Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage Chapter 609: All-Weapon Intent I
Previously on Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage...
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[Featherflight] [Featherfall] [Body Strengthening Magic]
[Velkarasolmir: Domination & Dominion]
[Spirit Sight] [Death Perception]
[Abyssal Conqueror Step: Third Step — Wraith’s Crossing]!
Alex burst ahead, holding nothing back, utterly unleashed.
His velocity soared as he raced down the slope, without a trace of fear, hurtling right at the massive swarm of raging humans down below, hundreds strong.
Dragon Kumite: Burst!
Right before hitting the end of the slanted trail, he vaulted skyward—
His boot crashed onto the skull of a nearby power-type berserk human, treating it like a launchpad to fling himself onward.
Boom! Boom!
Once more and again, he leaped from cranium to cranium.
Every bound unleashed recycled mana from his prior spell exploding sharply from his soles, shattering the heads of the berserk humans underfoot.
The swarm at last responded.
A speed-type berserk human pounced at him while airborne, trying to capitalize on his exposed position.
Yet mana detonated below Alex’s feet, thrusting him ahead rather than stopping his momentum.
He rocketed straight at the assailant.
Shing—!
The wrist blade extended from the Beta Bracer.
Alex plunged down blade-leading, stabbing it exactly into the vulnerability exposed by Death Perception inside the berserk human’s head.
A flawless takedown.
Still, the speed-type had succeeded in its aim.
Alex now touched ground, encircled on all sides.
The swarm tightened from every angle.
But rather than fear, a smirk crept over his features.
’Good...’
’I wouldn’t be able to vent months of frustration if it were that easy.’
He sent a directive to OmniRune.
A magic circle appeared underfoot as surrounding lightning mana rushed into it.
[Stun Current]!
A sizzling barrier of electricity exploded outward, covering a five-meter zone around him, paralyzing every Class 2 berserk human inside.
Mana poured into his draconic baton without delay.
Alex whirled on his heel in a spin.
Dragon Kumite: Release.
Sword Energy!
A ring of sword energy blasted out, severing the heads of more than a dozen berserk humans in one fluid arc.
No respite came.
Fresh foes charged in.
Alex shut off [Stun Current] right away, shifting spells seamlessly.
[Shadow Veil]!
The electric zone imploded, instantly supplanted by a cloak of shadow engulfing the identical area.
[Second Step — Phantom’s Veil]!
Alex dissolved into the gloom.
Seconds passed, and the shadows faded.
Left behind— scores of berserk humans rigid— then crumpling down.
Each one beheaded or skewered through the cranium, thoroughly lifeless regardless.
Meanwhile, Alex had vanished.
The berserk humans started hunting wildly.
Tougher Class 3 specimens barreled into the zone, lured by the chaos, hunting the unmarked intruder amid them.
Yet Alex lingered nearby.
He stayed right in their ranks, veiled in shadow via the Abyssal Conqueror Step’s concealment technique.
Its Second Step, Phantom’s Veil, let the practitioner glide hidden inside an element.
For Alex— Darkness.
It wiped his existence from the berserk humans’ senses completely.
Leveraging that edge, he glided smoothly free of the trap and shifted position deeper in the swarm.
Still, he stayed concealed.
Rather— He stalked in silence.
Every slash of his blade swiftly reaped a life.
And with each blow, his mind wandered to his exchange with the Sword Emperor back in the Armament Trial.
—
"You have a natural talent and disposition for the sword. Why do you reject it?" the Sword Emperor had asked.
"Just because I have talent for something... does that mean I’m supposed to like it?" Alex had replied, swinging his blade in accordance with the phantom’s guidance.
"It’s my choice whether I like something or not. And I don’t like the sword. That’s all there is to it."
"Understandable," the Sword Emperor had nodded. "But even so... to bury a talent —especially one aligned with your disposition— is a waste."
—
That summed up his words.
Still, they clung to Alex, eating away at him.
Even worse, the Sword Emperor’s instruction method had turned swordplay into something... instinctive and at ease.
To the extent that, sometime later, when Alex gripped his draconic baton, he’d shaped it like a mana-sheathed sword without noticing until afterward.
"Don’t think too much. Just swing it in whatever way feels natural. If it doesn’t work, adjust until it does. That is the foundation of swordsmanship."
Those words rang again in his head as he felled another berserk human.
Then one more, and yet another.
The mana sheathing his draconic baton and wrist blade started honing itself on instinct— smoother, keener, more exact.
Little by little, his attacks turned crisper and more fluid.
Crania tumbled, appendages hacked off, torsos bisected neatly.
He performed all of these feats unaware.
The Sword Emperor’s closing words rose sharply in his thoughts.
"The sword is no different from any other weapon. It is an extension of your body... a tool for a specific purpose."
"You don’t need to like it, just make use of it... as the tool it was meant to be."
Alex’s motions drew more attention.
After all, the mounting pile of bodies trailing him was hard to overlook.
Greater numbers of berserk humans swarmed his spot anew.
His gaze gleamed.
A spell array flickered into being at his back.
[Fear Pulse]
A surge of shadow rippled out from Alex at the core.
The onrushing swarm hesitated, then halted.
Profound primal dread gripped their souls, stopping them cold.
[Third Step — Wraith’s Crossing]!
Instantly, Alex blinked out— materializing on a fresh side of the fray.
[First Step — Ghost’s Step]!
His footwork shifted.
Like a specter, he wove amid the berserk humans, continuing the massacre relentlessly.
Soon enough, his thoughts cleared out.
Apart from the bloodshed, they dwelled on the Sword Emperor’s parting counsel.
Then, a subtle shift occurred.
How he handled his draconic baton —and the Beta Bracer’s wrist blade too— transformed on the spot.
Needing distance, the armament stretched.
Foe too close, it shortened.
In a flash, he altered his weapon’s shape intuitively, thoughtlessly.
Sword... spear... staff...
Paired with Dragon Kumite’s mana mastery, Alex transitioned flawlessly among weapon forms, never sacrificing deadliness.
A spark of insight lit his far-off stare.
’When picking up a tool... preference or disgust doesn’t matter.’
’Only whether it is the right tool for the job.’
’OmniRune... spear... dagger... staff... hammer... shield... or even a sword... They are all tools— extensions of my body, allowing me to perform actions I otherwise could not.
’That’s all there is to it.’
’I don’t need to overthink it. A tool, regardless of form... will always be a tool.’
Right then—
Clarity swept through his mind.
His Will flared.
His Spiritual Force billowed outward.
Ring—!
High overhead—
The shocked Fortuna members abruptly sensed their armaments quiver.
Swords, spears, daggers, staffs, hammers, shields, axes, glaives, clubs— all weapons tugged against their owners, aimed one way, desperate to fly loose.
Just Silver and Havel —bearing Weapon Intent— stood immune.
Oddly, Udara escaped the effect too.
The rest clenched harder, wrestling to hold their gear.
Then it hit them— every armament yanked toward one spot... toward that solitary youth slashing through the berserk human throng.
Havel gazed down at Alex, face a mix of emotions.
"All-Weapon Intent..." he murmured.
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