181 – To the Wire (5)
Duran’s eyes widened.
“Unbelievable…Unbelievable…!”
My voice trembled. It was that threatening.
A threatening flame that seems to burn everything up. An unimaginable amount of terrible destruction lay dormant in the greatsword that Zahard slung over his shoulder.
I felt it. It felt like tingling through the armor.
Those who thought they were ephemera are now spreading wings that can never be ignored.
“How?!”
That power I’ve seen before. The power that he could barely subdue unscathed only by joining forces with his guardians was unfolding before his eyes.
But the restraints were still there. The forest queen’s spell to seal her holy power was still active.
Then this power is…
“Isn’t it… The holy power?!”
Jerbug.
The sound of footsteps echoes. Duran hesitated involuntarily and stepped back.
Our eyes met. Eyes dying desperately. But for some reason the light doesn’t go out.
There’s no way I could use this much power casually. Duran had guessed without even realizing it.
Life.
The power to burn the soul.
“…I am.”
The eyes of one who struggles to the point of damnation.
“…I am!”
Duran raised his sword. He growled and denied his shaking heart.
He didn’t back down. If this is the case, it’s just confrontation.
I’ll hit you on the floor again. Don’t get rid of it without a trace
I…!
“It wasn’t wrong…!”
“As you please…”
Zahard muttered. His voice was a bit weak.
But it was correct. The pronunciation was not muffled, and he was looking straight ahead.
“…You can talk as you please. Stupid I will go there now.”
Duran’s sword moved. At the same time, Zahard’s new model was also shaken.
Quaaa!!!!
Deafening explosion. Sparks flew between the two as they clashed swords. The swept background was completely erased.
A scene of destruction. A close encounter that takes your breath away.
Duran opened his eyes wide at the similar magnitude of power. It wasn’t like this before…
The swords are definitely facing each other.
He’s against himself.
Determination to the extent of burning one’s life. The mind flows through the sword.
That’s for the best.
Something you can hold in your hand after being prepared to risk your life.
“…Damn it!”
Duran bit his teeth. The hand that held his sword was strong.
Really…
Is there really no choice but to kill it!
“Zahard!!!”
“Concentrate. Duran.”
The enemy whispered.
“Do not die.”
. . .
「Duran. Do you know the name of this flower?」
「I don’t know.」
「I call it the evening primrose… It is his favorite flower. And…It’s also my favorite flower.”
The sword moves. Broken flames scatter in all directions.
The trampled tree hollowed out. Duran ran.
Quaaa!!
Deafening explosion. Shards of broken trees flew in all directions. In the suffocating heat, Duran moved.
The order must be fulfilled.
We must capture prisoners.
That’s what the queen ordered.
「I want to see him.」
I can do anything for you.
I would even give up my life for the sake of Your Majesty.
To love.
To respect.
I am prepared to shake off anything.
Duran gritted his teeth. He deflected the flames of destruction that crawled through his blade.
A breathtaking workshop.
The mixed hands go over a hundred. The flames of destruction piled up one by one burn part of the sword.
The sword, like the alter ego of the World Tree, is partially fragmented. Duran opened his eyes wide.
Damn it…
This bastard’s best is never something to laugh at!
「When you sleep, your mind goes to sleep. Then you can escape from reality for a while.”
「Why don’t you take up a different hobby?」
「I tried. But… I keep thinking of him. Duran. You probably don’t know What kind of emotion is this?”
I know.
I already know, so I can’t say anything.
“…Zahard!!”
Sparks rose from the crossed swords. Duran clasped his hand.
A huge underground cavity. The roots of numerous old trees nestled in it poured down like rain. The bombardment of the ancient forest, which simply surpassed metal in strength, ate away Zahard in an instant.
But the paladins did not collapse. It only burns brighter.
Kwajik.
The scattered blades ate the roots. It was completely cut and crushed.
The collapse happened. Everything in sight was shattered.
Fragments of falling trees. Duran’s vision was briefly blocked.
The paladin did not miss the moment.
A blazing sword attack attacked Duran. Duran managed to react to the momentary missed sight.
Quaaagh!
“Keuugh?!”
I forcibly twisted the sword to stop it from exploding into my body. A shock that was not fully offset caused Duran to fall into an underground cavity.
Infinitely.
Into the infinite darkness.
「Why are you not him?」
Damn it.
A voice from the damn memory!
From noble mtl dot com
The sword driven through the cliff forced Duran’s body to stop falling. His protruding foot kicked the wall.
