WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Reincarnation of the Sword Demon

Chapter 61

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Impressive.

Jenafelt bit her lip and rose from her seat.

“The one who decides who is worthy to become Fenris’s master is the Sword Church Master.”

Her voice was low. Jenafelt’s eyes sat on the line between hostility and killing intent. A boy barely fifteen had arrogantly claimed he was greater than the Sword Demon from five hundred years ago. Jenafelt could never let that slide.

“In this era, the one with the deepest bond to Fenris is the Sword Church Master herself. She endured five hundred years to become Fenris’s master.”
“Then why just endure? If she wants to be the master that badly, she should come and take it.”
“That is...! Because the Sword Church Master judged that she still was not qualified to become Fenris’s master.”

Jenafelt clenched her fist and glared at Kyle.

“Even if Fenris is in your hand right now, Young Master, you still cannot become Fenris’s true master.”
“Because the Sword Church Master hasn’t acknowledged me?”
“Yes, exactly. Fenris is only in your hand for a moment. If Fenris has a will, it would mourn being in your grip right now.”

“Pfft.”

Kyle burst out laughing. Five hundred years ago, Fenris’s master had been the Sword Demon, and Kyle was the Sword Demon’s reincarnation. On top of that, he had gained a strange ability after reincarnating: he could commune with the Dokkaebi dwelling in swords. And after five hundred years, Fenris had a Dokkaebi too.

‘Hey. You heard her, right? She says you’d mourn being in my hand. Do you think so too?’
[Grrrr...]

A dark fog only Kyle could see rippled, then clumped together into a giant wolf. Fenris bared blade-sharp teeth and growled at Jenafelt.

‘Be honest. Who do you like more, me or Helenas?’
[Bark!]

Fenris barked at Kyle and shot him a look like the question itself was absurd.

“Why... are you laughing? Are you mocking me?”

Kyle had a reason to laugh, but Jenafelt did not know that. She glared at him with a look of deep humiliation.

“No, I wasn’t mocking you... or was I? Was I mocking you?”

Kyle did not bother explaining why he laughed. As the atmosphere grew sharper, everyone in the dining hall watched in silence, barely breathing.

Jenafelt’s hostility kept tipping toward killing intent. Bruno’s face twisted, and he strode forward. He wanted nothing to do with the Sword Church, especially not with the Sword Church Master. But no matter what, this was Gladiheim. He could not overlook a lunatic woman openly showing killing intent toward a pure-blood.

“Hey. Do you even know who you’re glaring at, and who you’re trying to direct killing intent at?”
“Even if this is Gladiheim, and even if the one before me is a favored pure-blood...! Does that mean I must endure insult no matter what?”
“Ah, insult.”

Before Bruno could say more, Kyle nodded.

“If it sounded insulting, I apologize. I didn’t laugh in that sense.”

Bruno could not understand what Kyle was doing. He had gone looking for Sword Church Disciples after spouting nonsense about sending greetings to the Sword Church Master, and now he was openly needling and provoking them.

“As an apology for the insult, and to calm Lady Jenafelt’s anger... how about this? Let’s duel.”

Clap.

Kyle clapped like he had found the perfect answer, and Bruno’s mouth fell open.

“A d-duel? Out of nowhere?”

Bruno stuttered and tried to grab Kyle’s shoulder, but Kyle slipped past his hand with an easy expression and kept talking.

“If Lady Jenafelt wins the duel, I’ll kneel and apologize for everything you felt was insulting. Ah, just kneeling seems lacking in sincerity, so I’ll strip naked, kneel, and bang my head too.”

At that next insane line, Bruno reeled with dizziness, while Jade, who had been watching quietly, covered his mouth and held back laughter.

“And what else... if I lose to Lady Jenafelt, then I clearly have no right to hold Fenris, so I’ll hand Fenris over to Lady Jenafelt.”

That was even crazier. Bruno’s legs gave out completely, and he dropped to the floor. Everyone who had been watching in silence opened their mouths and started murmuring.

