I Obtained Sword God Level Talent

29 – 029. Flower of Snow (5)

Thump.

Thump.

Fray moved with slow steps.

The 7th seat, the Blood Lion, head of the Blood Cult. He was gone without a trace. At the peak of battle, the b*stard, struck by a terrifying blow fusing mana and Innate True Qi, had been reduced to a handful of blood.

But.

Thud.

Even after securing a clear victory, Frey’s steps were devoid of strength. Or, more accurately, ‘life.’ He looked like a zombie from a horror film.

“F, Frey…?”

Ariel’s jaw trembled as she stared at the unbelievable transformation Frey had just undergone.

Something, a change too shocking to put into words, had occurred. The expectation that Frey, naturally, would ascend to a higher level felt like a lie.

Thud.

Frey’s slow steps lacked even a trace of power.

Like a puppet with well-crafted mana circuits, Frey trudged with heavy steps, approaching the fallen Lancelot and Ariel.

“You both did well.”

Swish.

Kneeling on one knee, Frey raised a trembling hand.

“Aah….”

His blood-soaked hand gently stroked their shoulders. Lancelot, as if the tension had finally drained away, let out a long sigh and slumped completely onto the ground.

“We won?”

Lancelot murmured faintly, his eyes closed. Frey, turning his head slightly, nodded silently.

“Yeah. The enemy commander, I defeated him.”

“…Good work.”

Lancelot struggled to sit up. And he didn’t hold back his praise for his friend.

He had witnessed a man pushing himself to his absolute limit, achieving a new breakthrough.

A 5th-circle defeating a 7th-circle. He had seized a victory that was absolutely impossible.

“But something…”

Trembling.

Still kneeling, Frey raised his hand without getting up.

“I feel, I feel strange.”

His voice, trembling unlike anything Frey had ever shown before. It was a pitiful sound, especially from Frey, who had always faced adversity with a calm face and never fallen.

“…Strange?”

Lancelot sensed something was wrong.

He was always pale, but now Frey looked even more unwell.

Was it the blood loss? Or perhaps his mana had been depleted during the battle? Or was it the sudden revulsion at the act of killing that was overwhelming him?

It was then.

“Urrgh!”

Frey, who had been shaking, suddenly threw up. The shocking sight imprinted itself on Lancelot and Ariel’s retinas.

…Blood?

It wasn’t just ordinary bleeding. The amount of blood was beyond understanding, as if it were from internal injuries or qi deviation.

Moreover.

“It’s…black…”

Ariel, who had fallen over, gaped blankly.

The blood Frey had vomited was black. It was different from the color of normal blood. To put it in perspective, it was like the blood of someone whose internal organs were completely burned out.

“Ah…”

*Swish.*

Frey, who was touching his mouth and chin where the terrible hemorrhage had flowed, raised his hand.

He didn’t know. Frey couldn’t understand the situation he was in now. Was it excessive bleeding…? Or was it that a fatal organ damage had occurred due to the mana of his blood?

*Thud!*

“Frey…!”

“F, Frey? Hey! Get up!”

It was at that moment that Frey’s face, trembling with his hand, hit the floor.

Lancelot and Ariel, who hurriedly embraced him, turned pale.

Neither of them could understand what was happening now. But one thing was certain: Frey’s condition was not good.

It was bad enough to run to a Cardinal-level priest for healing immediately!

“He’s lost consciousness. His breathing is abnormally shallow, too. He’s about to die!”

Lancelot’s urgent gaze scanned Frey’s body.

It was not a situation to joke about. Unlike the two of them, who had their tendons cut in the leg and sword wounds in the abdomen from the Blood Lion’s attack, Frey was ravaged by wounds all over his body.

The enormous amount of bleeding, a body that had lost its vitality to a bizarre degree. They knew instinctively. Right now, Frey’s soul was trying to leave his cold body.

“Woman! Didn’t you say you were researching life magic?!”

“L, life magic is very different from the healing magic used by priests! It’s impossible to inject life into a situation where the mana hole is destroyed! Frey could die!”

“Wha, what?!”

Lancelot’s eyes widened like they would tear at Ariel’s uncharacteristic outburst.

Then, then. Was his friend going to die? After the awe-inspiring feat of a 5th-tier swordsman defeating a 7th-tier enemy?

“…Shit!”

A guttural curse, unbecoming of Lancelot, escaped his lips. No holy water, no potions. The answer was clear, then.

*Swish.*

“Wha, what are you doing…?”