Duran’s sword, which rose again enough to fall, shone. The blazing green light roared loud enough to devour the ancient forest.
A burst of powerful magic. Hundreds of years of accumulated nothingness shined.
Even the shadows that can eat away the brilliant flames are beyond…
The demonic sword in front of me exploded.
Quad deed dede dede dede deude deuk!!!
「Thank you…Duran.」
When I put the evening primrose in my hand, he couldn’t speak.
Me too…
I like those flowers too.
“A line must be drawn… A line must be drawn!”
The sword of the forest knight drew a huge line in the underground cavity. The smashed wall caved in.
The blazing sword slashed all around. Amidst the sound of collapsing, Duran moved forward.
But he was empty.
The sound of spitting out was so empty.
And that fact… Duran knew better than anyone else.
But he forced himself to swallow the emptiness. He swung his sword even more fiercely.
That’s how I lived.
I have always lived like that.
“I…It was something I couldn’t do! I was born as a fake body from the beginning! What she loves is someone else! I… I can’t make her happy!”
The demonic sword hit the whole body. Duran did not lose. The more he was hit, the more he threw his sword.
I put more power into the exploding mana. The outstretched sword spread like a net.
Fragmented Rock. Erased landscape.
Duran screamed. I put my heart into a silent scream.
A broken heart.
An unquenchable thirst.
“I…I am not the World Tree…”
More strength goes into the hand holding the sword.
“I am…Not the real Duran…!”
Even the flames of destruction died down in the bursting heart.
“A person born as a fake…How can he become real!!!!”
Quagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagagaga!!!
The bounced Zahard crashed into the wall. Duran gasped for breath. He gripped the cracked sword even harder.
I made my way through the dust. He gritted his teeth and straightened his staggering body.
Damn it.
Damn it.
Strong. Opponent is strong. Equivalent to yourself.
An enemy that cannot be easily defeated.
It’s like damn fate. No matter how much you kill them, they rise like tumbleweeds.
It’s tangled up like a beggar!
“Come out! Zahard! I know you won’t die from just that!”
Duran let out a scream. He vomited out his heart and brought out all the ugly emotions contained within.
“Teach me… Teach me! What could I have done?! What should I have done! Tell me what you are proud of!”
The end of the voice shakes.
“I… I was born as a fake and imitated the World Tree! I’ve been imitating my whole life… The damned knight of the forest! It’s… That way it’s wrong? That’s what His Majesty always wanted from me! What’s so wrong with accepting a request from someone you love!”
“If you’re going to do it, imitate it properly. A bastard who clumsily imitated… Why the f*ck…”
A voice from the dust raised me up. A silent flame split the dust in two.
Falling fireworks. The huge greatsword grew even taller.
Hwangwang Banjo.
The candle right before it went out burned even hotter.
“I told you. Baby … Think of it as independently. Wasn’t it that hard to think for yourself instead of just listening to the queen?”
“That’s the result! You f*cking bastard!”
“Yes. You’re an empty-headed bastard. Rather curse Let go of all your emotions. Hundreds of years of old feelings…”
The greatsword moved again.
“If I accept everything, my head won’t go back!”
Quaaa!!!!
Duran’s mind flew away in an instant. When she got back to her place, she was pinned against a wall.
Her shock pierced her body. What is this? What the hell…
Did you blow it…?
This is me?!
“Everything uuu!!!!”
Duran’s sword flashed in the screams he vomited.
“It’s just meaningless!!!!”
「Duran. You know… no.”
「That lake…was very pretty…」
「What are you thinking about right now?」
「If only I had known your feelings a little earlier…」
「I’m fake. Duran. Do you know that feeling too?”
「Does a created person have a heart?」
「The only thing I know how to do… Is to do my best for that person.」
「Will that work?」
Collect.
「…Is that really going to work?」
Clash your heart.
“Zahard!!!”
The sword that fell from the shock cries as if it would break at any moment. Duran gritted his teeth. He pushed the power as he had in his sword for the final blow.
“This… This is my best! It’s the best effort you’ve been talking about!!!”
“Bugs.”
The fiery sword burns greatly. Hugeness beyond reason. It devours a far-flung huge space and sings of destruction.
“Think. Duran.”
Duran’s sword moved. Mixed with the outpouring emotions, it emits emerald-colored light.
A sword that burns more than ever. An impossible sword that pours out from limit to limit.
“That’s…”
The outstretched foot resonates loudly in the underground cavity.
“Is it really your best?”
…I am.
