Academy’s Genius Swordmaster - Chapter 176
176. The Festival of Swords (19)
#176
The steel garden was spread out before my eyes. Weapons growing from the floor were casting cool light. It seemed that tens of thousands of bags would be enough to fill the entire crater at irregular intervals.
It was as Nabi Roze said. The inexperienced participants began to mutter in embarrassment.
“What is this all about? Are you asking me to find the holy sword here?”
“Is it… magic?”
“Looks like you are possessed by a ghost. Anyway, aren’t these weapons a bit strange?”
Ronan was also embarrassed. In my two lives, I had never seen a landscape like this. After looking around for a while, he asked Alogin.
“What kind of magic did you do?”
“Hmm…Wait a minute. I don’t get used to it every year.”
Alogin’s face was clearly marked by fatigue. The same was true of the other elders and Zaifa. It didn’t look very good to see that everyone had been hung upside down and hadn’t been put to sleep for about three days. Alogin, who was holding his breath, opened his mouth.
“…I’m sorry. Calling out all the sword spirits is not an ordinary thing. This is the reason why seven elders have to stay in the Holy Land while eating.”
“A sword spirit?”
Ronan tilted his head. It was the first word I heard. However, I guessed from the tone of the word, it seemed to be related to the weapon possessed by demons, which were sometimes reported to exist through rumors. Things like suddenly flying in and stabbing the enemy’s neck without even touching it. Alogin answered.
“okay. To put it simply, the sword spirit is the soul that resides in the weapon.”
“I’ve heard that… there are weapons that move and talk randomly, but does that have anything to do with it?”
“Ah, you mean the ego weapon. That’s right. When the spirit of the sword is extremely strong, such an object is born. What you are seeing is also the materialization of the sword spirits of the weapons dedicated to Farzan. It’s like a ghost who can’t leave the world even though it lost its metal body and dreams.”
Hearing the word ghost, Ronan frowned. Alogin explained that all the blades standing in front of him were insubstantial. Something eerie, the wind felt even colder.
“…what is the principle? To be honest, I feel a bit bad.”
“It is not known exactly. However, our elders speculate that it is a phenomenon caused by the owner’s attachment and bond. It would be quicker to experience it than to explain it. Would you like to catch one?”
Allogin pointed to the longsword that rose up in front of Ronan. Ronan grabbed the hilt with a suspicious expression.
“……!”
At that moment, certain scenes passed before my eyes with a sensation of static electricity splashing in my head. A sword piercing the armor of a male enemy running across the battlefield. It was a video that seemed to list someone’s life.
“What the fuck is it?”
Ronan, startled, threw away his sword. As soon as the video cut off, the view returned to normal.
In reality it was only a few seconds, but it felt like a very long time had passed. It was a similar sensation to the kaleidoscope I had experienced in my previous life. Suaa… the dangerously shaking sword collapsed and disappeared in the form of a gas. Alogin stroked his beard and smiled.
“That is the dream of sword spirits and weapons. It reminds me of the days when I drank blood with my master. I guess I’ll have to start soon.”
“wait for a sec. Then consciousness is…”
“You are right about what you expect.”
It was the car Ronan was about to say. Alogin and other elders all lowered their weapons. Alogin looked back at the participants and announced.
“You guys just have to walk around the holy ground here and pick up a weapon that is presumed to be a holy sword. If it’s not a holy sword, it will instantly disappear as smoke, so there’s no need to worry about confusion. If you have the ability, you can try as many times as you like, but every time you touch it, memories of the sword will come flooding in, so it would be better to choose as carefully as possible.”
Alogin explained that the ritual continues until the sun has completely set today. Judging by the color of the sky, there were about two or three hours left. He also reiterated the need to be careful when choosing weapons. One of the participants raised his hand and asked a question.
“What does the flood of memories have to do with the number of draws?”
“Once you squeeze it, you know right away. Dealing with a single piece of history is unexpectedly accompanied by a great sense of fatigue. There were several contestants whose egos were ruined by overdoing it, so please be careful.”
As expected, Ronan was feeling tired as if he had just run outside. If I had taken my hand away right away and held it until it was completely pulled out, I would have suffered needlessly.
Alogin then added that one of these swords must be a holy sword, so don’t worry. Only then did Ronan understand why he was filtering out the contestants so carefully.
This ritual was a kind of reception. It was a dangerous act that anyone who was not physically and mentally trained could go crazy or become a disabled person in an instant. The faces of the participants who had passed the final exam and were freed were going to harden.
“Then let’s begin. Please someone wake up the sleeping holy sword.”
said Alogin. The participants who made up their own resolutions scattered. The elders and the Sword Saint also participated in the ceremony, so a total of twenty-eight people roamed the holy ground. Before long, exclamations of astonishment began to be heard from everywhere.
****
“…Damn it! I can’t eat any more.”
The man in the armor spewed curse words and lay down. In the end, he couldn’t pull out the long spear stuck in front of his eyes. Aside from the fact that my body became heavy like a weight, the memories of the blades stirring in my head made me dare not dare to try. Every time I see a fantasy, I feel like my ego is blurred.
“You’re the vice-captain of the Sacred Spear Knights…how many swords did you pick?”
Then another participant trudged over and sat down next to the man. The dark shadows in his eyes seemed to be in the same situation as him.
