Trash of the Count's Family Vol 2. Chapter 374: One Sword (5)
“Cooperative Alliance Leader Hwa In has issued a challenge to One Sword, Kim Hae-Yi!”
At that fact, the kingdom’s people, who had been focused on the martial arts competition, stirred.
Because it was a clash between a master with an unshakable position and a rising master shrouded in mystery.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The Heavenly Demon tapped the table with the fan in his hand.
Across from him, Cale beamed brightly.
“Our young master really does have quite the temper.”
Alberu sat at ease on the window frame, drinking tea.
Even in the middle of that, Cale did not stop talking.
“How did you walk out the moment the first match ended without even looking back once?”
Tap. Tap!
The Heavenly Demon stopped the hand holding the fan.
“So—”
A low voice flowed from his mouth.
“It seems the Cooperative Alliance is connected to the Wanderers.”
Nod, nod.
Cale nodded.
“Not threatened the way the Dark Pulse was, but in some kind of cooperative relationship. Or something beyond that?”
Nod, nod.
“And on top of that, their leader currently thinks I’m an AI helping Ahn Roh Man?”
Nod, nod.
“Ha!”
The Heavenly Demon laughed.
“Interesting. Truly interesting.”
Alberu chimed in at those words.
“It really is interesting.”
Of course, the meaning was very different.
Receiving the Heavenly Demon’s gaze, Alberu elegantly brushed back the hair ruffled by the blowing wind and said,
“Because our identities remain hidden.”
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The Heavenly Demon, tapping his fan again, asked Cale,
“When do I meet the Cooperative Alliance leader?”
At present, this place was the Heavenly Demon’s guest room, and only Alberu, Cale, and the Heavenly Demon were there.
Hmm.
Cale thought for a moment before answering.
“Since the winners of the Round of 64 are regrouped and then the Round of 32 proceeds from there.”
It was different from a complete tournament bracket.
The matchups were redrawn anew at each stage.
“So who knows. When you’ll meet.”
“And fixing it?”
At the Heavenly Demon, who openly mentioned rigging it, Cale let out a faint laugh and asked,
“Do you want to meet Hwa In that quickly?”
“She dared point a sword at the Heavenly Demon. The punishment for that should come quickly.”
At those words, Cale instead let out another faint laugh and spoke lazily.
“Heavenly Demon.”
“What?”
“If Hwa In isn’t some underling of the Wanderers, but a Wanderer herself, what are you going to do?”
The corners of the Heavenly Demon’s lips rose.
“And what is that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing.”
The wandering Wanderer who had threatened Pao Seo Tae.
So Hee.
Based on that one’s appearance, they had confirmed that person was number seventeen among the competitors who had advanced to the Round of 64.
“The Wanderers might not be just one person. Who knows? Maybe the alliance leader is a Wanderer too.”
At present, Cale had no standard for distinguishing whether someone was a Wanderer or not.
Unless Choi Jung Soo, Team Leader Sui Khan, or Choi Jung Gun were here.
The Heavenly Demon, who had been silently staring at Cale, spoke again.
“So?”
“The Wanderers are strong.”
If the alliance leader was a Wanderer?
“Ha, hahaha—”
The Heavenly Demon laughed freely.
It was such a fresh laugh that it felt like the first time seeing him laugh like this.
But that laughter soon faded.
“...Didn’t you say the Wanderers were stronger than Choi Han?”
“I’m not sure for certain, but that could be the case.”
Wanderers who hunted the Five Colored Blood.
Cale was the sort to judge that each of them was close to a demigod and respond accordingly.
“Well now.”
The Heavenly Demon wore a strange smile.
“Whether it’s that one called So Hee or the Cooperative Alliance leader. Whoever it is, if there is a Wanderer among them, I don’t think they’d belong to the truly strong side.”
There was something people misunderstood about the Heavenly Demon.
He was not always arrogant, nor had he always been strong.
The Heavenly Demon, who had once occupied the lowliest position among the siblings, had at last become the sky of the Demonic Cult.
That process had often been rather shabby.
If anything, his mind was probably more outstanding than his physical ability.
“The best they can manage is to play at being the head of some small alliance while searching for an AI?”
Letting out a hollow laugh, the Heavenly Demon shook his head.
“If it were someone whose name carried weight among the Five Colored Blood, I don’t think they’d be doing something like that.”
It was not a matter of facing gods.