「Duran.」
「Duran.」
「Duran.」
「Duran.」
「…Duran.」
I…!
「Thank you. Really. This flower…I will cherish it for the rest of my life. Continue in the future.”
The light bursts. Part of the underground cavity collapses.
The flame that swallowed even the huge sound burns up.
Duran stepped his foot into the flames.
Best.
What is that?
What you really want to do is…
What is it?
. . .
The sound stopped. Dirt fell from the shaking ceiling.
The tip of Duran’s sword shook. Without being able to hit Zahard’s head right in front of him, he froze as it was.
“…Why.”
A vague question asked him.
“Why…Stopped?”
I turned my head. The fiery sword, which could have split his body in half, had stopped. Just an inch. Now that the burning alone was painful, the paladin’s blow was enough to blow him away.
“You stopped first. Baby.”
Zahard laughed.
Just like the time when we talked about love seriously.
“I haven’t heard the answer yet.”
“……”
Duran’s fingertips trembled. The sword made from the roots of the World Tree, which had begun to crumble, slowly turned to dust and scattered.
“…I am.”
I won.
Obviously won…
I lost.
Blood gushed from Zahard’s mouth. The flames all over her body seemed to be extinguished at any moment.
“Come on, Zahard?!”
“Answer me…You bastard…”
Zahad supported his body with a greatsword driven into the ground. His eyes were still looking at Duran.
“Is this… Your best?”
“…I…”
Duran stared blankly at the hand where the sword had disappeared.
What is the answer?
What do I want to do?
Squeeze your heart out. From the moment he had no sword to grasp, he was no knight. He couldn’t even become a forest knight, and he lost his right to serve the queen right after he was defeated.
Duran, not the Forest Knight.
The fake-born ancient spirit moved his mouth.
Can you get the truth even if it is fake?
Even if it’s a fragment of the heart… Is it possible to convey it?
“Spit it out. Just.”
The paladin whispered in front.
“Is that… Your best…?”
A voice.
The voice came out on its own.
“Ah… It is…!”
The answer came out of his open mouth. The true heart that had been hidden all along poured out.
“I… Want to save Your Majesty…! I can’t let her die! Even if that’s His Majesty’s will… I… I…”
A word I couldn’t say as a knight.
A word that would never have been spoken by the incarnation of the World Tree.
“I can’t let her go, her, her… Like this…!”
But…
Words that can be said when it comes to ‘Duran’.
Duran gasped. He asked him
“Zahard…Fake…Can the heart…Be real…?”
“Is it possible? Step up.”
The paladin, leaning on the fiery sword, laughed helplessly.
“In the first place… Is there a fake or real thing about the heart?”
Sunlight pouring through the broken ceiling illuminated Duran.
Standing in the dark, Zahard whispered.
“It’s all real. All of your feelings. Therefore…”
A weakly outstretched fist hit Duran’s chest.
“…Now…It’s a face worth looking at…”
Took.
“But… Ha…”
The voice he spat out collapsed.
“I have to go out… But… My body… Why… Is this…”
The paladin’s body fell to the floor without strength. The fiery sword completely lost its shape and disappeared into the air.
Duran’s eyes widened.
“Zahard…? Zahard?!”
I hurriedly laid him down. However, the disintegration of the body, once started, did not stop.
A fiery sword.
The evil spirit from which it came from is clinging to his body like a parasite.
“What the hell…?!”
I am dying. The power obtained at the cost of his life and soul is consuming him.
The demonic sword has already completely hidden its form. However, the loss of the body does not go away. It wraps around his soul as if it clings to it and eats it down to the bone.
A strange phenomenon in which the sword itself is parasitic to the body.
“Oops… Such an ending…”
This is the person who taught me his sincerity by giving himself.
Duran gritted his teeth. He tried to heal him with his spirit powers.
But I can’t. The energy of the demonic sword, which even eroded the very root of existence, is flowing all over the body.
This, once the restraints are released…!
“…Get out of the way.”
A voice broke through the silence. Duran turned his head.
Silver hair was scattered. The woman kneeling in front of him leaned over.
Zahad narrowed his eyes. She laughed weakly.
“Your Highness… Somehow… It seems…”
“Arpina is enough.”
She leaned over.
“Don’t think about dying. Zahard. Even if you want to die… I won’t let you go.”
A mouth that fits naturally. The forest knight who was watching opened his eyes wide.
The holy power of the sun filled the surroundings.
According to the original intention of mc going to the academy but now it seems too far away…
Yeah dude teh whole thing is a mess ad author drags a lot