No one had the ability to excel at something from the start.
This was something that had nothing to do with their talent.
Although there is a difference in the speed at which a bandit, a criminal, and a genius accumulate their know-how, their starting from 0 is no different.
But Airn was different. At the age of 15, through the dream of his previous life, which came to him like a sorcery trick, he possessed an energy that he couldn’t handle before he even touched a sword.
‘It was great luck.’
Things weren’t always good, however.
The energy of iron that he had built for decades in his previous life gave Airn the will to use a sword. Because of that, he was able to grow his body and his skills much faster than others and learn swordsmanship.
Aura also built up quickly in his body. It was at a speed that people couldn’t understand. However, that too was because of Karen Winker’s will and not his own.
He had to go on a long journey to deal with the heavy, crude, and gigantic energy within him.
A journey to find a flame to refine the metal in his body into a form that he could handle.
‘But, even after finding fire, it didn’t end.’
Right. The fire was just a passing point, not an end. The flame, sparked by Ilya Lindsay and ignited by Ignet, spread out of control.
In order to control that, Airn had to learn the Sword of Water.
He couldn’t stop even after achieving flowing water... something that surpassed the stagnant one.
Airn was no longer alone, he interacted with people, and a large land...an earth of his own that could handle the wide streams of water he produced was now needed.
Metal, fire, water, and earth.
And lastly, his straight and moral beliefs like the ‘tree’ which sprang up in his imaginary world.
The ‘Five Spirit Divine Technique’ which he knew about since his time in the estate to the concept he learned in Durkali, all of it was completed after 10 years.
… However, that wasn’t enough. Airn Pareira, who reunited with Ignet, felt it.
He came to the conclusion that he had to operate the energy in a different flow than he did in the past.
“Phew.”
‘I can do it!’
The blonde swordsman looked ahead.
Flame flew all around him. He looked at the bombardment of Aura beads which seemed like a disaster in itself, and felt the heat and sheer power that came with it.
He wasn’t scared.
But he didn’t move.
Rather than being scared and backing away, he saw this as a chance to grow. As he looked at her, different memories came to his mind.
Four years ago, he remembered the shock which came from meeting her for the first time. It also reminded him of the depth of the struggle he felt in the dungeon he faced two years ago and the resentment he felt a year back. The moment such a heart met with the Aura bead bombings, it caused even more explosions.
A roar resounded inside Airn.
Kwang!
That wasn’t the end.
A strong flame raged through Airn’s imaginary world. The raging flames were scorching the place.
Neither did it hurt nor was it painful.
If it had been the past, his body and mind would have taken damage from this, but Airn was different today.
To him, who had built a wide and stable land, the current flames were like a blessing.
Woong
The flame which was received by the earth turned into a stylish vessel. It was strong enough to handle anything.
Chhhh!
After earth came iron. Metal bloomed from the wide and deep cracks in the land. Airn’s heart didn’t falter like it did in the past.
Rather, it was as if he wanted more...like this attack was nothing.
Airn felt like someone was smiling at him.
Thinking of Karen Winker, he mumbled. The blonde man, with a smile on his face, concentrated on the next energy that was within him, water.
There was an unexpected change as soon as Airn did that. Drops of water formed in coincidence with the energy of metal.
It wasn’t just on the inside, but it was like that on the outside, too... in the audience.
From a distance, it began to flow violently, and even those who were watching it on the magic screen could feel it.
Kulkulkul!
Airn was puzzled, but that didn't mean that this was bad. This came with both disappointment and joy.
There were people who supported him. Among them, there were people who were in a special relationship with him.
The people of Krono Swordsmanship School that he spent time with. The merchants from the Alhad Mountain he had once walked through. The people who fought with him against the bandits in the orc territories.
The adventurers, including Ethan and Jarin, who were on their way to the Holy Kingdom with him.
In addition, he felt the sincerity of those with whom he was entangled with in small situations, and he smiled more deeply as he thought about it.
He had no intention of forgetting any of them. Just like when he embraced the flames of Ignet, Airn embraced the emotions he felt from everyone without spilling a single drop of their intentions.
The stream got wider and deeper turning into a river, and a tall tree stood in the center of it.
The giant tree that this blonde man had carefully nurtured achieved another growth.
“…!”
Immediately after, a strong energy that couldn't be compared to the energy before flew in. And it wasn’t an aura bead.
It was sharp and ferocious and seemed to want to split the world. It came crashing down in the shape of a half-moon crescent. It tried to rip through the space and bring Airn down.
But he wasn’t scared.
There was no need to panic after the effort he put in. He knew that this attack wasn’t going to break him down.
A golden energy shone from Airn as he felt confident in himself.
The aura on his greatsword increased along with it, and in the meantime, the five elements cycled and coexisted with each other. The energy continued to flow.
