Chapter 23
“Enough. Be quiet. Don’t talk. I don’t want to know. My head will hurt even more. I just learned something, and now I have to break it down again? That’s crazy… Oh, by the way, I heard there’s someone in our class who reached Sword Level 3.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. But why are they in Class C and not Class B?”
“Maybe because their aura is weak?”
“Like you?”
“Yeah. Like me.”
“…Tch. That reaction is no fun.”
Phil kept grumbling in a low voice.
“That’s why nobles aren’t fun. Even when I try to tease you, it doesn’t work. You should at least get mad or something. Anyway, what’s next?”
“Sword Level 4 is called River-Flow Sword. It’s the stage where you learn to sense the flow of the sword—”
“No need for explanations.”
Phil waved his hand.
“Just tell me the names. What’s Level 5?”
“Pure-Flow Sword.”
“Level 6?”
“Void Sword.”
“It just keeps going. Level 7?”
“Unity Sword.”
“You reached Unity Sword, right?”
“Yeah. But I skipped Level 6, so I have to go back and learn it.”
“You skipped a level? Is that even possible?”
“No. It’s not.”
I only reached Level 7 because of a miracle in a very special situation. Honestly, I wish it hadn’t happened.
“Usually, it’s not possible. I’m a special case.”
“Tch. Bragger. I was getting excited for nothing. So, after that, is Void Sword the final level?”
“There’s one more: Level 8. It’s called Poison-Breaking Sword. They say if you reach that level, you can remove poison using swordsmanship alone.”
“Just with swordsmanship?”
“Yeah.”
“Without aura?”
“That’s why almost no one has reached it.”
Even in the entire Sword King family, only a few people have reached Level 8.
Phil stared at me for a moment and asked,
“Is that your goal too?”
“Maybe?”
“How do you reach it?”
“No one really knows. I heard that after reaching Level 7, you have to train secretly for around 40 years.”
“40 years?!”
“Yeah. That’s the minimum.”
“That’s insane. You’d die of old age before reaching it. You should just give up. You’re already amazing.”
“Yeah… maybe I should.”
I smiled and nodded.
But truthfully, I had no plans to give up.
At least not when it came to swordsmanship. Even if it was like climbing a never-ending cliff, I’d keep going. As long as I knew how, I would keep climbing.
Why?
Good question.
I never really thought about it. Maybe because it’s the only thing I’m good at? Or because swordsmanship saved my life?
Or maybe… for the future?
In the future I saw, I had become a monster.
Not because I was forced to—because I chose to.
That was the only way to gain power and get revenge for everyone.
But if I could reach a higher level of swordsmanship before then? Even if I end up using poison for revenge, maybe I could avoid the worst outcome.
Maybe I wouldn’t lose myself completely… maybe I wouldn’t become a monster in both body and mind.
Then suddenly, my vision blurred.
“….”
A hazy illusion.
A faint and unclear image of the future appeared in front of me.
“Hmm…”
Is this real?
Can I really do that?
I didn’t know.
I didn’t even know exactly what I was seeing. It just tempted me, softly and vaguely.
So… just a bit more.
I want to see it more clearly.
But then—
“Ah, crap. That’s right, another dead body was found in the back alley yesterday.”
Phil’s loud voice pulled me back to reality.
“It’s serious. I want to go home at night, but I can’t.”
“…Why not?”
“Why?”
“You don’t have to live in the dorm, right? Is your orphanage too far?”
“My little siblings took over my room.”
“Oh.”
I gave a small laugh.
So your siblings kicked you out of your own room. That’s rough.
The image of the future I was seeing disappeared completely.
But I wasn’t too sad.
Wanting too much is a luxury. For now, I just need to do what I can.
Revenge.
To reach that future of revenge, I need to start small—like getting rid of the spy from the Poison King Sect that Phil mentioned.
I’ve already been sneaking out every other night.
But it wasn’t easy.
The trip was long.
I had to leave the dorm late at night, cross the grave mountain, go into the city, and find the back alley. It took forever.
So tonight, I planned to try something new. Hopefully it would work—without any side effects…
“When I asked my siblings why they took my room, they even talked back! Told me to just focus on the Academy and stop coming home. These brats, they’ve got such big mouths now. I mean, they’re right, but still… I can’t even sleep from worrying. If someone dies at home, I’ll lose it—Huh? What’s wrong with you?”
“Me? Why?”
“You keep looking up. Is something in the sky?”
The red orb was still floating in the sky, as always. I saw it ripple like waves and shook my head.
“No. But I think someone’s coming this way.”
“Who would come here? I don’t see anyone.”
Of course not. I don’t see anyone either.
But the red orb in the sky was sending a signal.
My dear friends and family up there… they can see things before I can.
I had asked them to warn me if someone came near the dorm. That’s why the poison energy inside the orb was rippling now.
