WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Reincarnation of the Sword Demon

Chapter 84

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No

"Why do you go and do things nobody asked you to do."

Kyle said it in a blunt, irritable voice. But he felt relief at the same time. If Jor had sacrificed herself for his sake, if she had actually thrown her life away and died, he had a feeling it would have left him in a very bad place. He hadn't been emotionally dried up in his previous life either. When someone close to him died, he grieved like a normal person and cried like a normal person. That ordinary sensitivity had only grown sharper since reincarnating, so if Jor had died, it would have weighed on him in all kinds of ways.

[I threw my body out there for you, Master, and that's all you have to say...]

"I said that because I felt bad. It wasn't sincere, so don't take it too seriously."

He checked to make sure he wasn't hearing things, and thankfully Jor was still in the middle dantian.

She wasn't in good shape, though. Shedding that "Husk" must have taken a real toll on her, because she had shrunk to far smaller than her usual size.

[It's not just the Husk, either. You fought like an absolute brute, Master, so my strength got carved away too...]

Jor said it in a weak voice. He had fought like a brute. He had danced along the blade's edge, no, along the line between life and death itself.

And it had wrecked him. The wind pressure and force from attacks he had barely dodged. The Primordial Chaos Sword Canon driven with complete disregard for his limits. A body pushed well past what it could bear. And then, the final Single punch.

Kyle managed to push his upper body upright. His legs still had nothing in them and kept trembling, so standing was out of the question. His body was uniformly ruined, but his chest was the worst of it. He pressed his hand against the aching spot.

The center of his chest was caved in. Just a little deeper and the bone would have shattered, his lungs and heart crushed to nothing.

"Hey. I'm sorry."

Kyle steadied his breathing. The metallic taste of blood lingered in his mouth.

"I didn't know you could do that much."

He meant it sincerely. The Extreme Boundary. This was his first time facing it in this life, but he had encountered it in his previous one.

Judging from that experience, Lizet had still been raw. She relied on the sensation of opening her mind, prioritizing it over her five senses. Her control of the mana filling the space was unrefined, and her telegraphing was obvious. Her movements that defied natural law were threatening at first, but less so as the fight wore on. Lizet was being carried along by what she "could do" rather than truly wielding it.

That was why he had picked this brutish approach. To put it plainly, Kyle had underestimated her. He should have assumed the worst and stayed guarded, but he hadn't. Just as Lizet had been blindsided by Kyle's sword being lightning, Kyle had been blindsided the same way.

"..."

Lizet stood motionless and looked at Kyle. She was just as wrecked as he was. The wound along her side ran deep, and a vivid Sword Mark cut across her chest. Mana Addiction was beginning to set in, the price of using a Secret Technique beyond what her level permitted.

"In my life, I've never heard an apology for that reason."

Lizet had been staring at Kyle blankly, but the corner of her mouth slowly curved upward. She took her time steadying her breathing. She pressed her hand against the organs protruding from her side and pushed them back in, then kept breathing. The split wound drew together, closing over temporarily.

She didn't stop there. Lizet pulled a small vial from a pouch on her belt and drank it. The wound that had been closing began to heal rapidly.

"Tch."

Kyle's face pinched. The situation was bad. Both of them had paid a price for pushing too hard, but unlike Kyle, who had no strength left to move, Lizet was moving.

"You can't move anymore, can you?"

Lizet whispered. Kyle didn't answer. He had medicine for emergency treatment too. His mana wasn't exhausted yet, either.

But his body still wouldn't respond properly. This wasn't ordinary injury. A body driven past its limits was demanding even a moment's rest.

In the silence, Lizet opened her mouth to say something. At that moment Bruno, who had been watching the fight with a look of horror, suddenly kicked off the ground and threw himself at her.

He didn't shout. He just opened his eyes wide and swung his greatsword with everything he had. Clang! Lizet didn't even turn to look at him. Her raised fist met the greatsword. An instant later Bruno went flying, sword and all, and crashed into the wall.

"Damn it!"

The ambush meant nothing. Jade swore loudly and kicked off the ground too.

"Narua! Grab the Commander and Lucia and run!"

Narua, who had been moving to follow Jade, stopped. Her eyes were confused as she looked back and forth between Lucia, held in her arms, and Kyle.

Lucia had been unconscious but had come around at some point. Her face, already pale by nature, had gone even whiter, and her red eyes were bloodshot to a deeper red than usual.

"Narua!"

