Quit The Hero Party

EP.523 Genius, Yormun (4)

A hand entwined in a constellation twisted.

The twisting started from the fingers gripping the sword, spreading to the wrist and then the entire right arm as if swept away by a fierce current. Crack! went the sound as the arm bent unnaturally.

Broken bones burst through the skin. Dark blood splattered high in the air. As the splattering blood appeared, the elongated moment found its pace again.

Pat.

The splattered blood fell down.

Kyle staggered back a few steps, gritting his teeth. His broken right arm wouldn’t move. He glared at his drooping arm, furrowing his brow.

…He couldn’t wield the Sword of Yeocheon.

In the elongated timeline, Yormun intervened.

He intervened and obstructed the arc of the sword. Thus, the Sword of Yeocheon had no effect, and the right arm gripping the sword was left in shambles.

“……”

Kyle silently opened his twisted right hand.

He grasped the dropped sword with his left hand. With one arm hanging limply, Kyle adjusted his stance.

Hoo…

As he exhaled deeply and opened his eyes, he saw something different from before. Centered around Yormun, Kyle saw constellations spreading in all directions. The constellations ensnared the world like a net.

‘From the very beginning.’

It had been on the author’s palm all along.

He was standing on the net laid out by Yormun. Kyle lightly swung the sword with his left hand. The moment the sword energy hit the net, it clang! turned and twisted.

There was no way to strike him with an ordinary sword.

An ordinary sword couldn’t reach Yormun.

Therefore, Kyle was confident.

Only the Sword of Yeocheon would reach Yormun. Just when Yormun seemed to have some leisure, as Kyle intended to draw the Sword of Yeocheon, Yormun moved quickly, intervening in the swing and blocking it beforehand.

‘Yeocheon does connect, even to the author.’

Thus, what had to be done remained unchanged.

Kyle steadied his breath. He corrected his posture. With his feet deeply planted in the ground, Kyle opened his eyes wide. If the opponent wouldn’t give an opening, then he would create one.

But how?

Using everything he had built.

With all he had.

Just as always, he would swing the sword.

‘I see it.’

In Kyle’s eyes, which had been closed and opened, there appeared hundreds of paths. The path the sword should be swung along, as he began to run along the sword path.

Above the sky, the eyes of forgotten gods burst open. The eyes, infused with divine power, bled blue. The azure blood fell to the ground.

Below the ground, flames and storms unleashed by the Ancient Dragon raged. Blood erupted from the Ancient Dragon’s body, shooting up towards the sky.

And between that sky and earth.

Where the blue blood of the god met the red blood of the ancient dragon.

There, a single human was racing.

The chains linking the fragments of the shrine swayed violently. The fragments of the shrine, caught in the void, shattered the moment someone’s figure brushed past.

Bang!

On the stage created by Raniel, Kyle accelerated relentlessly. With each step he took, Kyle’s movements grew faster. Continuing to increase his speed, he dragged the sword low.

What filled his vision was the net of constellations.

Watching the spiderweb that Yormun had spread in all directions along the path he ran, Kyle exhaled. Instead of kicking off the ground, he planted his feet into it and swung his arms.

Galatrich Style, First Technique: Initial Strike.

The rapid strike collided with the web approaching Kyle. What was pushed away was the sword strike. As the sword energy shattered and the constellations attempted to ensnare him, Kyle raised the sword that was aimed at the ground towards the sky.

The chaotic sword web.

He connected another sword path to the unwavering initial strike’s trajectory. In an instant, the sword energy erupted, breaking the web, though not severing it, it successfully created an opening. Kyle leaped into the gap he had made.

The moment he exited the web, Kyle turned his head.

As he looked at Yormun, who held the constellation that spread all around, their gazes met. Even at the peak of his speed, Yormun’s eyes still followed him. And, that finger as well.

Yormun pointed at Kyle.

In that moment, Kyle’s vision split.

Flashes erupted from all directions. The constellations spread around him blinked fiercely. With future a future unreadable even with super-sensory predictions, Kyle’s vision was torn apart. With one eye closed, he looked at the present.

From the blinking constellations, spells spilled forth.

Massive flames, descending lightning, freezing fog… spells capable of turning the area into a disaster were expelled by the constellations. Kyle’s eyes were dyed with the vibrant colors of the spells.

It was like looking through a kaleidoscope.

The world dyed by the highest-grade spells felt disjointed. Was he seeing an illusion? Was it just a reflection? But the boiling heat and the sharp pain in his arm told him this was reality.

Crash!

Kyle buried his feet in the ground.

As spells descended from all directions, Kyle swung his sword. The swing and the exploding spells that emitted light happened almost simultaneously.

Booom!

Spells capable of turning a city into ruins, all expelled just to kill a single human. A deafening roar, a blinding flash… and the sound cutting through it all.

Swish.

The blade broke through the light.

The blade cut through sound. The light was torn apart. As he severed all the spells, Kyle revealed himself.

