The God-Possessed Swordsmanship Genius - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Sword God’s Chosen Swordsman Chapter 27

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Allen caught his breath and looked at the tall man who had appeared before him.

‘Grand Leader Hairen.’

Even for Allen, his arrival was unexpected.
What was he doing here?
A man like him had no business showing up at a mere Squad Leader appointment ceremony.

“Interesting, truly interesting, hahaha!”

He laughed loudly and strode straight toward him.
It was as if he wanted everyone to know that Allen was his target.

“Now then.”
“…?”
“How long do you plan to keep playing these children’s fights?”

The real question came through a whisper in his mind.

-“Are you hiding it on purpose?”

He seemed to know that Allen had overcome the Curse of Bima.

‘Well, I suppose a man of his stature couldn’t be fooled either.’

Had his Mana still been feeble, that might have been different, but now the situation had changed.
Above all, Allen had no intention of going out of his way to hide the fact that the curse had been lifted.

“It wasn’t that I meant to hide it. My squad members seemed to want it, so I simply went along with them.”
“Hahaha. Good. At least you’re no coward.”
“What brings you all the way out here, Grand Leader?”
“Some little brat still smelling of his mother’s milk is taking over as Squad Leader, so I came to take a look.”
“And how did he fare?”
“Not bad at all.”

Hairen surveyed the members lying sprawled on the ground as he spoke.

“Your technique and quick thinking were far superior to every one of these men. How did you learn the sword? For someone so young, you move like a swordsman who has fought hundreds of real battles.”
“I learned from my family’s manuals.”
“Nonsense. What manual in this world teaches something like that?”

Instead of answering, Allen simply smiled. At that expression, Hairen let out a booming laugh and asked,

“Want to test yourself against me?”
“…!”

Mary, who had been listening beside them, jerked upright, her eyes going wide.
Lucas reacted the same way.

“Grand Leader!”

Lucas barked out the words.
This bout had not been part of any plan, and the thought that it could turn dangerous was exactly what had set him off.
But Hairen ignored Lucas and carried on speaking.

“But you’re allowed to use Mana as much as you like. I won’t use any Mana at all. How about it?”
“Is there a reason I should agree to that?”
“Why? Do you want something in return?”
“I should get something out of it too, don’t you think?”
“Something out of it? Kkkkk. Look at this one. When the Grand Leader gives an order, you’d think you’d just obey.”
“We’re still in the middle of my appointment ceremony.”

At Allen’s brazen reply, Hairen burst into a roar of laughter.

“Fine, then. Let’s do it this way. If your blade touches my body even once, or if you make me use Mana, I’ll hand this over to you.”

Hairen thrust out the sword that hung at his waist.

“This is Griffin, one of the Great Continent 32 Famed Swords. I won it twenty years ago, when I beat that fool Guillotine in a duel.”

Guillotine had been one of the Seven Knights of the Empire.
It was astonishing enough that the Grand Leader had once fought him, but that he had taken a famed sword from him in a contest was even more so.
At the mention of the Great Continent 32 Famed Swords, Allen’s eyes lit up.
Was there a swordsman alive who didn’t covet a fine blade? Allen had already been thinking he needed a decent sword.

“In exchange, since the sword is on the line, we fight with real steel. What do you say?”

Just then.

[Mission has been registered.]
[Classification: Wager]
[Grand Leader Hairen has proposed a wager. Emerge victorious in your wager against him.]
[Duration: ∞]
[Reward: All stats +3]

A welcome message appeared out of nowhere.
Allen had already confirmed the existence of missions once, through the task of eliminating the Cheolswaehoe leader.
If he won this wager, he would not only gain a peerless famed sword but also pick up stat bonuses.
There was no reason not to accept.

“You won’t regret this, will you?”

A resolve to win no matter what flickered in Allen’s eyes.
At that, Hairen chuckled.

“Even without this one, there are plenty of decent swords. And do you think you can win?”
“All I need is to touch you once.”
“Sounds like you’re declaring you will.”
“That’s right.”
“Hahahaha! I like that. Did your curse lift and change you as a person? The last time I saw you, you were as gloomy as they come.”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“Yes, yes. Does a Bishuken swordsman play with wooden toys? Iron is the very heart of a swordsman.”