His next move was simple. He hefted the limp Frey, and then Ariel, whose leg tendons and ‘mana hole’ were destroyed, onto either side of his hips.

“We’re going. To the church.”

Lancelot’s reply, heavy and short. His legs, still bleeding from wounds that refused to clot, were seeping crimson.

“You’re going to carry us like that?! Do you even know where the church is!”

Ariel’s face was a mask of disbelief.

The Blood Lion’s attack was fast and brutal. First, it severed Lancelot and Ariel’s thigh tendons. Then, it plunged a blade into Ariel’s lower abdomen—a variable in combat.

Which meant.

“Uuuhhhgg…!”

*Shudder!*

Lancelot couldn’t use his lower body.

And yet. Lancelot, with the two of them draped on him, was pushing himself to his limits. He was wrapping his mana around the voids of his severed tendons, trying to accomplish the physically impossible.

“Kaaahhh—!”

*Thunk!*

Then, an astonishing thing unfolded. Lancelot, with Frey and Ariel clinging to either side, was standing.

“….!”

Lancelot’s leg muscles swelled like balloons. It was a sight, monstrous even to look at. Ariel cried out in shock.

“Stop it! You’ll be crippled for life if you keep doing that!”

“Doesn’t matter.”

“…..What?”

“That’s what… friends are for…!”

*Thump!*

Lancelot, roaring like a beast, took a step. His form lurched violently.

“Kreeeaaak!”

Lancelot bellowed. And then took another step. His body teetered as it did the first, but his will, like iron, steadied him.

One step. And then another.

To survive. To protect his friends. For Frey, who had thrown everything away, Lancelot would throw everything right back.

* * *

“Hurry!”

“Yes!”

The Sword Demon kicked off the ground, increasing his speed even further.

They’d been tricked. They’d been tricked!

They had walked right into the Blood Cult remnant, the Blood Lion’s smoke screen operation!

*Whoosh!*

Confirming that the raided stronghold was empty, the Sword Demon was suddenly overcome with a sense of dread.

‘Don’t let it be too late…!’

Three young people he’d encountered by chance.

The place the Sword Demon was now heading was where they’d gone. In the worst-case scenario, those young people might already be dead, killed by the Blood Lion, the Blood Cult’s leader.

*Swish*, the Sword Demon’s form stretched, his movements becoming hurried. This was proof that he was using his extreme lightness technique. His subordinates were already unable to keep up with him, but the Sword Demon could not stop his advance.

“……!”

How long had he traveled?

In the early dawn, just as the sun was rising.

The Sword Demon witnessed a shocking scene.

A man covered in blood was walking along the road. On his left, a young man with a familiar face was being held up, and on his right, a young woman was being carried.

‘I’m too late…’

The Sword Demon knew instinctively. Judging by the limp arms, he was already far too late.

*Thud!*

“Kaaak!”

“aaagh!”

The staggering gait suddenly collapsed at that very moment.

The man, Lancelot, had given out, no longer able to hold himself up, and had fallen to the ground.

“…….”

The Sword Demon’s body froze like a stone statue.

His keen eyes clearly saw the scene. Lancelot collapsing, Ariel rolling on the road, and… Frey, limp and lifeless, falling to the ground.

“……!”

The situation was desperately dire. Yet, the Sword Demon held his breath, watching the scene unfold.

Judging by the situation, he was already far, far too late.

What they needed now wasn’t medicine. It was the heavens, a holy blessing from above.

Which meant… his appearance would only worsen the situation.

The scene that followed was even sadder.

Swish! Swish!

“Hee hee heuk, heu heuek…!”

Ariel, her legs and body covered in blood, crawled on the floor.

Her face, a mess of tears and snot, was contorted grotesquely.

And.

“Please…”

Ariel, clutching a limp Frey close like a precious treasure, sobbed.

“Please help me. Please…”

Who on earth was she talking to?

Ariel murmured in an utterly desperate voice. In this deserted road, who could possibly hear her voice and reach out a helping hand?

“……!!”

That’s when it happened.

An astonishing… no, a shocking thing happened on the road.

Clearly it was just dawn, the sky turning purple, the bright sunlight that hadn’t yet risen was shining down on Ariel who was holding Frey.

Golden light poured down on the two of them.

‘You’ve made your decision.’

In the midst of it. A gentle voice was heard.

Ariel lifted her head towards the blinding light.

‘I will temporarily grant you the power to perform a miracle.’

A voice she hadn’t heard in decades resonated in Ariel’s ears.

A tremor, resolve bloomed in Ariel’s eyes.