Turning-Chapter 837

“It’ll take a while to explain, but I’ll tell you on the way as we go join the others.”

Without hesitation, Kishiar strode ahead through the darkness. Yuder kept pace at his side, listening to him speak.

“At first, the only issue was drawing Naham out—otherwise, it wasn’t particularly difficult. He’s sharp enough that, the moment we came face to face, he nearly figured out the entire situation on his own.”

Unlike Yuder, who had immediately charged the Sage’s Awakeners and subdued them, Kishiar’s side hadn’t jumped straight into combat. First, because those who followed Naham weren’t like the brainwashed—they still retained their instincts and reason. And second...

‘Wasn’t the Cavalry working with the Sage to capture us?’

Because Naham’s ability to assess the situation had outpaced even the Sage’s.

‘Hmm. Who knows?’

Kishiar hadn’t given a clear answer, but even that was enough for Naham to piece together most of the truth.

‘I see. So that list of collaborators was bait meant to trap all of us from the start.’

‘I want to make one thing clear before you assume bait means lies. There were people who really did help us. People you likely know very well.’

Just from that, Naham would immediately know who they were. They were the very comrades he had abandoned.

But the others present had no such understanding. Confused by words they couldn’t make sense of, they turned to Naham.

‘...What’s he saying? Bait? People he knows well?’

‘Wasn’t it the Sage’s side... or rather, the Sage who did that?’

‘Who could Naham possibly know that would cooperate with the Cavalry? All those taken by the Cavalry were supposed to be—!’

Until now, they had stood together as one, placing absolute trust in Naham.

But they were also the ones who had, at least once, worried deeply about the fate of the comrades captured by the Cavalry. Were they truly dead? Or imprisoned? What exactly had happened to them? They had wondered, but never found answers—only vague rumors of death that they eventually accepted as truth.

But what if that wasn’t the case?

Kishiar’s single statement was like a stone thrown into the still waters of those buried doubts. No matter how small the stone, the ripple it caused would spread far and deep.

This ripple alone wouldn’t immediately turn the tide—but Kishiar had determined that if he wanted to break through Naham, this was the first string that needed pulling.

‘Everything the Sage did—misusing his powers—has already been confirmed by the Cavalry. Soon, he’ll pay for it at the hands of my aide. And the same goes for you, Naham.’

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‘Pay for what?’

Naham tilted his head, repeating the words back.

‘My crimes, huh...? And what would those be? The crime of surviving alone? The crime of fighting for my suffering brothers and sisters? Ah. Maybe it was the crime of clearing out the trash and filth that had no place in this world?’

As he spoke, his expression quickly went blank. His voice sped up, and the rage and madness he had been suppressing began to surface once again.

‘You pampered royal bastard—don’t act so righteous, Commander of the Cavalry. What right do you have to determine the cost of pain and punish me for it? Does the Emperor grant you that right? So if you do the same things, it’s just and noble, but if we do it, it’s a crime? Is that the noble Cavalry’s idea of protecting Awakeners? That we don’t even deserve revenge?’

Emotions were contagious. And Naham had a natural talent for infecting others with his sense of vengeance.

‘No. The right to vengeance is something I decide for myself. I have no intention of playing by your rules. We will fight and take revenge on those who trampled us down—until the very end. That’s why we’re here!’

‘Naham...!’

The seething fury in his voice stirred all the Awakeners at once. Their eyes trembled, and in the same moment, Naham released his grip on Diemon’s collar and activated his ability.

‘Strike the moment an opening appears!’

The blood he’d been holding back surged up and spilled from his mouth in a painful cough—but he didn’t care. Naham knew his power well.

His illusion ability worked by casting a range-defined area, and only he knew exactly where it began and ended. One might break it from the inside, but avoiding it entirely was impossible.

Even Kishiar la Orr, when they had clashed in the West, had shown an opening before that power. Kishiar had managed to break the illusion and sever one of Naham’s arms, but it seemed that victory had made him overconfident. This time, Naham would not be caught off guard.

He knew exactly what kind of illusion had surfaced from Kishiar’s fear back then. Surprisingly, the figure that haunted Kishiar’s deepest fear had taken the form of Yuder Aile—the very one now facing the Sage behind them.