“Seven sacks. It is the limit now.”
“You’ve drawn too many…I only have five.”
“I don’t know if the damn holy sword really exists. Isn’t it all a concoction of fraud?”
“I thought about that for a second too. But for that to happen…they seem to be working too hard.”
The dark-eyed participant pointed somewhere. The man who was lying down lifted his head and looked at him. Elders in uniform were busily walking between the cutlery.
They were drawing their weapons at the rate of one every three minutes. It was reminiscent of farmers harvesting radishes. The form disintegrated, and the smoke that bloomed was mingled with the wind and disappearing. The man lying down again let out a laugh as if he was fed up.
“…monsters.”
“So, you are not in the position of an elder. Seeing that there are people who are exceptionally good at selecting them, it seems that we are lacking in training. Even the morning star of the empire and the master of all things have already drawn double digits.”
“Ah, that’s right… Come to think of it, what happened to that young man?”
The man asked while lying down. The barrel has not been seen since the ceremony began.
“Who are you talking about?”
“Why did you have a friend who blocked the Flooding Sword technique? We drank together, but… I can’t see you today.”
“…You mean that?”
The two shrugged. He was undoubtedly one of the most promising contestants, and no matter how much he looked around, he couldn’t find him.
But it was natural. Thirty minutes after the ceremony began, Ronan gave up looking for the holy sword and sat cross-legged on the western outskirts of the crater. The reddened sunlight was staining his face. While admiring the view of the mountain with his back to the holy ground, he muttered.
“It kills you.”
The western part of the continent came into view at a glance. A rugged horizon surrounded it on all sides. There were no higher mountains within sight, so I felt like I was sitting on the roof of the world. In the distance, I could see Nimburton, my hometown, and the Romira Mountains across the Islands.
Luckily, I was able to climb up thanks to the discovery of a slope going up. Since it was an ambiguous location whether it was included in the Holy Land, Ronan had La Mancha planted on his right side.
It was used to make an excuse in case the elders caught fault with them about what they were doing there. Stretching out, he muttered, raising one corner of his mouth.
“The Holy Sword is damn good.”
“What are you doing here?”
“Huh…!”
Then a familiar voice came from behind. I was really surprised that I didn’t feel popular. Ronan, who swept his chest once, turned his head. Rin stood there with her thick gray hair flowing.
“A-san, you were surprised.”
“Aren’t you looking for the holy sword?”
Rin tilted his head. His typical expressionless expression and dry tone were subtly annoyed. Ronan turned his head again and looked at the bottom of the mountain
. .”
“You have a bad attitude. Even if you get ahead, you won’t hear the voice of a gentleman.”
“I don’t even have the heart to listen.”
Ronan waved his hand. In the first place, he wasn’t interested in finding the Holy Sword, so he thought he’d take some time to go back. Rin, who was looking at Ronan’s back, walked closer and walked closer. Then, naturally, he sat down on Ronan’s lap. “
Because of my stupidity.”
Ronan laughed. This was another unexpected development. Ronan lowered his eyes to see her casually leaning the back of her head against his chest
.
“The meaning of life lies in doing what you want to do.”
“I see. It’s heavy, so go down man.”
Rin didn’t move. Ronan sighed as if he had expected it and grabbed Rin by the back of the back and put it down next to him. Of course, it wasn’t heavy at all, but it bothered me that it was his pants that were always rubbed with blood. “It’s shameful.
”
“It’s noisy. You’re going to find the Holy Sword, too. Why are you here?”
“It is my heart.”
Ronan laughed incredulously. Rin said he hadn’t touched anything, and Ronan replied that neither did he. Sitting side by side, they sat side by side silently watching the sunset. The day was coming to an end. The setting sun was a pale full moon
. In contrast, it created a dreamy scene. The clouds, which seemed to have been torn from wool, were ripe like autumn leaves. Rin took a deep breath and opened her mouth. “I guess you like sunsets.
”
“Um…probably. I didn’t like it at first, but it’s not bad now.”
Ronan nodded. For him, the sunset was not just a natural phenomenon. It was the last thing he saw before he died. Lynn asked, “Why?
”
“It’s just that someone I know once gave me an unconventional explanation, and I liked it. They said it was the last struggle of the dying year.”
“Struggle? It’s amazing.”
“Right. They said that the setting sun is burning red is because I’m struggling to live. It’s like looking for firewood to keep the fire going. I don’t know why, but I like that explanation.”
It was a conversation he had with Adeshan at the Hill of the Four Seasons. It was a memory of late summer youth that he had never experienced in his previous life. It was hard to believe that it had already been two years. Ronan happily explained what had happened at that time. His eyes were subtly friendly. Von Lin snorted,
“Huh. That’s the person Nabiroje was talking about. It won’t be easy.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s okay. That’s better than a guy who’s flirting with anyone. Rather than that, I have a question. It’s a very, very important question.”
Suddenly, she turned her head and faced Ronan. Her eyes, which were as white as her hair, were more than clear, and I even felt that they were transparent. I always thought of her, but she was a girl who gave a very mysterious impression. Anyway, to the extent that ‘very’ was included twice. What the hell was she trying to ask? Rin continued,
“The holy sword. Do you want to have it?”