Schwarz charged forward fiercely with his sword in hand. Taking the initiative in a duel between swordsmen was a disadvantageous move, but Schwarz paid no heed to that.
“Let’s kill and be killed, Kail!”
As Schwarz arrived within arm’s reach, he smirked sinisterly.
What followed next was a swift strike too fast for the eyes to follow.
The only reason Kail could withstand it was thanks to countless battles he’d fought before.
“AHAHAHA—! You’re not bad at all!”
While Kail was busy swinging his sword, his opponent still had the energy to laugh heartily. Swing after swing after swing.
Every time the Aura Blades clashed, starlight scattered. If there were observers in the sky, they would surely question their reality upon seeing stars shining differently from one point.
If humans didn’t know that a single human entity could wield stars, they would live in such suspicion.
The collision of the two starlights seemed endless, majestic and eternal like the stars. But just as stars don’t live forever, the clash between the two men began to come to an end.
SHWAAAK—
“Ugh—!”
A line was drawn across Kail’s chest, and blood gushed out.
Clutching his chest in pain, Kail stepped back slightly. Schwarz also retreated and started licking the blood off his blade.
“Haaa… Sweet, so sweet.”
“…You crazy bastard.”
“You’re really something, Kail.”
Looking into Schwarz’s snake-like narrowed eyes, Kail felt chills running down his spine.
‘This guy is genuinely insane.’
Is this what it feels like to fight a madman? Kail looked at the shiver-inducing Schwarz, then quietly glanced down at his own chest.
The bleeding from the long wound had stopped long ago, but the fact that Schwarz remained unscathed while he was injured was the problem.
After their fierce clash, it proved that Schwarz had gained a slight upper hand.
‘They said he was a master of swift strikes…’
Just as Sera had warned him, Schwarz’s sword was too swift to track with the naked eye. It was hard to believe they were both wielding the same single sword.
Of course, every strength has its weakness. The fact that Schwarz’s attack hadn’t left a deep wound on him was proof. Had it been Kail’s strike, it would have cleanly cut the opponent in half the moment it touched them.
“Huhuhu— Are you scared now?”
“Shut up.”
“Give me more, more fun. Huh?”
As if unable to bear it any longer, the guy charged in like a dog in heat.
Despite appearing excited, his sword remained chillingly precise, targeting only vital spots.
Kail blocked the attacks by swinging his sword just as he did before.
“Until—when can you keep blocking!”
The outcome of this battle was clear to both parties. Hadn’t Kail already sustained injuries?
Even the seemingly invincible iron wall of Aura was crumbling, and eventually, Schwarz’s sword would slice through his neck.
‘…I can’t let it end like this.’
Swing.
Block.
Swing.
Parry.
Kail quickly realized that using just one hand wasn’t enough. So, he abandoned the stubbornness of using one hand. He lightly shifted the longsword he’d been holding with both hands to his right hand and unleashed Aura from his left.
Unlike other Aura Blades overlaid onto physical forms, this Blade was made purely of Aura itself. Holding Aura Blades in both hands, Kail stretched out his arms and stared at Schwarz.
“…Dual blades?”
“What, are you scared?”
However, instead of panicking or hesitating upon seeing the dual blades, Schwarz began smirking. Then, he started sheathing his sword back into the scabbard at his waist.
“Haha-! Is this fate’s joke? Dual blades, dual blades. You lack four more, but… perfect for practice.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Come on, Kail. Show me your swords.”
As Schwarz spoke, he gripped the sword hilt in his hand.
“Batto.”
ASURA SLASH
In an instant, the sword vanished from sight, slashing everywhere. As Kail parried the strikes with his dual blades, he realized that Schwarz’s sword was crafted to counter something.
It was a sword technique designed to fend off five or six swords swung by a single person. Unrealistic. What kind of swordsman could possibly wield five or six swords at once?
Dual-wielding one sword in each hand was rare enough; wielding three swords, including one in the mouth, was pure fantasy.
‘How is this so intricate…?’
