Chapter 244 : Chapter 244
Side Story 3. The Black-Haired Sword Master
Adrian’s mind was in turmoil.
Was that man truly his disciple?
Circumstantially, many things fit, but one thing bothered him.
‘I have never heard that he had a disciple.’
Since his days as a prince, Adrian had operated an intelligence group directly under him called Cheonra.
There was even a saying that Cheonra’s eyes and ears existed in every corner of Kalia.
Naturally, Johan Raven had been a top-priority subject of Cheonra’s surveillance.
Aside from the fact that he had lost track of Johan’s final movements, Adrian was practically the person who possessed the most information about Johan Raven.
As far as Adrian knew, Johan Raven had neither a hidden child nor a disciple.
Naturally, he could not help feeling confused.
‘Leaving that aside, that black hair……’
Though it might no longer be the case now, there had once been a time when black hair was the symbol of slaves throughout Kalia.
They had been the lowest of the low, treated almost like animals, and that perception still remained even now.
In other words, they were the sort of people who stood at the opposite extreme from him, a member of royalty.
And he had been struck twice by someone with such lowly blood.
If that man were not his disciple, it would have been absolutely unthinkable.
It had happened so suddenly that he had not even managed to retort, like a fool.
But above all else,
‘He is too similar to him.’
At the very moment he struck him, it had seemed as though Johan Raven’s figure overlapped with his.
That overwhelming presence, terrifying enough to make one lose control.
But he had to pull himself together.
His dignity as king was in utter shambles right now.
Even if the black-haired man was that person’s proxy, he was only a proxy.
It meant Adrian only had to show the bare minimum of courtesy.
‘I will pay him back under the pretext of this duel.’
Of course, he acknowledged that this man was no ordinary person.
The Sword Qi he had fired on the way here, as if testing him, had certainly been astonishing.
But Adrian had already reached the realm of Sword Master long ago.
He thought he would be able to subdue a mere disciple, as long as it was not that man himself.
“Let us begin.”
The man continued speaking informally as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Very well.”
Because it sounded so natural, Adrian found himself using polite speech without realizing it.
‘That is absolutely not important.’
For now, he rationalized it that way.
The current top priority was winning the duel.
If he did, then no matter how much that man was Johan Raven’s disciple, he would have no choice but to lower his head.
He would also be able to establish his dignity as king.
“Then I shall go first.”
Adrian was the type who preferred to strike first.
That was especially true in a duel against a master.
Rather than watching his opponent’s sword and responding, he found it more comfortable to take control of the duel himself.
The key was the first strike.
Adrian held the belief that whoever seized the initiative at the beginning determined seventy percent of the outcome.
And in his experience, he had never once been the one to lose the initiative.
SWIIIIISH!!
The domineering curve Adrian created split through space.
‘Now, how will you respond?’
Adrian waited for his opponent’s reaction.
At the very least, he was confident he would not lose in a contest of power.
That was a point even that man had acknowledged.
And this man must be feeling it now as well.
The power contained in this sword would not be easy to receive.
KABOOOOOOM!
But contrary to his expectations, his opponent met him head-on.
Sword collided with sword, and heaven and earth shook.
In that instant, Adrian’s eyes widened.
It felt as though he could hear the sound of seventy percent of the duel shifting to his opponent.
The oppressive destructive force transmitted through his sword nearly made Adrian drop his weapon.
There was something even more astonishing.
His opponent was calmly preparing the next attack immediately.
In a single exchange, the situation had turned defensive.
If he failed to respond properly here, the remaining thirty percent would be blown away as well.
Adrian quickly chased the movement of the Holy Sword.
KABOOOOOOM!
He barely blocked his opponent’s sword.
Letting out a short breath, Adrian retreated slightly.
It was now certain that this man was that person’s disciple.
They had exchanged only two blows, but the feeling was exactly like Johan Raven of the past.
“You have improved a great deal.”
At those words, Adrian came sharply to his senses for an instant.
Even his atmosphere was Johan Raven himself.
“……What do you mean by saying that?”
“I thought my master would say something like that.”
For a moment, the strength left him.
“Stop with the nonsense!”
Adrian stretched his sword forward.
From the tip of the blade, furious Sword Qi shot out.
It had enough power to pierce through a gigantic boulder with ease.
But that highly condensed stream of mana was helplessly split in two and scattered.
SHHHH.
It was erased completely by the indifferent trajectory created by his opponent’s Holy Sword.
It was an even more miserable result than the duel of the past.
His opponent was not even Johan Raven, but merely his disciple.
Faced with this absurd situation, Adrian let out a hollow sigh.
It was the first time he had experienced the fact that a Sword Master, said to possess the combat strength of a legion, could be rendered so powerless.
***
Cough.
Adrian spat blood from his mouth and knelt before me.
“With this, the promise has been fulfilled. You have no complaints, do you?”
“That is so. And thank you.”
Adrian coughed repeatedly while steadying his breathing.
“Perhaps because you have become the king of a nation, your way of speaking has improved quite a lot. In the past, you were beaten thoroughly for running your mouth.”
“You speak as if you were him.”
“That is right. I told you earlier, did I not? I am speaking from my master’s position.”
Adrian nodded as though he understood.
In any case, I was able to learn that this fellow was not Kalia’s greatest swordsman.
If he had been, there would have been an Abyss message saying that I had completed the quest.
In truth, Adrian would probably know best who Kalia’s greatest swordsman was.
