Chapter 180

Chapter 180:  Illusory Swordsmanship

At midday, with the sun high in the sky—at the training grounds of the Daphne Viscounty Estate.

Beryl was humming a tune as he watered the flowers in the corner of the training ground with a watering can.

“Keh, the weather’s niiiice. The birds are chirping, and the flowers are growing well.”

“Indeed. Things are more relaxed without the Young Master around. No one nagging us either.”

One of the members sitting nearby and taking a break wiped the sweat from his forehead as he replied.

They had just been training a while ago and were now taking a short rest.

At that moment, Mikkelsen spoke up.

“But, is it really okay for us to be like this, brothers?”

“What do you mean?”

“Feels like we’ve been resting too long. It’s already been over 20 minutes, hasn’t it? Compared to how we used to train… it’s gotten way too easy.”

Mikkelsen looked toward the training ground, where the Jellyfish Unit members were training.

“Uwaaa! Eighty-two, eighty-threeee!”

“Push harder! Just ten more!”

They were dripping in sweat, their faces beet red as they trained relentlessly.

Just watching them, one could easily mistake it for a scene from the battlefield on the eve of war.

In contrast, the Maw Unit members…

“Mm.”

Everyone lowered their heads, checking their own condition.

They were sweating, sure, but compared to the Jellyfish Unit guys… it was nothing.

With an awkward smile, Beryl replied.

“Ahem! Well, it’s not like we’re skipping training entirely, we’ve just lowered the intensity a bit, that’s all. Honestly, compared to most knights, I’d say we’re still doing plenty. Don’t you think?”

“Oh, that’s right, yeah. No one can go full force every single day.”

“When I really try, I train way harder than those guys!”

Each of them threw in a word, as if trying to make excuses, wearing sheepish expressions. That’s when—

“Unit Commander Beryl, skipping training again today?”

“Huh?”

When Beryl turned his head, he saw Former Commander Mulgybson tapping his shoulder with a wooden sword, wearing a displeased look.

“Ah, we were just taking a short break, just for a bit.”

Beryl waved his hand, trying to brush it off.

“Hmph, sure you were.”

Mulgybson shook his head disapprovingly, then walked right past them and began swinging his sword in front of a scarecrow.

The mouths of Beryl and the Maw Unit members stuck out in annoyance.

‘That damn nagging old fart.’

‘Who does he think he is, bossing us around?’

‘If he’s that old, he should be relaxing and enjoying his hobbies…’

They were planning to get back to training soon anyway, but after being nagged like that, the rebellious spirit in them began to stir.

“Hey, hey, let’s rest even longer. Wanna just take the whole day off?”

“Sounds good! Let’s just lie down flat!”

“What’s the point in training anyway! It’s not like the Young Master is even watching us!”

Just as they were making a whole ruckus about it—

“What did you just say?”

“Ah, I said we’re not training!”

“…What?”

Wait a minute, that didn’t sound like that nagging old fart’s voice…

Mikkelsen, who had been lying flat on the ground, turned his head slightly.

Then, he saw Hardin standing there with his arms crossed.

On his face… was a deep, dark shadow.

Sweat started pouring down the foreheads of the Maw Unit members.

“Uh, um. Young Master, that’s not it.”

“It’s not like we were slacking off! We were just training a little while ago and—”

“Yaaaargh!”

“Eeeek!”

Faint screams of the Maw Unit members rang out across the Daphne training grounds.

---

A short while later.

All of the Daphne Knights had gathered in the training grounds.

“Uuuuugh… That hurts.”

“…Damn it.”

The Maw Unit members were kneeling on the ground, each with multiple lumps stacked atop their heads.

Hardin let out a heavy sigh and raised his palm.

“It hurts, huh? Then get up already.”

“Ah, yessir.”

The Maw Unit members sprang to their feet and lined up next to the other knights.

Just as Hardin was about to clasp his hands behind his back and speak—

Mikkelsen, glancing around nervously, asked,

“Young Master. Before you say anything else, could you tell us about that first?”

“…Tell you what?”

“The count title. You’ve gathered us here because things went well with that, right? So we could all celebrate?”

“Ah…”

Hardin didn’t answer right away, dragging out his words.

‘Clueless idiot.’

‘Mikkelsen…’

Jerry and Manton, who already knew the truth, averted their gazes with a sigh.

Hardin soon tensed his expression slightly and replied.

“It’s been… postponed.”

“Postponed? Why?”

“That’s not important. What matters is—I’ll need your help to receive the countship.”

“Help, as in…”

Everyone tilted their heads in confusion, and at that moment, Hardin cleared his throat and spoke.

