Chapter 158
Chapter 158
Veil of Plumed Mist (1)
Ethan had been defeated. It was a loss with no room for excuses. The plate mail he had worn so proudly was dented all over from punches, and he still hadn’t come to his senses.
The fatal mistake was that he hadn’t known Kairus had a hidden card.
‘If I had known…!’
Kairus tilted his sword slightly to the side and spoke.
“Shall we continue?”
Ethan was in no condition to fight. The damage caused by a single mistake was too great to recover from. Now that the sparring match was over, it was time to return to formalities.
“...”
Nevertheless, Ethan stood up. It meant he intended to continue the duel. Kairus took a few steps back and adjusted his stance.
If it had been a fight to the death, Ethan would already be dead.
“You don’t stand a chance.”
“If there’s no chance on the battlefield, should one just give up?”
Kairus gave a bitter smile at Ethan’s words. That was not how it worked.
“This isn’t a battlefield. This is a training ground, and we are sparring, not fighting.”
The battlefield was where you fought knowing you could die—but this was not that place.
Ethan didn’t respond. Instead, he gripped his spear. There was no chance of winning anyway. Even knowing about Flicker changed nothing.
‘Because I can’t defend.’
He couldn’t keep clashing the spear shaft against Kairus’s sword anymore. If the mosaic spread, he’d have to let go of the shaft.
If he couldn’t defend, he couldn’t create openings, and without openings, he couldn’t attack. On top of that, Ethan had already sustained serious injuries.
A sparring match where the outcome was already decided could never be properly carried out.
Ethan stood up several times, but he could never get closer to victory.
“…I lost.”
In the end, Ethan had no choice but to acknowledge his defeat. As he spoke those words, blood trickled from his mouth.
“Thank you for your effort. I’ll visit the collection room after dinner.”
Kairus gave Ethan a simple parting remark, then stepped down from the training ground.
‘I only won because of the battle gear.’
If it weren’t for Flicker, the one sitting slumped on the floor right now would’ve definitely been Kairus. The Orentia spear techniques were excellent, and Ethan was a formidable opponent the likes of which Kairus had never faced before.
Still, a victory due to better equipment was no less valid. Kairus was the victor, and the victor took the stakes laid out on the table.
In this case, the Vasella family’s storage was the spoils of war. After a brief dinner with his companions, Kairus followed the guide straight to the basement.
“Are you feeling alright?”
“Even if I’m not, I have no choice but to come along.”
An outsider was opening and inspecting the household’s storage—if the family head didn’t supervise, then who would?
Kairus looked at Ethan for a moment, then nodded without resistance.
‘A promise, huh.’
To Kairus, a promise was absolute. However, that didn’t mean he believed others would uphold their promises the same way he did.
Veil of Plumed Mist, the symbol of the Featherwing family and known for its tremendous output.
If Ethan possessed it, there was no way he’d want to hand it over to someone else.
By any means necessary.
“Well then, excuse me.”
Kairus gave a slight bow to Ethan and stepped into the storage room.
The first thing that caught his eye were the books. Kairus slowly read the titles of the volumes.
A significant number of them were research papers on surgical modifications.
[Types and Side Effects of Circulatory Enhancement Procedures]
[Capillary Changes Induced by Arterial Reinforcement Procedures]
[Casebook on Bone Marrow Replacement Using Bafroxen]
Beyond these, most of the books dealt with procedures that modified the human body—particularly what was commonly referred to as the circulatory system.
‘If someone outside the Featherwing bloodline uses Veil of Plumed Mist, their blood vessels rupture.’
Could it really be said that there was no connection? When he lightly touched the covers, the books seemed to be recently acquired.
“Didn’t you say you wanted to see the Featherwing’s legacy?”
Seeing the situation, Ethan wore a slightly uncomfortable expression.
“Ah, right. But since I’m here, I thought I might broaden my horizons a little.”
Kairus replied as if it were no big deal.
“Is that so? Well, I’ve lost anyway, so I suppose I’m in no position to argue.”
While they spoke, Ethan closed the storage room door. Kairus gave him a sidelong glance.
“I can’t very well keep it open the whole time, can I? There’s enough light, so don’t worry.”
As Ethan spoke, the lanterns lit up. Kairus continued inspecting the storage room.
“There are a lot of interesting add-ons.”
As he said that, Kairus examined an arm-worn, glove-type add-on. One device had several empty glass vials attached to it.
What kind of purpose was this equipment made for? Just at a glance, it didn’t seem like something one would find on the market.
“…”
Of course, not being an add-on engineer, Kairus couldn’t figure out its use just by looking. What was clear, though, was that unlike the other add-ons, this one showed signs of recent use.
After that, Kairus kept examining the add-ons and books here and there. Ethan simply watched in silence.
The storage was built as a three-level underground structure. Kairus descended floor by floor, inspecting the items, while Ethan silently followed behind.
Finally, after inspecting everything on the third basement level, Kairus smiled.
“Thank you. I believe I’ve seen enough.”
“That’s it?”
Ethan asked, and Kairus replied.
“There’s nothing here I particularly want,”
Kairus said casually, glancing around.
“You have it, don’t you? Veil of Plumed Mist.”
Ethan laughed with an incredulous look on his face at Kairus’s words.
“I appreciate your high opinion of the Vasella family. But still, there's no way our family would be keeping the Featherwing's symbol.”
