#90
The Trial of the Holy Sword (3)
Kwaaaang—!
“Urgh.”
Heinrich groaned as he knocked aside the black beam shooting toward him with “Blessing: Light Sword.”
The magic fired down from the sky at every turn was enough to make his head spin.
[Kieeek!]
Slice—!
Even as he cut down the undead rushing at him with his light sword, he calmly analyzed the situation.
First of all, whether the trial had at least some minimal conscience, or whether there was some hidden backstory to that archlich...
It was a great stroke of luck that there were no highest-ranking undead like death knights among them.
‘If it went that far, it really would have no conscience at all.’
And even if they were both archliches, there was a huge gap between the enemy before him and Hans of the past.
From the near-infinite dark magic supplied by the “Fragment of the Immortal King” to various abilities such as “Wicked Wisdom” and “Forbidden Knowledge.”
Of course, that archlich, who had steadily advanced step by step and evolved, was probably more seasoned than Hans, but their starting points had been different from the very beginning.
‘Not that this means he’s an easy opponent.’
That monstrous dark magic and the magical skill honed over long years to the realm of mastery weren’t going anywhere.
He wasn’t someone Heinrich could defeat by recklessly clashing with him alone.
‘And I can’t summon the other avatars either...!’
Leaving aside whether he could even summon additional avatars into the trial’s virtual space, the cooldown of the otherworld transfer formation had not yet returned.
Because the flow of time was different, more than a month had already passed since Heinrich entered the trial, but outside, it was only just entering the fifth day.
Somehow, he had no choice but to break through this trial with his own strength alone.
‘No, it’s not as if Heinrich is truly fighting with only his own strength.’
Just as he was about to break through the skulls of the skeletons rushing him with fluid swordsmanship and advance forward.
He once again sensed a violent flow of dark magic from the archlich in the sky.
Taking advantage of the undead swarming him and throwing his limbs into disarray, an enormous amount of energy formed a complex system and instantly wove together a destructive mystery, but...
‘Multiple shadow blades. A feint? I can knock these aside like before.’
Before the magic was even complete, Hans had analyzed it in full.
‘Dark attribute coordinate-activation type. Binds and destroys the designated target... Hell Chains, then. This is dangerous. I need to dodge it. Twenty-one starting coordinates. Upper nine o’clock, lower twelve o’clock, mid-lower four o’clock...’
And a mystery whose structure had been laid bare was no longer a mystery.
He kicked away the dullahan he had been crossing weapons with and threw himself forward in an instant.
[Gwuuuuh...!]
Clatter, clatter—!
Breaking through the undead trying to seize him, Heinrich repeatedly swung “Blessing: Light Sword” toward several points in the air.
Crackle—!
Crack, crack!
Each time his sword passed through, the incomplete magical coordinates were destroyed outright by the opposing energy contained in the blade.
Shwaak—!
Meanwhile, shadow blades rising from the ground tried to obstruct his path.
But he only knocked aside what he could, and when it seemed impossible, he endured it with his body, aiming solely for his objective with absolute focus.
The number of coordinates he managed to destroy before the magic activated was not very large, but what meaning did a net full of holes have?
In the end, the black chains launched belatedly from the completed coordinates failed to achieve their purpose and were futilely dismantled.
In that manner, even if Heinrich had to take some damage, he somehow avoided only the attacks that were dangerous to him.
[...You certainly are good at scurrying away.]
It was not just once or twice. As the same situation repeated several times, it was only natural for the archlich to grow frustrated.
At first, he had intended to enjoy himself by watching his opponent struggle, but even when he mixed in sincere attacks now and then, Heinrich slipped out of them so easily that it could not help but get on his nerves.
[You were indeed a fairly capable one. That sword of light as well. Well, I suppose that is how you made it all the way here alone.]
The archlich soon changed his mind.
He acknowledged his opponent’s ability and decided to do his utmost to crush him.
At the same time he made that decision... the dark magic in the surroundings surged and rushed toward him.
‘Now!’
And that was.
The moment Heinrich, who had concealed his ability while waiting for an opening, had been hoping for.
The holy power that surged sharply through “Blessing: Amplification” flooded into his sword.
Using it as fuel, the size of the light sword expanded explosively.
Then, gazing up at the archlich concentrating fully in the sky...
He immediately used “Blessing: Leap” above the creature’s head.
