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Chapter 33: The Battle at the Lawless Port (2)
Curan emerged from within the dusty veil, with a stern expression, stepping over the rubble of a destroyed building.
This won’t be easy, Karyl thought, clutching his throbbing arm.
It wasn't just the opponent's strength that made it challenging.
Seems like taking even one step is tough for this body. My reactions are slow. Remarkably, even amidst a dangerous struggle for life and death, Karyl was testing something.
He is definitely different from Ardin. Perhaps it's because knightly swordsmanship is the foundation. Karyl had never neglected his physical conditioning, knowing it was essential for swordsmanship.
"Sigh..."
Karyl had climbed the tower to travel back in time. It was teeming with creatures of all sorts, from those with hard shells to those made entirely of liquid. They were more diverse than anything else found on the continent.
And to make matters worse, but he had to fight everything from flying creatures to ethereal beings immune to physical attacks, armed with nothing but his sword for an eternity.
Upon opening the door of the tower, he had discovered a realm beyond the Sword Saint, the pinnacle of swordsmanship.
Five Sword Stances.
Each stance was both the most basic and the most powerful, and as one progressed through the steps, their power also increased.
But mastering them was no easy task, especially considering his nigh uncountable age. Although he understood them mentally, manifesting them was a different challenge altogether.
Karyl concentrated his magic power, causing his wrists and ankles to emit a soft glow.
While he couldn't manipulate gravity with high-level magic, he had been using a simple auxiliary spell to increase the weight on his arms and legs ever since he left the mansion.
It's a bit early, but... He planned to gradually increase the weight once he became accustomed to the current weight. Repeating the process like wearing invisible sandbags.
There could be no better opponent than Curan. This training method, impossible without an abundance of magic power, rapidly accelerated his physical growth beyond what he had achieved in his past life.
Having released the magic, Karyl felt his wrists glow lighter as he adapted to his newfound agility, bouncing lightly on his feet.
In an instant, Karyl charged at Curan with a speed that surprised even himself.
At that moment, Curan realized that Karyl was smiling—it was the joy of facing a worthy prey.
***
Curan instinctively positioned his sword vertically, using it as a shield while he concealed himself beside it. With a thunderous crash, the sword, planted in the ground wobbled and shook.
"Urgh?!" For the first time, Curan's massive body was rocked by an impact he hadn't felt before.
It was sheer danger. This was dangerous. He felt his brain was sounding alarms, alerting him to the imminent threat. Curan tried to adjust his stance to strike at Karyl, but with his small frame and abnormal speed, Karyl quickly closed the distance and dove toward him.
Whoosh—
Just like before, Karyl positioned the dagger vertically and brought it towards Curan's face. But this time, instead of defending, Karyl pushed aside the blade of Curan's raised sword with the backlash and raising both arms above his head, sliced into Curan's chest.
Karyl used the First Step - Crown Posture.
Although the massive sword was intimidating, it proved practically useless at close range, causing Curan's large body to falter under its weight.
"Urgh...!" A diagonal red slash appeared across Curan's chest beneath his torn clothes.
The strike was a bit short, Karyl clicked his tongue in annoyance.
The Crown Posture, with arms outstretched as if wearing a crown, would have normally sliced through Curan's head, just as its name suggested.
It was a sword technique primarily used when facing monsters larger than Karyl himself in the tower or against humanoid monsters. However, the small body of a twelve-year-old couldn’t reach Curan's neck, even with extended arms.
No, not yet. The attack wasn't over.
The first of the five stances created by Karyl wasn't meant solely for attack or defense.
Whoosh—
Karyl’s sword moved again. As he ascended the tower, he encountered unimaginable monsters, and even as a Sword Saint, there were none he could kill in a single strike.
Never be complacent. This was the lesson deeply ingrained into him while surviving among the tower's monsters. The moment you think you've won, you become the most vulnerable to a counterattack or to an enemy feigning death.
Raising the sword above his head served a dual purpose: it was both an offensive maneuver and a means to neutralize the opponent's attacks. In other words, even if an attack failed, it could render the enemy defenseless.
Hence, he placed it as Step one, the topmost position bringing attack and defense, serving as both an end and a beginning, as a connector.
Leveraging his small stature as an advantage, Karyl, swiftly moved around Curan. He unleashed a storm of sword strikes, overwhelming Curan.
"Huff." Karyl held his breath as if even the act of breathing could disrupt his focus, heightening his concentration even further.
Karyl wondered how far his swordsmanship could take him—this was a test.
For the test in Tatur, you'll have to be my practice opponent. Karyl's mind was already focused on an opponent greater than the one before him.
"Urgh?!!" Whether Curan understood Karyl's intentions or not, he barely managed to fend off his attacks, feeling the water streams wrapped around his sword blade weakening.
His magical power was slowly dissipating.
How could anybody move like that... That too from from a kid like this! Curan couldn't help but compare to the childhoods of those called the strongest swordmasters of the continent, wondering if they could exhibit such prowess to could at such a young age.
To Curan, the kid before him was no longer just a kid, but a reaper. Unenkownst to him, I really should get down his spine.
Am I...
Curan realized he had unconsciously stepped back to increase the distance from Karyl.
Am I scared?
The sword must remain calm. When anger overtakes reason, swordsmanship ceases to be swordsmanship.
There is an opening. Karyl having faced millions, if not billions of blades, wouldn’t miss even the slightest tremor.
The wooden floor beneath Karyl groaned, giving way under his weight. It splintered in a V-shape with a resounding impact, sending fragments flying in all directions.
In a fleeting moment, Karyl released the weight-increasing magic on his legs, propelling himself upward like a coiled spring. Like a nimble cat leaping onto a tree branch, Karyl leaped up, grabbing Curan's extended arm with his legs and twisting with all his might.
"Argh!!!" The sound of bones cracking reverberated as Curan screamed, his arm now hanging limply at a 90° angle.
All of a sudden, the magic in the long sword dissipated, and the water streams wrapping the blade scattered, soaking the ground.
Soon after, Curan's body crumpled to the floor.
With a composed demeanor, Karyl aimed his sword at Curan's exposed neck. Feeling the cold steel against his skin, Curan smirked bitterly and said, "Go ahead. If you kill me, my men at the lawless port won't stand by."
Was it his last shred of pride? Or just a pointless act of defiance? Nevertheless, Karyl's expression remained unchanged at Curan's words. “That's enough. You've proven your strength. But any further foolishness won't do.”
Aidan Hamil clenched his fist without him realizing, his back drenched in cold sweat. It was a first for him. The lawless port was merely the entrance to Tatur.
Inside, lay monsters far more fearsome, and forces many times larger than those of the port. Killing Curan would mean turning all of them against us!
Curan shook his head at Karyl, his disbelief apparent. "Really?"
Yet, Karyl, without even sparing a glance in Curan’s direction, asked calmly, "Let me rephrase the question. Do you truly think that Curan's men at the lawless port can do anything to me? Is there anyone out here stronger than me?"
There was nothing but silence.
It wasn't just Curan, everyone around felt the weight of the air, unable to make a sound. All eyes were fixed solely on the tip of Karyl's blade.
Curan found himself unable to respond. The answer to that question was something already known to everyone.
Karyl, deeming further action unnecessary, simply declared, "That’s enough."
With a swift and seamless motion, he sliced Curan's throat.