“The books you’ve recently acquired focus heavily on circulatory system procedures.”
Kairus stepped a bit closer to Ethan.
“You collect all kinds of add-ons, but show no interest in battle gear collections.”
“We have battle gear passed down through the generations in our family. Why would we need more?”
It sounded plausible. But Kairus kept looking at Ethan.
“Then why collect swordsmanship books? Especially those centered around the concept of ‘flow’?”
Featherwing swordsmanship, which manipulated air and clouds, fell under the broad concept of flow.
“You’ve experienced it firsthand, haven’t you? Our family’s spear techniques also rely on flow.”
“Softness and flow aren’t the same.”
The essence of Orentia swordsmanship was about absorbing impact and directing the force.
It was similar to flow, but not the same. The core of Swift Blade wasn’t absorbing impact—it was the unbroken continuity.
“Man… you’re not even trying to listen.”
Kairus let out a small sigh and said,
“I’d like to at least see the faces of the ones you brought in.”
At Kairus’s informal tone, Ethan let out a huff and clapped loudly once. These were troops Ethan had pre-positioned in case of a situation like this.
“…?”
“Something’s not going your way today, huh?”
It wasn’t like Kairus had been idling during dinner. The ones trying to enter the storage room were currently being blocked by Nora and Irena.
“Still, there’s one thing I’m curious about. Is it really okay to use those elite fighters you’ve gathered for something this personal?”
To this, Ethan replied,
“You think this is personal?”
As he spoke, he slowly revealed the add-on strapped to his forearm. It was the odd-looking one with multiple glass vials attached.
“Ah.”
And then, he drew something from behind his back. Kairus felt his heart stop in that moment.
The dark green blade he had long sought—even seen in his dreams.
The falcon-winged tilt, the grip wrapped in black leather.
And the cage-shaped pommel.
That was Veil of Plumed Mist. The very sword the Featherwing lost when the family was annihilated, and the sword Kairus had been searching for.
“…You’re not worthy.”
“And who are you to talk about who’s worthy of this sword?”
Kairus didn’t respond. The fact that Ethan had pulled it out so confidently meant he intended to use it. And that meant he was sure he could survive its use.
What difference would it make if Kairus revealed he was a Featherwing right now?
Ethan had altered his body with procedures and add-ons to somehow withstand the Veil of Plumed Mist. And now Kairus expected Ethan to just hand it over because he was a Featherwing?
There was a limit to fairy-tale thinking.
“You showed it to me because you plan to eliminate me here, don’t you.”
“We don’t need someone like you. Not when we have this monstrous thing!”
As Ethan raised the sword, the sound of a massive motor echoed around him, and his body lifted slightly into the air.
At the same time, the glass vials on the add-on strapped to his forearm began to fill with blood, one by one. It was regulating the amount of blood to stabilize the pressure on his blood vessels.
Even so, Ethan’s entire body was flushed a deep red.
“Even after enhancing my circulatory system with procedures, this is the result.”
What he gained in exchange was overwhelming output. The very act of connecting to the battle gear filled the surroundings with the rumble of countless turbines, stirring a storm powerful enough to lift the user off the ground.
“Creepy.”
That monstrous-output sword was now in the enemy’s hands. Flicker’s power was nowhere close. Kairus could say with confidence—even if he had twenty Flickers, he wouldn’t match that monstrous output.
The family’s symbol.
It was something he had to reclaim no matter what.
“You can still end this peacefully. Give up the sword.”
“Did you lose your mind or something? Right here and now!”
As if in sync with Ethan’s shout, a storm burst outward from him.
“I’m the one who gives orders here.”
Kairus didn’t respond. Instead, he drew Flicker. Ethan immediately let out a snort.
“What do you think you can do with that thing?”
The gap in power output was already overwhelming. The difference between a mass-produced military battle gear and Flicker was less than the chasm between Flicker and the Veil of Plumed Mist.
But still, Kairus swung his sword wide. At that moment, the violent wind surrounding Ethan moved in tandem with the movement of Kairus’s sword.
As Kairus lowered his sword, Ethan, who had been slightly airborne, felt a crushing force push him down to the floor.
“Let’s share it a bit.”
He couldn’t steal the battle gear’s output. But the immense wind generated during the use of the Veil of Plumed Mist—only someone who had learned Swift Blade like Kairus could wield that.
“You bastard…!”
The turbine noise intensified. The invisible turbines spun faster. Of the five glass vials on Ethan’s arm, two were now filled with blood.
‘It’s coming. Now!’
There wasn’t even time to think. Kairus swung his sword and created a thick wall of wind between him and Ethan.
Boom!
The instant Ethan charged, a tremendous roar spread out, and Kairus nearly lost consciousness.
The charge veered off course due to the wall of wind Kairus had created.
“…”
That last charge nearly killed him. He hadn’t been able to put up any resistance. The charge came at a ridiculous speed—he hadn’t even had time to move a finger, let alone resist.
Ethan was saying something, but Kairus couldn’t hear it. Instead, blood trickled from his ears, and his insides felt so wrecked he nearly vomited.
The charge was powerful enough to obliterate everything in the storage room. He had avoided a direct hit, but the aftermath alone had pushed Kairus to the brink of collapse.
Bit by bit, Kairus’s hearing returned. Only then could he make out Ethan’s voice. Amid the ringing in his head, a faint voice came through.
“Amazing, isn’t it? All I did was boost the output and charge.”