I Obtained Sword God Level Talent

77 – 077. Return (1)

At the same moment the Sword Demon’s body fell to the parched ground.

“Ughhh!”

A groan of pain burst from my mouth.

Distinctly different energies surged through my entire body. An indescribable pain covered my whole being, and I clenched my teeth so hard blood began to seep.

‘Sword Father…!’

I cried out in my mind while circulating mana.

Energies that shouldn’t have been able to mix were still surging through my meridians, threatening to tear my body apart at that very moment.

‘Grasp it, there must be a hidden meaning in those words!’

My mind raced. My throat felt parched as if I was burning with a thirst for even greater power.

Kwaddeudeuk!

Of course, the foe of the rift didn’t just stand by and watch. It once again exerted its power, brutally tearing at the ground beneath my feet.

Taat!

Leaping backwards, I stared up at the sky.

A torn sky, a rift revealed. And within it, ‘eyes’ and ‘hands’ pulsed with a luminous divine power.

‘Think.’

My mind settles coldly.

I don’t know if this is the effect of the mind of clear, still water, of the calm characteristic.

The death of the Sword Demon.

I was consumed with rage at the aftermath. But, contrary to the expectation that it would be as hot as red-hot lava, the form of the rage I exude was a frigid, cold blue.

Kkwaaak!

“…Hhup!”

Clenching my teeth, I gripped the hilt of my sword tightly, starting to manipulate mana.

Wooong—!!

The enormous mana I possess reacts. Following that, the energy that the Sword Demon gave to everyone also begins to move.

Deudeudeudeu…!!!

Is it because of the reckless desire to perform an absurd miracle with a human body? As I began to circulate all of the energy in my body, the ground began to tremble.

Hwioooh……!

Swaaah……!

On top of that, as if the heavens and earth wouldn’t permit it, suddenly, torrential rain began to pour from the sky, an immense gale raged.

“Crazy. Does it have the power to control the weather?”

Amidst the storm and earthquake that suddenly shook the heavens and earth.

I, bearing a sensation that made my skin crawl, glared at the sky. The being within the rift seemed somewhat dazed, as if my will was absurd.

“But, Sword Father said… Be strong…”

But, unlike its wishes. I did not back down.

My eyes sink deeply. A colder rage than ever before awakens my spirit.

The Sword Demon’s last words… like the words, ‘Be strong,’ I fixed my gaze on the unwavering tip of my sword.

‘What is the lost ‘sword’ that the God of War left behind?’

Huuuk!

In an instant, I felt the strange sensation of time slowing.

It was absurd, yet I wasn’t surprised. I was simply lost in a sudden, profound contemplation.

‘What is this “power” the being in the darkness spoke of?’

What I gained upon waking from my deep slumber was truly ambiguous.

It felt like power surged through my entire body, and I’d gained the confidence to challenge an enemy I couldn’t even dare resist before.

“……I see.”

In the slow-flowing time, I finally deduced the nature of this “power.”

Yes, it was…

‘A burst of talent? Not certain, but it feels like my inherent blessing has risen a level.’

The being in the darkness hadn’t granted me incredible strength. Rather, it elevated the tier of my talent, allowing me to stand against that overwhelming presence.

In short.

‘Talent, huh.’

It had made the potential I held shine even brighter.

Ssssk.

I raise my deeply sunken eyes once more.

In this sensation of time slowing down, I clearly locked onto the enemy. The fear I had before was nowhere to be felt.

“Now… I can finally see properly.”

My eyes, lacking focus, yet ridiculously, I could now ‘directly perceive’ the enemy’s form.

Woong.

Wishing that the old man’s sacrifice, opening a path for everyone to survive, wouldn’t be in vain.

I cut.

I slash.

“I will… even cleave the heavens.”

The warmth of a beloved elder’s affection.

Yet, the loss of that bond that came upon me.

I imbued that emotion, gripping the sword tightly.

* * *

Hwooom… !

The sudden roar of a storm shook the surroundings.

“Hehehe…!”

Friedrich, sprawled on the floor, twisted his body with difficulty. He clearly lacked the strength to even twitch, and that pathetic movement caused Chun Hwa-young to gape.

“Wha-what is it? Surely, you shouldn’t even have the strength to move?!”

“My brother’s life or death is at stake, would I, as his younger brother, just stand idly by…!!!”

“Wh-what!”

It was strange.

Chun Hwa-young thought the way Friedrich was rolling his face around was very odd.

Looking at him contort his body in such a ridiculous way, anyone would find it hard to believe he was a ‘Crown Prince.’

Thud!

“Khehehe!”

With a shout like that of a third-rate villain.

Using the momentum of slamming his head into the ground, Friedrich sprang up from his spot.

“You’re late.”

“……Eh, uh?”

But then.

Through his heightened perspective, an absurd sight came into view. The man he had thought was lying collapsed far away.

Lancelot was standing up, his appearance similar to his own.

“Haha! I understand, you said you were my brother’s friend.”

Friedrich noticed the clumps of dirt and dust plastered on Lancelot’s head.