Bruno, slumped against the wall, coughed up blood and called out in a ragged voice. At that, Narua bit hard on her lip. She shifted Lucia into her left arm and kicked off the ground.

Clang! Jade's sword breaker was caught by Lizet's left hand. In that instant, Lizet's body staggered briefly. She was controlling her body to clamp the wounds shut, and the top-grade potion was driving her regeneration.

The wound on her left side was already closing. But the Sword Mark that crossed her chest would not close. The wound that had been clamped tight opened again, and blood started flowing anew.

'The wound is... still being cut?'

It was different from simply reopening. Confusion flickered in Lizet's eyes. That bewilderment, that weakness around the wound, everything stacked against her, and she couldn't push Jade back.

Bruno, spitting blood, charged at her again and piled on. Near the entrance, Narua was running toward Kyle with Lucia in her arms.

'Move.'

Kyle stared at Lizet and gave the order to his body. The mana of the Primordial Chaos Sword Canon flowed sluggishly. His overworked Circuits were screaming. Jor, who had gone limp from being pushed too hard, was straining to guide the mana along with his will.

"Naru... a."

Just before Narua passed Lizet. Lucia, being carried in her arms, let out a low murmur.

"Take... Kyle-nim... and go."

Thump.

Something strange happened. Lucia, who had been completely limp with no strength left, freed herself from Narua's hold in a single motion. When Narua whipped around in shock, Lucia was already leaning toward Lizet.

Lucia understood the situation. She had screamed from a sudden pain in her chest and skull and lost consciousness, but strangely, the conversation that happened while she was blacked out had reached her.

The Demon King's brand. The Succession Contest. Those things didn't feel important to her right now.

What mattered was that Kyle had drawn his sword to keep her from being taken. That he had collapsed from his wounds.

Lucia remembered what Kyle had said before. If Commander Kyle lost consciousness, Vice Commander Lucia had to step up and lead the order members. In this situation, the one who should be looking after Kyle was the weakest member of the order, Narua.

Kyle had stepped forward to keep Lucia from being taken. That made her grateful, genuinely happy, but right now wasn't the time for that. Kyle's wellbeing mattered far more to Lucia than her own. She didn't love herself.

"Lucia Beliar...!"

Lizet's eyes flashed as she absorbed the combined blows from Bruno and Jade. Lizet wasn't someone who thought in ordinary ways, either. As naturally as breathing, she called Lucia by that name.

'Damn it, I told her to run, why is she getting involved?'

Even with misfortune piling on misfortune, Lizet was the Fist Demon. Her punches were far weaker than before, but they were still more than enough to threaten Bruno and Jade. Only a few seconds had passed, and already blood was running from Jade's mouth.

In this situation, Lucia jumping in was good news for Jade's survival, but Lizet had gone to the trouble of creating an opening for them to escape, and they still weren't taking it. She found it absurd. On top of that, Lucia was clearly in no condition to fight.

'...?'

Even so, something about Lucia's presence felt off. What her senses were picking up was different from before. The person approaching to jump in was clearly Lucia, but there was something mixed in that wasn't Lucia.

Whisper.

Lucia approached without force, completely limp, and stepped into the space between the three of them. At that, Jade felt a chill run through him again. He knew this chill. Earlier, when they had first entered the Secret Realm and the fight with the Demon Tribe broke out, when Kyle had gotten up after collapsing and walked toward Jade.

Back then, Kyle had stepped into the space Jade held with effortless ease. Lucia just did the same thing. Jade wasn't the one controlling this space, but this distance was his distance. And yet Lucia had slipped into it like a ghost.

"Ha... ha..."

Lucia exhaled in ragged breaths.

She had watched Kyle's sword from the time she was eight years old until now. In years alone, it had been a decade. Even during the four years Kyle spent on the training floors of the capital, the sword Kyle had shown her had always stayed in Lucia's mind like a reference text.

Sword talent so exceptional that the Alastor Elders had recognized it and decided to teach her the sword themselves. And yet even with that talent, Lucia had never fully understood or absorbed all of Kyle's sword. She had only kept it as reference material and sharpened her own sword alongside it.

The swords she had witnessed today were the same. Things she needed to remember, to revisit, to fold into her own.

But right now, strangely, the things she had stored in her head were unfolding through her body. She had the vague sense she could do it, and she actually did.

Lizet's eyes went wide.

She was moved. Unlike the cowardly Azel, this new little sister who had inherited her younger brother's Inscription was remarkably brave. Even with her mind and body in a sorry state, she had drawn her sword against Lizet, an overwhelmingly superior opponent, and stepped into this space.

