Chapter 129

Woojin could feel it.

'Fensir is alive.'

He had no idea how to describe it, but he simply knew it instinctively. Perhaps it was because [Ancient Knowledge] had activated all his senses.

'I can't waste this moment.'

Woojin did not let the opportunity slip away. He sat down and closed his eyes.

"Hooo..."

Slowly drawing in a breath, he recalled the Sword Emperor's instructions from the scroll one by one, savoring each of them. Like a sponge soaking up water, he rapidly began absorbing everything the Sword Emperor had to offer.

"M-Master...?"

Setsuna fidgeted anxiously as she watched him sitting there. Sweat poured off him like rain. His lips turned blue, only for his cheeks to flush bright red at other moments.

She swallowed. Somehow, she felt that even brushing him with a fingertip would spell disaster. All she could do was clasp her hands and watch.

TAP.

How much time had passed?

Woojin, who had been sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, abruptly sprang to his feet.

"Master! Are you awake?!"

But he drew his sword with unfocused eyes, seemingly unable to hear her cries.

"W-wait! Master!!"

WHOOSH!!!

His sword cut through the air. Startled, Setsuna hastily backed away.

WHOOOOSH!!

The sword picked up speed. Woojin began swinging wildly, as though a formidable enemy stood before him.

BOOM!!

Then the sword came to a halt above his head. Unlike his earlier swings, its vertical descent released a thunderous rush of air worthy of a massive greatsword.

"Hss..."

Drawing a breath, Woojin lifted the sword he had brought down against the floor and swept it horizontally. The air split by the slow-moving blade burst outward as though an explosion had gone off.

BANG!

His sword was fast yet slow, light yet heavy. Setsuna watched in utter astonishment.

SWISH!!!

CRASH!!

He had truly entered a state of selflessness.

The instant he thrust his sword toward that final, single point—

"... Gasp!!"

Woojin opened his eyes.

The swirling winds raised by his blade died away, and the sweat drenching his body evaporated in an instant.

His body felt light.

It was no exaggeration—he felt so refreshed he could fly. Astonished by his own condition, he examined himself all over.

"H-how did this...?"

He looked around, bewildered.

"Master!!"

Setsuna, who had been watching from the safety of a corner, hurried over to inspect him.

"A-are you all right?!"

"Oh, yeah..."

Despite his answer, he still could not hide his bewilderment at the sensations he had just experienced.

"W-wait a second."

As though determined not to forget that feeling, he gripped his sword again.

Using skills in reality was distinctly different from using them in the game. Even skills he could wield at will in the game required relentless effort to use here.

All the more so for a skill he had never even used in the game...

WHOOSH!!

Woojin swung his sword.

SWISH!! SWISH!!

As he continued striking, the sound of his blade grew strangely sharper.

SHING!!!

The dull sound of a sword battering the wind finally became the sound of one slicing through it.

"..."

When even the whistle of the blade vanished, an involuntary thrill ran through Woojin at the heights he had reached on his own.

"So this is... the swordsmanship the Sword Emperor discovered by hunting Fenrir."

Goose bumps rose all over his body. Experiencing sensations impossible to feel in the game, he could tell that his mind had gained a new understanding and his body had advanced another step.

"But..."

Staring at his sword, Woojin tilted his head slightly.

"Some of these movements don't seem necessary..."

It was strange. Was it because he had learned such supreme sword arts as Raoul's swordsmanship and the Bolton Secret Art? Or was it because this was reality, not a game?

Having mastered the Sword Emperor's swordsmanship, he found a question forming in his mind.

"If I move the sword like this here..."

He started a diagonal slash, then shook his head, drew his arm inward, and thrust forward.

"A thrust rather than a slash..."

A horizontal cut rather than a vertical stroke. Instead of retreating, a half step forward to close the distance.

Little by little, but unmistakably, Woojin began revising the Sword Emperor's swordsmanship.

SHICK.

Now even the sound of the wind being sliced fell silent.

"...!!!"

It was an extraordinary experience.

THUMP. THUMP.

When his final stroke came to a halt, Woojin's heart began pounding madly.

"I did it..."

An indescribable exhilaration made him break into a grin without realizing it.

"What's the sword style called?"

"The sword style's name...?"

Setsuna put the question to him as he struggled to catch his breath.

"Army Breaker... No. That's not it."

Woojin started to give the name written on the scroll, then shook his head. In his hands, the Sword Emperor's swordsmanship had been reborn as something entirely new. A sword style meant for him alone.

It needed a new name.

"Well..."

Yet, rather unexpectedly, he answered Setsuna with an awkward expression.

"It doesn't have one."

"It doesn't have a name?"

"No. I've never named a sword style or anything before."

He wondered whether his swordsmanship really needed a name.

"It still needs one!"