So this time, instead of letting the illusion conjure up something on its own, Naham intended to use the image of that Yuder Aile directly—to bind Kishiar down, if only for a moment.

But...

The Awakeners’ attacks rushed toward the frozen Kishiar on instinct—but they didn’t land. Instead, they were blocked by the brilliant blue energy radiating from a single sword. Gasps echoed all around.

‘A... a Swordmaster?’

‘...How?’

Naham stared at the man, eyes wide. Kishiar was within the range of his illusion power—yet he stood there, eyes open, completely unfazed, holding off the Awakeners with ease.

The power was functioning properly. But Kishiar moved as if no illusion touched him at all.

Caught off guard, Naham stood speechless for a moment—something rare for him. Kishiar, meanwhile, simply smiled.

‘Well, how do you think I did it? Want to guess?’

Even as he spoke, countless attacks flew at him—each one harmlessly deflected or brushed aside by the shimmering blade.

Naham’s gaze sharpened.

‘That aura could be a trick. Don’t be fooled by appearances!’

The Awakeners hadn’t yet heard the rumors that Duke Peleta had become a new Swordmaster, and tried to rationalize what they were seeing in the most familiar way.

They couldn’t stop an attack already in motion. Inflamed by Naham’s fury, they unleashed their powers with all their might. Diemon, injured in the arm, couldn’t join in—he writhed on the ground, screaming.

Kishiar barely moved, deliberately showing Naham that he was focusing only on defense. Not a single attack made it past him—none reached the place where Yuder and the Sage stood.

It was as if his very presence had become a towering wall.

In Naham’s rage-filled eyes, blood vessels burst. Gritting his teeth, he forced even more power into his illusion. The air around Kishiar trembled violently, warping with a wild spectrum of color.

‘That...!’

The overlapping illusions—meant to show Kishiar his greatest fear—had built up to the point where they now affected the entire space.

Everyone present was overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the power. In that moment, a clot of blood exploded from Naham’s lips.

‘Naham!’

‘Don’t look this way—keep attacking! Get past the Commander no matter what!’

The Awakeners, heeding Naham’s cries, launched attacks into the distorted air surrounding Kishiar. Some tried to slip past and reach ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) where the Sage and Yuder were.

But the moment one of them tried to cross the line where Kishiar stood—

The blue-tinted edge of the sword pierced through the distorted air, tearing it like paper.

‘Aaaagh!’

A force, invisible but immense, exploded outward, slamming everyone in the area back. Naham tried to resist, but he was flung backward, blood spraying from his mouth as he hit the ground hard.

‘Gah...’

‘Commander!’

From a distance, two waiting Cavalry members ran toward Kishiar.

Exposed now that the illusion had shattered, Kishiar stood calm and composed, looking entirely unscathed. His ceremonial uniform had taken some damage, but that was all.

Not a drop of blood marred his pale face. He stood like a mountain. One of the Awakeners muttered in awe:

‘What... what was that just now...?’

That power—it was unlike anything they had ever seen. Far beyond what could be explained by mere swordsmanship, it was an overwhelming, awe-inspiring force.

And Naham finally realized.

‘So he wasn’t just a swordsman pretending to be a Swordmaster... That was...’

That was the true Awakener power possessed by the Cavalry Commander, Kishiar la Orr.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

“...So the reason Naham’s illusion didn’t affect you—was it because of that power?”

At Yuder’s question, Kishiar gave a light nod.

“That’s right. I used the repelling force.”

“How exactly did you do that?”

Yuder couldn’t help asking—he was too curious. Fortunately, Kishiar was happy to explain.

“I already knew his illusion only worked within a set range. If you know when and where it’s going to be used, it’s possible to prepare on this end.”

“So... the reason you didn’t move at all was to make sure Naham would target only your exact position?”

“Exactly. If he had constantly shifted his range, I probably wouldn’t have been able to block it all.”

Kishiar said he had been thinking about that method ever since their first encounter with Naham. Though it was the first time he’d used it in live combat, it had worked well—he murmured as much, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

“In fact, I realized I could apply my power even to things I couldn’t see—thanks to you. If not for that, I’d probably still only be using it on visible things.”