even so…’

They had never imagined it.

Although First Sword’s achievements that was indirectly revealed in the game was short, there was nothing very strange about it.

‘Moreover, the reason for his betrayal.’

The reason why such a swordsman turned to the demon followers.

Jude knew why the Lord Protector became a traitor.

He was afraid of death.

To be exact, he wanted to live and enjoy a long life.

But he did not want to become an undead with a rotting body.

Rather, he wanted to recover his body in his prime, and there was only one way to fulfill his wishes, to the best of his knowledge.

‘Turn himself into a demonic human.’

Become one with the demon.

And in doing so, he would become an immortal being that transcended humans.

The Lord Protector wanted to be united with a great demon, who would raise his existence to a higher level and not be just an ordinary demon, so the Devil’s Hand demanded that he annihilate the royalty in return.

Jude understood the Lord Protector.

Rather than sympathizing with his thoughts, Jude reasonably understood why he had such an idea and why it motivated him to betray the country he had protected for his entire life.

The reason why the Lord Protector developed into that kind of person could be shortened into the phrase, ‘the strong prey on the weak.’

His character was formed by that.

An obsession with life.

He had been strong at one time, but he had now declined and was considered the weakest among the Ten Great Swordmasters.

But First Sword was different.

He was still young.

It was strange to say that he was younger than Jude because of Jude’s previous life, but in any case, it didn’t make sense for him to betray the country because he was afraid of dying from old age.

Moreover, he was a recognized genius.

What on earth did he lack?

Why did he betray the S?len Kingdom?

When he saw the talents of Maximilian and Leon, wasn’t he someone who even worried about the S?len Kingdom’s need for such a talent?

‘There are two possibilities.’

One was that First Sword took a completely different path from the game due to the butterfly effect that they caused for the past six months.

But that possibility was low.

Rather, the other one was much more realistic.

It was possible that he was a person related to the demon followers even in the game.

Among the Ten Great Swordmasters, there were some who turned to the demon followers after the fall of the S?len Kingdom. And most of them abandoned their old names and took up new names.

If that was the case, it was possible that First Sword did so too.

His death while protecting the Sword School was a hoax, and he started using a different name on that day.

‘That isn’t important right now.’

In one breath.

No, maybe even a little longer than that.

Jude had many thoughts at once, but he did not continue it for long.

“It’s useless.”

Cordelia said, and Jude agreed.

The reason for First Sword’s betrayal.

The relationship between First Sword and the demon followers.

Would it be possible to change the mind of First Sword by finding out the reason?

Would Jude be able to suggest something better so that First Sword would point his sword to the Lord Protector?

That was impossible.

Looking at the current First Sword, Jude himself could tell.

The eyes of First Sword was shining.

Like a child with an interesting toy in front of them, First Sword smiled as his eyes glistened.

“I’ll leave it to you.”

The Lord Protector turned around and began running again.

But Jude and Cordelia, nor First Sword, looked at him.

Because the former could not let their guard down even for a moment, while the latter was more interested in the two in front of him than the Lord Protector.

“I wasn’t really going to get involved.”

First Sword and the Lord Protector.

Were they really colleagues? Was their relationship something that one could call as true colleagues?

First Sword had no intention of intervening in the Lord Protector’s plan.

The Lord Protector did not ask for help, perhaps because of his pride, and he did not strongly ask for help from the Devil’s Hand either.

There was a separate contract between First Sword and the Devil’s Hand.

‘So until that day came… I tried to live quietly as First Sword.’

The S?len Kingdom.

The S?len royal family.

In the first place, First Sword’s loyalty to the royal family wasn’t very strong.

He was the best sword in the Sword School, and not a royal knight unlike the other Ten Great Swordmasters.

‘Cornwell seemed to misunderstand it a bit though.’

When he told Cornwell what he felt in the empire, the latter misunderstood it as loyalty to the kingdom.

It was quite a reasonable misunderstanding, but it was useful for him here and there.

‘Especially to these children right now.’

He talked about the future of the kingdom with a serious look on his face, and the good children believed him.

First Sword snickered as he stared at Jude and Cordelia again.

The Banquet of Swords that he thought would never be held.

The two people he met there.