"Lucia Beliar!"

Lizet called out the name to welcome her brave new sister. Boom! Lizet's feet hit the ground. At the same moment she swept both arms wide, throwing back the swords of Bruno and Jade in one motion. Blood burst from her chest at the reckless movement, but she ignored it.

Lucia didn't answer. She poured every bit of strength she had left into her sword. Blood Fang, which had been hanging limp, stirred. Shwaaak! Blood Fang's red blade carved a curve through the air and drove toward Lizet. Lizet moved her gauntlet to catch the blade, but at the last moment Blood Fang's path shifted.

Fssk!

Blood Fang's edge barely grazed the tip of Lizet's chin. Lizet's red eyes wavered slightly. A moment later Lizet smiled and twisted her body.

Fist met Blood Fang. Lucia's body lurched and was pushed backward. Neither of them was in good shape, but the gap between what they each had was too large from the start. Lizet, injuries piling up, exhausted, bleeding from multiple wounds, was still stronger than Lucia, who had just come around from being unconscious.

"Come with me."

Lizet whispered. Thud, thud! Two punches in quick succession drove Lucia back again and again.

"I'll give you the Beliar name formally. From now on you'll live as my new little sister."

Lucia didn't answer. The words weren't worth responding to.

"Your blood is a mix of human and Demon Tribe, but the demon blood overwhelms it. Lucia Beliar, the place you belong is not here, it's Erebos."

"..."

"Enter the honorable contest there. Prove that the fact you, a Half-blood, received an Inscription was not a mistake by the kings of old."

Lucia didn't answer. Her eyes tried to look past Lizet, toward Kyle. At the same time she thought to herself.

'I can't win...'

If she said she would follow Lizet, could she get Kyle's safety guaranteed? In that case, she would follow Lizet. Kyle's wellbeing still mattered more to her than her own.

"..."

What would happen if she went to Erebos? Would the demons there look down on a Half-blood? She cut off that train of thought before it could continue.

"No."

If she truly cared about Kyle, getting his safety guaranteed and following Lizet would be the right thing to do. She didn't know why those words had come out instead. Even Lucia herself was startled for a moment.

She thought about the respect she owed Kyle.

Kyle had fought Lizet to keep Lucia from being taken. If Lucia herself then said she would follow Lizet anyway, the sword Kyle had drawn would lose its meaning.

She cut off that thought too.

'Ah.'

As she cut through thought after thought, she accepted the feeling behind what she had said. Every reason she had been coming up with was just an excuse.

She simply didn't want to. There was no arguing with that. She didn't want to follow Lizet to Erebos, a place she had never been in her entire life. She didn't want to be swept up by an Inscription she had never asked for and spend her life struggling to become the Demon King.

Lucia didn't love herself, but she also didn't want to become something other than herself. Something Kyle had said to her long ago lingered deep in her heart. It wasn't blind faith or blind devotion.

Love the sword and love yourself. Those words had pointed to a lack Lucia herself had already felt. The reason she had picked up a sword was to be recognized, and now she was being recognized.

Now, Lucia felt like she might be able to love herself just a little.

That was why she refused Lizet's offer. Lucia had made her decision.

Lizet's body went still.

She had received an answer of "no."

She wasn't angry. This "no" felt different from Azel's. Azel had fled in cowardice, but Lucia wasn't running. She was standing her ground with a sword in hand.

"..."

Of course, not being angry was all it was. The inheritance of an Inscription and the contest between successors was an honorable thing. There could be no "refusal" when it came to that. In Lizet's world, that was simply true.

If words wouldn't make her comply, she would take her by force. She had to. But.

"Good."

Laughter approached. Lizet slowly turned her head. Kyle's hollow-cheeked face came into view as he staggered over, leaning on Narua for support.

"If you don't want to, you don't want to."

There were times you had to do something even if you didn't want to, but there was no reason to force yourself to do something you didn't need to do at all. In Kyle's mind, this was the latter.

"I'm starting to wonder if I stuck my nose in for nothing. I should have kept back and heard your opinion first."

He could manage walking now, more or less. Kyle pulled away from Narua and raised Fenris. Narua drew her twin swords and locked her eyes on Lizet.

Lizet slowly looked around. All five of the Sword Wolf Knights had her surrounded. Her body was soaked in blood, and her vision was beginning to sway.

"I've lost."

