I Obtained Sword God Level Talent

75 – 075. Eye (3)

‘How is that an easy method?’

I grit my teeth and stared at the sky.

The cracked fissure, the eye within, was sending a sinister gaze even now.

*Kku-uk.*

I tightened my grip on the sword.

Cleave the fissure. That simple, yet near-impossible task was muddling my mind.

*Zhiiiing—! Kwaaah──!!!*

In an instant, mana circulated throughout my body. Following that, thick sword energy erupted in streaks, soaring high into the sky.

But.

*Kagagak……!*

The sword energy reached the fissure.

But that didn’t mean the matter was resolved. The sword energy, soaring high into the sky, scattered as if it had struck an invisible barrier.

“We need the Elder’s help!”

“With this body, how am I supposed to help you!”

The Sword Demon muttered with a bitter face.

I had forgotten for a moment. As the Sword Demon said, Geum Ha-rin and the Sword Demon were practically in a state of combat incapacity.

God damn it.

In this hopeless situation, I felt like the sky was turning yellow.

‘To cleave the sky, how the hell…!’

*Wooong!*

I gritted my teeth and stirred up mana once more.

I had realized, after awakening from the darkness, that I had gained an unprecedented power. But the problem was that I didn’t know what that power was. Nor how to wield it.

‘It must be related to the ‘sword’ that Bishop Dubong spoke of.’

That was the moment.

“……!”

*Tadadak!*

I hastily widened the distance, glancing up at the sky once more.

‘It just won’t tire.’

The eye hurled another ‘flesh’ at me. Again, I was able to dodge it, thanks to the warning sent by my instincts.

Indeed, the saying that humans are creatures of adaptation was no lie. The first time I faced the ‘eye,’ I felt like I’d vomit blood and collapse, but now, things were slightly better.

However.

Regardless of that fact, the situation was dire.

The ‘eye’ was growing ever more powerful. The solution was to slash and close the rifts. But I couldn’t see any way to do that…

“There it is…!”

“F, Frey!”

“Hyungniiiim──!!!”

In that situation, unbelievable voices rang out from afar.

“Everyone, how are you here…?”

The owners of the voices were… Ariel, Friedrich, and Cheon Hwa-young, who had been waiting outside the barrier.

‘Ah, the barrier disappeared when Ismael died.’

My face hardened even more as I grasped the situation.

The battle situation was not good. Fighting that unknown enemy was already close to impossible, and now there were even more people I had to protect!

But then.

“Still the same, Frey.”

“…!”

“You always try to carry problems you can’t handle all by yourself.”

Along with that deep voice.

A familiar face popped out from between the three people.

He was a knight wearing a stylish uniform.

The face of the man, with an aura like a drawn sword, was changed beyond recognition, as if he had crossed some kind of line.

“…Lancelot!”

It was the sudden appearance of an old friend. My mouth fell slightly open on its own accord.

I was probably making a face like, ‘Why is hyung here?’ right now.

That aside, there was a more pressing issue.

“Everyone! ‘Absolutely’ do not look at the rifts in the sky…!!!”

I shouted hastily at my old comrades who had suddenly appeared.

That thing is immense, a being that shocks just by being looked at. Surely, something terrible would happen if others were to gaze upon it.

Did they sense the unusual atmosphere? Everyone nodded in response to the disjointed commands.

Having put out the immediate fire, I stared at Lancelot, a hollow feeling washing over me.

“How in the hell did you get here? It’s too sudden, without any warning.”

“By chance. I saw His Imperial Highness’s recruitment notice. I never expected you to be included in the rescue operation.”

“Is that so.”

I slowly nodded, belatedly.

Before Ismael’s barrier disappeared, I had grasped the fact that time flowed differently inside and outside the barrier. Perhaps the three on the outside had prepared some kind of solution.

“Lancelot, Ariel, Friedrich, Chun Hwa-Young. It’s good to see you all, but the greetings will have to wait.”

*Ssssk!*

The ‘eye’ in the rift was observing the sudden intruders. It seemed to be assessing if the five individuals who’d abruptly appeared could be a threat.

‘Wait, hold on.’

Five? Why five?

I turned my head slightly and looked at them all.

…Just how long had it been outside? Their appearances had all changed subtly.

First, Friedrich.

He looked like he’d aged ten years. If it weren’t for the fact that he was introduced as twenty, I would have thought he was in his thirties.

And Chun Hwa-Young.

Originally in his late teens, he had a more mature look. It was a little different compared to Friedrich, who looked like he’d aged rapidly.

Next… Ariel.

It wasn’t just her appearance, but something… The passion she held for me seemed to have intensified even more. Her appearance was similar, but it was like her core had become stronger.

“A-are you alright…?!

The moment she saw Sword Demon and Geum Ha-Rin fall, she rushed towards them, just like the Ariel I knew.

‘That’s not the problem.’

I stared, my face hardened, at the person next to her.

Unlike the three who had departed with me for the Western Border, there was an additional, mysterious man who had suddenly appeared.

“Ah, hello!”

“……?”

Whether he had come with Lancelot, he looked as youthful as Chun Hwa-Young.

The only peculiar thing was the high-quality sword hanging at his waist. He was radiating the scent of a famous wealthy ‘young master.’