Or facing the Demon Realm or other families.
Or even doing something for the Absolute God, who was their true objective.
Just searching for an AI was their work?
And they were aiming for the position of successor?
“Especially if it’s someone trying to climb upward by removing possible rivals from the shadows—”
The Heavenly Demon gave a small shrug.
“I don’t think they’d be all that strong.”
The moment those words ended, Cale casually tossed out,
“Then you deal with the alliance leader.”
Knock knock knock.
At that moment, the sound of someone knocking on the guest room door was heard.
Alberu opened the door, and there stood Cheon Ryeo, a subordinate of Pao Seo Tae, the leader of the Dark Pulse.
She reported to Cale.
“This is news that just came out. If one makes it into the semifinals, there will be a banquet with the royal couple, and an invitation will be sent to the royal palace.”
Cale had instructed them to inform him quickly of any ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) news related to the royal palace.
“Oh. Really?”
Cale’s, the Heavenly Demon’s, and Alberu’s gazes crossed.
“So four wins is all it takes.”
The Heavenly Demon said that calmly, then looked up at the ceiling.
“I’d like it to move a little faster.”
Tap. Tap. He tapped the fan against his palm and said evenly,
“I think this is about to become a little boring.”
He looked terribly itchy.
As if he wanted to fight right now.
*****
“Left, Seo Rak!”
Waaaaaah—!
One of the Five Great Powers, the Sky Sword.
A place where those who regarded the sword as the highest of all martial arts gathered.
Its heir was Seo Rak.
At least when it came to the sword, he was regarded as a genius.
“......”
Yet his expression was not good.
It even showed open displeasure.
“Right, Kim Hae-Yi!”
Because of Kim Hae-Yi, who was walking up from directly opposite him.
One Sword.
This nameless martial artist who dared bear a title involving the sword had become the center of considerable attention after receiving the Cooperative Alliance leader’s public challenge.
In truth, that part did not matter.
People always preferred the challenge of a nobody over the success of someone already famous.
‘But when the sword is part of the reason, that becomes a little troublesome.’
Cooperative Alliance Leader Hwa In was a swordswoman, and Kim Hae-Yi was also a swordsman.
But they were not the Sky Sword.
They were not those who had devoted their entire lives to the sword.
‘And yet people know their names more than ours because of the sword?’
Seo Rak found that fact distinctly unpleasant.
Of course, that did not mean Seo Rak looked down on Kim Hae-Yi.
On the contrary, he was tense.
Arrogance was the most useless of emotions.
Boom!
With the sound of the drum, the match began.
The countless people packed into the arena.
Those curious about Seo Rak’s match with Kim Hae-Yi.
‘The Martial Arts Curriculum master came too.’
The King had not come, but Cha Run of the Martial Arts Curriculum, no different from the King’s own eyes, had come to this arena.
Seo Rak would not let this opportunity slip by.
Taking his stance, he said to Kim Hae-Yi,
“I am pleased to face one renowned for the sword.”
Annoying as it was.
He was pleased as well.
Martial arts practiced with the sword were always enjoyable.
“......”
At Seo Rak’s greeting and words, Kim Hae-Yi did not react in the slightest.
Tilt.
He merely dipped his head once in place of a greeting.
And then stood there still.
As if he were terribly bored.
“......”
Seo Rak’s eyebrow twitched.
He soon calmed his mind and gripped the sword hilt.
‘One Sword.’
You will fall to my one sword.
Seo Rak had never once displayed the full extent of his genius.
But today, he could afford to bring it out.
‘Even if, in doing so, that man loses his life—’
There had been no statement saying killing was forbidden in this match.
‘Wouldn’t it be fine?’
Seo Rak took one step forward.
Then he drew his sword.
As naturally as a process he had done hundreds of thousands of times.
Too naturally.
Shing—
It was far too natural.
That was why it was frightening.
Because something more precious than genius was repetition.
Seo Rak knew that very well.
What he had the most confidence in was his fundamentals.
That was why, despite his young age, he had maintained his secure place as heir and was naturally regarded as the future of the Sky Sword.
Srr—
The motion of drawing the sword.
At that single act, Cha Run, the teacher of the King, opened his eyes wide.
“The world—”
Following the sword as it was drawn.
It looked as though the world were being split horizontally.
An illusion?
No. That was an illusion that could become reality.
“Huh—”
Sky Sword.
