Chapter 26 : Chapter 26
Chapter 26: Ambush (2)
‘Captain. Teach me that too. The thing Ejel is practicing.’
‘What. The Sword Net? Ask Semenu about that. She knows everything about it.’
‘No. I’m not expecting that. In the first place, she barely talks to anyone but you, Captain.
The other day, I asked her for a drink, and she just ignored me.’
‘She’s a good kid.’
‘I know that too. The problem is she’s only good to you, Captain. Besides, the Sword Net isn’t even a technique, is it? It’s just being damn sensitive to magic. I might not be like Ejel, but I’m not that sensitive either.’
‘You’re sensitive.’
‘Ah. Not my personality.’
‘Then what do you want me to teach you.’
‘The Origin Flow . How do you do that?’
‘Ah. Interception? It’s easy. Come here.’
‘No, not Interception, the Origin Flow. Who names something so carelessly.’
‘Names are better when they’re intuitive.’
‘Origin Flow is intuitive enough. But are you really going to teach me?’
‘You asked me to.’
‘Still. It’s a secret technique.’
‘What kind of secret technique is that? It’s just know-how.’
‘Captain, you’re too simple. If someone comes at you with a sword, your eyes flip, and you give away your liver and gallbladder…’
‘You don’t like it?’
‘No.’
‘Take out your sword. Coat it with Sword Aura. Right. From here, you just need to touch it slightly. It’s easier with your hand, but that’s dangerous. Just making slight contact with the sword is enough. It doesn’t matter if it’s Sword Aura or sword ki.’
‘…’
‘Once you make a point of contact, you can roughly feel the opponent’s magic or how they wield it. In that state, if you think of it as your own, it moves according to your thoughts, you see? Then…’
‘Huh? What are you saying? How do I wield the opponent’s magic? I’m not just standing here taking hits, I’m in the middle of a battle.’
‘No. I’m telling you, you can do it. You haven’t tried it yet. Try it and then talk. You’re Dujeu of the Sword Tower. It’s easy.’
‘Look. The Sword Aura on your sword just flew over there, didn’t it? I sent it. How about it?
You get the gist, right?’
‘Crazy. Get what… But isn’t that Gerehk’s tent over there?’
‘It is.’
‘It collapsed.’
‘It’s fine. An ambush will come now.’
‘What? Sword Net?’
‘Yeah. Doom Species spotted 100 meters north. Roughly count-level. Perfect.’
***
‘The truth about Mectera.’
…I found that out before.
My standing in the main castle has also become quite solid.
For some reason, even that Aran calls me ‘Young Master’.
‘The old man has also started to show an unusual amount of favor,’
But this was just the starting point.
Things that gave me a headache were piled up everywhere.
Arnea and Janya. The Intelligence. The relationship with the Imperial Family. The weakened Mectera. The Unsetting Sun, which was said to revere Exa.
And… the banquet to be held somewhere in Bahab a month from now.
‘It’s annoying.’
Honestly, the stress had piled up way too much.
It wasn't this bad when I was at the main castle.
Back then, I was happy at the thought of seeing the traitors soon. I thought that since I had the right of summary execution, all I needed to do was get stronger.
‘But I can’t just train without knowing anything until then.’
I thought I had finally left the cage, only to find shackles on my ankles.
Now that I was actually out, there were too many restrictions. Unlike in my past life, the value of Mectera’s name had fallen far too low.
‘It’s probably due to the influence of the Imperial Family and the traitors, but still, it’s just the Intelligence. To mere pigeons.’
Even now, sounds of praise for Akarr echoed from outside the window. For the Hero Akarr! Inadvertently hearing it, Simurtr scrunched up his face.
‘Making a fucking festival like this.’
Simurtr decided to deal with the annoying things right in front of him first.
Starting with the dregs that stained his vision, narrowing his field of view.
That is, the things he could solve right away.
‘The 3rd Sword Order.’
Or whatever Janya had prepared in the neighboring Jabad.
“What? What are you talking about? Why are you asking Juyce? You should be asking me.”
“Suddenly?”
An abrupt question. As Ael and Deban asked back, Juyce flinched.
“Juyce.”
“Yes?”