“Everyone here needs to learn Wave Swordsmanship.”

“Wave… Swordsmanship?”

“Yeah. I need it to get the count title.”

They should like this, right?

Knights were the kind who’d throw themselves into learning any swordsmanship with blazing eyes.

Just as a bit of anticipation rose on Hardin’s face, Mikkelsen raised his hand and asked,

“But what exactly is Wave Swordsmanship?”

“You don’t know?”

“I’ve heard of it vaguely, but I’ve never really gotten a clear idea of what it is.”

Hardin furrowed his brows, looking incredulous, and Beryl answered in his place.

“What do you mean, it’s that swordsmanship those Jellyfish bastards use.”

“Ahhh, that one? It didn’t seem like much to me.”

A groan escaped from Hardin’s lips.

This time, he turned toward the Jellyfish Unit.

“If it’s Wave Swordsmanship, then isn’t there already the sword technique restored by the Lord and Commander Mulgybson?”

“…Do we really need to learn a new style now?”

Looks like the sentiment was the same over there too.

‘This won’t do at all.’

Hardin’s eyes shifted, as if he had made a firm decision.

“The sword I’ll be passing down to you lot… is a new style I’ve refined in my own way.”

“Refined?”

“Yeah. Whether or not you decide to learn it… that’s up to you, after you’ve seen it.”

Explaining it with words would be a waste. Showing it properly once was worth a hundred explanations.

“Commander Mulgybson, mind if I borrow that?”

“Ah, yes!”

Mulgybson quickly offered him a training wooden sword.

Taking it, Hardin drew a deep breath and assumed a stance.

‘Let’s begin.’

For now… he would start light, with offensive techniques.

“Manjo First Style — Sea Ray.”

Mana naturally flowed from his core, channeling into the sword.

At just the right moment, he stepped forward and extended his sword.

Paaaah!

With a ripping sound like crashing waves, the sword thrust forward.

The timing of the step and the mana pulsing through the blade were slightly off-kilter… but it wasn’t particularly fast, nor did the motion seem all that unique.

‘Doesn’t look like much…’

‘Do we really need to learn something like that?’

Everyone tilted their heads in doubt.

But Hardin didn’t stop.

“Second Style — Demon Whale.”

The thrust transitioned directly into a horizontal slash.

That transition was remarkably fluid.

The sword traced a strange, flowing arc through the air.

In an instant, everyone’s eyes went wide.

‘Just now…’

‘That was a kill.’

He had only swung through empty air, and yet… they could clearly picture an enemy standing there being overwhelmed and collapsing in confusion.

The blade continued its flow.

“Manjo Third Style — White Whale.”

Bwoooong! Bwoooong!

Vertical slash, followed by a sweeping cut.

The unpredictable timing created relentless pressure, as if driving the opponent back again and again.

“Ganjo Second Style — Wolf Turtle.”

Between those gaps, where openings might have formed, he slipped in perfect defensive moves, continuing the chain seamlessly.

His movements were so vivid that they almost conjured the image of an opponent swinging at him from the other side.

And the sword continued.

Bwoooooong!

“Fourth Style — Poison Jellyfish.”

Tat!

“Sixth Style — Sea Lion.”

Each movement chained into the next, and before they knew it, a blue aura began to shimmer faintly around Hardin’s blade.

The Gyre, the signature Weapon Enchant of Wave Swordsmanship, had begun to manifest.

Hardin’s motions accelerated—faster, and even faster.

It was nearly impossible to follow his movements with the naked eye.

The expressions of those watching changed with every second.

‘That’s Wave Swordsmanship?’

‘Holy… What even is this?’

They couldn’t quite put it into words, but anyone who wasn’t a complete idiot could feel it.

This swordsmanship was no ordinary technique.

Even Former Commander Mulgybson, standing nearby, couldn’t take his eyes off Hardin as he swallowed hard.

‘This is leagues above the Wave Swordsmanship we practiced… No, it’s on a completely different level altogether.’

Even as they watched, Hardin’s sword grew even faster.

Each movement became impossible to distinguish, and all that remained where the blade passed were trails of sound and light.

Swish! Swaaash!

As Hardin’s sword reached its peak—no, it wasn’t a sword anymore…

It was—

A wave.

A fierce, all-consuming wave.

The reason it was called Wave Swordsmanship—no one needed to explain it. Everyone instinctively nodded in understanding.

They could feel the illusionary knight standing opposite Hardin being swept away by the wave conjured by his blade.

Though the knight held his own with tremendous skill, it was ultimately too much to withstand.

Meanwhile, Hardin’s face wore a smile.

