EP.137 A trial to endure (4)
Demon World, Tomb of the Sword.
The Tomb of the Sword, located between two sheer cliffs, was not originally called Demon World. It wasn’t even called an ugly name like a tomb.
‘The sacred place of the sword, Galatric.’
That is the name this land originally had.
‘The canyon of the sword, the sacred place of the sword.’
He trained numerous sword adepts.
Forged numerous famous swords.
No matter where they were born or what their race was, for those who held a sword, the Valley of the Sword was like a home in their hearts. Carving one’s name on a monument standing tall in a sacred place… is something that everyone who walks the path of the sword has dreamed of at least once.
But now it’s all a thing of the past.
The sanctuary collapsed.
Monuments honoring great swordsmen were destroyed.
Many sword adepts were buried beneath the canyon.
The heat in the blacksmith shop, which had not cooled down all year round, cooled down.
All glory buried beneath the ground.
Thus, the Canyon of the Sword became a tomb. Instead of being called a sacred place, it was given the derogatory name “Magyeong (魔境).”
‘Then why a grave?’
That question is truly meaningless.
Stand at the beginning of the canyon. And see. A sacred place that became a demonic landscape. If you do that, you will naturally realize it.
Why is this place called the Tomb of the Sword?
A broken, bent sword stuck in the ground.
For a prosecutor, the sword is like his life. The collapsed canyon was full of abandoned life.
What is buried are the lives of those who held it.
It is their pride that is broken and broken.
If you walk along the broken, broken, and dirty things… you will arrive at the center of the tomb. A huge sword mark remains in the center. It is a trace that rises upward along the cliff as if it could cut off the sky.
“······.”
He is standing at the end of the trace.
Without moving a single inch, like a stone statue.
The sword of death, Ganicalt.
A disaster that destroyed the Holy Land single-handedly.
A disaster in the form of death.
He slowly opened his closed eyes. Black eyes shine through the cracked helmet. What do those eyes see? It’s his own hand.
“···is it.”
Human hands, not beasts.
Ganicalt holds the sword with his arm covered in armor. The great sword stuck in the ground is gently pulled out. Ganicalt saw the sword.
A greatsword with a hole in it.
Shade flowing down from a hole.
What you see is the sword of shadow. However, what comes to mind is the star sword he held a long time ago. His gaze at the sword became distant.
Ganicalt, the sword of death, is a swordsman.
Just as those who live by the sword are obsessed with their sword, Ganicalt has never forgotten his beloved sword. The sword is the swordsman’s companion and half of his soul.
“Did you find it?”
Someone grabbed half of his body.
The worn out soul vibrates.
The demigod he left behind in a faraway place calls to him.
“I should have been looking for it.”
Time that has been stagnant for hundreds of years is about to flow again.
The ashes of a forgotten era, a burned-out era, are about to ignite a flame once again. Ganikhalt held his sword and put the name of the Ashes in his mouth.
“Armiel.”
It’s a nostalgic name.
It was a name I missed very much.
2.
Boom, boom.
My heart was beating violently. The blood was rushing through my body. My eyes moved noisily, and my throat became dry. I swallowed dry saliva and strained my eyes.
The sword of death, Ganicalt.
That monster is not here. I can’t even feel its presence. There was no feeling of oppression that was constricting my breathing. But cold sweat ran down his spine.
‘The symbol of Ganichalt.’
sword of death.
The so-called sword of disaster.
A great sword that could not be broken by any spell, and even Kyle’s holy sword could not make a single scratch. The only thing that the holy sword that can cut everything cannot cut.
It was right in front of my eyes.
‘same.’
I couldn’t have been mistaken.
This was definitely it.
Because I had dealt with that knife at least once, I clearly remembered ‘what happens’ when that knife is swung once, so I could not calm down at all.
My mouth was dry.
I swallowed dry saliva and rolled my head.
‘Why is that here?’
The question that comes to mind is:
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It never occurred to me that this might not be related to the sword of death. There is a relation. It is unconditional. It wasn’t an unfounded intuition.
‘A shape, a hole, something flowing out of the hole.’
I narrowed my eyes.
Of course, what flows down is different. If water flowed from Ganikhalt’s sword… then platinum-colored starlight flowed from the sword in front of him.
Knock, knock.
Starlight flows down the blade and falls into the spring. That was the identity of the light that softly drifted around the spring.
Is that so, I realized at that point.
This place resembles a spring of mana, but it is not a spring of mana. The reason was this starlight. Mana melted with starlight becomes more powerful and has a completely different form from regular mana.
‘Because Kyle’s mana was like that.’
A great sword embedded in the fountain of mana.
This changes the nature of the spring itself.
‘Then, why is starlight flowing from that sword?’
I asked myself, but there was no answer.