Laughing heartily, Hairen turned his head toward Mary.

“What are you doing? Clear away the men lying on the floor there.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t want to? Shall I do it myself?”
“N-no, sir! I’ll do it!”

Startled, Mary hurried to start dragging the squad members who had collapsed on the ground.
Grabbing the big men one at a time with each hand and hauling them along, her mind was in turmoil.

‘What on earth is this…’

She recalled the conversation she’d overheard between Hairen and Allen just moments ago.

‘Use your mana freely? The curse is lifted?’

Anyone who wasn’t a fool could tell.
The Curse of Bima that had clung to Allen was gone.

‘Is this really true?’

Then what about the disrespect her squad members had shown him all this time?
Mary hung her head. Not knowing any of this, she felt the urge to smack each of her squadmates sprawled on the floor across the head.
While Mary was dragging her comrades aside.

“Three stars… no, four?”

Hairen muttered, tossing his sword up onto his shoulder.
At his words, Allen, who had been closing his eyes and steadying his mind and body, snapped them open in surprise.

“I heard the curse was only lifted not long ago, yet Seongsinryu has already reached that far? You’ve surpassed your brother.”
“You can see that?”
“I’ve watched the Head of the House from close by for years. Do you think I wouldn’t know?”

Hairen had fought back to back with Akshion longer than anyone else in Bishuken. He was his comrade-in-arms.
Perhaps that was why, though he had never learned Seongsinryu himself, he spoke as though he knew the Bishuken family sword art inside and out.

“Once Seongsinryu reaches the sixth level, you’ll be able to become a Master. By then, you might even take over as Sword Corps leader from your brother.”
“Master…”

His grip on the sword tightened of its own accord.

Master.

It was a word that stirred something deep in the chest just to hear it.
The realm of superhumans that every swordsman dreams of the moment they first grip a blade.
Beings who transcend human limits and shift the tide of battle on their own.
And now Hairen was speaking of such a realm as if it were nothing.

“Four stars would put you at mid-to-upper Expert, I suppose? That’s impressive for your age. No, considering you only recently shed the curse, it’s remarkable.”
“Thank you.”
“Still, don’t grow too proud. Some swordsmen reached the threshold of Master at a breakneck pace and never crossed it in their lives. Others advance slowly but eventually get there. Once you’re drunk on speed, you’ll never wake from it.”

Allen understood why Hairen was bringing this up at all.
Freed from the Curse of Bima and advancing faster than anyone, he was worried about Allen’s condition.
Run too fast, and a fall will hurt badly.
Some never get back up, and some, just as Hairen said, stay stuck on the threshold for the rest of their lives.
Swordsmen who made a name for themselves as prodigies and then faded away without a sound were as countless as the stars in the sky.
Allen lowered his head.

“Thank you for the advice. I’ll keep it in mind.”

It was sound advice.
Desire for the next realm had already been swelling in his heart.
Just as Hairen said, once you’re intoxicated by speed, you lose sight of what lies ahead.

‘That boy is sharp.’

Hairen chuckled softly at the way Allen bowed his head, at the look in his eyes.
It was clear this was no mere polite reply.
Through his words, Allen’s eyes showed that he had truly grasped something.
Some people hear the same advice and let it slide right past them, while others truly take something away from it. Being able to listen to good counsel and actually accept it was a talent in its own right.
And all the more so when the one giving the advice is capable.

The cleanup on the training ground was finished.
In the middle of the cleared practice yard, Hairen beckoned with a flick of his fingers.

“Come on, then.”

He still hadn’t drawn his sword.
Allen didn’t ask why he hadn’t.
By any means necessary, Allen meant to win this bout.

“Very well. Then I’ll-”

Real steel in hand, Allen didn’t hesitate. He surged forward.

“Pardon me.”

Fwoosh!
Ting!

The blade aimed at Hairen’s shoulder was flicked away by his fingers.
As if he had expected exactly this from the start, Allen didn’t so much as flinch. He swung again, and again.

Ting, ting-ting.
Swish-swish-swish!