As if it came naturally. As if he was enjoying himself. A look of pure ecstasy.

And when the sword dance of waves reached its climax—

Fwaaaash!

Hardin thrust his sword forward, and the illusionary knight’s body was pierced clean through, scattering into the air.

“……”

A brief silence fell.

Hardin caught his breath, tapped his shoulder with the wooden sword, and asked,

“This is the swordsmanship I intend to teach.”

No one could speak. Their mouths opened, but no words came out.

‘It’s… beautiful.’

‘That’s… Wave Swordsmanship?’

They were completely overwhelmed by the scene Hardin had just shown them, unable to utter a single word.

Hardin looked at each of them as he continued,

“The training will be tough. It’s going to suck. So… I won’t force anyone. But I’ll promise you this—if you have the will, I’ll make sure you learn Wave Swordsmanship. And if you master it…”

He closed his eyes tightly, clenching his fist as he spoke.

“No matter where you go, no matter the situation… you’ll be recognized as knights worth remembering.”

…Huh? Why no reaction?

Hardin cracked one eye open.

Everyone just stared blankly at him.

‘Did I lay it on too thick?’

Maybe it would’ve been better to mix in a bit of the usual white lies.

Well, if they didn’t step up on their own, he had no choice.

Time for some “loving discipline,” maybe(?) again.

Hardin was just about to regrip his sword for a little pressure when—

Fwaaash!

“I-I’ll learn it first, Young Master!”

“Hmm?”

Former Commander Mulgybson threw his hand up and shouted.

And then…

“M-Me too!”

“I’ll do it as well!”

The knights who had been standing in the back all began shouting over one another.

---

Somewhere between the Imperial Capital and the Fabian Duchy of Ignima—

In a quiet countryside village.

Black-robed men had surrounded a small hut on the outskirts of this place.

With swords at their waists and murderous looks in their eyes—

Perhaps that was why.

The villagers didn’t even consider approaching the area and avoided it entirely.

Inside that isolated hut—

Two men were seated at a wooden table.

“What the hell is going on?!”

One of them was the Second Prince, Kaline.

Sitting opposite him was…

“Please, calm yourself, Your Highness.”

A man of the Ignima collateral line, known as the Hound—Jubilen.

Bang!

Kaline shouted, his face flushed with rage.

“Calm down? Do I look calm to you?! The Daphne bastards aren’t falling—they’re climbing higher!”

To Kaline, Princess Medeia was a thorn in his eye.

He had ordered the elimination of those allied with her, yet instead of falling, the Daphne House had scored a major victory in the war with the Count of Tread… and now, rumors were spreading that they’d even requested a countship.

Rather than breaking Medeia’s momentum, they had essentially given her wings. It was enough to drive Kaline mad with fury.

Yet, despite the situation, Jubilen’s expression remained calm and composed.

“That’s right. They’re riding high on success.”

“Then come up with a damn countermeasure!”

“No need to get so worked up.”

“How can I not be?!”

Just as Kaline leapt up in fury—

Tap!

Jubilen laid his palm on the table. A blue aura flared in his eyes.

Woooooom.

In that moment, an overwhelming pressure crashed down on Kaline, pinning his shoulders.

Only for the briefest instant—

“Wh-What… is this…?”

Behind Jubilen, for a split second, the silhouette of a demon with the form of a goat seemed to flicker into existence.

Sweat formed on Kaline’s forehead, and his face turned pale.

Jubilen interlocked his fingers and gave a calm smile.

“It’s true I was lacking before. But in the end… no real harm came to Your Highness. And as a result, I’ve prevented them from receiving the countship… for now.”

“Th-That may be true, but… this isn’t what we agreed upon.”

Kaline responded with a face full of tension.

Jubilen simply shrugged.

“Of course not. I’ve been working on a new plan. Those Daphne rats… even our family elders find them troublesome. And now, I’ve heard something strange about them.”

“Strange?”

“They’ve been spotted near the canyon where Veritarun is sealed.”

“That means… they’re participating in the subjugation? If—if by any chance they make a name for themselves in the operation…”

“They’ll receive the countship. Without a doubt.”

“Then that would be a disaster!”

Jubilen gave a faint smile.

“That’s why… this time, I’m going to use a more decisive method.”

“What method?”

Jubilen gestured with his chin toward the corner of the room.

There, four monstrous figures stood silently.

Executors of Ignima—

The hounds who worked in the shadows for the family… and for Jubilen.

For Jubilen to point at them meant—

“You’re… sending them in yourself?”

“Yes. That way, things will be handled cleanly.”

Jubilen replied with a smile to Kaline’s question.