“Was it called Cheonra? The information organization you have possessed since long ago.”
“That is correct.”
“Then you must still be well versed in information. There is something I want to ask.”
“Speak. I will answer without adding or omitting anything, as far as I know.”
I asked him directly.
“Who are currently Kalia’s greatest mage and greatest swordsman? Excluding me and my master.”
Unless there was some unexpected variable, there was a high chance it would be a name I knew.
Adrian narrowed his brow for a moment, then opened his mouth.
“The greatest mage is Dejan Berger. There would probably be no disagreement on that.”
As expected, it was a name I had anticipated.
“I agree.”
“However, I cannot give a definite answer about the greatest swordsman. Your master has to be excluded, after all.”
With the absolute powerhouse gone, Kalia had effectively entered an era of rival powers.
“Then who is the most likely candidate? There cannot be that many Sword Masters.”
“There is someone who has risen rapidly in recent years.”
“I am curious who it is.”
“He has not yet been officially recognized as a Sword Master, but according to Cheonra’s information……”
“You are saying that fellow is likely?”
“It is not certain.”
“So what is his name?”
“Aiman Blair of the Arkina Kingdom.”
“That is a name I have never heard before.”
“That is understandable. His name has not spread much outside Arkina yet.”
That was slightly troublesome.
After all, the Arkina Kingdom was an island nation one had to reach by boat from the southwestern edge of the Kalia Continent.
“Then let me ask one more thing. This is a far more important matter.”
“Speak.”
“Do you perhaps know whether a Dragon has appeared on the Kalia Continent recently?”
Adrian paused for a moment.
“You speak of an absurd tale.”
“So you do not know yet after all.”
“Do you have any basis for saying such a thing?”
“I am asking because I do not know. I am not even expecting stories of someone seeing a Dragon directly. I am asking whether there have been any strange signs or currents.”
“N-not even that much yet.”
Adrian’s eyes truly seemed to say that he did not know.
“Then I would like to visit Cheonra myself.”
If they possessed only a vague clue, it was possible that it had not yet been reported to Adrian.
“Even if you go, it will likely be fruitless. But if you still wish to go, I will issue you a certificate bearing my seal.”
Even if it turned out to be fruitless, there was nothing I could do.
At present, I had no clues at all.
For now, I had to go to Cheonra.
***
In my previous life, I had never used Cheonra personally, but I knew its reputation well.
It was one of the three great intelligence organizations on the Kalia Continent. Vast information and high reliability were basic for them, and they were most famous for their wicked prices.
They were especially infamous for naming prices that sucked the marrow from their clients when it came to information they held exclusively.
The Cheonra building I visited in person was far larger than I had expected.
It was almost on the scale of a great library.
The fellow who came out to receive me looked like a low-ranking clerk at a glance.
“Do you know where you have come?”
He asked coldly the moment he saw me.
I could roughly guess the reason.
He was looking down on me after seeing my black hair.
“So much for people who sell information, if you still cling to this sort of prejudice. Go upstairs and call someone higher up.”
It would only make my mouth hurt to speak at length with a clerk like this, so I immediately showed him the certificate Adrian had written for me.
At the bottom was the king’s seal.
When the fellow saw it, his eyes widened.
“Th-this is!”
“Why? Are you worried it might be forged?”
“No, sir!”
There was no way he would fail to recognize it.
Moreover, forging the king’s seal was something that could result in the severest punishment, so it would not be common.
“Please wait a moment!”
The low-ranking fellow hurried upstairs, and a short while later, someone else appeared.
Judging by his attire and the atmosphere he gave off, he seemed to have properly come down from the upper ranks.
The moment he saw me, he bowed his head.
“I heard an honored guest had arrived.”
“I am not exactly honored.”
“My name is Yaren. I serve as the Deputy Leader of Cheonra Headquarters.”
A deputy leader. So someone fairly high-ranking had come.
“If it is not discourteous, may I confirm that certificate once more?”
It was a natural procedure, so I handed him the paper without much reluctance.
Yaren gazed at the certificate for a moment, then nodded.
“It has been confirmed.”
“That quickly?”
“I cannot tell you the details because they are classified, but we have a way to verify it.”
“So it is not a slapdash organization after all.”
“Of course not. What information do you seek, sir? Since it bears His Majesty’s seal, naturally, all information will be provided free of charge.”
I liked how direct he was.
“Information about Dragons.”
“That is too vague. I believe you will have to be more specific.”
Yaren asked me again while maintaining a poker face.
“Do you know whether a Dragon has appeared in Kalia recently?”
At my words, silence flowed for a moment.
And in Yaren’s poker face, a crack appeared for the briefest instant.
To me, it was a good sign.
“Where did you hear that story?”
Yaren responded cautiously, neither confirming nor denying it.
“Just answer what I asked. I came here to obtain information, not provide it.”
“That is true, but……”
“Anything is fine. If you know something, give it to me. Even if it is something still under investigation and not yet certain, I do not mind.”
But Yaren offered no comment on my words.
He only looked at me with impassive eyes.
Then, a short while later.
POP!
With that sound, the crystal orb Yaren was holding shattered.
Then he murmured quietly.
“I have no choice but to declare an emergency under the authority of the Deputy Leader.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that, though we may be making a mistake, we will subdue you first. You have far too many suspicious points.”
In that instant, warriors in black martial uniforms began appearing around me.
Each one of them was at least a first-rate master.
It was now certain that the people of Cheonra knew something about the appearance of a Dragon.