[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Chapter 12
I couldn’t fully see the effect, nor could I control the range, as it wasn’t deliberately regulated.
It was simply an overflow of aura spilling out.
Normally, this crude thod wouldn’t even be enough to threaten soone, let alone harm them.
Its power was weak, and its duration extrely short.
But my greatest strength lies in my inexhaustible aura.
With such a vast amount and the ability to control all of it, this tactic wasn’t difficult to execute.
Using the sa thod, I had managed to block a sword coated with aura just monts ago.
“Ugh... ughhh!”
“Stay back!! Don’t co any closer!”
The overwhelming aura I emitted intimidated them, but they still tried to resist .
Step by step, I slowly approached them, twirling my sword lightly and flicking the blood off it.
“D-damn it! What the hell are you, you monster?!”
Exposing every opening as I leisurely advanced, the terrified knight unleashed a sharp wave of aura from his sword and swiftly swung it toward .
True to the skill of an Expert-level fighter, his sword’s trajectory was precise, and his draw was quick.
His blade was already close to my neck, while mine hadn’t even moved properly.
Even though my aura had blocked his earlier sword wave, he seed confident that this ti his attack would land.
A fleeting smile of triumph appeared on his face.
“Leon!”
lissa’s scream, filled with panic, added to the scene.
To her, it probably looked as though I was walking straight into death.
But for , situations like this were far too familiar—sothing I had seen over and over.
[Naless Sword]
[One-Point Flash]
The sword techniques I had honed in the Hall of Swords were designed purely for my use, deviating fundantally from traditional swordsmanship.
Moreover, the Naless Sword, which I used until the very end, had a peculiar characteristic.
Instead of maintaining a consistent speed, it would restrain itself until it explosively accelerated at the critical mont.
It was a passive, counter-focused sword technique but incredibly effective for frequent use.
There was no need to resort to an all-out offensive, either.
As if ti had slowed, the knight’s sword neared my neck.
In the blink of an eye—a fraction of a second—
I casually walked out from behind the Expert-level knight, as though I had teleported, shaking the blood off my sword.
Splat!
Scarlet blood spattered on the ground like bullets, spreading from the tip of my blade.
Monts ago, when I first unsheathed lissa’s sword and killed an Expert-level knight, my movents were almost identical.
To put it simply, it was an extre burst of acceleration at a crucial mont.
“Gah… urgh…”
The knight, who had been certain of his victory as he swung his sword at , now had a face full of disbelief, unable to comprehend why he was collapsing.
He had definitely thrust his sword at , but when he ca to his senses, his blade had sliced through nothing but air.
Instead, I, who hadn’t even appeared to attack, had severed his throat.
The knight’s carotid artery was severed, and he collapsed, spewing blood in spurts.
Now, only one remaining Expert-level knight stood before .
The last one, crushed by the chaotic aura I emitted, and demoralized further by the swift defeat of his comrades, had already lost the will to fight.
“Ahhh! Aaaahhhh!”
Overco by terror, he let out a scream and charged toward lissa.
Judging that lissa, unard, would be easy to subdue even as an entry-level Expert, he likely aid to take her hostage to escape.
It was a fairly decent judgnt, in theory.
And indeed, lissa was caught off guard by his sudden move.
But there was no way I would just sit back and watch.
I intercepted him, faster than his charge, positioning myself in front of lissa and grabbing his arm with my bare hand, stopping his sword in its tracks.
“What… What strength is this?!”
“I’m just strong.”
A close-combat fighter needs to be physically strong to overpower their opponent.
The synergy between the Hall of Swords and the Hall of Martial Arts was exceptional for close-range combat.
Crack!
A sickening sound of bones breaking accompanied the expression of intense pain on his face.
At the sa ti, my blade gently touched his shoulder.
“P-please… spare …”
Slash!
I cut the last Expert-level knight’s body in half with a single, diagonal stroke.
“Having this much aura makes everything so much easier.”
Even as just an aura user, I could pour out aura like it was sword energy, and by releasing it around my body, I could block their sword energy.
This unique phenonon was a rit that applied solely to .
Ordinarily, one could never accumulate such a vast amount of aura.
It was the result of enduring countless trials and tribulations to master control over an extraordinary amount of aura.
On top of that, the synergy generated from the simultaneous circulation of swordsmanship and martial arts techniques was unparalleled.
Right now, I completely ignored the conventional standards of strength.
When an aura user can one-sidedly kill Experts, it’s clear that sothing abnormal is going on.
Unless a Sword Master appears, there’s no one capable of stopping , the runaway train.
Not that the kingdom’s sole Sword Master would bother coming here.
And even if they did, I had ways to handle that too.
The excessive violence might’ve been influenced by the stress of sleep deprivation.
lissa, still shaken from being overwheld by my indiscriminate aura, looked at with a mixture of shock and bewildernt.
“Hey.”
“What?”
“You… are you really Leon? No way. The Leon I know is a weakling who barely knows how to hold a sword. Who the hell are you?”
She seed to believe I wasn’t Leon but soone else disguised as him.
