I Killed the Player of the Academy - C.218: Garrand the Sword Emperor (3)

→ Garrand The Sword Emperor(3) ←

President Redic Georgio was a man who had somewhat gone through the same generation as the Sword Emperor.

In his childhood, there was a time when an infamous monstrous bull was rampaging around in the West. All the powerful guardians that tried to stop the bull were killed, and right when that demonic beast was getting closer to the royal capital was when he showed up.

The young swordsman Garrand Arden, who had been gaining fame as a rising powerhouse, came to provide support as a representative of the Arden Household of the East.

It was a one-sided victory. The tremendous aura bulging out of his steel-like muscles flew the gigantic bull into the sky.

His fame only continued to rise after that.

Monsters of the decade were all sliced apart by his sword and countless swordsmen followed him out of respect.

Even when Redic reached the age of 40 and became an executive of the Association, the Sword Emperor never grew old.

Actually, his body which had been as big as the mountain had shrunk, and he no longer had the ridiculous amount of aura flowing out of him. Because of that, Redic lamented once, thinking that that was the downfall of his hero.

However, the Sword Emperor did not become any weaker.

When a gigantic bird was scorching a city to ashes from the sky, he simply slashed once to drop it onto the ground.

It was hard to fathom how a swordsman standing on the ground could possibly be able to do that, but that was exactly why the Sword Emperor was a living legend—he was the pinnacle of the Guardian Association and the swordsman representing his generation.

A target of utmost respect and admiration for all knights.

Therefore, the Sword Emperor personally suggesting a duel was a great honor that anyone should immediately bow to… And yet

“…Me? Why would I? I don’t want to.”

Korin Lork turned him down in a flash.

The silence continued for a long time.

There weren’t that many people present in the first place, but even then, it was so silent that not even the sound of a breath could be heard.

“Are you trying to avoid my test?” The Sword Emperor was the one who broke the silence.

“A duel against the Sword Emperor just isn’t a fair deal.”

“It’s just a friendly spar to test your skills.”

“I don’t think it’ll end there.”

When Korin looked at him with a gaze suggesting, “Are you sure you’ll be content with just that?” the Sword Emperor curled one of the corners of his lips down like a child whose lies had been seen through.

“What a boring man.”

There was no way a duel between people like the Sword Emperor and Korin would just end as a normal duel.

Even Alicia tended to sometimes unknowingly cross the line in her utmost concentration, so how would it be any different with the Sword Emperor? It wouldn’t be strange for it to become a life-or-death battle.

That damn old man. He never has a middle ground.

In fact, Korin had a history of almost losing one of his arms in a duel against him in the last iteration. His arm was dangling until he put it back together.

『Magnificent. Another 10 years and it’ll be a sight to behold. Go embrace Lunia as soon as you recover from your wounds. You have this old man’s permission.』

It seemed to have been his way of testing his granddaughter’s partner.

“You need to strike a deal if you want to fight me. You can’t just have it happen with a few words.”

“Huhahaha…! What a daring young man! There are thousands who bring their entire fortune just to see my sword.”

“More importantly, can I ask you a question?”

“Hoh. How shameless after turning down my offer in a breeze.”

“Chairman Eriu Casarr recommended I have a chat with you.”

Eriu Casarr.

The old man’s face went through an immediate change the moment he heard the name of the former chairman of Merkarva Academy, who was pronounced dead.

“Eriu Casarr, huh? Met him a few times when I was young. They say he died recently but well, that’s utter nonsense.”

Garrand said in reminiscence of his past.

There was a part of his response that piqued Korin’s curiosity.

“What do you mean?”

Eriu Casarr was a rune puppet that Erin Danua had made in order to look after the Academy in her sealed state.

Korin obviously knew she wasn’t dead, but why was Garrand so certain about it, despite not knowing the connection between the two?

“That lofty spearman dying to some randoms from the Tower of Mages? Absolutely no chance.”

“…I see.”

“Young man. You seem to know something.”

“No comment. But… he seemed to believe that you would be able to teach me something.”

