197: Sword of Heart (2)

Before he killed the clown, when he first encountered Karen Winker, his former life.

Feeling that power of his, entering the sword, Airn realized that Karen Winker was also a little different from before.

No bones or muscles had changed.

It wasn’t that his aura grew rapidly, nor was it because his knowledge about aura operation increased.

He felt the memories of his past life, sporadically, but then again, Airn knew that he was far less powerful compared to his past life in terms of the sword.

Still, he was confident, and he felt it.

The mighty, ugly demon who lived for several years was in front of me, and wasn’t afraid of it then.

And as he faced the demon then, it felt like something stronger than Aura was enveloping his sword.

And now.

“…”

The moment he heard the overview of the ‘Hero’s sword’ or the Sword of Heart, from Ignet Crescentia, Airn was convinced that the power he had felt at that time while facing the clown was the ‘true energy’ which came from the good intentions of him and his past self.

Woong!

Airn swung his sword.

It was a bit awkward. It was as if he had never practiced the sword in his entire life.

To add a bit more exaggeration, it was such a crude movement that it seemed like his body didn’t move.

It was natural.

It was like a person who never moved was suddenly holding the sword.

And it was the same as someone who felt Aura for the first time in their lives and couldn’t operate it.

The current Airn, who was wielding the Sword of Heart, lacked elegance.

But no one said anything, and no one laughed.

And those who had risen to the level of Expert, especially those on the level of Master, were completely shocked.

“…”

“…”

“… shit, crazy.”

Learning the Hero’s Sword.

This guy listened to the concept and just learned it.

After seeing him conquer the first ordeal in the dungeon, Sevion Brooks had the idea in his head that the young man had good intentions for the world.

And he was convinced that if anyone could learn the Hero’s Sword, it would be this young man.

However, awakening it, the moment he heard the theory …

Woon

Woong!

Wooong!

While the people couldn’t hide their startled expressions, Airn kept swinging his sword.

It was difficult. It required unimaginable concentration to tune the sword of the mind while simultaneously using his aura and getting his body to move.

Perhaps, the lack of technical skills was the problem. There must be some tips and know-hows to avoid wasting his mental power like this.

Thinking that, Airn stopped.

And looked at Ignet.

“Let’s move to the next one.”

“N-next? What next!”

Startle.

Airn looked back in surprise and saw the Vice-Commander of Calven, Amira Shelton, who had a very flustered face.

And it was not just her.

The other exploration members, who were too shocked by his words, looked at Airn.

Eyes filled with jealousy, frustration, and a little bit of anger.

‘… did I make a mistake?’

He was a bit disappointed.

He thought what he did was right.

It reminded him of the time when he was interacting with the past self where he would observe the man in the dreams and learn from Lulu and hone himself.

These people who were looking at him didn’t go through that.

The concept Ignet was speaking about was completely alien to them.

Scratching his head, he went back.

And waited for Ignet’s next words.

However, something strange happened.

“Airn, come out.”

“Huh?”

“It would be better to separate you.”

“But…”

Airn looked around. Once again, he could feel the sharp gaze of the people on him.

As if saying, ‘We turned into bottom feeders because of you.’ And among them was Ilya Lindsay.

Fortunately, there was another person who could teach the basics.

“Then I will explain the basic concept.”

Georg Phoebe.

The Vice-Commander of the Black Knights, equipped with the skills of a Sword Master, came forward.

So, no one complained.

But.

Wooong….

“… I can’t handle this smoothly enough to use it in real life. The mind is the fuel for this sword, so converting it into real energy requires a lot more effort and talent.”

“….”

“And not only to maintain it, but to incorporate it into swordsmanship… we need more talent. Unfortunately, I lacked talent and effort. Most likely, it is both.”

Those who heard Georg’s words remained silent.

They had no choice but to do so. A being who had become a Sword Master before reaching 40 said that he himself lacked talent. And said that he hadn’t put enough effort.

If so, what were they? They who had barely reached experts?

It was a nasty emotion, but they said nothing. Thinking about it, it was quite natural.

If the Hero’s Sword was easy enough for anyone to learn, it wouldn’t be called a Hero’s Sword any longer.

Holding back their emotions, they listened.

“First, we have to cultivate the heart which goes against the Magi of the Devil… let’s start by thinking strongly about the ‘Will to protect.'”

“Wow, Georg speaks so well.”

“Yeah, he is doing good.”

Anya and Lulu looked at the swordsmen as if it wasn’t their job.

Airn and Ignet, too, looked at them and turned their attention away.

The Black Knights commander, with a sly smile, asked Airn.

“Then, should we start?”

“Yes.”

“Great. However, don’t think it will be easy just because you achieved the Sword of Heart.”

“…”

“To tune the body, mind, and the Aura sword at the same time, and create a usable swordsmanship… It wasn’t easy for me either.”

“I understand it.”

Airn nodded his head.

Right. He knew it.

It wasn’t just the mind. Raising the body’s condition and handling the Aura. There was nothing easy about getting it.

However, that didn’t make him want to give up.

Rather, Airn had bigger aspirations than Ignet.