… Airn Pareira
...swung his sword.
Kwawakwang!
“….”
“…”
“…”
Duk! Duk!
Duk!
Wheing!
Silence befell the stadium again.
The Aura beads were like an active volcano. Ordinary people went speechless as they saw it, and the Masters were even more surprised. Everyone looked at the devastated stage without blinking.
He didn’t fall.
The golden light which came out from the dust was warm enough to touch the hearts of the people watching, and it still had the strength to it.
Before long, Airn Pareira, who was now visible to the audience, opened his mouth and clearly said,
“From now…”
Bump!
Pupupung!
He didn’t get to finish what he was saying.
More and more aura beads, which now looked more like spheres, came out of Ignet’s body. And they weren’t just flying at him randomly, but rather, were targeting some specific parts. This looked more lethal than any attack they had ever seen. Even the old Masters wouldn't dare to face it.
But Airn did.
He gently rotated his greatsword.
There was no Aura shield this time. It was similar to Inashio Karahan’s situation, but Airn was facing a much more powerful attack than him.
And if they crossed swords with each other head-on, it would be a huge thing.
But Airn focused on the flow.
As if he was circulating the five energies so that they could coexist, he simply focused on the flow. He focused on his own world and ignored everything else.
And the shards of aura which were coming in to crush him lost their strength.
His will to defeat his opponent with equal force neutralized the attack, and it was incorporated into the flow of Airn’s circle.
The stronger flame made the land hard again, and the metal shone brighter. As a result, even more, water formed and the trees grew bigger, and the flames increased.
Ignet smiled.
She had to admit it.
The present Airn Pareira was a completely different person compared to a week before. He was such a strong person and appeared in front of her.
… it was a lot faster than she thought.
‘… let’s focus.’
Ignet cleared her breath.
She didn’t learn the technique of five spirits. But she knew the basic principle.
Fire, earth, metal, water, and wood. It was a method that specialized in dealing with the five elements of the world from the Orcs' point of view.
On the one hand, it restored balance by suppressing excessive energy, and on the other hand, it encouraged weak energy to grow bigger. Most of its operating method catered towards harmony and circulation.
‘It is a lot different from what I thought. Is this the essence of that technique?’
She felt regret now. A year ago, when he was fighting powerful people to gain experience, she didn’t challenge the Great Warrior Karakum.
It wasn’t that she looked down on him, but because she believed in herself.
She still thought that she was stronger and that she wouldn’t be shaken by Airn’s monster-like appearance. She looked at him, who was still absorbing the shards of aura she deployed.
Then she came up with a plan to destroy his balance.
‘I need energy powerful enough to break the flow, energy so powerful that it cannot be controlled.’
In other words, she had to pour out a huge amount of energy to win.
As she thought that, she once again let the energy in her body flow freely and took a deep breath.
Wheik!
“U-Uh?”
“She is flying?”
The audience roared as they saw the sight in front of them. It was because the Black Knight Commander was soaring in the sky.
Only Ilya Lindsay, who wielded the power of wind, had shown something like this. But this surprise didn’t last long.
Since her display seemed natural.
As if it wasn’t unusual for the sun to float in the sky, the people went silent at the sight of Ignet rising up. And then they looked to the side.
“Phew.”
This time Airn couldn’t shake off the nervousness he felt.
But he endured it. He entrusted himself to the flow of coexistence and looked at the sun. His body radiated as bright as his opponent’s.
The audience couldn’t even look at the man who was glowing golden, and the magicians who saw that, began to sweat and put up the shields preemptively.
In the meantime, the paladins of the Holy Kingdom and the Masters moved to the bottom of the seating area.
Julius Hul and Ian looked at each other and nodded, and said,
“Just in case…”
“Let’s do this…”
In the meantime, the energy of the two swordsmen continued to grow.
The figure of Ignet Crescentia, who was floating high and perfectly, and the figure of Airn, who was on the ground and dazzling.
The elderly people felt their eyes strain as they watched the scene in front of them.
And after a while.
A clash came.
---!
A huge shock and noise rattled the entire arena.
Fortunately, no one was harmed. Magicians, priests, and even the Queen of Runtel added more power to the shield. An unfortunate accident wouldn’t happen since she was here.
The roar that the clash caused was blocked by the shield and was halved. The ears of the people watching still hurt, but not enough to cause pain.
However, the light that spread everywhere due to the clash couldn’t be blocked. Everyone turned their heads away, and people shut their eyes tightly.
“…”
“…”
“…”
There were no sounds or explosions after that.
Slowly the ray of light disappeared, and the dust cleared. The faces of the two were revealed. One was standing tall, and the other was unconscious in the arms of the victor.
Gulping, Jet Frost managed to open his mouth.
The name of the winner of the Warrior’s Festival was said in a low voice.