“When should I return?”
Simurtr’s tone was light.
Anyone would think he was just telling a joke.
“Why are you asking me that…”
“So we can match our schedules.”
Normally, I would have waited leisurely until Janya finished her preparations and then met that ambush.
Because completely uprooting them was better than a half-hearted preemptive strike. And I needed to be sure whether Deban was one of Janya’s forces or not.
I had no intention of keeping a backstabber by my side.
I would just spare his life. If he hit me, I’d let him live. If not, I’d keep him by my side. I was planning to watch him slowly like that.
“Let’s finish this quickly.”
Bahab was right in front of me.
Time had become precious. Janya, Arnea. They kept annoyingly intruding into my thoughts.
It was already cramped enough in there.
“I’m not sure… what you mean.”
The trembling in Juyce’s voice had disappeared, but his complexion was still pale. His color stood out even more because of Deban next to him.
“What is it? What’s going on.”
By this point, Ael had also sensed that something was strange. Judging by Simurtr’s tone, it seemed like he just wanted to joke around, but Juyce’s reaction was unusual.
“Swordsman Juyce?”
Deban called Juyce.
A face that said he had no idea what was going on. Simurtr was inwardly impressed. If that was acting, that guy was a natural.
“Should I go? Should I wait? If they’re coming today, I’ll wait. If it’s tomorrow, I’ll just return.”
I was already convinced, but it didn't matter if I was wrong.
I could just brush it off as a misunderstanding.
But would those who were so crazy about the sword that they were called Sword Fiends really agree to rest for 6 whole days?
“What is that…”
Juyce’s words trailed off as he glanced sideways.
Simurtr followed the direction of his eyes. A cheap wooden wall clock, typical of an inn.
Juyce was looking at the time. Why?
“It’s soon, isn’t it?”
Simurtr, who had easily predicted it, smiled brightly. As expected of a Mectera swordsman.
“Swordsmen are so bad at acting.”
I felt anew that Deban was a talent to my liking.
That guy was still making a face as if he knew nothing.
Even if he wasn't part of Janya's forces, he would have noticed something by now.
If he really wasn't, then Deban was currently pretending not to know while choosing which side to take.
“So you aimed for the Hero Festival. It’s chaotic, so it would be easy to separate Ael.”
“……”
“Huit. The fact that it’s another territory isn’t much of a problem. It’s just a barony. Right? It’s not like Bahab would step in for something like this. And they say the main castle is technically their superior, but the atmosphere is to keep intervention quiet, right?”
It was all thanks to the accomplice Gerehk.
He was always interested, but if he intervened directly, the bomb called truth might go off.
“You’ve also set a time to act in case you get caught, right? Like sending a signal. Or attacking if there’s no news.”
Ael’s eyes widened at the mention of her name.
However, she didn't open her mouth. She unconsciously rubbed her forearm. Because Simurtr’s killing intent was growing larger and larger.
“Just say it. You know too, right? You have a bad feeling about this right now.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but if I have done something wrong, I will apologize…”
As the pale Juyce rose from his seat, Simurtr also slowly stood up.
“I. My head hurts so much I feel like I’m going to die as it is.”
Killing intent suddenly filled the room.
Deban was impressed by his expression. While exuding this much killing intent, Simurtr still had strength left, as he was still smiling brightly.
“But do I have to care about the likes of you?”
The moment the killing intent exploded beyond the room.
Crash! Someone rammed into the door. Something passed through the waist of the knight who broke down the door and entered.
“Huh?”
The thick plate armor was smoothly cut. The knight’s dumbfounded sound was simultaneous. Thud. Thud. The upper and lower body fell to the floor and twitched. Blood gushed like a fountain from both cross-sections.
Immediately after, Simurtr turned his body towards the window. Crash! Two knights who had broken the wide window were entering. Before their feet could even cross, he thrust his sword. Twice. Crunch. A blunt sword ki crumpled the breastplate of their armor.
“Keok!”
The sound of ribs breaking was not heard.
They probably reacted with magic. It wasn't a perfect response. The two knights’ bodies fell backward. A heavy sound echoed as they fell out of the window they had entered through.
“Ael, get out.”
