The Return of the Limited-Time Sword Master

Chapter 12: The Return (4)

“What nonsense are you…”

Stefan couldn’t finish his sentence.

Martin disappeared again right before his eyes.

This time, Stefan didn’t panic. He quickly activated Spatial domination and began moving at an incredible speed.

As if his already rapid movements weren’t enough, his speed increased each time his feet hit the ground.

He moved so fast that afterimages appeared with every step.

‘Teleportation isn’t foolproof.’

Stefan had reached the 2nd Circle in Spatial Domination.

Though he could perform teleportation, he chose not to. At his current level, he couldn’t use it consecutively.

‘That goes for him too.’

As long as he figured out where Martin first teleported to, Stefan would have the advantage.

The aftermath of teleportation would restrict Martin’s movements, giving Stefan, who was free to move, the upper hand.

While darting around swiftly, Stefan waited calmly for Martin to reappear.

Moments later—

Whir.

The space 10 meters above the ground distorted.

Martin appeared from that distortion, falling toward the earth, subject to gravity.

“You’ve put some thought into this, but you made a mistake!”

Stefan shouted triumphantly, a bright smile on his face.

In the air, without a foothold, anyone’s movements would be restricted.

What’s more, Martin couldn’t teleport consecutively. This meant he had no way of avoiding Stefan’s attack. In other words, his opponent had essentially walked into defeat on his own.

‘Once you hit the ground, it’s over!’

Confident in his victory, Stefan prepared to strike.

All that was left was to attack just as Martin landed.

Not only would Stefan avenge his earlier humiliation, but he could also settle the scores of every past defeat.

“Mistake? Do you really think I’d make such a blunder, Stefan?”

A smirk appeared on Martin’s lips—an obvious sneer.

He extended his left hand, the one without a sword, and activated Omni Distortion.

But this time, he didn’t manipulate space; he controlled gravity.

Boom!

The gravitational enhancement that he had previously used against assassins now targeted Stefan.

A tremendous pressure bore down on Stefan.

“Urgh!”

A groan escaped Stefan’s lips involuntarily.

But the real issue lay elsewhere.

Under the weight of the crushing force, Stefan found himself unable to move.

Though he could see Martin falling toward him, he couldn’t lift a finger to attack.

‘Damn it! Move! I said, move!’

He tried desperately to move, but his feet remained glued to the ground.

Even as he summoned all his mana, the result didn’t change.

“That’s why you’re still lacking, Stefan. Do you really think you can win a mana contest against me, someone who suffers from the dragon’s curse?”

Martin’s mana reserves had long since surpassed the limits of his rank. In terms of sheer volume, he had more mana than some heads of the branch families or even the Elders.

In other words, Stefan couldn’t possibly resist with his level of mana.

Zap!

Sneering at his opponent, Martin kicked off the ground.

By manipulating gravity to exclude only the area around himself, he was unaffected by the gravitational enhancement.

This allowed him to approach Stefan with ease.

Hoo.

The distance between them closed in an instant.

As he drew closer, Martin clenched his right fist tightly.

Whirr.

Following the breathing technique of Rothar’s martial arts, mana was channeled from his mana core to his abdomen, then gathered in his right hand.

If he struck Stefan with all his might while infusing mana, it would kill him. No matter where the punch landed, Stefan’s body would explode.

‘But I can’t kill him yet.’

This was only a sparring match.

There was no reason to kill the heir of a branch family in a duel.

So, Martin decided to let him live—for now.

But he would make sure to punish Stefan for his earlier insolence.

“Bite down, Stefan.”

Martin warned in a kindly tone.

Instinctively, Stefan clamped his mouth shut.

Almost simultaneously, Martin’s fist collided with his face.

Crunch.

The strike, infused with Rothar’s martial arts, was devastating.

Even with Martin’s physically weaker body, it was enough to deal significant damage to Stefan.

“Guh!”

With a scream, Stefan tumbled to the ground.

Blood poured from his mouth and nose, staining his face red. Dirt and dust clung to his bloodied face, making him look even more pitiful.

But Stefan didn’t even think of wiping it away. He couldn’t even get up.

Thud!

Martin stomped his foot down on Stefan’s chest.

He kept the gravitational enhancement active.

“Do you still want to continue, Stefan?”

“I-I’ve lost.”

Stefan closed his eyes and declared his surrender.

He realized there was no chance of victory if he continued fighting.

In fact, holding out any longer would only bring him ridicule.

It was bad enough to have lost. He didn’t want to leave an even worse impression on the onlookers.

“……”

Those who had been watching the duel remained silent, too shocked to speak.

They could only stare at Martin in disbelief.

It had only been two and a half months since Martin entered the dungeon after finishing the funeral.

In that short amount of time, he had manifested his unique ability and reached a level where he could use it effortlessly in combat.

