The 9th Class Swordmaster: Blade of Truth-Chapter 378: Final Battle (9)

Whiiiiiing...

As Olivurn’s protective barrier shattered, the remnants of its mana dispersed, streaming as particles of light into the book held by Karyl. For a brief moment, the old tome seemed almost alive, a faint glow of energy pulsing through it.

Crack... Crackle...

The chill of the Freezing Talon seeped into Olivurn’s chest, freezing the area around his heart. Karyl didn’t remove the blade; instead, he gently laid Olivurn on the ground.

“You... You fucking...!!”

Belin Vallention’s voice shook with rage as he looked at the fallen emperor.

“Don’t interfere,” Karyl warned, turning his gaze toward him and exhaling slowly. “Sir Belin, you of all people should understand that this is no longer a battle bound by human limitations. The war between the empire and our free nation has already concluded.”

Silence fell over the hall.

Karyl had delivered his warning not as an arrogant victor, but rather with the solemn awareness that his struggle had transcended the realm of men. For him, Olivurn’s death merely meant crossing the threshold toward something far greater.

“We have yet to reach the final resolution,” he continued, directing everyone’s gaze toward Narh Di Maug, who stood silently among them.

“I see...” Narh Di Maug glanced at the book in Karyl’s hand with the faintest hint of amusement. “You’ve managed to defy my expectations yet again, human. The potential of your kind... It never fails to astonish. But tell me, Karyl, how did you come into possession of Polsetia?”

There was a hint of admiration in his tone, and he seemed rather indifferent toward Olivurn, as though the emperor had merely been a tool that had served its purpose.

“Potential? Even now, you’re still spouting nonsense about that,” Karyl murmured, furrowing his brow. “You must’ve considered countless possibilities, yet somehow you’ve never thought of humans surpassing you.”

Narh Di Maug’s eyes widened in apparent surprise.

“Hah... fascinating. So you’ll surpass me with Polsetia, is that it? You know as well as I do that swordsmanship and mana, even if fused together, will fall short of defeating me.”

His tone softened, his words laced with mockery. “After all, I considered Polsetia long before you, and I discarded it for a good reason. You cannot sustain the amount of mana it consumes, not even with your so-called draconic strength.”

“True. As you say, this book contains magic of incredible complexity,” Karyl replied, his gaze steady. “If it weren’t for the knowledge I inherited from Allen, I might not have been able to make sense of it.”

“Then perhaps you should be grateful.” Narh Di Maug laughed. “It’s only because Allen fell that you could inherit his knowledge.”

“Enough of this nonsense!” Allen’s voice, raw with fury, resonated through the hall. Narh Di Maug shrugged dismissively, as if to say it was mere jest.

“Yes, Allen’s knowledge helped,” Karyl continued. “But the spells alone are not enough to finish you.”

“Oh? So what then?” Narh Di Maug raised an eyebrow, a bemused grin on his face.

“In the end, it’s the blade that will get the job done.”

Though the grin lingered on Narh Di Maug’s face, the nonchalance from earlier had vanished.

“How fortunate indeed that the very thing needed to sever your head is what I’m best at.”

Narh Di Maug looked at Karyl as though they were discussing some experiment he had been pursuing.

“You’re going to use Polsetia and wield a sword on top of that? You speak of something impossible—something that can’t even meet its basic prerequisites—as if it were the most natural thing in the world.”

Narh Di Maug then pointed at Allen, continuing in a cryptic voice, “To activate Polsetia, one must abandon their flesh. Are you prepared to discard your body and become a spirit like him?”

“Of course not. I need this body to grip my sword, so I can drive it into your neck,” Karyl responded, raising Lakna.

“I’m going to use Polsetia in a different way. After all, to meet the book’s demand for perfect mana, one must be without a body.”

“What are you talking about...?” Narh Di Maug frowned.

“A way to provide mana without a body.”

Karyl pointed to Narh Di Maug’s chest with his sword.

“That is to use your heart.”

“...”

“I’ll extract your heart to activate Polsetia.”

“Ha...” Narh Di Maug’s face twisted as though he had just heard the most absurd thing imaginable.

“Hahahahaha...!!”

He clutched his stomach, doubled over with laughter. Eventually he straightened himself and wiped away his tears.

“Aaah... I can’t remember the last time I had such a good laugh... That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. You’re going to use my heart to activate Polsetia?"

His words were marked with scorn.

“That doesn’t even make sense. You need both a sword and mana to kill me, but first you need to rip my heart out for Polsetia. Have you even thought this through?”

“I have. Not my problem that you don’t get it.”

With that, Karyl began walking slowly. After one final glance at Olivurn’s cold, lifeless body, he turned his gaze back to Narh Di Maug.

“To me, you’re no different from him. You’re just another gate I need to pass. I have a higher adversary to face.”

“You madman...”

“Before indulging your dragon pride in a conversation with me, you should’ve considered how I killed Olivurn.”

“...What?”

Clang!

Crash...! Boom...!

At that moment, a massive shadow loomed over Narh Di Maug. The sound of the colossal machine’s movement filled the air.

“Now...!!”

While Narh Di Maug was preoccupied with talking to Karyl, Wingel had leapt from the broken Revol and seized Ascalon.

