To capture the castle, an attacker would need more than three times the defending force of the castle.
This saying has been established since time immemorial. The defending side can observe the opponent even from a seated position, i.e., there was no need for them to overdo it.
Various preparations could be made before the attacking side struck, so to break through, the attackers had to charge under pressure.
This phenomenon also applied when it came to fights between swordsmen.
There was a saying that offense is the best defense, but it is not easy for someone with relatively weak skills to take the initiative.
Before starting the fight, Carl had made a level-headed decision…to endure.
No matter how fast the opponent would be, he thought that he had to be calm to break through the attacks, and have a solid defense to inflict a critical blow.
‘Ultimately, I have to move according to the gaps in the attacks. The opponent has to take several steps to change directions, but I can tackle it with one step.’
So, he blocked.
He kept blocking again and again.
He thought that if he could endure until the old and sick body of Khun got tired, he would ultimately win. If it was when Khun was in his heyday, Carl wouldn’t even dare try attempting such a thing.
But he realized that it was still a mistake.
He looked at the old man who coughed blood and had his arms blown off.
There was no evidence of tiredness or exhaustion in his eyes.
Rather, he began to handle Carl’s sword of darkness with faster movements than before.
Shhh.
Even his footsteps couldn’t be heard. There were no traces of it on the ground. It was as if the man didn’t even exist.
Shh!
“Kuak!”
A figure appeared on the right of the opponent, and a sword cut through.
Woong,
As the sword fell on him incredibly fast, he groaned in pain.
It was a ruthless and powerful attack which most sword masters couldn’t react to. Khun, who appeared a dozen meters away, burst into laughter and blinked.
He passed by again, this time cutting the right thigh of Carl.
“Kuaaak!”
He was angry.
Although there were cuts on his body, no blood flowed from them. His body, after he had made a deal with the devil,, had already transcended the realm of human beings, so wounds of this size would regenerate in a single breath.
Even if the opponent continued to threaten him with such attacks, he could very safely live through this. Unlike him, blood was flowing down continuously from Khun’s body.
But Carl knew that he couldn’t drag it on.
He didn’t want it to.
The aura.
The Physical strength.
The sharpness of senses and the swordsmanship. All of these were superior to Khun’s. The only thing Carl lacked in comparison was speed.
But he was being pushed this far back because of one difference?
Like a child being teased by an adult?
“Ahhhh…!”
Chu….
The 15th time he was hit by Khun’s attack, Carl changed his form. And as a result, darkness began to grow from the dark sword he was holding.
3 meters, 5 meters, 7 meters…
The aura sword which soared about 10 meters high resembled a devil which returned to the earth from the realm of the Devils.
Hellfire flashed in the eyes of the demon and lava gushed from his mouth.
But Khun was calm.
Even if the opponent’s hair changed from silver to grey and grey to black. Beyond that, even if the entire body of the opponent was dyed in darkness, he didn’t stop smiling.
And he said.
“… do you know the story about the two wolves which live in the human heart?”
“…”
Carl didn’t answer.
A question which he asked him even before, but Carl felt no reason to answer it.
Carl’s only purpose was to take Khun’s life and secure his body. He had no interest in doing anything else which was why this was even more annoying.
He wanted to tear the old man’s mouth which kept forcing him to answer things. His sword which was filled with darkness seemed angry too.
Khun looked at him.
Similar to the actions of his longtime rival Ian, Khun looked at the heart of the other person.
Even in the burning heat, the abyss he saw within seemed endless.
The moment he was going to talk about the black wolf.
Kwakwakwak!
Carl’s attacks poured in.
A sword strike descended upon him with such tremendous power that it seemed it could change the flow of the match.
Carl was filled with anger, and his sword wanted to cut him down right away. Khun’s place, the trees and the rocks. Even the animals in the sky couldn’t escape it.
The shock wave which spread far and wide, all but erased the surrounding areas.
Haaa, haa.
After that, Carl, whose emotions had subsided, made a worried expression belatedly.
Killing Khun didn’t matter, what was important was that he had to secure Khun’s body.
‘Well? If Khun’s body is hurt bythe attack, then…’
… such thoughts didn’t last long.
Standing tall, Carl’s steps stopped.
