Chapter 39 : Chapter 39
Chapter 39. The Second Phase
It was the middle of the night on the third day since the gladiators had started burning the Sylvester forest.
The starless night sky of the Demon World boasted a jet-black darkness.
A voice was heard from inside the barracks where the gladiators were gathered.
“Get u—”
As soon as Lucas heard the voice waking him, he smoothly raised his upper body from his spot.
“—p… you’re like a ghost, this guy. It’s time for your shift.”
“……”
It was a gladiator who had just finished his night watch.
The Silver Gladiators were tasked with burning the forest during the day and guarding the castle walls at night.
When his turn for the night watch came, Lucas left the barracks.
The night was familiar to Lucas.
He stepped out of the barracks, feeling the chill seep through his clothes.
The cold night air rushed into his chest.
Thump―
The night watch post was a watchtower that monitored the forest outside the castle walls.
To ascend the long, cylindrical watchtower, he went up a spiral staircase.
While climbing the stairs, Lucas thought about the human who had been constantly bothering him these days.
‘Just what is he plotting?’
At first, when he saw that the human wasn't ending the pact, he thought there must be some ulterior motive.
But the human he had observed for the past few days was only engrossed in hunting Lafre, showing little interest in him.
Conversely, as time passed, Lucas's attention became entirely focused on the human.
‘Where on earth did he learn Po Dienda Swordsmanship?’
The situation changed ever since the human started using that swordsmanship.
Po Dienda Swordsmanship was the basic swordsmanship of the True Ancestor, the Undying King Eternius.
The only reason he used that swordsmanship was simply because he respected Eternius.
Even among fellow vampires, almost no one used ‘Po Dienda Swordsmanship’, yet a human was using it out of the blue.
Seeing that swordsmanship, he just couldn't take his attention off the human.
He recalled what the human had said before.
‘Does he really have a connection with someone among the vampires?’
Just what kind of vampire taught a human swordsmanship….
He wanted to ask right away, but he couldn't bring himself to ask first.
He was a noble pure-blood vampire, a True Ancestor.
No matter how far he had fallen to the status of a slave, his pride would not allow him to question a human.
Lost in his own thoughts, he climbed the stairs and soon arrived at the door at the top of the watchtower.
The night watch was operated in pairs of two.
Since they took turns one by one for the shift change, the night watchman who had finished half his duty should be behind the door.
Lucas opened the door.
Creaak―
The rusty iron hinges on the door made an unpleasant noise.
“…Huh, what the.”
Looking at the source of the familiar voice, he saw the very human he had been thinking of, Hyunwoo, standing there.
“So the next watchman was you, Lucas?”
“……”
“Alright. Good work.”
Hyunwoo glanced at Lucas, then turned to look at the forest and resumed the stance of Po Dienda Swordsmanship.
Lucas's mouth itched to speak.
“Do you still have no request.”
“Nope.”
“……”
Hyunwoo swung his sword without even looking at Lucas.
‘Was he hiding his skill?’
He was certain it was at an introductory level of Po Dienda Swordsmanship when he saw it last time, but now, he was executing it with much more proficiency than before.
Seeing that swordsmanship, Lucas’s mouth started to itch again.
Seeing the constipated look on Lucas's face, Hyunwoo let out a smirk―.
It wasn't for nothing that I had been practicing the swordsmanship in front of him at every opportunity.
‘Is it about time?’
I've let it simmer enough; it was time to make a move.
It didn't seem like the man who'd risk his life for his pride would approach me first.
Hyunwoo performed Po Dienda Swordsmanship as if to show off, then looked at him with a quiet exclamation.
“Ah! I just remembered.”
“…What is it that you suddenly remembered.”
“The request. I thought of something to ask.”
“Tell me at once.”
Lucas thought he needed to end the pact quickly.
If it hadn't been for the pact in the first place, he wouldn't have even cared whether Hyunwoo used Po Dienda Swordsmanship or not.
‘Whatever he asks, I will refuse and end the pact immediately.’
As Lucas looked at Hyunwoo with firm resolve, his mouth opened.
“Teach me swordsmanship.”
“……”
Lucas, who was about to spit out a refusal immediately, paused for a moment.
“Are you perhaps mistaken about something? I am a vampire, a great magical race.”
“You barely use any magic, though?”
“That’s….”
Lucas was at a loss for words.
Before Lucas could open his mouth again, Hyunwoo began to unravel the story he had created to get closer to him.
“The swordsmanship I'm using. Aren't you curious how I learned it?”
“……”
Lucas still kept his mouth firmly shut, but his eyes were telling the story.
That he really wanted to know.
Hyunwoo continued to speak calmly.
“In the past, that is, before I was dragged into the Demon World. I was a mercenary from the north in the human world.”
“I have no desire to know your origins.”
“Ah, so you don't want to know how I learned the swordsmanship?”
“A mercenary… interesting. Continue.”
Hyunwoo smirked― and performed the Common Swordsmanship of the Northern Mercenaries.
Swoosh―!
“This is the Common Swordsmanship of the Northern Mercenaries. It specializes in slashing.”
“I believe I've seen that swordsmanship before. It seems you truly were a mercenary.”
Whether Lucas actually recognized the real Common Swordsmanship of the Northern Mercenaries wasn't important.
‘What's important is that it adds plausibility to the story.’
Since there was no concrete evidence, I decided to win him over with a solid narrative.
Hyunwoo slowly nodded and continued speaking.
“And during my time as a mercenary, I had an occasion to meet a vampire.”
“You met a vampire in the human world?”
“Well, I was surprised too. I never imagined I'd run into a vampire while walking down a road.”