So they had been raising a monster there.
Seo Rak, the power of that one is tremendous.
Goosebumps broke out all over Cha Run’s body.
That horizontal line created by that ordinary-looking sword.
Anyone who knew the true power contained in that line could do nothing but freeze as Cha Run did now.
Clunk!
But Cha Run moved.
He shot to his feet from his seat.
His aged body found even sitting down and standing up quickly difficult now.
But he had no room to think about such things at this moment.
A single line that seemed as though it could split the world apart.
An absolute standard created by the sword.
Toward that horizontal line, Kim Hae-Yi raised his hand.
And from top to bottom.
He drew a vertical line.
It was an even plainer motion than Seo Rak’s.
‘Huh—’
He saw no illusion of the world being cut apart.
There was no aura at all.
But—
Whoooosh—!
Following that gesture cutting from above to below, a soft wind blew.
Ssssss—
And the line that would have split the world vanished.
Thud.
Cha Run collapsed back into his chair.
‘Kim Hae-Yi. That man... I cannot fathom his depth.’
The words King Tamahi had spoken in utter shock filled his mind.
Tamahi, the strongest in the Lan Kingdom.
He came to think that she might perhaps be the one who understood Kim Hae-Yi best.
“......”
And Seo Rak.
“......”
He could not say anything and only stared at Kim Hae-Yi.
And Kim Hae-Yi. The Heavenly Demon—
“......”
He quietly looked up at the sky.
‘Boring.’
Living in a new environment, in a situation where no one knew he was the Heavenly Demon, had been rather stimulating and interesting.
Because they were experiences he had never had before.
But at this moment, he felt boredom.
‘...Choi Han.’
Choi Han, Cale Henituse.
When he thought of fighting those bastards, it was not boring at all.
‘Weak.’
Those he had encountered here were truly weak.
This was not arrogance.
To him, as the Heavenly Demon, it was simply a natural feeling.
“Kim Hae-Yi, you—”
Seo Rak’s voice trembled.
With a face full of emotion, he looked at Kim Hae-Yi and spoke.
“How many tens of thousands of times have you swung the sword?”
At that moment, the Heavenly Demon’s gaze, which had been turned toward the sky, shifted to Seo Rak.
Seo Rak felt the boredom held within the Heavenly Demon’s eyes.
And the Heavenly Demon said,
“I don’t remember.”
Tens of thousands?
Hundreds of thousands?
Millions?
Tens of millions?
Well.
The Heavenly Demon did not remember.
By now, swinging a sword was no different to him than breathing.
“Why would I need to remember that?”
The moment he faced the Heavenly Demon’s question, Seo Rak’s breath caught in his throat.
“...I have lost.”
He lowered his head.
The Heavenly Demon had won.
Waaaaaaah—!
Cheers rang out, but the Heavenly Demon thought,
‘...This place is too peaceful.’
Once again, he felt that he was now in a world very different from the Central Plains.
That he was outside the Demonic Cult.
“Young master, you worked hard.”
The Heavenly Demon, walking along while indifferently ignoring the words Cale offered him, paused at the words Cale said next.
“Wouldn’t this get interesting in a little while?”
At that moment, the corner of the Heavenly Demon’s mouth curled upward in a grin.
*****
The noisy martial arts competition continued one match after another.
Quarterfinals.
Now only eight masters remained.
Among them—
Kim Hae-Yi.
That name was there.
Sword Ghost, Hyun Seong.
And then,
“Hwa In, So Hee.”
Those two names remained as well.
“So the alliance leader ended up fighting So Hee.”
Pao Seo Tae, the leader of the Dark Pulse.
He was set to face So Hee in the quarterfinals.
When Pao Seo Tae flinched at Cale’s words, Cale casually rested a hand on the Heavenly Demon’s shoulder as he sat beside him.
“Of course, our young master will be fighting Hwa In first.”
The Heavenly Demon simply took a sip of tea.
Then Choi Han, who was standing guard for Pao Seo Tae, spoke.
“I will go along that day.”
“I’m going too.”
Alberu and Choi Han decided to move together.
*****
“One Sword! One Sword!”
“Leader! Cut down One Sword!”
Waaaaaah-----!
A place filled with countless cheers.
The Heavenly Demon crooked up one corner of his mouth as he looked at Hwa In, the Cooperative Alliance leader, standing before him.
“Now this should be interesting.”