Chapter 409: Act 162 – The Secret Sword Dance of the Winds
Brendel’s surprise persisted until he heard a light ‘ding’ sound, jolting him awake to see the Crusian Valkyrie coldly knocking the dagger from Xi’s hand.
The dagger fell into the grass—
The red-haired maiden raised her head, gripping her right wrist with one hand, biting her small tiger tooth silently while glaring at the old woman. This was the second time she had suffered a loss at the hands of this foe, and the contemptuous attitude from the other made her feel very uncomfortable.
If it weren’t for the fact that Lord was still in their hands, she would have shot a resentful look at Veronika.
However, Veronika also remained silent, dragging Brendel backward into the underbrush, regardless of whether Xi was following behind.
“Miss Veronika, this isn’t very polite—” Brendel was gripped by the shoulder with a hand, immobilized as if in a steel vice—though being dragged through the underbrush by the Empire’s Valkyrie was a rather unique experience, if someone from the game were to be so “intimately” handled by Veronika, they would probably rush to the forums in a fluster.
But right now, Brendel didn’t feel there was anything to boast about.
Veronika acted as if she hadn’t heard his words, moving him deep into the brush before turning her head and coldly saying, “Mister Brendel, on the battlefield, only by surviving do we have the opportunity to talk about politeness.”
After finishing her words, she relaxed her grip, and Brendel immediately felt he had regained control of his body. He breathed in deeply, grimacing as he rubbed his shoulder, thinking that this old lady’s strength was quite formidable.
“Alright, where are Faina and the others?” Veronika asked.
Brendel paused his actions, “Miss Faina and Sir Alman left as soon as the Wolf Calamity began,” he replied nonchalantly; in fact, that statement could hardly be deemed a lie—if by ‘the start of the Wolf Calamity’ he was referring to the one-hour mark after the black wolves attacked the Wall of Thorn Flowers.
Veronika looked at Brendel without speaking, one hand resting beneath her cloak. This subtle movement didn’t escape Brendel’s notice; he guessed that she was gripping something akin to a truth-detecting gem.
If an ordinary person were to overlook such details, they would be easy to miss, but for a seasoned player from the game, various tricks were no new thing.
“You didn’t kill them?” Veronika frowned and asked.
Brendel took a breath, finally confirming Veronika’s earlier motive—this woman had come for Faina.
This meant she had not yet encountered the Withering Lord.
He glanced overhead. The mist was slowly spreading over the treetops, indicating that the valley would soon become dangerous.
“Why would I kill them? I have no reason to start a war,” Brendel withdrew his gaze, looking directly at Veronika with his deep brown eyes.
Veronika let out a sigh of relief, but for some reason, she suddenly thought of the noble girl from Erluin standing beside Brendel—how strangely similar their responses were; she couldn’t help but shake her head.
“Can you take me to find them, Mister Brendel?”
“That’s probably not possible!” Brendel firmly refused. Faina had long since been taken by the Withering Lord Andisha, and Rono and Alman were already dead—he knew this better than anyone.
Moreover, he had more important tasks to complete and could not waste time looking for people.
“You know very well, Miss Veronika,” Brendel replied, “I bear no responsibility for the disappearance of Viscount Alman and Miss Faina.”
Veronika did not comment on this answer; she merely stared at Brendel, as if trying to read his true intentions from his eyes.
The atmosphere became somewhat oppressive.
At that moment, the grass rustled softly, and Xi pushed through the underbrush to follow. She saw Brendel confronting Veronika and was slightly startled before intending to step beside him.
But Xi didn’t expect that just as she moved, a cold long sword was suddenly pressed against her throat.
Veronika had placed her sword against Xi’s snow-white neck.
“What do you mean by this?” Brendel’s gaze jumped; he looked at Veronika in disbelief.
“Sorry, young lady.” Veronika coldly replied, “If you don’t agree, I’m afraid I will have to take your companion away.”
“Is this a threat?”
Brendel inhaled deeply.
This Valkyrie of the Empire was historically renowned for her integrity and righteousness, and she had shared a relationship with the Valkyrie Freya that was both mentor and friend. Unexpectedly, she was now drawing her sword to threaten two juniors; as Brendel looked at Veronika’s somewhat indifferent face, he realized he had underestimated the importance of the little princess of Thorn Leaf to this Empire’s Valkyrie.
“Miss Veronika, as you can see, the magical tide appearing in the forest is invading this area, and I have been entrusted by the Druids to forge order in the center of the Loop of Trade Winds to prevent the Green Tower from perishing in the jaws of wolves,” he changed his answer, “As a descendant of the King of Flames, you should understand well the consequences if the magical tide is left unchecked—”
“What does that have to do with me? I am a noble of the Empire, not a savior of the world?” Veronika raised an eyebrow, displaying the authority proper for a commander.
“But to sacrifice saving more people for one individual, is that not against your will?” Brendel observed Veronika and responded, “Perhaps Miss Faina is the only heir of the Duke of Thorn Leaf, but here, her life is not more precious than anyone else’s.”
“You are right,” Veronika sighed, but shook her head, “It is meaningless; you should know my identity.”
She grabbed Xi’s shoulder, causing the maiden to wince in pain. “Then I’m sorry, since you are unwilling, I will have to take your companion to make you comply.”
