Extra in a Romance Fantasy

166 – The Sword Master (6)

Clang!

‘What an incredible talent.’

As he swung his sword, pressing Wade, the Sword Master, Dreyr recognized it once more.

The talent of the young man before him was truly one that would never be seen again in this world.

Though he had already spoken it aloud, Wade’s talent was genuinely beyond comprehension.

Just standing at the realm of Ideation at that age… No, even merely catching a glimpse of it would be enough to earn him the title of a genius of the century.

Most of the existing Ten Swords only stepped into that realm well past the age of forty.

Yet Wade, that young prodigy, had not only reached the realm of Ideation at that age but had entered a state beyond it.

—

—

It was something too alien and grotesque to be simply described as talent.

An exception among exceptions.

A talent that felt as if it were blessed by the gods.

Surely, with the passage of time alone, it would have become the greatest warrior in history, surpassing even the finest of the continent.

That was Wade.

However.

‘Such a future will not come.’

The swordsman declared so.

The reason was simple.

Wade would die here today.

By none other than his own hand.

Talent is important.

The life of a warrior, or rather, the life of any person, can be said to hinge on whether or not they possess talent.

In a world where someone without talent can toil for ten or twenty years, only to achieve less than someone with talent who has put in merely a year of effort, this is no exaggeration.

That is why talent is important.

Everyone knows this.

That is why they cherish and admire those with talent.

But.

‘Talent is not everything.’

The swordsman thought so.

At first, the swordsman also valued talent highly.

He had believed that talent was everything.

It was only natural, as he himself was born with a talent that could be described as a gift from the heavens, overwhelming everyone with it as he grew.

However, after meeting the man who first shook his world, and living a long life thereafter, the swordsman’s values and thoughts changed.

Talent is important.

He does not deny that.

Those with exceptional talent can go further, faster, and more efficiently.

That is why talent is immensely important.

However, talent is by no means everything.

Having lived for so long that his hair turned white, the swordsman met countless people, and with them, countless talents.

—

Among them, there were a few who possessed even greater talents.

Yet, they all breathed their last without fully realizing that beautiful talent.

Those with shining talents, those with brilliant talents, those with talents that could shake the world.

All of them were dead.

And in the end, the one who survived and earned the title of the strongest was none other than him.

No one could ever threaten his position.

Thus, the Sword Master thought.

“I was born with the destiny to be the strongest.”

He believed that he was destined to be the strongest from the moment he was born.

It was not just a delusional, misguided rambling of a human.

The intuition of a warrior sharpens as their level rises.

And when one reaches the realm of Ideation, a superhuman state, their intuition also reaches a superhuman level.

At times, it can even send warnings that are close to foresight.

The Sword Master, who had stepped into a realm even one step beyond that state of Ideation, was already glimpsing a transcendent world.

Having lived for a long time with such transcendent intuition, the Sword Master came to a conviction one day.

In this world, destiny undoubtedly exists.

And.

The destiny of the strongest belongs to no one but himself.

He truly believed that.

Though he did not want to admit it, separate from that feeling, the Sword Master now understood and accepted.

That his talent was by no means the best.

Of course, it was an innate talent in itself.

A talent of a level so distant that an ordinary person could hardly even dream of it.

Yet, there are those with talents greater than his.

There were in the past, and there likely will be in the future.

But still.

“I am the strongest.”

He had no doubt that in the end, it would be he who survives, who becomes the strongest warrior.

No matter how remarkable someone is, no matter how extraordinary their talent, they could never surpass him.

That was true even for Wade, who stood before him.

Truly a talent so fearsome, it transcends the laws of the world.

Undoubtedly, among all the talents he had encountered thus far, it was the best talent without a doubt.

Even Wade, possessing such talent, could never surpass himself, the Sword Master was certain.

And he thought.

‘A truly fitting opponent.’

Wade was indeed the perfect adversary to adorn his end.

If the plans of the Order, the plans of the High Priest, were to unfold as intended, humanity would meet its end.

What would happen to the world thereafter was uncertain, but it was clear that the warrior to challenge him would vanish entirely.

In that light, there was no one more suitable than Wade to be his final opponent.

‘Fitting. Truly fitting beyond measure.’

Such a perfectly appropriate rival.

Born with talent, despairing over that talent, and ultimately, the one who would be his last fight, surpassing talent itself—how tragically poetic, how fated it was.

Thus, the Sword Master thought.

‘Yes. You are the one prepared for me by the heavens.’

Wade was prepared for him.

Wade.

The embodiment of talent before him was destined to be so from the very beginning.

