WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Dionysus
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Chapter 280: The Fifth Energy (5)
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Fwoosh!
Flames rose.
Aura so crimson it seemed capable of burning the entire world, closer to the red of the Red Knight Order than the black of the Black Knight Order associated with Ignet.
Once, twice. Ignet exhaled hot breaths and flickered out of sight. A sword strike shot forward in an instant, piercing Airen Farreira's shoulder.
Shweek!
Then she slashed.
Cutting, swinging, carving him apart.
As her speed steadily increased, she could read her opponent's movements as clearly as if they were within her grasp.
Not only his movements, but his Aura control, mindset, intentions, and even breathing.
She was certain.
She had undoubtedly crossed the wall.
Ignet flashed a bright grin as even greater power erupted from her sword.
Fwoooooosh!
For nearly a year, she had fought countless powerhouses across the continent.
Masters whose strength stood out even among Masters.
Then those revered as the continent's Ten Great Swordsmen.
Finally, Ian, Kun, and Julius Hyul, the Three Great Swordsmen, who were no less formidable than the heroes who had severed the heads of great demons.
Even for her, it had been a grueling journey. Still, the results were clear.
Amid endless waves of realization, Ignet examined her swordsmanship, refined it, and perfected it.
Then she tore it down and succeeded in taking an even greater step forward.
She had finished preparing herself to become a being above the skies.
Who had given her the greatest inspiration along the way?
Joshua Lindsay, who carried on the will of the great hero who had severed the Dragon King's neck?
Ian, the continent's greatest swordsmanship teacher and master of Krono?
Or another member of the Three Great Swordsmen?
Ignet let out a quiet chuckle.
She already knew the answer.
Gripping her sword hilt more tightly, she moved and continued her assault.
An unending storm of fire.
And within it stood a blond swordsman, firm and unshaken.
Watching his clear blue eyes gradually turn gold, Ignet whispered inwardly.
'Thank you.'
She had walked her own path ever since forming her mercenary band, and even before that.
No one had been able to catch up to her, and she had never wanted anyone's help.
Even now, she still believed.
She had the confidence to bear everything alone. The certainty that she could wear a lonely crown without ever showing weakness.
But that was not the best path.
Even if she could do everything alone, it was better to move forward together.
Even if she had the ability to carry everyone on her back, she had learned that it was all right to be carried sometimes.
That was why she had begun a year-long period of personal training.
Stepping away from the responsibility of subjugating demons to continue her own training was something her former self would never have considered.
And the one who had made that possible.
A young hero who could never match her on his own, yet had climbed to the loftiest heights through sharing his heart and convictions with countless others.
Looking at Airen Farreira, she wore a fierce smile.
'It feels like my view has broadened.'
Boom! Ba-boom!
Ba-ba-boom! Boom!
Ignet's sword grew even faster.
A chain of explosions, acceleration born from them, and sword strikes that curved in at impossible angles.
It was enough to make one's eyes spin. It was bizarre swordsmanship that even an ordinary Sword Master could never follow.
Airen's expression twisted badly as he faced it. Barely a minute had passed, yet sweat was already streaming down his brow.
Ignet paid no heed. Instead, she thrust her sword even faster and harder.
She considered it the greatest gift she could offer Airen, the one who had opened her mind and broadened her view.
Having reached that conclusion, Ignet displayed her newly forged swordsmanship without reservation. As time passed, Airen's appearance became a complete mess.
Boom!
"Hah, huff, kheh..."
About thirty minutes had passed since the surprise sparring match began.
It was not a short time. Yet considering Airen's seemingly endless stamina and mental strength, it was not especially long either.
Still, his condition had deteriorated to the point where he could no longer continue fighting.
Blood flowed from torn and split skin across his body, staining his clothes red.
His ragged breathing showed no sign of settling, and strength had drained from his legs, leaving him unable to maintain the nimble footwork he had shown at first.
He looked so unsteady that a puff of breath might have sent him flying away.
"Is it over?"
Karakum murmured quietly.
Kubharu thought so too. There was no hope left. If anything, he felt proud and amazed that Airen had endured this long.
Even Kubharu, who knew nothing about swordsmanship, could tell that Ignet was extraordinary now.
'She was already like that when I first saw her, but now... it feels like she has risen to an entirely new level as a swordswoman.'
Kubharu recalled the past.
Charlot and Victor. Though Airen could handle them now, at the time they had been far beyond what he could manage. Kubharu remembered Ignet appearing and utterly crushing the pair.
The violent and merciless aura she had carried then, as though she would tear apart, shatter, and burn alive everything in her path, had instilled a terror like a massive fireball rushing toward his face.
Now, it was different.
Her powerful presence remained, but it was no longer merely scorching.
It was like warm light shining down, yet too brilliant to stare at directly.
A great presence that seemed forever beyond reach, even if one stretched out a hand.
The orc spirit mage's face stiffened at the sensation of standing before the true sun.
'She's grown stronger.'
...Even more than Airen had.
Though he was not the one facing her, Kubharu felt a considerable shock and sense of loss at that realization.
But the truly important event came next.
Boom!
"Ngh...!"
