Chapter 161 – Lake of Swords (5)

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Translated by Jinmu

Read only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Crunch.

The sound of snow being softly stepped on. At the sudden sound, I opened my eyes.

– ?

It was a sound coming from my field. I immediately looked around. Snowflakes were scattering, making my vision unbearably blurry.

Still, thanks to the chilly wind blowing only in fits and started, the snowfall thinned, and little by little the surroundings began to come into view.

A short while later. With my vision secured to some extent, I was once again shocked.

Ragged breaths slipped out through my teeth. A pure white world stretched endlessly before my eyes. On a vast, open expanse that looked at first glance like a snowy mountain, the ridgelines formed an undulating horizon.

The color was whiter than white itself. If there were such a thing as colorlessness, would it not look like this. At least I now understood that this was not reality.

And after the snow haze had completely cleared, I grew certain once again. That this place was clearly unreal.

Sashimi blades half-buried densely in the snowfield. So many blades stood there in rows that I could not begin to estimate their number.

An overwhelming scene that created a majestic atmosphere. If I had to compare it, it was a graveyard of swords. The sashimi knives seemed like gravestones, and the snowy mountain like a cemetery.

Step, step.

In contrast to my dazed mind, my feet moved forward on their own.

In this situation where my body was moving by itself. Regardless of my would, I was climbing the hill.

– But why was I here?

I had dreamed a few surreal dreams before, so I knew. By nature, dreams generally tended to have unclear circumstances.

But the situation from just a moment ago was vivid in my mind.

I had exited the polling place, drawn Sashimi, and faced off against the Third Legion Commander, Vesna.

I had been dodging the lances pouring down like cherry blossoms, looking for an opportunity to attack. And then, just as I was about to slip through a gap in that bastard’s opening and strike, I ended up here.

Even so, if I were to infer the circumstances roughly… there was only one possibility that this place could be narrowed down to.

…The afterlife?

Did I somehow get hit by an attack and die in the middle of that fierce battle? I shook my head hard.

No. I had not felt any sign of that at all. Even if every one of Vesna’s spells had been threatening, they were not at a level I absolutely could not dodge. If anything, the bastard had looked surprised as I kept weaving around them.

Did I misstep for a moment and get hit by magic, dying instantly? Even that felt strange. Sure, the launch speed of the magic exceeded the speed of sound, but there was no way I would fail to remember even the moment of death.

Putting that aside, why did my head echo like this every time I speak? And why was my body moving all on its own?

My mind was retracing the situation, but my legs kept diligently marching forward. Crossing the graveyard of swords and heading toward the summit of the hill.

My mind and body were acting separately. The sense of incongruity was no joke. My hands and feet were frozen stiff like blocks of ice, and I could not even rub them as I wanted.

A sticky unease and anxiety attacked me at once. To be wandering some unknown place in the middle of a fierce battle with the Third Legion Commander of all things.

I imagined myself outside right now getting battered around by magic. A scene of my body being pounded by supersonic lances, then sinking with a gurgle into the water like a meat patty.

Damn it, this was driving me crazy.

As I climbed the snowy mountain without any sense of time, sunk in those ominous thoughts, a status window suddenly appeared on my retina.

Paat.

[Hello.]

…?!

My eyes widened into circles. This startled me even more than walking through a suspicious snowy mountain. And that was only natural, because the status window was talking to me. Was this what it felt like when a ghost in a nightmare tried to make small talk with you.

[Would you like to talk for a moment to wake yourself up a bit?]

[Would you like to accept? ☞ (Y/N)]

The status window, which normally only appeared when I recited inwardly, suddenly tried to start a conversation.

Had there ever been anything like this before. Starting with G.M., then the Sword God, and now even the system was talking to me. I was not pleased, but I certainly got a lot of attention in more ways than one.

Still, did I really had time for this kind of Zen riddle exchange right now. There were plenty of things I was curious about, but I did not even know where this was or what I was doing here. Then, as if it had read my troubled state, new words appeared.

[For reference, you are not dead. You are still struggling in reality. In fact, you currently hold the upper hand, so there is no need to worry.]

It kindly dispelled the anxiety I was feeling. What that action meant was obvious. It definitely wanted to talk with me. I could feel that clear intent.

I did not think deeply about it.

Hadn’t I already concluded that, unlike G.M. and the Sword God, this thing, the status window, was my ally.

I nodded, not physically but inwardly. Since my body was not moving according to my would, it could not be helped.

[Y/N]

▲

[Thank you for accepting.]

Forget the greetings. Get to the point. Where was this open expanse, and why was I walking across this snowy mountain against my would. Judging by the situation, you’re the one who called me here, aren’t you.

[As always, you are quite the impatient person. To think I went out of my way to reassure you and you still can’t trust even that. Well, fine. Being cautious is something that deserves praise.]