As his adversary, at this moment, to complete his life, his story, he was the opponent prepared by the heavens.

Otherwise, it would not make sense.

Meeting Wade, failing to kill him then, and now, the surviving Wade appearing here at this moment.

Everything had been predetermined to unfold this way from the start.

Boom!

A thunderous sound echoed as Wade was forcefully pushed back once more.

At the same time, Wade lost his balance for a fleeting moment.

With Wade’s level of skill and instinct, he could recover from even the slightest opening, but the Sword Master did not grant him that chance.

Once again, the Sword Master’s sword surged toward Wade.

Wade hurriedly moved to block the blade.

Boom!

Though he had successfully defended himself, from Wade’s perspective, it was not good news.

He had merely managed to block it; he was not out of danger yet.

Rather, the balance that had barely begun to recover was shattered once again.

This time, more than before.

And the swordsman began to press Wade even harder.

Bang! Crash!

The two swords clashed with a thunderous sound, and Wade was pushed back helplessly.

Of course, Wade wasn’t just on the defensive.

In the brief moments he had to defend against the attacks, he attempted to turn the tide with swift strikes aimed at the swordsman.

However, all those attempts returned in vain.

Wade’s attacks were easily deflected by the swordsman’s blade, and the swordsman continued to press Wade relentlessly.

The momentum grew increasingly fierce, and accordingly, Wade’s stance began to crumble more and more.

At last.

Crash!

With the swordsman’s single strike, Wade’s posture completely collapsed.

In that fleeting moment.

Wade’s eyes met the swordsman’s.

And then.

Splat!

Blood splattered, and the field, which had been filled with the sound of clashing steel, finally fell into silence.

However, that silence did not last long.

“…Impressive.”

The silence was shattered as the swordsman spoke.

“I swung with the intent to kill, you know.”

His voice was calm, yet within it lay a subtle but unmistakable admiration.

The swordsman’s gaze shifted.

It landed on Wade, who stood there.

With a large wound across his upper body.

“You always surpass my expectations.”

The swordsman said, looking at Wade.

It was neither empty praise nor sarcasm.

For the swordsman, it was a rare moment of pure admiration directed at Wade.

It was a strike delivered with all his might.

With sincerity and full force, he swung his sword to take Wade’s breath away.

The situation was perfect.

Wade’s stance was completely shattered, and for a moment, he was utterly defenseless.

Yet, Wade survived.

Though he had sustained serious injuries, he was still alive.

This was undoubtedly a result that exceeded the swordsman’s expectations.

“To think that in the midst of it all, he could explode his internal mana to defend against the aftermath of the Ideation Blade—truly, one can only marvel at such instinct.”

The Ideation Blade, the Sword of Ideation.

A blade of light that could cut through anything, forged from the essence of thought.

However, the power of the Sword of Ideation was not merely its razor-sharp edge.

The destructive force created by the mana that blazed forth from the essence of thought.

That too was one of the powers possessed by the Sword of Ideation.

If faced unprepared, merely clashing weapons could shatter one’s insides—a truly ferocious power.

Thus, under normal circumstances, anyone cut by the Sword of Ideation would have to suffer serious internal injuries, even if the external wounds were not severe.

Yet, Wade, of all people, had sustained such a grave injury from the swordsman’s Sword of Ideation and was still breathing steadily.

The moment he was cut by the Sword of Ideation, as the destructive mana penetrated his insides, he had intentionally exploded his own mana to offset the sword’s destructive power.

Thanks to that, Wade survived.

However, that did not mean he was unscathed.

He had saved his life, but he was gravely wounded, and an alarming amount of blood was still flowing from that wound.

And what of his insides?

Though he had offset the destructive power of the sword, the aftermath of the mana explosion within him could not be ignored.

As a result, Wade had sustained quite significant internal injuries.

“With that body, there’s no longer any chance of victory.”

The swordsman shook his head, as if lamenting.

Wade was already being pushed back.

In such a situation, to have sustained such injuries.

Thus, Wade’s chances of winning had now completely vanished.

“Well, that’s fortunate.”

The swordsman smiled gently.

—

“A humble death does not suit a man with the greatest talent in human history. It is only right that I show him the respect he deserves.”

As the swordsman finished speaking.

Whooosh—

His sword began to vibrate.

…No, it wasn’t just the sword.

The air in contact with the sword trembled.

The fields that met the air quaked.

The sky itself shuddered.

Indeed, the world was shaking.

All because of a single man unleashing his power.

With the strength to shake the world in his hands, the swordsman gazed at Wade and said.

“Farewell.”

A calm goodbye.

And then.

Whooosh—

The sword was swung.