Chapter 104 - Unwelcome Guests (3)

With their flow disrupted, the knights’ carefully coordinated attack fell into disarray.

"What—"

Swords tangled and armor collided, sending noise ringing out all around. 「Gale」 was a blade ideally suited to a chaotic melee like this. But these enemies were skilled at fighting together. They had trained for years to inflict violence as a group. Before I could assume my next stance, a sword came at me—a precise, threatening thrust. I barely dodged it by taking a step back. But another attack came straight at the place I had retreated to. Two blades this time, one aiming for my knee and the other for my flank. A wound in either place would be devastating. Could I dodge? No, I could see no angle of escape. Then—

"Arhan!"

As thoughts raced through my mind, a circle traced itself around me. It became a yin-yang pattern, and the swords that touched it were deflected in the opposite direction. The next moment, long, straight black hair swept through the air. Along with it, a graceful sword danced beautifully. 「Myriad Transformations」. The sword of endless change drove the enemies back.

"Are you all right? What is going on...?"

It was Seolyun.

She had run up from behind and countered the enemies’ swords the moment she arrived. I sensed a change in the knights’ eyes as they witnessed her swordsmanship.

"... So there were more nuisances here."

"Do not let your guard down. These are the people who harmed the young master. There cannot have been just one. Absolutely not."

The atmosphere grew heavy. Amid that tension, I spoke.

"They are enemies. Enemies who have come to threaten us."

I was glad to have Seolyun join me. When it came to facing other swordsmen, few could match her. Against opponents of a similar level, her skill and arcane power were overwhelming. Silence followed her arrival. As that uneasy quiet settled over us, a thump rang out from the knights’ bodies. With that strange sound, all of them were pushed outside the entrance at once. I looked back and saw Haylin. Green light poured from her hands—the same light as the barrier.

"Young lord!"

Haylin came running up, gasping for breath, and spoke urgently.

"Get behind me! I’ll drive them all out for now."

"Drive them out? How? Have you learned some powerful shamanic art?"

"No. All the arts I’ve learned from the orc shaman are still basic. Useless abilities like reading Constellations to tell fortunes or foresee misfortune... I used the wardstones. I temporarily awakened the 「Star Art」 within the wardstones the orc shaman gave us, which keeps outside enemies away."

Haylin formed various shapes with both hands. Each time she did, a resonant sound burst forth.

BOOM

"I don’t know why they suddenly came here, but I’ll drive them all away first. They all look like strong knights, but they won’t be able to resist. My abilities fall far short of theirs, but the art within the orc shaman’s gift is extremely advanced. Knights who happen to be good with swords can’t resist it. Absolutely not."

A single gesture from Haylin sent green light surging. The knights watching us brushed dirt from their bodies and muttered irritably.

"A mage as well? Now I understand why the young master suffered humiliation in this wretched place. He was born with limitless potential, but he lacked experience. With several fighters and even a wicked mage joining forces, naturally he would have been helpless against them."

They continued believing whatever suited them.

As Haylin gestured, the green light swelled. I could feel a powerful force within it. For a moment, I even imagined I could faintly see the orc elder I had met at the orcs’ sacred grounds.

And then...

"Wavecatcher. Step forward."

"Certainly."

A bald, black-skinned man emerged from among the knights. Dense tattoos covered his entire body. He smiled, holding a staff tipped with a jewel.

"Not a mage, but a shaman. And using ‘orc’ methods, no less. In that case, I’ll need more gold than you promised, handsome knights."

"You can have as much as you want. Just get rid of that wicked light."

"Gladly."

Smiling cheerfully, the man planted his staff in the ground and clapped once. The next moment came the sound of a crashing wave.

SPLASH

Immediately afterward, the green light Haylin had been wielding vanished. Without a trace.

"Huh?"

"The lovely young lady looks surprised. Tell me, miss, who exactly taught you? However powerful an arcane force may be, what matters is the person wielding it. With methods that clumsy, you couldn’t even tickle me."

"W-what...?"

Haylin’s eyes wavered. After a moment of bewilderment, she turned to me.

"Y-young lord. There’s a mage over there. A far more powerful and advanced mage than me... He’s incomparably stronger than Jerry Selpit, whom you fought before."

That was bad news.

As Haylin’s expression darkened, a knight took a step toward us.

"Worthless fighter."

"..."

"Do you finally understand whom you have crossed?"

The knight slowly approached. With each step he took, the entire force of thirty moved with him. It looked like a moving fortress wall. The mere sight seemed to choke the breath out of me. Oppressive pressure. An indescribable weight.

As they advanced, Haylin hurriedly formed hand signs. A shaman’s method, different from a mage’s. The orcs’ arcane arts were activated by shaping the hands. But the mage on the other side had no intention of allowing her to finish.

"Enough of your impudence, miss."

The man called Wavecatcher snapped his fingers.

SNAP

Haylin spun through the air and slammed into the ground. A brief, choking cry escaped her, and blood spurted from her mouth. Shuddering and groaning, she lay sprawled on the ground, unable to move. As though pinned beneath a boulder.

'Damn it.'

Thirty knights.

A mage whose level I could not even gauge.

This was not a force that had any business appearing in a rural estate. I could not understand what they wanted revenge on me for, or why members of a Great Family would cast aside honor to retaliate. All I felt was injustice. The feeling of being trampled by an overwhelmingly powerful opponent. The helplessness of having to lose everything without even knowing why. It was familiar. Just like that day.

The day a swordmaster took everything from me.

"HAY-LIN!"

But—

"You! Wretched bastards!"

This was clearly different from that day.

Today, I was not alone here.

"Get out, right now!"