A grin burst out of him involuntarily. He looked a mess, but it felt like a strange camaraderie was sprouting.

“……Look over there.”

“Yes?”

Friedrich stumbled over to Lancelot’s side.

Then, Lancelot raised a finger with a swift movement. At the tip of his finger, over the hill, was Frey, locked in a solitary battle.

And yet.

“What… the hell…?”

Friedrich’s jaw dropped.

Was this luck?

The moment Friedrich looked, a significant change occurred to Frey.

Whoosh…!

Amidst the wind that made it difficult to stay upright, Frey, wielding his sword, stood as still as a stone statue.

But the problem was what was above Frey’s head.

“……Rings?”

Yes. It was a ring.

That it wasn’t an ordinary ring was something even Friedrich, who trained in mana, knew very well. After all, he was all too familiar with the five rings emitting dazzling light!

“Ogi-jo-won.”

Geum Harin, who had been lying prone in a good spot from the start, spoke.

She had been staring at the fallen Sword Demon’s form since earlier. This was the first time she had opened her mouth.

“O-Ogi-jo-won? The Ogi-jo-won referred to in the Eastern Continent is…!!”

Friedrich’s face was painted with shock.

“That’s right. The symbol of the 8th Realm. We are now witnessing the birth of a new Sword Master.”

…

..

.

Meanwhile, Frey was still in the midst of his own torment.

It was because the moment he was about to swing his sword at the rift, a profound realization pierced through his mind.

To cut…?

‘What *is* cutting?’

Even to himself, it was a pathetic and incomprehensible question.

But that question didn’t end there. Like a chain reaction, all sorts of agonies and worries began to consume his brain.

What is cutting?

Is it swinging a sword?

If so, what is a sword?

Is it a weapon forged by a master craftsman with blood and sweat, made of good-quality iron?

What is iron?

Is it just ore from a mine?

What is a mine? And the mountain where it’s located? The earth? The sky?

—Why… am I even here doing this?—

All those questions soon converged on one single truth.

Why am I here, what am I fighting for, is this battle worth the risk of death here?

“……I am.”

Frey.

At the same time, that stranger, from a faraway, other dimension. Possessing a talent that shone brighter than anyone.

“People. Precious connections.”

To protect them.

“……Ah.”

Frey, realizing a vital truth, lifted his left hand, slowly.

What is a sword?

A sword is a sword. I am me. But the sword is me. Therefore, I too, become the sword that is swung.

Whoosh!

The chaotic energy, running wild, settled into stillness in an instant.

Considering the total amount of mana flowing through Frey’s entire body, it was impossible. A multitude of mana, Ariel’s divine power… and furthermore, even the Sword Demon’s innate true qi.

All of that energy began to weave together.

And.

Wooong──.

Simultaneously with the unbelievable, an awe-inspiring miracle appeared above Frey’s head.

Five rings, dazzling in five different colors.

A stage of enlightenment, called ‘Five Qi Returning to Origin’ in the East Continent. A symbol of the 8th Circle, shining its light.

Tchick!

It was at that moment that bizarre changes began to occur in the sword Frey held.

Tzzzt!

The massive mana, enveloping the sword, began to disappear. No, it wasn’t simply the mana dispersing.

Evolution.

Incredibly, the mana on the sword was changing. What had seemed to be disappearing was now manifesting on the sword again, possessed of an ineffable and formidable power.

Shwaaah……!

“……Sword Aura.”

Frey’s small, low voice slipped out from within the pouring rain.

Thud.

Frey took a step.

Swoosh.

Frey lowered his stance.

Hwaaah……!

And then, he swung the sword. Towards the sky. Showcasing his ‘severing’.

Then.

An astonishing thing unfolded. Frey’s sword, the pure white sword aura that appeared on the blade, it flew towards the sky!

────!!!

In an instant, a massive pressure shook the surroundings. A deafening roar, so loud it eclipsed all other sounds, brutally confirmed this was real.

Following that.

Crack!

Cr-r-rack…!

The split sky, the fissures… they began to ‘close’!

Wooom───!!!

The being beyond the rift unleashed a furious, wailing scream.

“Get lost.”

However, Frey, standing on the cracked earth, wore a colder expression than ever before.

Wooom───!!!

The ‘eyes’ and ‘hands’ within the fissure thrashed wildly.

Whisk, Frey turned his body as if there was nothing more to see. He instinctively understood. That was the end of it. It would likely remain trapped in that rift for at least thousands of years.

Thump thump.

And Frey began walking towards somewhere.

…There.

As before, the Sword Demon, with a benevolent smile, lay sprawled out. There was no warmth of life emanating from him.

Thud.

A transparent liquid dripped onto the ground where he’d fallen.

Sshhh.

Frey slowly knelt before his corpse. And solemnly declared.

“…I will stand in the heavens.”

His trembling voice was filled with all sorts of emotions.

Sorrow and joy, relief and fury. All seemed to be contained in that short phrase.

And so, the incident at the Western Border drew to a close.