“A-are... you serious?”

Jenafelt asked, stammering. Even she could not believe what she had just heard. Fenris, the very sword the Sword Church Master longed for, that sword that had not left the depths of the Sword Tower for five hundred years, could she really win it with her own hands?

“I’m not finished speaking yet.”

Kyle was still smiling. He patted Bruno’s shoulder, Bruno still slumped beside him and moving his lips soundlessly, and continued.

“A plain duel isn’t fun, and it’s too easy for me. Also, from that fanatic way you offered your neck earlier, if I use Fenris, you probably won’t be able to swing your sword freely. Isn’t that right?”
“That is...”
“So I won’t draw a sword. I’ll fight bare-handed.”

Jenafelt’s eyes went wide and her mouth hung open. Bruno, still too weak to stand, screamed and clung to Kyle’s leg.

“You, you crazy bastard! Shut up! Shut up! Don’t say one more word!”
“Did this pig lose his mind?”
“Lose my mind...? You’re the one who’s insane! Do you even understand where this is, who you are, and what’s in your hand?!”

Bruno roared.

“This isn’t some cheap street tavern, this is Gladiheim! You’re not some drunken lunatic, you are Alastor pure-blood! What you’re holding in your hand! What you’re trying to throw in as a stake in this crazy gamble! It’s Fenris, the sword the Founding Ancestor kept by his side until ascension, the sword all past Family Heads revered!”
“I know.”

Tap.

Kyle rested a hand on Bruno’s shoulder and spoke. It was a short reply. He was still smiling, and his voice still sounded light. But Bruno could not take that voice lightly.

“I know all of it. I’m fully aware, pig. When have I ever spoken carelessly?”
“...”
“I always think before I speak, and I mean what I say. So trust me.”
“Y-you...”

Bruno moved his lips as if to say more, then covered his face with both hands and bowed his head.

“Crazy bastard...”

As that sighing mutter lingered, Jenafelt stared at Kyle with wide eyes. She wasn’t alone. Kroll, and the three Sword Church Disciples nearby whose names Kyle had heard and already forgotten, were glaring at him too.

“Young Master Kyle. Are you truly serious? You mean to face me bare-handed, without drawing a sword?”
“You heard what I just said. I’m serious.”

At that answer, Jenafelt pressed her lips shut. She was deciding whether these terms were insult and mockery, or a massive opportunity and stroke of fortune.

Her hesitation did not last long. This was a massive opportunity and stroke of fortune. Refusing for the sake of pride would be foolish. If she won, she could obtain Fenris. And if she personally presented Fenris to the Sword Church Master... Jenafelt’s shoulders trembled faintly.

“If... Young Master Kyle wins, what do you want from me, to make such an extraordinary offer?”

Kyle laughed at her question.

“What can you give me?”
“...”
“Your life? Lady Jenafelt, that’s not something you can give me. Victory in a duel means the loser’s life is already in the winner’s hand.”

Still smiling, Kyle reached for Fenris, which was stuck in the floor.

“Then loyalty? Sadly, I’m not very interested in your loyalty. Making you abandon the Sword Church Master and the Sword Church might be amusing, but I’m not a pervert who enjoys that.”

Thud! Fenris came free.

“Money? I don’t need that either. Like I said yesterday, my family is rich. Same for elixirs and sword manuals. Lady Jenafelt, you have nothing I want.”
“...”
“But you’d feel bad if I took nothing at all, so...”

Kyle lightly waved the drawn Fenris toward Jenafelt.

“You just need to promise one thing. Report exactly what kind of person became Fenris’s master in this era. Everything you felt, without a speck of falsehood, directly and honestly.”
“Is that... all?”
“Yes. If you think you can’t do it, you can refuse.”

Directly and honestly.

Jenafelt noticed those emphasized words.

“...”

Even an Apostle, second only to the Master in the Sword Church, could not meet the Master whenever she wished. But matters involving Fenris were different. Jenafelt was sure she could fulfill Kyle’s condition, so she nodded firmly.