But who could it be?
Is the Academy or the Newt family finally investigating Eric’s disappearance?
Or maybe the Poison King Sect is looking for their missing spy?
“The sun’s about to set. Who would come to the mountains now? Oh—maybe someone’s transferring dorms?”
“Transferring dorms? That’s possible?”
“Yeah. I already applied.”
“Really?”
“You can’t switch classes, but if there’s a free room, you can change dorms. And there are tons of empty rooms here.”
Phil pointed to our dorm.
Yeah… our Highwind Dorm really is empty. I’m the only one living in the entire building.
“Still, would anyone really come? It’s so far from everything.”
“Whatever. I’m already coming here all the time to learn swordsmanship from you. Might as well move in.”
“True…”
At that moment, a stranger appeared around the bend of the path.
He looked to be in his forties.
Blond hair, black eyes, tall and thin. He had a sharp face like a hawk and wore the official uniform of a high-ranking member of the Sword King family.
“Whoa. That’s the Sword King family uniform.”
Even someone from the back alleys like Phil recognized it. The man arrived in front of the dorm and looked at Phil.
“You stink.”
For a second, I almost snapped.
I imagined stabbing him in the stomach with my wooden sword and barely held back. Did you just insult my friend?
Just because he’s high-ranking, does that give him the right?
“Hm?”
Tap!
The man suddenly stepped back fast.
Whoa. He’s fast. I don’t even think he used aura.
But… what?
I didn’t do anything. I just imagined it. Why did he move?
“I heard the rumors… You really did reach Unity Sword, huh?”
The man squinted at me.
Unity Sword? But I didn’t use that.
Besides, Unity Sword only works when you actually make contact. Whether it’s a wooden sword or a stick, you have to hit something.
“Hmm. You’ve reached Unity Sword, so of course you’ve mastered Void Sword too. That was sharp. A rough greeting for a first meeting.”
His voice was deep and heavy.
Did I really send out a sword technique just by imagining it?
“…Sorry.”
If that’s true, I was in the wrong. I bowed and apologized.
“I didn’t mean to. I still lack control. When I’m emotionally shaken, my power leaks out.”
I might as well say that. Even if I wasn’t sure.
“Hmph. Seems I misunderstood.”
“Sir?”
“You’re Ray Granble, right? I was just stating facts. And you—are you a new student? Introduce yourself.”
“Y-yes!”
Phil jumped up.
“I’m Phil Lucabre, 1st year, Class C, Northern Academy!”
“Lucabre. Please take better care of your hygiene. An Academy student should have basic dignity.”
The man narrowed his eyes.
Phil sniffed his sleeve and looked shocked.
So… he really did stink.
Yeah, Phil never cared much about being clean. And today, he’d rolled around sweating in the yard.
“There’s a well behind the dorm, you know.”
“Huh? Oh! I-I’ll go wash my face!”
Phil ran off. The man sighed and walked toward me.
“Sorry to interrupt your training. I’m Greek Serses, from the Sword King Family Inheritance Office.”
He showed me a badge with four swords on it.
Four swords?
I’ve never seen that before. Two swords mean inspector. Three means executor. So what does four mean?
I don’t know. But it must be really high.
Also… Serses. That name is familiar. He’s from the Serses family, one of the 8 main Sword King families. The current Sword King, Dive Serses, is from that family.
“I’m Ray Granble. It’s an honor to meet someone from the Serses family. But the Inheritance Office…?”
“It manages the succession rankings of the Sword King families. You should know this if you’re from a main house.”
“Ah, I see.”
“At around 2 p.m. today, your application for the inheritance match was received and approved.”
“Already?”
“The Office must be quick and clear. Ray Granble. How much do you know about inheritance matches?”
“Just that the winner’s inheritance rank changes.”
“Hmph.”
Even without changing his expression, I could feel his disapproval.
Sorry. I didn’t expect things to go this far either.
“You lack basic knowledge. Far from qualified for a direct heir of the main Granble house. But considering recent events, I’ll let it go this time. The Academy library has the full rules. Read them.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
“Strength isn’t everything. But… you do seem very strong.”
He looked me up and down, as if judging livestock.
“Hmph. Still young. Doesn’t look like you have strong bones or good aura. But you’re sharp.”
“…”
“I was saddened by what happened to the Granble family. Roa Granble was an excellent man. You have my condolences.”
Greek bowed. I bowed in return.
“Thank you. Did you know my father?”
“We were classmates at the Academy.”
“Oh.”
“But we weren’t close. Anyway, because of that incident, your right to inherit came under debate.”
He snorted like he found it ridiculous.
“Hmph. Seems silly to me. Anyway, Ray Granble, you’ve been officially assigned 96th place in the succession ranking of the 8 main Sword King families.”
