I Obtained Sword God Level Talent

66 – 066. Ismael Subjugation War (4)

Ascending to the 7th rank, I organized my thoughts.

What is Martial Arts?

What is swordsmanship?

What is the blessing of nature called Mana, or Internal Energy?

‘Mu is… a path.’

I unleashed a surging Mana.

‘And a path is… life.’

And life… is a world created by me, one of the countless humans who came from Mu無, from the very beginning.

*Zzzt!* *Zzzzt!*

I calmly took in the ghastly forms of the demonic beasts closing in from all directions. Then, I swung my sword in a large vertical, and then horizontal arc.

*KWAHaaaH────!!!*

Astonishing Mana ripped through the space, surging forward. The energy, already shed of its ‘sword aura’ guise, resembled a natural disaster.

*SWHoooSH!* *SCRAPE!* *THUD!*

As if a soul was imbued within the inky sword’s shadow.

Mana, encompassing the surrounding area, embroidered the landscape before the ruined village.

“Ggg, guuooorrrk!”

*THUD!*

The demonic beasts caught in the sword’s energy transformed into a spray of blood. The fiends risen from hell couldn’t withstand this astonishing ignition of will.

“Th-this… is the Knight of the Holy Grail…!!”

Geum Ha-rin, who had silently watched my strike, was visibly trembling.

It was her, the one who had been so impudent to me. It seemed quite shocking to her that I possessed such immense power.

“Don’t let your guard down. The battle… is not over yet.”

*Ssssh…*

I regulated my breathing. Re-establishing my stance, I cast an impassive gaze straight ahead.

*DUDUDUDUDU────!!*

The demonic beasts, blackening the earth, were still numerous. The sound of their hooves, the predatory glint as they charged, still loomed over this place.

*Click!*

“I suddenly have many things I want to ask you… but this isn’t the right time.”

The Sword Demon, his drawn blade gleaming, let out a low chuckle.

“I must settle things here first. Will you entertain this old man then?”

“…Of course, wouldn’t I?”

“Hahaha! Indeed, indeed you should!”

*Swoosh.*

The giant of the 8th tier took a step.

The ＜Sword Demon＞, called a Transcendent, threw himself into the battlefield.

*Thud!*

“…!”

His single stride shook the earth.

His gaze turned to the endless horde of demonic beasts.

His sword began a dance of carnage, slaughtering indiscriminately.

*Whoosh!*

‘That is…’

The Sword Demon’s unique martial art bloomed from his wrinkled fingertips.

It was like an elegant dance. But it was no mere sword dance. With every gesture, every move of his blade, death loomed over his enemies.

*Slash! Thud! Thwack!*

“That… that’s the Demonic Sect’s Seven Swords魔宗七劍.”

And that single form, Black Flower Shadow Step.

‘Stamina distribution, from breathing to mana. It’s all a swordsmanship for facing numerous enemies.’

It was straightforward. The movements were extremely restrained, but the speed with which he decimated the enemies was unparalleled.

“W-who… who are you people?”

It was such an easy fight, almost simple.

The priestess, who had been frozen with fear, now stared blankly.

“Who we are, you ask.”

A hollow laugh almost escaped. Would they even believe it if I told them we were ＜Black Sword＞, recently gaining fame, and ＜Sword Demon＞, one of the Transcendent of the Eastern Continent?

“Just… wandering lost sheep.”

*Whoosh!*

With that short utterance, I charged into the heart of the battlefield.

Despite the Sword Demon’s activity, the number of demonic beasts was still ridiculously high. I had to quickly take them down and then reach our final goal, the border city.

Sigh!

“Heh! A merciless blade, just like our people.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“It is a compliment. And a declaration that I won’t give up on you!”

Me and the Sword Demon. A pair of blades spewed black light across the battlefield. The number of demonic beasts, easily numbering in the thousands, rapidly dwindled.

Wooong─!

“…….”

The black sun, as if feeling bewildered by this astonishing slaughter, emitted a strange, unsettling sound.

And so, time passed.

“It’s over.”

Thud!

The Sword Demon, having sliced down the last beast, muttered a bored observation.

The battle had been a one-sided massacre.

As demonic beasts devoid of reason, they charged at me and the Sword Demon, disregarding their own deaths. But you can’t break a diamond with an egg. It didn’t take long for all their lives to be extinguished.

“……Geum Harin, what about survivor casualties?”

“Ah, none. There were a few who strayed from the formation, but I took care of them all.”

Geum Harin, catching her breath, shook her head and spoke.

Perhaps it was thanks to her being the vice leader of the Demonic Cult. She too, had handled things perfectly.

“Savior…!”

“Please save us!!”

“……Huh?”

But the gazes the survivors were directing at me were strangely different.

‘Savior, my ass.’

Before, there had been a slight sense of wariness, but now they fully recognized me as a ‘savior.’

“Heh! Isn’t it obvious?”

Thump, The Sword Demon, standing next to me, stroked his beard as he spoke.

“The divine power you displayed. That was… an attack only possible for a transcendent being of at least the 8th level.”

“……Is that so?”

“To ordinary people who don’t understand mana, you must look like a heavenly general sent from the heavens!”

That… I can understand. My first attack, the sword I wielded tore through demonic beasts hundreds of meters away. Even in a world where ‘mana’ exists, that was undoubtedly something that defied common sense.

“U-um, excuse me….”

“Hm?”

As I awkwardly received the reactions of the crowd, and was getting ready to move again,

the priestess from before approached me. She looked genuinely uneasy, her face serious.

“Really. You have no connection to the Great One?”

It was obvious who she meant by the ‘Great One’.