“Haha. Just what I would expect from him. I’ve learned a lot of great lessons from Eriu Casarr, so it would serve me right to pay that back to his disciple.”

The Sword Emperor opened his palm and reminiscently gazed down at it.

He was reaching 60 years of age and his body was showing signs of it. Although he was still healthy, and he would most certainly go past 100 years with the aura he had built up… his body was still incomparably weaker than how it was in his prime.

“Ever since I began walking down the path of swords, I had been drowned in an unsatiated thirst for power.”

Born as the oldest son of the Arden Household, he trained his innate talents as well as his strength to the extreme. Urged by his hunger for more power, he enhanced his muscles, strength, and devoured elixirs to amplify his aura.

“Everything; be it parents, siblings, status, authority, belongings…! All of that was meaningless. I pursued power alone and was intoxicated by it.

“I remember the time I met that crazy bull from the West. He was pretty big. He was as big as a house so I tried stopping him with my bare body and tossed him away. What I realized then was that he was way too light.

“There was no one back then to fight against me, and I was strong enough to be left behind in the annals of history. Some even called me a god.”

God of Strength.

He was no longer in the realm of humans; he had way too much strength and power, and the young swordsman back then had the right to dare call himself a god.

The Sword Emperor declared.

“I cut down more than a hundred thousand demons! I’ve protected territories beyond what you could possibly see! And I saved at least a million!

“I was the strongest being in existence! Second to none! I had no doubt that I was invincible!

“And that was when I met your master.”

He lifted his sword. Looking at the gleaming blade reflecting the sunlight, he seemed bewitched by the sword as he recalled each and every single thing that happened in the past with utmost concentration.

He was re-manifesting the shocking scene from back then in his mind.

“He was weak. I was looking forward to meeting the chairman of an Academy, but the power residing in his physical body was a fraction of the Great Witch following behind him.”

That was natural because Eriu Casarr was a puppet created with runes that only moved with a small amount of aura and mana.

“However, it was my defeat. The strongest attacks of my sword couldn’t reach him, and my earth-shattering explosion of aura was unable to shake him.

“I finally met the real one.

“Six Ways of the Spear – hidden within that divine spearmanship was a profound truth that I couldn’t grasp.”

After that encounter, Garrand Arden took a completely different route.

The downward strikes that he had been practicing for greater output, as well as elixirs for more aura… He gave up everything.

He simply went back to training the way of the sword.

All to find that hidden “truth”.

“And at last, when my muscles deteriorated and when my aura was no longer enough to cover the earth.”

The Sword Emperor carried his sword,

And slashed down.

It was a swing as gentle as the mountain breeze but—

“Ahh…”

“Uahhh…”

“…”

Everyone there felt something. They felt with their skin the vibration in the atmosphere.

Turning around, they saw that the clouds, the sky, and the world… had been cut into two.

“My sword reached the heavens, thus completing my Heavenly Sword.”

Cutting the sky. After nonchalantly completing that nonsensical feat, he pointed the tip of his sword at Korin.

“What ‘truth’ will you embed in your spear? What is the ‘Domain’ that you wish to reach in your life?”

“…”

Korin knew of 4 different Domains.

Sword Fiend. Thousand Dancing Hands.

A sword that cuts everything within a radius of a kilometer.

Alicia Arden. Infinity Exceeding the Domain.

A teleporting sword that ignores the limitations of distance.

Erin Danua. Void.

A divine spear with no gaps.

Garrand Arden. Severing Heaven.

A divine sword that could cut through the sky.

What is so different about their swords and spears, that they reached a realm transcending the Domain?

“There is only one answer. It is to pursue the ultima.”

“The ultima?”

“Think about just one thing and one thing alone. Combine all of your future aspirations and the Domain into your profound ‘truth’. Only through a harmony of the heart, mind, and body added with your perception, realm, and truth will you reach the ultima.”

“…That is a very ambiguous explanation. Can you make it any simpler?”

“How can you seek an easy answer forward from where you are already at? This is not something that can be learned; you must be enlightened to it yourself.”

You must be enlightened to it yourself.

That was the same thing that Erin had said, and Korin was reminded that he had to pursue the answer himself.