“I accept the terms. I will absolutely duel.”
“Then let’s go now.”

Kyle smiled brightly and tucked Fenris at his waist.

“Everyone, come along. You all heard what I just said, right? You’re all witnesses to this duel.”

After shouting that to everyone in the dining hall, Kyle pulled Bruno to his feet, Bruno still dazed on the floor.

“Pig. How long are you going to sit there? Come on, you’re a witness too.”
“Y-you crazy bastard...”

Bruno forced out the words.

“At least... at least shouldn’t you ask the Family Head for permission?”
“Why? It’s not like the Family Head is Fenris’s master.”
“...”
“And this conversation has probably already reached him. Maybe the Family Head and the relatives are already at the training ground to watch my brave duel.”

Kyle snickered and patted Bruno’s back. Bruno had somehow gotten up, but his body still had no strength. He swayed every time Kyle thumped him.

“Puhaha...”

At Kyle’s side, while he led the entire dining hall crowd out, Jade laughed so hard he held his stomach.

“Our young master. No, no, that’s not right. Our captain is properly insane. You’re really planning to face that woman’s sword bare-handed?”
“Not bare-handed. I’ll use Aura.”
“That’s the same thing! Captain, do you know who that woman is?”
“Jenafelt.”
“Not her name, her nickname. She’s pretty famous among young fighters. Ten Swords Jenafelt. They call her that because one swing carries ten Sword Qi slashes.”
“These days, everyone and their dog has a nickname.”
“These days... these days, what?”

Jade blinked and asked back at Kyle’s mutter. Oops. His real thoughts had slipped out too honestly.

“If one swing carries ten Sword Qi slashes, what, does one swing kill ten people at once?”
“Well... if ten people stand still in a straight line, maybe.”
“Well, that’s some wild exaggeration. Then my nickname is Hundred Swords. No, let’s make it Thousand Swords.”

Kyle snorted.

“Then all I need to do is kill a thousand people with a sword, right? Who can’t cut down a thousand idiots standing still?”
“That’s probably not what the nickname means...”

Jade smacked his lips at the sudden rebuke.

“Anyway... Jenafelt is a pretty famous expert. You saw her pauldron, right?”
“Yellow? What rank is that in the Sword Church?”
“Captain, you really don’t know much about the Sword Church. They divide hierarchy by pauldron color. Blue, Green, Yellow, Red, Purple.”
“What about Silver?”
“Silver is for the seven Apostles. And the Master wears Black Pauldrons, or so they say. Same color as your sword, Captain.”

Was that intentional? Probably. She had longed for Fenris for five hundred years. Kyle nodded and grumbled.

“Yellow means third from the bottom. Not that high.”
“Captain... that’s too negative. Flip it around, and it’s third from the top.”
“Third from the top my ass. If you include the Master and Apostles, it’s fifth.”
“You have to treat them as exceptions. The Sword Church Master is a real five-hundred-year monster, and the Apostles are said to be experts right on the edge of the Ten Peaks.”
“So you think I’ll lose?”
“Mm...”

Jade recalled Kyle’s sword from yesterday. He still did not understand why or how his own sword had turned to powder.

“If you used a sword, you’d win for sure. But you said you won’t use one and will fight bare-handed? Bare-handed... can you really take Jenafelt’s Ten Swords? Honestly, I don’t know.”
“Ten Swords, Hundred Swords, Thousand Swords, whatever. In the end, the sword Jenafelt holds is still one.”

Tap, tap. Kyle patted Jade’s shoulder.

“If you watch that sword properly, there’s no need to reach out for the others. This isn’t always the right answer, but against Jenafelt, it always is. She can’t split time.”
“What...?”
“And she can’t move in overlapping motions at once either. In the end, Jenafelt’s Ten Swords is an illusion. I’m not facing ten swords, I’m facing one, and that sword can’t kill me.”

Jade could not understand Kyle’s words. Bruno and Lucia, listening beside them, were the same. Seeing all three faces, Kyle smirked.

