The Thread that Reaches God (1)
In the dragon's gaze fixed upon , I could keenly sense both shock and the undercurrent of terror coursing beneath it.
「What... what is that? How can a human exert such power?」
The air trembled, and the dragon's voice slowly flowed out.
「I've never heard... never heard of anything like this.」
I looked into the creature's eyes and slowly raised my sword.
Bathed in the golden glow of Genova's blade, it shone brilliantly.
Even the dragon must have sensed it.
That this blade could not be stopped by anything.
Not even the scales that always wrapped him tightly, nor his bones—none of it was of any use before Genova.
「S-Stop!」
The dragon uttered words of Dragon Tongue, but I easily dispersed it by swinging Genova.
"If you're going to go on a rampage, you should've gained more experience first."
If this had been a more mature, battle-hardened dragon, the result might have been different.
No matter what advantages I had, I probably couldn't have approached so easily.
But this creature was too inexperienced.
'It feels a bit wrong, since it seems to be a young dragonborn.'
It had caused a commotion, so it had to pay the price.
Just as Genova split the scales and was about to pierce through the dragon's head—
[Danger!]
With Grancesia's scream, I hastily pulled myself back. In that instant, sothing golden flew by and struck the dragon's scales.
'Damn, Genova...'
Looking at Genova—now half-embedded in the dragon's head—I cursed silently.
Since it was stuck in the dragon's sturdy hide, I had no choice but to retreat without being able to retrieve Genova.
"Jerta!"
Turning my gaze, I saw Jerta, whose entire body was now inscribed with strange patterns, approach and swing his sword at .
"Are you out of your mind?!"
"I am not insane."
He glared at
with sharp eyes. Geotric patterns flickered across his face, glowing faintly golden.
"I simply judged there's no need to watch any longer."
"What?"
"That sword... is absolutely forbidden. It is a weapon that defies the prestige of the gods."
Crackkk!
He darted across the dragon's back, once again swinging a golden sword with frightening force.
The light gathered at his blade was not ordinary aura.
It was laced with holy power, mingled with an intense, foul energy I found deeply unpleasant.
'If I get hit... it won't end well for .'
I glanced at the others.
Rascal and Kisea looked startled by the sudden turn of events, but Soila simply narrowed her eyes, making no move.
She must have been waiting to see how I would respond.
"As expected, you are a heretic. There's no other way soone could possess such power!"
"Don't talk nonsense."
"I will risk my life to pass judgnt on you here."
His eyes, now tinged with violet, looked completely different than before. The golden patterns on his face grew deeper, and the madness in his gaze intensified as it did.
KWAANG!
As he swung his sword, the shockwave split the air. I barely managed to dodge by twisting my head aside, but the power left my skin crawling.
'What is this?'
To be honest, I hadn't thought much of it when Jerta charged . I figured he'd try sothing once anyway, and I was confident I could handle his skill.
But the slash Jerta had just unleashed—I could barely see it at all, to be honest.
If I hadn't learned Only Mind, if I'd been an ordinary Swordmaster, there'd be a hole in my head now.
[I told you, this is the power of the "Sacred Arms."]
At Grancesia's subdued voice, I straightened up and fixed my eyes on Jerta.
The gold radiating from his body burned ever brighter, as if it was consuming him now.
No, that's exactly what was happening.
'Genova...'
It was still stuck in the dragon's head.
Since I had retreated to dodge Jerta's attack, there was now so distance between us and the sword.
Perhaps sensing my gaze, jerta sneered.
"Without that sword, you're a re Swordmaster. Dealing with you will be simple."
"And that's why a priest like you attacks people from behind?"
"You're no person—you're a heretic."
Crackkk, crackkk!
With every step he took, cracks appeared in the dragon's scales.
Considering how tough a dragon's scales are, the guy's current strength was outright insane.
Jerta had completely surpassed the limits of human strength.
'Just like Grancesia said.'
Honestly, I had thought Jerta would never use the Sacred Arms. He was, after all, ranked second among all Inquisitors.
[Sacred Arms refers to the user themselves.]
Grancesia's explanation about the Sacred Arms surfaced in my mind. Although the na implied a weapon, it actually referred to a secret technique inscribed onto the Inquisitor's own body.
[That secret technique can only be used when the pontiff allows it.]
Without the pontiff's permission, it couldn't be used at will. After all, the Sacred Arms was a technique ant to burn everything—annihilating enemies and self alike.
[Anyone who uses Sacred Arms dies.]
'No way they'd use soone ranked second like a disposable pawn...'
[They do. There are plenty of replacents for handling Jerta anyway. All Inquisitors, except for the one at the very top, are expendables.]
When I heard Grancesia say that, I thought, "No way."
Yet, seeing Jerta like this made
realize she hadn't been lying.
"I'll kill you."
The word fanatic fit him perfectly.
The markings once glowing on Jerta's body had vanished. The pure white light now blazed into flas, engulfing his whole body.
He looked just like a walking incendiary weapon.
KWA-AAAAANG!
Jerta's sword kept slashing toward , tearing the air.
Its power was such that even if I had my sword I wouldn't dare block it head-on.
'He's far stronger than I was even with Deltode's power.'
Evading him was taking all of my concentration.
Even the lightest touch shredded my mithril armor like rags.
If that hit my body, I'd have died screaming.