That alone was shocking, but on top of that, his physical abilities, which had been a lifelong weakness, had also improved.

Martin had only thrown two punches, but that was enough for everyone to grasp the truth.

Martin’s martial arts skills had become quite formidable.

The proof? He had completely overwhelmed Stefan Rustal, a peer considered to be one of the most promising among their generation.

“Ugh!”

Stefan clenched his fists in frustration.

Martin, looking down at him, stepped back.

Although he appeared fine on the outside, Martin wasn’t in great shape either.

‘Using both my unique ability and martial arts simultaneously is still too much.’

While combining his unique ability with Rothar’s martial arts had been effective, it came with a downside. The internal damage was worse than if he had focused on just one.

There was still a long way to go.

“Hahaha! That was truly impressive, young lord! If the late family head had seen this, he would have been overjoyed!”

“With your talent, young lord, reaching the 5th Circle won’t take long.”

Elder Aren and Elder Marius broke the silence with words of praise.

“Thank you for your kind words.”

Despite his outward response, Martin inwardly sneered at them.

‘To reveal their emotions so easily… they must have been deeply shocked.’

Although both Elders smiled, their eyes betrayed no real emotion. Elder Oriana didn’t even bother to smile.

In fact, it wasn’t just the Elders.

Those aligned with the branch family heads were also reacting with discomfort.

Even Kalain, who was skilled at concealing his feelings, had a serious expression.

There were only a few, like Sien, who genuinely smiled and felt happy.

“Now that we’ve seen you use your unique ability, it’s time to head back inside, young lord. We wouldn’t want to overwork you—if we did, the late family head might never forgive us.”

“I’ll do as you say, Elder Oriana.”

Martin barely restrained a laugh.

Of all people, the fact that Oriana was the one mentioning his father was absurd to him.

Still, he forced himself to smile as he moved forward.

‘Your days of spouting nonsense are numbered.’

They had no idea.

The real surprise hadn’t even begun yet.

Thump-thump.

As Martin thought about what was to come, his heart swelled with excitement.

—

Step. Step.

Martin continued walking.

The hallway was adorned with lavish decorations—gems crafted by renowned artisans and paintings created by master artists.

Martin slowly made his way toward his destination, taking in the surroundings.

Before long, a massive, ornate door appeared before him.

“Young lord, we greet you!”

“Please forgive us for not greeting you at the main entrance.”

Two knights of the White Dragon Order guarding the door knelt on one knee and spoke.

Martin responded warmly.

“Guarding the White Dragon’s Chamber is one of the most important duties here. You were just doing your job. There’s nothing to forgive. Now, enough of that—stand up.”

“Thank you!”

The knights stood immediately and stepped aside, allowing Martin to enter.

As soon as he stepped inside, the sight of the room filled his view.

There were rows of tables and chairs made of premium wood, neatly arranged. There were over a hundred tables, and even more chairs.

This was the White Dragon’s Chamber.

The place where every matter concerning the Adalbert family was decided. It was so vast, it occupied the entire second floor of the Adalbert Estate.

Historically, this room held significant value. It was here that Martin had once been told he was unfit to become the head of the Adalbert family.

That judgment had come from the branch family heads and Elders, who were supposed to serve the main family.

‘That’s all in the past now.’

It was something that hadn’t yet happened.

Now that Martin had manifested his unique ability, no one could recklessly run their mouth. Any insubordination could lead to punishment for defying the hierarchy.

As Martin glanced around, his eyes fell on the platform with five steps leading up to the throne.

The throne, made of platinum, was engraved with the emblem of a pure white dragon.

The White Dragon’s Seat.

Only the official head of the Adalbert family could sit there.

Even as the sole direct descendant, Martin didn’t have the right to sit on it.

So he had to settle for a temporary seat at the bottom of the stairs.

Step. Step.

Martin headed toward that seat, followed by those who had the right to attend the gathering. They moved to take their own seats.

But then, they were stunned.

“Y-Young lord?”

“P-Please wait a moment! What do you think you’re doing, young lord?”

Elders, as well as other notable figures, exclaimed in shock.

Martin wasn’t sitting in his designated chair. Instead, he extended his right hand, channeling mana through it.

Realizing his intention, they hurried to stop him.

Of course, Martin ignored them completely.

“This is unnecessary.”

“No! You must stop, young lord!”

“Please, don’t do this!”

Elder Aren and Elder Marius rushed toward him, trying to physically intervene.

But Martin was faster, grasping the chair with his hand.

And then, he activated Omni Distortion.

‘This is the true power of Omni Distortion.’

The ability to twist and destroy anything it touches—this was the essence of Omni Distortion.

Manipulating space and gravity were merely supplementary effects.

Boom!

A deafening noise echoed through the room as the temporary seat was smashed to pieces, scattering debris in every direction.