……

Its way of speaking felt strangely like it was provoking me. There was even a faint little chuckle mixed in the middle.

[First, let me correct one thing. This place you are walking through is not a snowy mountain.]

There was snow spread in every direction, yet it wasn’t a snowfield?

[Yes. This place is originally a lake. At the same time, it is a world onto which your inner self is projected. Though it is currently frozen over with relentless frost, that does not change the fact that its essence is a lake.]

Hearing that, I lowered my gaze slightly. Between the layers of snow, the surface below looked bluish and opaque. The entire ground beneath my feet was solid ice.

[Though you are too dense to have noticed, this place has been freezing over for quite some time. Every time it did, I clearly warned you that the caliber of your humanity was falling. But you neatly ignored it, and whenever anything happened you swung your sword first. When a person talks, the least you can do is pretend to listen.]

A person?

Bip.

[Foolish question. You do not yet have the right to speak.]

……

The status window’s blunt rebuke continued. So the request for conversation had just been a pretext, and the real purpose was nagging.

[You became so thoroughly intoxicated with the sword that you even lost your sense of self. Even if you defeat the enemy after losing yourself, do you think that will lead to the result you truly want?]

From somewhere, I could feel a narrowed glare.

[Remember this. Your greatest enemy is not another person. It is you yourself. At this rate, your mental world will freeze over like this lake. In the end it will become permafrost that never melts, and you will ultimately degenerate into nothing more than a machine that only swings a sashimi knife.]

Then came the sound of a deep sigh.

[But fortunately, you were lucky. What should have dried up like water poured into a bottomless jar, the caliber of your humanity, is barely being refilled by the people around you. And… the same is true even now.]

Even now?

Tsutsutsutsu.

Before the sentence had even finished settling, the cold wind that had been stinging my skin scattered away. Soon the gray sky cleared, and before long the snowfall stopped completely.

I turned my head. The sun rising beyond the ridge cast out a flash of light. At the same time, warm heat touched my back, soft and gentle.

At the sudden light, I squeezed my eyes shut. Then, with difficulty, I sharpened my vision and opened them again.

Srrrk.

As the snow melted away, the original scenery was revealed.

A wild lake. Gentle ripples swayed as though caressing the endless blades.

At that moment.

[The condition has been fulfilled through external interference.]

[Using suppressive force to begin adjusting the user’s personality.]

Jiiiiing.

[The caliber of your humanity rises.]

[The Blessing of the Sword God, `Heart`, is activated.]

* * *

Inside the polling place.

Amid the cauldron of chaos, Sein wiped away the beads of cold sweat gathering on her forehead.

“I really thought this was going to go completely wrong.”

Even amid all the anxiety and fear, only she remained relatively composed.

To begin with, the basis of the anxiety Sein felt was of a different kind from that of the cadets.

Narrowing her eyes, Sein stared into the distance. In the middle of the battlefield, she could see sky-blue hair hugging Kang Geom-ma from behind.

“…Still, thanks to you, we got past the critical point.”

Sein smiled faintly. The meaning of that smile was relief.

Soon after, she turned off her phone and buried herself among the cadets.

* * *

“Haa… haa….”

The sound of breathing was rough. Blood poured nonstop from the wounds all over Saki’s body.

She had managed to come this far by stepping on the floating masses in the lake. But there was no way she could dodge magic being launched at supersonic speed.

Since the magic had been targeting Kang Geom-ma, she had narrowly escaped fatal wounds, but her condition was still horrific.

She had only avoided the vital points. It would not have been strange at all if she collapsed unconscious at any moment.

Saki suddenly coughed up blood. Only after spilling out a mouthful of bright blood did her head cool down. As if air had been leaking from a balloon, the oxygen decreased and her brain activity calmed.

“…I really am doing all sorts of ridiculous things.”

Saki mocked herself with blue lips. Right now, she was as foolish as could be. To put it harshly, she was a complete idiot.

This sudden action had been no different from suicide. On top of that, she had come running out while being of no help at all to Kang Geom-ma.

Even by her own reckoning, it was pitiful. But still.

She simply could not stand there and only watch as Kang Geom-ma, having lost consciousness, took attack after attack while continuing to swing his swords.

If things went on like this, he would never come back. That single thought had brought her this far.

“……”

Vesna stopped the relentless attack she had been pouring down and watched the sight.

As it happened, it was also the moment she needed to recharge her mana. The situation was such that she needed at least a minute to build her mana back up. While gathering her mana, Vesna organized her thoughts.

The girl’s presence had been so faint that she had failed to notice her approach. Much like one did not pay attention to every ant crawling along the ground.

The girl’s presence was outside Vesna’s range of perception. Had she known, she would have snapped her neck with a mere glance.

And yet that wretch, without even caring for her own body covered in blood, was hugging Kang Geom-ma.

Vesna was briefly dumbfounded by the sudden spectacle of youthful romance, then the vein at her temple throbbed violently.