‘The Five Spirits!’

If only he could add all the spirits which he learned from Karakum…

‘I will have more choices to protect the world.’

Woong!

There was a tremble in Airn’s heart.

It wasn’t an intentional awakening of the Hero’s Sword, but it was from the good intentions he had towards the world.

Ignet, who recognized it, burst out laughing.

However, she didn’t envy him like the others.

‘Because I have gained enough.’

“Good. Let’s start.”

With those words, Ignet began special training. The lecture she and Georg were saying made the entire dungeon noisy.

And in between.

“…”

The silver-haired swordsman, who kept all of the words of Georg in her mind. And as she looked at her friends and enemies with her eyes, her heart trembled a little.

Three weeks had passed.

It was long enough to make people go crazy, but the situation was still fine.

Anya’s flaming errands were turning into magic gold coins, and that brought in emergency food and small necessities. And the fact that they still had access to this brought peace to mind.

Apart from that, there was a gloomy existence among the group.

Sir Sevion Brooks.

He sat leaning against a common stone wall and watched two swordsmen diligently practicing.

Right. He and everyone else had given up on learning Ignet’s swordsmanship.

‘It doesn’t make sense to learn or teach something like that.’

The desire to protect something materializes energy?

It was easy to say, but the delicacy it required to make it happen was beyond his imagination.

Just as an Expert sword couldn’t imitate a Master’s Aura, it was a huge wall that seemed to be insurmountable for him.

Even so, it was a bummer for Sevion Brooks.

He, who turned the resentment and anger he felt during the civil war into the peace and stability they had today, succeeded in materializing the Sword Of Heart, with the help of Ignet and Georg.

But that was it.

The moment he put the Sword of Heart into the Aura Sword, he couldn’t even move a single step.

‘… it isn’t an easy thing for me to do.’

And that was the reason Sevion gave up on it.

Naturally, those who lacked talent too gave up along with him.

Except for Amira Shelton, who still wielded her sword, and the two swordsmen under the direct guidance of Ignet, who were both true Masters.

Surprisingly, Ilya’s achievements were faster than Airn’s.

‘How is she doing it so easily?’

Ilya’s achievements were too quick.

It was important to have the will to protect the world and manifest the energy into the real world.

And just like that, it was important to handle the sword as well.

And Ilya showed overwhelming talent in that area. Roughly speaking, her growth was twice than that of Airn.

Of course…

“You idiot. Can’t you do that one thing, right?”

“Ugh… if I can’t, I’ll do it until I do it right.”

The most surprising thing was Ignet, who was teaching them.

Since she didn’t hide anything, anyone in the dungeon could listen to her.

So, she knew. How difficult it was to explain swordsmanship to others.

“Haha.”

Sevion Brooks laughed. He was thinking about the past. He couldn’t even understand the concept of the sword she was talking about, and he had thought of breaking past Ignet.

Truly, it was like a puppy attacking the enemy, not knowing fear.

‘Let’s not worry about it.’

Sevion Brooks closed his eyes. And to get rid of the creeping feeling of inferiority, he calmed his mind through meditation.

It was a different world.

However, in the heart of the old man, there was an obsession with the sword of Ignet.

It was an ordinary emotion that caused no problems to his emotional state, but it was a dangerous emotion with a possibility of turning into a dark emotion.

However, there was no way it would turn bad.

Wong!

Woong!

“Uh?”

“That sound…”

“What? What is happening?”

The members who were concentrating on their tasks, stood up in surprise. And turned their heads towards the source of the sound.

At that moment, the sound reverberated again. And it gradually got bigger.

Clang!

Chang!

Hit! Hit!

Kwang!

The sound of hitting and knocking.

And the sound of something cracking.

And the faces of the Black Knights turned brighter.

It was because they immediately realized who was breaking the darkness.

It was the same with Ignet. Although her injury didn’t heal, she got up and her posture upright, waiting for the barrier to break.

Airn and Ilya, who were being instructed on what to do, and Lulu, who approached them, had a serious face.

And the darkness eventually fell.

Kwang!

A harsh sound.

And a brilliant light poured in through it. It was no normal light. It was holy power with the highest amount blessed by God.

However, that wasn’t what caught Airn’s eyes.

A white armor with no dust on it.

The moment he saw the old paladin with a white beard, Airn felt something inside him.

“…”

Ilya was the same.

But they didn’t think too much about it.

Ten paladins approached from a few steps behind.

And she realized instinctively. Not all of them belonged there; it had been a long time since she became a Master, so she knew.

’11 Sword Masters? No matter how strong Avilius is, how can so many Masters …’

Ilya was confused, and so was Airn.

However, after a while, more emotions rose.

“Ignet Crescentia, I guess you are alive.”

“Sorry for the unruly appearance, commander.”

And the identity of the man was discovered.

More importantly, none of the 11 Masters paid attention to anything else around them.

All of them, as if they didn’t care about anyone other than Ignet, looked at her with intense eyes.

Wheik!

And it reminded him of something he had forgotten for a while.

Why was he here?

Airn, who remembered it, grabbed the sword again.