“So, you're saying you learned the swordsmanship from him?”
“No, saving her came first, learning the swordsmanship came after. She was in a state of exhaustion.”
“Her? Could it be….”
Lucas’s eyes wavered as he looked at Hyunwoo.
A fragment of memory contained within that wavering was briefly glimpsed.
Hyunwoo spoke calmly.
“Claudia Knox.”
“……!”
Claudia Knox, a vampire who only existed in the game's lore with no actual in-game data.
However, in this world, she must have been a person who actually existed.
‘In the lore, Lucas and she were more than friends, less than lovers. Something like they had a thing going on, you could say?’
Opening Lucas’s heart by claiming a friendship with the fictional character, Claudia Knox.
Knowing his personality, which was surprisingly soft-hearted, it was a method that would surely work.
Hyunwoo calmly recounted the things that had happened with her.
“I first met her in a small cave. She was in a situation where she couldn't move a single step, just waiting for death.”
“Could it be… that she…”
“Ah, she said she would have perished without my help. Fortunately, I was able to save her.”
“…Hoo.”
Lucas let out a sigh with a look of relief.
His conscience was pricked by the colorful changes in expression, so unlike him, but I thought this was the only way to become his ally.
As I continued to talk about Claudia Knox’s way of speaking, her habits, and such, Lucas’s expression began to change.
He looked as if he was reminiscing about the past.
He managed to open his mouth, a sound of air escaping through his clenched teeth.
“By any chance… did she have dark violet hair?”
“Uh, yes. Did you know each other?”
“……”
Lucas couldn't continue.
To think that she, from whom he had lost all contact, was in the human world….
“At that time, she taught me this swordsmanship, saying she wanted to settle her debt with me. The problem is, she had to leave in a hurry while I was learning.”
“Where did Claudia go?”
“I didn't hear that either. Only that she was going to find her freedom.”
“Freedom…”
Hyunwoo glanced at Lucas’s greatsword once and opened his mouth.
“She left some words behind. She said that if I were to meet one of her kind, I should learn the rest of the swordsmanship from that person.”
“To think Claudia left such words… I can't believe it.”
“Stigma.”
“……!”
“She said that when a vampire is in a crisis, they can carve something called a Stigma, right?”
The moment Lucas heard Hyunwoo’s words, his eyes flew open and he shot to his feet.
The matter of the Stigma was both a curse and a secret of the vampires.
To think Claudia would even tell a human about the Stigma….
There was no way to know the secret of the Stigma without being one of their kind.
He had no choice but to believe it any longer.
“You didn't carve a Stigma, by any chance, did you? Like, you can't use magic anymore due to the aftereffects of the Stigma.”
“…This is absurd. How in the world did you know?”
“A vampire who uses a sword instead of magic… don't you think that doesn't make sense?
Judging by your reaction, I guess I'm right.”
“……”
Lucas let out a groan.
He felt as if everything about vampires, no, everything about himself was being laid bare.
He didn't even have the energy to be surprised anymore.
“It seems you really did meet Claudia.”
“So, about Po Dienda Swordsmanship? Are you going to teach me?”
“……”
Lucas answered with silence, but gave a small nod.
A human who learned swordsmanship from Claudia Knox.
If only for the sake of her honor, he just couldn't refuse.
Hyunwoo smiled faintly.
‘Is this much considered a success?’
Lucas’s expression changed as if he had decided on something.
Seeing that reaction, I was about to speak to him again, but he looked outside the watchtower and froze.
‘Huh?’
Hyunwoo followed Lucas’s gaze, but he couldn't see anything.
“What are you looking at?”
“……”
Lucas silently stuck his head through the opening for looking outside and poked his head out of the watchtower.
“Suspicious things are approaching.”
“What?”
Hyunwoo also approached and looked outside once more, but he couldn't spot anything in the pitch-dark forest.
They say vampires have good night vision; it seemed he could see something even in that dark exterior.
“Did you spot a swarm of Lafre or something?”
“Are they Lafre…? No, they're a bit different. Bigger, and faster.”
“Bigger? What about the numbers?”
“There are too many to count.”
The moment he heard Lucas’s words, Hyunwoo suddenly remembered something.
‘Evolved Lafre!’
Anesta, which had swallowed Gert Castle, could evolve the Lafre after a certain amount of time had passed.
Hyunwoo turned his head, confirmed the location of the emergency bell, and ran for it.
DANG―! DANG―! DANG―!
“What are you doing?”
“What do you mean, what am I doing. It's an emergency. Prepare for battle!”
Hyunwoo, after shouting a warning to Lucas, yelled loudly towards the outside of the watchtower.
“It's a raid!”
The quiet Gert Castle was awakened in an instant by the resounding bell.
The second phase of the Anesta invasion.
The raid of the evolved Lafre had begun.
And.
Hyunwoo gripped Cheonbyeondo at his waist.
‘When this fight is over… I should be able to awaken it.’
Hyunwoo recalled the awakening condition for Cheonbyeondo.
[Cheonbyeondo
1st Awakening Condition ― The souls of the slimes dormant within Cheonbyeondo cry out sorrowfully. To appease their souls, you must offer 1,000 souls of a single race.]
At first glance, the description looked like the condition to unseal a demonic sword.
It was written in plausible phrases, but in the end, it was just telling him to hunt 1,000 of the same species.
‘How many have I killed so far? 800? 900?’
He hadn't counted them precisely as he killed them, so he wasn't sure.
In any case.
What was certain was the fact that when this battle was over, the awakening condition for Cheonbyeondo would be met.
Hyunwoo gripped Cheonbyeondo tightly and descended the watchtower with Lucas.