“If you don’t want to fight, that’s fine too. I was intrigued by the prospect of someone else that can see the Domain, but looks like you’re not there yet. Show me that Sun of yours already.”

“…If you wish.”

Korin manifested the Sun as he wanted.

A tremendous amount of mana filled the world as a ball of blazing heat appeared above them.

In front of the comparatively small yet massive Sun that was heating up the world, Garrand Arden muttered with a click of his tongue.

“The Sun, huh? I’d been wanting to cut it down for a while.”

As soon as he sliced down with the sword…

“Huaak…!”

“M, my word…!”

The Sun was bisected into halves.

“That’s it for the test. You can do whatever you want for the evaluation, President.”

Garrand Arden turned around after finishing his words. But before disappearing off, he said as if he suddenly remembered something.

“If you want both of my granddaughters, you must complete your ultima beforehand. Then I will lend a hand with your marriage to Lunia and Alicia. I don’t mind giving you Arden.”

“…I swear there is something wrong with all of your views on marriage.”

“Hahaha…! Heroes love women! Having an abundance and seeking even more is the right and duty of the strong!”

He walked off after leaving those words behind, and that was when Alicia approached from a distance.

“H, huu… Mr. Korin. Are you going to do it?”

“Huh? Yeah, of course.”

Korin had to become stronger; even stronger than Garrand the Sword Emperor and Erin Danua, his master.

Because his final goal was the worst enemy, Tates Valtazar; and if embedding his profound truth into his spear was a requirement to defeat him… Korin had to definitely make it happen.

“H, hmm… I, I see. To receive permission… from grandpa… Mhmm~. N, not bad.”

“Alicia?”

“I’m cheering for you! Good luck!”

“Umm… R, right.”

Korin was really afraid of the Arden Household.

He was reminded once again how Sophia, who married into the household, was the only one sane person there.

***

Korin Lork officially became a Unique Grade guardian.

Hua Ran and Marie also became one, and Alicia received the evaluation of a semi-Unique Grade.

That was unavoidable because Alicia had lower specs in comparison to everyone else.

Unique Grade guardians were so rare that some generations went on without a single one of them appearing, and yet three of them had appeared at once. This was enough to create an incredible commotion, but there was something else that called for even more attention.

“I will be the president of the Central Guardian Association from now on. Any objections?”

“…”

“…”

No one stepped forth, which was nothing abnormal.

The succession of the presidential position went on without any hindrance.

President Redic himself was transferred into the position of a high-ranking executive of the South, and although Korin’s Sun had been cut into two by the Sword Emperor, not a single one that witnessed it doubted the destructiveness of the Sun.

They might have had an excuse to raise an objection if there was a political method to stop him, but the new president was one who had the full-on support of the Dunareff to the South, and the Chapel of Zeon to the West.

He had the trinity of power, authority, and wealth, so who could possibly turn him down just because he was young?

“I cannot allow this! You young brat!”

Actually, there was one.

The man seemed discontent by the fact that the presidential position, which he had been eyeing, had been taken away by a random brat all of a sudden.

“And who might you be?”

“Grade 1 Knight, Gale Bogman! I devoted my life to the Association for 30 whole years! Do you think I will allow a young kid from who knows where to suddenly become the next president? As if!”

“Why? What are you so discontent with?”

“I admit you’re strong! But what else do you have apart from that?”

“For example, money? Authority? Connections?”

“Kuhk…!”

Gale couldn’t find the words to say.

The new president would be supported by the New Faith and the Dunareff.

In addition to that was how the previous president and the top executives must have received some kind of beneficial treatment; they didn’t disagree with an 18-year-old kid becoming the next president.

They were so quiet that it was unnatural. Even the royal court didn’t disagree and simply sent a messenger to congratulate him.

“B, but… Someone without achievements cannot become the…”

Gale stopped his own tongue in the middle of his sentence.

It was true that the new president didn’t have a heap of achievements, but the ones he showed until now were all significant.

King of Iron Mountain, saving the Saintess, as well as the might he displayed during the Mound incident. Every single one of them was a heroic legend.