Paat—
[Hm?!]
A split-second opening, taken when the archlich’s attention was occupied with completing a high-level spell.
With a burst of light, Heinrich appeared in midair.
That brief instant was the perfect chance for Heinrich to move beside him.
‘Success!’
If he had used Leap blindly, he would have been intercepted the moment the movement ended.
Although “Blessing: Leap” had an extremely short activation time, using it right next to an archlich without any preparation was suicide.
Mages were a breed that always prioritized their own safety, and they always prepared several means for emergency situations.
And the archlich had the ability to exploit that and slam multiple spells into him in the blink of an eye.
[Not a chance!]
Even right now, around the creature who had swiftly canceled what he was casting, several spells were completing at once.
‘Constantly active defensive barrier, force-field eruption, radial curse, automatic counterattack system...’
However, the archlich had given Heinrich too much time.
In midair, he expelled holy power from his back and legs and hurled himself at the archlich.
With the holy power wrapped around his entire body, he endured the curse radiating in all directions, and with his light sword, which had grown even longer, he cleaved through the black flames.
Then, after even cutting through the strange force pushing him away, his sword finally slipped smoothly into the creature’s defensive barrier.
[...What?!]
This flowing sequence had not been achieved by the power of “Blessing: Light Sword,” which held an overwhelming advantage over dark magic, alone.
While the archlich had been tossing out a few spells as if playing around and testing him, Hans had succeeded in dismantling that magic system and reverse-calculating it.
Following Hans’s knowledge, Heinrich had simply used the light sword to naturally unravel the spell’s connections along the gaps in the magic structure and the grain of the mana.
All of that had been carried out in a single instant through his tough body and practiced weapon technique.
And after every one of the creature’s defensive measures was neutralized by the sword of light swung like a flash...
Crunch—!
The light sword dug into the archlich’s shoulder.
[Keuk!]
The creature, split from one shoulder down to his chest, plummeted helplessly to the ground together with Heinrich, who had driven his sword into that chest.
Kwaang—!
The dust burst up by the impact blocked the view.
“Urgh...!”
Within that dust, Heinrich staggered to his feet.
Wiping away the blood running from the corner of his mouth.
‘I poured that much holy power into his body, and he still counterattacked in that situation...’
Because it had activated at such close range, he had had no choice but to take the attack.
Having been blasted away from the archlich in the process, he calmly cut down the undead rushing him from the surroundings and raised his momentum once more.
‘...As expected, the problem is that I missed.’
He had intended to split the creature’s head in two, but the archlich had reacted in that fleeting moment and twisted the path of the attack.
[Krrrgh...! A mere paladin dares...!]
Of course, that did not mean the damage the archlich had suffered was in any way light.
The light sword, filled with abundant holy power, was deadly even to him.
Even now, the wound did not heal, and sacred white flames blazed upon it, interfering with the creature’s control of dark magic.
‘I can’t delay any longer. I’ll end this quickly.’
Although he had moved as far as possible from the original battlefield by radiating holy power as he fell from the sky together with the creature, quite a number of undead were still positioned nearby.
If even the ones left on the original battlefield joined in, the battle would become even more difficult.
“Whew...”
Sacred flames surged from Heinrich’s body, burning away curses and restoring his flesh.
His superhuman body was recovering rapidly even during that brief moment he took to catch his breath.
‘I’m going!’
And so, with his eyes wide and his senses honed to a razor’s edge, he threw himself into the surging dark magic and the downpour of black spells.
With the best instructor in the field backing him up.
***
No matter what black magic was used, he saw through it before it was completed.
He could cut down the weaknesses of the magic he had grasped with his light sword, which held an overwhelming advantage, and neutralize it.
His sturdy body did not easily weaken even when he allowed several attacks through.
Even if he was wounded, the harmony of his own regenerative power and holy arts healed him in an instant.
His vast holy power seemed to well up endlessly.
And the efficient movements established through training and the elegant path of his sword cut down the enemies blocking his way.
And finally...
Slaaash!
The sword of light driven into the crown of the skull shone brilliantly, splitting the creature in two down to around the waist.
Whoosh—!
As his entire body burned away in the sacred flames rising from the cut surface, the archlich quietly murmured.
[...Not bad, paladin of the Church...]
His body, destroyed to a level where regeneration was impossible, was slowly turning to ash and crumbling apart.