Welcoming Kyle’s revealed figure were constellations once again emitting blinding light. Kyle gritted his teeth. He could not understand this constellation… but he felt he understood how Yormun used it.

All of these constellations were circuits.

The circuits permanently engraved with Yormun’s magic, and were Yormun himself. Just as an ordinary sword could not cut Yormun, the constellations could not be cut with a sword either.

“…Tch.”

Kyle clicked his tongue.

At the same time, the constellations emitted light. Without even cutting through the spells attacking from all sides, Kyle dove straight ahead. Swinging the sword, he created just enough of a path to move forward, and Kyle rushed ahead.

Not all could be cut.

Even brushing against them would burn the flesh.

More efficiently, more quickly, with minimal movement, he had to create a route and give himself the chance to use Yeocheon. In this moment, Kyle’s mind flashed back to the rematch with Ganikalt.

The last sword fight that had unfolded after using Yeocheon, when they could hardly move.

Recalling the time when they had only chased each other, Kyle exhaled. Veins filled with blood stood out in Kyle’s glaring eyes. His vision turned red as he saw the approaching spells.

He took a step forward and swung his sword. The movements of stepping and swinging merged.

One step and one swing were aligned.

He swung the sword as he stepped forward, and stepped as he swung. The moment the sword was swung, a path to step forward opened. As if his body had become a single sword, Kyle moved.

He kept advancing to make the necessary cuts.

*

‘…Impressive.’

Yormun watched Kyle Toven approach him. Kyle, slicing through countless spells and creating openings amidst the approaching constellations, was coming closer.

His movements were neither fast nor flashy.

Rather, they were serene and slow.

Every action of swinging the sword and stepping forward appeared incredibly slow in Yormun’s eyes. Yet, even so, he couldn’t catch it. Yormun couldn’t predict that knight’s movements.

He sliced through dozens of spells with a single stroke.

Even light and sound fell silent.

He cut through everything that could be severed and even opened gaps where the constellations wouldn’t be cut. It was a skill that could truly be described as miraculous. It was astounding that a single human could refine their swordsmanship to such sharpness.

But even so.

Yormun could only smile bitterly.

He acknowledged the knight’s strength, acknowledged that the moment that human unfurled the technique, no matter how much he might be, if he didn’t give his all, it would be dangerous.

He acknowledged it, but…

Yormun’s golden eyes narrowed.

Those eyes gazed at the single sword clutched in Kyle’s hand. Even if the starlight had faded, that had once been a divine artifact. Forged by starlight, it couldn’t suffer even the slightest scratch from anything in the mortal realm, and even gods could be slain by that sword.

Such a divine artifact couldn’t possibly be easily made.

What forged that divine artifact was none other than Yormun himself. The constellations spreading from Yormun were the original of the divine artifact. In the past, he had severed some of this to engrave it onto the artifact.

Clang, clang!

Unaware of all this, Kyle swung his sword. He was clashing the divine artifact with the constellations. The more he swung, the louder the blade screamed.

Eventually, crack!

Metal shavings scattered from the divine sword.

Cracks began to form in the divine sword’s blade. Kyle’s breath hitched for a moment, and in that moment, Yormun lightly gestured. The constellations flickered violently.

How long do you think you can endure?

The cracks in the sword surged.

Fueled by those cracks, when Kyle swung the sword, a subtle deviation occurred. The length of the sword was slightly misaligned, and the misalignment led to a shuddering. The tip of the blade wobbled.

Booom!

Because it wobbled, he couldn’t cut completely.

Caught in the aftermath of the incomplete cut, Kyle rolled on the ground. Just barely avoiding falling below his footing, he desperately clung to the chains to pull himself back up.

…Cracks had appeared in the divine sword.

A sword that should never break or be scratched was beginning to wear down. This was a first for him. However, even if cracks had appeared, he couldn’t stop swinging the sword.

Crunch.

With gritted teeth, Kyle swung the sword. Stopping his swing would mean his defeat. However, the more he swung, the more the blade became worn down. The shaking grew larger bit by bit.

He had to create an opening.

He needed to use Yeocheon before it was too late.

But he couldn’t find a single gap. No matter how many techniques he used to clash, the constellations only swayed slightly, never severed. They continued to rush forth. It was a situation where no answers appeared, and Kyle’s breath became ragged.

“…!”

Spells surged into his view.

Because he was shaken, his movements were delayed. At this rate, he couldn’t cut through everything. He had to give up part of his body. Just as Kyle gritted his teeth to choose where to discard…

Fluff.

Ash scattered before Kyle’s eyes.

Not ashes of the Goddess of Ashes, but the ashes of Raniel. Immediately after, the ashes flickered fiercely, spewing fire toward the oncoming spells.

Ashes to Ashes.

The flames could not push away all the spells.

Whatever the flames couldn’t repel, Kyle sliced away with his sword. Escaping the crisis, Kyle exhaled and raised his gaze. Upon raising his head, he saw the sky stained red.

The continuous explosions echoed.

Torn screams of the gods and blue blood.