He had done things that hundreds of guardians might not be able to do, with a small group of people.

There was no one who could deny the fact that this man was a Unique Grade and one of the strongest guardians in the history of the Association.

“Marie Dunareff is the new president of the Southern Association, and Hua Ran is the president of the Western Association. You know that, right?”

Of course.

Immediately after becoming Unique Grade, they used their right to immediately become the presidents of each branch.

With just one document, it took them less than one week to shut everyone’s mouth using their wealth and authority.

On top of that, because the branch to the East was practically under Sword Master Lunia Arden’s control, their group had basically taken over the entirety of the Association, except for the northern branch that had less authority in comparison due to their borders touching the Northern Kingdom.

That was also one of the reasons why the old executives didn’t dare raise a voice against Korin Lork.

“I command in the name of the president. Tell each branch to pick out 400 to put on standby.”

“F, four hundred? It would be over a thousand then!”

“That is more than a quarter of our entire manpower! What are you trying to do with all those guardians…?”

“It’s all~ a part of a big plan.”

“The branches won’t agree to…”

“Wow~ what a coincidence. Marie, Hua Ran, and Lunia. They’re all part of my guardians guild. All of them are my friends. They’ll do something about it.”

“…”

“…”

The executives had no idea what this new president was trying to do. With all those guardians, it was possible to overturn the Kingdom itself.

Was he plotting a rebellion? But that couldn’t be. It wasn’t a secret that the Saintess, the one in line for the throne, was trying to court the new president.

This isn’t going to work!

Of course not! How much money will we lose from 1,200 guardians stopping their activities?!

All the branches are going to oppose him. There is no way they would agree to that when there’s not even a war happening…

“Oh, by the way,” Korin suddenly started. “I’m going to quit my post in 1 year’s time. I’m going to hand in my retirement letter to the royal court ahead of time. When I retire, I’m going to pick someone to become the next president. So… I’m counting on you all!”

“…”

“…Pardon?”

“What I’m saying, is that you better conduct yourself well.”

If you want to become the next president, that is.

“…”

The conference room fell dead silent.

***

We pretty much took over the East, West, South, and the center. All that was left was to wait until the end of this winter and prepare for the mythology-worthy battle.

I was going to hand in the retirement letter ahead of time for the retirement in 1 year, so they would probably all work hard to become the next president.

Although I had to become a president because it was necessary, I didn’t have time to waste managing the Association. It would be better to finish what I had to do and leave the post to someone else.

I did officially become the next president, but I still had to greet the royal family and receive their official permission.

“Haa~. Everything you do creates a commotion.”

“My deepest apologies, Your Majesty.”

My rebellion to stop Miruam from destroying Mound, the use of my Legal Immunity, and now I had even become the president of the Central Guardian Association. King David looked three years older as he looked at me with a sigh.

“I’ve heard the story from my oldest daughter. It’s hard to believe but… there is no way that child would lie about a ‘revelation from the lord’, so…”

“Haha…”

So that’s how Estelle explained it, huh?

Recently, Estelle seemed to be busy traveling in and out, trying to idolize Danann. After killing a large number of cardinals and the pope to become the sole representative of the Order, she was now even meddling with their doctrine.

All with the excuse of, “This is what the lord said. I heard it.”

Because she was the child of miracles that was said to be connected with the god, there was nothing they could do apart from going, “I see…”

“A great evil is fast approaching. We must prepare for it.”

“Was Miruam… a part of that?”

“Apologies for my frankness, but it is true that the 2nd Princess had been on their side.”

“…It must be thanks to you that she stepped out of that. I see… her hatred was that deep…”

King David continued after a sigh.

“Anyway, Baron Korin… Or should I call you President now.”

“Whichever you prefer, Your Majesty.”

“Do you have any plans of marrying one of my daughters?”

“…Pardon?”

W, what is wrong with everyone? Isn’t a father-in-law normally against marriage? Isn’t it normal for them to act like Duke Marde?

“Actually, just take them both. Just be the next king.”

“Your Majesty!?”

What in the world is wrong with everyone? Am I the only normal one here!?