Airen barely blocked the sword strike that shot toward him like an explosion. Yet he did not merely endure it.
Using the impact to widen the distance between them, he quickly steadied his breathing and prepared for the next charge.
But Ignet did not advance. Instead, maintaining a stance as firm as though she had rooted herself in the ground, she focused on her Aura control.
Fwoooooosh!
"...!"
A wave of Aura so thick that it was visible even to the naked eye surged around her body.
Her power, which had burned like a living volcano, gathered into her sword in an instant.
The Aura Sword, which had extended several meters only moments ago, compressed and condensed into a sphere at the tip of her blade.
It continued to shrink, becoming denser and denser.
Zzzzzziinnng...
A sound rang out. An ominous noise tore through the air and stabbed into Airen's ears.
Kubharu heard it as well, and moved before he realized it.
Ignet had no intention of going easy on Airen.
That could not be blocked. It could not be endured.
To save his friend, he had to add even his meager strength.
He had to!
Grab!
But he could not.
Kubharu turned his head and saw his father's face.
Grinding his teeth, he drew up spirit energy and tried to break free. He had to stop Ignet somehow, even if he were hurt in the process.
But he could not defeat Karakum, one of the finest fighters even among Masters.
In the end, unable to move, he could only watch as Ignet completed her charged technique.
Fwip.
A fleeting sound.
Thud.
A remarkably calm impact.
But the chaos that followed was so tremendous that it erased all memory of that silence.
BOOOOOOM!
"Kraaaagh..."
Kubharu nearly flew away as he clamped both hands over his ears.
Fortunately, he did not. Karakum had stepped in front of him at some point and scattered the shockwave with the Five Elements Divine Technique.
Crack, crackle!
Tak, tak, tak!
The ground around them, except for where father and son stood, caved in and crumbled.
Branches and stone fragments flew through the air before falling like hail, while a thick cloud of dust obscured everything from sight.
None of that mattered. Regaining his senses, Kubharu glared at his father.
Why had he stopped him? Why had he not intervened?
Airen, of all people, had helped him and his father be together again after decades apart. How could Karakum be so cold while Airen faced a mortal threat?
Just as Kubharu was about to say those words, Karakum spoke first.
"Look."
Only one short word.
Yet for some reason, Kubharu felt his heart settle the moment he heard it.
Trusting the confidence carried in his father's low voice, he slowly turned to look in the direction where the crimson sphere had been fired.
To his astonishment, Airen was still standing.
His eyes widened dramatically.
"...!"
He was not uninjured.
His already tattered shirt had been completely torn away, exposing bare skin, and the blood flowing over it resembled a stream.
The dust that had settled over him made him look even more pitiful.
But.
He had blocked it.
He had endured it.
Kubharu could not properly understand the situation before him.
'That attack was clearly on a completely different level from everything before it. I do not know much about swordsmanship, but I had a powerful intuition that Airen could never block it in his current state...'
It was an intuition intense enough to rival a Sorcerer's. That was why he had tried to move.
He had thought he needed to offer even his insignificant help.
Yet Airen had survived.
With a faint smile on his face, Airen gazed steadily at Ignet Crescentia and spoke quietly.
"Next time..."
"..."
That was all.
Unable to finish his sentence, Airen Farreira lost consciousness while still standing.
Kubharu hurried over and laid him down. Then he checked Airen's condition.
Fortunately, there was no major problem. That did not mean his external injuries were minor, only that his life was not in danger.
Pulling out his emergency treatment supplies, Kubharu began treating him.
"Let's go."
"Yes, Commander!"
"You did not get it wrong this time."
"It's not like Anya gets it wrong every time! Yah!"
Zzzzziing!
Anya Marta opened a portal, and Ignet began walking.
Then she turned back.
She stood there for a moment before murmuring quietly.
"...There is no need to seek out the others too."
It was strange.
The ones who had truly clashed with her and given her profound realizations were the high-ranking Sword Masters currently dominating the continent.
Yet somehow, it was the younger ones who remained more vividly in her memory.
The silver-haired swordswoman beside the head of House Lindsay.
The red-haired swordswoman who had glared at her beside Kun, the swift swordsman.
The blue-haired swordsman who had stood with Ian of Krono.
They still would not leave her mind.
Whirrrr...
Yet Ignet's destination was not their residences, but Abilius of the Holy Kingdom.
As she had said, there was no need to seek them out. They were Airen's acquaintances. They would connect and grow together in ways better than she could offer.
Imagining that future made her smile without realizing it.
'It might be fun if we get the chance to spend time together someday.'
Continuing a thought she never could have entertained only two years ago, Ignet Crescentia went to see the White Knight Commander.
"..."
After she departed.
Karakum stood at the site of the fierce battle for a long time, his expression serious.
It was not because she had ignored him.
He had understood the moment he saw her.
For someone who had already found her direction, sparring with him would have been unnecessary. She had come here entirely for Airen's sake.
To spur him on and offer goodwill in her own way.
'...It was somewhat excessive, but the result is good.'
Durkali's Great Warrior nodded.
Recalling the Circle, the Five Elements formation that had appeared for an instant, and the sight of Airen stepping into a new world, Karakum smiled as well, though belatedly.
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