A thunderous voice rang out. The moment it erupted, the man called Wavecatcher sucked in a sharp breath and sank onto one knee where he stood. Sweat beaded on his forehead.

"Oh, dear. There’s a young lady who isn’t lovely, too."

"... Wavecatcher?"

"This is very, very troubling."

Audrey appeared in the distance.

An obnoxious woman I hated being around.

But that was not her essence.

Her essence lay in another name.

"Why is the most exalted lady on the continent here? Heh..."

Witch.

A magical being standing at the pinnacle of all mages.

"You mongrels! You lowborn Free City scum, reeking of sea salt!"

A gust of wind sounded.

Audrey, who had been far away, appeared right before the kneeling Wavecatcher the next instant. A teleportation spell. The means of travel used by advanced mages. An arcane power that disregarded distance to place its wielder wherever they wished.

"—?"

Everyone’s eyes focused on Audrey’s sudden appearance. The knights moved first, instinctively seeking to eliminate the figure who had appeared without warning. They swung the swords in their hands. But their blades never reached their target. Audrey’s lips moved, completing a spell they did not recognize.

In 0.07 seconds.

The instant the spell was complete, five knights standing around Audrey lost consciousness and collapsed in a heap. Having incapacitated five 「sword runners」 at once, Audrey glared at them as though she would kill them.

"If you fear the sky, get out of my sight. All of you."

Her voice did not sound like a girl’s. Nor was it a beastlike growl. Audrey’s voice resounded across the earth and sky.

Like the voice of a god.

The knights faltered.

As the atmosphere reversed, another person appeared in the blink of an eye. An old man holding a silver rapier.

Tom, the caretaker.

"This is dishonorable. You are not behaving like knights."

With Tom’s arrival, the atmosphere froze completely. The knights there were no fools. Every one of them was at least a 「sword runner」, and they could see the half-suit of armor enveloping his body.

The proof of a 「sword expert」.

"All of you, please leave. I will not ask twice."

Everyone went rigid.

Someone’s voice broke that stillness.

"A black-haired girl with a sword from the eastern continent, an exalted witch of the Great Empire, and even some unknown old 「sword expert」..."

Footsteps sounded one after another in the silence. While everyone else stood frozen, one man alone looked as relaxed as if he were out for a stroll. His words, thick with a Free City accent, were followed by a drawn-out yawn.

"When they told me to go all the way to the boring Iron Kingdom countryside that reeks of iron, I thought I’d be falling asleep. But this might be more fun than I expected."

The man who emerged from among the knights wore no armor at all. Instead of a helmet or armor, he was draped in all manner of jewelry. Earrings, rings, and bracelets set with glittering jewels adorned his ears and hands. He wore the revealing silk clothing distinctive to the Free City, as though attending a party. As he sauntered forward, his face looked languid, as if he had only just woken up. That languid face was heavily made up. It was powdered white, with noticeable dabs of color here and there. At a glance, he looked less like a man than a woman.

A beautiful woman.

"Fun. Truly."

The peculiar man made his presence known the instant he appeared.

The presence he radiated made it genuinely difficult to breathe now. In this suffocating situation, I recalled what the Iron Prince had once said.

["The moment I return to the blade city, I will create a maelstrom."]

.

.

.

["And I intend to make sure you can enter that maelstrom early."]

It seemed the maelstrom had already begun.

"Yaaawn."

The easygoing man, whose presence overwhelmed everyone around him, held out his hand to a knight standing blankly beside him. After a moment’s daze, the knight seemed to realize something and hurriedly took out an object to hand him. It was a flag, its emblem fluttering at the end of a long cylindrical pole.

"What was I supposed to say again? Hmm. We just need a justification anyway, so I suppose anything will do?"

The man scratched his head, then drove the flag in his hand firmly into the ground. It stood straight, soon catching the wind and fluttering majestically. As it fluttered, everyone standing there could clearly see its emblem.

"Hear me, insignificant estate and its master."

An emblem depicting pure white waves and a blue sea.

"You have sullied the honor of Toma Rhapsody, a son of the great 「Rhapsody」 family, and brutally murdered our loyal retainer. We have come to call you to account for your crimes. And we have come to hold you responsible for the sins you have committed."

There was no one present who did not know what that emblem represented.

"One of the continent’s Five Families. A member of the Great Families. 「Rhapsody」 of the six free cities declares war upon you. This declaration is made in accordance with the laws of the continent, and the seven omnipotent chief gods and the nine goddesses have witnessed it. We are the advance force, and our legion will trample this land in ten days. Surrender, and we will spare you. Refuse, and we will kill you. We want only one thing: the life of the fighter Liam, the Sword Demon. If the fighter Liam admits his crimes and comes to us within ten days, war will not begin. But if there is no answer by then, we will show no mercy."

"..."

"This is our final act of mercy. Miss this chance, and you will learn why the continent fears the Five Families. You will learn it in your bones."

The distinctive Free City accent.

The indistinct enunciation. Yet no one could laugh.

"If you do not want war, come to us whenever you wish, worthless fighter."

His voice was bored and languid, but unmistakable anger lay within its softness. The anger concealed beneath that calm was too sharp to ignore. The instant I met his eyes, I felt it. The man I had fought in the Endless Duel was a mere child compared with the man standing there.

"He may be an immature little brother, but as his older brother, I’d like to avenge our youngest myself."

The man standing there was the real thing.

A truly powerful man whom no one could touch, even without labels such as the Five Families or the Great Families. All the knights there combined would never come close to him. Absolutely not.

"Think wisely, hmm?"

With those words, they withdrew.

But they did not leave entirely.

"..."

After that day, several tents stood at the estate’s entrance.

Tents housing the people who had declared that they would trample this place and turn it into a land of death.