And he looked with disbelief. There was an old man slowly walking towards him through the scattered stone and dust.
He had a relaxed form and a smile on his face.
“Like I said… a man is born with two wolves in his heart.”
“…”
“One is a black one which represents the negative energy. The self-burning anger, guilt and the inferiority which grabs the growth of that person by its ankles…”
Staggering a bit, Khun continued to walk.
The sword of the opponent didn’t move like before. It was due to the excessive consumption of power.
But what was more worrying was the appearance of the opponent.
The footsteps of the old man seemed lighter than before or maybe it seemed like he was free from the weight of the world. That in turn, weighed on Carl’s heart.
Hesitating, Carl took a step back.
Not caring, the old man kept walking. The story didn’t stop, and his mouth kept talking about the white wolf.
How it represented joy, generosity, bravery, and how it united with the spirit of improvement and fighting spirit.
How it shines as beautiful as the white snow on top of the mountain.
“… the two wolves I spoke of are close friends, so they fight with each other without missing a day. Sometimes it is the black that wins and sometimes it is the white. But even those two who fail once and win other times, still win and lose permanently one day. The loser is kicked out and the victor remains in the heart and settles there. And it keeps getting bigger.”
“…”
“Which side do you think will win?”
“What is the…”
“It is the one who feeds them.”
The old man didn’t listen to Carl and continued. He stopped after that and looked at Carl with cold eyes.
“… I can’t fully empathize with what happened to you or the pain you went through.”
Khun raised his right arm.
No, it wasn’t even an arm. His body didn’t seem normal anymore. But it didn’t seem weird.
“But… after all, it was you who fed them, and it is you who fed that black wolf.”
Uhh.
The aura sword which grew changed. The light wasn’t strong, and it seemed faded.
Even fainter than the lightest stars in the night sky. The color of the sword, which could only be seen at the outlines, was like glass.
However, somehow, the unsightly sword felt even more terrifying than before.
All of a sudden, he moved and took a stance.
It was different from before.
The black aura from Carl’s sword which was focusing on defense, didn’t soar up like before.
It blocked the front as if it was a shield. No, it went beyond just that and tried to move around Carl so that it could block any attack.
It looked as if a huge black veil was around Carl.
In a way, it was a bigger sight than the aura sword he used before, but Khun's face was filled with regret instead of surprise.
He mumbled.
“This is it, but you didn’t even have the courage to be scolded.”
“Hahah, hahaha…”
Cough!
The old man laughed and then coughed blood again. The amount of blood was less than before.
But that didn’t mean his condition improved. He felt it too, there wasn’t much time left.
But it was fine.
There were no empty words nor pretentiousness. It wasn’t a feeling of desperation, nor was it an apology for the wretched Carl.
He looked back on his own life.
The obsession he couldn’t shake off even when he thought he had escaped from it.
‘Ian.’
He didn’t feel inferior to him. He wasn’t jealous of him.
What made Khun terrified to the end was that he had used his entire life devoted to taking down Ian… what made him terrified was the fear which came from being worthless.
‘No more.’
He laughed.
It wasn’t a loud laugh. It was a light one and it seemed more like a smile.
Two years back he realized that there were so many more important things in life. Nevertheless, he acted lukewarmly to everything.
Khun thought till there.
Taking a deep breath, Khun stopped walking and looked ahead. He took the stance of holding the sword and gave strength to his body.
His aura was insufficient, his aura operation was like he was inexperienced, and the power of his sword was less than Carl’s… then was speed all that he had?
It is fine.
That is enough.
He took one step at a time.
All people on the continent had said it. They had all praised him who had reached the Sword Master level.
However, there are areas where even such great people like Sword Masters couldn’t reach.
A title no one had ever climbed.
There was no guarantee that it could happen in the future either.
Grand Sword Master.
It was the moment when the sword of the old man finally cut through the black sphere.
Woong!
Khun’s expression hardened.
Not because the opponent’s life was at stake. Although alive, he knew he would be the first to fall instead of Carl.
As long as he moved and ended this, he thought the problem at hand would be solved.
But it wasn’t possible.
A priest and a clown approached in pitch darkness.
And the old man looked at the priest with a disappointed expression.
‘The black wolf which I thought was driven out and disappeared…’
‘It has come back…as a greater evil.’