“Even if Jenafelt adds ten Sword Qi slashes to one swing, those are not real swords. They’re just Sword Qi imitating real swords.”
“Well... that’s true.”
“Don’t force yourself to understand. Once you see it in person, you’ll roughly get what I mean.”

As they talked, they reached the Third Training Ground where they had fallen yesterday. Rumors must have spread already, because the spectator stands around the arena were far more crowded than yesterday. Gladiheim’s Knight Candidates and Apprentice Knights. Even collateral branches and full knights from the upper district had come in large numbers. There were no seats left; most people were standing.

And in the high seats, just as Kyle expected, Julius was there. Julius’s expression was calm, but the relatives around him, even Karthan, had their eyes wide open.

“Can... can you handle this?”

Bruno asked, stammering.

“I’ve never seen Uncle Karthan look that angry...”
“Why would I need to handle anything?”

Kyle asked lazily and drew Fenris.

“If I win, there’s no problem. No, forget no problem. If I win, everyone will be applauding and calling me amazing.”

Kyle handed Fenris to Lucia.

“Hold this.”
“Yes, Kyle-nim.”

Lucia bowed politely.

Kyle shook out his empty hands and climbed onto the stage. Jenafelt took a deep breath and followed him.

“Young Master.”

Kyle and Jenafelt stood facing each other at center stage. Jenafelt stared at Kyle, who truly had no weapon at all and stood bare-handed.

“How will victory and defeat be decided?”
“The one who says they lost, loses.”
“...”
“I’ll say this in advance: you don’t need to worry about hurting me. Even if, by some chance, I take a fatal wound from your sword, that will simply be the price of my loudmouthed idiocy.”
“I will take that to mean you don’t want me to hold back.”
“Yes, that is exactly what I mean.”

Crack, crack.

Kyle loosened his wrists and finger joints and smiled.

“I heard on the way here that your nickname is Ten Swords, Lady Jenafelt.”
“I am called that.”
“Do you also think of yourself as Ten Swords?”
“I’m confident I’m more than ten.”
“Wow.”

Kyle burst out laughing.

“You’re impressive.”

He had not meant to mock her... no, maybe he had. Either way, the words came out while he laughed, and a chilling light flashed in Jenafelt’s eyes.

The mighty Ten Swords drew her blade.

Jenafelt’s sword, sliding free of its sheath, was an ordinary straight blade.

When she held it to the side, turquoise Aura rose like heat haze and formed Sword Qi.

“...”

Jenafelt bit her lip and glared at Kyle. Unlike Jenafelt, who had formed Sword Qi and taken her stance, Kyle stood relaxed with both arms hanging at his sides. Even though he held no sword and faced her bare-handed, he showed not the slightest tension.

How can he be this arrogant.

At the same time, she thought he was foolish. Jenafelt had also watched yesterday’s spar between Jade and Kyle. That one strike that turned Jade’s sword breaker to powder, honestly, even she could not understand it.

But yesterday, Kyle had a sword in his hand. Not just any sword. The Sword Demon’s beloved sword, and the sword the Sword Church Master had desperately longed for over five hundred years: Fenris.

Of course, Jenafelt did not think Kyle’s sword yesterday had all been thanks to Fenris. He might be only fifteen, but he was Alastor pure-blood favored by the Thunder Emperor.

He surely had exceptional Sword Talent. But... she could not believe that strike yesterday had been possible without Fenris’s help.

No matter how talented he was, a fifteen-year-old boy producing a strike so incomprehensible, even from the distant stands?

The sword Jenafelt saw yesterday was extremely simple. He had only swung forward. She had not been in front of him when he swung; she had watched from far away in the stands. Because of that, she had become trapped in that exact line of thought.

That gave Jenafelt a ceiling of common sense. On top of that, she held a grand fantasy about Fenris. Fenris was the Sword Demon’s sword, and the sword the Sword Church Master desired. How could such a sword be ordinary?