For some reason, Setsuna shook her head stubbornly at his answer and raised her voice.

"It's something you accomplished, Master."

Spreading her arms wide, she held both his cheeks and looked into his eyes.

"This isn't just swordsmanship. It's proof of your existence."

A pang went through him. A tangle of emotions welled up at her words.

"Proof of my existence..."

His self in the game, and his self in the other world.

He wandered between those two worlds, but his true self was somewhere else.

Reality.

Ultimately, that was the world where Woojin belonged.

"Even if you disappear, Master, the swordsmanship you created will remain."

She smiled.

"Give it a name so both worlds can remember it."

It was remarkable. She seemed to have not the slightest doubt that he could return to reality.

"... Martial Resolve."

At that moment, the name slipped from Woojin's lips before he knew it.

A determination never to waver.

"That's a wonderful name."

Setsuna repeated it several times, then smiled at him. It made his face grow warm for no good reason, but once again, he was simply grateful she was with him.

"Anyway... it's about time for an arrival."

Setting his emotions aside for the moment, Woojin slowly stood up.

"Huh?"

"I used the power I got from the Sacred Spirit Contract while learning the swordsmanship in that scroll. Fensir probably felt it too."

It was curious. Woojin's attitude toward the other world had changed a little.

Had he become more relaxed?

No. It would be more accurate to say he had come to understand it.

[AWOOOO!!!]

It happened then. A wolf's piercing howl rang out.

KABOOM!!!!

An explosion erupted beneath the den, and sharp fangs lunged toward them through a cloud of black dust.

A wolf as enormous as Fenrir.

But it was different. Unlike Fenrir's grayish coat, the wolf before them had unmistakably snow-white fur, though it was sullied with dust.

"Fensir!!!"

Woojin called out to the wolf charging him. His shout was one of delight, but...

KABOOM!!!!

The answer was a merciless kick.

"Master!!!!"

Woojin's Barrier shattered, driving him backward. At Setsuna's cry, a Grasp burst from the floor to protect him.

[GRAAAAH!!!!]

At that instant, electricity flashed in Fensir's eyes, so brilliant it was white rather than yellow.

KRAKAKABOOM!!

Blue lightning poured from the horn on the wolf's forehead.

CRACK-CRACK...! BOOM...!!!

The lightning smashed Setsuna's Grasps to pieces and kept coming, engulfing Woojin.

"Hey!!! That's one hell of a rough greeting!"

Watching the lightning bear down on him, Woojin gritted his teeth and drove his sword into the ground.

"Just calm down already!!"

CRACK...! CRACKLE...!!

A wave of white frost poured from his sword, washing over the lightning and surging toward Fensir.

WHOOSH!!

After stopping the wolf's movements with [Cold Wave], he used [Sprint] to dart in close.

As he focused, a black brand appeared above Fensir's head.

[GRR?!]

Fensir staggered in apparent confusion.

Woojin suddenly felt lighter. Apparently, he had stolen Fensir's [Agility].

WHOOSH-WHOOSH!!!

Seizing the opening, Woojin rushed forward at a furious speed and swung his sword at Fensir.

CLANG!!

His sword struck the wolf squarely in the forehead.

SHING!! CLATTER-CLANG!!

A relentless flurry of blows followed, too fast for the naked eye to track, and Fensir slowly began backing away.

"Whoa!! Master!! Why didn't you use all this against that monster?"

Setsuna shouted as she unleashed a barrage.

"It wasn't that I didn't. I couldn't."

Woojin's lips twitched as he answered her.

"Back then, I still couldn't use skills as freely as you."

Using skills in the other world had been like knowing what to do in his head, but being unable to make his body follow. Yet by expressing his newfound understanding through a new sword style, Woojin had now adapted completely to this world.

That was why he seemed so at ease.

[Acceleration].

SWOOOOSH!!!

Wind swirled around him like a vortex.

[Grounded Legs].

THUD!!!

Strength filled both legs as his feet pressed against the ground.

[Element].

FWOOSH!!

Flames whirled around his blade.

He could now use every skill he had wielded in the game.

[GRRRRR...]

As though realizing this opponent would not be easy to defeat, Fensir lowered into a wary crouch.

BANG!!

CLATTER-CLANG!!!

Woojin brought his sword down with all his strength, but Fensir did not budge.

"You've grown so much."

Rather than dismay, the sight brought delight to Woojin's voice. The tiny wolf cub he could once cradle in his arms had grown into such a magnificent adult.

"I got too familiar with you. To you, I'm just a human you've never met before."

To a stranger, it would have looked like a ferocious battle. Yet, strangely, the two began tumbling back and forth in a tangle, almost as though they were playing.

"So let's start over."

Woojin grabbed Fensir's mane and climbed onto the wolf's head.

"And establish who your master is."