Chapter 121
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Standing in the wilderness of a thousand swords thrust into the ground is a lone man.
He’s a handsome man with blonde hair. His equipment is similar to mine. At a glance, I can tell his plate armor is of good quality, protecting vital areas without hindering movement.
「It’s been a while.」
The man says, raising his hand slightly towards us.
I don’t ask, 「Who might you be?」 There’s no need. I already know.
「It’s been a while for you too.」
We exchange light greetings as if we’re old friends meeting after a long time.
I’ve only seen someone with such an aggressive sword aura once before. Eris finally seems to realize it too—
「No way! Are you the Dragon Bone Swordsman from back then?!」
She exclaims in shock.
「Fufu. You finally figured it out, my rival.」
It’s not surprising that Eris didn’t recognize him right away. We call him the Dragon Bone Swordsman, but his body isn’t the dragon bone construct we encountered in the Blade Dungeon.
「What is it? Are you curious about my body?」
He asks casually, as if talking to an acquaintance.
「Of course. If it weren’t for that ridiculous sword aura, I wouldn’t believe you’re the same person from back then.」
The Dragon Bone Swordsman nods.
「I see. Well, that aside, please call me ‘No-Skill’ for now.」
That name sounds familiar.
It’s the nickname of a swordsman who, out of a sense of duty for a night’s lodging and a meal, faced off against the Ultra Disaster-level monster ‘Unbreakable Dragon’ to protect a small town, sacrificing his life in the process.
Originally a derogatory term, ‘No-Skill’ has now become synonymous with the hero who saved the town out of a sense of honor and humanity.
「’No-Skill’ is both my nickname and the name of my only skill. When I use my ‘No-Skill’ skill, my opponent can’t use any skills except those I acknowledge.」
In other words, to fight him, only pure combat ability is required.
「The real me no longer exists in this world.」
As if reading my thoughts about who he is then, he adds,
「The me here is just a copy created by the dungeon.」
A copy? But he has self-awareness and—
「Self-awareness is like a small boat drifting on a vast ocean. The information including my self-awareness is—」 No-Skill stops mid-sentence, or rather, he can’t continue.
「There seems to be some security in place, so I can’t talk about it in detail. But, well, this sword I have and—」
He raises his sword. Illuminated by starlight, it looks identical to my Gram.
「—the one you have are the same sword. They’re both copies of the Magic Sword Gram I used to wield.」
Except for the slight difference in color—mine being more predominantly black—they indeed appear to be identical swords.
「It might get confusing with both being called Magic Sword Gram, so let me give them names. Since they’re both fake… How about ‘Gram Copy’ for my Gram, and ‘Reprint Gram’ for yours?」
「’How about’… I don’t mind, but…」
「Well, I think you can understand that I’m just a copy of the original from the fact that there are two identical swords.
As for the previous me, the dungeon mixed up ‘the Unbreakable Dragon I defeated’ and ‘me,’ resulting in that mess. I was ridiculously strong, but I couldn’t think straight or use my techniques properly. It was terrible. A sword isn’t just about raw power, you know.」
He speaks almost as if he’s singing, and I’m not sure if he’s explaining to us or talking to himself.
「This time, as the dungeon tried to summon me again, I managed to appear in my own body instead of that ugly form.」
He laughs triumphantly.
「And there’s a reason I called you two here. The little miss over there defeated me before. And you, young man, are clearly a superior wielder compared to the miss back then.」
The sword aura emanating from him intensifies even further.
「Well, shall we begin?」
He points his sword at us.
「I don’t mind who goes first! Come!」
It seems he wants to fight one-on-one.
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「Please let me go.」
Eris bows her head to me.
「In this Sealed Dungeon, I’ve only managed to clear out small fry…」
I silently listen to her.
「Of course, that’s due to my lack of ability, but still, I want to contribute to conquering the Sealed Dungeon. Will you give me this chance once more?」
If she was simply eager to make a name for herself, I would have refused. But I don’t see any such shallow motives in her. If anything, she seems deeply troubled by something.
「Alright. I’ll leave it to you, Sword Saint.」
In response to my answer,
「I won’t let you down.」
She responds with a determined expression.
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There are no opening remarks.
As Eris leaps forward, it signals the start of the battle.
No-Skill meets her fiery assault with his own sword.
The sound of clashing swords echoes repeatedly.
No-Skill’s swordplay is flawless. More accurately, he’s a 「swordsman with multiple sword techniques.」 To my eyes, he appears capable of adapting to any sword style by unleashing techniques that seem to belong to different people from one moment to the next.
It’s said that in his past life, he dedicated his entire existence to the sword. Whether asleep or awake, all he thought about was swordsmanship. It’s not surprising that someone like him would have incorporated the strengths of various others into his own style.
On the other hand, Eris was once a practitioner of orthodox swordsmanship.
She used to practice the Sword Style, the same as the Royal Knight Order. But I know that the current Eris is no longer just a Sword Style swordsman.
There seems to be no difference in the sharpness of their swords.
「Hah!!」
Eris bends her small frame to the extreme, staying close to the ground, and launches a high-speed thrust from No-Skill’s blind spot, gripping the pommel.
This ferocity is one of her true strengths. It’s not something you’d see in mere orthodox swordsmanship.
No-Skill’s evasion is a split second too slow, and he loses the armor on his shoulder.
Based on the Sword Style, Eris freely manipulates intense strength and fluid flexibility at top-class speed. This is the true nature of her sword technique, the Eris Style.
「My, what an unruly filly you are.」
No-Skill smiles faintly.
It’s clear he still has room to spare.
「How about this then?」
He says as he forces their swords into a bind.
While No-Skill has the advantage in build, making him seem superior in arm strength, Eris skillfully withdraws for a moment to break the bind—and then launches a reverse strike to the torso—!!
「Well done. Swordsmanship really is fun.」
No-Skill grins, having quickly inserted his sword to prevent being cut in half from the torso.
I’m concerned about Eris’s expression, which is in stark contrast to his.
Despite being in a situation where a single mistake could be fatal, No-Skill swings his sword with apparent joy, while Eris’s expression grows increasingly grim as time passes.
They exchange blows at high speed, the clashing of their swords creating a relentless back-and-forth that doesn’t even allow time to breathe.
Even in such an extreme situation, Eris Gladius should have been able to smile—or so I thought.
At this point, I feel that Eris’s fiery sword has gained even more sharpness. However, I can no longer sense the fluid flexibility that is another essential part of her nature.
It was by freely manipulating both of these aspects that she defeated No-Skill last time.
Her ultimate technique, the Zenith of Double-Edged Swords, requires both strength and flexibility.
The match-up before my eyes is between two masters.
Even exchanging a single blow must be incredibly taxing.
Neither of them seems to have much room to spare.
Often, in situations like this, the end is near.
For some reason, I have a bad feeling.
Just then, Eris’s sword pushes back No-Skill’s blade. The impact throws him off balance.
「Eris!!」
I want to shout 「Run!」—but the words don’t come out.
Time seems to slow down.
Thinking this is the end, Eris strikes a sharp blow towards No-Skill—but a slippery, water-like sword prevents it—it’s a technique Eris once showed—but it’s No-Skill who uses it—Eris’s sword is caught by No-Skill’s Gram Copy and flung high into the air.
「That was fun.」
No-Skill says as he swings his merciless blade at her.
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