As she looked at with both concern and caution, I paused to think about how to explain.
“When did you beco a Sword Master?”
She appeared to have mistaken for a Sword Master.
While I hadn’t generated sword energy or sword aura, the reckless overflow of my aura made it seem like even sword energy couldn’t penetrate my body, leading her to such a conclusion.
The status screen displayed by the Librarian still labeled as an aura user.
“What are you talking about? Sword Master? I’m not even an Expert yet.”
"Stop saying ridiculous things! How can an aura user block sword energy bare-handed? This isn't so kind of joke…"
Flustered, she began rambling, then heightened her intensity.
"You're not Leon, are you? What did you do to my brother?"
Her determination to fight , even at the risk of her life, was palpable.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
I sighed.
To tell her the truth, I would need to bring up the labyrinth story, but that wasn’t sothing I deed appropriate to share with anyone.
"What did you do to my brother!!"
She lunged at , and we engaged in a battle of strength.
"Give back my brother, you bastard!!"
"Uh, what?"
"He's the last family I have left now!! Who do you think you are, taking Leon away from ?! Give him back, now!!"
Looking at her desperation, I felt a mix of annoyance and amusent.
To her, I might as well have appeared as a monster, not a human.
Could I still be called an ordinary human, given how far I’d deviated from normalcy?
With mories that stretched beyond what any human could retain and an aura capacity that defied human limits, even I knew I was a little unhinged.
Though, of course, "a little unhinged" was where I drew the line.
"Vishiri Cascadia escaped."
At the ntion of Vishiri, she froze.
"He hasn’t been caught yet. Should you really be wasting ti here?"
She looked at with suspicion.
"......"
"I can’t explain everything, but just know this: I have a unique constitution. I know it’s hard to believe, but I am Leon—your brother, the sa person you know. If that’s too hard to accept, just assu I went crazy and awakened so hidden talent."
Given my control over an amount of aura that would be otherwise unattainable, calling it a “unique constitution” wasn’t entirely inaccurate.
Though, in truth, this wasn’t innate but sothing I had painstakingly built over ti.
To others, however, I must have seed downright monstrous.
"But… where did that scumbag go?"
Vishiri Cascadia had ordered his subordinates to subdue us before leaving the reception room.
Considering his goal was the family crest ring on lissa’s hand, there was no reason for him to leave.
Yet he had vanished…
"Don’t tell he ran away?"
"Unlikely."
He was an oddly perceptive man, even back then.
But I couldn’t think of a reason why he’d flee.
He was greedy but not irrational.
She quickly gathered her thoughts and stood up.
"Hey! We have to catch him no matter what now! Hand over your sword!"
"Whoa there, don’t go getting unnecessary blood on your hands."
"This is an order from the acting head! Hand it over!"
As she shouted, I shrugged with a smug expression, clearly irritating her.
Grinding her teeth, she looked at the condition of the sword in my hand and gasped.
"What the… How did you use a sword so brutally?!"
Her voice was almost tearful as she yelled.
Since I hadn’t yet fully awakened to the Expert level, I couldn’t generate sword energy.
The mastery of aura was similar to gaining a new sense—like opening one’s eyes for the first ti.
Even with control, my current level was too low to handle the overwhelming amount of aura, which naturally overflowed and damaged the sword.
"Still, it’s a good-quality blade. If it weren’t, it would’ve broken already."
"And you think that’s a good excuse… Wait, this—this is sothing aura users deal with. Are you really an aura user?"
The situation, resembling a common mistake among aura users, seed to finally clue her in.
Instead of answering, I spread my aura outward like a wave.
It wasn’t precise enough to discern details.
Most aura users or ordinary people wouldn’t even be able to detect it.
But locating soone like Vishiri Cascadia, a mid-tier Expert who didn’t even bother concealing his presence, was no challenge.
"That guy… he must be up to sothing. Got any spare swords? Preferably a sturdy one."
"I’ll take care of it—"
"You’re ridiculously weak."
She glared at , grinding her teeth, unable to argue but clearly brimming with words she couldn’t let out.
She was barely at the entry-level of an Expert, with limited experience.
Vishiri Cascadia, on the other hand, was a seasoned mid-tier Expert.
The outco of a fight between them was obvious.
"Give a sword. A sturdy one, preferably."
"Can you catch him?"
"I’ll win."
Hearing my response, she hesitated, then handed a sword that had been displayed on the wall.
Despite being decorative, its quality was exceptional.
"This was ant to be kept for ergencies. You’d better not break it."
"Just wait a bit. I’ll bring him back soon. In the anti, get ready. The civil war has already begun. It won’t end until one side is crushed."
"Sigh… I expected this, but they’ve moved far faster than I anticipated. Don’t overdo it. If it’s dangerous, retreat imdiately. I’ll join you once I’ve rallied the remaining forces."
She rubbed her temples in frustration, clearly overwheld by the situation.
"Leon… No, brother."
For once, her voice carried an unusually serious tone.
"Don’t you dare get hurt. That’s an order."
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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