Why does starlight flow from a great sword that resembles the sword of death, and why is it stuck in the place where Lark’s ancestor left his beloved weapon?
I couldn’t understand any of it.
Even guessing was difficult.
‘···Lark’s ancestor, the sword of death?’
That made even more sense.
The founder of the Grace family dates back to antiquity at least as far as I remember. Because he was a figure from the next era when the Four Disasters revealed themselves.
Also, I haven’t heard any rumors that he is a large skeleton.
“···What on earth is it?”
I frowned.
I took a slow deep breath and caught my breath. In the end, there was only one thing I knew right away.
‘That great sword.’
There’s something hidden in that eerie sword.
‘If there is something hidden…’
I guess I’ll have to pull it out.
Usually, if you break things like that down and break them down, you’ll come up with an answer. I took a long stride. The water splashed with a crashing sound. I crossed the waterway and approached the sword stuck in the center of the spring.
A sword that resembles the sword of death.
A sword full of mystery.
I reached out for the sword. Whether this was the family sanctuary or something, it was a good thing right now. I was thinking of picking this up.
chin.
That’s the moment I grabbed the sword.
Cheeeeeeeek!
I felt heat in my palms. Her gloves melted. Heat burned my palms through several layers of mana. I could hear the sound of my skin burning.
‘hot.’
It was hot, but bearable.
I frowned and tightened my grip a little more. With a clunk, the tip of the sword hilt was slightly pulled out.
‘I am selected.’
It’s not impossible at all.
At this point, I choose Ogiro. With that in mind, this is the moment when I try to release the stocked spell.
Coo!
The sword vibrated loudly. My hand, which was holding the hilt of the sword, flew away. The knife stuck into the ground a little deeper than before I touched it.
“···What the f*ck.”
I blinked blankly.
It seems like the sword has rejected me. As if the sword had consciousness. The starlight flowing from the sword was rejecting my mana.
‘This is definitely…’
It was the same as when I forcefully held Kyle’s holy sword. When I took the holy sword from that bastard and tried to use it… the same thing happened.
‘I feel like my very soul is being rejected.’
Like a holy sword that can only be wielded by those who are authorized and chosen by the stars… that sword also seemed to require some kind of condition. In the end, it meant that I couldn’t hold it.
“···under.”
I pursed my lips and let out a sigh.
‘What is all this doing?’
I rubbed my heated palms and glared at the sword once more. I even thought about destroying the ground, but I didn’t think it would work.
“Tsk.”
This is the moment when you briefly click your tongue and turn your head. The cloth wrapped around the sword hilt fluttered and swayed in the wind.
Worn and worn fabric.
At first glance, it is a meaningless piece of cloth that is merely wrapped around the hilt of a sword. But, why? I looked at the fabric as if I was fascinated by something. It was a cloth wrapped around the hilt of a sword that radiated heat that was enough to heat my palm. I had a strong feeling that there was something there.
‘···letter?’
As I looked through the fabric, I saw something.
There were letters engraved on the cloth.
I grabbed the fluttering fabric. I unwrapped the wrapped part. The sword did not reject me, as if it would not stop me from unraveling the cloth.
Sarah.
The cloth untied from the hilt of the sword had several lines of sentences attached to it.
“Ganikalt van Galatric.”
“In memory of you, who was prouder than anyone else.”
As I read the sentence, my gaze finally rested on the corner of the fabric. There was someone’s name written there that seemed to have written a sentence.
“Cardi Ban ■■■■.”
Name erased.
However, just being in front was enough.
“···Cardi.”
An ancient elf whose true nature is unknown.
The moment I saw his name, I fell silent. My eyes became cold. It felt like cold water had been poured on my head.
-Go to the north, Raniel.
-Go north and climb the Kurakt Mountains. Because the answer will be there.
A conversation we had a while ago is ringing in my ears.
I looked away from the fabric. I raised my head and looked outside the sanctuary. Nothing was clearly visible due to the swirling snowstorm, but the silhouette of the towering snowy mountain came into view.
The highest mountain range in the North.
A place where no one is allowed to enter.
‘···If you go up there.’
If you get to where you said.
“Do you even know what this is, Cardi?”
I hope so.
If not, I think I’ll have to force myself to hear the answer this time.
3.
“The place this bone joint points to is the Kurakt Mountains.”
The Cardinal gasped at Draka’s words.
“…Are you talking about the Kurakt Mountains?”
Kurakt Mountains.
The cardinal also knew the mountain range well. A place with the strongest snow winds in the north. A place where the most rugged snowy mountains in the north have swallowed up countless adventurers who came after hearing rumors that treasure was hidden there.
‘No matter how much the swordsman is a superhuman…’
It is impossible to climb the Kurakt Mountains.
In the past, a saint who received a prophecy pointed to the Kurakt Mountains as a way to defeat disaster. At that time, an expedition led by a warrior called Indomitable challenged the Kurakt Mountains.