“I cannot comply—!” Brendel replied sternly.
The unexpected confrontation initiated by the Gray Saint Mephistopheles had already made him quite displeased, and now Veronika’s unreasonable attitude truly ignited the anger within Brendel.
Since negotiations had broken down, he no longer needed to endure; lowering his head, the Earth Sword in his hand drew a dark line of sword light, piercing toward Veronika—against a Veronika with strength far exceeding his, the only way to gain the upper hand was to strike first.
However, Brendel’s decisiveness didn’t surprise Veronika; after the battle at the Centaur Market, she had already understood that this young man’s disposition would never easily yield. The moment Brendel drew his sword, it was within her expectations.
“Overestimating oneself.” The Valkyrie of the Empire lightly scoffed, casually swinging her sword to strike at the Earth Sword in Brendel’s hand.
In Brendel’s view, this casual sword strike resembled a curtain of swords rather than a direct attack; he thought little of it, directly leaning back and pushing himself off the ground, aiming to slide across the ground toward Veronika.
His sword changed direction, slashing toward Veronika’s feet, not to cripple the Valkyrie of the Empire but to force her back, allowing Veronika to release Xi.
Veronika was clearly surprised by Brendel’s reaction; her previous sword strike had already made use of the heritage of the past generations of the Sword Saint of the Green, the Curtain of Swords—but she hadn’t expected Brendel to predict her attack.
Just how high was this kid’s talent in swordsmanship?
There was no time to adjust; Veronika had to retreat and release Xi, but that retreat still cost Brendel dearly, as she swung her hand and released a wave of sword energy that struck Brendel’s blade.
With a crisp ‘clang,’ it was as if two swords collided with substance.
In that moment, Brendel felt as if he were striking not against a wave of sword energy but a dragon; the force rebounding from Veronika’s sword energy was so immense that it was nearly unstoppable. He had barely enough time to react before his entire body was sent flying like a cannonball.
Brendel hit the sandy ground with a ‘thud,’ momentarily feeling dizzy and disoriented. But he wasn’t surprised by this outcome; he quickly stood up, just in time to see Xi roll away from Veronika’s grasp.
Unfortunately, while the red-haired maiden was quick to react, she was still too slow compared to Veronika. The Sword Saint immediately straightened herself and attempted to grab the fleeing Xi.
Taking just one step forward, she closed the distance to Xi. Xi gritted her teeth and pulled out a dagger to resist, but Veronika didn’t even spare her a glance, effortlessly knocking the dagger from Xi’s hand before reaching for her shoulder.
Brendel certainly couldn’t let her succeed.
The young lord acted without hesitation, throwing the Earth Sword forcefully at Veronika. The Earth Sword drew a straight line through the air, summoning a series of sharp spikes to erupt from the ground, piercing toward Veronika.
Veronika frowned, only able to step back to avoid the sharp edge of the Earth Sword, letting it and the row of rock spikes pass just in front of her.
Yet, just as she halted, she didn’t expect that Brendel would wield his hand like a sword, unleashing a White Crow sword energy to form a whirlwind. This sword energy arrived before the Earth Sword, forcefully pulling it back from midair.
The Earth Sword, after twisting in midair, again lunged toward Veronika—
The Valkyrie of the Empire was finally taken aback, completely unprepared for the discarded sword to mount a second attack—especially since, although the sword had lost its aiming precision, the rock spikes it carried still boasted immense striking power.
Veronika had no choice but to stop and swinging her sword to knock the Earth Sword away, while Brendel manipulated the White Crow sword technique to regain control of the Earth Sword, sending it arcing through the air back into his hand.
As Brendel caught the sword, he couldn’t help but let out a sigh. That two-strike throw was nearly miraculous; he hadn’t even believed he could pull it off.
If he had to use a word to describe his feelings at this moment, it would simply be: so cool.
So much so that he even paused for a moment while gripping the sword.
“Little one, that’s not the White Crow sword technique; the skill is nearly the original!” Otales’ voice immediately rang in his heart as she couldn’t help but exclaim, “If I didn’t know you had never learned the Secret Sword Dance of the Wind from the wind sprites, I would begin to question your origins—”
“However, your talent for swordsmanship is truly remarkable; it’s unbelievable.”
Brendel did not respond to the knight’s words; he simply raised his head to look at Veronika—the Empire’s Valkyrie had been forced to halt, allowing Xi to escape from her grasp, and the red-haired maiden was now almost at Brendel’s side.
Although the distance between them hadn’t been great to start with.
But Brendel knew this was enough—
At this moment, Veronika, with a cold expression, withdrew her sword. She saw the young man display a look of relief, and her expression shifted as she suddenly remembered something.
This Valkyrie of the Empire turned back.
She immediately held her breath, seeing the horrifying fifteen massive heads of the multi-headed dragon circling above them, while at that very moment, Brendel had been blasted away, half-kneeling in the grass, yet around her, the scythe-shaped rock spikes from Brendel’s chaotic attacks had cleared a patch of ground.
She was standing right in the center of that empty space.
It was clear which side stood out more.
Damn it, this little guy had set me up! Veronika realized this in her heart.
……(To be continued. For further chapters, please log in to support the author and read legitimately!)