But the Schwarz Kail faced moved along exquisitely refined sword paths, as if he had encountered opponents who wielded five or six swords simultaneously.
A sword technique created to block five or six swords couldn’t possibly be countered with just two.
“Resist a bit more—Young Swordsman!”
Through the dazzling flurry of Aura Blades, Kail saw Schwarz’s face, drenched in madness. At this very moment, his sword technique was becoming increasingly perfected.
He was growing stronger through the fight. That fact bruised Kail’s pride.
‘Are you the only genius here?’
Aura Masters are all overflowing with talent and genius.
If I can do it, so can my opponent.
Conversely, if my opponent can do it, so can I.
‘Six swords… How does one even swing those?’
Kail knew well. Swinging two swords alone taxed his brain capacity. Just like drawing a circle with the left hand and a star with the right caused his hands to get tangled, swinging two swords and maintaining perfect sword paths was his limit.
With three or more, he could only manage ordinary sword paths, and four or more would be pushing his limits.
But Schwarz assumed he was facing six swords simultaneously.
‘—Don’t swing.’
Then he wouldn’t swing. There was no need to swing. An Aura Blade was a powerful weapon and authority in itself. Simply touching it could cut through anything—a superhuman power.
“Hoo—”
Exhaling lightly, Kail grasped the Aura flowing through his heart. The principle was similar. Just as he had summoned an Aura Blade with his bare hands, he would create an Aura Blade in midair.
It wasn’t impossible. Previously, Kaines’ Eightfold Art had proven it.
‘Creating swords with Aura…’
Control with Chi.
Handle the sword.
Eightfold Art: Control Sword With Chi.
Ten Aura Blades rose into the sky. Seeing them, Schwarz’s face lit up with joy.
“Kaaiil…!”
That expression and tone, fit for a beloved lover, made Kail wave his hand awkwardly as he watched the creepy face of a man.
Moments later, ten Aura Blades shot forward.
Though Schwarz had managed to block with a single sword, the truth that one hand can’t handle ten persisted.
Thrust—his arm was severed, and the following blades skewered Schwarz’s body like skewers.
“A, ahaha—.”
Even as he was completely immobilized, skewered through, Schwarz couldn’t stop smirking.
“Pity, your…”
In his mind, the monster whose battle hadn’t yet concluded remained. A monster wielding six swords with six arms.
“Ka, il… You, that guy—.”
“Shut up. Seriously.”
Thrust—.
Without listening to Schwarz’s last words, Kail sliced through his neck. For a member of the terrorist organization that had shaken the entire continent, it was a rather anticlimactic end.
As Schwarz’s head fell, Kail collapsed backward. Pulling Aura outside his body and freely manipulating it had consumed an immense amount of energy.
Drained of both stamina and mental fortitude, Kail crawled on the ground when footsteps echoed from afar.
“You somehow won. I thought you’d lose.”
“Why didn’t you help then?”
“Weren’t you the one who said we’re weaklings and shouldn’t interfere?”
Listening to Gawein’s grumpy remarks, Kail leaned on his shoulder to stand up. His slightly cut chest throbbed painfully.
Frowning momentarily, Kail recalled the holy mark engraved on his hand. The divine ability bestowed by the Virgin Saintess. Realizing belatedly, Kail used the holy mark to heal himself.
As divine power restored his body, Kail locked eyes with Gawein, who looked at him incredulously while carrying him.
“…Kail, can you use this freely?”
“Huh? Yeah, of course. Didn’t you know?”
“I thought it was some kind of church VIP pass. I didn’t know you could use it at will…”
Gawein tilted his head quizzically as he spoke, looking at Kail.
“Wait, if you can use it freely, why didn’t you use it during the fight just now?”
“…Oh, right.”
“Did you seriously forget?”
Kail clammed up and distanced himself from Gawein. Amidst the awkward atmosphere, Gawein clicked his tongue and muttered insults about Kail being an idiot.
Unable to find the right words to retort, Kail silently walked ahead.
