Chapter 101 : Chapter 101

Translator: AkazaTL

Pr/Ed: Sol IX

***

Chapter 101. Wings (4)

“Let’s see if the seeds I’ve sown are sprouting properly.”

“There will be no problem, Your Highness. You are ever perfect.”

“Indeed. I never doubt myself. But I can trust nothing else in this continent. For in this world, the only flawless being—”

A faint smile.

“—is me.”

“……”

“Carlos, have you truly scattered the seeds of the vortex as ordered? It’s not that I doubt your skill… it’s your pitiful conviction that troubles me.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. The heir of Steel still lives because, for one fleeting moment, your blade dulled. An executioner who should obey his master’s will completely—acting on his own beliefs? How ridiculous.”

“…You need not worry. This time, everything has been handled perfectly.”

“Can you swear that on your honor?”

The Iron Prince’s tone, so light moments before, suddenly weighed heavy as iron.

Carlos met those eyes—the sharp, soul-piercing eyes of his master—and answered.

“Yes. I swear it.”

The Iron Prince watched him in silence.

“There is no need for concern,” Carlos continued.

“The young master of House Rhapsody’s spirit is completely shattered. His body lives, but inside he is already ruined.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. The pitiful boy fled, sobbing, and upon returning to his domain, he will surely rant and rave about things that never happened—false memories, forcibly implanted, just as you desired.”

“And what words did you put in that precious heir’s mouth?”

“Most likely, he is saying this at this very moment.”

Carlos’s voice turned dry, mechanical.

“Father, a gladiator from the outskirts of the Iron Kingdom ambushed us cowardly. He insulted me, he insulted the name of Rhapsody, and he butchered poor, innocent Joseph who knew nothing of battle. I barely escaped with my life through luck and shameful cunning, but I despise myself for failing my noble duty. I wish to drive my own sword through my throat. I can no longer live beneath the same sky as that wretch. Please, Father, avenge me—avenge both Joseph and me. The man’s name was Sword Demon Liam…”

Even as Carlos spoke, the Iron Prince, Ian Cherville, looked far from pleased. His pathological suspicion was infamous throughout the continent—but this time, his executioner had done his work flawlessly.

Far away, in the Six Free Cities, a broken young heir was muttering those exact words, not one syllable out of place:

“P-please, Father… avenge us… avenge me… Joseph… the man’s name… was…”

And so, the trap was sprung.

***

All Paths are connected. My training revolved around that phrase. Rather than chasing the new concept of Wings, I focused on evolving the Paths I already knew—and the results came swiftly.

Once I began concentrating on connection, the way I used 「Gale」 also changed. Until now, I’d only employed its Mystery in the simplest sense—disrupting enemy formations, scattering groups, tearing apart flow.

But when I began to perceive that all Paths were intertwined, 「Gale」 evolved. With a single gust, I could now disable ten enemies. Even swinging from afar, my blade’s reach carried as if it physically struck.

I could almost see how that nameless wanderer had viewed the world—what he’d sought to cut through with his sword. And that wasn’t the end of revelation.

The essence of 「The Light」—the Mystery of combustion. A sword that burns itself to surpass its limits.

The blade once wielded by the First King of Han, who dreamed of the Age of Stars. He had built a fallen peninsula into a kingdom and passed on his will like a beacon to his descendants. That, too, was a connection. Will linked to will, dream linked to dream, the purpose of kings unbroken through time. Thus all kings dreamt of stars—of an age that shone bright.

“Ahh…”

Two swords. As I came to understand the lives contained within them, I began to grasp what a swordsman’s Mystery truly was—their perception of the world, the gaze with which they watched it, that gaze itself becoming power.

Then I asked myself: What kind of world do I see?

‘Young Master,’ someone once called me.

What is the world that I face?

‘A Swordmaster can only be slain by another Swordmaster.’

I am not the vagabond.

I cannot become a storm to erase the world for a lost love.

The ones I loved are long gone—blown away in that single day.

I am no king.