Lizet nodded slowly. It was a clear-headed judgment. Her body kept getting weaker. She didn't have the energy to stomp out all four of them fighting at full force, and if Kyle joined in on top of that, she would absolutely lose.

"But I have no intention of offering my neck without a fight. I'll be taking at least half of you with me."

That wasn't a bluff. Mana Addiction and Madness Erosion. A demon's last stand before death was their most ferocious. Lizet breathed slowly, readying herself to rile up her emotions.

"What are you talking about?"

Kyle limped forward and planted himself in front of Lizet, using Fenris as a cane.

"Why would I kill you?"

"...?"

Lizet's eyes wavered. The order members stared at Kyle with wide eyes too.

"And you didn't lose anything. I'm the one who lost."

Kyle gave credit where credit was due. Lizet had been at a higher realm than him. The Secret Technique she had shown him at the end had left a deep impression. If he hadn't imitated Ruin Alastor's single-sword strike, if Jor hadn't thrown her Husk, Kyle would have died back there.

"What exactly are you saying?"

Lizet said it with a furrowed brow.

"Look at the situation. You could have killed me, but I couldn't kill you."

"Right, so why would I kill you?"

"There's no reason not to kill me, so..."

"If I let you leave while still losing to you, that means I stay beaten forever."

Kyle said it with the same furrowed brow.

"Winning and then running away is something I can't forgive."

This wasn't only directed at Lizet. It was directed at Ruin too. Five hundred years ago, Ruin had defeated the Sword Demon and killed him. And then, whether he ascended or died, he had vanished from the world entirely. Kyle had reincarnated, gone through all that trouble, and ended up with absolutely no way to take revenge on Ruin.

"Understand what I'm saying? Go back, take care of your wounds. Don't die to someone else, and come fight me again later."

"Are you saying that with your head on straight?"

Lizet asked in a dazed voice.

"I don't have any business with you. My business is with Lucia Beliar. If I decide later that I'm going to come take Lucia Beliar back, what then?"

"You talked so much about honor. You'd really do something that disgraceful?"

"You're trying to show me mercy and put me in your debt."

Lizet's expression twisted. Feeling came into her voice that had gone blank.

"If that's what this is, I'd rather..."

"Mercy? What mercy? I'm letting you go because I hate ending things while I'm still losing to you."

"..."

"What. Does it bother you that I called it disgraceful? The 'if' you mentioned not being honorable is just a fact."

"The Inscription..."

"Is Lucia's Inscription. It's Lucia's to decide."

On that point, Kyle had no intention of budging.

"If you do that disgraceful thing later, well, it'll just turn out the same as today."

Lizet held Kyle's gaze for a moment. Looking only at the fight they had just had, Kyle's words were correct. The winner of that exchange was Lizet. That the result hadn't been overwhelming felt shameful to her, but Lizet winning was still a fact.

Lizet saw limitless potential in Kyle's sword. Especially the sword he had swung at the end, that was not a sword a fifteen-year-old boy who hadn't even opened the gate of the Extreme Boundary could wield.

Even so. The next time they fought, Lizet would still be the winner. She naturally believed that, which was why Kyle's words now struck her as surprising.

"You're not afraid I might come later?"

At Lizet's question, Kyle snorted and answered.

"I've already made a promise to fight someone far stronger than you and far scarier. A monster of an elf who has lived five hundred years swinging a sword."

"..."

"If you want to talk more, stop the bleeding first. You're going to die from blood loss at this rate."

Drip. Drip.

Lizet glanced down at the blood pooling on the floor. After a short silence, she nodded and pressed her hand against the wound.

"There's nothing more to say. I'll be going."

Lizet turned her head and looked at Lucia.

"Lucia Beliar. For now, I will respect your will. But remember this. Once an Inscription is carved into you, you are a successor to the Demon King. I don't know how this contest will end, but you cannot run from the Inscription forever. Our father has ten years left to live."

"..."

"If you ever leave that boy behind and wish to fulfill the honorable duty of the Inscription, come find this older sister anytime."

Going beyond her insistence on the name "Lucia Beliar," Lizet had now called herself her older sister.

"Kyle Alastor."

Lizet turned her head back to Kyle.

"I am grateful for the mercy. If you want your revenge, come find me whenever you like."

Lizet said nothing about coming to find him herself. It was her way of saying she would not do something disgraceful, something shameful.

"Don't go and die before I get there."

Kyle answered with a smile.

Escaping through death was something he could never, ever forgive.

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