"What are you doing?!"
Rascal, finally reacting to Jerta's attacks on , rushed in and slashed his sword.
But Jerta didn't even turn. He simply reached his hand out.
Clack!
"... What?!"
Rascal's aura blade, once vibrating fiercely, was now caught in Jerta's hand.
The flas covering Jerta's entire body were aura, through and through.
KWAJAJAJAK!
As Jerta clenched, rascal's aura broke, and his sword crumbled.
"Clay!"
Kisea's Serpent-Belly Sword extended to coil around Genova, still lodged in the dragon's head.
The mont she tried to pull it out, jerta's body stretched unnaturally and closed the gap to Kisea instantly.
"...!"
Kisea's pupils widened slightly, not having expected him to be so fast.
As Jerta tried to cut her elongated sword, Kisea had no choice but to withdraw it quickly.
And before she could even get away, jerta's sword strike was already aiming at her waist.
Just before it connected, I grabbed Kisea and rolled us to the side.
"... I could have dodged it."
"Looked to
like you were within the attack's range."
"That much would have been no problem."
Kisea's usually gentle eyes now glowed crimson and sharp.
She seed wounded in her pride at having been unable to evade Jerta's attack perfectly.
"That thing is simply a tier above us. No need to take it so personally."
"... Okay."
So saying, Kisea grasped her sword and steadied herself.
Her blade, enveloped in red aura, coiled around her like a serpent.
"As long as it doesn't use just that sword, I can—"
Just then, as Jerta slowly approached us, rascal spoke, having co near without us noticing.
"I'd heard the Inquisitors had power, but didn't expect anything quite like this."
He spoke, voice taut with tension, as he stared at Jerta.
"Are you not going to ask why he attacked ?"
"When an Inquisitor attacks soone, there's only one possible reason, isn't there?"
With that, he raised his half-broken sword.
Instead of the broken blade, a blue aura blade erupted upwards like a fla.
"... Are you going to help ?"
"I couldn't very well just abandon you, could I?"
Rascal, courteous as always, really was a gentleman.
'Kisea isn't the type to pull back out of pride, either.'
In any case, they were reliable allies in this situation.
"Then, can I ask you just one favor?"
"As long as it's not too much."
"Please block Jerta's strikes exactly twice. That's all."
I looked between Rascal and Kisea.
"... Can't we just kill him?"
"If you can, by all ans."
Kisea narrowed her eyes, but she probably knew that was impossible.
Jerta, turned into a walking blaze, was simply overwhelming.
"I'll try."
"Thank you."
Jerta's footsteps, now drawing close, sped up. Soon, he charged directly at , eyes only on .
"──!"
A beast that had forgotten all human language stood before .
Rascal and Kisea moved to stand between
and that beast.
Jerta swung his sword rcilessly at the two of them.
BOOM! KWAANG!
With an explosive sound like a bomb going off, rascal's sword was utterly shattered.
Kisea's sword didn't break but the impact hurled her backward.
All of this happened in less than a second.
Jerta, having knocked both aside, brought his sword down vertically at .
"......"
To my eyes, jerta's sword seed endlessly slow.
No, it wasn't just his sword.
Ti itself seed to slow for everything around us.
Within that slowed ti, rather than dodging Jerta's sword, I dug into his chest.
Ever since I reached Swordmaster, my understanding of Heaven's Holy Ultimate Art had deepened dramatically.
Normally, that wouldn't be the case. Even as a Swordmaster, one doesn't automatically gain more knowledge in martial arts.
But with Heaven's Holy Ultimate Art, it was possible.
Just as Grancesia, who called it the totality of martial arts, had said, the more I understood of swordsmanship, martial arts, and any "technique using the body," the more my proficiency in Heaven's Holy Ultimate Art rose as well.
'So now...'
I see.
Using my now familiar Eye of Insight, I watched Jerta's blade coming at . I stared into the scream born from godly power and burning human life.
'Didn't he say he could beat
if I didn't have my sword?'
I still couldn't use all the techniques of Heaven's Holy Ultimate Art. At best, I could only unleash the most basic "Heavenly Lord".
Everything else required a long period of preparation.
'Then you seriously underestimated .'
The two attacks Rascal and Kisea blocked for —
It was a brief, brief window, but it gave
an opening.
Heaven's Holy Ultimate Art, second Secret.
The Far Shore.
In a mont, all the magic power in my body vanished.
So too did the energy in my outstretched fist.
It was an ordinary punch that felt like nothing at all, but it passed through Jerta's burning aura as if it were nothing.
Compared to Jerta's descending sword like a bolt of lightning, my fist seed to be floating gently forward, like a mild breeze.
Not fast, not slow—simply weightless.
And yet, there was sothing strange.
Despite its lethargy, my fist had already touched Jerta's chest.
As softly as a butterfly landing.
And then—
KWA-AAAAAANG!
A trendous roar, and Jerta's body vanished before .
Launched like a cannonball, his body smashed against a barrier Soila had raised, finally coming to a stop.
His upper body was gone—a ghastly sight.
"... My god."
Rascal was struck speechless by the sight.
Kisea's once-sharp eyes were round with shock.
Soila was the sa.
Not even she seed to understand what had just happened; she blinked, her mouth slightly open.
Yet, the one most surprised of all—
'... What the hell.'
—was .
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