I never knew the Age of Stars, nor do I yearn for it.

I would never throw away everything for those who come after. What matters to me is only my vengeance. To kill the man who destroyed my world, I would do anything. Sell my soul to a demon? Gladly, if it would let me reach him.

“Ahh…”

What is my world? What lies at the end of my path? The thought struck—and the sky above me blazed.

The sun shone unbearably bright. I had seen it countless times before—whenever I transcended my limits through 「The Light」’s Mystery, it appeared in my mind’s eye.

A searing sun. And beneath it—a rusted blade, a sword of steel driven into dry earth.

Was that my world? If so, which was I connected to—the burning sun that would scorch all,

or the steadfast steel that endured beneath its light? I didn’t know.

“...Haa.”

I blinked, and the vision faded. The familiar sight of the Karavan estate returned.

The same sky as always.

I had glimpsed a clue toward becoming a 「Sword Runner」.

Sun—and Steel.

I had to decide which was truly my world. No one could tell me that. Only I could.

“Urgh…”

A wave of dizziness struck. My body trembled, drenched in sweat though I hadn’t trained hard. I collapsed where I stood, panting. My limbs felt hollow—like I’d sprinted for miles.

“……”

Lying there, I gazed at the sky. A pleasant breeze passed over me.

The Karavan estate had changed so much. Different from when my parents and neighbors had been alive. Different from when it became a land of death. Yet the sky—the sky had never changed.

I, too, had changed. The curious boy had grown into a young man burdened by suspicion. The frail body had hardened with muscle. The child who could never win a scuffle now stood on the brink of becoming a 「Sword Runner」. And still, the sky was the same.

Time had passed. People had died. Everything had changed—but not the sky. Never the sky.

“……”

Something stirred in my mind. Another revelation, building like thunder.

“Ugh…”

But my body was too weary to move. I tried to stand, failed, and gave up—sprawling on the grass. Then I heard my master’s voice.

「Out on a picnic, are you? How leisurely.」

“…I want to train, but my body won’t listen.”

「I know your limits well enough.」

Liam looked down at me.

「Rest for now.」

“…That’s unusual, coming from you.”

Rest. A word he never used.

I blinked up at him, puzzled.

「Because this will be the last moment you can rest peacefully.」

The last? Did he mean tomorrow’s training would be harsher? Probably. Becoming a 「Sword Runner」 would be far more brutal than clinging to a cliff as a 「Sword Beginner」 or surviving the Arena. Just imagining it exhausted me. But still—

“Then I’ll rest while I can.”

If you can’t avoid it, enjoy it.

“It’s been so long since I had a proper rest, haha.”

I joked weakly, laughing at myself. Liam watched in silence, smiling faintly. A sad smile.

Perhaps it was inevitable.

「Yes. Rest well, my young descendant.」

Because my master—already knew what was coming.

***

That day, I rested completely. Rolling on the grass, staring up at the sky. The sun was warm, the wind cool. Several new residents of the estate brought me food—calling it a gift for their young lord. I refused at first, but they insisted, so I took a bite. It was delicious.

Two days passed.

Small progress, small revelations.

Tom and Seol Yoon praised me, saying that at this rate I would soon reach 「Sword Runner」.

I was happy—genuinely happy. For the first time in so long, I laughed without worry. And on that very day, Hailyn came to me.

“I tried using the spell I learned… and saw something strange. I couldn’t interpret it, so I came to tell you. I saw seven swords.”

“Seven swords?”

“Yes. Sharp ones. In this land’s future… there were swords.”

Seven swords. I didn’t understand.

Was it related to the Vortex the Iron Prince had spoken of? Was this another trial brought on by my cursed fate? Or maybe Hailyn’s divination was simply wrong—after all, she was still a novice, and the ritual she used wasn’t even human magic but orcish shamanism.

I couldn’t be sure. But unease began to creep up my spine. And as always—my unease was never wrong. That afternoon, visitors arrived at the Karavan estate.

Unwelcome guests.