Children who further amplified his thoughts that Maximilian and Leon had started.

“Jude, did you know? That I like you and Cordelia.”

He was serious.

First Sword liked the two.

He did not lie when he said that he stayed in the royal capital because of the two.

He wanted to see it once.

What these children could do.

And what would happen then.

‘I also wanted to see them at the ball.’

And he was completely satisfied with the result.

Cordelia was astonishingly beautiful, and the young love between the two was very cute and adorable.

‘To the point where I want to destroy it.’

Just like a desire to stain the pure white snow.

I want to break them.

I want to humiliate them.

I want to trample them.

‘Yes, I’ve been waiting for this.’

The very moment we would face each other as enemies.

I wanted to do so from the first time we met.

I wanted to break you two.

“I won’t kill you.”

Because I like you two.

It’s such a waste to kill you two here.

Cordelia did not curse like usual.

Jude opened his mouth to speak instead of attacking or running away.

“Do you know… what will happen?”

When all the royal family members die.

When the barrier would disappear as a result, and the divine sword Claíomh Solas would fall into the hands of the demon followers.

“Yes, I know. Roughly.”

“Is that true? Do you really know? The barrier does not just defend or search for enemies.”

The barrier had the ability to reveal the true form of demonic humans and could capture the location where demonic energy was released.

It suppressed the power of demons that could be used for summoning demons in the royal capital, and even in the creation of demonic humans.

But it wasn’t just that.

A properly operated barrier could do more than that.

“That’s right. That’s why the demon followers are trying to get rid of the barrier. And in the midst of this, I like that you two still use polite words to me.”

First Sword smiled and Jude made up his mind.

It was impossible to buy time with words anymore.

“As I thought, I like you two.”

First Sword said. And then the light burst.

There was no sound.

A swift sword faster than the eyes could see cut through the space.

‘Five moves.’

It was similar to that time in the Banquet of Swords, yet also different.

Back then, it was a simple test, but now, it was a real battle.

But it was similar in that First Sword was not doing his best.

He would not kill them.

He limited himself to a number of moves that would not kill them.

He suppressed his power.

He also lowered the speed of his sword attack by a bit.

Twaaaak!

The space above Jude’s head split.

Rather than avoiding the attack, Jude flew as if he was running away, and he lowered himself to the ground and looked at First Sword.

The moment First Sword swung his sword the second time, Jude kicked the ground.

Hyper-Fast Thunderbolt.

A thunderbolt that was faster than the wind.

But it was seen in First Sword’s eyes.

As an experienced swordsman, he was able to read and calculate Jude’s movements.

In addition, one that Jude overlooked.

‘Yes, I won’t overdo it.’

Because he had no intention to kill them.

But even so, it was still the sword of light.

He sharply turned his sword the moment he unfolded his sword attack.

Jude saw it. He read the trajectory. But the only thing he could do was to avoid it.

Even the attack that was slower than usual was still fast.

No, it was the difference of his absolute skill and not just his speed.

Jude’s cheek was cut.

The tip of his shoulder was cut a bit too, and warm blood flowed.

But Jude couldn’t stop.

He had to buy time.

The third move of First Sword should not be aimed at Cordelia.

He used Hyper-Fast Thunderbolt again.

But it was too late.

The moment Jude groaned in pain, Cordelia rushed towards First Sword.

Three consecutive <Haste> spells.

A tremendous speed that was unimaginable for a wizard, but First Sword was someone who could even read the Hyper-Fast Thunderbolt.

He swung his sword.

He tried to hurt Cordelia with the same trick he used on Jude.

And Cordelia saw the sword of First Sword.

She understood it the moment she saw it, without the process of reading or calculating it. She instinctively did something that Jude couldn’t think of – no, he thought of it, but it was not something he could execute.

‘He won’t kill us.’

She used those words in reverse.

Cordelia believed in the skill of First Sword. So instead of twisting her body to avoid the sword, she pushed her own throat into the direct line of his attack.

“Cordelia!”

Jude screamed and First Sword was confused by Cordelia’s sudden behavior. He quickly changed the course of his sword, and as a result, he exposed a gap.

And Cordelia did not miss that moment.

An animal.

A wild beast.

A monster who instinctively read the flow of the battlefield.