‘The result was a crushing defeat.’
Only the indomitable came back alive.
He also couldn’t get over the halfway point of the mountain.
‘It was impossible even for a hero.’
There is no way a sword demon could do that.
Even as he thought so… the cardinal suddenly saw the bones of the first saint in the hands of the sword demon.
The Sword Demon explained that it was an item picked up from the depths of an ancient kingdom where it was impossible to even set foot on it.
This is a man who once accomplished the impossible.
The cardinal could not say for certain that there would never be a second time.
“…Is it possible to climb up?”
“It would be impossible as it was. “I have tried all sorts of things over the past ten years, but to no avail.”
But, said the Sword Demon.
“Recently, there was a way to climb the Kurakt Mountains.”
He pointed out the window.
The Kurakt Mountains were visible from here as well. It was visible from anywhere in the north.
“Not long ago, the snow storm surrounding the Kurakt Mountains weakened. Even now, there comes a day every few days when the snow storm weakens.”
“…You’ve become weak?”
“I don’t know why. All that matters is that the snow storm has weakened… and I have no intention of missing this opportunity. Isn’t that right, Cardinal?”
Draka’s eyes narrowed.
“I’m going to climb a mountain range. Climb the mountain by following this bone joint that points to the top of the mountain…”
He said after a brief pause.
“I will obtain the remains of the first saint.”
It’s a voice full of confidence.
The Cardinal met Draka’s gaze and involuntarily held his breath. What can be felt in the sword demon’s red, bloodshot eyes is the obsession. It was madness.
‘···It gives me goosebumps.’
Remains of the first saint.
It is a miraculous relic that makes anything possible.
Why does the man in front of me, who is obsessed with apostates, covet that sacred object? The cardinal knew why.
‘No matter how much he is a ghost…’
The Sword Demon was also once human.
Humans always regret. Reminiscing about things that have passed and becoming obsessed with the past. He lives trapped in the past, remembering things that will not return.
“If you really want to come find the remains…”
so that.
“We also need to prepare.”
Humans try to regain what they have lost.
Even if it means breaking a taboo.
“It is a ritual of rebirth.”
Ritual of rebirth.
The corner of the cardinal’s mouth twisted as he said that.
‘It is clear apostasy.’
The act of breaking providence.
Going against the established flow.
It is called gold alcohol and is considered taboo.
Therefore, what is called apostasy in the world.
That was what Draka was pursuing. It is not impossible if there are remains of the saint. In the past, there was a legend that the first saint revived the dead, and records of the sacred methods she used at that time remain as banned books deep within the religious order.
And Draka read it.
The cardinal who lent it to Draka also knew what it was about.
“It’s nice that the story is fast. I will leave the preparation of the altar to you. “Please, Cardinal.”
Even though I know the contents, the man in front of me tells me to prepare the ‘altar’ as if making a light request. The cardinal asked a question to save face.
“…It will take a lot of sacrifice.”
The ritual of rebirth was a ritual that was only possible for the first saint who was closest to the star. Even if the remains of the saint were brought, there is clearly a shortage.
‘To fill the lack…’
You will have to give something equivalent.
Even if you estimate it, it was by no means a small number.
“Isn’t there a sacrifice prepared for that?”
Draka answered that question calmly.
His outstretched finger was pointed at the children who had lost focus.
“It is a golden art to revive the first saint. “Wouldn’t it be an honor to be sacrificed for that?”
“···aha.”
A smile appeared on the Cardinal’s lips.
“Indeed, I see. Well sir.”
The question asked out of respect is over.
All that remained was to make the plan more concrete.
“So when is the exploration going to start? “Shouldn’t we make an altar according to the schedule?”
“three days.”
Draka spread three fingers.
“Three days later, the day when the snowstorm is at its calmest.”
He said.
“Let’s start that day.”
* * *
“I’m thinking of taking a short break from training in three days.”
“···yes?”
Lark, who was eating soup hungrily, dropped his spoon. Dang, the spoon made a loud noise. Lark questioned, his eyes wide.
“You’re taking a break from class?”
“It’s more of a training than a class. Anyway, there is no training in three days, so you don’t have to come.”
Class canceled.
One word appeared in Lark’s mind.
It was a very sweet word. Just thinking about it brings a smile to my face.
‘But you must not show that you are happy.’
Lark felt that way instinctively.
Holding back the smile that was about to spread on his lips, Lark cleared his throat with a loud chuckle before opening his mouth.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing special.”
She answered the question.
“I think I need to climb a mountain somewhere.”
A word from the author (author review)
These days, it seems like I keep putting in plenty.
Then it goes back to the average number of characters and then goes, ‘Huh? Owner, isn’t this too little rice?’ I am a little afraid that readers will feel this sentiment…