“Found yourself a sugar daddy?”

I knew Lancelot was a lone wolf, through and through. So, the moment I started piecing together the identity of this young knight…

“I, I’m Tristan, traveling with Sir Lancelot! Pleased to make your acquaintance…!”

What?

I doubted my ears for a split second. It wasn’t his awkward face or even his odd way of speaking that was the problem.

It was his name.

‘Tristan?’

The young knight’s name was one I knew very well.

“Ha!”

＜Chivalry＞ Lancelot and ＜Berserker＞ Tristan were traveling together?

What an unbelievable coincidence. No, more than that, was he even *the* ＜Berserker＞?

The one I knew was a transcendent overflowing with berserker tendencies.

I shook my head, scattering my thoughts. It wasn’t the time for chitchat.

“Lancelot. Fall back for now.”

“Fall back? What do you mean?”

“That eye in the sky can shoot out a formless energy. It has a ‘one-hit kill’ ability, literally.”

“What kind of crazy…! Understood!”

Lancelot nodded, his face utterly pale.

He knew, too, that this was no minor situation.

“So, Frey. How are you planning to deal with that thing?”

*Clatter, clatter!*

…That rigid b*stard, he really listens *too* well.

Lancelot quickly grabbed the injured Sword Demon and Geum Ha-rin, and bolted far away. He took Ariel, Friedrich, and Chun Hwa-young with him, for good measure.

Left alone on the battlefield, I felt… strange.

‘This is kinda lonely.’

I muttered the absurd thought and refocused on the ‘eye’.

I don’t know why.

I couldn’t see my reflection right now, but I realized that my own expression had lightened quite a bit.

If I had to find a reason, maybe it was because my friends had come running for me.

Woong-oong-!

Again, I gather mana.

“Going to cut. That thing.”

I mutter, and just as I’m about to unleash another burst of sword energy,

Kwaddeudeuk!

‘This is bullshit…!’

Kwaaang───!!!

Has too much time already passed?

From beyond that rift, a horrific cracking sound began. As if something within was desperate to manifest in the real world, the dreadful noise blanketed the earth.

Thud!

And…

“…That is?”

Thud!

Gaddeudeudeuk…!

My face, watching that scene clearly, froze, paling.

What was visible beyond the rift was a ‘hand’.

Following an eye… the enemy’s hand was attempting to manifest.

* * *

Flash!

Sweeaeaeaeek──!!!

Flash!

Kwaaa……!!!

Waves of sword energy scatter into the sky. The jet-black sword energy was like a tidal wave. But, the unfortunate truth was that the powerful attack wasn’t having much effect.

“Frey…”

With a somber expression, Ariel watched Frey, far away, wielding his sword like a madman.

Just what kind of fight had Frey been waging within this barrier?

“…Ugh.”

Geum Ha-rin had lost consciousness before I knew it.

The Sword Demon’s face was pale with fatigue.

Just by looking at the two of them, it was clear they had endured great hardship.

But, even so…

*SWIShhh!*

Frey was swinging his sword towards the sky, as if possessed, like a madman. Ariel desperately avoided looking at the empty space above.

It was because Frey warned that looking at that space could even cost one’s life.

“Hah! Even that child, as great as he is, seems to lack the strength…”

The Sword Demon murmured, his face bitter, as he watched Frey’s sword dance.

Ariel’s gaze, which had been silently fixed at his side, shifted towards the Sword Demon.

“Lacking strength, Elder? Do you mean Frey’s level is insufficient?”

“Hah! That’s not it. One of the reasons the boy is special is his ability to exert strength beyond his level.”

“…Then, what is it?”

Question was etched into Ariel’s gaze.

“Just understand it literally. The boy lacks the total amount of internal energy he possesses. It’s unparalleled among his peers or those at a similar level, but it’s woefully inadequate to defeat the grotesque thing in the sky.”

Ariel’s expression hardened instantly.

The Sword Demon, who had been smirking wryly, slowly nodded and continued.

“And it doesn’t end there. This battle might not simply end with Frey’s defeat.”

“…Elder, I need an explanation.”

Lancelot, who had been silently listening to Ariel and the Sword Demon’s conversation, subtly urged for an answer.

Considering his usual personality, it was clear Lancelot was also very anxious.

“Who knows? That grotesque thing’s manifestation might trigger the end of the world.”

“…T-the end of the world!”

“That’s, that’s too sudden of a story.”

Friedrich and Cheon Hwa-young, who had been hovering around like scaredy-cats, mumbled with blank expressions.

Destruction, the world’s end. For the two, born into noble families and having lived pampered lives, the words felt entirely foreign.

“I-is there no way to do anything?!”

Ariel asked the Sword Demon.

To silently wait for Frey to solve everything?

No more of that.

Ariel had spent a long time outside the barrier. The yearning and guilt that pierced her heart. She had no intention of experiencing that again.

“Hah! A way…”

The Sword Demon smiled bitterly.

“Gather ’round, all of you.”

And then.

Following that, the Sword Demon called everyone in the vicinity to gather.

Swoosh.

He surveyed the group, and spoke in a heavy, solemn tone, as if making an announcement.

“There is a way to help that child.”

The Sword Demon’s explanation that followed was quite simple.