A group of people left the room and headed to the training hall.
The bald old man who made the proposal was at the forefront, followed by Airn and his party, and finally, Julius, along with Ignet, followed.
It was weird.
After Airn had decisively come into this part of the world, he knew that such things were obviously going to happen.
‘A Proof of skills…’
He remembered the old days when he had displayed his skills to receive his mercenary badge.
And also the time he went to Partizan, and competed against Jet Frost and more.
And the many gladiator battles he did in Eisenmarkt.
Other than that, there were a lot more things. Where people came onto him thinking he was weak. Probably because of his meek-looking appearance and maybe his young appearance too played a part.
‘These people are different.’
However, the people of the Holy Kingdom seemed different.
The people behind didn’t seem to have much expectations from him. However, they were holding back their emotions.
No matter what they had heard, they were going to check the skills of Airn before speaking anything.
And so, the bald man kept walking.
It didn’t feel like the man was trying to break the courage of a young man.
Rather, Airn felt that he had the attitude to seriously judge the ability of a person and respond accordingly.
Airn thought that the man ahead was formidable.
‘Who Is he?’
“That old man, do you know him?”
“… I don’t know.”
Lulu and Ilya had the same question.
Despite the old man not pulling out his sword, all these people knew that he was strong. A feeling that he was a talented person like Ilya Lindsay’s father.
Someone in the continent's strongest 10!
For a moment, they thought that he was the Red Knights Commander, Rigoberto Clark, but then shook their heads.
From what Ilya knew, the Red Knight’s commander wasn’t bald.
In the first place, she didn’t have much information on the Sword Masters.
‘Son, the power of the Holy Kingdom is far greater than most people think.’
She suddenly remembered the conversation her father had with her brother.
It was when she was very young, yet she remembered it vividly.
As the Holy Kingdom’s intervention in the continent grew stronger, several people complained.
Her brother, Carl Lindsay, too said that he didn’t understand it.
Even if Avilius was the most powerful nation, he didn’t think they could possess that much power.
Just looking at the number of Sword Masters right now, however, the average number of Masters in the entire western region was 5. And Avilius had 10 now.
Of course, other powerful priests were also great, but it was true that they were lacking compared to the knights of the five kingdoms.
‘But my father didn’t think so.’
An invisible power.
Ilya gulped, remembering her father, Joshua Lindsay’s words.
So, it was true. The power of the Holy Kingdom was far beyond what one could imagine.
Even Ignet didn’t seem to stand out anymore.
“Are you doing it here?”
Asked the bald man pointing to the middle of the hall. Not a single person could be seen in the place.
Looking at the eyes of the man, which were neither hot nor cold, Airn asked.
“Before we start, can I know your name?”
The bald man looked back. It seemed like he was asking Julius Hul’s consent.
The White Knights commander thought for a moment and then nodded.
“It’s Quincy Myers”
“…”
“I am telling you this because you don’t seem to have a loose mouth, so don’t divulge this anywhere.”
“… yes.”
Airn nodded with an expression that was still stiff.
So was Ilya Lindsay. Lulu, who was looking at the shining bald head, asked.
“Is it someone you know?”
“… commander of the Red Knights.”
“Really? So what?”
“I heard he passed away 10 years ago… now I know.”
Ilya Lindsay nodded her head.
Now she understood. The ten Sword Masters who appeared back then. How come they all look so old?
They were all paladins of the previous generations who were known to have turned their backs on the world.
She looked at them with serious eyes and then looked at Airn.
‘Stay strong, Airn.’
Of course, Airn didn’t feel those feelings from his friend. He couldn’t even hear the cheers of Lulu.
He was completely focused. Not only Quincy Myers, the former commander of Red Knights, but even all the members of the Holy Kingdom present there who were watching him were amazed.
‘Amazing.’
Nothing else but that could be said.
As his skills improved, his eyes improved, and his eyes for seeing aura became more sophisticated.
In the past, he could only see the full amount of Aura, but when his concentration was maxed like now, he could feel the entire flow of it.
And it wasn’t smooth at all.
Nor was it soft.
Even so, he could feel the force of a tsunami around the man.
At that moment, Airn Pareira realized.
It meant that his skills were far below the standards of the subjugation squad that the Holy Kingdom seeked.
“Don’t give up right away.”
Quincy Myers drew his sword. It was a great sword like Airn’s. A force that was as heavy as his body.
And that alone made sweat run down his forehead.
Right, and Airn summoned his great sword.
“Hmm.”
“Oh.”
“That…”
The sword was shining in gold from handle to blade.
Perhaps it was because of the unusualness, but the paladins seemed shocked.
However, Airn didn’t pay any attention to them. He wasn’t even looking at his opponent, Quincy Myers.
Ignet Crescentia.
Still, radiating like a sun.
Seeing her stand proudly without being pushed aside, even as she stood among the strong paladins, Airn realized that he was mistaken.
“You…”
Wooong!
It was the moment when Quincy Myers frowned. The Aura Sword suddenly erupted from Airn’s sword.
The golden aura.