“How dare a mere little creature try to interfere in my battle!”

Vesna let out a roar. The echo rang throughout the entire academy. At that, the cadets’ bodies all shrank in fear.

“Very well, you wretched thing. Thanks to your misguided actions, he has awakened. In that case, I will wipe out every last insect that gets in my way.”

When Vesna snapped her fingers, a dark crimson aura flowed out from her arm. Wicked mana dripped from her fingertips and polluted the lake.

Vesna rolled both hands around in front of her chest. Her lips continued chanting the spell.

At that, the surface of the water began to boil thickly like a swamp.

Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeek!

From the bottom of the lake, a gigantic water serpent rose up. It was an incomplete summoning, but its size was three times that of the annex building. The faint smile on her face deepened.

A retainer she had called in from the demonic realm after completely exhausting her mana. The sea serpent that swallows the world.

‘Jormungandr’

Leaping up as though she were about to fly, Vesna landed on the serpent’s head. Stroking its scales, she whispered to her retainer.

“My baby, forgive me for dragging you all the way here from Gehenna. But there is plenty of prey, so gorge yourself as much as you like.”

A cold smile appeared at the corner of Vesna’s lips. At that, the long, vertically split eyes glinted dangerously.

“Gruhurukku shibyeongjeong hajeongbyeon shikkuruhu eu, gruhurukku shibyeongjeong hajeongbyeon shikkuruhu eu, gruhurukku shibyeongjeong”

Jormungandr let out an eerie cry. It turned its maw toward the cadets. The snorting breath pouring from its nose reversed the direction of the wind.

“Ah, ahh, ahhh.”

One male cadet looked up at the monster with eyes soaked in despair. He was so resigned that not even tears came anymore. Just as the carousel of memories being replayed in his head crossed with the reality he wanted to deny.

Kiring, kiring, kiring.

Kiring, kiring, kiring.

The crisp ringing of blades echoed over and over.

“…?”

The male cadet felt something twitching at his waist. He lowered his gaze on impulse, and his eyes widened as if they would tear.

The Daiso sashimi knife he had jokingly fastened at his waist this morning when heading for the polling place. Its blade was shaking all on its own.

It was not just that one male cadet.

The Sashimi Squad, the supporters of Candidate No. 7. The Daiso sashimi knives at the waists of 1,457 people pulsed like living things.

The wriggling blades soon slipped out from their waists. In an instant, more than a thousand sashimi knives floated into the air.

“…What is this?”

The cadets watched with faces drained of color as though they had seen ghosts. Their thinking had become numb before the phenomenon unfolding before their eyes.

“Kieeek?”

The monster, not understanding what was going on, tilted its head with an innocent expression. Then, from the side, came a low voice. The monster pricked up ears that did not exist.

“Controlling the Sword with Qi.”

The moment the words ended, the blades fired all at once like arrows from a drawn bow. They burst forward with incredible speed.

Pababak! Pababak! Pababaat!

Jormungandr let out a scream that might have been a shriek or a roar. It struggled wildly, but that was all it amounted to.

The streaks of light struck Jormungandr’s scales and sliced it into fine pieces. Blue blood burst upward like a fountain. The more violently it thrashed, the faster the blades accelerated. Thus the monster had no choice but to receive that wildly raging sword storm in full.

Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeek!

Jormungandr’s main body reeled weakly like a candle in the wind. The earth trembled at the monster’s exposed thrashing beneath the blades.

Vesna, who had lost her sneer, sank down on the serpent’s head. Stroking the forehead of her child, she called its name with aching grief. Pshuk, sticky blood splattered across her face.

“My baby…!”

In that instant, her heart beat hard. A stinging pain ran across the side of her face.

Kigigik. Vesna twisted her stiff neck around. Her pupils shook mercilessly together with the tremor.

! ! !

Amid the twisting of the earth, a black figure approached.

With languidly shining eyes fixed on her, walking arrogantly with his hands in his pockets. The jet-black darkness had already returned to his hair, which had been pure white.

Step.

The sound of footsteps ringing through the demonic battlefield.

Step.

In the damp eyes of the cadets, black hair was reflected. Their faces softened with joy. Unable to bear it any longer, someone finally cried out.

“It’s Kang Geom-ma!”

Starting from that one line, hope began to spread.

By contrast, after shock upon shock, Vesna’s complexion had turned pale like that of a dead person. She realized it instinctively. She had touched something she absolutely never should have.

She had only looked away for a moment. And yet what exactly was this completely changed atmosphere, and this sudden unknown power? At one wave of Kang Geom-ma’s hand, the sashimi knives tore at Jormungandr.

Right then, a blue blade reflected itself in her retina. Her final sound was a small groan of ah.

Pababak!

A storm of blades rushed at Vesna, and every one of those scenes was reflected in the lake like a mirror.