[That sword of light, and those eyes that saw through all my magic... The Church must have been quite determined in raising its hunting dog.]
Even if he had been careless and caught off guard by a sudden blow, Heinrich’s level was certainly anything but ordinary.
He calmly acknowledged that, and instead sneered at his opponent.
[Khukhukhuk... But unfortunately for you, I do not die. I merely lose my freedom for a time.]
As long as the separately extracted origin was not destroyed, an archlich was an undying being who would never die.
[What a pity. It seems you used every trump card you had hidden away. If we meet again later... there will be no such luck next time. Khuhuhut.]
Even at that taunt, Heinrich, who had been battered from the battle, showed no reaction.
He merely stood among the remains of the undead, breathing roughly, and silently watched the archlich turn to ash.
[Yes, it was decent entertainment. Thinking about what despair I should give you while my body recovers seems like a good way to pass the time. I am already looking forward to the moment we meet agai—]
And at last, when the creature completely scattered into dust...
A lone brown door was standing where he had been.
“...Even though I didn’t deal with him completely, it ends like this?”
Since it had only been a process to examine his qualifications in the first place, perhaps it had judged such things to be unimportant.
The creature who had spoken as though there was more to him had merely been an existence manifested by the trial, like a character in a game.
However, Heinrich did not move through the door. Instead, he stood there for a moment with his arms crossed, deep in thought.
‘Hmm... It’s quite close, but I think it’s possible.’
And he immediately made his decision.
If he was going to do it, he might as well do it thoroughly.
‘Even if this is a virtual space, it’d leave a bad taste to just leave like this. It’s irritating, too.’
Before proceeding, he first lightly touched the gate.
Then, just like in the first trial, the surrounding energy was sucked in, and his tattered body was restored in an instant.
As a bonus, his damaged armor was cleanly returned to its original state.
‘Mm, good. The effect is certain.’
Feeling inwardly satisfied with the body that had grown even sturdier through the trial, he closed his eyes, focused his mind, and drew up his holy power.
Then, after calling a certain coordinate to mind...
He immediately used “Blessing: Leap” toward that place.
Crackle—!
The barrier surrounding that location resisted, but Heinrich poured in overwhelming holy power through “Blessing: Amplification” and forced his way inside.
“Whew— That was close.”
A gloomy, dimly lit underground stone chamber.
This place, located quite far from the battlefield earlier, sat just within the distance limit of “Blessing: Leap,” which had grown during that time.
‘The oxygen is thin. I won’t be able to stay long.’
Not that it mattered, since there was no need to stay long.
Heinrich quietly looked around, and when he found what he wanted, he approached it with a faint smile on his lips.
Toward the thing enshrined atop the altar, carefully preserved by all sorts of barriers.
“Hello? We meet again so soon.”
Wooooong—
The “archlich’s origin” trembled faintly, as if flustered.
The creature probably had not expected to meet him again this quickly.
That must have been why it had run its mouth like that before disappearing.
However, when the archlich had turned to ash and vanished, Heinrich had not simply been watching in silence.
To be precise... Hans, from a place unseen, had worked hard through Heinrich’s senses.
He had analyzed the flow of dark magic sensed as the creature disappeared, then traced that flow backward to calculate the coordinates of its origin.
For Hans, the Immortal King, it was a fairly simple matter.
Woooong— Woong! Wooooong—!
The archlich’s origin vibrated ceaselessly while spewing dark magic.
Even though no voice could be heard, its meaning seemed to come through.
Crunch!
Of course, Heinrich, who had never intended to converse with it in the first place, merely swung his light sword without hesitation and cut it in two.
“Whew— Now I feel a bit better.”
He smiled contentedly as he watched the origin, wrapped in holy power, vanish.
At that moment.
The will of the trial once again resounded in his head.
But its contents were different from before.
‘Oh? Did I get bonus points?’
And it seemed to have judged him quite generously, too.
Enough to skip an entire trial.
‘I feel like it’s a little flustered, too.’
Still, since it had ended well, wasn’t that a good thing?
With a faint chuckle, he strode confidently toward the gate that had appeared before him and flung the door wide open.
At the same time, feeling the bright light envelop his entire body... he took one step forward.
And so, Heinrich was able to safely finish the trial to obtain the holy sword.
Thanks to the full support of the “Immortal King.”