Seeing that dazzling light, the former commander of Red Knights, who was angry at the kid for not looking at him, went quiet.
There was no need for words.
Although he was somebody that worshiped God, he had also given a fair amount of time for the sword.
And to feel the warmth from the sword, Quincy Myers took a firm pause.
“Phew.”
Looking at him with deep eyes, Airn caught his breath.
Even if the skills which were difficult to deal with in practice, it could still be demonstrated if he was given sufficient time.
Recalling the first battle with 101st swordsman, Jet Frost, he concentrated.
Body.
Aura.
The heart of his previous self.
His current mindset.
And the steel and sparks which resulted from it.
And another flame that would make the current flame even hotter.
Airn Pareira, who remembered it, raised his sword.
Woong
“Hm.”
“That is great.”
“ Wasn’t he less than 25 years old? He is surely…”
“He has the right to be confident.”
The moment the aura sword rose, all the 10 Masters there nodded their heads.
Most of the people who were there, were currently retired and were on the journey to spread the will of God to the people.
However, some knights were a little different. Leaving the social world and quietly practicing the sword or wandering around destroying evil. They were supposed to be officially dead, so they now went on to lead a second life.
This was the only thing that could bring them together.
The call of the Devil.
That was the reason why the 10 Sword Masters of Holy King's 'Purification squad' had appeared here, and that was the reason why they weren't extremely shocked with Airn.
It was because the years and experiences they had accumulated over the years had calmed them. But that didn’t mean they were indifferent.
For a young boy of 23, his body was surely well-trained.
Even more impressive than his body was his aura, which made one feel warm.
Smiles appeared on their faces.
It was because they realized that the young man didn’t apply for the subjugation for honor or self-interest, but had really spoken out his mind before.
‘If he grows steadily like this, he will be a great help to the continent.’
‘Amazing. It makes me want to pull him into our Kingdom.’
‘If such a child could be active as a Sword of God and support Ignet, then we would be able to return to God’s arms with peace of mind.’
They all felt happy. Smiles came on their faces and even their eyes. Of course, they didn’t lose focus on the match.
They watched Airn with their eyes open wide, eagerly anticipating the attack.
But it wasn’t done yet.
Airn’s sword, equipped with enough time, was far greater than they thought.
Whoop!
“…!”
“…!”
A strong energy along with the sound of an explosion.
A mysterious power that ordinary people couldn't see with naked eyes was entering the golden aura.
Recognizing that it was the Hero's Sword, one of the Masters looked at Ignet.
And she said,
“I did tell them that I taught them.”
“… but wasn’t that only for 3 weeks?”
“Yes.”
“Then…”
Chiing!
The man asking the question turned his head and looked at Airn, and his eyes widened.
It wasn’t just the 'Hero's Sword.' Some of them were using their heads too much to understand something else, which came from Aura Sword and Hero's Sword.
At that time, Julius Hul, the commander of White Knights who was silent till then, spoke.
“The Five Spirits Divine Technique.”
“That? Ah…”
“What you are thinking is right. It is the energy of spirits… and among them, the metal and fire are prominent. And the metal has been completely controlled.”
“…”
After saying that, Julius Hul kept silent.
His eyes, as he watched the blonde man, were tinged with surprise like everyone else.
But that wasn’t all.
Things weren’t done yet.
The members of the Purification Team, Quincy Myers and Julius Hul.
Airn Pareira, who erased all of the distractions from his mind, opened his eyes.
And gazed at Ignet, who still had a confident expression.
Through the training of his previous life, he had built a will of steel.
Through the journey of his present life, he had embraced the flame. His will to protect the world along with his goodwill. That was the source that made Airn move forward.
But…
'The path of the hero, won't be accepted by all humans'
Wheik!
Another flame bloomed in Airn’s heart.
No, it wasn’t completely new. A small ember that had existed from the beginning that had eaten his heart, now cleared and gradually grew in size.
You didn’t need to compare yourself to others to walk the path of a hero.
That was right. Anyone could walk the path of a hero, and anyone could move for the sake of the world.
Competing with the others was unnecessary in walking down the right path.
But Airn wasn’t just a hero.
Right.
Unlike before, he genuinely liked and loved his sword and his full will to advance to a higher level…
He was truly a 'real swordsman.'
Wheik!
And that swordsman’s heart was speaking.
That he didn’t want to be behind.
He wanted to stand in the same position. He wanted to participate in the subjugation that Ignet joined. And it wasn’t just that.
One day, he wanted to achieve a level that would surprise even her and win after they had a proper fight.
The will to compete with a swordsman.
A heart that was as hot as a hero’s beliefs, breathed new vitality into Airn’s sword.
Whoop!
There was an explosion. And Quincy frowned.
The heat rushing out was unbearable. However, he didn’t close his eyes. To him, the sword held by the young man in front of him was so beautiful.
A finished metal.
A finished flame.
No, seeing Airn wrapped around the flames from the sword, the former Red Knights commander paused for a moment.
A situation in which an attack is likely to start even with the slightest trigger.
And he said with a calm face,
“I lost.”