Blood flowed down Cordelia’s fair neck. Cordelia rushed towards First Sword, and before he could do his next move, she fired a shot of pure mana.

Bang!

She pushed out First Sword.

After he crashed into the wall, she kept pushing.

Because Jude wanted it.

Because Jude wanted to buy time.

“Aaaaaaah!”

Double casting, Spell’s Echo, and high-speed chanting.

She didn’t use Arkeman’s treasure. Instead, she poured out all the mana she could muster in an instant towards First Sword.

“Die!”

She knew it was impossible.

But she was still serious.

And Jude threw his body. He grabbed Cordelia by the waist and rolled on the floor.

A sword attack.

A burst of light cut the magic attack.

A pure white light cut through the place where Cordelia was standing until just now.

“<Shield!>”

Cordelia shouted, and the sword of light struck the translucent shield.

It couldn’t stop it.

The sword of First Sword couldn’t be blocked by <Shield> magic.

But Cordelia still shouted.

To buy even a bit more time.

The shield cracked.

It made his sword attack dull, even by just a bit. It slowed the speed of his sword attack.

And at that moment, Jude opened the fifth door.

The entire place was shaken by the explosive release of his internal energy.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sword attack twisted. Jude charged towards First Sword while Cordelia shot her magic. Although it was for a moment, the smile on First Sword’s face disappeared.

His sword attack split the space.

No, it shrouded it.

Instead of attacking, Jude released the black dragon’s energy to defend, and the Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors’ fifth door gave him the power to block the sword attack of First Sword.

But First Sword did not stand still as he swung his sword. He used the unique footstep technique of the Sword School to narrow his distance with Jude, and Jude expected it and sent a punch.

It was literally a Lightning Strike Fist.

It was fast and powerful, but First Sword’s hand pushed Jude’s fist. First Sword grabbed Jude’s fist and pulled it closer, breaking Jude’s balance.

But he was wrong.

Jude let himself be pulled. Instead of resisting, he let his body go faster than First Sword expected, and as he approached closer, he used Heart of the Sun from the sun’s energy he gathered on his own heart.

A type of penetrating attack that he already used on Scarlet, and it was an attack that directly struck the sun’s energy on the enemy’s body, ignoring the armor.

He applied it.

Jude released the energy of the sun from his own heart!

“Gah?!”

Even First Sword couldn’t help but be surprised by the attack from a complete blind spot.

But that was it.

At the same time he let go of Jude’s wrist, he twisted his body and brushed past the Heart of the Sun, swinging his sword again.

“<Light!>”

At that moment, Cordelia shouted.

It was to deprive First Sword of his vision with a blinding light, just like the Solar Flare attack he used a few days ago.

But First Sword’s reaction was faster.

At the same time he closed his eyes, he swung his sword towards the place he sensed Jude.

He wouldn’t kill Jude.

But he wouldn’t spare the other from losing a limb.

Jude’s arm was seriously cut.

His injury was so great that it was difficult to say that First Sword had missed, but instead of screaming in pain, Jude kicked the ground and threw himself into the secret passage. Cordelia flew over to Jude and they hugged each other in the air.

The sword of First Sword cut through the air. Jude and Cordelia nullified the sword of First Sword with Fairy Steps at once, and they both fell to the floor with First Sword rushing towards them again.

And Jude didn’t think of escaping.

Because he calculated it.

Because Cordelia had a hunch.

The reason why they were buying time.

The reason why they threw themselves into the secret passage.

There was one reason.

Unlike First Sword, it was an ally they could ask in advance, and someone who could fulfill their request.

The sword of First Sword bounced.

It wasn’t because of Jude and Cordelia.

A sword attack was shot from the secret passage.

Attacks flew like the wind one after another!

Klaklang!

Swords collided.

Light and wind raged, and First Sword looked at his front in joy.

He met the man standing in front of Jude and Cordelia who had hugged each other and fell.

“Count Bayer.”

One of the Ten Great Swordmasters.

A swordsman from the north.

And another name he had.

A title that he returned himself after a defeat in the past, but was something that was clearly his once.

“The Sword Saint of Wind.”

Count Bayer did not bother to answer in words.

He responded by showing the other his sword of wind.