Aldehain, the god of war. She must be referring to him, the one who acknowledged my ownership of the relic, calling me a descendant of the [Overlord].

“It’s not like there’s no connection. This bracelet, it’s something I received from him.”

“Y-you’re…!”

“No way! You really are…!”

Following the priestess, the middle-aged priest she’d called her senior gaped, their mouths hanging open.

Was there something I didn’t know? They snapped to attention and started whispering amongst themselves.

“Then, perhaps ‘that’ is possible for the church as well?”

“Hmm! It’s too early to say for sure. But, it’s worth a shot.”

…Sorry, but I can hear everything you’re saying.

Had they never encountered anyone who had trained their mana to such an extreme? Their scheming was coming through loud and clear.

Anyway, ‘that’? What’s ‘that’?

I didn’t sense any malice. It didn’t seem like it would negatively affect me.

“Let’s move out, for now.”

Dismissing them, I declared we were moving on again.

The survivor, who had been trembling in fear just moments ago, bowed his head and started walking. We should be able to reach the border city in a few hours, maybe.

* * *

“Is, is that person really human…?”

“I don’t know either. All I know is, they are a lamp illuminating the darkness.”

The residents of the border town were at a loss for words at the absurd scene unfolding before them.

The monsters, hidden within the barrier, were relentlessly attacking.

But.

*Whoosh…!*

At the head of the party. The knight in the pure white attire would swing his sword, and it was all over. The problem was resolved. The fear they’d felt vanished, replaced by a sense of peace.

“It’s like they’re a hero from myth, or something…”

One of the survivors, moving with cautious steps, muttered absently.

As if suddenly remembering something, he pulled a notebook and pen from his pocket. The surrounding people, seeing this, exclaimed with dumbfounded expressions.

“You, you vile b*stard. Even in this situation, you’re taking notes?”

“Leave him be. It’s an illness. Where else would a former minstrel go?”

*Skritch, skritch!*

The man was unfazed by the voices of those around him.

As if possessed by something, he stared blankly at Frey, who was slaughtering the demonic beasts in the distance, and wrote in his notebook.

Then.

“Th-this…!”

“Damn it. Did the upper dam collapse?!”

A desperate situation unfolded before them.

The path they usually took across the bridge, the road leading to the city. That path was submerged and completely cut off.

*KWA-AA-AA-AAH!*

What kind of trick the devils had played. The torrent of the river was ominous. They even had the illusion that some presence was staring at them from within the murky water.

“W-what do we do? If we detour this way, we’ll lose a whole day.”

The priestess, who was leading the group of survivors, spoke with a dark complexion. Listening to her words, Frey seemed to be pondering a solution, falling into deep thought.

“Is this river… important?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I mean, would it matter if the watercourse was changed?”

“I… don’t… think… so?”

The priestess couldn’t hide her bewildered look.

Suddenly changing the course of the river? The width of the healthy river was enormous. Could he possibly be thinking of destroying the river?

‘No, that’s impossible.’

The priestess shook her head. It was a rather absurd idea, even to her own mind. How could a human force bend a river?

However.

“Heh heh! Seems it’s my time to step up.”

“Yes. We’re counting on you, elder.”

“Huh?”

The priestess doubted her eyes at the scene that followed.

As if he could resolve things, the Sword Demon drew his sword and stepped forward.

And then.

Kugugugu…! Paaang!

An absurd thing unfolded.

Water, the river that had flowed so violently… it ‘stopped’ in an instant…!!!

“Wh, wh-what is going on?!”

The middle-aged priest also gaped in shock.

Then, the flow of the water shifted. The river, which had seemed like a storm-tossed sea, now felt a little more tame.

“Disappointing. I couldn’t sever the ‘flow’ of mana.”

But the Sword Demon, who had caused that absurd event, clicked his tongue, seemingly disappointed. Naturally, the survivors, including the priest, swallowed their breaths.

Which meant, they would ultimately have to go around the river, right?

But.

“Now, I will try.”

Frey’s low voice resonated.

Try what?

All eyes turned to him. Was there another way… to cross this rough river?

‘…Hmm?’

The former bard, now settled in the border village, also tilted his chin.

His hand, which had been scribbling down the hero’s biography in his notebook, had long since stopped. Because he had no inkling of what was about to happen.

And then.

Saaahhh──!

“……Uh.”

“What…?”

“A, aah…….”

A shocking thing unfolded before them.

Shhk! Shhk shhk!

The bard’s pupils, now vacant, began to write again in his notebook.

All of it was happening because of one man standing before the river… Frey.

Chwaaak…!

The river, the water, was splitting in half…!!

“The more I see… that’s one monstrous friend.”

Even the Sword Demon of the Heavens clicked his tongue at the wondrous feat.

What Frey displayed just now wasn’t mere skill. He released mana. And then, he processed that mana thinly.

Following that… with that mana, he created a ‘barrier’ in the weakened flow of the river!

Mana sensitivity, as well as the total amount of mana, heightened by the Plum Blossom Altar. A miracle born from the very constitution of mana flowing through his entire body.

‘Oh, my god……’

The bard shed hot tears.

A new story, the saga of a hero, was being born. What a blessing it was to be at the heart of such a scene!

*Swish! Swish!*

[ The hero extended his arm towards the river. Nature worked a miracle, pushing back the river to dry its bed. As the river parted, the people of the West walked through the dry land in the middle of the river. The water became a wall on either side of them. ]

He hurriedly wrote what he saw into his notebook.

……Had outsiders seen this, it would’ve been a ridiculous story, one they’d say was oversaturated with seasoning.