Simurtr pointed to the shattered window.
As the two knights who had fallen onto the railing clutched their chests and got up, he stabbed into the air again. A sharply shot sword ki pierced the foreheads of the two who had just appeared at the window.
“Huh? Huh?”
Ael still didn’t understand the situation.
She recognized it was an ambush, but her judgment on Juyce was still pending.
Should I help? Should I at least hold Juyce back?
As she was thinking, Simurtr’s voice pierced her ears.
“Go out alone. I’ll take care of it.”
At his firm tone, Ael bit her lip hard, then moved through the window to the roof of the opposite building.
“Idiot.”
A hollow laugh escaped Simurtr’s lips as he turned his gaze back to the doorway. A knight trying to rush in was trying to jump over the corpse lying on the floor.
“This is why knight bastards are no good.”
What’s so precious about a mere corpse in a situation like this?
“It’s a situation where you should be using it as a shield.”
Even the already dead comrade would have wanted that.
The knight who had just jumped over his comrade's upper body and entered the room swung his sword. The sword was not yet within reach. But a sword ki stretched out from the tip of the sword.
It was a fight involving sword ki, where magic was materialized. The importance of distance was somewhat scattered.
They, the knights, emphasized such methods and magic as their achievements rose, but.
“Idiots.”
That was the fight of idiots who did not fully understand the sword. It would be one thing on a battlefield packed with enemies on all sides.
But to use such a crude sword in an inn like this. So full of themselves.
“Die.”
The killing intent in his voice was thick. It was also laced with moisture. It must be because he saw his comrade’s corpse.
‘Even in the middle of a fight.’
He brought down the sword extended long with sword ki. Simurtr turned his body halfway to the right and extended his sword slightly.
The tip of the sword lightly touched the sword ki, and suddenly the sword ki bent greatly. Like sunlight reflected in a mirror shining elsewhere. The sword ki that was extending from the sword branched off to another place, with Simurtr’s sword as the starting point.
“Huh?”
The knight who swung the sword let out a dumbfounded sound. Because the sword ki, which he had only extended long, was suddenly shot out. Even though he had no intention of doing so.
“Keok! Why me…”
The sword ki flew off in a strange direction. What was aimed at Simurtr pierced Juyce’s abdomen.
“No, I…”
The mouth that was speaking its excuse lost its body at some point.
The head, which had been gasping, was falling at Simurtr’s feet. Crash! The left wall collapsed, and other knights burst out.
‘Three of them.’
Simurtr kicked the head he had just cut off just before it hit the ground.
“How dare you!”
The knight at the very front carefully caught it. At that sight, the corners of Simurtr’s mouth went up.
The habit of a knight who loved honor. They wished to recover their comrade’s body without injury. Even though they didn’t show such consideration to their opponents.
“Just as I heard, you are a lowly one! The courtesy towards an enemy…”
“Then you should have come alone.”
There was no need to save magic. Four lines of Pagna. An elixir in the sub-space. The safety devices were overflowing.
The Star-Breaking Style stirred. As soon as the four stars finished rotating, Simurtr lightly flicked his sword.
Unlike the extremely light movement, the generated sword ki was heavy. The three knights’ complexions hardened.
“Kugh!”
The slash aimed at the left knight was blocked further ahead. It was the work of the knight in the lead.
The knight who had struck away the sword ki’s eyes widened. Because he had been pushed back in strength despite swinging his sword with both hands.
“You blocked this?”
A four-star rotation. It wasn't Sword Aura, but it was a power that even three formal swordsmen couldn't dare to block.
Simurtr looked at the knight who had blocked it. He didn't hide his composure. He had been pushed back in strength, but there was no sign of damage.
“It is powerful, but it will not be difficult. I was not at my full strength. As long as I am not careless, it will be fine.”
The knight who had struck away the sword ki said.
It was at that moment.
“Captain!”
Craaash!
The right wall collapsed greatly, and three knights entered the room.
“Wow. This is a mess.”
Three knights on the left, three on the right, the injured Juyce, and Deban giving him first aid next to him. A total of eight people.
And… the room of the inn, which had become much wider and better for fighting.
Simurtr smiled brightly.