Sword and fingers kept colliding.
Hairen plucked the edge of the blade away with precision, even within a flurry of strikes too fast for the eye to follow.
To watch it was to feel the tension: one moment’s misjudgment and a finger would be sliced clean off.
Amid the storm of blows.
Hairen’s eyes sparkled with a kind of incredulous amusement.

“Are you fearless, or just foolish? What if you cut off the Grand Leader’s hand?”

Usually, facing an opponent bare-handed like this would give anyone pause, but Allen showed no sign of it.

“Aren’t you going to block them all anyway?”
“What?”
“If you so much as get a scratch on your fingers, you lose.”

Allen wasn’t surprised that Hairen was fighting him with nothing but his fingers.

He hadn’t expected Hairen to draw his sword from the start, either. The gap between them now was as wide as heaven and earth.
He hadn’t expected Hairen to draw his sword from the start, either. The gap between the two of them was the difference between heaven and earth.

‘Just once, while he hasn’t drawn his sword.’

If anything, Allen saw this very moment as an opening.
The difference between one of the continent’s most renowned swordsmen and a mere Squad Leader.
The unavoidable complacency that difference breeds.
Right now. This very moment.

‘I’ll cut.’

Hmmmm.

Then, for the first time, Sword Qi rose along Allen’s blade.
As though he truly meant to sever Hairen’s hand, he swung without a shred of hesitation.

Seongsinryu, First Form.
Watch.

Shwaak!
Jjaeng!

The two blades struck together, sending sparks flying.
It was the first time Hairen had drawn his sword and swung it.
Even a Grand Leader could not bare-handedly block a blade infused with Sword Qi, and one wielding the First Form of Seongsinryu at that.
And that was not the end of it.

Giiiing.

As if he had been waiting for this very moment, Allen already had his next technique ready at the tip of his blade.

Seongsinryu, Second Form.
Downpour.

Kwaaaek!

A fierce surge of Sword Qi swept over Hairen’s body. In an instant it split into dozens of streams that came pouring down like a sudden downpour.
Then something unfolded before their eyes that was hard to believe even as he watched it.
At that moment, Hairen’s sword spread out like a folding fan and scattered every single stream of Sword Qi that came pouring down.

Swish!

Through the gap left by the scattered Sword Qi.
Allen poured everything he had into the strike.

‘I can’t cover a hundred paces in a single step, but-‘

Baekryeonbo, now at its Second Stage.
It closed the distance between the two of them in an instant.

‘At this range, then!’

The two forms he had unleashed earlier had been nothing but a feint for this moment.
Allen’s blade flew toward Hairen’s waist.
But then, in an instant.

Sseuk.

A deep, knowing smile spread across Hairen’s lips.
That was when his sword vanished from in front of Allen’s eyes.
Allen, who had been cutting toward Hairen’s waist, instinctively gripped his sword with both hands.
It was a reflexive decision.

Jjeong!
Woong, woongwoongwoong.

The blade that had been aimed at the waist was knocked aside, and Allen’s feet lifted a hand’s width off the ground.
The force was overwhelming. If he had not gripped the sword with both hands in a panic, he would have lost his grip on it.

Tteong!
Chi-ji-ji-ji-ji.

Allen’s body was thrown backward through the air.
It was not merely being pushed back.
He was the one who had channeled the Sword Qi, yet the wrist that had met the blade throbbed.
Allen tightened his grip on his numbing hand and looked up at what stood before him.
Hairen, gripping a sword that faintly shimmered with a soft green light.
Even though no Mana could be felt from him, the man standing before him seemed like a giant so vast that he filled the entire training ground.

“Haa.”

The sight pulled a sigh out of him without his meaning to let it out.

‘Damn.’

He hadn’t even released his aura.
Just drawing his sword seemed to fill the entire training ground with Hairen’s presence.
Even in his previous life, he’d only felt a presence of that caliber a handful of times.

“I didn’t expect you to draw your sword this quickly.”

Crunch.

Hairen took a step closer to Allen.
He swept his white hair back from his forehead and bared his white teeth.

“Well, well. For a pup with such a baby face, you’re quite something.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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