Rumble...!!

Ascalon raised its massive sword overhead. Unlike when Karyl had controlled the golem, there was no Mana Blade this time. Still, the heavy blade—several meters long—tore through the air with an ear-splitting roar.

KABOOM!!!

The blade shattered the ground, though it had missed its target.

“So, this is all you came up with? This golem barely managed to defeat the puppet I created, and you thought it would be enough to kill me?

Crunch...!! Crack!!

Astonishingly, Narh Di Maug held the giant sword above his head, gripping it with both hands. As he squeezed, his fingers sank into the blade. Then, with a savage pull, he tore off a chunk—like a beast ripping flesh with its fangs.

“Come on, then.”

Narh Di Maug brushed off the remnants of the sword as he taunted Karyl.

Schwing...!! Sssshing!!!

Just then, Zigra’s dagger emerged from the shadows, its blade ready to dig into Narh Di Maug’s nape. However, Narh Di Maug didn’t even bother to turn around, as though he had sensed Zigra’s presence beforehand.

Clang!

Surprisingly, Zigra’s blade didn’t crumble to ashes this time. Instead, it clashed fiercely against Narh Di Maug’s barrier.

“...Agnel, huh?”

Narh Di Maug looked at the dagger in Zigra’s hand and muttered in a low voice.

“A good attempt, but giving that blade to an immigrant with no mana is casting pearls before swine.”

“Urgh...!!”

In the blink of an eye, Narh Di Maug had seized Zigra by the neck, giving him no chance to evade.

“Graaahh...!!”

Zarka Hochi lunged at Narh Di Maug and struck his wrist with all his might, forcing him to stumble back and fling Zigra into the air.

“Now...!!”

Kay Rothschild yanked on the puppet’s string as hard as she could. Zarka Hochi moved at lightning speed, surpassing his usual limits. He promptly snatched Zigra and fell back.

“Is this all?! What can you possibly do with such meager efforts?!”

With that, Narh Di Maug threw a powerful punch, shattering Ascalon’s joints and causing it to collapse on its face.

Whoosh—

At the same time, Narh Di Maug shot forward like a bullet and grabbed Zarka Hochi by the nape, slamming him to the ground.

“Urgh...!!”

“Aaahhh...!!”

Linked by strings, Kay Rothschild screamed as she was dragged down along with Zarka.

Crunch...! Snap!!!

Without hesitation, Narh Di Maug gripped Zarka Hochi’s head and twisted. A dull sound echoed briefly before he yanked the puppet’s head off entirely.

Drip... Drip...! Crack...!

The spine, stark white, was pulled out along with the head, looking so human-like that one could easily believe it was real bone.

“Graaaaaaaaah!!”

Zarka Hochi let out an agonized scream as his bones were forcefully ripped out.

Thud—

Narh Di Maug tossed the head irritably and began walking toward Kay Rothschild.

“What do you think you can do?”

As he pressed his foot on her ankle, her bone eventually broke with an audible crack.

“What can you do?”

Yet, despite the pain, she gritted her teeth and glared at him defiantly.

“You’ll see.”

“...What?”

“You’re so caught up in showing off that you’ve overlooked something, you smug little lizard. Don’t underestimate humans.”

Kay then spat on his face.

“...”

Narh Di Maug let out a low sigh as the spit trickled down his cheek.

“You little...!!”

He stomped hard on her broken ankle, his anger flaring up.

“Aaaaah!!!”

As Kay screamed, Narh Di Maug raised his hand to slap her across the face.

Crackle...!!

But his hand halted mid-air. Sensing a strange presence behind him, he turned his head.

“I did tell you not to let your guard down.”

“You think you’re any different? To the eyes of a predator, you’re no different from her.”

The Bracelet of Greed on Karyl’s wrist cracked and began to glow.

Clink...! Crack!!

At the same time, the four rings with red gemstones on his fingers shattered.

“Yes, I might be weak compared to you. But what you’ve overlooked isn’t me. It’s the trap I’ve laid.”

At that moment, an immense surge of mana, raging like a storm of sheer power, flowed into Polsetia.

“...!!!”

The Bracelet of Greed and the Four Canines—both were cursed items that drained the user’s mana. Naturally, within them was stored the dragon mana Karyl had accumulated.

Not even an artifact from the Magical Era held enough power to activate the grand grimoire from the Mythical Era.

However, Karyl possessed not one, but two artifacts. It was a narrow margin, but this amount of mana could—just barely—activate the fabled tome.

“Only one chance...” Karyl murmured, slightly tense from the overwhelming power that threatened to slip beyond his control. “This will suffice.”

Ssssss...!!

A blue serpent coiled up Karyl’s wrist, wrapping around Polsetia, and with its jaws wide open, it proceeded to consume the concentrated mana as if devouring prey.

“Whether it’s a mosquito or a dragon, in the end, they’re all the same. Creatures with life, nothing more.”

Shrrrrrk...!!

At that moment, Polsetia snapped open, a bright light bursting from its pages.

Fwoosh...! Woooong...

Dozens—if not hundreds—of magic circles manifested over the open grimoire, layered atop one another. Karyl reached his hand into the midst of the circles and managed to grip something.

It was the handle of a sword.