Right now, Kyle held neither Fenris nor even an ordinary sword. Jenafelt steadied herself. This spar was overwhelmingly in her favor. She would win, receive Fenris, and present it to the Sword Church Master.

“What are you waiting for?”

Kyle asked with a smile.

“Aren’t you too tense in front of an unarmed opponent?”

The instant he said it.

Jenafelt kicked off the ground. She rushed in without a sound, closed the gap in an instant, and the turquoise Sword Qi around her blade spread like a web, forming ten slashes.

Ten Swords. True to the name, ten lights surged in like real blades. They were not illusions that only looked real. They were real Sword Qi carrying real Aura. Including the sword in Jenafelt’s hand, a single swing carried eleven slashes. It looked as if eleven swordsmen were attacking at once.

Kyle did not lose his smile even before the rushing eleven slashes. He leaned back lightly and moved, evading the storm of cuts.

All eleven slashes missed him. By a hair, by a thread of cloth, they split empty air.

Jenafelt did not panic. He said he would duel bare-handed without drawing a sword; she had expected this response.

He’ll keep dodging my blade and try to drain my mana.

Certainly, since she had to maintain eleven slashes continuously, Ten Swords was not a mana-efficient sword art.

You don’t know me.

Jenafelt was the one who had earned a Yellow Pauldron and the nickname Ten Swords while using this brutally inefficient art. There was a reason she had not abandoned it, even though the obvious strategy of running and forcing mana depletion was right there in plain sight.

The mana in Jenafelt’s lower dantian was enough to sustain Ten Swords. And her sword art was not so low-level that it would let an opponent dodge forever.

In fact, focusing only on dodging made one easy prey for Ten Swords. Her Ten Swords was like a swamp. Whether you dodged or faced it head-on, the more you struggled, the more the swamp swallowed you.

Kyle Alastor. You were too arrogant. You said not to hold back, right? I’d like to cut off one of your arms, but... I’ll show mercy. Thanks to your arrogance, I can offer Fenris to the Sword Church Master.

Instead of taking his arm, she would leave shallow cuts over his whole body. She would be careful not to scar that smug face. Thinking that, a vicious light settled in Jenafelt’s eyes.

Hm.

Kyle’s gaze sank into calm focus. Even while weaving around the slashes, his eyes obsessively tracked Jenafelt’s shoulders, elbows, wrists, and sword movement, along with the flow of the ten Sword Qi lines branching from that sword.

On the surface, it was flashy, like eleven swordsmen with different minds attacking at once, but in essence it was crude. Naturally. In the end, the one wielding those eleven swords was only Jenafelt.

Jenafelt had not reached the realm where she could swing eleven swords with fully separate intent and trajectories. The ten Sword Qi slashes were only branches from the path of the real sword.

They relied on the force of the true blade’s swing, and on the route drawn by the true blade. So their tips were not sharp enough, and the power in them was light. Of course, even those flimsy slashes would still split flesh and sever bone if they struck a bare body.

Still, they were all flash and no substance, just a dirty blur to dazzle the eyes. Someone inexperienced would be fooled by that chaotic Sword Qi, run around, feel psychological pressure, and stiffen up. Kyle felt no pressure from a sword like that.

Ten Swords, my ass.

He had tried to keep an open mind. Five hundred years had passed, and swordsmanship had developed in strange ways. But watching Jenafelt’s sword, old-man thoughts kept creeping in. From the Sword Demon’s perspective, her sword was a shoddy, terrible evolution.

Once everyone awakens a Spirit Root at ten, swords like this show up. They can’t even concentrate proper Sword Qi into one blade, yet they make ten Sword Qi clones and swing them around proudly.

Even as he thought that, Jenafelt’s sword kept pressing in. The great Ten Swords had already decided from the start that victory was hers, and her blade carried absurdly thin killing intent for a so-called finishing attack.

My god, she’s trying to show me mercy? Impressive, Ten Swords.

Kyle was genuinely impressed.

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