Within that chaos, Raniel’s figure entered his view. And the swirling ashes as well. The ashes, falling like snow, naturally did not land on the ground. They circled around Kyle.

“…Ha.”

Kyle involuntarily chuckled.

From the ashes, it seemed he could hear her voice.

“What’re you doing? Not running?”

What a crazy person. Kyle chuckled softly, exhaling. Pulling the ashes with him, Kyle moved towards Yormun again. The spells, the constellations, everything trying to bite at him… but now Kyle would not waver.

Smash.

The spells inscribed in the swirling ashes.

Smite.

The sword Kyle wielded followed the scattered ashes.

The ashes opened a path, clearing what stood in Kyle’s way. With Raniel’s support, Kyle surged forward.

Cutting through flames, creating gaps in the constellations, he kept running. Towards an enemy he felt he could never reach, Kyle ran endlessly. Before he knew it, Yormun, who seemed far away, appeared to be close.

First sword, Initial Strike.

Kyle drew a circle as he approached Yormun.

As he closed in, he swung the sword. Clang! The sword energy struck Yormun’s body. The constellations entwined around Yormun didn’t budge.

Second sword, Mirage Sword.

Booom!

Third sword, Cutting Sword.

Clang!

Fourth sword, fifth sword……

As he swung the sword, the friction sounds intensified. The constellations wrapping around Yormun began to move. Kyle, scattering ashes, finally reached right in front of Yormun. Landing smoothly, he thrust his sword forward.

Since the actions of landing and thrusting were indistinguishable, it almost looked as if Kyle were throwing a punch instead of wielding a sword.

And then, Pow!

The sword Kyle thrust was caught in Yormun’s bare hand. The moment it was caught in hands wrapped in constellations, Kyle’s sword could not advance even an inch. The trembling constellations swayed, but in the end, Kyle’s strike was intercepted.

The outcome was decided.

Holding onto Kyle’s blade with his left hand, Yormun lunged his right hand towards Kyle’s heart. A future where Kyle met his death pierced through his heart formed in Yormun’s mind.

Yet, in that moment, Yormun saw.

Kyle’s expression held no trace of surprise.

It was as if he had anticipated it from the beginning.

“Now!”

Kyle let go of the sword.

The knight had let go of his sword.

“Shoot, Raniel.”

In one swift motion, Kyle leaped backward.

At that moment, all the ashes swirling around Kyle surged toward the sword he had abandoned. The rushing ashes flickered violently.

What the ashes summoned was Reverse Lightning.

With a boom, red lightning wrapped around the sword. Though it was a mere fraction compared to what Raniel wielded… it was enough.

Kiing!

The crimson reverse lightning dug into the constellations Yormun had gathered. The web of constellations around Yormun’s palm began to tear apart. In that moment, Yormun’s eyes widened, and Kyle seized the opportunity.

Thud!

Kyle kicked the ground, closing the distance.

In an instant, he shortened the distance and gripped the handle of his sword that Yormun was holding with his left hand. Using Yormun’s hands as a sheath, Kyle drew his sword.

Swish.

The blade, freed from the web of constellations, glimmered with reverse lightning. Amidst the splattering blood, Kyle glared. This gap he had painstakingly created. A chance that would not come again. Kyle would not let this opportunity slip away.

In the seemingly frozen moment, Kyle moved.

Countless sword paths converged into a single line towards the shining blade imbued with red lightning. Thus, one path was completed. The sword glowing crimson moved along the trace of lightning.

Tick, tiddididididididic.

Everything that touched the blade was sliced apart.

Even Yormun’s constellations stretched out in all directions were no different. The moment the blade imbued with reverse lightning touched the constellations, they burst into sparks and were torn apart.

In that frozen moment, Kyle looked at Yormun.

It was already too late to halt the Sword of Yeocheon. You showed a gap, and to fill that gap, you must reveal all your power. As if answering Kyle’s question, Yormun reached out towards the sword that was swinging in Kyle’s hand.

In that moment, all the constellations trembled.

The constellations that had spread in all directions like spider webs trembled. The constellations engraved on Yormun’s left arm glowed fiercely. What was revealed was the way Yormun had intended to hide until the end.

Platinum starlight surged.

The overflowing starlight was no longer merely platinum. Kyle faced something glimmering in a multitude of colors.

…In the primordial age, Yormun had named this something ‘Reverse Principle’. Because it was the magic of his own that defied the logic of that era. But now it had become no longer a spell that defied logic.

Once a blade of rebellion against the flow.

It was now a blade that had become the flow itself.

Heavenly Principles.

The order of the heavens, the very logic of the heavens unfolded through Yormun’s fingertips. As that logic was laid out, Kyle swung his sword. The Sword of Yeocheon imbued with reverse lightning met the Heavenly Principles.

The sound of cutting didn’t resonate.

The sound of clash didn’t echo.

Instead, Kyle heard something break.

In that frozen moment, Kyle saw it. He saw the blade he had carried throughout his life break apart.

With the breaking blade.

Time, which had stopped, began to flow again.

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